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Blog 8-- May 21, 2008

Well, we’ve arrived back at Amsterdam, ready to fly back across the Atlantic. On Tuesday we left Berlin and drove to the memorial and museum at the site of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. There were only a few buildings still in existence, and those had been restored to house the exhibits. Still, it was a sobering experience; the pictures and placards alone were enough to convey the horrible nature of the events that took place there. We had only an hour and a half in which to tour the area, not enough time to take in half of the information there, but more would have been oppressive. 

We continued on our way Cologne, blithely following the directions of our GPS onboard navigation system. We traveled at speeds of up to 150kmph (almost 93 mph) and still some people were passing us as if we were standing still. On the other hand, construction sometimes forced almost to a standstill, and the volume of traffic on the road in that one day was probably equal to what Montana gets in a year.

Then, calamity struck. Our “NeverLost” system took us off the autobahn, and along winding two-lane roads through several picturesque towns and villages. We wound around for almost an hour before taking matters into our own hands and using a map to get back to the autobahn. We arrived ten minutes before our match against the SportscheSchoole Koln team was about to begin. Unfortunately, we were only able to break into two teams and scrimmage against them informally. We were not at our best after over six hours in the cars.

Yesterday we went into the center of Cologne and visited the cathedral. A couple of us climbed the 509 steps to the top of the right spire. It was so neat to look out and see people, tiny as ants, milling around so far below. In the evening, two of the new friends we made in St. Anthonis were nice enough to come to visit us at our hostel, as it was only a ninety minute trip for them. 

We are now at Schiphol airport; the main group is flying to Minneapolis momentarily, Kaylee Bossert will travel to Paris and Venice with friends, and my Dad (Coach Ryan) and I will go to London for an extra week. Thank you to everyone who has read this blog. We appreciate your support and hope to see you at our games this fall!

Jess Ryan

Blog 7-- May 19, 2008

Today we are in Berlin, Germany. We arrived Sunday morning at 4 am after a drive on the autobahn from Amsterdam. Sunday was a day to recuperate and explore the city. Many of the group found the street flea market and enjoyed the day bargain shopping. Monday morning dawned bright and sunny; we started the day with breakfast at a local deli/bakery (thanks to Russ Getten a realtor in Havre who donated the cost of breakfast). This was in preparation for our walking tour of the city. Our guides were excellent and provided a colorful commentary of the rich history of the many sites throughout the city. We began our tour at Brandenburg gate, passed by many historic buildings pre- and post-Hitler, the memorial to the murdered Jews, the Berlin wall and finished up at the Berlin Cathedral, built by the last monarch of Germany. Keeping track of the group today was a snap as they were all wearing their shirts commemorating the trip made, designed and donated by Max Erickson from Beaver Creek Designs. Thanks Max, you made my job easier!

Following the tour, the group was fortunate enough to be able to attend a speech given by the Dalai Lama of Tibet. He was in Berlin campaigning for freedom of Tibet from China and for peace through out the world. There were about 5000 people in attendance at the outdoor event. What an amazing experience.

Tomorrow we will tour the Sachsenhausen concentration camp and then travel to Cologne for our last match of the tour.

Although this has been the trip of a lifetime, many of the girls are ready to be home to family and friends.

Janet Trethewey – athletic trainer and “trip mom”

Blog 6-- May 17, 2008

One morning of our final day in Ireland, Jess, Coach, and I went on a train ride along the coast of the Irish sea.  When we arrive in a town called Bray we walked a trail around a mountain to another town called Greystones.  The trail was right along the ocean and it was one of the most beautiful sights I’ve ever seen.  It was an hour and a half well spent. 

After arriving in Greystones we purchased another train ticket to get back to Dublin but we ended up getting on the wrong train which was taking us the opposite direction.  By this time we were in a major hurry to get back to catch our bus to the airport.  We rushed off the train at the next stop and caught a cab to the next town so that we could get on the right train.  

When we finally got off the train at the right place we had to run all the way back to the hostel to get our stuff and make it to the bus on time.  Everything from there went relatively smooth.  We got our bags checked in, went through customs and made to the gate with extra time to spare.  However, when we arrived in Amsterdam, it was only to find that my luggage was completely lost.  We stood by the baggage belt clear until it shut down and then had to file a missing luggage complaint.  So far it still hasn’t been found and this is the day everyone will remember as the day the rookie lost her luggage.

Blog 5-- May 16, 2008

Yesterday was a free day and, tired of wandering around the city, we took a train out to the busy village of Malahide. We toured the castle there, one that had been in the Talbot family for hundreds of years. We walked through the village and the woods for about an hour before we came to the gates, and there it was, hidden behind the trees, with a front lawn the size of an entire golf course. The inner rooms were furnished according to various fashions from the 17th century to the 19th. After touring the castle, we walked back through the village to the waterfront; the Irish Sea. We walked along the beach collecting seashells and looking out at the colored sails of sailboats sailing just off the coast. A few girls had brought bathing suits, determined to swim in the ocean. Judging from the volume of their screams, I believe it was pretty cold.

Tired, we all came back for a nap in our hostel before going out to the Temple Bar district to see if we could hear some live Irish music. On one street corner a quartet of musicians were performing a sort of jazz, with a double bass, a guitar, a violin, and a box that sounded like a drum set when tapped by the player. The cobble stone streets were crowed with people, probably similar to the entire population of Havre walking through that one district.

Well, we’re off to Amsterdam again this afternoon, and from there to Berlin. See you soon!

