Alcoholic Sugar Cubes

Hello everyone~

So, there are a few little nuances of Switzerland that I have been meaning to share with all of you. So, here they are...

1. In the centers, which are like little downtowns, there are these drinking fountains that are constantly bubbling with water. There is no on/off switch or lever that you press, you just walk up to the fountain, take a swallow and continue on your way. The water must continually recycle itself?

2. While you are driving in the center, it is natural to feel like you are driving on the sidewalk because in reality you practically are. The first time I drove down there I was quite confused I kept asking "Is this really the street?!"

3. During our scrimmages the rules are a lot more relaxed than they are in the States. The ref doesn't wait for everyone to get situated on the free-throw line before the player starts to shoot. Many times people are walking to their spots or even crossing the lane while the shooter is shooting.

Ok, now for the press conference that I attended last night. The conference took place at City Hall, and the whole team was dressed in the same blue Polo shirts. We started off by taking a lot of pictures. Now, I am somewhat used to having to take team photos, but in the states it is easier to continue smiling because someone always makes some joke or comment and then you laugh and your smile becomes natural and not so fake. Well, last night I definitely didn't understand any of the jokes so I just stood there and tried to smile as best as I could, but man it was rough.

After the pictures were taken we all entered a large room where all the players sat in the back and in front of us were all the journalists, and then sitting at the front table, facing everyone were our coaches, president, vice president, general manager and the Mayor of Riva. Everyone sitting in the front spoke. My teammate, Viola, sat next to me and translated everything. Pretty much everyone talked about last year's season and how it was a great year because they won the championship, but that there is no pressure on this years coach (Fabio was an assistant last year and now he's the head coach) to win the championship. Then our coach talked about each player. The journalists asked questions, but none of the players were asked to get up and speak or answer any questions. Afterwards we walked outside into this courtyard and had some little appetizers. Oh and I should mention that this year is the 30th anniversary of my team.

We played two games this past weekend and won both of them. The teams we played were not very skilled, but we played well as a team so that was good. We were even awarded a trophy after our last game.

Nothing else too knew...ha ok maybe two funny experiences. On Saturday I ate lunch with a teammate in her home town because they were having a Mushroom festival. Well, we sat with her neighbors, who happened to be two men who were probably in their 30s. Both of them were professors and very funny I must say. Anyway, they had this old man come over to our table and they told him that their new friend (me) would like to taste this food. I asked, well what is it, and of course they said "oh, just try it" So this man takes a jar out from his pocket, and reaches into the jar with some sort of tweezers. I held out my hand and he gave me something that looked like a sugar cube, but it was a dark brown color. I popped it in my mouth and immediately realized that it was in fact a sugar cube, but it had been soaking in alcohol, and it was STRONG! Well, naturally my face contorted into a shocked expression, and as I was doing my best not to spit it back out I could hear my teammate and her neighbors laughing and asking if anyone had a camera. I won't blindly eat something like that again. Live and learn, right?

Here we are with the Nutty Professors.  

Ok, sorry this is turning into a novel, one more quick story. Last night I was dropping Polona off at her apartment. She lives in the center and there is a school that I drive by in order to get to her flat. Anyway, it was around 10:30pm and dark outside. There was a group of teenage boys standing at a bend in the road, and all of a sudden something smacked onto my windshield. At first I thought it was a bug, but then something drew my eyes to the windshield directly in front of the passenger seat and there was a big glob of something oozing down the glass. My teammate, Keisha, says "Leslie, those boys just threw ice cream at your car!" ha, I couldn't believe it! At first I thought it was kind of funny, but then I felt a little violated, how dare they throw something at my car! And besides, who in their right mind would waste perfectly good gelato anyway? If you're wondering if I drove back and gave them a piece of my mind you are CORRECT! ha, just kidding, I wanted to, but being the mature 22 year old that I am, I kept on driving.

Ok, if you have read this far you are awesome, if not sorry for being SO long winded! 
Ciao, 
Leslie