Melbourne, Australia

The Football the Australians Rule


aboriginal fan
An Aboriginal supporter of the Collingwood (Magpies) team follows the emotions of the match. There are several Aboriginal players serving different Australian AFL teams.
Collingwood in the field
Collingwood players take the field for the start of the long AFL match.
Entry into MCG
The opposing teams from Essendon and Collingwood enter the gigantic arena at Melbourne Cricket Ground.
dispute lit
Players from Essendon and Collingwood fight for a lost ball.
In midair
Essendon and Collingwood players jump to win an aerial ball.
air dispute
Opponents prepare to try to capture a ball thrown into the air by the referee of the match.
runaway ball
Players vie for a stray ball on the ground.
Fans
Essendon fans support your team's entry.
back to the pitch
Spectator returns a kicked ball to the MCG stadium stand.
together in victory
Essendon players return to the changing rooms after their victory against Collingwood.
Foward
Collingwood player kicks the ball to his team's attacking front.
In the dark
A moment of darkness at Melbourne's MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground) stadium, one of the biggest in Australia, originally erected to host cricket matches but now also used for AFL matches
Australian football
Players compete for a move at the four posts that award points in the newly created AFL football.
Bookmarks
Electronic whiteboard informs the best markers.
The Great MCG
Panoramic view of the huge MCG, Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Although played since 1841, Australian Football has only conquered part of the big island. Internationalization has never gone beyond paper, held back by competition from rugby and classical football.

For a time, life went on for Tim Reynolds. The change of New Zealand for Victoria's state it was smoother than I thought. And, in a flash, the newcomer found a job, started a family, and began to adapt to Australian ways.

But Tim never managed to get rid of his pompous and overly institutional posture. The sentences always came out too leisurely and haughty, and his expressions of spontaneity came months apart, glimpses of a corrupt and long-lost youth.

One of the inevitable consequences was divorce and the complete breakdown of the home that had long threatened to collapse. Nick, his youngest son, had decided to stay with him and not his mother. The choice, self-serving, quickly confirmed the descendant's total contempt. And an assumed indifference that only deepened his father's hurt and emptiness.

That's how we know him. Desperate and looking for a new existence. Travel had proved a delightful escape, but his well-paying job – A$ 1500 a week as a guard in Melbourne court – forbade major evasion.

Tim Reynolds' Generous Welcome

Not being able to go to the mountain, Tim had to draw the mountain to himself. And the solution he arrived at was to become a host of foreigners visiting South Australia, something that quickly became an obsession, to the point of assuming online the desire to welcome people from all over the world.

In addition to telling his guests about his wanderings around the planet, Tim enjoyed unraveling exquisite encyclopedic knowledge. Aware that we come from a country adept at sporting kings, he can't resist reporting the old feats of Eusébio and wins us 10 dollars in a bet on the number of world titles in Uruguay.

Afterwards, he goes on to boast the superior qualities of rugby and, to our absolute surprise, an unknown sport of which he became an unconditional supporter after arriving from the New Zealand, Australian Football.

The transmissions of the challenges of the downunder These modalities helped him pass the time, especially while the travelers he received were away to discover Melbourne and the Great Ocean Road's natural sumptuousness.

Essendon vs Collingwood. Derbi at the gigantic Melbourne Cricket Ground

From time to time, Tim even made a point of watching a game sitting in the stadium. Our curiosity about the sport, which we hadn't even heard of, emerged as the pretext he needed to repeat it.

“Hurry up, I don't want to miss the beginning of the game, he alerts as we wolf down the last of the chips in the little house of faith.ish & chips of Caulfield." Infected by her pent-up excitement, we began to feel some frenzy.

Field entry, Melbourne Cricket Ground-Rules footbal, Melbourne, AustraliaThe opposing teams from Essendon and Collingwood enter the gigantic arena at Melbourne Cricket Ground.

We drive from the far outskirts to the center of Melbourne and arrive at the stadium late. We bought the tickets, went in and sat down still excited, with the game already in progress.

