One minute of extra time to be played. 49,900 of the riotous fans inside the 50,000 stadium are willing Nacional to score. One goal to take the grand final of the Colombian league to penalties.
A couple of half chances come and go, as the crowd moan inconsolably. People are starting to leave, edging away from their seats, gazing back at the pitch nervously in hope, desperation.
(more…)
As a perfect Cuban send off I nearly missed my flight, despite arriving at the airport with about 4 hours to spare, only making it on to the plane with about 5 minutes to spare. Long story (not actually that long) but I got to Panama.
It’s raining, as we slide our way through the last couple of alleyways to the restaurant. I thought the rain would bring a welcome relief to the stifling heat, but it only proved to intensify the humidity, as beads of swear were replaced with sticky patches of rain.
Music echoes out faintly in the distance, bouncing the sound around the now damp and deserted streets. Almost everyone has taken shelter somewhere out of view, and an eerie silence descends on an otherwise usually bustling street of Old Havana.
When travelling, you learn to hate bank holidays. Things get busier, more expensive or shut down entirely. It is one of the only times you need to plan ahead, so my plan to get from Xela to Cancun in a few days over the Easter holiday was always going to be a bit of a pain.
We arrived in Xela around 10 minutes ago, and made our way to where you catch the collectivo taxis to the city centre. Three of us , all with big backpacks, trying to cram in to already overloaded transport.
As we wait, we become aware of something going on about 20 metres away, as one Guatemalan picks up a rock and starts walking towards another, who is twice his size.