Lehigh University Athletics
Lehigh Soccer in France: Complete Blog
3/12/2017 2:18:00 PM | Men's Soccer, Women's Soccer, Features
Each day the Lehigh men's and women's soccer teams are in France a new blog post will composed by a male and female student-athlete. New blog posts will populate on this page as the trip progresses.
Day 7 – Mar. 17
Matthew Peralta – Freshman – Weston, Fla.
From the mouth of the Seine to its confluence with La Marne, LUMS and LUWS made their way from the harboring urbanity of La Havre to Paris.
As we crossed the Tancarville Bridge, it became clear that although brief, our time in La Havre will always be looked back upon in dearest sentiment.
Nostalgic reflections and outlooks onto the French countryside were complemented by the guiding promise of the traveler. Utterances of Parisian offerings brewed almost as richly as did the fumes from within the bus's cabined bathroom; the former a testimony of energized anticipation and the latter perhaps a consequence of it.
About an hour and a half into the trip we arrived at a rest stop whose cargo container design justly characterized the traveler's dynamic. From within, the proximity of Paris was made evident by souvenirs and maps.
Soon after our stop, the bucolic landscape began to withdraw and an urbanized scene took its place. The contrast, for all who were not adrift in slumber, was evident and sent emotions spiraling.
The actuality of our location was affirmed by the sight of the cupola that tops the eminently laced Eiffel Tower. Our passage along a road that ribbed the Siene put us before a Statue of Liberty replica on the Île aux Cygnes draped by the Eiffel Tower backdrop.
Our first stop in Paris was at the northern front of the Parc du Champ de Mars, on the very brink of the park closest to the Eiffel Tower, presenting generous amounts of gram-able photo-ops. After some time in the presence of the structure we scurried on over to the bus which was in danger of being ticketed.
From there we made our way to what would soon be identified as rendezvous point one, along Cours La Reine, where we were given the liberty to explore Paris – time being the only constraint.
A bit dazed by both the city's peppered relics and immediacy with which our mobility was called into action. A few of the lads and I took off in a direction opposite to where we wanted to go, Avenue de Champs-Élysées.
We then set off with clear minds toward our destination. The elaborate glamour of retail was thankfully pacified by the welcoming Arc de Triomphe. Drawn by the enormity of both the structure and its past, the boys and I headed out to get a closer look of the monument.
The travel through the subterranean channel that lead to the Arc de Triomphe was attuned by a violinist at play. The sound faded the further we got in the tunnel and another symphony took its place as we emerged from the underground – the arc's elaborate detail. Taking our time, we looked upon the monument's sculptural groupings, reliefs and enjoyed its entire semblance as best we could.
With the understanding that such a monument couldn't justly be appreciated in the time we had given to it and recognizing that our time in the The City of Light was limited, we decided to move along to take in more of what the city so generously laid at our disposal.
In hope of silencing the grumbling stomachs that took away from the city's muse, the group decided it was time to eat. We made our way back along the Avenue de Champs-Élysées, now on the opposite side of the urban artery and cut into a small street with promising signs. Choosing a small restaurant, more out of necessity than earnest liking, we ate for about 30 minutes and carried on towards the Louvre.
After a lengthy, but enjoyable walk, we reached Place de la Concorde and peeked into Tulleries Garden. Filtered by shrubbery and ponds, we stood in front the colossal Louvre Museum. The group split; Alec and Oscar accompanied me into the Louvre, while the others set off towards Notre Dame.
As we traversed the museum it became clear that a thorough exploration of the Louvre would not be possible, so we decided to narrow down our interests in order to optimize our experience. In doing so, we decidedly explored the west wing of the museum's first level, which included French and Italian paintings; the latter being the area that housed the Mona Lisa. Guided by a detailed interior we finally found ourselves in front of Da Vinci's workings. Swarmed by stretching arms and polluted by desperate camera clicks, the Mona Lisa stood in a state of unfazed poise as it has and will continue to do so for centuries. Our travel through the gallery of time pleasantly drained both our energies and time in the city.
After maneuvering our way out, we stood at the Louvre's forefront once more and waited for the others. During our wait my buddy, Alec Koski, got a sweet deal out of a couple of braided threads for which he only had to pay five Euros. Once we were all gathered, we set out to rendezvous point one.
On our way back, a tasty temptation crept into view, crepes. Most couldn't resist and decided to take in some culture through gustatory means.
After the messy consumption, we were back on route and found ourselves walking through Paris as the light of the day settled and was humbly shed upon the days adventures, bringing about an unyielding stillness.
Once LUMS and LUWS had found their way onto the bus, we took off to a Ligue 2 soccer match between the Parisian Red Stars and neighboring Amiens. The match would take place in the Jean-Bouin Stadium, which stands next to PSG's home turf. Although not fully occupied, Jean-Bouin's atmosphere was well worthy of appreciation. The final score of the game was 0-1, Red Star bearing the loss.
From there, we left to our hotel where the day's dynamic once again took its toll on our energies. This time, less forgiving than before.
