Day Fifteen: World Cup Fever Part Two (27 June)
on From Banglatown to Bangladesh (Bangladesh), 14/Jul/2010 03:36, 34 days ago
England versus Germany. The big match, dominating the British newspapers I read online, and Facebook status updates from friends at home. In Bangladesh however, the absence of Brazil and Argentina, the most popular teams, means that this game received only brief mentions in the World Cup-related discussions dwarfing conversations in my office right now.This is perhaps the first year I have actively supported the English football team. Normally, my hopes go on the USA: my first country, where I played‘soccer’ for years, and still most definitely an underdog in international terms. With the States out the night before however, it was England I was following. Absence most definitely makes the heart grow fonder.And fortunately, a friend agreed to share my support for England. What started with two spectators, ended with many. Five friends from the office, two of their wives, and two of their children, all piled up on the bed and bedside table, discussing the players, the tactics, the refereeing, and, of course, the off-side rule. An agreement was made between myself and one colleague, a Germany supporter, that the winning side would organise a party to celebrate their victory.We all know how the game ended. My victorious friend promised me‘misti’ (sweets), and others teased me about my second country’s defeat. My two countries had both started in the World Cup, and both had now finished.As before however, it’s the crowd that made this a positive. And the fact that I was able to watch it all.Because, it seems that Power Board controlling Khagrachari’s electricity supply also seem to be football fans. The comings and goings of power here are generally not predictable in the slightest. ‘Current’ can go at anytime, for minutes, hours and sometimes days: disrupting work, cooking, water supplies, exercise (the latter is just not possibly without the whirring of ceiling fans), and prompting scramblings for candles, matches, torches in the darkness. Waiting for current to return is a common pastime.The last few days have seen the emergence of a strangely standard schedule however. While the sporadic nature of electricity continues by day, a common pattern has emerged in the evenings. A long power cut, right up to the beginning of match. A ten-minute blackout during half-time. And another, indefinite power cut at the end of the game. Consistency amongst the inconsistency, and one which allowed me to view England lose in full, with only the briefest of blackouts disrupting the game itself.Thank you, Power Board, for getting your priorities right.