VARSITY ATHLETICS

August 16, 2007

LAST DAY IN GUARUJA, OFF TO SAO JOSE DOS CAMPOS

By Brad Sutton – Junior Forward – Findlay, OH
Thursday, August 16, 2007

Today was our last day in Guarujá. It was nice to have a comfortable hotel right next to the beach. We spent much of our time in the morning and early afternoon on three separate beaches in the area. The waves have been very large and powerful, though the water rather cold. I enjoyed being tossed and pulled by the crosscurrents in shallow water. It was next to impossible to stand with your feet planted in only knee deep water. The surfing lessons were the first opportunity for many of us to try our hand, or feet rather, at surfing. This morning we got up and had a little calisthenics exercise on the Brazilian beach.

The two games we played were fun, but frustrating. Not only could we not communicate with the referees, but our second game was played without a scoreboard or clock which contributed to some confusion. It also is taking us some time to get adjusted to the different style of the game here. We finished the last game with only four players because everyone else had fouled out. However, I have enjoyed competing against and meeting our opponents. I learned the “cool way” to say thank you in Portuguese, from Sandro on the Santos team, though the cashier at the local grocery store laughed at me when I used it. Also, a couple of us ended up with jerseys from the other team and traded email addresses after the game.

This trip already has been an amazing cultural adventure. Pictures and written updates do not give this experience justice. Riding in our charter bus, we pass many bikers and motorcycles and an occasional stray horse on the side of the road. The greater Sao Paulo city is enormous. There are high-rise apartments for miles and miles. Then there are thousands of houses scrapped together with tin roofs crowding each other. The poverty here really makes us appreciate living in the USA. I am enjoying meeting and interacting as much as I can with the kids here and watching pick-up soccer games. I also have taken a liking to an original Brazilian beverage, guaraná; a sort of cherry flavored ginger ale. All of this at only the first destination; we still have a week left!

WHERE’S VAREJAO … Members of the Case Western Reserve University men’s basketball team show off their Cavaliers gear on the beach in Brazil, home of Cleveland Cavaliers forward Anderson Varejao. The Spartans are in South America August 12-23 taking in the sites while playing three international exhibition games.

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Posted by: Creg Jantz August 16, 2007 06:24 PM | Category: Brazil

Posted by: cnj4 (Creg Jantz) August 16, 2007 06:24 PM | Comments (0) | Trackback