The SB2K17 sojourn to France was a hell of a time and while some L's were surely taken, they remain minimal in the context of our time abroad.
I extend my gratitude to all those who made the trip possible, as well to those whose good company was never more than a seat away.
Adrian Vitello – Junior – Manalapan, N.J. & Sam Miller – Freshman – Commack, N.Y.
This morning was an early start as we began our travels Paris for the day! We had breakfast at the hotel and headed on our way at 8:30 a.m. The ride was a little long but well worth the drive once we arrived at the city and first set our eyes on the Eiffel Tower. It was a lot bigger than I had ever expected it to be! Walking right underneath it made me feel so small in comparison. We took pictures with the whole team and then we were allowed to roam the city as we pleased!
I spent the day with my fellow junior classmates, Grace, Becca, Alyssa, Lexi and Amanda. First thing on our agenda was to find a place to grab some lunch. We meandered through the city down side streets guided by the Eiffel Tower peeking through the gaps of the buildings in the distance. We chose a cute corner cafe called le Campanella and enjoyed our French dishes outside in the beautiful weather. We all stuck to ordering classic French dishes. I decided to go out of my comfort zone and figured what better time and place to try some escargot. My friends had raved about how good it was when they tried it in Le Havre, so I had high expectations for the dish despite my hesitations. I didn't enjoy it as much as my friends did, but needless to say, I'm glad I can say that I've tried it.
From a different perspective, my teammate Sam Miller spent a majority of the day shopping. She reflected upon her experience:
Walking down the main strip of shops in Paris for the first time is an experience that could elicit awe from anyone. Every famous designer I have ever heard of seemed to have their nicest store in Paris. Louis Vuitton, Coach, Gucci, Armani, Alexander McQueen, Michael Kors, Versace and many more. The design and architecture of the stores themselves even seemed to match the beauty of the clothes, jewelry, shoes and bags inside. Similarly, the people walking around displayed their most stylish clothing in order to feel like they belonged amidst the sea of high end fashion. As I walked past David Yurman and gawked at an emerald and diamond necklace fit for a queen, I could only daydream of one day being able to do more than just window shop. Safe to say the fashion capital of the world did not disappoint.
As Sam was wandering through the streets of Paris, the juniors headed back towards the other side of the city near a Ferris wheel that we spotted on our way in. As we walked down the streets, I noticed the beauty and the intricacy of each building. It seemed that each one was of high importance by the way they were built and the architectural detail involved. I couldn't tell the difference between the historical sites and the apartment buildings. It was something that you would never see in New York City.
We finally and safely made it to the Ferris wheel amidst dodging heavy traffic and large pedestrian crowds. We each paid 12 euros to ride the Ferris wheel for 10 minutes and it was the best 12 euros we could have spent. We were all very nervous (especially Becca) before riding it all the way to the top, but once we got there, it was impossible to be scared. The view was beautiful and you could see every inch of the city. Its limits were endless!
We pointed out a direction that we wanted to head from the top of the Ferris wheel. The rest of the afternoon we spent walking around a square with a pond and stopped at a cute coffee shop within the wooded area of the square. We ordered coffees and hot chocolate, and we sipped them as we chatted looking out onto the Louvre and surrounding lawns.
The last thing on our agenda was to get a crepe, of course, from one of the local street vendors. We happily ate them as we headed back toward the bus to end our day of exploring in the beautiful city.
(3/18/2017) Soccer France Day 7
Day 6 – Mar. 16
Calum Bishop – Sophomore – Lake Forest, Ill.
The weather in Le Havre could not have been better for our first day off on Thursday. We were pleasantly surprised at breakfast when Coach Koski announced that training was cancelled. Everyone had been working hard all week with the gritty performance in the Stade Oceane on Wednesday being the culmination of that hard work. Following breakfast, everyone went back to their rooms to take naps or shower and get ready for the day.
Most of the time spent on this trip had been used for soccer purposes, so it was awesome to have some time to see the port city of Le Havre and all it had to offer. After a long nap, Mark Forrest, Matt Morana and I went to get a bite to eat at an Italian restaurant on the docks that we had visited the first day. The weather was sunny and warm, so pizza and soda outside was a relaxing experience. Following our meal, we made our way around the shops at the docks and each bought various items. We then visited the HAC club shop across town where we all got souvenirs to remember our experience in Le Havre.
At 6:30 pm, the men's and women's teams left the Novotel for a night of dinner and socializing with the HAC women's team. There was good food and music. It was a thoroughly enjoyable time for everyone involved as we got to experience certain cultural differences that we would not have known otherwise. We all returned to the hotel around midnight and got some rest before the highly-anticipated day out in Paris on Friday.
Kalin Ojert – Senior – Doylestown, Pa.
Bonjour mes amis! Kaymar here to supply the Day 6 update of the Lehigh Soccer France trip. The team was in high spirits at breakfast this morning because of the fresh win we got under our belts from our international debut. The team's mood was further improved when the coaches made the announcement that training would be canceled and we were free to spend the day as we pleased. The team broke into a wave of applause upon hearing the news. I, however, tried to persuade coach to not only retract this decision, but to also to make the practice a few hours longer. Despite my best efforts, Coach did not budge.
