Church Street, Orlando:

Party Venue of US 94.

 

Magun's Compass
Learn from the Travel Experiences of Others


Florida, the sunshine state, knows all about gold!

Golden oldies, golden tans, and golden prices for tickets, merchandise, and anything that moves.

Charters to Orlando are cheap, but then the money is meant to be spent.

Dutch fans are based here in something of an Orange Village, but the Irish, who have been made to travel the most: New York to Orlando, back to New York, and eventually to Orlando again for the Second Round, actually outnumber them. [Ireland 1 Mexico 2] is a sell out.

There are so many Irish fans without tickets that they fill the Irish Pub on Church Street to watch the match.

When [Belgium 1 Holland 0] is played the following day, there are considerably less Dutch fans in the bars watching their game.

Dutch Brass Band, with the smallest Irish fan. Copyright Michel Guntern
Copyright Michel Guntern

Because the Mexicans are still in town after their victory against the Irish, the bar has two televisions; one tuned to the Spanish (Univision) channel, and the other to the American. The American channel has bad picture quality, but the microphones are turned on the crowd to give an atmospheric feeling. On the Spanish broadcast, you can only hear the commentator, so you position yourself half way.

Orlando Police by bike.

Sunlight gives accent to colour, and most of the fans keep theirs on. There is little revealing of glorious body art, on skin the colour of lobster. Is it an awareness of the deeper damage of the sun without an ozone, or the lack of boozy Brits? It would be nice to think that English fans could have enjoyed the party without making ugly headlines! But would the police and other fans have let them?

In the evening the Irish and Dutch, together with a smaller number of Belgians, Mexicans and Americans, join together to make it an all-night, all-week, party extravaganza. The bars are full; people spill out onto the closed off street, and move from one venue to another; singing, waving flags, raising glasses, and having pictures taken together.

The two largest contingents of travelling fans party side by side until the early hours, under the moustaches of some bewildered police officers. There are some women officers with guns too, although they do not have so much hair on their upper lip. The police stand in pairs outside each bar, and subtly move among the merry-making fans. They are not in riot-gear, although they stand bravely, grinning broadly, with handguns o their hips.

Daily, until three in the morning, Church Street Market is full and roaring; "Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole..."

It is the Orlando Police,
who deserve the credit!

 

[Daytona Beach]

[Second Round]

US Index.

Nomadic Gatherings - Travels in Asia and Australia

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