Women's Lacrosse International Trip Blog
June 02, 2011 | Women's Lacrosse
June 2, 2011
Dear Diary,
To begin, the following blogs are meant to be read aloud, or in your head, whichever you prefer, in your finest rendition of a British accent.
On a Tuesday afternoon, we found ourselves gathered outside the British Airways ticket gate sporting the very fashionable all red jump suits. Brooke Campbell was wearing this year's version of the jump suit in the flood length pant. We'll say she was ready for anything, and we mean anything. For all you jump suit fashionistas out there, we'll have you know that the exclusive Louisville reds are definitely a must have for this year's travel collection. Furthermore, the mere sight of all our best friends decked out in our all red silk suits was surely a sight for sore eyes. Everyone embraced each other as if it had been years and was ready to embark on this amazing journey.
After a short six-hour flight across the Atlantic, we finally stepped foot onto European soil. We learned shortly thereafter that we had to ditch our red suits in order to fit in with the ever changing European style.
Once aboard the Hogwarts Express, we headed toward the city of London - on the wrong side of the road. Our tour guide, Tim, was quick to inform us of every building, statue, street sign and landmark that was along the way.
First stop: Madame Tussauds. This fine museum had a plethora of wax figures of anything from world figures to pop culture idols. As we pretended to marry our dream man, Prince Harry, and kissed the desirable, Justin Beiber, we left knowing Never Say Never ... anything is possible.
After the wax museum, we all parted ways to pick up a bite to eat. We then made our way to our second stop, the London Dungeon. With "1000 years of dark history, 14 shows, live actors, and three scary rides in one unique experience," we had shivers down our spines. After learning about the stories of Jack the Ripper and Sweeny Todd, we questioned if we'd ever make it out alive.
After a long day and much jet lag we made our way to the Thistle Barbican, our luxurious hotel. Much to our chagrin, we had little to no time to shower and make our way to Fish Central for dinner. Everyone was looking forward to experiencing a taste of London: fish and chips. We couldn't have been more pleased with the goat cheese and sun dried tomato salad. After a glorious and filling meal, which included anything from scampi, steak or fried cod, we practically had to roll ourselves back to the hotel for some much needed rest.
The next morning, despite the fact that we wanted to catch a few more Zs, the thought of Katie Oliverio and Kellie Young on their 21st birthdays, was enough to make us jump out of our bloody knickers. We were delighted to head down to the breakfast area, which consisted of foods such as prunes, baked beans, yogurt and sausage that was out of this world. Emily Dashiell and Liz Lovejoy rushed downstairs, clearly confused by the five hour time change, made it to the bus just in time for our 10 a.m. departure. We had a busy day ahead of us, including stops such as Big Ben, Buckingham Palace and Covent Garden.
We arrived slightly outside of Buckingham Palace just in time to see the changing of the guards ceremony. They were so cute in their fur hats and red suits (proof that we aren't the only ones who know what's in style this season), it was hard to imagine they had no desire to stop and strike up conversation with us beautiful American women but rather protect the queen, who in fact was in the Royal Palace at this time. Not only did we witness an unforgettable ceremony, but Bergan Foley, Sammy Allen, Emily Dashiell and Liz Lovejoy were able to leave behind a mark of their southern hospitality as they reached out their hands to a young, lost three year old `mongst a crowd of thousands. She was rightfully returned back to her crying mother. Thank you girls for your courageous efforts.
After all this excitement it was time to make our way to Covent Garden. With the smell of fresh mozzarella, lamb, beef burgers, and scrumbdidaleumptious desserts, our heads were lit'erry spinning! We all went our separate ways in order to satisfy our stimulated taste buds. Jamie Ward, our team stylist, purchased a new summer fedora. Leslee Hefner, the shoe connoisseur, didn't miss her opportunity to add to her collection. Be on the look-out for these peach and gray strappy pumps.
Shockingly, the entire team made it back to the bus on time. After little conversation of the day's activities, nearly everyone dozed off for a pregame snooze before our arrival at the Surrey Sportsplex. After a hard fought battle with the England National Team, we fell just a few points short. There was a stand-out performance by our radiant blonde, Hillary Bushway, with amazing ball handling and Amy Poteet made her debut, not singing the national anthem but showing us what she can really do on the field. As is tradition, each team exchanged gifts from our homelands. As we stood facing each other at midfield, we exchanged Louisville Lacrosse T-shirts in return for England Lacrosse knapsacks.
We then had an opportunity to share in a beautiful display of fruit, sandwiches, burgers, chips and desserts with our newly found English friends. We were able to exchange stories, pastimes, memories and potential future endeavors. As we said our goodbyes, we knew we would be forever thankful for this amazing experience.
Our team really enjoyed bonding and sharing previous memories with each other throughout this long bus ride. Upon our arrival to the hotel, the team gathered in the lobby to only be surprised by two huge chocolate cakes for our very own Katie Oliverio and Kellie Young. I never knew a whole wheat, protein induced cake would taste so scrumptious. After only two days, much lies ahead for us for this amazing journey. One more day in London then off to our next adventure. So long for now!
You know you love us,
Meghan Ryan, Katie Oliverio and Brooke Campbell
Cherrriiooo
