Round of 16
Costa Rica v Greece
Arena Pernambuco
Recife, Brazil
29 June 2014
After the deluge of the USA v Germany game the weather in Recife started to improve. There were 4 days to go before our next game (25-29 Jun) so it was time to enjoy the more touristic sites of the North Eastern Brazilian city.
Our KO phase tickets were purchased direct from the FIFA portal as TBH I didn't understand how conditional tickets worked if acquired through the FA. On the portal I opted for the Winner of Group D (hopefully England) against the RU of Group C (maybe Japan). In the end England didn't qualify and Greece took the Group C RU spot so I had Greece v Costa Rica and the earlier Group G game in Recife, USA v Germany
Costa Rica 1 Greece 1 (5-3 on pens to Costa Rica)
Attendance: 41,242
This was the first and only time that the two teams have met and was Greece's first appearance in the KO phase of the WC. The game proved to be a cracker, the head to head remains:1-0 to Costa Rica
Arena Pernambuco, Recife. The stadium is located 18 Km to the west of Recife in a suburb called São Lourenço da Mata. It became home to Clube Nautico until 2019, who have since moved back to their spiritual home at Estadio dos Aflitos in the city of Recife. In total it hosted 5 games at the FIFA WC 2014 in Brazil, I was lucky to see 2 of them and it has played host to the national team twice:
FIFA WC 2014
Group C, Ivory Coast v Japan (2-0)
Group D, Italy v Costa Rica (0-1)
Group A, Croatia v Mexico (1-3)
Group D, Costa Rica v England (0-0)
Group G, USA v Germany (0-1)
Rd of 16, Costa Rica v Greece (1-1) (5-3 pens)
Brazil Internationals
2018 WC Qualifiers, Brazil v Uruguay (2-2)
2022 WC Qualifiers, Brazil v Peru (2-0)
This time we are in the gods and the view is perfect
After breakfast on Day 2 we step over the road to be greeted by a fabulous beach, then Sue decides to lead us on a gentle 8 Km stroll down the beach road.
Rest stop
Shark Watch!
We eventually make it to the Marco Zero in Recife Antigo (Old Recife). This is the spot where the city was founded
A view from Marco Zero
Boat ride to the Sculpture Park from Marco Zero
The main attraction at the Francisco Brennand Sculpture Park is the Crystal Tower which is 32 m tall and is not made of Crystal, it's concrete, clay and bronze
A turtle
This stretch of land is a reef that is connected
to the mainland at Boa Viagem
Pelicans
Back to the old town (Recife Antiga)
Old colonial buildings on Rua do Bom Jesus
Once over the bridge to San Antonio we stumble in to this hidden church, 'Igreja Matriz do Santissimo Sacremento de Santo Antonio', a baroque style catholic church
This cathedral (Basilaca e convent de Nossa Senhora Do Carma) is located in Santa Antonio, an island within the city centre. It is the oldest church of the Carmelite Order in Brazil built in 1580 and restored in 1720.
Statue commemorating immigrants from Africa who were attracted to the region following the abolition of slavery
The shopping mall at Shopping Recife,
reputedly the 6th biggest in Brazil
The 'Blue church' at Boa Viagem. The name of the neighbourhood Boa Viagem comes from this oceanside church, the Nossa Senhora da Boa Viagem, built around 1743, which is also the name of the patron saint of sailors and navigators.
On day 3 we paid a visit to Olinda, a colonial town founded in 1535 by the Portuguese. It was originally a centre for the sugarcane industry and is full of baroque churches, artist workshops, etc.. and is only 10 km from Recife
On display here are some of the famous 'Big Dolls' of Olinda
At the top of Olinda can be found the 'Igreja da Se', built in 1535 and the oldest parish church in North East Brazil
On 'Praca de Se' we both get serenaded by two musical entrepreneur's (all for a very reasonable price)
Sue at one of the highest points (Alto da Se) where
you can catch a glimpse of the coast
We walk down the hill to find a bar and pass the 'Igreja Nossa Sehora' which sits on a small hill
Beer, prawns and football as we sit down to watch Brazil draw 1-1 with Chile in an epic encounter in Belo Horizonte. The Brazilians edged it on penalties 3-2 to progress to the QF
Sue in party mode as our new favourite team win
Back to the beach and it really is party time!
Owner of the beach bar and the maker of the most potent Caipirinha's in the whole of Brazil
Day 4 and its beach day in Boa Viagem followed by matchday at the Arena Pernambuco
I surrender
Sue basking in the Atlantic Ocean
Sadly we had to check out early from the Hotel Vila Rica Recife because I had screwed up our days and now they were fully booked, so we had to go to another hotel
The view from our dodgy balcony at the Fator Palace Hotel and now it is back to the metro to get to the stadium
Today is a sunny day at the Arena Pernambuco. There are street buskers and the atmosphere is building for the game between Greece and Costa Rica
The stadium is a far cry from the deluge of 4 days ago
The futuristic entrance to the stadium
Budweiser Tent
Brahma O'clock
His and her England 2014 home kits
Panoramic from our view in the gods behind the goal
We meet some friendly Brazilians in our row (2 Doctors and an Engineer). They were really interesting and told us that the Brazilian public had been priced out of their own world cup
Greece v Costa Rica, what a great game which was edged by Costa Rica, AET and penalties.
On the last day (Day 5) we chilled out
with ice cream on the beach
And the music was free. What a great experience this World Cup in Brazil has been. Thanks for the memories
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