Checking out of Europe

I had about four days at home, in Victoria, and they have gone by so fast. I am already packing up to head back to Vancouver. I am very excited, this time, to be heading back to Vancouver because I will be able to start getting back into the groove of a regular training schedule with the team and I might be in one place for a bit longer. I will be of course returning to Victoria for my convocation on June 15th but this summer will be mostly in Vancouver and Victoria. No more plane rides (or trains, water taxis, funiculars or bus rides for that matter) until, hopefully, October.

I haven't had any time to go through my photos yet but it is definitely on my list of things to do. I want to pull out some of the ones that really show the highlights of my trip. For now, I thought I would do a little re-cap verbally of some of the main stops.


Seeing Hockey from a different side:
Getting the opportunity to travel with the National team as staff brings you to a whole different side of a team sport and a national level team's craziness. I was trying to do some work outs, do my job as a video technician and be as much apart of the team's activities as I could. It was a challenge in itself and I didn't feel apart of the team nor did I fully feel apart of the staff. Needless to say, it was still a great opportunity. I watched almost every single game at the tournament and I learned a lot about tactics and some things that I can focus on technically, as a player. Working with the staff, I saw how many hours go in behind the scenes when you aren't playing. I have true respect for the staff and whoever does the video taping. It is a lot of time and work.


Linz, Round 2.

Returning to a small city, Linz, for the second time 8 months is not something I would have ever imagined. Returning to Linz with Dan, who grew up there, was even more incredible. Seeing a city like that with a local, especially after hearing so much about it, is a very cool experience. We met up with Dan's friends, who were recently married, and they joined us in doing some touristy things - which I really did enjoy. My highlight (aside from all the ice cream) in Linz was the Hauhenrosch exhibit that apparently changes every year! It's a unique way of show casing art in various forms and each exhibit, this time, was either in a room, hallway or on the roof of the building itself. The best exhibit was that being up on the roof you could see Linz from a whole different view - that was art in itself. I kept saying it was like a movie scene because every building looked so surreal to me.

Venezia
Venice was a whirl-wind as we only had about one day to really visit the center of the city. The colours of the buildings were heart-stopping. The suspense of not knowing what lies around the next corner is actually kind of exciting. Everyone told us that you would get lost no matter what in Venice but oddly, the "streets" have good signage toward San Marco Square and that's really all you need to know to orient yourself. Visiting the islands of Murano and Lido were definitely the highlights. The view on the water taxi journey (pre-motion sickness) was absolutely astonishing. I would go back to Venice just so I could wander the streets aimlessly. Low point: Paying for 15 euro bellinis and 8 euro cappuccinos at Harry's Bar

Napoli

Naples was heart-stopping in a completely opposite way. Our initial impressions of Naples were very negative but having some time to process the whole event, I actually believe Naples is a beautiful city full of history and art everywhere. It just has corruption and filfth covering it up right now. We rode the train with a lady who grew up in Naples many years ago and she is so sad to see it so run-down because she knew the city when it had so much colour, life and culture. I can see that potential begging to break through but I'll have to read up more on the Naples mafia to find out more about what is really holding this city back.

Southern Italy
In a few short days we did all the touristy sites including the ash-preserved cities of Herculaneum & Pompeii; the only active volcano in Europe, Mt. Vesuvias; the small port city of Sorrento; as well as driving the coast through Positano to visit the breath-taking city of Amalfi. Though these are all top 10 sites for tourists, I am glad I visited them to get a taste of Southern Italy's true beauty. I would love to re-visit these cities, brush up on my Italian (ie: learn it) and discover how the locals live. Maybe, some day.

Rome, the eternal city

I was unexpectedly overwhelmed by emotion and passion when I first got a taste of the eternal city. I didn't think it would hit me so hard but when I was standing in the Piazza Navona and a man proposed to a woman in the middle of the square, I knew this city meant so much more to me than another stop on my tourist-site filled itinerary. Rome has so much history and for me, I've grown up learning so much about it and to be able to populate those thoughts with real images with my own eyes... that was remarkable. It was a special place that I feel like I want to continue to visit. After seeing the Vatican, Colosseum and a few famous piazzas, I just fell in love with the atmosphere there. It's a beautiful, safe and clean city and I hope my coin-toss in the Trevi Fountain guides me back there again, soon.

Back to Reality
I have to check back in to the reason why I was there anyway. My commitment to the National team is no less after being inactive and out of Canada for a month. It has made me realize the importance of this team and this sport to me and to Canada. I want nothing more than to go back to being an athlete - healthy and happy. I have a lot to get out of my system, so we have a dual post coming up today.