Erfurt - Day 3 and 4

Day 3
Morning run in the cold (-10C).
Team Breakfast.
5v5 on the turf in the afternoon.
Team Lunch and Team Nap at the Stadium.
Run in the forest - We were split into groups and the guy running at the front of my group thought it would be clever to knock snow off the branches above when he ran by. It was pretty funny, but the snow that fell on us stayed in our hair. By the end of the run one of the guy's eyebrows were frozen white. A couple of the guys noticed and started acting out the scene from Dumb and Dumber when Harry and Lloyd arrive in Aspen on a scooter.



Day 4
Today was a lighter day with only 5v5 on the indoor turf. I banged home another goal at the start and my team ended up going undefeated for the day.

Looking back over the week, it was probably the most enjoyable week I have had since I have been over here. Despite the physical demand, (and perhaps because of it) I found it to be very rewarding and produced some of my best performances in Germany. I have continued to improve and enjoy myself more with each new team and trial. I know there is still much work to be done, but after this week I feel that I am on the right track.

Erfurt - Training Day 1 and 2

I have been in camp with Rot-Weiss Erfurt FC for the past week. Here's how the first 2 days went:

Day 1

In the first session we did a lactic acid threshold test training where blood samples were drawn from our ears and our heart rates were measured at different stages of difficulty in a run. The rate of increase of the concentration (still with me?) of lactic acid in the blood (and the muscles) can indicate a person's level of fitness. Apparently, the results said I was fit.


In the second session we played basketball in the gym to warm up (I don't know if you have ever seen soccer players on a basketball court but it's an ugly sight). We finished up with some core body work and used balance boards.

I got back to the hotel that night with some groceries. I tried cooking pasta using the tea kettle in the room and it turned out to be a disaster. I ended up grabbing a kebab from across the street (Turkish kebab shops are the only food places open after 8).



Day 2
Another good day. We had three sessions today with a light paced run in the morning (I thought my ears were going to burst into flames it was so cold), 5v5 indoor games in the afternoon (smashed home two goals), and then ending with plyometric stations and a game on the snow.

(that's me in the front doing sit-ups on a yoga mat)

The run and the plyos weren't bad, it was good to see the ball during small-sided, and playing the snow was a bit tricky (for everyone), but nevertheless sweet to play.

Archived Quote - Art of Living

“The master in the art of living makes little distinction between his work and his play, his labor and his leisure, his mind and his body, his information and his recreation, his love and his religion. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence at whatever he does, leaving others to decide whether he is working or playing. To him he's always doing both.”

- James A. Michener

[art: "Meet me at the tub, it's going down." by Broken Crow]

french fries are chips, chips are crisps, cookies are biscuits, and biscuits are scones, and scones are pastries...

We watched Arsenal v Hull from the place we're staying at. My buddy told me to walk outside during the game. I was a bit hesitant with the weather and the game on but I wasn't disappointed. I finally headed out and could hear the boom from the crowd. Arsenal had just scored again and there was man made thunder in the distance. Final score: 3-0 Arsenal.

We are working on tickets, but the starting price is £100. Rubbish!

The Abbey

Andrew, Luke (Drew's brother), and I were doing the London tourist thing on a cold, cold Thursday and freezing our asses off. We made it to the Westminster Abbey just after visiting hours, but right before a night service. After a quick huddle we chose to get out of the miserable weather and take refuge in the Abbey.

We started out here...


...were ushered quickly through here ("Visiting hours are over")...

...and ended up here:



We were led to gold painted, individual throne seats right behind the choir. A laminated program directed us when to stand, kneel, speak, and breathe. Even so, it was a great experience and a sort of spiritual recharge.

They said no flash photography or cell phones, but they didn't say no video. So, my buddy (aliases have been created to protect the innocent) snagged a clip of the Abbey service. Here is an exclusive of the choir:

London's Calling

The 3 week winter break for football in Germany has arrived. We trained with Schalke on Monday and Tuesday, but now we are off to London for the holidays. Yes, London. You know: fish, chips, cup'o tea, bad food, worse weather, Mary Poppins... LONDON. We will be staying with friends of Andrew in Highbury London, a 4 minute's walk from the Arsenal stadium. Come on, you Reds!

