Soccer with the SWAT team

This past weekend, as the title suggests, I played soccer against the Salvadoran SWAT team. A couple of volunteers randomly met the sargent of the SWAT team and got to talking about soccer. They mentioned we have a Peace Corps team, and the sargent mentioned they have an 'Elite Forces Team'. The Peace Corps team is open to any volunteer who wants to show up and run around a bit, so of course we are not very good. However, considering whom we were going to be playing against, we put together our own elite, invite-only team.

So on a very rainy Saturday, I took a bus to Estadio Cuscatlan in the capital. Here, I met up with the rest of my team and we waited to get picked up by the po-po and transported to the game (we didn't get to play in the stadium, unfortunately.) After about 30 minutes of waiting, up rolls three police pick-up trucks, and one dark SUV with darkly tinted windows. I hopped in the back of one of the pick-ups, and we were off. After driving about 15 minutes, I realized that even though all of the officers were dressed in soccer shorts and t-shirts, they were all still packing heat...either carrying their guns nonchalantly, or they were strapped to their inner-leg. I started to wonder if they would be playing with their guns, then I started to think maybe we should make sure they win.

We got to the field (read mudpit) and there were about 15 guys dressed to play, and another 10 in full uniform which includes a huge, militaristic-looking gun in their hands and another, normal handgun at their hip. After lots of jokes, lots of pictures, and lots of goals, we won 7-3 and they did not shoot us--I would say that makes it a success.

Now, seriously, these guys were really cool. Very friendly, interested in what we were doing, and good hosts. They are the ones who do raids on gang houses, and when you see pictures in the paper of arrests, they are holding the criminal and they are wearing black ski masks so they don't have to worry about retribution. Kind of a weird experience talking to people whose lives are full of violence and danger...they are soldiers basically, and they way they can compartmentalize their work from their lives is amazing to me.