TravelStream™ news feed for member jmv146 on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/jmv146 en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 15 Feb 2009 15:13:18 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/4/1234727460/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/4/1234727460/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/4/1234727460/tpod.html Sun, 15 Feb 2009 15:13:18 -0500 Germany Work Trip

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Hamburg, Germany

Gutten tag,


Welcome back to my travel blog! This time around it's a little more business than pleasure, but I will be sure to enjoy myself on the weekends and share some photos and stories along the way.

I've now been in Hamburg Germany for two weeks. I hit the ground running with the superbowl starting at 1230 am on my first night here. My first order of business after the AFC championship game was to secure a location where I could enjoy the Steelers 7th appearance as soon as I realized I'd be here for the game. My coworkers (being good sports) and I arrived at a movie theatre right around midnight where the Germans had the big game playing on the big screen. In what proved to be a marathon night (my coworkers left very early on) I was rewarded for staying awake with a brilliant win for the Steelers 6th championship right before 5am. I made friends with aGerman guy who studied in Iowa and for some reason was a huge Steelers fan and gave him my terrible towel after the emotional win. My first day of work in Germany came 3 hours later...What a start!

There have been long days at the office the last two weeks, but on the weekends I have had the opportunity to enjoy the notorious Reeperbahn which is the main party district in Hamburg. It also happens to be the red light district and the sex capital of Europe. Needless to say, there is always something to look at. The city of Hamburg itself is beautiful, and my hotel is right on Lake Alster. From Europe on a shoe string to 4 star living!

I have a few upcomming trips planned including Berlin, Stockholm, Prague, Munich, and Zurich. I can't wait to share some experiences and pictures.

Cheers!

Justin
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1221390240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1221390240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1221390240/tpod.html Sun, 14 Sep 2008 07:21:27 -0400 Australia Footy Trip 2008

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Cairns, Queensland, Australia

There was no let down during my final day spent in Queensland. Ever since I had left Australia in 2004 I had always been upset with myself for not making the effort to get to see the Great Barrier Reef. On Thursday, I made amends in a very big way. I took a boat trip out to the outer reef where I was able to complete my first SCUBA dive ever. After I got comfortable with the breathing we dove to a depth of around 15 meters. The scenery was absolutely spectacular to say the least. I saw sea turtles, sting rays, and hundreds of types of fish including Clownfish like Nemo. There really is a whole different world down there, and the fish come right up and touch you.

A common theme throughout the trip is the fact that you absolutely never know who you're going to meet, and my Reef adventure was no exception. My dive partner was a girl who was on a trip with her husband from Berlin. When I asked her about not having a German accent she replied that she was born and raised in the US. When I dug deeper I came to learn that she was from the outskirts of Pittsburgh and a fellow Nittany Lion alum. They were incredibly nice people and after our dives we shared a few Aussie Beers together.

I have made it to Sydney now, and it's fantastic catching up with my old friends. I can't believe it's almost Tuesday and time to head home.

"The ocean is a desert with its life underground
And a perfect disguise above" -- America
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1221045060/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1221045060/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1221045060/tpod.html Wed, 10 Sep 2008 07:59:56 -0400 Australia Footy Trip 2008

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Daintree, Queensland, Australia

When traveling to a new place it's not easy to get a good feel on what to expect. But any expectations I may have had for the past two days were absolutely blown out of the water.

Cape Tribulation and the Daintree National Park make up one of the most unique and beautiful places I have ever been fortunate enough to visit. To get into the National Park you must cross the Daintree river by Car Ferry. After a stop at the wildlife park to get up close and personal with some crocodiles we made our way into the park. We enjoyed the rest of our day exploring and going for swims at the picturesque beach and the freshwater swimming hole--complete with rope swing. After all we had heard about crocodiles it really did take a little bit of reassurance for us to get in the water.

