Day 10: Friday, July 1
By Joanna Weiss '07 and Elizabeth Bishop `07
Having gotten up at 7:30 a.m. to get to breakfast and leave at 8:00, we loaded the bus to go shopping. We spent two hours in the town square next to the beach where we had been the day before yesterday. The team scrambled to browse as many stores as possible and came away with satisfying gifts. One of the most popular stores was a sports store that sold Italian soccer jerseys and Datch clothing (European version of Nike or Adidas). Around noon, we returned to the beach where many of us enjoyed a five-course lunch in an open-air restaurant in front of the Adriatic Sea. Some favorites were the calamari and fresh mozzarella and tomatoes. After lunch, we laid out by the sea. One of the exciting things a few of us did was to bargain with the street vendors. Then we drove back to the monastery to rest and prepare for our match. We had our pregame meal at the Restaurante Futura. Eating there is always fun because there are many locals who join us for the meal. We have made friends with several men named Mossimo, as well as other people who help out with the tournament. We walked to the Comunanza downtown court. We arrived early so we had a mini dance party to salsa music to pump us up for our big game against Serbia and Montenegro. Unfortunately we ended up losing the match in three games, but they were close competitive games. Even though we lost, the positive aspect is that we are gaining international experience that will help us in our quest for the Ivy Title. After the match we went to the restaurant at the Hotel Roverino where our parents are staying for the week. The Hotel owner, PePe, surprised us with a wine and cheese tasting event. We got to sample some of the local wines and cheeses made right in Comunanza. We also had plates of prosciutto, salami, olives and bread to compliment the wine and cheese. We had a truly Italian experience, and it was a fun time to share with our families. We have one day left in Comunanza and the Sibillini mountain towns. While we have made the most of our time so far, we are doing our best to soak up the rest of our Italian experience with our remaining time here.
Day 11: Saturday, July 2
By Alaina Town '07 and Kara Zaragoza `08
Saturday morning began early with a bus ride down to Comunanza. The streets were blocked off in the center of town to allow a multitude of street vendors to put up tents and trailers. The whole town and the tournament teams seemed to show up to browse and maybe even bargain on everything from Morano glass to underwear to fresh tomatoes, meats and Italian cheeses. After shopping in the market, we headed to Montegallo for our final match of the tournament. The view from the center of our town was breathtaking, and we posed for many pictures before we headed to lunch with our opponents, the Hungarian team, Vassa. For lunch we went to a wonderful restaurant where we sat outside at the foot of a mountain. We enjoyed our three-hour lunch which included some incredible pasta dishes, smoked meats and cheeses. We then headed to the court for our final competition. We began warming up for the match, which would be for third place in the tournament. Although the match didn't go as smoothly as we would have liked, we were still able to beat them in two sets 25-16, 25-18 (we played best-of-three for this match). This match gave us an idea of how much and how hard we will have to work this summer and fall in order to play like the team we know that are capable of being. We returned to the monastery after the match to pack and get ready for the night. At 8:15 p.m., we loaded the bus to watch the final match between Czech Republic and Serbia and Montenegro. We picked up some wonderful pizza and pop before the match and then filed into the stands on the court in Comunanza. The match was close and very well-played all the way through the exciting fifth game. Serbia and Montenegro won by taking games three, four and five. It was exciting volleyball and the fans seemed to be pumped by the play of both teams. After the match, awards were given to the outstanding players. Our own Amy Gordon won the award for Best Setter of the tournament, and our trainer, Kenan (Guilmette), was given a special award for her help and care to all the teams. We (C-unit) were proud of our special winners. The tournament events ended with a dance party back in Montemonaco. All the teams showed up to shake their groove thing and just have fun together on our last night. Tomorrow we say good-bye to Comunanza. We will miss this small mountain community and all of the wonderful people that have made our stay so fantastic.
|
