Aussie Aussie Aussie!

Oi Oi Oi!

Well, that was a very fun, but slightly awkward experience! I just spent the evening in a sports bar with 100 or so screaming Japanese soccer fans, while we beat them! Doh!

I went with 3 Japanese women, one British chic, and we sat next to and chatted with another Japanese woman and her Spanish friend. (We were the only 3 foreigners in the room, and they were both cheering for Japan, as any sensible person in that situation would do.) I had an awesome time, chatting away, watching the soccer on the big screen, clapping along to the Japanese cheers. It was all fun and games, until, suddenly, Australia started kicking goals!

Tell me, what are you supposed to do in such a situation? With the national broadcasting TV camera right in my face to catch my response, I bravely called out "Aussie Aussie Aussie!", and responded with my own "Oi Oi Oi!", repeating the process for each of the 3 goals. It just isn't the same with only one person doing it!! It seemed inappropriate not to cheer exuberantly when my country won, but at the same time, when you're the only one in a foreign country, you don't exactly want to rub their faces in it, eh? (And I did wanna make it out of there unscathed!)

After, of course, they wanted my response. My Japanese is so bad, I didn't know what to say. I was all prepared to lose, and only had my response of 'Omodetto Gozaimasu! Tanoshikata desu!' ready. (Congratulations! That was fun!) I sputtered out something like, 'I'm happy, it was fun, your goalie was really good.' I'll have to watch the news tomorrow to see if I made it on there, or if there were some more eloquent Aussies somewhere in the prefecture that will get the special spot.

But anyway, we won, and I had a great time. Sport is so much more fun if you watch it in a huge group with heaps of people who are really enthusiastic!

Great game, Japan, and awesome cheering, fans! Thanks for graciously allowing me to join you, and applauding my victory cheer rather than hurting me!