Tori, Walsh, Laura, Coach Madi and I decided to spend our free day gallivanting around Le Havre and exploring all of its nooks and crannies. We headed to City Centre for some shopping and lunch. We bounced from boutique to boutique, raiding Le Havre of all of its fashionable attire and cute accessories. I think the deal winner of the day was Coach Madi – she found two pairs of boots for 52 Euro! Tori was a close second and is now having some issues fitting all her new purchases in her suitcase. If anyone wants to express mail her another bag, it would be greatly appreciated.
On our way to get lunch, we stopped in the HAC store for some team merchandise. The coaches were also on the search for some swag and were in the store, so we decided to get lunch together afterward. We decided to really treat ourselves to a fancy lunch and found some fine dining in City Centre – pizza. Honestly, one of the best pizzas I've ever had the privilege to enjoy and I am a very experienced pizza consumer. We topped lunch off with a coffee and once again ventured out to the shops.
Laura and I devoted the rest of the afternoon to finding the best macaroons in Le Havre. I think we each had about 34 macaroons from about nine different bakeries – our plane back to America might not be able to get off the ground. After a lot of careful consideration, we concluded that the Nutella Chocolate Ganache Macaroon was the fan favorite. Walsh informed us that the worst flavor was the lemon and chocolate one. Intrigued, I had to sample it for myself and immediately regretted this decision. It is confirmed that lemon and chocolate should not be mixed together.
Since we hadn't eaten much yet, we decided to meet up with the Justin, Jake, and Danny from the men's team to get some dessert. Walsh, Laura and I had some chocolate caramel coffee drink with a lot of whipped cream and the boys enjoyed some gelato. We closed off the afternoon with a walk along the water on our way home to the hotel.
The only thing that was on the itinerary for the day was the much anticipated meet up with the HAC women's team at la discotheque. Both the men's and women's team have been very excited to disco and we have spent a good portion of the trip so far preparing our disco dance moves. It was really great to meet all of the girls we played against in a social setting, so we were able to get to know them not only as players, but just as regular girls too. It was also very entertaining watching everyone disco and I think we represented not only Lehigh well, but I also think we represented America well. When Disco Inferno came on, I saw Justin Worley doing some pretty groovy moves. I couldn't tell if he was dancing or if he had to go to the bathroom though. Either way, he was king of the disco.
That's all for Day 6 - thank you for tuning in! Check back in tomorrow to hear from Sam and Adrianne about our day in Paris!
Kaymar, signing off!
(3/17/2017) Soccer France Day 6
Day 5 – Mar. 15
Matt Morana – Sophomore – Shrewsbury, Mass.
When I went downstairs for breakfast, there was a general sense of excitement throughout the two teams – it was game day. After a post-breakfast nap, we went to a renowned restaurant in Le Havre, owned by the king of French soccer/former Le Havre Athletic Club president, Jean-Pierre Hureau. This man is so influential to French soccer that the mayor of the town has one photo in his office, and it's of himself, Hureau, and a French soccer legend named Zenedine Zidane.
Following lunch, we had a pregame meeting in the hotel, during which Dr. Birky told us to "feel our hands and feet" when we're in the stadium in order to feel grounded and level-headed. His words didn't truly hit me until we walked through the tunnel and onto the field. The rush of emotions that hit me was incredible as I took in the sight of over 25,000 seats and a beautiful grass field.
With President Simon in attendance, the game was one that I'll never forget. Every person on our team gave 110% against these professionals. Although the 1-0 result was disappointing, we were proud of our performance.
Following our game, we watched our women's team dominate their match vs. Le Havre Athletic Club's women's team and then had a nice dinner in the stadium with them afterwards. So far, an unforgettable trip and a day that I'll remember for the rest of my life.
Lexi Chang – Junior – Morris Plains, N.J. & Sabrina Mertz – Sophomore – Orefield, Pa.
Game day! (Jour du Match!) Today we were fortunate enough to have the chance to eat lunch at Le Bistrot des Halles, which is owned by the former president of the La Harve Soccer Association, Mr. Jean-Pierre Hureau. He is an inspiring figure in French fútbol and was extremely welcoming towards our entire club. We were served a delicious meal of roasted red pepper sauce over chicken and pasta, and we finally some had some healthy green beans to balance out all of the bread we've been eating.
Finally, it was time to experience the main reason we traveled all this way to France – Game Day. Walking into the stadium from our bus felt like a red carpet had been rolled out for us. All of the little boys and girls playing soccer were waving to us and saying their cute little "hellos" with their French accents.
We had the chance to watch our Men's team play before us, who put on a great showing against the HAC professional reserves. After watching our Men's team, we were escorted to our locker room and waiting for us were two plates of delicious croissants. Mr. Volpe and President Simon privileged us with an inspirational pregame speech.
Walking out to play under the lights in the massive stadium with cheering fans was a moment that we will never forget. The atmosphere felt like a FIFA game because the starting lineup walked out through a tunnel out onto the field with a young team of girls. President Simon and Stacy Shiffert had the ceremonial tap off and the game was off to a start.
