2010 Wolverine European Trip: Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
8/22/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Aug. 30, 2010
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
10th Installment: Final Thoughts
The Wolverine Foreign Tour was a life-changing experience for me and the entire University of Michigan men's basketball program. We learned so much through the month of August that will not only help us for this upcoming season, but for many years down the road. The extra practice time and games can't be overlooked as it will give us a tremendous advantage when we start fall practice.
Overall, I would not change anything about the trip, as it was a perfect blend of touring and basketball. The group of people on the trip was fantastic, and everyone seemed to get closer than we had been before we left.
With little internet access and limited cell phone usage, we found ourselves in a situation that required just a little more personal interaction, and sometimes a lot less personal space, thus creating a true family atmosphere. I will never forget the last eight days and how much I have learned about just a small part of the world outside the United States.
Hopefully, one day I will be fortunate enough to return and again enjoy the experiences these European countries offer.
Thanks to everyone that followed my entries about the Wolverine Foreign Tour. I hope that you continue to follow the team into the 2010-11 season.
Go Blue!
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
Ninth Installment: Friday, Aug. 27
Our last full day in Europe was spent in Amsterdam, Netherlands. We arrived to our hotel, Novotel Amsterdam City, at about 1 a.m. We were all exhausted, so we quickly crashed in our tiny rooms.
The next day we woke up early to eat breakfast, but this complimentary meal did not compare to the meal we were spoiled with in Brussels. The team was given the morning off, so after waking up early for breakfast I had about 4 hours to lounge around in the hotel. I'm not the type of person who just wants to sit in a hotel for that long, so I decided to explore the area around the hotel. We were not staying in the heart of Amsterdam, so it was somewhat empty. However, Matt Duprey and I decided to try and find a good place to eat lunch.
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Matt and I decided the best bet to find food was to go the area that looked like the business district of the city. Bad decision. We walked about 20 minutes one way and did not find a single place to eat food. When we finally got back to where we started we went in the opposite direction this time, and immediately found strip malls after strip malls. Each was filled with many places to eat and purchase souvenirs. For the couple hours that we walked around I really enjoyed myself. However, we had to leave to go into the heart of Amsterdam so my shopping time was cut short.
When we finally go into the main part of Amsterdam the first thing we did was take a bus tour. The bus tour lasted about four hours and it took us around Amsterdam. At first we drove through the streets for about an hour learning all about the city. After that first hour, we got off the bus and went for an hour long tour in a diamond factory. You could see everyone's eyes get really big while they were showing us the diamonds. Eventually people were dreaming of some future day when they could have enough money to purchase these stones.
The next stop after the diamond factory was to a boat on Amstel River. Here we took a boat tour of Amsterdam for about 45 minutes, which was very relaxing. It gave us another interesting view of the beauty in Amsterdam. The boat tour ended at the Anne Frank house which I found to be the best museum of the trip. Everyone on the team was moved by what the museum exhibited. It was a great cultural experience all around.
The tour ended after the Anne Frank house, and we were able to wander the streets of Amsterdam for a couple of hours before we had to return to the hotel to get some rest before our long trek home. Everyone was exhausted from the long trip, so nobody had a problem with getting back to the hotel early. Our day in Amsterdam ended an unbelievable eight day trip through some of Western Europe's most popular cities.
Go Blue!
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
Eighth Installment: Thursday, Aug. 26
Today was our last day in Belgium and I had an early wake up this morning to help Bob Bland with the laundry. Admittedly, today was the hardest day to force myself awake as exhaustion has been setting in. I have never done the laundry for the team before, but Bob needed my help to carry the gear down to the Laundromat, so I was happy to assist. The job is much harder that I thought, but it went relatively quickly with the efficiency of the European washers and dryers.
By the time we returned from doing laundry I had about 15 minutes to spare until we had to leave for practice. We went back to the gym we had been using for practice all week in Brussels. We watched film for about an hour, and practiced for another 30 minutes. It was a light practice as we didn't want to lose our legs before the final game
When practice was finished we had to quickly pack up our bags because we had to be out of the hotel within an hour. Everybody brought their bags down to the lobby, but the bus was not there yet for us to load. Since we didn't have much time, all of the players and coaches went out to eat while a few of us stayed back to wait for the bus so we could watch and load our stuff.
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Once the bus arrived, we loaded it quickly so we could all go grab a quick bite to eat before we took off for our last game. Even though I was trying to eat healthy, I couldn't resist one last chocolate covered Belgian waffle. This tasty treat capped off an amazing stay in Brussels.
