**By Ryan Craig**

Vuvuzelas blaring, passionate fans screaming and exciting drama unfolding.  The 2010 World Cup was one of the best in recent memory, and a few lucky students experienced it firsthand.

            Junior Grace Laboy traveled to Spain for almost a month, where she watched four games in four different cities across the country.  She viewed the Spain vs. Germany semifinal match on the JumboTron at the Real Madrid stadium and watched the finals, which Spain won 1-0 over the Netherlands, in Monteverdi. 

            “The overall atmosphere was crazy,” Laboy says. “People would spray beer and champagne everywhere when something exciting happened.”   

            Senior Rachel Holden had a similar experience when she watched the finals in Sevilla. 

            “People were going insane,” Holden says. “There was a huge fountain in the middle of the town and after the game, there were about 200 people swimming in the fountain, cheering and screaming.”

            Seniors Campbell McCarthy and Eddie Jones and junior David Jones watched Spain beat Portugal at a Spanish bar. After the game winning goal in the match against Portugal, the bar erupted.

            “It was the best moment of my life,” McCarthy says.  “Everyone was going insane; I have never experienced anything like it.”    

            Junior Danny Sack got even closer to the action.  Sack and his family planned a trip to South Africa in order to see the tournament live.  He attended the Spain vs. Paraguay quarterfinal match at the Ellis Park stadium, and was amazed by the crowd. 

            “Everyone was not just supporting a soccer team, they were supporting the event,” Sack says.  “Everyone wanted to be there and they were really enjoying themselves.”

            Before the Uruguay vs. Netherlands game, Sack took part in a local custom: the one-and-a-half-mile fan walk. During the trek to the stadium, fans buy food and memorabilia to celebrate the event.

            “It was a way for the whole city of Cape Town to take part in the game, even if they weren’t going,” Sack says.

            The fans from Cape Town united against Uruguay and cheered for the Netherlands.

            “The whole mile and a half was completely orange; there were no blue shirts anywhere,” Sack says. 

            The World Cup is always an exciting event and these students couldn’t help but to get wrapped up in the action.

            “I hugged little men I have never seen before,” McCarthy says.  “It was just incredible.”