Women's Soccer European Trip Blog
May 28
Heading home! Well folks, this is it. The UW-Oshkosh women's soccer team is returning the good ole Wisco. Although we have had an AMAZING experience here in London and Dublin, we are excited to see all of our lovely families and friends back home. The flight will be a little rough, especially since the airport snacks over here just don't taste quite the same as the ones in the U.S., but no worries, we had some delicious steak and potatoes waiting for us on our 8-hour flight.
Two flights later, your girls are back in the states! Woo hoo! We were so blessed to have had this experience of a lifetime with some of the greatest people. With loads of new stories and memories, we go our separate ways home, with plans to already see each other over the summer. Thank you to everyone that came with us on the trip and supported us. We will never forget this! Cheers!
May 27
Our last day in Dublin was magnificent! Shout out to coach Erin for letting us sleep in this morning! We were all well rested and ready for our final day of shopping and sight seeing. Many of us wandered the streets of Dublin picking up some last minute souvenirs for family and friends, while others toured the famous Jameson Whiskey factory. A few also revisited Trinity College, where the Book of Kells is housed, and others simply explored the charming town.
Of course everyone needs some food to keep our shopping habits going strong, so we got to enjoy at various local cafés and restaurants, some of which had street musicians nearby to listen to while you snacked. And no warm day in Europe would be complete without a cup of gelato! After our midday snack, we were pretty tired from all of this walking they do over here in Europe and headed back for a nap before departing for our final game in Ireland!
Tonight we played the Peamount United FC women's team. It was a very good game and we had plenty of opportunities early on, but you could tell we were tired from our trip. We played as hard as we could through the three 30-minute periods of the game. Unfortunately we ended up losing, but we learned so much from this game that will help us take our playing to the next level. Afterwards, Peamount players and parents ordered pizza and juice and we got to stay after the game for some dinner and socializing. It was a good time.
We ended the night playing cards together in the restaurant under the hotel, but soon got tired and went to our rooms to finish stuffing our suitcases for our return home tomorrow. Hopefully we'll get some sleep on the plane too. See you all soon!
May 26
Oh my goodness! Today was probably one of the most beautiful days the UW-Oshkosh women's soccer team experienced while in Dublin. We woke up early again this morning, but it was well worth it. We boarded our bus and most of us fell asleep on our 3-hour journey. However, after a pit stop, we were all up and looking out our windows at the beautiful Irish countryside. This got particularly interesting when we met another coach bus on those narrow roads. Luckily we had bus driver Harry to save the day. Although we came within inches of the other bus, we made it without a scratch and continued our journey to ... dun dun dun ... the Cliffs of Moher!
As if the drive wasn't beautiful enough, once we actually got to the cliffs, the scenery took our breath away. There is absolutely nothing I can compare to this view. I wish I could tell you more, but there are no words to describe the beauty of the cliffs. But don't worry, we took loads of scenery pictures! We spent a good 3 hours walking up and down the edges of the cliffs and taking in the different views. After we were done, we headed back into town and split up for some dinner. We all met up later at a famous restaurant called The Temple Bar. From there, we split into smaller groups so that the fine Irish establishments wouldn't have such a difficult time dealing with us. Some of us stopped at a number of smaller places to enjoy some live Irish music, while others hung out and chit chatted while playing card games. Either way, it was a very fun night, and no worries, we were all home by curfew. Now we are looking forward to our last game overseas tomorrow night. Until then, Slainte!!! (Cheers, in Gaelic)
May 25
We woke this Sunday morning to cloudy but mild Irish weather. Of course, since we were in Dublin, the founding town of Guinness, we decided to hit the tour of the Guinness factory right away that morning. When in Ireland, do as the Irish do. On our way there, we stopped at St. Patrick's Cathedral. He was the one who lead the snakes out of Ireland and for whom we celebrate St. Patrick's Day. After a short tour around the prohibited Guinness factory, we found the tour area and began our walk through the historical museum. Everyone really enjoyed seeing the art of making the traditional Guinness brew and barrels.
As every other day, the team did a little exploring and a decent amount of shopping. Upon returning at the hotel, we changed into warmer clothes and walked over to the Aviva stadium to watch the Irish national men's team play Turkey. Unfortunately, they lost, but we had the hook-up and sat in the 7th row right behind the goal. It was an amazing experience.
After walking over 12 miles total today, we had a chance to experience the Dublin night life. No worries, we were home by coach's curfew. We were content and exhausted after our eventful day and were sleeping like babies when, at 3:30 in the morning, a strange alarm went off, then stopped abruptly. We layed back down only to have it to go off again. It did this a couple of times when we finally figured out it was a fire alarm! (I'll tell you now that everyone is safe and no one got hurt). After this startling realization, everyone kicked it into gear and got the girls around them together and booked it out of the hotel. It was pretty surreal. Like I said, everyone is safe and we all laugh about it now. I'm sure you will get more details when we get home. So, with less sleep than anticipated, we return to bed and prepare for a fun day tomorrow. Goodnight!
May 24
This morning was by far the earliest day we've had to wake up for. We were all surprisingly down in the lobby, ready to drive to the airport at 6 a.m. sharp. Tired and hungry, we made our way into the airport and onto the plane to our next destination: Dublin, Ireland!
For the most part, our day consisted of traveling. After our hour flight, we met our new tour guide, Andy, and bus driver, John, who told us he actually drove One Direction, the band, and didn't even know it until afterward. He took us on a quick drive through Dublin and showed us the spot where Pope John Paul II held a mass. It was the fist time a pope had been to Ireland.