Our final game tipped off at 7 p.m. against Mons at a neutral site arena. I wanted to make sure I enjoyed this game to its fullest because this would be our last game until early November. The game did not disappoint. From the beginning we were in charge and it looked like we finally put together a lot of the things that the coaching staff had been preaching. It's a great feeling to closely watch a team learn and grow, and throughout this game I saw a lot of that.
The game brought nice closure to our team's basketball progression through the month of August. Everyone contributed to our win with their communication, intensity, and intelligence. Our bench was vocal, and engaged which is always a plus. Beating a high-level profession Belgian team is not an easy task, but it was well deserved. This gives us good momentum going into the school year.
After the game was over, and while we were preparing to leave for Amsterdam, we had a unique experience. Many of the fans stayed after to talk with our players and coaches. The atmosphere got a little crazy though as the fans went from asking for autographs, to begging for gear.
Bob was hounded by fans that were eager to get their hands on some sort of Michigan apparel. It was wild. We eventually left the arena, leaving most of our extra gear with those fans. Overall, it was a great way to end our last game, and leave Belgium. Stay tuned for my final entry from the Wolverine Foreign Tour.
Go Blue!
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
Seventh Installment: Wednesday, Aug. 25
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This morning was originally planned to be off, but the coaches decided it would be a good time to have a short practice. We used our 45 minutes of gym time to work on some fundamentals. After practice we got a couple of hours off to walk around Brussels some more.
By this point of the trip we have been in Brussels for so long that we all feel very comfortable making our way around the city. Will Vergollo and I went around to some stores and eventually stopped for our first Belgian waffle experience. This delicacy will definitely go down as one of my favorites on the trip. I'm glad I waited this long to have one though, or I would have spent a lot of money on waffles.
Around 1 p.m. we left Brussels for a day trip to Brugge. I had a lot of anticipation for this visit due to the fact that I met a few people in Brussels who told me it was their favorite city.
Brugge did not disappoint.
When we first arrived I was amazed with the architecture of the city. Walking through the city makes you feel like you are still in medieval times. I learned later the reason for this is because it is one of the places not touched by World War II bombings from Germany.
We decided to go on a canal ride to tour the city. Here we got to see many of the buildings quickly, allowing us all to take more pictures. The boat was a bit crammed, providing another good bonding experience for the team. While the tour was going on, we got a lot of people shouting to us "Go Blue," which is always nice to hear when you are in a foreign city. The passion of our alumni makes me proud to be a Wolverine.
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With not much time left before we had to leave for our game, we got off the boat and headed down to the main square in Brugge. Here we took some pictures, ate dinner and shopped for chocolate prior to getting back on the bus. Overall, I really enjoyed myself in Brugge, but I would like to go back in the future knowing how much more there is to see in this unique city.
Our third game was against Oostande, another top professional team in the Belgium league. After each game, I feel our team is getting better and learning new things. Every experience we have now will help us when we start the regular season, so it is good to get some growing pains out of the way in August.
Most teams don't have the opportunity to play games in the offseason, and I definitely think that will give us an advantage. To give one highlight from tonight, Stu Douglass had an impressive two-handed tip jam in the first quarter. I went crazy.
We are about to board the bus to go back to the hotel for our last night in Brussels. Thanks again for following my musings and be sure to stay tuned for the next entry on the Wolverine Foreign Trip.
Go Blue!
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
Sixth Installment: Tuesday, Aug. 24
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The trip to Paris began at 8 a.m. via the bullet train from Brussels to Paris. I was told that the train goes about 200 miles per hour but don't quote me on that. Regardless, the train was fast and made a few of us have motion sickness. After we got off the train, we had to take a quick subway ride into the city. For most of the team, traveling via subways and trains was a new experience. One player who had difficulty with the subway system was Eso Akunne, who moved to slow through the turnstile gate and got stuck. Everyone who saw this went hysterical with laughter and Eso struggled to pull himself through.
After all of the commotion with the subway system, we made it to our first stop in Paris, the Louvre. This was an incredible sight that left everyone in awe of its massive structure and beauty. We could not believe something this incredible could have been built so many years ago. Following many more pictures, we decided to try our luck again on a hop-on, hop-off bus. We hoped that a similar experience (roof collapsing on Brussels bus) would not happen again today. The bus drove us around for a little bit until we got off at the Cathedral of Notre Dame. Here the players chose to go view the cathedral, while the staff chose to get some food.
For lunch, we went to the Café le Petit Pont, which quickly became my favorite meal of the trip. I ordered a Paulette (sandwich with emmental, tomatoes and chicken), which was great. I followed the sandwich in honor my mothers and brothers favorite desert, crème brulee, and it was by far the best I had ever tasted.