HAC started off strong with their possession but we were able to hold off long enough to open the play and scored two goals in the first half. In the second half, we made a couple adjustments in our shape and took over the game, scoring five more goals with a wide variety of players and opportunities. Sidonie had two, Sabrina had two, Grace had two and Kayla had one goal.
After the game we signed autographs for the kids in the stadium, took pictures with the HAC girls and started a slow clap with the entire crowd. The clapping was a promotion for the Women's World Cup in 2019 in France. Through this experience it became prevalent that we were part of something larger than just us being able to showcase the women's program, we were helpful in developing women's soccer in France. Since soccer is such a huge aspect of our lives, it was super exciting to be able to help promote women's soccer in another country.
We ended the night with a buffet styled dinner with the HAC players and coaches. This was a great time to intermingle and gave us the chance to be able to talk to some of the foreign players.
(3/16/2017) Soccer France Day 5
Day 4 – Mar. 14
Ian Marshall – Freshman – Roswell, Ga.
As someone who has spent eight years studying the French language and its culture, I've developed a preconceived notion of what it's like to live in France. In middle school I was taught about the quaint little countryside cottages and dinners that are served in multiple courses over a three-hour span. Most of the time I had brushed these off as rash generalizations of a culture that were mostly just stereotypes used to classify the French people. It wasn't until Tuesday when I was able to finally take my knowledge and put it into practice.
The day began with a light training session amidst a heavy onset of fog. We then participated in a sports psychology session where we reflected upon the brevity and courage of the American soldiers in Normandy and applied their escapade to our own experiences within the world of soccer. Next, we departed for Étretat, a small town about 20 kilometers from Le Havre. From there, we were able to climb a set of cliffs that ran along the English Channel and do some exploring within the city limits. I noticed that the further I scaled up the cliffs, the wider my view of the city and the ocean became. This provided me with a bit of a revelation. One where I realized that in order to see more of the world, I had to climb a path (both literally and figuratively).
The areas with the best views would coincidentally have the hardest path to climb. I also noticed how much easier it was to scale back down the cliffs than it was to return back up, which is applicable to how it's easy for us to descend to places of familiarity, but difficult to travel back to a place we once struggled to reach. Taking a physical activity like hiking a cliff and turning it into a meta-physical state of mindfulness probably isn't applicable to everyone who went to Étretat, but I personally found it to be an insightful evocation of both the body and mind.
The most interesting part of the day (for me, at least) came at night when my roommate and I were picked up by a Le Havre executive for dinner. With this being my first time in a French-speaking country, I figured it was the perfect opportunity to capitalize on enhancing my path to fluency. This was further assured when I discovered that my host spoke very little English, resulting in me translating for my roommate and myself over the next four hours.
What I learned at the dinner was eye-opening. The countryside, the meal, the atmosphere, the hosts - they were exactly what I had always pictured them to be when I first began learning French. As an 11-year-old, I always envisioned myself having a four course meal in the countryside with a French family, but it never became anything more than a vision. Tonight, that little pretend scenario in my head kindled into a full-fledged reality – one which I could've never imagined coming to fruition.
Today represented the true beauty of this trip. For some, the fact that they are in Europe for the first time is a dream come true. For others, it's the opportunity to play against such tough competition in an elite environment. For me, it's something as simple as a dinner with a man, his wife, and beagle. And that's what makes this week such a unique experience. We all have different ways of being grateful, yet a commonality lies in the fact that our gratuity is never anything less than intense.
Madeline Walsh – Senior – Evanston, Ill.
Hi all, here is a little update from day four of exploring France! Today we had the opportunity to explore an old fishing town Étretat. It is about half an hour to 45 minutes away from Le Havre, but through the French country it seems a bit longer. I would describe the drive to you all, but naturally I fell asleep during the bus ride.
When we arrived we drove through part of the town and to say that our massive coach bus stood out would be a colossal understatement. We unloaded all 60 of us and made a short walk to our lunch spot; it was an older restaurant with the fireplace roaring, old wooden tables and red checkered table clothes. We packed our group in there and managed to leave maybe three tables open for anyone else. We had two options for lunch; either cod with potatoes or veal with rice. I decided on the cod since it was an old fishing town. It probably took me about three to five minutes to clear my plate. Easily one of the best pieces of fish I have ever had. After lunch, we were served coffee, and not coffee like I am used to, but as the French drink it: dark, strong and bitter. I poured my packet of sugar into it and knocked it back knowing I needed the energy to get everything out of this day.
Leaving lunch, a group of us walked over to the water and the cliffs to determine which side we wanted to climb. We decided to head up towards the church. If any of you reading this know me well, you know that I am afraid of heights and as I am typing the rendition of this moment, my hands are beginning to sweat.
