Markelle the Greek

In a new country, people encounter situations in which they feel accepted or misunderstood. The day I felt the most Greek was at the Panathinaikos vs. Doxa Dramas futbol game. As I have mentioned I am a huge sports fan. I love to watch just about any athletic events and I am a health and fitness major. Sports have become such a big part of my life in the past years, so I made it my goal (pun!) to see a European match. I begged Dr. Finitsis to make a plan and I rounded up a group who wanted to come along. I hopped on the subway for a 40 minute ride to Olympic Stadium with Andrew, Zach, Jessica, Maddie and Katie. We scored cheap tickets for only ten euro next to the huge crowd of hardcore, chanting fans. When I say hardcore I mean chanting, non-stop for the entire game, playing the drums, shooting off flares, and even cheering shirtless with the emblem tattooed on their back in 30 degree weather. The stadium was immense since it was the 2004 Olympic Arena but it was pretty empty since it was a wednesday. If I closed my eyes though, I couldn't tell the difference. The game was pretty laid back since it wasn't a very important game. The players on Doxa Dramas were kinda wimpy and were on the ground a lot and the crowd started getting a little rowdy because of the scoreless match. We were all cheering along with the crowd and pretending we knew the words to the chants. The only confusing thing was that instead of booing, Greeks whistle when they aren't happy with a call. I felt really at home and accepted here because everyone cheers and sneers at the same things in sports. I understood and I could participate. As the game was winding down and the time was stacking up, we started losing hope in a goal. In the 88th minute of the game, Panathinaikos headed down the field and scored. We did not expect what was going to happen next but the whole stadium erupted, literally. Flares were lit and the sea of fans looked like they were on fire and all the men ran down all the stairs. They probably would have been on the field if it weren't for the 25 security guards. They were throwing water bottles and drinks from the second story and waving all of their flags high. We were cheering right there with them, spilling our drinks and waving our new scarves above our heads. The game has been my favorite night in Greece so far because I felt accepted, at home, and I knew exactly how to participate.