World Cup fever missing here

I am ready for this year's World Cup! Ready inside my home, that is. I have the schedule for all the games, who is playing whom and especially when Brazil is playing and against whom.

Most Americans are not as familiar with soccer tournaments as they are with baseball or football tournaments. If you have ever been in a country that loves soccer during the World Cup, it is an unforgettable experience.

In Brazil, where I grew up, we anticipated the World Cup by painting our street in green and yellow colors, some with real paint. We as kids used chalk which had to be drawn daily on the streets. We loved it.

During a soccer game, the entire country stopped, and I mean it literally stopped. Shops closed, or remained open with a television on so shoppers kept up with the game. Once I went on shopping while the game was on, but instead, we all just stopped shopping and stayed glued to the television. For each goal the Brazilian team made, fireworks exploded all over the city, daytime or night. It is the way to celebrate the Brazilian team.

While I lived in Egypt, it was tragic yet absurd that some fanatic Egyptian fans killed themselves when the Egyptian team lost. My siblings and I made a lot of noise every time the Brazilian team made a goal and at the end of each game, if Brazil won, we got a lot of calls from Egyptian friends congratulating us.

In Hawaii, our Brazilian community got together in a bar or in someone's place and watched the game together. Hundreds of Brazilians showed up and sometimes we were up until 4 a.m., because of the time difference.

Here, I miss the feeling of being part of the World Cup. There are no American flags anticipating the start of the games, local news stations don't even cover beforehand who is who on the American national team. None of my American friends, including my own husband, follow it.

OK, to his credit, he turned to Telemundo for me just in time to watch the games. I had to explain to him why watching soccer is so cool.

And, to the U.S. team's credit, I foresee it becoming a strong team in the future. I watch the children playing soccer and I see strong youth coming out.

So, if you are someone who never watched soccer but would like to see a match on television, try to watch the Brazilian, Italian and even Argentinian teams play. It is a show of talent from the players, and notice how the fans in the stadium play an important role in the games.

It is all an exciting party!