I slowly approach the stairs with the group and begin to climb. Luckily the whole thing was not too steep, but as my friends sat on the edge of the cliffs and took their artsy pictures, I stood idle on the stairs waiting for them to finish so we could make it to the top. Once at the top, the view was unbeatable. It was nothing like what I had seen before. I was lucky enough to stand as close to the fence as I could and capture a picture. It was absolutely breath-taking and we stood up there and took everything in.
As we finally made the descent down, we were debating on whether or not to make the trek up the other side or to explore the town. We decided to explore the town and see all the shops and restaurants. We began our exploration back through the main road that had led us to the beach, which was home to our restaurant from lunch. We veered right and walked down one of their many narrow streets and began to find the hidden beauty in their buildings. We continued our journey through the stores that were open and purchased some trinkets for our families and for ourselves. The town was quiet because it was not the season for everyone to be there, similar to a Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket and the Hamptons, where only some things are open and the towns are only filled with locals or school tours.
Our next mission was to find a true French crepe. We had some trouble with this as one creperie after the other was closed, so we decided to walk into a bakery. I indulged with a chocolate Eclair, which as far as I knew were always filled with butter cream, but this one happened to be filled with chocolate. I was like "wow!" when I discovered that after the first bite. I was like a child on Christmas. Needless to say the eclair lasted less than a minute.
With bellies full of chocolate, we headed the other direction in the town. We stumbled upon a church and a cemetery. Not thinking much of it, we began to walk away as Kay Ojert wandered towards it. We followed shortly after only to find that we could actually walk into the church. The pews were not the traditional pews that we all know today, but actual individual seats with smaller seats in front to kneel on. In the cemetery the graves were above ground due to flooding in the town. All in all, this gem that we stumbled upon was gorgeous.
We wrapped up the day and headed back to the hotel. With a quick power nap, we headed down to the lobby to meet our host families for the evening. My roommate, Laura, and I were with a family whose children play at the Le Havre Academy (HAC) and the father coaches the U9 team. The evening was filled with laughter, learning some French and consuming multiple courses of traditional French food. This has been an unforgettable trip up to this point and we are looking forward to continuing on our journey with our match against the HAC girl's team in the big stadium, Stade Oceane!
(3/15/2017) Soccer France Day 4
Day 3 – Mar. 13
Jacob Gottwald – Senior – Schnecksville, Pa. & Justin Worley – Senior – Reading, Pa.
A day after the 4-0 victory against Le Havre's youth academy, today was a nice change of pace with tourism and reflection. The team practiced early this morning and culminated training with a competitive game of horseshoes. Soon after training we all boarded the bus and set out for the Normandy area.
The first stop on our Normandy visit was a commemorative guided tour of a World War II museum, where we were able to gain a new perspective of the troubling period from a French point of view. Nazi Germany occupied France for four years during the war, forcing French citizens to give up many of their humanitarian rights that we, as college students especially, take for granted every day. Though the US fought valiantly in a war majorly overseas, the war for France was a fight to liberate their home country that had been stolen from their own backyard.
We then travelled to the infamous Omaha Beach, where thousands of American soldiers gave their lives to give back France its freedom. The beach itself is beautiful with a large flat sandy area that morphs into rolling hills and cliffs. It was a sunny, cloudless afternoon and some of the lads even took off their shoes for a quick step into the chilly channel. It was hard to fathom that this beautiful beach was once covered in blood and bodies. A harsh price was paid so that we could pay homage to this hallowed ground.
Despite how many times we've been told the number of casualties suffered during the battle to take Normandy, or how many times I've watched gut-wrenching depiction of the U.S. storming the Omaha Beach in "Saving Private Ryan," it's still hard to comprehend the magnitude of how many lives were lost...until you walk among their graves.
There were more than 11,000 white stone crosses commemorating the lives of those who died in just one of five rally points during the battle. The visit struck home a little extra for Jack Miskel, a junior, who was able to locate the grave of his relative, Theodore Miskell, a private in the 23rd Infantry.
Though it's difficult to wholly understand what life was like for the brave men and women who gave up their lives to preserve our freedom, it certainly gives us a tremendous amount of respect and perspective about what it means to sacrifice for our country.
Lidia Breen – Sophomore – La Grange, Ill.
As a huge World War II nerd, today was the day I was most excited for: Normandy! But before we could get to the most exciting part of the day, we had to go to practice. Haha, just kidding! Practice was super fun today!! After a pretty early wakeup call and a breakfast of croissants and fruit, we headed over to the HAC academy for a quick session. After some shooting drills – only one lost ball, courtesy of Sidonie – and a very competitive game of 8v8, we ran back on the bus to grab a shower and set out to see the Normandy Coast.
The bus ride there was about an hour long through the rolling French countryside. When I fell asleep on the bus, my team only made fun of me for five minutes which was nice!! We finally arrived to the Museum about D-Day in Caen and took a self-guided tour through the exhibit, which contained artifacts and photos from D-Day and the entire war.
From there, we hopped back on the bus to actually go see Omaha Beach. For those who don't know, Omaha Beach was one of the five beaches that was attacked on D-Day, primarily by American forces, and it had the most casualties of all the beaches on D-Day. The beach was breathtaking and we all went down to the sand to look back up at the cliffs.
