We all woke up this morning with excitement and could not believe this day has finally come. As a team, we have been talking about this trip for a while and could not be more grateful for this opportunity. The day started with practice to prepare for the games that we will play in Italy. Practice began with a team stretch and the Mama Mia soundtrack blasting in the back in preparation for Greece. Practice today was more of a mental one, where we went over offenses and defensive principles. We also put up tons of shots before heading on the bus.

After practice, it was time to shower and gather all luggage before heading to the bus. One thing about our team is we are a bunch of over-packers. There were many trips to the scale to ensure our suitcases were below fifty pounds. The team then loaded the bus, and we were off to Newark Airport, about four hours away from Hamilton. Although it was a long ride, it flew by with the Italy and Greece trivia that was hosted by Coach G. Some of the questions we knew, others we were able to learn about these places.

We arrived at Newark Airport and began walking through security to our gate. With twenty-something people wearing matching sweatsuits, it was expected that we would get some looks and questions while walking through the airport. We all arrived at the gate and went different ways for dinner, depending on what each person wanted. After waiting a little and chatting with each other, it was time to board the plane. Everyone shortly realized that this was really happening. When we step off the plane, we will be in Rome, Italy.

Keep following along to hear about our adventures in Italy and Greece! Go Gate!

- Madison Schiller #4

We have officially landed in Rome!! My name is Amarah Streiff. I am a freshman on the women’s basketball team at Colgate University. Today the team and I got our first experience in Italy! The word excited doesn’t come close to any of the feelings we’re having! This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and we spent no time wasting it. It is absolutely unbelievable to think we got the opportunity to come overseas! Today, Aug. 3, was an amazing first day!

We started our day by landing in Rome at approximately 11 a.m. From here, we loaded all the luggage on the bus and began our first-ever foreign tour excursion to…The Colosseum! The Colosseum was absolutely incredible! The amount of history and memories that the building holds and captures is amazing. After that, the team and I took a three-and-a-half-hour bus ride to Florence and arrived at the Grand Hotel Mediterraneo. This hotel is gorgeous! We topped our day off with an authentic Italian dinner, as we ate pasta, bread, and potatoes. Finally, we topped it off with a tiramisu for dessert! Overall today was an excellent first day in Italy! The memories, pictures, and laughs we made as a team are unforgettable! I still can’t believe we were given this opportunity to experience this!

Until Next Time -Amarah Streiff

Today was a fun day! We started the day off with breakfast at the hotel. The breakfast included a variety of croissants, fruits, sliced meat, vegetables, and more! We all enjoyed the breakfast and were ready to get the day started.

First on the agenda was a bike tour of Florence! This is my first time out of the country, so I was very excited to learn more about Florence and its history. We started and ended the tour at the Saint Maria Del Fiore Cathedral, where we learned about how it’s the fourth largest cathedral in the world and how the architecture has inspired many artists from the first Renaissance Era. The tour was about two and a half hours long, and at that time, we saw many of the monuments that make up the city of Florence.

The architecture of these buildings was amazing, and very interesting to see and learn about. It was interesting to see just how many renowned artists and architects came out of Florence. A highlight of the tour was going to the square where the Loggia Dei Lanzi was. There we were able to see sculptures by iconic artists like Donatello, Gambino, and a copy of Michelangelo’s statue of David.

To end the night, we enjoyed an authentic Italian dinner. The food was delicious! Italy has been so fascinating, and I’m loving every second. Keep following along to hear all about the latest updates from our foreign tour!

-Christina Midgette #2

Hi, my name is Taylor Golembiewski, and I am a junior at Colgate University! It is the team’s fourth day in Italy! It’s game day! We have learned and experienced so much in Rome and Florence! Florence has so much history to look at! To follow our bike tour yesterday, we went to the Academia Gallery. It was amazing! We walked through and saw some amazing sculptures, and of course, the famous David from Michelangelo. The detail in the marble was unbelievable! 

After learning more about the area and what was created in Florence, we started preparing for the game. After a great pregame meal in a place close to the Gallery, we headed to the gym! Before we started warm-ups, we were given the opportunity to run a clinic for some kids! It was an awesome experience that allowed us to connect with kids and more through our sport! Then it was straight to warm-ups, and we were off! We played Spain Select, and it was a battle! It was a great, high-scoring, competitive match-up that went down to the wire! To finish off a great day, we got some great pizza on the way back to the hotel!

-Taylor Golembiewski

Buongiorno!

Today we left Florence for Naples. We had an amazing time exploring Florence! It’s a beautiful place with so much history. Our next stop is Naples, where we needed to take a train to get there from Florence. From there, we went on a breathtaking hike to the top of Mt. Vesuvius. We drove a majority of the way up on a very winding and narrow road. The lookouts were so beautiful. You could see the entire coastline from the top. On this hike, we were led by a tour guide who shared the history of the volcano. In total, we walked a little over four miles. At the top, our guide pointed out where the city of Pompeii used to be. This hike was definitely a highlight of our trip with its uniqueness and beautiful scenery. I have never visited a volcano before, so this was especially fascinating to me.

The final piece of our amazing first day in Naples was dinner. Considering that Naples is the birthplace of pizza, we went as a team to get a taste of true authentic pizza. Our pizzas were absolutely delicious.  

Today was nothing short of extraordinary, and I’m looking forward to continuing on this amazing journey and making long-lasting memories with my teammates and coaches.

- Sophia Diehl #13 
Go ‘Gate

Coach G checks in midtrip on her way down Mt. Vesuvius! 

