The first week we were back at school we took 10 minutes out of one day to do a flag raising ceremony with the entire school. All of the students out in the front yard from pre-K to grade 12. This was one of the special events the school had planned in keeping with celebrating the bicentennial. They wanted as many of the students and staff dressed alike as possible and so asked us to wear the albiroja - the red and white striped jersey of the Paraguayan national football team. This is what I find amusing about the whole thing. Where else could you ask every student to wear a national team jersey and they would all have it? We had perhaps 10% of the students and staff not in the jersey, and some of those I know own it and just forgot. What does it say about a country that almost everyone in it, native or foreign, owns a version of the football jersey? Does it give you an idea of just how important football is in this country? I can't blame the Paraguayan department for making that call - after all almost everyone was sporting the red and white stripes as the flag went up.
No comments:
Post a Comment