Weihnachtsmarkt ('Vye-nox-markt')

They have the feel of a flea market with a variety of booths selling small goods. But with the added bonus of traditional Christmas foods from Germany, Holland, and France. Every German city has their own Christmas market and typically the bigger the city, the better the market. People seem to like Weihnachtsmarkt over here because it's the one place Germans are friendly and outgoing.


They have these big chocolate hearts with love messages on them that seem a bit out of place without Valentines day...


But not so much out of place than this guy I found at a tent selling french fries and corn dogs. Creepy, right?


And you can buy this stuff called Glühwein which is kinda like warm sangria. But a little better.


They sell the wine in these little boot mugs labeled with which city they are from.


Here is me with Andrew and the Dutch kids that have British accents in front of a tree of lights (L to R: Jovanna, Janiero, and Jazz).


We really liked the tree...


We also caught a live performance by the choir. Not too shabby, for German eunuchs.

High Fives and Stage Dives

Andrew's cousin is the lead singer in a pseudo-metal-core-christian-screamo band from the States called Bless the Fall. Tonight, we headed up to Cologne to watch them play. Despite the large amount of tats and eyeliner and facial accessories these guys were really polite and welcoming.


We got to hang out with the guys before the show, watch them do a sound check, and see them warm up back stage (which was basically a small dungeon that reeked of BO). When the show began we stood on the back of the stage and witnessed the mayhem. They played a game called high fives and stage dives where the member of the audience who could come on stage, give a high five to the tour manager, and then stage dive the most amount of times won a free band tee shirt. Pretty funny.

Archived Quote

Hey, let's cross the sea
and get some culture.
Red wine with every meal
and absinthe after dinner.

-Minus the Bear, "Absinthe Party at the Fly Honey Warehouse"

[art by Broken Crow]

Der Schloss

The apartment we are staying in has an awesome view of a mansion from 18th century called The Schloss. The mansion consists 3 stately buildings which present themselves like life-sized doll houses.


Back in the day, it belonged to German Prince and the Schloss supposedly hosted Napoleon at one point. But this was during the 7 Year's War and I don't think he and his troops were welcome guests (I have done my homework).


Behind the main building is a hunting ground with some rare shrubberies.


The property ends at the Rhein, a large river that cuts through Europe North-South. Not bad, Benrath. Not bad at all.

More Schalke, Less Talke

I am back training with Schalke II, not a bad fall back. German football is known for taking 5 weeks off in the middle of the season, but with the World Cup this summer the time off has been cut down to 3 weeks. With the winter break approaching, I plan train at Schalke for the rest of the week and then head to London for Christmas and New Years.

Archived Quote

"Do what you were born to do."
-Hr. William Garza

My Day in the Swiss Super League

After frühstück (breakfast) next morning, the rep drove me to the training grounds and I saw that the pitch was blanketed in snow (nothing new for the club and something I expected). Despite the conditions, my test went by smoothly. I was formerly introduced to the team by the trainer, Rolf Fringer (I have to admit I didn't know much about him until I wikipedia'd his name). We headed out to an artificial grass field, warmed up, played 9v9, then cooled down. A pretty standard training session.

Mr. Fringer spoke to me after the session and told me that I possessed all of the tools to be a great player, and that he expected to see me in the top league in the next 1-2 years. At the moment, though, I needed some more experience because I still had some tendencies of a college player. Given one day of training and an unsettled performance, I thought this was a fair assessment. I appreciated this feedback from Lucerne, and I realize that the trainer's evaluation carries weight and can help me find a team elsewhere - Switzerland, Germany or Bahrain.

I feel very fortunate to have had this opportunity, if only for one day. I have seen a new level that I am confident I can excel at. And now, I know a little bit more about what I need to be (and show) to be a "complete" player. Experience is what you get..., right?