But the euphoria quickly wears off as the teams from Collingwood and Essendon battle the tiny stretched spheroid, tiny in the immensity of Etihad Stadium. We confirm the suspicion that, for any fanatic of the sporting king, that eccentric game too quickly proves soporific.

Public, Melbourne Cricket Ground-Rules footbal, Melbourne, Australia

Panoramic view of the huge MCG, Melbourne Cricket Ground.

The Unexpected Complexity of Australian Football

We have 36 players on the field, plus a series of referees.

As if that wasn't enough, the oval pitch – which seems bigger than some countries – is invaded all the time by secondary players from the teams whose functions for us are enigmatic and reveals itself as a stage of chaos that the frequent substitutions and interruptions reinforce.

It is also difficult for us to appreciate the frequency with which the ball is kicked – or, worse, thrown by clenched fists – through the air or slammed into the ground, only to be disputed by opponents who jump with their arms outstretched to the sky.

Player Collingwood, Melbourne Cricket Ground-Rules footbal, Melbourne, AustraliaCollingwood player kicks the ball to his team's attacking front.

These alleged flaws are, however, unique qualities for incorruptible fans of the state of Victoria and elsewhere in Australia. On a day of the Grand Final of the AFL (Australian Football League), the biggest stadium in the country, the MCG – Melbourne Cricket Ground – undergoes an adaptation to the rival modality and can host almost one hundred thousand fans.

Accordingly, in 2008, the average attendance of the championship was around 39.000 spectators, in an annual total of seven million distributed by one hundred and seventy-six matches.

The Growing Popularity of Newborn Australian Football

Despite these convincing numbers, Australian football is still a hot topic among Australians. Sport has prevailed in Melbourne (where he was born) and the inhabited rest of southern Australia. It gains ground in other states where the national association has been injecting money to make it a true national phenomenon.

But its increasingly commercial popularity collides with that of rugby and cricket. Although official records count 130.000 adult players and around 2.600 teams, so far, the footy only convinced about half the population of the big island.

Interestingly, many Aborigines are inveterate fans, contributed by the fact that some of their communities have famous practitioners in various clubs.

Supporter, Melbourne Cricket Ground-Rules footbal, Melbourne, AustraliaAn Aboriginal supporter of the Collingwood (Magpies) team follows the emotions of the match. There are several Aboriginal players serving different Australian AFL teams.

Outside Australia, there are reportedly 30 countries that practice it, with the greatest significance in neighboring Papua New Guinea and New Zealand but also in the South Africa, our United States and even a little in Europe.

The Many Variants of Australian Football

At the same time, Rules gave rise to a series of modalities adapted with rules that allow different physical contacts. These were the cases of Kick-to-Kick, End-to-End Footy, Markers Up, AusKick, Rec Footy, 9-a-Side Footy and Masters Australian Footy.

Air Contest, Melbourne Cricket Ground-Rules footbal, Melbourne, AustraliaEssendon and Collingwood players jump to win an aerial ball.

When faced with the absence of dedicated fields, Australian players living abroad created as many local versions as possible. These were the cases of Metro Footy and the Samoa Rules.

In 1956, Rules was practiced as an exhibition sport in the Melbourne Summer Olympics. Later, from 1967, several matches took place between Australian and Gaelic (mainly Irish) clubs.

In 1998, the International Rules Series took place, a competition between the two respective teams that would be suspended, in 2007, due to the excessive violence of the Australian team in the previous year.

The exaggeration of ozzies it even forced the laws of the game to be changed to safeguard the player in possession of the ball. The following year, that protection seemed assured and minimal testing was resumed in Australia.

Run, Melbourne Cricket Ground-Rules footbal, Melbourne, Australia

Players vie for a stray ball on the ground.

Tim is just one of many more recent supporters but defends the “Rules” with the force of a crowd: “You Europeans are eternal addicts to this sport of barbarians…” he snipes without ever losing his composure. “Here, we are always evolving.”

