piazza del popolo during italy’s eurocup match against germany

the atmosphere was electric. fans were cheering and hooting at every italy offense and gasping in concert at every german counterattack. bottles were strewn all across the piazza and ubiquitous red/white/green flags were fluttering sky high. then, at the last few tense seconds, you could hear everyone count down, quattro, tre, due, uno…

and then it was a mess.

vuvuzuelas were sounded throughout the piazza, along with smoke-spewing sparklers thrown in for the good measure. people close to the fountain started frolicking in the fountain and there were hugs galore. ignorant bystanders might have thought this was some massive riot of some sorts. and indeed it looked it one.

but it was truly a night to remember eh? feels nice to be in the winning country watching a winning watch.

that night, the cheers of “viva italia!” never seemed louder or more resonant in my mind.