The last day of Gopher Italia started this morning by parting ways with several members of our "Big Family" as they were staying on for an extended tour. I trust those members of the crew will enjoy their respective jaunts through Europe. As a side note, we registered our first official celebrity sighting, in the Newark airport of all places. Archie and Eli Manning along with their wives, waited patiently for a plane to Indianapolis two rows away from us, while we were waiting to board our plane to Minneapolis.
This trip has certainly been an adventure in many senses from language to cultural to academic to sporting endeavors. From an academic perspective, this group is enrolled in various sub-disciplines of Kinesiology including: Physical Therapy, Sport Management, Sport Sociology as well as in programs outside the KIN department such as Finance. This amalgamation of viewpoints generated interesting presentations and group discussions that followed. The diverse perspectives were evident during the hockey/basketball globalization wrap up that touched on NHL/NBA expansion into Europe. While many of us agreed that the leagues have a strong fan base in Europe, the group was not necessarily sure that NHL/NBA expansion franchises in Europe are a viable option at the present time. In contrast, the dialogue surrounding Brandon Jennings leap from HS to Euro League basketball contained more divergent opinions on the importance of education, the role of sport as upward mobility and the impact this precedent might set for future student athletes with dreams of professional stardom. This example illustrates some of the formal discussions that took place during the course of our two week trip. We also ended up engaging in many informal conversations on sport, culture and globalization while walking the streets or over dinner.
In terms of sport, the Swiss women's soccer match turned into one of the most intriguing parts of our voyage. As Lindsey's blog indicates, the match was intense and more exciting than anyone could have anticipated. The way in which the majority of our group embraced the game and players was quite awesome. Here we were in the middle of Switzerland, watching a random club match of two teams that we had no connection with, yet people were cheering, jumping up and down and out on the field after the match to congratulate the winning team. The genuine enthusiasm people showed during/following that match was brilliant!
As the trip wore on our Spitalian steadily improved but we were thrown a curveball when we arrived in Switzerland to find that French and German are spoken more frequently than Italian. Fortunately, "pizza" is a universal word. Some of us, maybe just me rediscovered French phrases learned in HS. The ever important phrase, "No parlez-vous francais" came in handy a couple of times when people tried to ask me directions. Overall, this aspect of the trip reinforced the idea that I need to learn a foreign language, beyond some phrases that I miraculously remembered despite being a long time removed from 10th grade french class.
The previous paragraphs are designed to give a glimpse of the major themes we touched upon during the entire semester. Finally, I want recognize Dr. Buysse's efforts and thank her for organizing this class. Our trip flowed quite smoothly. I would like to leave you with lyrics from our trip song Empire of the Sun: Walking on a Dream, "We are always running for the thrill of it thrill of it, Always pushing up the hill searching for the thrill of it, On and on and on we are calling out and out again, Never looking down I’m just in awe of what’s in front of me..."
Emily Houghton
PhD student in Sport Sociology
sabato 6 giugno 2009
giovedì 4 giugno 2009
June 4th, last full day in Europe.
We are almost done with our fabulous journey, America,
Our day started around 9:30am when our class went to find a place for Alli and me to give our presentation. Bender and Lovrien saw big fish through the crystal clear water of Lake Geneva. Alli and I gave our presentation on Sport Nutrition. We really appreciated everyone`s attention and great comments during our discussion. After the presentation we took a ten minute break and then Bria gave her presentation on Dance and cultural identity. This presentation was very interesting because we learned about the different styles of dance and what identities were connected with them. The best part of the presentation was when Bria taught the group a Rennaissance Dance. We learned 15, 8-counts of the dance and performed for the locals on their lunch breaks. It was very fun for the whole group to get involved with the presentation.
After the presentations we had a free day until our farewell dinner at Pizza Alfredo. Before dinner most of the group went shopping in the unique stores around Lake Geneva. We spent dinner talking about the cultural differences between Europe and the United States. We each shared one main take home point from the trip that related to Sport Management. It was interesting to hear how much each person has learned through this two week study abroad class. It has been brief, but we have all experienced so much. Most of the group will depart for Minnesota tomorrow morning, but Alli and I are looking forward to our 5 day exploration of Paris, France.
This has been a fantastic and memorable trip. Thanks for following our progress over the past couple of weeks.
Ciao Tutti!
Jamie Bullock,
Kinesiology major, pre-Physicians Assistant emphasis.
Our day started around 9:30am when our class went to find a place for Alli and me to give our presentation. Bender and Lovrien saw big fish through the crystal clear water of Lake Geneva. Alli and I gave our presentation on Sport Nutrition. We really appreciated everyone`s attention and great comments during our discussion. After the presentation we took a ten minute break and then Bria gave her presentation on Dance and cultural identity. This presentation was very interesting because we learned about the different styles of dance and what identities were connected with them. The best part of the presentation was when Bria taught the group a Rennaissance Dance. We learned 15, 8-counts of the dance and performed for the locals on their lunch breaks. It was very fun for the whole group to get involved with the presentation.
After the presentations we had a free day until our farewell dinner at Pizza Alfredo. Before dinner most of the group went shopping in the unique stores around Lake Geneva. We spent dinner talking about the cultural differences between Europe and the United States. We each shared one main take home point from the trip that related to Sport Management. It was interesting to hear how much each person has learned through this two week study abroad class. It has been brief, but we have all experienced so much. Most of the group will depart for Minnesota tomorrow morning, but Alli and I are looking forward to our 5 day exploration of Paris, France.
This has been a fantastic and memorable trip. Thanks for following our progress over the past couple of weeks.
