Team Cardinal Arrives in Argentina
March 16, 2010 | Field Hockey
March 16, 2010
This journey first began last Friday with a bus ride of anxious, but excited people. Once we arrived in Indianapolis, we has a short flight to Dallas, where we then had a long layover that treated us to gelato (1/3 less fat than ice cream!).
Then we got to spend 11 long hours on a plane ride. I sat next to an Argentine surgeon who was very excited for us to see his country. I told him the teams we would be playing like CASI, GEBA, and St. Catherine's. He assured me that they'd be difficult games, but that is why we are coming to Argentina! We finally reached our destination with a nice breeze and a close glimpse of the sun.
Straight off the bus, we explored the mall and had our first taste of Argentine cuisine. I have never had a combination of corn, ham, butter, and pineapple. It was a very unique flavor!
Up next on our first day itinerary, we settled into our hotel then went to watch a women's and men's "Primera A" hockey game. It was so weird to watch their styles of play as compared to ours. They seem to play really relaxed while on the other hand, we are more up beat and quicker with play...so it looked like to me.
The next morning, we had a delicious fruit-filled breakfast at the hotel which fueled us for our first practice. After breakfast we loaded our two-leveled bus to the field. At first, it was weird getting used to the heat again, but we all adjusted. Later that day we went to the artisian outside market. It was great trying to bargain with the booth owners, my mom taught me well!
Once we shopped and enjoyed the beautiful sunshine and parks where the art market was located...we prepared for the Club Athletico Rio Plate professional soccer match. The stadium was huge with a capacity of 60,000. Today there were maybe 45,000 people, but Team Cardinal came to the conclusion that watching the fans was just as exciting as watching the game! One section of the stadium was PACKED with the absolute fanatic fans called the "Barrachos". They have huge banners, wave flags and sing and chant for the entire game. One song they were singing to the opposing fans translates to say "We are going to burn your house down and chase you around your neighborhood!" That was just one of many songs. As you can see they have fun filled with lots of passion!
Argentines are major soccer, rugby, polo and field hockey fans, which is a huge difference from our football, basketball, and baseball back home.
We topped the night off with a team dinner at an outdoor restaurant with delicious pizza. So far, we have had two packed days full of adventure...we just can't wait until we finally play Monday night!
Stay tuned for more of our Argentine adventure! Ciao!
Haley Marie
