At the station
Citizens of Berlin move towards the “Olympia” stadium with colorful flags to watch the game.. In the train you can hear Brazilian, Ukrainian or German music, which mixes with the laughter of people..
Soccer fans gather at the station called Heershtrase and wait impatiently for the train to arrive. Heershtrase is the next to last station before reaching the “Olympia” stadium. As soon as the train arrives, fans “barge” in and…whoever is lucky gets a seat. Others try to handle the situation.
“So what, I’ll go walking. It’s not far, you never know, I might get there late,” says a citizen of Germany and Turk by nationality. He gets out of the station with the Brazilian flag in his hand and hears the crowd singing and clapping behind him.
In the city
Stores have been working longer hours ever since the world soccer cup began and the lines sometimes exceed the limit. I must mention the fact that stores in Germany usually work until eight in the evening and are closed on Sundays. The “Ulrich” store is the only store in the Tsoologisher Garteni part of the city working until 11:00 at night.
“People mainly buy alcohol,” says store clerk Gizela. She is so trained that she works at an extremely rapid pace-she takes the item, registers the price and puts it aside.
There is an increase in the number of people, as well as the number of drivers passing the “red light”. There are tents in the “Gedachtnis Kirche” (translated to “Church of Memory”) where the moving of people reminds me of the “Vernisage” in Yerevan. The music on the street always keeps you in a good mood. The smell of the Berlinian barbecued sausage “Curry Wurst” gets the passer-bys to move away from the television set. There’s a TV set in each cafe and everywhere you pass and there are that many police keeping an eye on things. You don’t have to follow up on the game to see which team scored a goal; you know a team scored a goal after hearing the wave of roars on the streets.
The city doesn’t sleep even late at night when the last game is over. Soccer fans wrap themselves with scarfs representing the colors of the flag, while others wear hats with the same colors and walk around the city. The wind blows the beer bottles left in the corners of the stations here and there without disturbing the slumber of the beggars.
At the hostel
If the food burns, it’s because of soccer. Georgian student Maga sits in her hostel room in Heershtrase and watches the soccer game. The Germany-Sweden game was really interesting and she didn’t want to miss out on a goal.
“I love soccer and have always rooted for Germany. I hope Germany will become world champion,” she says.
There’s a bunch of people at the Brandenburg gates. Nearly a million people are gathered around the television set near the gates. Everyone, including the Turks living in Berlin, are wearing the colors of the German flag and you can see German flags everywhere-hanging from windows, on cars, in cafes, stores.
The world soccer cup has completely changed students’ daily routine. They are all home at two because the game starts at three. The refrigerator is full, but it’s empty after the first half. Spanish student Abili’s room has a poster of the Spanish soccer team.
“I was amazed to see Spain beat Ukraine. They don’t usually play that well, but I’m happy. I’m really enjoying it,” he says.
Chinese Guanze always has guests. He and three of his friends always discuss the game.
“Not everyone likes soccer in China. But I love to watch it. I hope Argentina wins.”
Future engineer Len from Vietnam has stopped studying.
“I’m not going to study until the championship ends,” he says.
He collects signatures. He has purchased two balls and already has signatures of fifteen soccer players, including well-known soccer player Andrey Sheyevchenko and German soccer player Yurgen Klinsman.
“I want my grandchildren to see that I witnessed this terrific event,” he says with pride.
At the Brandenburg gates
“My grandmother doesn’t miss a game. She’s not a soccer fan. She simply hopes to see me on television and that’s why the world soccer cup is kind of personal for me,” says Ukrainian journalist Olga. She wraps herself in the Ukrainian flag, wears a yellow/blue decoration in her hair and paints her hands. She carefully paints two lines on her friends cheeks.
“I am from Russia, but I am a fan of the Ukrainian soccer team. They are my friends and I hope they will win,” says Yulia.
Thousands of soccer fans have gathered at the Brandenburg gates and are watching the games. There are students from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus. There are even people from the small Bonuka island of the Pacific Ocean who have come all the way to Germany to root for the Ukrainian team.
“The city is in celebration ever since the world cup started. Everything is fantastic, it’s well-organized just like it should be,” says Hrair Vanesyan, who studies English philology. Others also share Hrair’s opinion. Everyone present agrees with Hrair, including Heuat from Bonuka island, who studies “Environment Protection”.
“I’m really happy and it’s great to be here. Every day is like a holiday.”