Monthly Archives: August 2013

Augie: One night in Lapa

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GroupThe Augustana basketball teams are in Brazil this week and are blogging on the trip. Kevin Schlitter is blogging for the men’s team and you can catch their blog posts on the D3hoops.com Daily Dose. Chaney Tambling is blogging for the women’s team.

If we thought that we listened to loud music in the U.S., last night’s trip to the Lapa street festival made it seem like we were quiet. The club that we all ended at was all but empty when we got there. So we started our own party and started dancing by ourselves. Before we knew it, the club was jam packed and the music was almost deathly loud. I had trouble hearing people talking to me at breakfast this morning. The DJ had seen that we were there the entire time so he played all of our requests and was shouting, “Let’s hear it Chicago” time after time. We definitely left our mark on the Lapa street festival.

This morning we had the pleasure to hold a little clinic for some kids from a nearby neighborhood. It was an incredible opportunity for us the give back to such bright young kids. Our tour guide Wagner, whom grew up in the neighborhood where these kids are from, told us that what we did today is something that these kids will remember for the rest of their lives. It was something I don’t think I will forget either.

After the clinic, coach set us free for the rest of the day to explore more of Rio. We all went to the beach to soak up some sun and show off our Brazilian beach bodies. Some of us were more modest with what we wore; some stuck it out and wore their Speedos. The waves were big today again and a lot of us spent time riding the waves in. But of course, in a total Mark Roth move, he was practicing taking charges against the waves. Walks around the immediate neighborhood led us to some interesting restaurants where we had lunch.

Tonight we have dinner planned and a stroll down Atlantic Ave. and possibly some shopping at the night market on the beach.

Augie: Looking for some home cookin’

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HuddleThe Augustana basketball teams are in Brazil this week and are blogging on the trip. Ben Ryan is blogging for the men’s team and you can catch their blog posts on the D3hoops.com Daily Dose. Chaney Tambling is blogging for the women’s team.

The day started early for us with a bus trip to Rio de Janeiro. Along the way we made two stops, the first was to get paperwork that we needed and the second was our lunch. At lunch we had different places to choose to eat but most of us choose to eat at McDonald’s.

After loading back on the bus we started the part of the trip that was most scenic; going through a beautiful mountain range that led up to the city. We drove through the city to get to our hotel, which sits across the road from the first beach and ocean that a few of us have ever seen. The view from the rooms show the beautiful Copacabana Beach and Atlantic Ocean that stretches as far as the eye can see.

After unpacking we made our way to the beach which was packed full of suntanners, volleyball courts and soccer fields. The most impressive sport that was being played on the beach was a mix between the two sports and that was volleyball without using your hands. The beach is also lined with vendors and restaurants for those who work up an appetite on the beach.

After the beach we were free to explore the part of the city by the hotel. It was full of shops of all kinds and restaurants.
Judging by the man following us chanting USA! USA! for a block we stand out as Americans. It is amazing to see how much is going on in this city at all hours of the day.

Augie: Brazil, from the tourist angle

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Dressed upChrist the RedeemerThe Augustana basketball teams are heading to Brazil this week and will be blogging on the trip. Chaney Tambling is blogging for the women’s team and you can catch their blog posts on the D3hoops.com Daily Dose. Ben Ryan is blogging for the men’s team.

Well today was yet another beautiful day in Rio de Janeiro!

We started the day by taking a long bus trip up to the Christ the Redeemer statue. Let me tell you he’s much bigger on top of the mountain than when you see him from any other place. The statue oversees everything in the city and is quite a breathtaking monument. From the top you can see every part of the city and all that it has to offer, from the waterways and other mountains to the thousands of houses and other sightseeing opportunities in Rio.

The ride up to the statue was another experience in itself. The drivers were flying around corners and barely clipping each other’s mirrors just to get people to where they needed to go. While up by the statue we, of course, took lots and lots of pictures and even happened to meet a family from Naperville, Ill., who was visiting Brazil as well! We also got to frequent the many different shops that were held on the mountain by the statue and while waiting for a bus to bring us back down, we even saw the Canadian Prime Minister going up to see the statue.

After getting to see Christ the Redeemer our bus took us to a part of town where they host the Carnival celebration. While there we got to go into a shop and pay to get dressed up in the different Carnival outfits. The crazy outfits were accompanied by big headdresses and large bejeweled shoulder wraps. A video of the actual parade was playing and it was very extravagant, loud and full of excitement. Judging by the color and nature of the parade you would have thought the people were preparing to send the participants into the Hunger Games.

The Carnival shop was the last stop on our agenda. When we got back we grabbed a quick lunch and headed down to the beach for a relaxing afternoon. Tonight we will be going with our guides to Lapa, the downtown area of Rio to see what a typical nightclub here is like. We are excited to learn the Samba and any other dances that they will be willing to teach us. I’m sure that it will be lots of fun!