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Next we got back onto the bus, which gave us a good view of the city, all while driving us closer to the Eiffel Tower. This landmark was the most anticipated part of the trip to Paris, and we were all looking forward to ascending to the top. Unfortunately, when we got there the line was too long for everyone to wait so we all decided to pass on the climb besides Matt Vogrich and Blake McLimans. Although we did not make it to the top of the tower, there was plenty of entertainment in the area, with people performing tricks all over the place. It was an awesome atmosphere. We stayed here for quite a while, just taking it all in and eventually left to go eat dinner at a restaurant close by. On our war to the restaurant, we ran into three different groups of people who yelled "Go Blue!" and one lady who was from Ann Arbor; the power of the Block M. Overall, everyone seemed to really enjoy Paris. With all of the history and the people, it definitely reminded me more of an American city than a place like Brussels. I really appreciated my time there, and I hope that I am fortunate enough in the future to go back because there is a lot more to see.
After a long day we were finally making our way back to Brussels when we got on the wrong train. Once we realized this mistake, we all quickly sprinted off the train, and tried to make it over to the correct train before it left, but we were too late. This error resulted in us missing the train back to Brussels, thus forcing us to wait another hour for the next train. Anyway, I'm about to take on Evan Smotrycz in a game of backgammon, so I have to concentrate but remember to check back tomorrow for the next entry on the Wolverine Foreign Tour.
Go Blue!
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
Fifth Installment: Monday, Aug. 23: Game Time
We arrived to our game against Charleroi a bit late last night. After leaving the hotel at about 5 p.m. for a 20-minute drive, we hit a traffic jam. This resulted in us arriving to the game at 6:30 for a 7 p.m. tipoff. Obviously, this is not a lot of time to warm-up for a game, providing us a new experience. At least for this game, I didn't have to keep stats and sit on the bench, as this arena had staff members to do that work. As managers, we are used to sitting behind the bench helping the players and coaches with various duties throughout the game. However, on the road with only one manager, the manager jobs are left solely to me. It was a good amount of work, but I had fun, and it is always nice to sit that close to the action.
After the game was over, we ate dinner at the arena and drove back to the hotel to get some sleep before our day trip to Paris. Overall, I was impressed with the intensity and performance of our team, but at the same time I learned that European basketball is better than I thought. The speed and pace of the game was at a pro level, and Charleroi did not miss any open shots.
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
Fourth Installment: Monday, Aug. 23
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We had an early start to the morning so the team could eat breakfast before watching the game film. However, since the hotel does not have a ballroom, or a larger room in which we normally watch film we had to adapt. All of the players and coaches went into Coach Beilein's room for the film session. It was hot in the room and much more crammed then we are used to, but it was still effective in getting the teaching lessons across to the players.
A little bit after the film session was over, we made our way over to the bus stop for a hop-on, hop-off bus tour around Brussels. While walking to the bus, a heavy rainfall came out of nowhere, with winds that made it seem like a bad day for a bus tour. I was told while waiting for the bus from a local that it rains about every other day in Brussels. I was surprised by this; it would make it very interesting living here year round. However, those storms probably don't compare to the multiple storms and tornado warnings we have had in Ann Arbor this summer.
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Soon though, we were able to get out of the rain and onto the bus. There were only a limited number of seats on the bus, forcing many people to stand. I was fortunate to get a seat, but my headphones didn't work so I could not listen to the information being presented. The first stop on the bus tour was at the antonium (monument built for the 1958 World Fair in Brussels), but since it was still raining nobody got off the bus. Immediately after we started driving away the sun came out, leaving myself and Matt Vogrich disappointed that we missed this popular landmark in Brussels.
About 10 minutes later though, the bus pulled to a stop where we could get off and see Belgium's most famous statute: The Manneken Pis. All of the players, Will Vergollo and I got off to go see the statue, leaving just the staff on the bus. This turned out to be a good decision, as I later learned the roof of the bus actually flew off during the tour. The Manneken Pis features a boy urinating into a fountain. The statue was neat but much smaller than I was expecting. Right around this area were a number of shops that everyone was buying souvenirs and Belgian Waffles from. I didn't get a waffle, but the one Evan Smotrycz was eating, covered in chocolate, looked awesome, and Jordan Morgan ended his first Belgian waffle experience with the majority of the chocolate on his shirt.
