Jake Slager's Italy diary
 Bluffton team members (in white) interspersed with their Italian team counterparts. |
6:00 a.m.: Wake up and get into our travel suits to head to the airport at Columbus for the start of the trip. We all arrived around 9 a.m. (except for Coach Brooks who was a bit late!) and checked our baggage and then played cards and waited around until our flight left just after noon. Our plane departed for Atlanta and gave us a bumpy ride with plenty of turbulence, especially for the few that hadn"t ever flown before. We made the huge Atlanta International Airport our home for the next three hours as we continued our migration with the herd of football players and students until we finally loaded the giant 777 Delta flight headed straight to Milan, Italy at 5:50.p.m.
I was filled with enthusiasm, still deeply wrapped in the surreal idea that we were finally headed to Italy. Most felt the same emotions; some were more scared, like defensive linemen Tyler Schwab and Kurt Albers who had a bit of sweat forming on their foreheads at the time of takeoff. We sat as comfortable as big football players can get into little economy class seats on our nine-hour flight that traveled at more than 500 mph at 39,000 feet at a temperature of minus-60 degrees Fahrenheit and kept entertained with movies and Delta radio. A pillow and blanket were available for those who could catch some sleep in the four hours of darkness that we experienced, although many of us never slept. I personally felt robbed of a night of sleep since we literally warped a quarter of a day – a weird transition for those never experiencing it before.
We arrived in Milan at 9:15 a.m. and picked up our luggage – fortunately none was lost – and sat on a "brand spanking new" bus as our tour guide Leo described for a two-hour ride that was supposed to last 20 minutes, due to an accident in the busy city of Milan. Italians fascinate me in the way they drive almost recklessly in and out of traffic, especially those on the small vespas that weave through traffic like a pinball that never touches anything. Everyone drives the same style tiny little cars, probably because gas is around seven dollars a gallon here! They also make full use of the little space allowed between streets with their tiny cars, parking anywhere and everywhere; on sidewalks, curbs, and medians without abiding to any parking signs. Even our bus driver Antonio can whip our 60-foot bus around corners like it"s a boat on the water.
We eventually made it to the Duomo in the heart of the city, the fourth-largest church in the world that could accommodate over 100,000 people at one time according to Leo. We ate lunch on our own, and experienced a high level of culture shock due to difficult language barriers and the stares that people glued on us because of our identical travel suits and because of being such a large group of Americans.
The experience of being the foreigner in someone else"s country I suppose is new to almost everyone, and it"s certainly a life-changing experience that makes me think about how I treat those who look different in my own country. The trip will certainly produce new and revolutionary thoughts for many of us concerning the issue.
Our new bus accommodated us once again, this time for a four-hour trip that brought us to Venice, where we"ll stay three more days until our football game in Trieste. We"re in a hotel just off the Asiatic Sea, and the street is filled with shops and small stores carrying items from clothes to groceries. The scenery is beautiful here, and we"re looking forward to visiting some of the 117 islands that make up Venice. Next to the sight of the astonishing Alps outside the plane window, it"s the most beautiful scenery we"ve witnessed yet. Our eagerness to taste the abundance of delicious Italian food was first met by a full course meal in our hotel tonight, and it"s nearly time to call it a night since many of us have been awake for more than 24 hours now.
We"re looking forward to the next day, beginning with our first practice, and then sight seeing the islands of Venice and whatever else this elegant city has to offer us. It"s good to be here, and the only thing sweeter than the tiramisu dessert we tasted tonight is the anticipation and excitement of all that we have yet to see on this once in a lifetime opportunity. That"s the view from here, so until next time…ciao!
Thursday: Bongiorno once again from the islands of Venice! Today we began the day with a fabulous breakfast in our hotel complete with croissants, parfaits, and egg sandwiches and much more. Starting with a large breakfast that will probably be one of the better ones we ever receive from a hotel was a great jumpstart to the day. We then had our first practice, in full pads and uniforms a few blocks from our hotel at a soccer field in town. It was good to strap on the pads again and review the stunts, blitzes, and plays we"ve worked on all spring and finally bring it together for the game in just a few days.
After cleanup, some of us threw on our trunks and took a run into the waves of the Adriatic Sea. The award of the day went out to James Fay and Steve Sinn for being the first two to brave the brutally cold water of the sea. The salty water numbed our bodies within seconds and I got chased on the shore back into the sea until I fell down by a few friends- it was a fun morning in Venice.