I write to you from pizza shop in Lucerne, on internet that is costing me 5 francs (5 USD) every 30 minutes, waiting for word of my next move. Until then, my friends.

Off to Switzerland

I arrived in Switzerland early, a new experience for me. For those of you who aren't familiar with 'Kyle Time' it is common for me to seem as if I'm in another time zone (and sometimes on another planet). Anywho, I arrived in Luzern by train and listening to Beirut's Gulag Orkestar (no worries if you are unfamiliar with this one, there is a brief introductory course above).

At the station I changed all the euros in my pocket to Francs -- they are sort of like the Disney Dollars of Europe. I was picked up at the train station by a representative from the Lucerne (or Luzern in German). I learned from him that my trial had only been set for a single day. I was a bit surprised when I heard this because a typical trial lasts for about 6 weeks. This is when I realized that I was being assessed by Luzern and not being assessed for Luzern. Of course, anything is possible, but the odds are not in a player's favor when he has only one training session to prove himself.

Either way, big up to Luzern for making me feel comfortable in a strange, new land. The team rep gave me a tour of the city, then took me to a local restaurant. I met the chef, a supporter of the club, and he asked me what I wanted. I told him that I would eat anything he made. The rep left me in the restaurant to eat alone and it got a bit awkward between courses. So, I used my best broken German to have a conversation with the waitress. The food was amazing. I thanked the chef and the rep took me back to the hotel. I got back to my room with a stomach full of pasta and slept with anticipation of the training in the morning.

Schalke II ("Shall-kah S-vai")

(Andrew took this picture of me in the dressing room before the rest of the team arrived. We would have got a proper one of us in Schalke gear but we didn't want to seem like rookies this early in the game.)

We spent Monday and Tuesday training with the reserves of Schalke 04. The level was not as high as I expected, so I went in there and did my business. After the second day the coach talked to us in his office. This in and of itself is a big thing because a coach can just as easily give a euphemistic excuse on the training pitch like "thanks for coming, but: we are only looking for a forward and keeper, the club doesn't have enough money right now, it will be too difficult to get a working visa for you..." We received positive feedback from the Trainer (Germans call their Coaches 'Trainers') and he invited us back to for their next training session. We were both happy to know that we had done enough during our 2 days that the door to Schalke was still open.

Have you ever had a day that was already going well and then something happened to push it over the top? Well that happened to me when I went to the local Turkish internet cafe to tell my managers and parents about the news from Schalke. I found an email in my inbox that I had a trial in Switzerland and that I was to leave immediately. This new opportunity is something I can not pass up, even for additional trainings with the Schalke reserves (now if it was with the Schalke first team, my decision would be difficult). I must excuse myself now because I need to find a plane flight before I run out of money at the internet shop - credit, check, and money orders not accepted.

Do-sell-dorf

At the end of the week of training with F-S-Fow, the coach felt we had done well and we were welcomed to keep training with the reserves. Unfortunately, since it was only training that was offered and not a contract we headed to the north west in search of something more permanent.


(Andrew is trying to get us the Man U-Tottenham Carling Cup semi-final on the tele - with no success.)

For the past 3 nights I have been staying in Duesseldorf with friends of Andrew's - A Dutch pastor, his wife, their 3 children, and 2-4 family friends (depending on the night). The house had the feel of the backpacker's hostel in Nuremberg because of the mixture of the people (5 Dutch, 1 Pole, 2 Brits, 1 German, 3 Americans).

As you probably already guessed the Pastor's family was very welcoming. Within 30 minutes of arriving the kids were already comfortable enough to start rough housing with Andrew and I. The kids (5,7, and 9) spent most of their lives in the UK and were already fluent in British, Dutch, and German. (On a side note, my kids will have an English accent and speak 3 languages. Minimum.)

Archived Quote of the Day

If you're not making mistakes, then you're not doing anything. It is the doer that makes mistakes.
- John Wooden