Christmas in Barcelona!

So... we made it to Barcelona after a few barriers! 1) Rui was able to get Dan's passport from the post office after it had already closed the night before we left for Barcelona... wow. 2) The night before we left I was 99% positive we were in a tornado in Vila do Conde... turns out we made the news as well for the 120 km/hr winds, approximately 75 miles/hr... we survived and our flight took off to Barcelona! Yay!

Barcelona was awesome! I felt a little bit like I was in America (I got Starbucks! People spoke English! There were stores similar to home!), which was refreshing, on top of amazing architecture and sight seeing. We were super tourists for the 3 days we were there, seeing all the major sights. Gaudi, the Spanish architect, was pretty intense/amazing. We saw a few of his works: La Perdrera, Sagrada Familia, Parc Guell, and another crazy building which I do not know the name. We went to a few hole in the wall pubs/bars that were recommended to us from friends who had lived in Barcelona, touched the Mediterranean Sea, and ate the local food and drank Sangria. We even made it to the Barcelona cathedral for Christmas mass! To finish our stay, we went to the Montjuic Park where there was a ridiculous fountain show and Grand Palace. The sights were seriously all breathtaking and our pictures don't even serve them justice. The weather was beautiful on Christmas day... sunny, 55 degrees and mostly rainy on the other days. We hope you enjoy the slideshow of pictures.

It was fun to have the webcam on with our families during their present opening on Christmas morning... kind of like we were there...

We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!

Love,

Alli & Dan

Cards Galore

Boas Festas!

So we had two more matches this weekend before our nice holiday break where we get a few weeks off. Well not really much time off, just no games. The games were pretty intense and I really wish I understood Portuguese because there was a lot going on and I had no clue!

In our first match vs. Castelo de Maia in the battle for 4th place, we came out strong and took game 1. Game 2 saw us carry that momentum with a big lead of 8-2 at the first break. However, at that point the other team started going crazy at the refs. There was a noise that went off during our serve so they thought they were supposed to stop playing but we didn't so we won the point. They proceeded to get a yellow card (which equals a point for us) and then a couple plays later they got upset again and their libero got a red card (which means he has to sit out the rest of that game, not the match). So having a good lead and the other team without a libero, you would think we should close out the game. But no, they manage to pull back into it and steal the game 30-28. Very frustrating. Next game, our team starts yelling at the refs about something (no clue what was going on during all of this) and our OH gets a yellow card and then our coach got a red card and had to sit behind the bench the rest of the game. Then right before the other team was going to serve, our coach pushes the shopping cart filled with water bottles, balls, warmup jackets, onto the floor!! It was ridiculous. Anyway, we lost that game and the next to lose in 4. A tough one but hopefully we can get matched up with them in the playoffs and get revenge!

Sunday saw a weaker opponent, but more cards! We came out playing well and took game 1 very easily. Then in game 2, our serve wasn't as tough and the game was much closer. The other team got to 24 and their opposite kept talking junk through the net so OH that got the yellow the day before got in the net and started yelling back. BAM, yellow card, point for the other team, game over. It actually was a double yellow for the opposite on the other team but it didn't matter. Then at the start of the next game, another yellow was issued to the other team, for no apparent reason to me. Anyway, we played much better and won in 4 to put us at 10-6 for the year, in 5th place. Also, for the weekend that made 6 yellow cards, 2 red cards, and 1 shopping cart pushed onto the court. I felt like I was watching Kevin O'Dell play in high school!

So after the game Sunday, Alli and I went to dinner with some teammates and friends and then played some poker after. Dinner and drinks were free cause my teammate is sponsored by the restaurant so we were quite excited! The food was delicious, especially the filet mignon wrapped in bacon with cheese. UGH it's to die for! Alli didn't play poker with us although she made oatmeal cookies while we played so that was fun for all of us. She however was the party pooper, passing out early at 2:30am while the rest of us were up to 5am. I don't know how they keep the hours they do but somehow they do. Must be all the cafe's they drink...