The train has arrived in Naples! Hi, I’m Tiasia McMillan. I am a senior on the women’s basketball team. It's Day 6 here in the beautiful city of Naples. We started the day with a delicious breakfast provided by the hotel with options of croissants, meats, cheeses, coffee, and more.

After breakfast, we had free time to explore the city and went to a few stores before starting our first activity for the day, which was a pizza-making class. This was an absolutely amazing and tasty experience! We learned how to make a classic margherita pizza. After our hard work, we dug right in! We ate our homemade pizzas alongside a fresh garden salad and ended our meal with cake for dessert. When we finished our meal, we got a bit more free time to check out the city and take a stroll by the water.

It was also game day, so we got the opportunity to play in some great competition against Germany! It was a great experience! Afterward, we went to dinner at Baccalaria, where we had some seafood. Overall it was a great experience, and I’m really grateful to be a part of this!

-#11 Tiasia McMillan
 

Today, Aug. 8, our day started off bright and early. We loaded the bus at 5 a.m. and headed to the airport to officially leave Italy and head to Greece. Our experience in Italy was absolutely incredible, and I am so grateful for the experience. 

Once we got to the airport, we got our boarding passes and headed through security. We then boarded the plane and had a smooth flight, which ended with an enthusiastic clap from almost all board members! 

We then headed to the Plaka neighborhood, where we had some time to explore and grab lunch. We ate fresh gyros that were delicious.  

We then headed to The Acropolis and had an incredible guided tour. We learned all about the history of this area and took in some beautiful views. Following this tour, we checked into our hotel and finished our night with a great dinner. 

I can’t wait to see what else Greece has in store for us! This trip has been incredible, and I’m so grateful to experience it with all of my teammates and coaches! 

-Abbey Ferguson #41

Hey everyone, Lara Cook here. Today, we kicked off the morning with delicious coffee cake, watermelon, and a cup of coffee before we departed for our lovely boat tour of the beautiful Greece islands. We traveled to the islands of Hydra, Poros, and Aegina Saronic. They were all so beautiful and unique in their own ways. Though they were all amazing, the consensus from the team had Aegina Saronic as the favorite because we were able to swim in the Aegean Sea, which was so refreshing but was definitely heavy on the salt, lol! On our departure back to Athens, some of us danced and learned traditional Greek dance moves - yes, it was a challenge! Overall, the tour was simply amazing and an experience that will never be forgotten. To end our long day, many of us enjoyed some delicious souvlakis and gyros and topped it off with gelato and baklava! 

And lastly, to a special day… OPA!

“Let the Games begin!”

We had another fun-filled adventure in Greece today. We started with a walking tour of Athens and the Panathenaic Stadium! Originally built in 330 b.c., the stadium was reconstructed for the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 with beautiful white marble. It’s fascinating how much history lies within the walls of a stadium that once seated 80,000 spectators. 

We took some great photos on the podium and raced around the track a few times before grabbing lunch in the Plaka neighborhood. I had an amazing gyro and a smoothie made with Greek yogurt! The food on this trip has been extraordinary!

After lunch, we boarded the bus to Glyfada. A beautiful coastline was there to greet us upon arrival, and immediately after checking into the resort, we made a beeline right for the beach. After a few hours of catching some rays and swimming in the warm water, it was time for dinner. We unwinded by the pool and witnessed a sunset that you could only dream of!

This trip has flown by, to say the least. I am forever grateful to our coaches and the J5 team for organizing this unforgettable experience! I can’t wait to see what tomorrow has in store :).

Go ‘Gate!

-#1 Morgan McMahon

Coach G checks gives a trip update in the Walk of Champions!

Kalimera from Glyfada! Chidi here :). It’s our ninth day on the trip, and today is all about relaxation and beach time. We started with a delicious breakfast with lots of options, including my favorites, croissants, and rice pudding. Then we swam in the pool and soaked up the sun. The beach, just a short walk away, had breathtaking views, and we had lunch at a restaurant on the shore.

In the evening, we had our last team dinner at Yalos Seafood. Eating delicious seafood while watching the sunset over the ocean was truly amazing. I had a salmon skewer with sesame seeds and grilled vegetables. It was so delicious. We took some pictures in front of the stunning view before ending the night with a live saxophone and singing performance at the hotel.

It's hard to believe that tomorrow morning we are heading back to Newark. The trip has flown by, and I've loved learning about Italian and Greek culture, enjoying the beauty of both countries, trying amazing food, and spending time with my teammates. Huge thanks to the coaches, J5, and our incredible tour guides Davidé and Filitsa. Grazie mille and efharistó! 

Today we said a bittersweet goodbye to the beaches of Greece as we packed up our bags one last time to head to the airport. It was a long day, going from bus to plane, then back to the bus, but it gave my teammates and me ample time to truly reflect on the greatness that was this trip. Between the bike tour in Florence to our tour of the Olympic stadium in Athens and everything in between. This trip truly was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We were able to immerse ourselves in cultures different than our own and leave Europe behind with unforgettable memories and pictures that people could argue were photoshopped. 

Being able to play against the Spanish and German select teams was also an incredible experience. It was a fast-paced, high-energy environment that gave our team a true international basketball experience. It was so exciting to see in those games how much we’ve grown since last season, knowing that there is still more work to be done. We leave those games with immense optimism about the growth and success that we can reach this season. 

I cannot say enough how unbelievable of an opportunity this was for me, my teammates, and my coaches. Too many times to count, I found myself at a loss for words. I am extremely grateful to our coaches, our amazing tour guides, the women at J5, and everyone back at Colgate that made this all possible. Something special is brewing at Colgate women's basketball, and this trip was just a small taste of what’s to come for this program.

As always, Go ‘Gate!

-Alexa Brodie #3