Jess Ryan

Blog 4-- May 15, 2008

There are two famous churches here in the city only blocks from each other. The first is Christ Church Cathedral, originally built about 1030, re-built in the 1600’s and refurbished in the mid-1800’s. It is the site of the first performance of Handel’s “Messiah” in 1742. It has a definite influence from the Norsk raiders to the island at the time of its construction. The second is St. Patrick’s Cathedral or the National Cathedral, built to honor the patron saint of Ireland in 1191. One of the most famous deans of the church was Jonathan Swift, writer of “Gulliver’s Travels” and an advocate for the mentally ill. Both are beautiful examples of architecture and art from many historical periods.

For me, however, the most amazing site so far has been the Book of Kells at Trinity College. Trinity College was founded in 1592 and is home to the oldest book depository in Europe. Of particular importance is the Book of Kells; it is the four gospels written by Irish monks from Kells from 600-800 AD in Latin. The book is written on velum (calf skin – 185 in all) with quill pens. It is lavishly embellished with artwork for the lettering as well as other pages of illustration. The book was given to the university shortly after it was founded to protect it during the Cromwellian era when all things Catholic were under attack by the king. The original library where the book is on display is also home to many other historically significant texts from the 1700-1800’s. The main room is over 200 feet long and 3 stories high with a beautiful barrel ceiling. Of course, most of the early books are written in Latin. Also displayed in the library is the famous “Irish Harp” that is seen on flags and currency of the country. The library has grown to 5 buildings currently; it took 200 years to fill the original building in the mid-1700’s and the last one will be filled 5 years after completion in 2005! Since the late 1700’s, the library has received the first edition of every book printed in the UK.

The main purpose of our trip, of course, is to play volleyball. The ladies have represented MSU-Northern most admirably. On Wednesday night they played the 2nd place team in the Irish league ; this team is made up of some of  the best women players in the country ranging in age from 22-28. Our ladies took them to 5 games and lost the fifth game 15-13. Thursday evening they will play the 3-time defending college national team. The rules are different here and these girls can play for up to 6 years while completing their master’s degree, but they receive no athletic scholarship support. The university has 30,000 students in a full range of degree programs and is home to both a veterinary school and a medical school.

It has been a pleasure traveling with and getting to know these young ladies. I look forward to seeing them play this fall on “home turf.” They will be AMAZING!!

Janet Trethewey – Athletic Trainer
ps. The skylights beat the reigning ireland Champs 3 games to 1 in a very hotly contested match

Blog 3 -- May 14, 2008

Janet Trethewey (tomorrow's blogger) spent the day at the world famous Trinity University's library. The rest of the team spent the day shopping at the very famous Grafton street mall. I spent the day trying to get my laundry done. Sometimes life on the road is so pedestrian.

At any rate as I travelled down Marlborough street looking for a laundry, low and behold I spied a Tim Horton's sign. If you are a Canadian you automatically understand this, if you are American it may take some explaining. Tim Horton's is the working man's version of Starbucks. At any rate I wandered in the store and came out with a fairly passable version of a double-double. So I trekked towards the Jervis street Mall coffee in Hand. As I got there I was interrupted by a 20 year old guy wanting to know where I got the Tim Horton's coffee. Turns out he was from Calgary. Small world it is. Once all the shopping was done the team met for our pre-game meal. We ended up dining at a local pizzeria.

We departed for the 40 minute ride at 6pm thru the end of rush our on a Dublin double decker bus to play Dublin Volleyball club. One of the top women's clubs on the Isle. Their average age is 25. It seems we have yet to play anyone our own age. At any rate it was a great match, going down to the wire we lost in the 5th 15-13. The game scores were: 23-25, 25-20, 22-25, 25-17, 13-15. Kaylee Bossert led the team with 18 kills 5 aces , Jody Berglund had 4 blocks. Tomorrow night we play the actual University College of Dublin team.

Greg Ryan
Head Coach MSUN Skylight Volleyball

Blog 2-- May 13, 2008

We were playing on 24 courts set up for the 46-team tournament and the conditions were less than ideal. The wind was blowing the gusts, the heat was too much to handle and the sun always seemed to catch our eyes no matter what we did. Still we managed to pull through finishing seventh in our division.

The after party, however, is the really impressive part of this tournament. It is a three-day party from sun up to sundown for the locals, and some of the players. 3500 people managed to make it out each night to party till dawn. The party was complete with live band, dance floor and of course beer. Long story short Europeans (and specifically the Dutch) know how to party!

The first party night went well for all until two of our players (Kaylee and Jen) found them selves sleeping on lawn chairs due to their forgetfulness (of the key) and their hosts locking them out of the house. Their host arrived home to let them in as Jen was attempting to boost Kaylee on to the roof to climb through the only open window. They finally managed to crawl into bed an hour and a half later than they arrived. Needless to say they never forgot their key again.

Today (Tuesday May 13) the team is off to Dublin, Ireland for three days where we will play matches and do some more sightseeing.

Greg Ryan Head Coach MSUN Volleyball

Blog 1 --May 10, 2008

Hello Blog Readers,

Today MSUN women’s volleyball team arrived in  Amsterdam! To begin, we were casually toured and guided by a member of the international  grass court tournament  group.  We toured around Amsterdam by foot, temperature about 74 f, beautiful day with a few of us by the end of the day with red cheeks and burnt backs! Many of us had the vision to visit the RED light district but, our coach’s and guide had many activities set out for our enjoyment.       

The first thing we all noticed is that many people in Holland smoke, ride bikes, and do not have an organized driving sequence – for example you want to cross the street there is no chance until it is completely clear or you get the picture just remember look both ways and wait as long as possible. Also a few of us visited the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam and had the chance to see beautiful art originating from Holland itself – for only 10 Euros.

We toughed-out the day many of us became so tired because of the lack of sleep. But we were able to see many cute and exotic shops through out the streets of Amsterdam! Shopping on the other hand there were low prices while others were way too high!