Northwestern University Athletics
2010 Italian Tour Player Blog
9/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Sept. 3, 2010
Hello Wildcat fans,
We have just checked out of our fourth hotel, and I have to admit that constantly packing and unpacking is starting to become a bit of a tedious endeavor, especially since there is the constant fear that I won't be able to return to America because I forgot my passport at one of the hotels (but with the amount of fun, good food, and GELATO that we are having, maybe that wouldn't be such a major problem). All kidding aside, the migration between hotels is an insignificant side effect of the amazing cities that we have been fortunate enough to visit within the past week.
The team consensus seems to be that Florence has been our favorite city thus far. The architecture of the city alone is breathtaking, and when combined with the amount of amazing statues, paintings, and churches that are constantly found throughout the city streets, Florence evolves from being merely a physical location to a connection between the past and the present. From the statue of David, to Il Duomo located in the heart of the city, magnificent art seems to be lurking behind every corner. I was reminded by my mother to take a picture standing next to the statue of my same name, Il Davide, so that she could compare that picture to a similar one that I had taken 14 years ago when I had visited the city with my parents as a little boy.
As some of you might know, my family is of Italian descent, and I was fortunate enough to live in this great country for almost three years. I attended second and third grade in a small city named Carmagnola, a 30-minute ride outside of Torino, where the second to last Winter Olympics were held. During my stay in Italy, I was able to learn how to read and write the Italian language, as well as speak it fluently. When I was told that we would be traveling to Italy this summer, I was excited to say the least. My parents were set on coming to watch us play in Italy, and have been to each of our games, along with my sister who lives near Torino with her husband, Enrico.
Before our arrival to Italy, I thought that I would have to be constantly helping the team (including the coaches) with reading street signs, communicating with salesman, and understanding the dinner menu, but I was surprised to find out how very wrong I was. The entire team has been doing a great job communicating with the Italian people, and has learned many new Italian words and sayings.
As far as basketball is concerned, we had a great victory Saturday night against a tough and talented Italian team. Four quarters wasn't enough time to settle the contest, so the game was determined in overtime. Thankfully, our star point guard, Juice Thompson, was able to set the tone early in the quarter and hit some huge shots. Due to Juice's career night (he had 38 points) we were able to pull out the victory and win our third game in a row.
I'd like to give a shout out to my family for coming to all of the games and supporting the Northwestern Basketball team as much as possible. Also, a special shout out to Enrico and Allison.
A Presto,