Next, we drove up to the American Memorial Cemetery. It was beautiful, but solemn as we could visualize the sheer amount of people who gave their lives to help win WWII. My favorite part of the day came when Sabrina Mertz, Jess Sacco, Ashley Maziarz and I stumbled across a German bunker! We were wandering away from the group, like usual, when we found a memorial next to a huge hole in the ground. Naturally, I decided to climb inside the dark tunnel and discovered that it was an abandoned bunker that the German soldiers had used. Since we were running late to the bus, like usual, we had to sprint back to get on in time for the long bus ride back to Le Havre.
We ended the long, tiring day with a dinner in our hotel and then some of the team went out to search for some dessert. After some chocolate mousse and tarts, we went back to the hotel to head to bed. After a full day today, everyone is very excited to head to Étretat tomorrow for some free time and some beautiful scenery!
(3/14/2017) Soccer France Day 3
Day 2 – Mar. 12
Paul Steingraber – Sophomore – Harleysville, Pa.
Normally I don't tend to sleep very well in hotels, but after all the travel and switching of time zones, it didn't really matter. I think most of the team joined me in hibernating like a bear in winter for approximately 12 hours. The motivation to wake up came in the form of a delicious French breakfast, complete with scones, croissants, fruit, yogurts and of course, a baguette or two.
The big event of the day was our match against the Le Havre U19 academy team. I think as a team, we were all a bit unsure of what to expect from our opponents, but tried to approach the match with the same professionalism with which we'd attack a game in the Patriot league. We ate a nutritious pregame meal of salmon and pasta at the La Plume restaurant located at the Le Havre stadium before heading to the academy grounds for the match.
The weather for the game was perfect soccer weather: dark and windy with chilly rain falling. An exchange of banners, between our captain, JM (John Marc Charpentier) and the Le Havre captain, and the taking of an international picture (see @LehighMSoccer on twitter) served to give the game all the trappings of a proper international friendly. We defended hard in the first half, keeping Le Havre off the scoresheet, while Doyle Tuvesson finished off a counter to give us a 1-0 lead at the halftime break. After the interval, we continued to press and grow in confidence, with Doyle clinically completing his hat trick with two more excellent finishes. Mark Forrest added a fourth in style from a free kick, which looked strikingly similar to the one he had hit on me in training the day previously (see @lehigmenssoccer on Instagram - I guess practice really does make perfect).
It was a unique experience to be able to share the field with a team who loves the game we love, yet has so many differences in culture and language. Overall, it was a good result that should give us confidence going into our match on Wednesday against the Le Havre reserves.
After the game, we were treated to a tour of the Le Havre Academy facilities and learned more about the structure of the youth system. Their academy building houses, feeds and educates around 40 boys from the ages of 14 through 18, many of them from Paris. The remainder of their academy players live in the area and commute to the fields for training each day. They are continuing to develop their women's academy program, having started it two years ago. Afterwards, both Lehigh programs ate in the Le Havre Academy cafeteria, easily the best meal I've ever eaten in a cafeteria. Thank you to all the Le Havre Academy coaches and staff who have welcomed us in for the week and given us the means to train.
As a final thought for the day, I'd like to close with a sincere thank you to our generous host, Mr. Vince Volpe. This is a truly unique and wonderful opportunity for our program and the generosity he has shown us has been truly staggering and humbling. I simply cannot wait to see what the remainder of this week will hold!
Amanda Stratton – Junior – Dublin, Ohio
First and foremost, today was Adrian's birthday! It was a wonderful day full of soccer, walking through Le Havre and touring the HAC facilities. We started off the day with a breakfast of espresso, croissants, and fruit. The croissants were amazing and started off the day great. Following breakfast, the women's team had practice at the HAC facilities. We started with technical and progressed to possession with direction. Finally we ended with a game of 7v7 where the play was very intense. It was nice to get a practice in after a long first day and a good night sleep.
After practice, the women's team had some time to explore Le Havre and grab lunch on our own. I ended up eating at a Tex Mex restaurant called El Rancho. Mexican food may sound weird to eat in France, however, since it was Sunday, not much else was open. The food was surprisingly great though. We told our server that it was Adrian's birthday too, so he gave her a sombrero to take back as a souvenir. After lunch, we shopped around at the Docks, a strip mall, and got some more souvenirs.
Following our free time, we left to watch the men's game against the U19 HAC Academy team. It was rainy and slightly cold, but the men played very well. It was fun to watch them, and we had the chance to meet some of the players from the women's HAC team. They were amazing and very welcoming girls. Despite the language barrier, the two teams bonded a lot in a short amount of time and even had a dance-off during halftime of the men's game.
LUMS ended up winning their game 4-0. Following the game, the HAC staff gave us a tour of the HAC facilities including the dormitories of the players. We ended the night with a meal at the player's cafeteria. The food was great and overall it was a great experience, despite the rain. We are looking forward to getting after it tomorrow in practice and enjoying a day at Normandy Beach!
Day 1 – Mar. 11
Danny Gonzalez – Senior – Berwyn, Pa.