Melbourne Derbi Possible Records

We end up confirming it when we are victims of the marketing that the modality was involved in. Upon entering the stadium, careless security guards had let us through with cameras and professional lenses. But, we had already registered the game for half an hour when a steward coming out of nowhere prohibits us from shooting because of commercial restrictions of the home team.

Cheerleading, Melbourne Cricket Ground-Rules footbal, Melbourne, AustraliaEssendon fans support your team's entry.

Tim indulges us and we take refuge from supervision in the secluded confines of the third ring. From there, we stole some extra footage but distanced ourselves even further from the action and short relationship with sport.

After the final whistle, the Essendon Bombers get the better of Collingwood's Listed Magpies. The host returns home excited and we with our curiosity satisfied but not convinced.

Essendon, Melbourne Cricket Ground-Rules football, Melbourne, AustraliaEssendon players return to the changing rooms after their victory against Collingwood.

Australians created Rules and dare to call football a sport in which, almost a century later, all players still play with their hands. For any serious football fan, the punishment is obvious: let them play it.

Great Ocean Road, Australia

Ocean Out, along the Great Australian South

One of the favorite escapes of the Australian state of Victoria, via B100 unveils a sublime coastline that the ocean has shaped. We only needed a few kilometers to understand why it was named The Great Ocean Road.
Melbourne, Australia

An "Asienated" Australia

Cultural capital aussie, Melbourne is also frequently voted the best quality of life city in the world. Nearly a million eastern emigrants took advantage of this immaculate welcome.
Sydney, Australia

From the Exile of Criminals to an Exemplary City

The first of the Australian colonies was built by exiled inmates. Today, Sydney's Aussies boast former convicts of their family tree and pride themselves on the cosmopolitan prosperity of the megalopolis they inhabit.
Busselton, Australia

2000 meters in Aussie Style

In 1853, Busselton was equipped with one of the longest pontoons in the world. World. When the structure collapsed, the residents decided to turn the problem around. Since 1996 they have been doing it every year. Swimming.
Competitions

Man: an Ever Tested Species

It's in our genes. For the pleasure of participating, for titles, honor or money, competitions give meaning to the world. Some are more eccentric than others.
Perth, Australia

the lonely city

More 2000km away from a worthy counterpart, Perth is considered the most remote city on the face of the Earth. Despite being isolated between the Indian Ocean and the vast Outback, few people complain.
Philippines

When Only Cock Fights Wake Up the Philippines

Banned in much of the First World, cockfighting thrives in the Philippines where they move millions of people and pesos. Despite its eternal problems, it is the sabong that most stimulates the nation.
Jabula Beach, Kwazulu Natal, South Africa
Safari
Saint Lucia, South Africa

An Africa as Wild as Zulu

On the eminence of the coast of Mozambique, the province of KwaZulu-Natal is home to an unexpected South Africa. Deserted beaches full of dunes, vast estuarine swamps and hills covered with fog fill this wild land also bathed by the Indian Ocean. It is shared by the subjects of the always proud Zulu nation and one of the most prolific and diverse fauna on the African continent.
Aurora lights up the Pisang Valley, Nepal.
Annapurna (circuit)
Annapurna Circuit: 3rd- Upper Banana, Nepal

An Unexpected Snowy Aurora

At the first glimmers of light, the sight of the white mantle that had covered the village during the night dazzles us. With one of the toughest walks on the Annapurna Circuit ahead of us, we postponed the match as much as possible. Annoyed, we left Upper Pisang towards Escort when the last snow faded.
Luderitz, Namibia
Architecture & Design
Lüderitz, Namibia

Wilkommen in Africa

Chancellor Bismarck has always disdained overseas possessions. Against his will and all odds, in the middle of the Race for Africa, merchant Adolf Lüderitz forced Germany to take over an inhospitable corner of the continent. The homonymous city prospered and preserves one of the most eccentric heritages of the Germanic empire.
Totems, Botko Village, Malekula, Vanuatu
Adventure
Malekula, Vanuatu

