At first it appeared that the supporters of Braga were taking their team's defeat in good taste. 
They seemed to be celebrating the runners up position. At traffic lights, cars honked in unison. Bannered and painted faces popped out of their windows waving at passers-by. By and by the disappointment started to bubble out here and there. Small troops of policemen patrolled the streets in vigilance, occasionally a traffic post was set ablaze, there were sudden movements of the people and the police to a street corner. And then, there was the disturbing sight of a dead eagle, floating in the town’s pool- the official mascot of Benefica.
4.
Ivo says that Portuguese passion for football has a lot to do with Salazar. In a dictatorship
that extended over 30 years Salazar actively promoted the game as a means to augment nationalistic feelings and as a channel to vent away the discontent. There was a time when his picture hung over every classroom in Portuguese schools, his gaze over each young boy and girl. Salazar’s scheme also involved the creation of a narrative of pride- pride in Portugal’s ocean exploits, pride in her colonial past- grounded on the ideology of the Catholic Church. The irritating glow in the eyes of many of the middle aged as they speak of Goa or Daman and Diu is a testimony to the success of his stratagem. Incidentally, it was from Braga that Salazar gave his speech that launched the 1926 coup throwing Portugal into decades of dictatorship.
5.
Back in Balver, a theatre group was performing. The show was on the absurdity and vility of the witch hunts of the Catholic Church.
The plot was simple, the performance passionate. A few musical instruments set the mood in. For some reason the first thing I recall of the performance is the clear black eyes and set face of the tall guitarist.
Ironically, the play was staged on the front yard of the town’s church. And if I extend what I know of Mação, the town’s life must be regulated by those very church bells. How then would they respond to such a display? But the crowd seem to take the performance in good spirit. They gasped and laughed and sighed at the right moments.
The television screen of the Brazilian bar was now telecasting the funeral of one of the greatest literary figure that Portugal has ever known. Saramago had a major political role in the Carnation Revolution of 1974 that finally put an end to the Salazar regime. Responding to the mounting pressure from the Catholic Church following the publication of his Gospel According to Jesus Christ, the Portuguese government excluded the novel from its official entry for a literary prize. In 1992, following the event Saramago went into a self- imposed exile.
The state of Portugal was quick to join its grief along with that of the readers. Often we are left to marvel at the contradictions at display! Ivo talked of the contradiction of a population that that would die for football but refuse to react to almost anything else. I should admit that the excessive passivity of the population to the economic crisis that is gripping their nation is disturbing. But I like to think that till when a people can come out in unison, even when it i sjust to cheer their team, or watch a play, or to show of affection for their dead writer, there still is hope.
They seemed to be celebrating the runners up position. At traffic lights, cars honked in unison. Bannered and painted faces popped out of their windows waving at passers-by. By and by the disappointment started to bubble out here and there. Small troops of policemen patrolled the streets in vigilance, occasionally a traffic post was set ablaze, there were sudden movements of the people and the police to a street corner. And then, there was the disturbing sight of a dead eagle, floating in the town’s pool- the official mascot of Benefica.4.
Ivo says that Portuguese passion for football has a lot to do with Salazar. In a dictatorship
that extended over 30 years Salazar actively promoted the game as a means to augment nationalistic feelings and as a channel to vent away the discontent. There was a time when his picture hung over every classroom in Portuguese schools, his gaze over each young boy and girl. Salazar’s scheme also involved the creation of a narrative of pride- pride in Portugal’s ocean exploits, pride in her colonial past- grounded on the ideology of the Catholic Church. The irritating glow in the eyes of many of the middle aged as they speak of Goa or Daman and Diu is a testimony to the success of his stratagem. Incidentally, it was from Braga that Salazar gave his speech that launched the 1926 coup throwing Portugal into decades of dictatorship.5.
Back in Balver, a theatre group was performing. The show was on the absurdity and vility of the witch hunts of the Catholic Church.
The plot was simple, the performance passionate. A few musical instruments set the mood in. For some reason the first thing I recall of the performance is the clear black eyes and set face of the tall guitarist.Ironically, the play was staged on the front yard of the town’s church. And if I extend what I know of Mação, the town’s life must be regulated by those very church bells. How then would they respond to such a display? But the crowd seem to take the performance in good spirit. They gasped and laughed and sighed at the right moments.
The television screen of the Brazilian bar was now telecasting the funeral of one of the greatest literary figure that Portugal has ever known. Saramago had a major political role in the Carnation Revolution of 1974 that finally put an end to the Salazar regime. Responding to the mounting pressure from the Catholic Church following the publication of his Gospel According to Jesus Christ, the Portuguese government excluded the novel from its official entry for a literary prize. In 1992, following the event Saramago went into a self- imposed exile.
The state of Portugal was quick to join its grief along with that of the readers. Often we are left to marvel at the contradictions at display! Ivo talked of the contradiction of a population that that would die for football but refuse to react to almost anything else. I should admit that the excessive passivity of the population to the economic crisis that is gripping their nation is disturbing. But I like to think that till when a people can come out in unison, even when it i sjust to cheer their team, or watch a play, or to show of affection for their dead writer, there still is hope.
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