The Lehigh Soccer Spring Break trip left from Bethlehem, Pa. at 12:45 p.m. where there was still a couple of inches of snow from the previous night. Our flight took off at 6:45 p.m. ET from JFK in NYC. Filled with energy from our goose sandwich lunch and excited for an opportunity of a lifetime, rows 40-52 on the Boeing 747 heading towards Paris, France started off as what Kevin Klinkenberg would call "lit." This elation soon died down for most after one movie's worth of time. Sleep consumed the flight until we landed in Paris, France at 7:30 a.m. CEST. From Paris we left to Le Havre, France, our main destination for the trip. Just a quick background on Le Havre:
- Located in Northern France along the English Channel
- Founded in 1517 by King Francis I
- Literally means "the haven"
- Pronounced (luh-hah-vruh)
- Population is roughly 175,000
- Average March temperature: 45-65°F
The drive from Paris to Le Havre took around two hours. Prior to settling into our hotel rooms, both teams walked 10 min to a local restaurant. The main dishes people ordered were pizza four frimoge and spaghetti bolognese. Being up for 20+ hours with no more than a few hours of sleep was certainly beginning to take its toll. Nick Facendo, among a few others, literally fell asleep at the restaurant in public.
Our next event after lunch was practice at 4:30 p.m. local time. We had a 30-minute period in between lunch and practice to get a nap in at the hotel, which most took up. We got to the practice facility at Havre Athletic Club (HAC). It may have been playing in an environment with a rich history of soccer (fut), or the naps, but we were ready to go. Our lack of formal sleep took a backseat. After a proper warm up guided by the legendary Coach Deming, we hopped into a 3v3 possession drill followed by a 4v4 to goal exercise concluding the quick workout. The hour long session was the ideal amount of time given we had a game the next day against HAC's u19 Academy.
The final event of the day was a team dinner at HAC's professional stadium, Stade Océane, with owner Vince Volpe. We were guided to a special box where messages on screens throughout the stadium read, "Welcome! Lehigh University."
Entering the box we got to shake hands with Vince Volpe, the reason this whole trip is possible. Vince Volpe is the owner of HAC as well as a Lehigh alum, Class of 1980. He is the former President and CEO of Dresser-Rand Group, Inc. His studies at Lehigh were in both Mechanical Engineering and German Literature. Mr. Volpe has spent time in Caracas, Tokyo, Paris, and many other countries around the world in what has been an extremely successful career. A personal story shared by our host with the underlying message being "tenacity" was truly inspiring. Vincent Volpe's success can be matched by his generosity. He opened up the doors with open arms to Lehigh Soccer and we are all very thankful for the amazing opportunity.
Following the delicious three-course meal, we arrived at the hotel around 9:00 p.m. The exhaustion of the group was evident as everyone headed straight for their rooms for a much-needed sleep. The day was over, but the week was just beginning.
Tori Pantaleo – Senior – Colts Neck, N.J.
Day 1, also known as the travel day, also known as the day of running on three hours of sleep. We arrived in Le Harve after about 12 hours of traveling and could not wait to explore and see the facilities we were scheduled to practice and play games.
As soon as we got to the hotel, we dropped off ours bags, headed back onto the bus and headed straight for the beach. We enjoyed the water and views of the sailboats along the English Chanel. We were very lucky to have beautiful weather and seized the day by exploring the city a bit. We were thrilled to be accompanied by our wonderful tour guide, Madeline. She showed us the ins and outs of Le Harve, the greatest spots to eat, and the best cafés to get coffee. Speaking of coffee, I could really use a cup. Ever since we have arrived everyone has assumed the French culture and has been drinking coffee as if it was water.
After lunch, both the women's and men's teams made their way to the HAC practice fields. We had a good practice and worked out our legs. Both teams were playing through very tired legs from the long travel day. This practice was much needed to get our focus ready for the week to come.
Dinner was such an awesome surprise. We had an incredible meal at the stadium where HAC plays. We had the opportunity to meet Lehigh alumnus and HAC owner, Vince Volpe, and learned a little bit about his impressive journey and admirable achievements in his career.
We are all so thankful to be given this opportunity. Everyone is super excited to see what's in store for the week to come and we are looking forward to more coffee.
(3/12/2017) Soccer France Day 1
Day 7 – Mar. 17
Matthew Peralta – Freshman – Weston, Fla.
From the mouth of the Seine to its confluence with La Marne, LUMS and LUWS made their way from the harboring urbanity of La Havre to Paris.
As we crossed the Tancarville Bridge, it became clear that although brief, our time in La Havre will always be looked back upon in dearest sentiment.
Nostalgic reflections and outlooks onto the French countryside were complemented by the guiding promise of the traveler. Utterances of Parisian offerings brewed almost as richly as did the fumes from within the bus's cabined bathroom; the former a testimony of energized anticipation and the latter perhaps a consequence of it.
About an hour and a half into the trip we arrived at a rest stop whose cargo container design justly characterized the traveler's dynamic. From within, the proximity of Paris was made evident by souvenirs and maps.
