I'm in Flamengo Nation Now

So this week in Niteroi has consisted of rain and sunshine, English and Portuguese, Bible classes, Portuguese classes, Let's Start Talking groups coming and going, a wedding, a birthday, a party, two small groups, two church services, two 2-hour naps, a lot of walking, pamphleting, planning, playing, and of course.. the Fourth of July! Wheeww.. after a week of all that, it was nice to sit down, have some hamburgers, and listen to American music for the Fourth of July. Even though it is about 65 degrees and raining here, it was nice to have a few hours deticated to 'The Land of the Free' and 'The Home of the Brave.' But it also got me thinking about something else.. stereotypes.

I have had some very interesting conversations here in the last month about what Americans think of Brazilians, and what Brazilians think about Americans. I have answered some crazy questions about culture, religion, and preferance. Apparently and sadly, a lot of what Brazilians think of Americans (and Texans for that matter) comes from what they see in American films and TV shows. And from what I know about Americans, most of them just think Brazil is one huge jungle with a beach everywhere where everyone dances and plays crazy amounts of soccer. While neither of these stereotypes hold true (in fact they are way different in reality) there is something oddly true about them. Although not all Texans wear cowboy hats, ride horses, and shoot guns, most peopleI know in Texas have guns and like to hunt. In the same way, although not all Brazilains play crazy amounts of soccer, dance, or live by a jungle or beach, they ALL have a team the yell for.

Just withen the month that I have been here, I have been bombarded with information about Brazilian soccer, and in some cases been forced to pick a team. I have somehow weasled my way out of those encounters teamless. But now is the time! Instead of just confidently picking a team myself, I am going to have you, the readers, (probably just you, mom and dad) pick a team for me. This is a big decision and it should NOT be taken lightly. That is why I am setting up an Google survey to decide which team I will devote my passion towards for the rest of my years. But first.. I am going to give just a quick overview of the eight teams around the areas I have been (Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo).

Flamengo: This team in Rio claims to have the most fans in the nation (over 30 million). A Flamengista told me this last week that if all the Flamengo fans left Brazil, they could start their own nation and have a bigger population than the countries of Peru and Venezuela! They have won the Brazilian Championship six times, and won their most recent two years ago. They just picked up Ronaldinho at the end of his career this year, and if there is a team like the Yankees, this is it.

Botafogo: This is another team from Rio that is in sixth place in the Brazilain soccer standings currently. Their mascot is a little boy peeing, and they have their own stadium, Enginhao (a great looking stadium at that). They have an older fan base because they were better a decade ago than they are now, but they are still doing pretty good these days as well.

Vasco: This is a team that has been on the rise lately. I've heard a rumor that a few years ago, they dropped down into the B League, but have been working up since then. They are in Rio as well, and have somewhat of a rival with Flamengo.

Fluminense: This team consists of an interesting fan base. They also have long traditional rival with
Flamengo, and they won the Brazilian Championship just last year. The only Fluminense that I know is Bryan Gibbs.

Sao Paulo: Sao Paulo, although not having a more followers than Corithians, are still a pretty rough crowd. They were number one in the rankings last night, but Flamengo beat them 1-0. Now they are third.

Corinthians: This team has the biggest fan base in Sao Paulo, and won the Championship 3 years ago. They take pride in having Ronaldo, even though he is retiring this year, and are in my opinion the craziest fans out of the bunch. I know a lot of Corinthians in Itu, and if they see this survey is open, they will definitely get on and vote for their team.

Palmeiras: The Palmeiras definitely have a smaller fan base than the other two Sao Paulo teams, and are often sort of considered to be the underdog that occasionally sneaks up in the standings. In the past, I have leaned more toward this team, but only because I like their colors.

Santos: The city of Sao Paulo does not claim this team, but Santos is only a few hours away.
They just won a big South American tournament about a month ago, and have a joung, up'n'coming star, Neymar (who is becomingpretty popular in Brazil). Historically, Pele played for this team before the U.S. bought him out, and he came there to play for a few years. Santos is a pretty respectable team, but is not doing great in the Brazil standings as of now.

So there it is. I have done all the research (probably most of it isn't credible), and all you need to do is click here to vote.