Also, there is a local cafe that Alli and I always go to. The couple that works there, Andrea and Ericha, are very friendly and always happy to see us when we come into have our daily coffee and play cards (Gin). They brought their 3 year old son in the other day, Matteos, who is a very cute kid with dimples. Anyway, he was a little shy at first, but like most like kids, started making faces and playing with me across the room. He was very funny and kept doing dance moves and falling on the ground laughing. He also put his shoes on the wrong feet so we got a kick out of that too. Lucky enough, he let me get a picture with him too!

Alli and I are planning on going to Barcelona on Thursday for a few days over Christmas! Tickets are booked... just have to get my passport from the Portuguese post office tomorrow (long story... dealing with my work visa and having the passport sent from Portugal to America to Portugal to America and now hopefully back to Portugal..) so we can leave Portugal.

That's it for now. Christmas is almost here so we hope everyone has a great holiday!! We miss you all and hope Santa brings you something nice this year!

D & A

Futbol!

Quick update on my viewing of Dan's volleyball team playing soccer... INTENSE. I was under the assumption that a day off of playing volleyball would be a fun, easy going break for the team with a little cross training. However, Dan wasn't kidding when he told me that they are pretty serious about futbol. First off, Dan took off his jacket to display his FC Porto jersey and the guys started going crazy- literally. Some where cheering, "F***ing Dan! F***ing Dan!" About half the team was caressing the jersey to see if it was authentic and after it passed the test, they were so stoked to see Dan wearing it and even more impressed when he told them he bargained for it at the local Friday market.

The game started and I couldn't take my eyes away. The rules are as follows: play with a volleyball, goalie cannot use his hands, goals can only be scored off of a header, no out of bounds, no fouls, and no shin guards. There were a few obstacles near the edge of the court: portable basketball hoops, partitions, tables, and chairs. Bodies were flying, bodies were flying into each other, bodies were crashing into obstacles, and many bad Portuguese words were being communicated. There were a few times where I was positive an ankle was broken or an ACL torn, but nope! False alarm. When the first goal was scored (on Dan) I started to laugh really hard and the head coach (also playing on Dan's team) was extremely pissed and I am pretty sure he was even more angry at me for laughing as he continued to say, "Fodus" (spell check), the equivalent of the F word. All in all it was extremely entertaining and Dan really only had one lousy play and the rest of the time he did pretty well with blocking the shots (take into account his size compared to the goal size). The final score was 4-5... close game! If Portugal had University sports like we do in America, I am pretty sure half of Dan's team would be playing soccer.

Wins and more...

Ola!

So I just wanted to give a quick update on our matches from this past week and then Alli will take it away with some thoughts and updates on the more interesting aspects of our time here.

We had two matches this weekend against teams that are both below us in the rankings, so it was essential to come out with W's to maintain our spot in the standings. Our team came out playing very tough in both matches and pulled out 3-0 victories in both games! We seem to be improving as we go which is a good sign if we can continue the upward trend. We have a big match this weekend against Castelo do Maia with the winner of the game getting sole possession of 4th place. It's at home so we'll likely have a raucous crowd of 80 people cheering us on! My knee has began to act up this week so hopefully with a nice diet of ice and ibuprofen I will be good to go by gametime.

Boa tarde (good afternoon) everyone! Nothing too new and exciting has happened the past couple of weeks... I had the flu right after my mom left (she had it right before she left), but am feeling much better now. Luckily Dan did not get it. We couldn't call it "the flu",even after I was better, to anyone here because they seriously FREAK OUT like it is the Black Plague.

Fun fact: last Tuesday was a holiday here... a holiday for the Immaculate Conception. Unfortunately, I do not think it would be "legal" or "politically correct" to have a holiday for the Immaculate Conception in America. To top it off, the name "conception" (of course translated into Portuguese) is a common third name for people here... because people have about 4 names apparently. Lia's third name is "conception", and now I spot it on the back of many jersey's of opposing teams at Dan's games. Also, in the gym where Dan plays, there is a huge sign that says "Feliz Natal" (Merry Christmas) and a very large Nativity scene. It's awesome!

