Football and Holidays

Saturday night was the final of the 19th Gulf Football championships here in Muscat. Oman had qualified for the final again after losing in the final the last two tournaments. They have never won the tournament. It is interesting to see how a country where they don't drink celebrates their big sporting successes. We witnessed it during the last tournament when they went crazy even though they finished second and they did it on a larger scale Wednesday night when they won their semi-final match. They take to the streets in their decorated cars and drive around very slowly on every road, honking, blowing whistles and hanging out of their cars waving flags. They ride on top of the cars, hang out open doors and wander around the roads. The police stand on the side and watch silently. We got caught up in it out of ignorance two years ago and this past Wednesday because we were on our way to the airport to pick up friends coming in to visit from Australia. The highway was almost at a standstill with the celebrations. Women in their black abayas were wondering down the median of the main highway waving large Omani flags.

Knowing this we chose to stay close to home for dinner on Saturday, the night of the finals. We walked over to Kargeens, a local hangout near our house. The outdoor coffee shop next door and the inside of the restaurant were packed with fans cheering on the large screens. After 90 minutes of scoreless play and another 30 minutes of no score they went to penalties. Each side made their first five penalties and on the sixth one the Saudi player just missed the post and Oman scored theirs which set off celebrations like no other. Fortunately we only had to walk home, but had to shut the windows as the honking went on all night.

Somehow we missed the announcement that the next day had been proclaimed a holiday. (It is still good to be Sultan!) We are still not sure how you would have found out. We finally learned at 0800 the next morning when we took Alex to school only to discover there was no school as it was a holiday. While it was a tournament for only eight teams, it is the biggest moment in Omani sporting history. It is interesting to realize that football fans are all just as crazy anywhere in the world. Several days later the flags are still being waved, the scarves are still around the necks, and the honking can still be heard at times.