The team split up after that, leaving just Will, Darius, Tim, Corey, Jordan and I in a group. We got back on the bus to see more sights and to get a quick ride back to the hotel. Everyone seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves on the tour, constantly taking pictures of anything that looked unique in sight. When we got back to our stop at the hotel, we walked around the streets, going into various shoe stores to see if we could find anything worth buying.
After a good amount of time walking around, I decided to go back to the hotel to take a nap before the game.
Since the game is late tonight, that part of my day will be reported tomorrow in my next entry. Be sure to check back to read the latest information about the Wolverine Foreign Trip.
Go Blue!
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
Third Installment: Sunday, Aug. 22
Today was our first full day in Belgium and something was always going on. The day began with a delectable breakfast provided by the hotel. With a buffet consisting of fruit, biscuits, croissants, eggs, sausage, bacon, rosties (like hush puppies) and crepes (thin pancakes). You couldn't go wrong with anything. However, the team consensus seemed to be that the crepes were the most popular.
Around 10:30 a.m., we made our way over to the chocolate museum. The museum is about six blocks away from the hotel, but the trip took much longer than normal due to the constant picture taking of each and every building and statue in sight. It was fun to see the players become so enthralled with the scenery, snapping picture after picture in order to document their experience so they could share with people back home. Eventually we made it to the chocolate museum where we learned about the origins of chocolate. We even got a neat demonstration on how to make chocolate, and a sample to top it off. Let me tell you firsthand, Belgian chocolate is better than advertised.
By the time the museum tour was over it was time to get lunch. Some members of the staff and I decided we wanted to eat on the safe side for lunch, choosing an Italian restaurant called Sole D'Italia. The food was very good and affordable, however, the cost of a bottle of water is outrageous. Nine euros for a bottle of water? (1 euros = 1.2696 US dollar) Really? Things like that make you appreciate our tap water in Michigan that much more.
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After lunch, the highlight of the day, our first basketball game, was next on the schedule. We got on the bus early for a one-hour drive to Gent. The players and coaches looked anxious to finally display, against some professional competition, what we had been working on in practice for the past weeks. When we finally arrived to the arena it was much different then what you would expect to see in the U.S. The arena was in the middle of a neighborhood, surrounded by apartments and a playground. Once I got inside, it seemed that it was not just an arena, but a recreation center for multiple purposes. Efficiency: The European way. The arena didn't even have a parking lot for the bus, and we had to stop in the middle of the street; completely halting traffic until we all got off and unloaded.
Once everything was in the locker room, I had to do the typical pre-game rebounding for the players, and the setting up of the bench for the coaches. With limited staff in the arena, though, there was nobody available to keep statistics for the game. I was asked to do the stats for the game, taking me away from my normal spot behind the bench. The game was a blur with the amount of concentration and work it requires to keep stats for two teams without much assistance. It was a definite struggle, but a good learning experience for me. The game, although stressful for me at points, was still fun to watch. I finally got to watch our guys, especially the freshmen, play against a different team. I'm not the guy who will be making judgments about the team's performance, but I definitely believe this game was a great learning experience for our young and eager team, regardless of the score.
The day ended with a trip back to the central market in Brussels, where I went with some of our assistant coaches and other staff members. For dinner, we had another Belgian specialty, mussels and frites. The meal was great, and it definitely left me with the urge to go back and get more. After the meal, we all went back to the hotel to get another night of much-needed rest before a busy day tomorrow, including our second game of the trip (against Charleroi). Be sure to be check back later for my next entry about the Wolverine Foreign Tour.
Go Blue!
Notes
• Former Michigan basketball players Graham Brown (2006 graduate; Antwerp) and Chris Young (2002; Aalstar) were in the stands at the game against Gent.
• A special shout out to Tom Wywrot, the man who is allowing our experience to be seen and heard by all of you back home. He did an incredible job today with the amount of work he had to put into the game with pictures, videos and sound bites to make sure our fans can be involved with all of Michigan basketball activities.
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
Second Installment: Saturday, Aug. 21
We spent the majority of day two traveling. In the morning we were still on the plane from Detroit. The flight seemed to go relatively quickly, as I watched the in-flight special: The Joneses. Unexpectedly, I also had my first new cultural experience on the flight with a woman in the seat next to me who was from Saudi Arabia. We talked for a good amount of time, allowing me to learn a lot about what the lifestyle is like in Saudi Arabia. I think this sort of experience is one of the benefits of this trip: we are learning new things about other people, leaving our comfort zone in the process. Meeting new people from other places and learning about who they are is so much more valuable than merely reading about "culture."
