Hala Madrid! Hala Madrid! Hala Madrid!

Last Sunday, I went to my first Real Madrid match and I loved every minute of it. I seriously have become a futbol fan. No more watching futbol solely for seeing hot sexy men. I actually enjoy watching it now. I understand the rules (even offside!) and I appreciate the sports so much more. One can't help but like futbol when you live here. La Liga is huge! And I guess it doesn't help that I live with two boys who are obsessed with the sport.

The Real Madrid match wasn't as insane as the Barcelona v Español match I saw in November. This was mainly because they played against Murcia, a team that is close to getting booted out of the First Division and moved to the Second Division (yikes!). Unfortunately, there were no flaming projectiles (damn!). But it didn't matter to me because it meant I could get cheap tickets for good seats and I could finally realize my dream of seeing my future husband up close and personal. By future husband I mean, Iker Casillas. (I will try and refrain from talking about him because I think he deserves a blog entry dedicated to him.)

This time around, I went to the game the Spanish way. In November, the boys and I didn't know much about Spanish futbol so we just went inside the stadium thinking we could get booze and food inside. But because alcohol is prohibited in the stadiums and food is expensive, we ended not having anything. This time, I went to the match with Iñaki, who of course have had his share of Real Madrid matches, so he definitely showed me how to do it right. Before the match, we went to a couple of bars and drank some beer. Before entering the stadium, we loaded up on kikos (fried corn), pipas (sunflower seeds), and their own version of trailer mix. Fortunately, the stadium allows you to bring food in.

It was also my first time in Santiago Bernabeu, the Real Madrid stadium. It was enormous and wonderful. It was so big that I felt a bit overwhelmed. Even if they were playing a bad team, the entire stadium was still full. You could hear everyone chanting and cheering and the never ending horn blowing (I hate whoever invented that damn thing). The game was super exciting. Not only did I get to see Casillas, but I also got to see Raul, one of the best players in La Liga, maybe even the world. The players were so close, I seriously could've touched them. Well, maybe not, but you know what I mean. In the end, Real Madrid won 1-0...woohoo!

Check out the photos and a video montage from the match. Also, if you're really interested, watch/listen to the youtube video of Real Madrid's Hymn.

Hala Madrid!!!

Real Madrid v Murcia