Meat and Bone Cannibalism

Until the early XNUMXth century, man-eaters still feasted on the Vanuatu archipelago. In the village of Botko we find out why European settlers were so afraid of the island of Malekula.
Australia Day, Perth, Australian Flag
Ceremonies and Festivities
Perth, Australia

Australia Day: In Honor of the Foundation, Mourning for Invasion

26/1 is a controversial date in Australia. While British settlers celebrate it with barbecues and lots of beer, Aborigines celebrate the fact that they haven't been completely wiped out.
Singapore Asian Capital Food, Basmati Bismi
Cities
Singapore

The Asian Food Capital

There were 4 ethnic groups in Singapore, each with its own culinary tradition. Added to this was the influence of thousands of immigrants and expatriates on an island with half the area of ​​London. It was the nation with the greatest gastronomic diversity in the Orient.
Beverage Machines, Japan
Meal
Japan

The Beverage Machines Empire

There are more than 5 million ultra-tech light boxes spread across the country and many more exuberant cans and bottles of appealing drinks. The Japanese have long since stopped resisting them.
scarlet summer
Culture

Valencia to Xativa, Spain (España)

Across Iberia

Leaving aside the modernity of Valencia, we explore the natural and historical settings that the "community" shares with the Mediterranean. The more we travel, the more its bright life seduces us.

4th of July Fireworks-Seward, Alaska, United States
Sport
Seward, Alaska

The Longest 4th of July

The independence of the United States is celebrated, in Seward, Alaska, in a modest way. Even so, the 4th of July and its celebration seem to have no end.
Traveling
Inle Lake, Myanmar

A Pleasant Forced Stop

In the second of the holes that we have during a tour around Lake Inlé, we hope that they will bring us the bicycle with the patched tyre. At the roadside shop that welcomes and helps us, everyday life doesn't stop.
small browser
Ethnic
Honiara e Gizo, Solomon Islands

The Profaned Temple of the Solomon Islands

A Spanish navigator baptized them, eager for riches like those of the biblical king. Ravaged by World War II, conflicts and natural disasters, the Solomon Islands are far from prosperity.
ice tunnel, black gold route, Valdez, Alaska, USA
Got2Globe Photo Portfolio
Got2Globe Portfolio

Sensations vs Impressions

Missions, San Ignacio Mini, Argentina
History
San Ignacio Mini, Argentina

The Impossible Jesuit Missions of San Ignacio Mini

In the century. In the XNUMXth century, the Jesuits expanded a religious domain in the heart of South America by converting the Guarani Indians into Jesuit missions. But the Iberian Crowns ruined the tropical utopia of the Society of Jesus.
Ocaso, Santo Antão, Cape Verde
Islands
Santo Antão, Cape Verde

Up and Down the Estrada da Corda

Santo Antão is the westernmost of the Cape Verde Islands. There lies an Atlantic and rugged threshold of Africa, a majestic insular domain that we begin by unraveling from one end to the other of its dazzling Estrada da Corda.
Sampo Icebreaker, Kemi, Finland
Winter White
Kemi, Finland

It's No "Love Boat". Breaks the Ice since 1961

Built to maintain waterways through the most extreme arctic winter, the icebreaker Sampo” fulfilled its mission between Finland and Sweden for 30 years. In 1988, he reformed and dedicated himself to shorter trips that allow passengers to float in a newly opened channel in the Gulf of Bothnia, in clothes that, more than special, seem spacey.
Lake Manyara, National Park, Ernest Hemingway, Giraffes
Literature
Lake Manyara NP, Tanzania

Hemingway's Favorite Africa

Situated on the western edge of the Rift Valley, Lake Manyara National Park is one of the smallest but charming and richest in Europe. wild life of Tanzania. In 1933, between hunting and literary discussions, Ernest Hemingway dedicated a month of his troubled life to him. He narrated those adventurous safari days in “The Green Hills of Africa".
Playa Nogales, La Palma, Canary Islands
Nature
La Palma, Canary Islands