When we arrived in Amsterdam, we got on our bus for the three-hour drive to Brussels. Throughout the drive, we mostly saw farms. This, of course, was not quite the sort of "culture" some of our team expected. "This reminds me of Indiana" Zack Novak said in reference to the scenery. The team got a good laugh out of this, and the mood was definitely upbeat but tired as we made this trip.
Eventually we arrived at our hotel in Brussels, the Hotel Le Plaza. The hotel is very comfortable, and is located in the heart of Brussels, which makes things quite convenient. I was quickly schooled on the style of European hotels with the size of rooms and beds. I'm not really sure how the players will fit. They are small enough to make the beds in the residence halls back at Michigan look built for basketball players.
Following some much-needed rest after the long trip, the team went to a basketball gym in Brussels for our first practice. Coming in with sleepy eyes, and tired legs, I did not have high hopes for an energy-filled practice. I was quickly proven wrong as the coaches, who are never short on enthusiasm, got the guys in the right mind set. The players soon seemed like they had an extra jump in their step, creating a very lively and vocal practice. During the end of practice in team drills everyone was showing off their hops, including Matt Vogrich, who threw down an unexpected, emphatic, one-handed dunk that drew oohs and ahs from the team. It was a fun way to end practice.
After practice, Tom Wywrot (Sports Information Director), Bob Bland (Equipment Manager), John Dorosario (Athletic Trainer), Will Vergollo (Graduate Manager) and I decided to explore the city and find a place for dinner. Not really knowing what we wanted, we decided to go with a safe choice, the Brussels Grill. I had the chance to try frites, the original French fries. They are a Belgian specialty and they lived up to the hype. Tom chose a decked out Belgian waffle that looked delicious and finished it promptly before anyone could try a bite. The food was a bit expensive, but it was definitely a good choice for the first night out. After we were there for about twenty minutes all of the players came into the same place. They seemed to be enjoying themselves for their first European dining experience as well.
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Once we finished dinner, we walked around the city for a little bit, every so often stopping into cafes we thought would be interesting. We soon headed back to the hotel though, because after a long day of traveling all we wanted to do was go to bed. It has been a fun first day, and I am looking forward to our first game tomorrow against Ghent. Be sure to be check back later for my next entry about the Wolverine Foreign Tour.
Go Blue!
Quote of the Day "This is fun. I love this group. Great group of kids." -- Assistant coach Bacari Alexander (in reference to the team during a good practice)
Manager's Musings with Jonathan Adler
Travel Day: Friday, Aug. 20
The team is about to embark on an exciting foreign trip to Europe, where we will be competing against four teams over nine days, and seeing a bit of Europe along the way. Each day, I'll be taking the time in "Manager's Musings" to give you updates, highlights and comments from the players and coaches about how things have been going.
 Jonathan Adler | |
The nine-day excursion will consist of stops in popular European cities including Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris. The team will be playing games against four professional basketball teams in the Belgium league: Ghent, Charleroi, Oostende and Mons. Aside from the games, we will experience various tours that I will fill you in on as time goes on.
Since I am lucky enough to be bringing you news from the week, it might be helpful if you know a little bit more about me. I am a senior manager on the team, but I'm also a student at Michigan. I'm an Economics major and I'll be graduating this upcoming May.
Originally I am from Buffalo, N.Y., and yes, we do have great chicken wings. Over the past three years, I have worked extremely hard to help the basketball team in as many ways as possible. Whether it be working with the coaches or helping out the players, us managers spend endless hours doing whatever we can to improve the program. I love the job, and would not trade the experience I have gained over the past few years for anything. Hopefully, I'll be able to shed some light on what we do over the next week.
I am excited knowing that soon I will be on the airplane to Amsterdam, with the worries of moving apartments and getting ready for class left back in Ann Arbor to be dealt with at a later time. But there will be a lot for me to do on the plane ride to make sure I am prepared for the trip to Europe.
Being a person who likes to be ready for all situations, I printed out as much information as I could about the places we will be visiting. I want to make sure I know as much history and culture of each of our destinations before we even set foot in the old world. I'll be sure to look for good places to eat and visit.
Obviously, however, this trip isn't solely about seeing new places and eating new foods. Most importantly, it will also be a great experience for the basketball team as we build camaraderie, and gain valuable playing experience before the season begins. Hey, having the opportunity to watch some college basketball in August will make the trip great by itself.
Hopefully, Manager's Musings will give Michigan Basketball fans a Taste of Europe and the feeling that you are making the trip with the team.
Anyway, there is more I would like to write, but there is a lot more work that needs to get done to prepare for our departure. Be sure to check back every day as I will be posting a new entry about our experience on the Wolverine Foreign Tour.
Go Blue!