At my hostel in Cape Tribulation I met some other very nice travelers including John from England and Franck from France. We decided it would be an excellent idea to attempt climbing Mt Sorrow this morning before our tour group picked us back up in the afternoon. In heavy, humid, misty air we began our early morning ascent. We learned early on that this was not going to be a nice little nature walk as we were hit with an extremely steep climb very early on. In a hike that easily equals Half Dome at Yosemite in difficulty we finally made it to the top of the mountain just shy of three hours later. We were rewarded with a very obscured view of the Pacific and Snapper Islad as it seems we had hiked directly into the clouds. The picture I am sharing will not even come close to doing the scene justice. It will, however, do justice to my exhaustion and how drenched my clothes were. As far as wildlife was concerned we saw our fair share of exotic animals. Unfortunately, we got up close and personal with the leeches and had quite a time trying to get them off of us. Overall, it was easily one of the most difficult and rewarding hikes I have ever done.
More info on the hike: http://www.rainforesthideaway.com/capetribulation/hiking_mount_sorrow_track.htm

After hustling back to camp to clean up and meet back with the tour group we took a crocodile cruise straight down the Daintree River. We were treated to a 4.5 meter croc that swam alongside the boat for a good 15 minutes. They truly are amazing creatures.

We returned to Cairns in time to get some dinner and some emails before tomorrow which should prove to be another highlight. I head out at 7:30 AM on a boat for the Outter great barrier reef. I can't wait to get in the water, as everyone I've talked to has had nothing but fantastic things to say about the experience. All this before heading South to Sydney on Friday.

It's incredible the amount that young people from other countries travel. No one that I have talked to (with the exception of one American) is on a trip for less than 6 months. Most are spending upwards of two years away from home. Some of it has to do with the ability for the Europeans to get work visas in Australia (and throughout Europe). It's just very eye opening as to how much more prevalent international travel is to those in other parts of the world. It's also been interesting to me that since I have left my team in Melbourne I have met exactly 2 other Americans. It has been great interacting with so many different cultures and personalities. Hopefully more young Americans will take the opportunity.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1220875200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1220875200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1220875200/tpod.html Mon, 08 Sep 2008 08:03:53 -0400 Australia Footy Trip 2008

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Cairns, Queensland, Australia

I've made it to Cairns after about a 4 hour flight out of Melbourne. I must say I'm incredibly happy to be back in some warm weather. My first impression of Cairns is a good one with a ton of backpackers from around the world. Tomorrow I am headed to Cape Tribulation and the Daintree Rainforest for an overnight excursion.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daintree_River

And Thursday I am taking a boat out of Port Douglas to the Outter Great Barrier Reef for snorkeling and scuba. I am hopeful my next entry will have some incredible photos to share.
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Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Sorry I have not written much lately. Half of it had to do with limited internet access. The other half had to do with our disappointing results that I didn't really want to talk too much about. After tough losses to South Africa and Nauru we bounced back and finished strong with a big win over Japan.

Personally my match versus Japan was a microcosm of my entire tournament. I started strong kicking 2 goals in the first quarter, but also took a kick to the thigh that gave me a Charlie horse (corky) that put me out for the rest of the game. The rest of the San Diego boys performed well in the Japan contest, and I'm looking forward to continuing this momentum into the US nationals.


Let's switch gears a bit onto some of the non-football related topics. We had a fantastic Wednesday in Warrnambool. We started the day at St. Joseph's school where we split up and got to answer some questions for the kids about America and Aussie Rules Football. Apparently they thought we were some kind of celebrities asking us for autographs (and how much we got paid to play footy). It was a great experience and I think we enjoyed the visit even more than the kids. The St. Joe's footy club is quite impressive with their skills, and I think it made a lot of us wonder what kind of players we might have been had we been kicking the footy since we were young boys. The kids had some great questions, and it's truly amazing how much Hollywood has developed what these kids to be American culture.

We had Wednesday afternoon to ourselves and a group of about 17 of us piled into a 12 passenger van and made the hour trip to the famous twelve apostles. Fortunately, Jay Mueller, a Melbourne local, offered to drive the group out. I still can't get used to getting into the passenger side on the left. The sites absolutely did not disappoint. I'm not sure the pictures can do it justice, but we were treated to surf with waves between 18 and 20 feet tall providing a backdrop to mammoth rock formations jutting from the sea--truly breathtaking.

Today is our last team function with a dinner and what I am sure what will prove to be a big night out. I know everyone (especially Jon Loring) is looking forward to letting their hair down and enjoying the new and strengthened friendships that have developed over the past two weeks.

I leave for Cairns on Monday, and I'll be sure to have some great pictures from there. I'm looking forward to getting back to some warm weather!

