I think some of you may have noticed the change in appearance to my blog. I'm trying to show my Orange coloured support for the Dutch team who are kicking some butt (!!) in the FIFA World Soccer Championship in South Africa (like I need to be telling any of you!?!).The streets are lined with orange streamers and flags are hanging outside of houses just like on Koninginnesdag. It is definitely a festive time as bars have opened their doors early to accommodate the schedule of the cup. People are wearing orange jerseys or shirts, hats, braids, Bavaria dresses (ooo, the scandal!) and any other piece of orange they can get their hands on. Although I've heard that donning blue, white and red is also okay, it's not done as frequently. Horns (that can be bought for quite cheap at the Bas and other grocery stores - all of which have stands with orange paraphernalia during this time) loud cheers and chants can be heard in the middle of the night.
The Netherlands beat Japan today in a solid 1-0 defeat and they will play again on the 24th (if I remember Cananon's schedule correctly) and will definitely make it through as one of the two teams that gets to go on from our first pool (again, if I'm remembering everything correctly).
Here are the two songs that I've learned as a good little Dutch soccer fan:
Hup, Holland, Hup, Laat de leeuw niet in zijn hepjes stand! Hup, Holland, Hup!
Hooray Holland Hooray! Let the lion not stand in his undershirt! Hooray Holland Hooray!
-note, the spelling of 'hepjes' might be wrong-
And this one:
Holland! (Clap, clap, clap) Holland! (Clap, clap, clap).
Ummm, you don't really need a translation for this do you?
-note, the spelling should be correct in this one but the clapping might be off timing-
Finally, not that I have to bring everything that I write on this blog back to my research but I did read an article today (given to me by Cananon - thank you!) concerning how the Dutch soccer strategy, called 'Total Football', is all about the use of space on the football field and how Dutch players are thought to think about football strategy in spatial ways. According to the author of the article, 'this came naturally' to the Dutch players because the Dutch have been playing around, creating, demolishing, and mastering space in their own country for so long.
Enough, I'm off to dye my hair orange and my eyebrows red, white and blue
yay!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked the article. I forget if I wrote down the author info for you or not though. If not, give me a shout.
I think it's also 'hempjes'... And, as weird as that seems, one of our fearless football chant teachers made the note that it's really about not letting the Dutch lion stand alone in the field and to support him! Hup Holland Hup!
hey... post a picture of your orange hair
ReplyDeleteyour aunt-in-law