After cleanup and a nap for some, we loaded Antonio"s bus and drove to the Sea where we met our private boat that took us into the island that holds St. Mark"s Basilica and the Doge"s Palace. We split into two groups and took a long tour through the Doge"s Palace filled with magnificent artwork and stories behind the place of council and political judgment in ancient Venice. The artwork portrayed the importance of religion from the gods such as Neptune and Jupiter as well as Christ and Mother Mary. The Doge"s Palace, Italian for Duke, showed how the government of the Venetian"s was felt by them to be very highly approved by God. The artwork showed this in rooms of all sizes and artwork in extra fine detail. The tour concluded with a walk over the Bridge of Sighs, an ancient canal bridge named for its path into the dark prison on the other side where prisoners made their final steps from freedom into a long lasting death. The jail cells were dark and unbreakable, as surely as the minds of the prisoners must have been that sat in them.
We then took a tour through St. Mark"s Basilica, the church of the gospel writer Mark. The church contains the world"s most magnificent mosaics, layered with gold and glass laid on all different angles to produce certain shades and colors to the effect of the artwork. The church showed obvious scars from flooding and years. It also is said to hold the body of the gospel writer.
The rest of the afternoon was free, and many took the brilliant opportunity to ride a gondola through the canals. If they were lucky, the gondolier sang as he rowed through the tight canals in between the city buildings. The city is relatively quiet, largely because the traffic on the island is strictly pedestrian. Besides the noise of the flocks of pigeons, the sound of the water splashing against gondolas and boats, and the amplified voices of tour guides, the city is a very peaceful and magical place. The day has been fun and vibrant with more of a taste of what this European country is like. Venezia as they say in Italian is truly a magical place, filled with all the riches of Italy; artwork, magnificent galleries of remarkable historical figures, and plenty items to buy and just as much food to go around. That"s the view from here, until tomorrow… ciao!
Friday: Buono sera! Our last day in Venice has been quite a treat, a great ‘toast" to our stay in this magical city. For some, the language barrier is being tackled a bit by interacting with Italians more frequently, and through the use of phrase books and dictionaries, or by asking Professor Sullivan. The last day consisted of our usual filling breakfast, followed by practice and an optional lunch on our own in the city.
After lunch, those who wanted to go back to the island of St. Mark"s Square rode the public waterbus. Others chose to relax back at the hotel and played touch football on the beach and relaxed by the pool. Those of us who went into the main square enjoyed a sunshine filled afternoon as we walked around the various shops. Some took a gondola ride for the first or second time, and others fed the hundreds of pigeons in the main square. Oggi (today) was relaxing, slow paced, leisurely and fun day.
Tomorrow morning we will head to Trieste where we"ll play our long awaited game at 4:30 p.m. Our opponents, a semi-pro team, called the Trieste Mustangs consists of some American military men and other Italians from ages 18-44 who are looking forward to taking on the Bluffton Beavers in a fun and exciting game of American football. That"s the view from here, until next time, Ciao!
Saturday: We woke up in the beautiful city of Trieste, ready and eager to play some football americano overseas. We arrived at the field, a soccer field converted to a football stadium with bars on the goal to make a goal post but no hash marks or yard lines. The game was a display of our talents for the Italians to learn from our techniques and skills so that they can continue to produce interest in American football, and although it was a blowout on the scoreboard, and I cannot speak for everyone, it was one of the most rewarding experiences I have ever had. Nothing but great sportsmanship was offered from both teams, and following the game, the United States" National Anthem played followed by Italy"s, and the feeling of pride I felt then was greater than ever before. We shook hands, exchanged T-shirts and shared in conversation and laughter over a cookout after the game. The rain just held off long enough for us to take pictures and change out of our uniforms, and then we enjoyed a night out on the town.
Sunday: The team loaded up once again on Antonio's bus, our awesome Italian bus driver, and relaxed in our seats for an all day trip to Florence. We made a stop for lunch, and enjoyed the beautiful countryside on our way into the large city. Our hotel in Florence was the nicest yet, consisting of apartment style rooms complete with a living room, kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom for each trio of guys and girls. The city of Florence was filled with busy streets and the smell of leather from the countless leather shops in downtown Firenzia (Italian for Florence).
We enjoyed two incredible meals while in Florence, and the dinners here just seem to keep getting better each day. The process of dinner is different from our culture here as well, it's a time of conversation and fellowship as well as the enjoyment of the delicious pastas, soups, meats, and tasty desserts.
Florence is famous for its trade of sheepskin leather, and the shops downtown all have unlimited amounts of coats, purses, and pouches ranging from $50 Euros to $1000. A couple of the guys did some heavy bargaining and came out with some good deals to bring gifts back or buy coats for themselves. While in Firenzia, we also toured another beatiful Duomo (church) and the Santa Croce, each filled with artwork and a tour message through a radio for each person on the tour.