]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1220179260/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1220179260/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1220179260/tpod.html Sun, 31 Aug 2008 07:07:08 -0400 Australia Footy Trip 2008

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Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia

Friday we beat an inexperienced but relentless China team 114-0. The boys from San Diego went well with Brando helping himself to three goals and making the most of his time in the forward line. Viking and Donnie played as solid as expected with Viking always running through the ball and Donnie taking marks from Center Half Back. In the second half Donnie snuck forward and had a snap at goal that looked to be headed through before Brando hopped in to take the mark and kick the goal.

Saturday we had a light training in the morning to get some of the soreness out of our legs. We then had the afternoon to ourselves before the parade of nations at halftime of the Hawthorne vs. Carlton game at Telstra Dome. The game had an electric atmosphere with the potential for two players to kick 100 goals (what Aussies refer to as "the ton"). It had been nearly 10 years since this has happened. The closest metaphor that I could think of would be for an NFL player to score 30 touchdowns in a season. We were treated to Buddy Franklin kicking his 99th and 100th goals in the first quarter and thousands of fans storming the field. It was quite a spectacle, and it was definitely a nice feeling to be a part of AFL history. Fevola the other player needed 8 goals to kick "the ton," but he fell agonizingly short at 99.

The parade of nations was really cool. During halftime we lined up by country and got to walk around the side of the ground and meet a lot of the fans and get some great photos. Probably not surprising we were the only country to get booed when we were announced. Of course I'm sure the fans in attendance were booing our foreign policies more than they were booing us as teams. It was a great experience anyways.

I am writing the second part of this blog from the train to Warnooble on Sunday morning. The train is supposed to take about three hours from Melbourne. Our next two rounds will be played there. Our next match is Monday against South Africa, and this match decides who will win our pool and advance to the Semi-Finals. Apparently someone with a sense of humor decided to assign us to sitting in the same train car as South Africa. It should certainly be an interesting game of footy tomorrow with two very contrasting styles. The South Africans are very small and apparently very quick while we are much taller and stronger. It should be noted that the AFL has been pumping funds into AFL South Africa to develop their football. I am hopeful that our experience, size, and strength will carry us through. I hope to be reporting a win for the U.S. soon.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1219924080/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1219924080/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1219924080/tpod.html Thu, 28 Aug 2008 07:48:57 -0400 Australia Footy Trip 2008

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Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Today was used as both a recovery day from yesterday's victory and a preparation day before our match tomorrow against China. China lost their first match to S. Africa 146-0. I'm not sure this is an indication of S. Africa being that good or China being that bad. This is China's first International Cup, but we have made sure not to look past them to the big battle with South Africa that's looming on Monday. I have been given the day off which I will probably be thankful for in the week to come with 3 more games of football still to be played in such a short time. China will certainly have a difficult time scoring their first goal of the tournament against a starting back line that includes 3 of my San Diego Lions teammates with Brandon and Viking at the back pockets and Donnie at Center Half Forward.

We had a good training session today at the Western Bulldogs practice facility. Ater watching their very crisp training we were able to use their facilities and then taken through a film session with their assistant coach. They were very supportive, and it was great getting a behind the scenes look at a professional AFL club.

One thing I didn't get a chance to mention after yesterday's match is our post game routine which is actually a little bit odd. After every game we play in Melbourne we are treated to a 20 minute dip in Port Phillip Bay. This may sound nice on paper, but let me remind you that it is still in the heart of winter here. The water is hovering right around the 50 degree mark. Apparently there is no better way to get the soreness and lactic acid pushed out of your muscles than to dip in an ice bath, and it turns out that we have an incredibly convenient ice bath available to us at all hours of the day. The experience was not pleasant to say the least And possibly even more unfortunate is the fact that I am actually convinced that it worked. I may have to start taking ice baths all the time.

There is a crew doing a documentary on our journey all the way from selections to the tournament and beyond. I am very hopeful that they edit the part of us wading in the bay out...as I don't think we will be portrayed as "manly" as we'd all have liked.

