Remember this?

I sure do. It was the first and (for the moment) last time Spain won the World Cup. And while I don’t actually follow football, I like getting involved in the important matches like this (fair weather fan). So I was looking for a bar to watch the final this Sunday, just like I did in 2010, because it really was a lot of fun to go out and meet up with friends and neighbours, and share the experience. But it turns out nobody is doing it this time. Now that the centre of Sevilla is devoid of neighbours ☹️

Last time bars everywhere were bringing TVs from home and setting them up inside or out in the street. Now it seems there are just a few corporate “sports bar” types showing the games or setting up giant screens somewhere. Shame. Times have changed. My friend Grace kindly invited me over but, while I would have made the effort to go out at 9 pm to be in a cosy neighbourhood bar trying to recapture that last experience, it just hurts too much these days and frankly I can’t remember the last time I went out at that time of night.

So I shall be watching the game from home, comfy in my PJs, some wine and snacks on hand. How about you?