The outfit is reminiscent of Daisy from the old TV series The Dukes of Hazzard. We are in cowboy country. Moreover, the mercury in this desert city still exceeds thirty degrees in the evenings. So there is a lot of nudity.
Downtown Phoenix is only a few blocks away. It is a city that is largely built on car use. Some hotels and cafes have misters in front of the door that provide short-term cooling. However, many buildings have a malodorous smell. The stench comes from the underlying parking garages where there are also waste containers. In the sweltering heat it quickly becomes uncool.
Neighbors Paul Jansen turns lawn into a complete cemetery: ‘Who wants that?’
I’m on my way to the baseball stadium, near downtown. The Arizona Diamondbacks will play there tonight against a team from Philadelphia. “Bring your pillow,” a colleague from the Netherlands had said when I told about my outing. It seems to be quite a slow sport.
Groups of supporters walk towards the sports arena. I know such scenes from the Netherlands, with one important difference. There is no massive police deployment here. There is exactly one officer at an intersection in front of the entrance. „Have fun”he calls out friendly to passers-by as they cross the street.
Beer for 16 dollars
In the stadium, escalators take me to the second ring. A ticket in that section costs an affordable $40; you still remain Dutch. In the wings, an endless row of stalls serve food and drinks. With a beer (16 dollars) in hand, I walk to the stands. There the grandeur of this sports palace reveals itself.
Abdul studied at Clingendael but ended up in a taxi: ‘I think of his story when I have something to complain about again’
Chase Field has almost 50,000 seats, but looks more massive because the stands, as usual in this sport, are limited to approximately two-thirds of the stadium. Not all places are occupied tonight. Professional baseball teams play 162 games per year. The team will play again the day after tomorrow; it’s overkill.
When the match starts, there is the famous organ that plays tunes between innings. The public is looking forward to it. “Your mother doesn’t love you,” a man shouts from the second ring to a Phillies player. Bystanders laugh. They wouldn’t have heard it downstairs.
Family sports
It is one of the few ‘hostilities’ this evening. The mood is pleasant. Baseball is a family sport. Anyone who did not understand this can be reported. A text message to a number displayed large on the stadium screen is sufficient.
The home team loses tonight with a big score of 8-2. The audience leaves resigned. I ask a steward at the exit if the atmosphere is always this relaxed. “Yes,” says the woman. “Except when the Dodgers come.”
Paul Jansen about fear surrounding missing teenage son in the US: ‘What if the immigration police mistook him as a Latino?’
Last year, 46 supporters of this team, which has now become champions, were arrested. What makes their arrival different, I ask. “California,” says the steward with a dirty face. Then follows the bouncer who points out an ordinary American dispute between neighbors: “Those people from LA have no qualms.”