I'm going to upload a few more random photos from the day, and hopefully I'll be back on tomorrow night to report a solid US victory over the Chinese side.
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Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Well mission one has been completed with a victory for the US Revolution. There is a full write up here: http://www.worldfootynews.com/article.php/20080827221008771

Overall I was very pleased with our team as things seemed to gel very nicely. It was a pleasure to play in the forward line. I got to work with two veteran players who both had very good games. My teammates Brandon and Donnie from the San Diego Lions both had good games in defense only allowing one goal for the entire game which is really quite an impressive effort. I am exhausted, but tomorrow we get to train with the Western Bulldogs a professional club. I should have more pictures and stories to relate then.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1219751760/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1219751760/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1219751760/tpod.html Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:14:17 -0400 Australia Footy Trip 2008

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Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

I am back, and I have finally gotten over the jet lag. The last couple days, and especially today, have been fantastic. We have had two-a-day footy sessions mixing tactical work with skills work. It's an interesting dilemma trying to get used to players you only see a handful of times a year. That's actually one advantage some of the smaller countries (including tomorrow's opponent Denmark) have on the larger countries. The small countries send their representatives from fewer clubs, so there is a lot more opportunity for them to practice and train together and develop some chemistry. Hopefully we will gel quickly!

Our coach announced the starting side for tomorrow. We brought 34 players, but only 24 can dress for the match. Beyond that only 18 start, and I got the nod to start at Full Forward which I am happy with. The purpose of full forward is to kick as many goals as possible.

Tonight we had a function held to kick off the tournament at the Melbourne Cricket Grounds (MCG). The MCG is the Mecca of Aussie Rules Football, and it's affectionately known to Aussies as "the G". It is where the Grand Final (Aussie Rules' Super Bowl) is held every year, and it seats over 100,000 people. Mix the history of Yankee Stadium with the Size of Penn State's Beaver Stadium and you've got the MCG. Should we make it out of our pool and win the semi-final we would get
to play the final at the MCG as a curtain raiser (the game before) a
playoff game which means there'd be upwards of 80,000 people watching
us play.


The function was great as we got to mingle with players from the 15 other teams. We were also treated to famous Aussie musician Mike Brady singing "One Day in September" live. The song is all about winning the grand final as it takes place in december. Here's a youtube link to the song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6KpyGtSYWg
I think the guy is a bit of an Aussie legend as well.

Also, Kevin Sheedy spoke to us all. He would be the Aussie equivalent to someone like Joe Paterno. Although he's not quite as old as JoePa. Anyways I managed to get some great photos of some of the other teams as well as the MCG and the city themselves.
Hopefully my next blog post will be talking about our victory over Denmark. The game is at 1pm Melbourne time, so I believe that's about 14 hrs ahead of the east coast of the US. Go the Revolution!


]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1219623720/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1219623720/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jmv146/3/1219623720/tpod.html Sun, 24 Aug 2008 06:48:14 -0400 Australia Footy Trip 2008

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Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

After a grueling 15 hour flight out of LAX we arrived safely into Melbourne at 8 am. Unfortunately, to combat jetlag we had to stay awake and try to go to bed at a "normal time." It is now 830 pm and I am struggling terribly to keep my eyes open, so bare with me on this first blog entry!

Not wasting any time in getting into the appropriate footy mood--immidiately after arriving and checking in to our hotel we got to head over to the Telstra Dome to take in a professional match between the Adelaide Hawks and the St. Kilda Saints. St. Kilda just happens to be my favorite club, so I was thrilled to see them in a game that had playoff implications. It was a great atmosphere and the Saints ended up winning big. It certainly got me very excited about playing, as if I weren't already.

It was quite a scene walking into the stadium with 40 guys dressed exacty alike decked out in red, white, and blue jump suits and white hats. It's amazing how many people came up to us and asked us questions about the tournament and just in general about how shocked they were that Americans were in Australia to play footy. For the most part their response was extremely positive, and they're so happy to hear their home grown sport is reaching many corners of the globe.

We ended up running into the South African team in the stands as well. They seemed like nice guys, but not many pleasantries were exchanged as they will be one of our toughest matches to get out of our pool and make it to the semi-finals. Our first match is Vs. Denmark on Wednesday at 1pm. I think that equals 11pm Tuesday night on the East Coast of the US. Hopefully everyone will be waking up to good news on Wednesday morning.

I think that's all for me for tonight. Hopefully I'll get some pictures up as i go along this trip. Go USA!
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