Another observation I have made since the first couple of days I have been here is the outrageous amount of people with foot deformities, limping when walking, uneven legs, and just general leg or foot problems. I told my mom about this when she got here and she was amazed as we spotted more people each day. To top it off, a family friend just got back from Spain with her husband that is a doctor. They were talking to my mom about their trip and said, "Gosh, it was amazing to see the number of people with foot and leg problems... all using a cane to limp/walk around and looking like they are in so much pain." My mom described our same observations! Our friend's husband explained to my mom that most of the problems looked as if they could be fixed by a hip, knee, or foot surgery. However, due to the fact that Europe has socialized/universal health care, this is considered a "specialty area" and is therefore not covered. To have the surgery, the person would have to pay out of pocket and is therefore just not affordable. On this same page, the lady who owns the cafe we visit everyday just had her tooth pulled. Instead of having insurance to cover for most of the payment for a root canal to save the tooth, the universal health care covered the tooth to be pulled out since it was a molar and the other teeth are enough to chew food. And lastly, a teammate of mine has had a bad knee for almost three years. Physical therapy is covered under the health care, but being that it is not getting any better, she requested an MRI. The doctor told her that she just needs to continue to rest and ice and did not agree to the MRI. She really wants/needs the MRI, so after she tries to find an insurance company she can afford, she will hopefully be covered in part to get an MRI in the next few months. This whole universal health care proposal in America could be pretty scary....

After a whole week of clear blue skies and 40 degree days, the rain and wind are back! The good news is that our building is still standing... although I had my doubts in the middle of the night. Dan and I ventured on over to the Moroccan cafe the other night... mostly because I really just wanted to laugh at him sitting on the tiny pillows! Dan enjoyed the ambiance and the Sangria, but after about 45 minutes, the uncomfortableness (is that a word?) started to set in.

I enjoyed visiting a beautiful town called Espinho with Lia on Sunday before Dan's game. We walked along the boardwalk and window shopped (shops are closed on Sundays), I bought some red colored popcorn (very festive), and clapped for Santa and the Christmas carolers strolling along. Santa just walked on over to me, reached his hand into my popcorn, got a couple good mouthfuls of red popcorn, and then continued on his stroll.

Tonight Dan's team is playing soccer for practice and then having a team Christmas dinner. Being that Dan is the worst soccer player on his team, he is consistently chosen last and put in the goal. But to pump up his team, Dan bought an FC Porto (Porto soccer team here) Jersey and is going to bust it out tonight for the big soccer game. I will be there and will be happy to post about it on the blog in the next couple of days....

Halfway Home...

Hello fellow readers!

So it has been a couple of weeks. We have officially finished the 1st half of the regular season. We are tied for 4th in the league right now which is pretty exciting since the team was tied for last a year ago. We closed out the first half with a 3-1 win against Academic Espinho to put us at 7-4. The following weekend (this past weekend) was a big match on the road vs. the team currently sitting tied for 1st, Vitoria. They are led by former BYU standout Carlos Moreno so it's always fun to play against people I played against while at Penn State. Anyway, the match was probably the best we played all year, and unfortunately we lost in 5. It was very frustrating since we were up 2-1 in games, and then after a slow start in game 4, our coach pulled out all the starters when we were down 9-6!!! Yes, it was a 3 point game and he gave up so we could "rest" for game 5. Quite a bizarre move I thought since we still had a chance in that game. Plus I don't think any of us were tired so we didn't exactly need rest. If anything it made us cold to start game 5. Oh well, I think the positive to come from the match is that in games 2 & 3 which we won, we played at a very high level and if we can learn to play like that consistently, we could certainly make a run in the playoffs.

So other than volleyball, it was very nice having a visitor here. We had a lot of fun having Maureen here and I know she certainly enjoyed her stay here. Her and Alli got in a lot of sightseeing of both Porto and Lisbon and got to experience a lot of what Portugal has to offer. We will hopefully post a slideshow soon for everyone to see some fun pictures we have taken while here.

We hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving back home and is enjoying the hectic Christmas shopping. It's no different here! Alli and I went to see the new Twilight movie (New Moon) at the mall on Sunday and it was packed! It's lovely here this time of year because everywhere you look, there are Christmas lights and nativity scenes. Outside our apartment, there are lights up and down every street and speakers every block or so that is playing Christmas music so as Alli likes to say, it feels like you are in a Winter Wonderland while walking down the street!

Two more matches this weekend so hopefully we can come out with two more victories! Hope everyone is doing well!

D & A