Adeja Lambert - B1G Foreign Tour Blog
7/6/2015 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
July 6, 2015
University of Michigan volleyball sophomore outside hitter Adeja Lambert traveled to Europe with the first-ever Big Ten Foreign Tour team. The squad, comprised of 14 players from each Big Ten school, traveled to Slovenia, Croatia and Italy, playing matches against national teams and learning about different European cultures. Lambert talks about sightseeing in the three countries, the experience the team had away from volleyball and the competition that included a match against the Italian National Team.
On June 13, 2015, at 1 p.m., the first-ever Big Ten Volleyball Foreign Tour team came together at Northwestern University for a practice with head coach Keylor Chan and assistants Paul Koncir of Indianna University and Phuong Luong of Rutgers University. One student-athlete was selected from each Big Ten team to represent their school and I had the honor of representing Michigan. Initially, no one knew anyone on a personal level but once practice started, everyone's personality started flowing and the chemistry on the court was impeccable. After practice, we had a short dinner and left for Chicago O'Hare Airport for our 11-hour flight. With the flight being 11 hours, we were served two meals, watched newly released movies and slept A LOT. Once we landed in Istanbul, we had to catch another flight that was roughly two hours long to our final destination ... Slovenia.
The next day, we had our first test of playing against the Slovenian National Team. We were all very excited to play against some good competition. Although the warmup style was very different from how we warmup in the United States, that didn't change how the game of volleyball was played. It was a hard-fought match but we did not come out with the win. We looked at the positives and negatives of the match and focused on executing those for the next match against them the next day. Later that day, we had dinner with the Slovenian team. We all mixed and intermingled with one another and our table had the pleasure of sitting with a player who grew up around here but played volleyball for the University of Florida. It was quite interesting to get her perspective on adjusting to the United States while we were trying to adjust to three different countries in just two weeks!! We all learned so much just from speaking with some of the players that night and were looking forward to learning more about the other countries we were visiting along the way.
On June 16, 2015, we had an early breakfast and practice right after. We then had the opportunity to visit a local preschool, where we brought various children's books for them to read and learn the English language. We then broke off into small groups and played games and other activities with them such as showing them how to play volleyball, which was my station. It was quite entertaining as the kids would rather kick the ball then pass it but overall it was fun. After we left the school we went atop a ski course for lunch. The only problem was that in order to get down we had to take a cart attached to a rail and roll down the mountain like a roller coaster to the bottom. It was nerve-wracking but the experience was like none other.
For the next two days, we had multiple activities planned for us. Our first adventure was taking a two-hour bus ride to Lake Bled. We took a boat ride to get to the other side of the lake and spent most of our time taking pictures and taking in the beautiful architecture of the houses and historical buildings. Later that evening we had a match against the Hungarian team. It was very intense. We ended up tying 2-2 and didn't play a fifth set, which was very odd but I guess you could say the Hungarian team didn't want to see what else we had up our sleeve. On our final day in Slovenia, we were given the entire day to explore the city. We took the bus to their downtown area and roamed around as well as shop, like us girls usually do. Surprisingly enough, a good majority of the people around spoke English, which was very helpful considering we had no idea how to speak their language. Out of respect, some of us took time on our way back to look up some common words that we could use in order to feel a little bit more comfortable speaking with people.
With half of our trip done, it was time to travel to Pula, Croatia, where we visited Plitvicka Jezera National Park. Croatia's national park was absolutely amazing. We were surrounded by waterfalls, lakes and insects. We rode boats across the lakes to see other parts of the park and had the chance to see beautiful waterfalls as we hiked up the park. It was truly an adventure we would never forget. On June 20, we had the chance to walk down to the beach right outside our hotel and enjoy the scenery. With clear blue water and a cloudless sky, the beach looked like it came straight out of a magazine. It was stunning. Later that afternoon, we took a bus to the city of Rovinj for sightseeing and shopping. Our tour guide, Cory, mentioned to us that Rovinj is a peninsula because it had a very strong naval force and could protect the land easier. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I even asked someone to pinch me because I couldn't believe that a city like this existed. There were little boutiques and street vendors everywhere and we had a full three hours to tour the city. On our last day in Pula, Cory took us to see one of the oldest Coliseums still up and running and then gave us some time to ourselves to look around the city. Later that evening we ran a volleyball clinic at the Dom Sportova Gymnasium with girls ranging from 10 to 20. We showed them basic skills that they would need to know for volleyball and played with them throughout the course of the two hours. It was truly a humbling and rewarding experience just to share our passion of volleyball with other girls who are starting to come into the volleyball scene. It was amazing and I couldn't be more blessed and appreciative of the opportunities I have been given simply by playing the sport that I love. I could definitely say that the last couple of days in Croatia were eventful and eye-opening and what better way to leave Croatia with a Big Ten win against the Croatia team!!
Our last leg of the tour was Venice, Italy. We traveled all morning by bus and train to get there and it was worth it. Once we arrived it was like we were given the golden ticket to heaven. There were so many stores, restaurants, and tourists walking around, taking pictures. Our coaches let us break into small groups and gave us five hours to sightsee and shop. We were to report back to the train station at 7:15 p.m. to go to the hotel. Five hours seemed like so much time but in the end the time went by so quickly. On top of all the excitement and shopping opportunities we had, it was 75 degrees and sunny. Everyone enjoyed their time in Venice and found a lot of souvenirs and gifts for family and friends back home. Now that our fun time was over it was time for the match we have all been waiting for ... the Italian National Team.
The last two days was focused on volleyball. We drove about a half hour to practice, which was also where we would play the Italian National Team. Once we arrived at the arena it was unlike anything we had seen in the United States. The benches could recline back and were quite comfortable. When practice was over we headed back to the hotel to rest and get ready for the match. When we departed for the match at eight, we were all filled with excitement and nerves. When the game started, the gym was packed with around 3,100 people waving the Italian flag and cheering for their team. The experience was unreal. The first two sets we hung right there with them, but towards the end we were not able to close it out. At that point in the match we all just had to take it all in and realize the opportunity in front of us. We were playing against the ITALIAN NATIONAL TEAM. Let me say that again for those of you who do not know what's happening here. We were playing against THE ITALIAN NATIONAL TEAM that is about to play against the USA Olympic team in a couple of weeks. To everyone, this was a huge deal but to me I never would have thought that I would be putting on a B1G jersey or a Michigan jersey at that let alone be on the same court as the Italian team. I could definitely say that this was the opportunity of a lifetime.
Everyone saw this trip as a learning experience of adjusting to different cultures and looking ahead to their own future and seeing themselves play professional volleyball. Although it will be hard to face each player once the Big Ten season starts because we have built relationships with one another, I'm excited to see what the future holds for not only Big Ten volleyball but for Michigan volleyball as well. As always, Go Blue!!
