GREETINGS FROM SOCCER-HYPED SOUTH AFRICA!!!
Although I am personally not a fanatical soccer/football supporter, I can't help but be pulled along with the tidal wave of excitement enveloping our country!
In a few months/weeks our nation will be hosting the
SOCCER WORLD CUP 2010
A cultural practice amongst soccer supporters in this country is to blow,
"en masse", a long, plastic horn called the ..
"VUVUZELA"
(Pronounced: Voo-voo-zeh-lah)
When a Soccer match is taking place, the stadium and its surroundings is abuzz with the sound of these 'musical' instruments. The best description I can give is:
It's like a convention of all the bees on our planet...
...all buzzing at the exact same time!...
There are many claims to what the word really means,
but more generally it means
"to pump up ones performance in a truly South African manner."
In my own neighbourhood, the sound of an isolated individual 'practicing' his/her Vuvuzela at 3am can be hugely irritating!
It is enough to turn a generally quiet person into a raging lunatic.
I will however admit that the sound itself, when combined with jubilant fans at an important event, can be very appealing to us who are hard of hearing.
Either way, the Vuvuzela is here to stay!
It will serve to pump up people's spirits in a true South African manner!
We are already practicing....are you!?...
We are already practicing....are you!?...
I believe there is a Vuvuzela Orchestra here too, where groups are gathered to play these instruments, in an orderly fashion...(huh?!)
I also have come to understand that one can purchase vuvuzelas which harmonise together..(mmm)?
As an experienced mother, I would highly recommend that you avoid the topic altogether with your children...
...that is..unless you are prepared to go "Sleepless in your Sanctuary"!
For a short, informatory video about the Vuvuzela take a look at
***THIS***
(It is most enlightening...although produced during the 2009 Confederations Cup)
Wishing us all a quiet and peaceful weekend
:)
8 comments:
What a very interesting post. We do so enjoy learning about your customs and traditions. Thank you for the vivid description of the sound of the horns!!!
Happy weekend,
Madi and Mom
I L♥VED this post! I MUST share - when I went to see the video, my kitty Rosemary was snoozing on my lap. Wow, did she wake up fast. Her ears perked and she began to watch the laptop screen in earnest.
I can honestly say that my grandsons would love to have one of those - but I'm not so sure about their parents.
Let's hope and pray the mongeese don't bring any of these things home with them after the tournament.
Fascinating! All this stuff is so new to me as an American--thanks so much for sharing it.
I wish I could hear the vuvuzela, sadly I can't listen to audio or watch videos on my internet....but they seem really interesting!
I've heard of those before, but I have a somewhat better understanding of them now! I would not want to be the parent stuck in car with a bunch of kids who had those things, I do know that!
Mom is just shaking her head, no no no, she will NOT get those for the grandbipeds. They have flutes and kazoos and harmonicas and guitars as it is. Get four of them going at one time and it is enough to drive one bonkers.
But at the games we are sure it must really add to the excitement of the match.
Happy Weekend.
Woos - Phantom, Thunder, and Ciara
Yet, another reason to be happy about not getting tickets. I don't know if this comes with (ahem)age of what, but I'm increasingly less prepared to put myself and my eardrums in the path of loud noise. Well, that's not totally the truth, when it comes to Tennessee football I am a freak!!! Otherwise, though, I'm happy to be in my environment. :O)
Thanks, Maxmom, for educating my mom and me on that Most Noisy instrument! Mom likes saying the name of it and thinks it might be a good name for a cat. BOL! Our cat, Ripley, sounds a lot like a vuvuzela when he talks!
Wiggles & Wags,
Mayzie
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