We were driven back into the city of Dublin where we dropped off our bags at the hotel and headed on a brief tour on foot. It was pretty crowded around town and we later found out that it's because One Direction is actually playing a couple of concerts here this weekend! Eeeeeekkkk! So exciting! After finishing our shopping and tour, we returned to the hotel for a nice, warm pork steak and potatoes and some apple pie.
Later that night the EUFA Championship (European Soccer Championship) match between Real Madrid and Athletica Madrid was being shown live on all TV's in Europe. Being soccer players, we of course headed to the restaurant to watch it on the big screen. We walked in to find it packed with "football" fans cheering and yelling at the screens, because how else are the players going to know what they did wrong? It was a pretty neat atmosphere. Because we had such a long day, we went to bed fairly early, excited to start our next Dublin adventure tomorrow!
May 23
Well, today was our last day in London, England, and what an adventure it was. We abandoned the touristy structure and had the chance to split up into groups to explore different parts of the city on our own. It was pretty cool listening to the different places everyone explored. Some people went to Camden Market, which is an outdoor market district where you will find small shops selling handmade goods and small food stands. Others got to spend more time in the Picadilli Circus area (this is similar to our Times Square, jumbotron and all, but with much more history), while others explored the different museums rich with English facts and history.
Another group spent the day in the area around the London Eye, where they found an arcade to show off their smooth American "Dance Dance Revolution" moves. And of course, everyone did a smidge of shopping – a huge surprise for a group of young ladies. Between all of that walking, we visited a number of local English establishments for some midday pick-me-ups.
When we all felt we had fulfilled our shopping needs, we caught the tube back to the hotel for some much needed nap time before our big night out. After a couple minutes of rest and an hour of primping, we headed to the famous O2, where we had the chance to experience the London night life. Needless to say, we had a blast!
Overall, everyone had a blast in this wonderful city. We got to meet tons of neat people, play two very competitive teams and make some unique memories. London, it's been a blast!
May 22
Another brilliant day in the UK! Again, your UW-Oshkosh women's soccer team started the day bright and early for some once-in-a-lifetime experiences. We boarded our bus and driver Keith led us away into the busy motor ways (freeways as we call them) of London. We had a couple of close calls with some bikers on the street, but luckily Keith is possibly the most experienced bus driver in all of England.
Tonight, we played Millwall Ladies soccer club just outside the city. They were an outstanding competitor and showed good sportsmanship. A few girls even found themselves chatting it up with the other team on the soccer pitch (another super trendy British word meaning soccer field). One of the girls on the other team even played at a Division II school in the United States for a year. Unfortunately, we lost our game, but it was a great learning experience for us as a team.
Tomorrow we have the day off to rest our tired soccer legs and do what every girl loves to do – go shopping! We intend to fully enjoy and embrace the complete London experience! Cheers!
May 21
As we set out on our second day overseas, the UW-Oshkosh women's soccer team experienced another fantastic day exploring the streets of London. We started our day bright and early at 8 a.m. to do much more walking than anticipated. We strutted out of the hotel well-rested and showered, a much different appearance than our just-off-the-plane couture we sported yesterday, as pointed out by the ticket man at the train station.
Once in the tower, the team explored the wall walk around the exterior of the castle, the many floors of White Tower, and finally the Crown Jewels, where we discovered that being royalty wouldn't be such a bad gig. Three hours later, now overwhelmed with new, English knowledge, we headed back to the station for some fuel before our game.
Tonight, we played the Crystal Palace soccer club. We played a great game and it definitely showed in our 3-1 victory! Woo Hoo! We shook hands and got a great picture with the opposing team, which was very happy to meet us. We celebrated our victory with some pizza, cake and ice cream for Nina Muzi's birthday! What a birthday! We are now preparing ourselves for our second game and third fun-filled day in England tomorrow. Cheers!
May 20
Today, after a seven-hour plane ride, a successful pass through customs, and one lost suitcase, the UW-Oshkosh women's soccer team has finally arrived in the most culturally diverse city in the world – London, England. Once off the plane, we were greeted by nothing but happy faces as we dragged our jet-lagged selves and our luggage across the airport to start our adventure. We then met our very energetic tour guide, Murray, and wonderful bus driver, Keith. While driving from Heathrow Airport into the heart of London, Murray entertained us with loads of fun London facts and his best American accent, as Keith got gutsy on ring road, a highway that circles London.
After a relaxing bus tour, we dropped off our things at our hotel in Greenwich and returned to the city of London via "the tube" to explore more on foot. But before we could continue, we couldn't resist stopping for some authentic English cuisine, also known as Subway. Murray took us to all of the popular historic sites. We had the chance to see the enormous Big Ben and hear his beautiful bell toll and took a very brisk stroll through St. James Park to see Buckingham Palace, all the while trying to avoid the wrath of British drivers. When we got to the palace, the royal flag was raised – indicating that the Queen was there, but unfortunately she didn't want to see us.
Between visiting our top sites, we took a photo break at a traditional, red phone booth to bring out our inner Brit and stopped to see the guards of Buckingham Palace. Although we missed the changing of the guards, we got to take pictures by them and tried (unsuccessfully) to get them to look at us.
Overall, it was a very successful first day in England. Touring a large city like London on only a couple of hours of sleep is pretty impressive. Tonight we will hit the hay early because tomorrow there will be more sightseeing, as well as our FIRST SOCCER GAME ABROAD! Wish us luck!
By Elise Valeri