I watched the game live in Budapest (staying up until 4:15 AM). But it was worth it. The game has to rank as one of the biggest upsets in SuperBowl history...

All the analysts will be forthcoming now with explanations, and I want to join the crowd with a fews points that some may say will touch upon 'black magic', but who knows.

Yesterday before the game, my wife and I journeyed to MOHACS, Hungary. We participated in the last day of the town's traditional celebration. They honor a very old tradition of the southern Slavs living in Mohács and the surrounding areas - the Shrovetide carnival which is called the Busójárás. Every February they hold a madigras type celebration, starting from the Busó Column in Koló tér. Disguised figures wearing morbid masks and bells parade through the streets in an attempt to drive winter away, but it was also used to force the Turks of the Ottoman Empire away.

Anyone who knows about the history of the Ottoman expansion of the 15th to 18th centuries, knowns that the Slavic people of the Balkans and even Hungary were terrified by the "Islamic invasion". Those of you back home in Riverside might find it a very interesting history to further explore.

Situated 40km (25mi.) southeast of Pécs on the right bank of the Danube, Mohács is famous for 2 battles (one which was lost in sad circumstances in 1526 in which the Hungarian troops suffered a devastating defeat at the hands of the superior Ottoman Empire army of Suleman the Great. For Hungary that meant the beginning of some 150 years of Turkish occupation and the end of the independent Magyar kingdom; for many years Mohács symbolized the threat which the Ottoman empire posed to western Europe.

After the Turkish wars the region went into decay until in the 18th C. the Habsburgs offered protection to Catholic immigrants from Germany who became known as the "Danubian Swabians"; Greek Orthodox Serbs also settled here in considerable numbers.

While in Mohacs yesterday, I mentioned the SuperBowl later in the day to several of the more than 400 local residents dressed in scary costumes. They told me not to worry, and put the New England Patriots on their hitlist. Well the rest is history.

I would definitely encourage anyone supporting the underdog in next year's game to take an adventure to MOHACS before the game and get 'the competitive edge' from the "Busó runners" for your team.

Ok file this under 'Food for Thought' if you must. While I was watching the game, I kept thinking about the scary Buso runners, and the bottom line is New York Giants are SuperBowl Champs this year. See http://www.planetware.com/mohacs/shrovetide-carnival-h-br-shrove.htm

wt