Augie: Brazil’s Olympic Village

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GoofyThe Augustana basketball teams are heading to Brazil this week and will be blogging on the trip. Chaney Tambling is blogging for the women’s team and you can catch their blog posts on the D3hoops.com Daily Dose. Mark Roth is blogging for the men’s team.

Today is a day that will definitely be remembered as a highlight of this trip.

After being able to sleep in a little bit, the team got to go to what the Brazilians call an Olympic Village. These complexes are in areas of Rio that are very poverty-stricken. The people from these neighborhoods, called favelas, go to the Olympic Villages to get exercise, socialize, and have the opportunity to participate in other recreational activities.

The complex offers many different sports including karate, ballet, soccer, volleyball, swimming and basketball. When we first arrived we got to see the soccer field and then went into a building where a lot of younger kids were participating in ballet and karate. We got the pleasure of seeing them play and enjoy while also being able to join in ourselves.

After playing with the young kids, we went to an outdoor basketball complex. The court was surrounded by stairs and if anyone had been an onlooker, you would have thought celebrities walked into the building. The kids cheered and clapped as if they were meeting famous people.

And the appreciation didn’t stop there. They wanted to watch us play, so we played 5 on 5 for a while and then we were able to play against some of their teams. They even gave us jerseys to play in and keep. We will be returning the favor when we return home and will be sending them T-shirts. These kids are very poor, so this was probably the only time they will ever get to interact and see Americans. It was a pretty humbling experience to say the least.

Because we all wanted to get an opportunity to play against the local teams at the village, we would sub in and out often. But while not playing, we definitely weren’t bored. Many of us were bombarded by children asking us questions and trying to learn English. So many wanted our Facebook names and many of us already have friend requests waiting. Others wanted us to sign their arms, or shirts, or whatever they had with them. It was so cute to see the little kids come up to each and every one of us and be truly excited and happy to see us.

Many little boys were asking Jessica Baids, Molly Etheridge, Natalie Tomerlin and many others for kisses. They especially loved the blonde hair of Jenna, Andrea McNally, Amy Hicks and me.

Valerie VanRoeyen, Marissa Pezzopane and Kayla Boers were always being asked for pictures and signatures along with Dominique Hartsfield, Maddie Kerr and Britt.

Overall we thoroughly enjoyed being able to play against them and interact with them. It shows us what trips like this are truly for. As Coach Beinborn says a lot, it is really bigger than basketball, but through basketball we were able to bring smiles and joy to children who probably don’t get to experience the best things in life. We couldn’t have asked for a better experience here in Brazil and I can honestly say that it will be hard to top the fun, joy, and experience that I had today. It truly was amazing.

After the Olympic Village we returned to the hotel and went to dinner at a restaurant down the street from our hotel. We ate typical Brazilian cuisine. It consisted of a prepared fish not even on the menu (our guide Joseph hooked us up) and a cut of beef that is not even sold in the US. For many of us it was the best meal that we’ve eaten yet. It’s only been 4 days and we are already having the time of our lives. We can’t wait to see what else we can find in Brazil.

Tomorrow we are off to visit the Christ the Redeemer statue in Corcovado and tomorrow night we will be going to Lapa with our guides to see what typical Brazilian nightlife really is. To say we are excited is definitely an understatement.

Augie: A loss, but a learning experience

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HuddleThe Augustana basketball teams are in Brazil this week and are blogging on the trip. Ben Ryan is blogging for the men’s team and you can catch their blog posts on the D3hoops.com Daily Dose. Chaney Tambling is blogging for the women’s team.

Today we spend our last day in Jundiai. We ate breakfast as a team in the hotel. Then we had time to relax poolside and try not to get burnt in the hot winter morning sun or spend time in our rooms. Or we could take another adventurous trip to the market near the hotel.

Every trip to the market is a great experience to learn about the Brazilian culture from trying to communicate with the workers there by confused stares, hand signals and the narrow vocabulary of Portuguese we have learned (which for some just includes “obrigado” – “Thank you”).

We checked out of our hotel in the afternoon and drove from one side of São Paulo to the other which took two hours, which is about average to drive through the largest metropolitan area in the world that is home to 29 million people.

It is truly amazing to see how the people of São Paulo live.

Our third and last game in São Paulo was played in the Santo Andre sports club which housed a basketball and soccer stadium, it’s very easy to tell that these are the main sports and attractions here.

We lost hard fought game against the Santo Andre club team. With Nic and Kevin Schlitter not playing tonight we had some guys step up and contribute more.

We then traveled another two hours to Frango Assado, a restaurant chain that is attached to a roadside gas station. A local man helped us translate and order our food and in return we thanked him with an Augustana basketball T-shirt. After dinner we traveled a half-hour to São Jose dos Campos where we will rest up and leave for Rio de Janeiro in the morning.