The "Isla Bonita" of the Canary Islands

In 1986 Madonna Louise Ciccone launched a hit that popularized the attraction exerted by a island imaginary. Ambergris Caye, in Belize, reaped benefits. On this side of the Atlantic, the palmeros that's how they see their real and stunning Canaria.
Mother Armenia Statue, Yerevan, Armenia
Autumn
Yerevan, Armenia

A Capital between East and West

Heiress of the Soviet civilization, aligned with the great Russia, Armenia allows itself to be seduced by the most democratic and sophisticated ways of Western Europe. In recent times, the two worlds have collided in the streets of your capital. From popular and political dispute, Yerevan will dictate the new course of the nation.
Tibetan heights, altitude sickness, mountain prevent to treat, travel
Natural Parks

Altitude Sickness: the Grievances of Getting Mountain Sick

When traveling, it happens that we find ourselves confronted with the lack of time to explore a place as unmissable as it is high. Medicine and previous experiences with Altitude Evil dictate that we should not risk ascending in a hurry.
Conflicted Way
UNESCO World Heritage
Jerusalem, Israel

Through the Belicious Streets of Via Dolorosa

In Jerusalem, while traveling the Via Dolorosa, the most sensitive believers realize how difficult the peace of the Lord is to achieve in the most disputed streets on the face of the earth.
now from above ladder, sorcerer of new zealand, Christchurch, new zealand
Characters
Christchurch, New Zealand

New Zealand's Cursed Wizard

Despite his notoriety in the antipodes, Ian Channell, the New Zealand sorcerer, failed to predict or prevent several earthquakes that struck Christchurch. At the age of 88, after 23 years of contract with the city, he made very controversial statements and ended up fired.
Fisherman maneuvers boat near Bonete Beach, Ilhabela, Brazil
Beaches
Ilhabela, Brazil

In Ilhabela, on the way to Bonete

A community of caiçaras descendants of pirates founded a village in a corner of Ilhabela. Despite the difficult access, Bonete was discovered and considered one of the ten best beaches in Brazil.
Djerba Island of Tunisia, Amazigh and its camels
Religion
Djerba, Tunisia

The Tunisian Island of Conviviality

The largest island in North Africa has long welcomed people who could not resist it. Over time, Phoenicians, Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans, Arabs called it home. Today, Muslim, Christian and Jewish communities continue an unusual sharing of Djerba with its native Berbers.
Back in the sun. San Francisco Cable Cars, Life Ups and Downs
On Rails
San Francisco, USA

San Francisco Cable Cars: A Life of Highs and Lows

A macabre wagon accident inspired the San Francisco cable car saga. Today, these relics work as a charm operation in the city of fog, but they also have their risks.
Military Religious, Wailing Wall, IDF Flag Oath, Jerusalem, Israel
Society
Jerusalem, Israel

A Festive Wailing Wall

The holiest place in Judaism is not only attended by prayers and prayers. Its ancient stones have witnessed the oath of new IDF recruits for decades and echo the euphoric screams that follow.
Fruit sellers, Swarm, Mozambique
Daily life
Enxame Mozambique

Mozambican Fashion Service Area

It is repeated at almost all stops in towns of Mozambique worthy of appearing on maps. The machimbombo (bus) stops and is surrounded by a crowd of eager "businessmen". The products offered can be universal such as water or biscuits or typical of the area. In this region, a few kilometers from Nampula, fruit sales suceeded, in each and every case, quite intense.
Cape cross seal colony, cape cross seals, Namibia
Wildlife
Cape Cross, Namíbia

The Most Turbulent of the African Colonies

Diogo Cão landed in this cape of Africa in 1486, installed a pattern and turned around. The immediate coastline to the north and south was German, South African, and finally Namibian. Indifferent to successive transfers of nationality, one of the largest seal colonies in the world has maintained its hold there and animates it with deafening marine barks and endless tantrums.
Napali Coast and Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles
Scenic Flights
napali coast, Hawaii

Hawaii's Dazzling Wrinkles

Kauai is the greenest and rainiest island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It is also the oldest. As we explore its Napalo Coast by land, sea and air, we are amazed to see how the passage of millennia has only favored it.