Stjarnan FC fans bring the noise and show the Fram fans how it's done.

Want to make friends in a foreign country? All you need to do is embrace its sports, and you’re well on your way. I first learned this in Costa Rica when I became a Saprisista. And I continued the tradition during my latest trip. Hours after touching down at Keflavik International Airport in Iceland, I wound up next to a wild bunch of fans supporting Stjarnan F.C. (pronounce it as “startna,” pretty much), a team in the Úrvalsdeild (Icelandic premier league).

My wife and I had just introduced ourselves to another Icelandic tradition – lounging around in hot tubs. Afterward, we were walking along when I noticed a group of people outside a stadium.

Since there was a red-bearded guy wearing blue and white facepaint, I figured he would be the one to ask “Hey, what’s going on here?” So I did, and soon had the info that there was a Monday night match about to start. And he offered a free ticket, on one condition: “You must support Stjarnan!”

Who am I to argue with a bearded, face-painted dude wielding a 6-foot-tall staff topped with a skull? So support Stjarnan we did! I bought a second ticket for Sarah, and into the stadium we went.

As it turns out, Stjarnan only got promoted to the top division a few years ago. At gametime, they were ranked in the middle of the league table. Meanwhile, their opponents (and the hometeam … aiiiy!), Fram, were ranked first. But the Stjarnan fans provided most of the spirit on display in the mostly empty stadium, which is called Laugardalsvöllur. Organized cheers and songs from the Stjarnan faithful largely drowned out the Fram supporters, even in their own 10,000-seat grounds!

Even going down two goals did little to silence them. And they added more noise when a Fram player was sent off late in the game, allowing Stjarna to score a goal. They pressed for the equalizer as the clock ticked, but weren’t able to level the scoreline.

Still, I adopted Stjarnan as my Icelandic team. I searched all over the city on a wild goose chase for a Stjarnan shirt. Each store seemed to refer me to a different place, but I was completely out of luck. I wound up with an Icelandic national team shirt instead, but I still will try to find some way to get a Stjarnan shirt.

One thing that surprised me is that Icelanders are really into soccer, but they disdain their own premier league clubs, unfortunately. Instead, most seem to follow English teams – especially Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United.

I’ll admit there’s a gulf in quality – but I think everyone should show some pride for their hometown sports clubs. It doesn’t matter if they’re in the best league in the world, or the worst: Your home is your home, and you have to support the local teams! One thing I did really like is that the rivalry between fans was really friendly. They just wanted to cheer on their teams, not battle each other (unlike Saprissa and Alajuela down in Costa Rica, for instance).

Here’s a video – if you know any of these characters, pass it along to them and tell me who they are. I’d like to hear from any Stjarna fans. Your team has a fan here in the U.S.!

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Comments

• August 1, 2010, Noddy writes: Great blog - I totally agree that fans should support their local team first. Both Iceland and Norway have good leagues that are more affordable and interesting than english football with its overpaid hired mercenaries.
• August 1, 2010, admin writes: Thanks for your comment, Noddy. I'd definitely love to see Norway, too. And I'll be sure to get there during its league season! It's great to see other people seeing beyond the glitz and glamor of the popular teams and leagues.

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So how many times do you talk to people about traveling, and they’ll say “I wish I could go (fill in the blank”?

Well, if there’s ever a time to do that awesome trip, this is it. Oil is cheap. The economy sucks, which means that airlines are doing all sorts of stuff to get your butt in a seat. The economy is also making it tough for those who don’t have trust funds, but seriously: prioritize. Cancel your cable for a few months. Eat a bit less sushi. Get a cheaper cell phone. Put off buying that enormous flat-screen monitor. Drink less beer. Put that bike you never ride on Craigslist. Sell your plasma. Do whatever it takes and take advantage of a nice combination of a relatively strong dollar and cheap flights.

For instance, round trips from LA to Sydney on Qantas are about $750. That’s ludicrous, and it means you can’t afford NOT to go. You’ll come away with far more memories and stories than watching HBO, that’s for sure.

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I’m the youngest of three brothers. It’s pretty much a scientific fact that the middle brother is the odd duck of the bunch. Here’s one example why: He travels extensively for business, and takes a photo of each rental car he drives.

That wouldn’t be that odd if he didn’t obviously think other people share this fetish of his: He forced my wife and me to endure a complete slideshow of his rental cars. Though we fired off numerous wisecracks during the show that most people would take to mean “hey, I don’t think they’re into this,” he soldiered on with a grin on his face. Either that or he was just trying to torment us.

I’ve decided that my new travel ritual will be to photograph every toilet in every hotel room, hostel, hut and B & B, and then force him to enjoy a narrated slideshow.

This brings me to the true point of this post, though: Do any of you all have funny travel rituals?

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When I landed in Costa Rica back in 2003, I was pretty underprepared. This was my wife’s trip. She planned it and sweated the details. I packed my backpack (and actually remembered my underwear, for once), got on the plane and went along for the ride.