Ciao Tutti!
Jamie Bullock,
Kinesiology major, pre-Physicians Assistant emphasis.
martedì 2 giugno 2009
Lausanne!
Ciao,
Today was not filled with information, history, or site visits; however, full of picturesque views as we drove through and scaled the Alps. We snapped many photographs of the beautiful mountain slopes and quaint villages. The bus ride was only supposed to take 3 hours, but since we had to scale the mountain side several times, stop at the border, and stop for lunch, the trip ended up taking 5 hours! Thankfully, we were able to pass the time with napping and gazing out the window. Once we finally arrived in Lausanne, it took us some time to find our way to the hotel, as it was our bus driver's first time in the city as well. Lausanne is a beautiful city built on the mountain side starting at the shore of Lake Geneva. We walked down to the base of the mountain to finish two group projects and discussions. Thankfully, the lake was at the group's back so they weren't overly distracted with scenery. We had a gorgeous view of the lake and a mountain back drop, which happened to be the country of France. So we can basically say we were in France as well. Even though we did not do anything as a group for sport we did see a number of soccer games going in the small villages. Also, we saw a rowing team practicing out on Lake Geneva. The amazing part was that even though we were passing through small villages the soccer fields were still lined with with advertisements!That was just an interesting observation. Hope all is well back in the states. We will be back in three short days and we would all appreciate a hearty American meal when we return :)!
Ciao Tutti,
Tony Lucia, CSOM Finance major
Today was not filled with information, history, or site visits; however, full of picturesque views as we drove through and scaled the Alps. We snapped many photographs of the beautiful mountain slopes and quaint villages. The bus ride was only supposed to take 3 hours, but since we had to scale the mountain side several times, stop at the border, and stop for lunch, the trip ended up taking 5 hours! Thankfully, we were able to pass the time with napping and gazing out the window. Once we finally arrived in Lausanne, it took us some time to find our way to the hotel, as it was our bus driver's first time in the city as well. Lausanne is a beautiful city built on the mountain side starting at the shore of Lake Geneva. We walked down to the base of the mountain to finish two group projects and discussions. Thankfully, the lake was at the group's back so they weren't overly distracted with scenery. We had a gorgeous view of the lake and a mountain back drop, which happened to be the country of France. So we can basically say we were in France as well. Even though we did not do anything as a group for sport we did see a number of soccer games going in the small villages. Also, we saw a rowing team practicing out on Lake Geneva. The amazing part was that even though we were passing through small villages the soccer fields were still lined with with advertisements!That was just an interesting observation. Hope all is well back in the states. We will be back in three short days and we would all appreciate a hearty American meal when we return :)!
Ciao Tutti,
Tony Lucia, CSOM Finance major
lunedì 1 giugno 2009
Day 11 - Milano
Today we meet up at 9am and took the metro over to San Siro Soccer Stadium, the home stadium to AC Milan and Inter Milan. We got a tour of the stadium, which included both locker rooms and the VIP area. I even got to sit in David Beckham’s locker room chair! After the tour we were able to walk around the museum there. It was really cool to see all the old artifacts, jerseys, pictures, and even trophies the teams have won. After the tour, the group broke up and went their separate ways. A few people went and saw the Duomo, some grabbed lunch, and some headed back to the hotel.
We all met up at 2pm in the lobby of the hotel to hear Tony and my presentation on the globalization of hockey. We also heard from guest Brad Doshan, the directing manager ofEuro Sport Tours and also U of M hockey alumni, who now lives and coaches in Italy. He gave us great insight to the world of European hockey, especially Switzerland and Italy along with giving us a detailed overview of Euro Sport Tours. Specifically he was able to answer many of the questions we had about the structure of hockey in Europe within the professional leagues as well as the youth development of Swiss and Italian hockey players. One of the things I thought was incredibly interesting was that the youth players in Switzerland receive professional coaching starting at a young age all the way up to their professional years if they are lucky enough to make it. Also, I was shocked to hear that youth hockey programs are sponsored and privately subsidized, therefore the parents have to pay only a small amount for great quality coaches compared to the U.S. where you can pay thousands of dollars for hockey and professional coaching.
Following the presentation, a few of us headed to Corso Buoenos Aires to do some shopping in the great fashion area of Milan. Tomorrow we are finally saying goodbye to the beautiful country of Italy and heading to Lausanne, Switzerland.
-Ali Carlston, Undergraduate Kinesiology Student
We all met up at 2pm in the lobby of the hotel to hear Tony and my presentation on the globalization of hockey. We also heard from guest Brad Doshan, the directing manager ofEuro Sport Tours and also U of M hockey alumni, who now lives and coaches in Italy. He gave us great insight to the world of European hockey, especially Switzerland and Italy along with giving us a detailed overview of Euro Sport Tours. Specifically he was able to answer many of the questions we had about the structure of hockey in Europe within the professional leagues as well as the youth development of Swiss and Italian hockey players. One of the things I thought was incredibly interesting was that the youth players in Switzerland receive professional coaching starting at a young age all the way up to their professional years if they are lucky enough to make it. Also, I was shocked to hear that youth hockey programs are sponsored and privately subsidized, therefore the parents have to pay only a small amount for great quality coaches compared to the U.S. where you can pay thousands of dollars for hockey and professional coaching.
Following the presentation, a few of us headed to Corso Buoenos Aires to do some shopping in the great fashion area of Milan. Tomorrow we are finally saying goodbye to the beautiful country of Italy and heading to Lausanne, Switzerland.
-Ali Carlston, Undergraduate Kinesiology Student
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