The host cities of the World Cup have each treated it very differently and none more so than Recife.

The northeastern coastal city canceled their official FIFA Fan Fest before the tournament until soccer's governing body made it clear that such deviation from the party line would not be tolerated and a hasty retreat was made by the local Pernambuco state government.

This was music to the ears of Sepp Blatter and company but the ensuing result is perhaps not what they envisaged. Rather than the welcoming and organized iterations of the sanctioned supporter sanctums of Rio, Fortaleza and Salvador, what we are left with in Recife is a little more uncultured.

Located on a cobbled back street in Recife's picturesque Old Town, it has all the hallmarks of something decided at the very last minute. It's essentially a corridor with a huge screen at one end and stalls either side of the pedestrianized street leading up to it.

Those stalls almost frown upon trade. Not one was willing to break a 50 Reais note for their services. At four Reias for a local beer this makes sense but the expectation of cash-laden tourist trade through the day might suggest such a novel idea as a float would have been discussed.

This was also the first FIFA Fan Fest where there was no security in place in any form. That made the day feel like an organic and more real experience but also meant that there was an added edge to proceedings. Maybe this was the real Brazil for once but if that's the case then the real Brazil is a collection of local homeless fighting over tin cans and Americans trying to shift unwanted tickets.

The whole area had the sense of a bazaar, such were the number of tickets being offered for the evening game between Costa Rica and Greece. Locals and tourists alike had bet hard on Italy, England and even Uruguay on making the second round as Group D winners. Their disappointment was quickly being translated into meager cash by the harshest conversion rate known to man - supply and demand.

The Mexico vs. Netherlands game was a good tempered affair within the supporter zone, albeit one that had a high concentration of the North Americans calling the Dutch keeper a puta, or male prostitute. It wasn't a classic, either as a game or as a scene, but both sides were out in force.

The evening game dictated we had to duck out early but much like the World Cup in Recife we would hardly be missed. Maybe our quick absence was what everyone had hoped for all along.