Unfortunately, this means I had little concept of the awesome soccer culture of Costa Rica. We woke up the day after our flight to a soccer mania that, we learned, would literally sweep the nation. We had little idea of this until we boarded a shuttle from San Jose to La Fortuna. As I got on the bus, I noticed that the driver, one of three employees on the bus, was decked out in purple: some sort of purple jersey, purplish jeans and even purple mirrored sunglasses.

As we drove off, I asked the older employee, who seemed to be the boss, what the deal was.

“Is for Saprissa, the football team. We are playing today against Alajuela, our rival. It is very big game,” he explained.

And wouldn’t you know it! Our route would take us straight through the heart of Alajuela, where fans of La Liga Alajuelense were parading up and down the streets in their striped jerseys. Our driver, apparently not one to let a sleeping dog lie, leered at, wagged his tongue at, gesticulated at and honked his horn at roving mobs of Alajuelense supporters. Everywhere we went, La Liga fans were boring holes in our bus with our eyes. And mind you, the match hadn’t even started yet!

The bus crew explained to me that Saprissa is the biggest team – which I took with a grain of salt, because every Leeds United fan in England will still insist that their team is “a massive club.” But Saprissa was apparently ahead on points, but La Liga had had their number for the past few seasons. A victory today would be a famous win for the ages.

We made a stop halfway to La Fortuna at a roadside market. And they sold soccer shirts, so I could get in the mania! They mostly had La Liga and Saprissa. I selected an extra large Saprisa knock-off jersey (really more like a large in U.S. sizes) and stepped up to the register.

“No, no!” the clerk objected, pointing at a La Liga shirt. “You have to support the local team!”

I insisted on the glowing purple Saprissa shirt, which set me back something like $17 … I can’t remember what that was in colones. Anyway, I came out of the store with my new Saprissa shirt, and the bus crew saw it. They start whooping, patting me on the back, shaking my hand and high-fiving until their arms were about to fall off. They also clued me in, saying the club’s nickname is El Monstruo, or The Monster. That Jarvis Drummond is a god. And all sorts of other things I can scarcely remember.

By the time we got to La Fortuna, the match had started. The bus crew wanted to drop everyone off quickly and get to a TV. The clerk at Las Colinas could barely tear himself away to check us in, but he was really friendly and wanted us to get to a TV to watch, too. We headed to a nearby restaurant for a helping of gallo pinto. There, they had a TV. And all of La Fortuna was urging Saprissa on. Televisions everywhere were blaring. The entire town cheered, groaned and gasped in unison.

By the time were left the restaurant, La Fortuna was in rapture: Saprissa battered La Liga 4-1, breaking the cross-town rival’s hold on the derby. The entire town was upbeat.

And here’s the funny thing: About that time, I noticed that my sunglasses were gone. They must’ve slipped off sometime in the bus. Which meant I’d have to grab a cheap pair of sunglasses somewhere … bummer, I really liked those Spys.

But the next day, Sarah and I were having a morning stroll. We heard a bus honking behind us. Behind the wheel was my purple-wearing friend, waving my Spys out the window. We exchanged more handshakes, and they were on their way back to San Jose. Think they would’ve done that had I bought a La Liga shirt?!

As we traveled through Costa Rica, a theme repeated itself: I would meet a resident, and we’d talk a bit. Inevitably, I’d ask if they supported Saprissa. And nearly to the word, they’d say “I am THE BIGGEST Saprissa fan!!!”

I only ran into on La Liga fan: She was employed at the airport by Costa Rica’s version of the TSA. As she was screening me, she noticed a flash of purple jersey under my long-sleeve Lost Dutchman Marathon shirt.

“Tu eres Saprissista?” she growled, raising an eyebrow. That’s when she pulled me out of the line, gave me a wink and proceeded with the full-service search.

Be careful where you wear your Saprissa shirt, kids …

Comments

• January 9, 2009, Spot Cool Stuff writes: Excellent, Justin! Your story brought me a smile.
• January 20, 2009, Loc2010 writes: You have to be kidding me... i love costa rica and the best team by far is la liga you have to be kidding me if you really like saprissa, ¡Usted es muy estúpido porque usted tiene gusto de saprissa! ¡lechón!
• January 21, 2009, wanderingjustin writes: Ha, ha! Now there's a real La Liga fan! What does lechon mean? I've never heard it. Something about milk?

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So I’m a bit curious about you, the readers! What is your favorite travel souvenir, aside from photos?

I go for jerseys/shirts from local sports teams. It started off as soccer, when I snagged a Deportivo Saprissa shirt down in Costa Rica. Then, I got skunked in Belize … couldn’t find any local soccer shirts there, though they have a league and a national team.

Down in Australia, I switched to rugby since that was their thing. In Canada, I wanted to find a Vancouver Whitecaps shirt, but no luck there … and I will never, ever where a Vancouver Canucks jersey unless it is the only clothing and I’m shivering naked on a glacier.

I’d say my uber-cool Wallabies shirts shown below is my all-time favorite. It says Qantas on it as a bonus, and it even looks cool when being worn while rockin’ out!

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