The Agony and the Ecstasy

Well, Brazil got the first goal in the World Cup - but an own goal - the agony! Poor Marcelo won't sleep too well for a while. But thank goodness, the team pulled themselves together and the first game is in the bag. Restrained ecstasy.

Couldn't resist ignoring the urgent jobs and sneaking downtown to Saara again, to buy Brazil shirts (and an England one - whoohoo - didn't expect to find that), wigs, hats and bunting. Surprise - with all the hundreds of people thronging the streets, bumped in to my friend Liza and her two children (she's hooked on Saara, but her son was limiting her to a 1/2 visit. I spent far longer, mostly buying stuff I could have got just round the corner from home. Worth it, just to enjoy the enthusiasm of people like the two in the photo.

A friend had gallantly offered to have bunch of us round to watch the game - all but one of us gringos, but all in our Brazil kit and chewing our nails in anxiety. Here's the youngest member of the party. It was a great afternoon.