End of the Trip

What a trip! Sorry its been so long since my last post but the last few days have been pretty hectic.  But here I am lying in my bed recovering from jet lag trying to recount my last days over in Erzurum.  We ended up finishing in 6th place after a loss to the Slovakians we had beaten the week before.  We started out playing a very sloppy game and it seemed as though the Slovakians had changed up their style of play so that they would not be beaten by us again.  We even had more power plays than they did since they tried to play our style of hockey but just couldn't keep up.  We were down 3-0 going into the 3rd period when the guy in the locker room came together and we all said this needed to stop and we needed to come out this period on fire which we did.  As soon as we took the ice for the 3rd period the Slovakians were on their heels.  We were at top speed and hitting like freight trains and before we knew it we were only down 3-2 but with a lucky turnover in our end they capitalized once more and we were in the hole again.  But we were relentless and scored with about 45 seconds left which gave us plenty of time to pull the goalie and try to tie it up.  We had won the draw and spent the last 45 seconds desperately trying to put one in but they tightened up around their net and managed to stave off every attempt until the final buzzer rang.  It was a hollow feeling going 3-3 in the games but we had to be proud of our accomplishment.  We had finished 6th which was higher than any USA hockey team had finished in these games since they started competing in them in 1991 not to mention we played against both Olympic, National team players and pro players.  People who thought we were going to get killed against these teams can look at us and say that we really gave everything we had and made every game as competitive as possible which certainly surprised most of them.  

After the game we had one night to go out and experience the 'Disco' which we couldn't wait to do.  As soon as we arrived back at the dorms everyone got all cleaned up and ready to go since it was already 11:30 and the place closed at 1:00am.  We were all ready to go and dance like crazy so we rushed on to the bus and headed for the disco.  Once we had arrived at what looked like a metal warehouse we showed our passes to the security guards and rushed in out of the cold to the most enormous intercultural dance party I think I will ever be a part of.  The DJ was playing all American music while the bartender was serving all foam beers at the beer stand.  It was hilarious watching everyone dance and try to yell to each other to hear when nobody could really understand what they were saying anyway with the language barrier.  But we all had a great time sweating on the dance floor because of the pure volume of athletes out there dancing.  When they turned the lights on and told everyone they needed to leave we tried to gather as many people as we could and go keep the party going in the basement of our dorm.  When I had arrived there were athletes from about 30 countries in the basement continuing to party which we were loving until the heads of some of the delegations came down and told everyone that the party was officially over and that it was time for bed.

The following day we had to pack up our gear and the dorms and prepare for the long trip home, but not before the closing ceremony.  This time all of the athletes would be walking into the crowded stadium all together rather that with only their delegation which made it an even cooler experience.  While this was going on there were many more pictures being taken but the real action was in the trading of team gear from other countries.  I managed to get a hat from Sweden, mittens from Switzerland, a scarf from Italy, a jacket from Turkey and a vest from South Korea.  By the end of the ceremony nobody could tell who was who from their country because they were wearing all sorts of other gear from other countries.  It was so amazing to see that kind of international friendship being displayed so effortlessly.   This trip was an incredible experience for me and something I never thought I would have the opportunity to do.  Turkey did a phenomenal job of hosting these games and I'd love to go back again someday.

I don't believe I need to exhaust you with the details of my trip back home because 26 hours of travel and being awake for 48 hours is tiring enough to think about.  Its great to be home and eating the food I love with my family.  Thank you for all the support over the past semester and then during the games.  I couldn't have done it without you.  Until Slovenia in two years, I'm back to riding on the dog!