Soon after our stop, the bucolic landscape began to withdraw and an urbanized scene took its place. The contrast, for all who were not adrift in slumber, was evident and sent emotions spiraling.
The actuality of our location was affirmed by the sight of the cupola that tops the eminently laced Eiffel Tower. Our passage along a road that ribbed the Siene put us before a Statue of Liberty replica on the Île aux Cygnes draped by the Eiffel Tower backdrop.
Our first stop in Paris was at the northern front of the Parc du Champ de Mars, on the very brink of the park closest to the Eiffel Tower, presenting generous amounts of gram-able photo-ops. After some time in the presence of the structure we scurried on over to the bus which was in danger of being ticketed.
From there we made our way to what would soon be identified as rendezvous point one, along Cours La Reine, where we were given the liberty to explore Paris – time being the only constraint.
A bit dazed by both the city's peppered relics and immediacy with which our mobility was called into action. A few of the lads and I took off in a direction opposite to where we wanted to go, Avenue de Champs-Élysées.
We then set off with clear minds toward our destination. The elaborate glamour of retail was thankfully pacified by the welcoming Arc de Triomphe. Drawn by the enormity of both the structure and its past, the boys and I headed out to get a closer look of the monument.
The travel through the subterranean channel that lead to the Arc de Triomphe was attuned by a violinist at play. The sound faded the further we got in the tunnel and another symphony took its place as we emerged from the underground – the arc's elaborate detail. Taking our time, we looked upon the monument's sculptural groupings, reliefs and enjoyed its entire semblance as best we could.
With the understanding that such a monument couldn't justly be appreciated in the time we had given to it and recognizing that our time in the The City of Light was limited, we decided to move along to take in more of what the city so generously laid at our disposal.
In hope of silencing the grumbling stomachs that took away from the city's muse, the group decided it was time to eat. We made our way back along the Avenue de Champs-Élysées, now on the opposite side of the urban artery and cut into a small street with promising signs. Choosing a small restaurant, more out of necessity than earnest liking, we ate for about 30 minutes and carried on towards the Louvre.
After a lengthy, but enjoyable walk, we reached Place de la Concorde and peeked into Tulleries Garden. Filtered by shrubbery and ponds, we stood in front the colossal Louvre Museum. The group split; Alec and Oscar accompanied me into the Louvre, while the others set off towards Notre Dame.
As we traversed the museum it became clear that a thorough exploration of the Louvre would not be possible, so we decided to narrow down our interests in order to optimize our experience. In doing so, we decidedly explored the west wing of the museum's first level, which included French and Italian paintings; the latter being the area that housed the Mona Lisa. Guided by a detailed interior we finally found ourselves in front of Da Vinci's workings. Swarmed by stretching arms and polluted by desperate camera clicks, the Mona Lisa stood in a state of unfazed poise as it has and will continue to do so for centuries. Our travel through the gallery of time pleasantly drained both our energies and time in the city.
After maneuvering our way out, we stood at the Louvre's forefront once more and waited for the others. During our wait my buddy, Alec Koski, got a sweet deal out of a couple of braided threads for which he only had to pay five Euros. Once we were all gathered, we set out to rendezvous point one.
On our way back, a tasty temptation crept into view, crepes. Most couldn't resist and decided to take in some culture through gustatory means.
After the messy consumption, we were back on route and found ourselves walking through Paris as the light of the day settled and was humbly shed upon the days adventures, bringing about an unyielding stillness.
Once LUMS and LUWS had found their way onto the bus, we took off to a Ligue 2 soccer match between the Parisian Red Stars and neighboring Amiens. The match would take place in the Jean-Bouin Stadium, which stands next to PSG's home turf. Although not fully occupied, Jean-Bouin's atmosphere was well worthy of appreciation. The final score of the game was 0-1, Red Star bearing the loss.
From there, we left to our hotel where the day's dynamic once again took its toll on our energies. This time, less forgiving than before.
The SB2K17 sojourn to France was a hell of a time and while some L's were surely taken, they remain minimal in the context of our time abroad.
I extend my gratitude to all those who made the trip possible, as well to those whose good company was never more than a seat away.
Adrian Vitello – Junior – Manalapan, N.J. & Sam Miller – Freshman – Commack, N.Y.
This morning was an early start as we began our travels Paris for the day! We had breakfast at the hotel and headed on our way at 8:30 a.m. The ride was a little long but well worth the drive once we arrived at the city and first set our eyes on the Eiffel Tower. It was a lot bigger than I had ever expected it to be! Walking right underneath it made me feel so small in comparison. We took pictures with the whole team and then we were allowed to roam the city as we pleased!
I spent the day with my fellow junior classmates, Grace, Becca, Alyssa, Lexi and Amanda. First thing on our agenda was to find a place to grab some lunch. We meandered through the city down side streets guided by the Eiffel Tower peeking through the gaps of the buildings in the distance. We chose a cute corner cafe called le Campanella and enjoyed our French dishes outside in the beautiful weather. We all stuck to ordering classic French dishes. I decided to go out of my comfort zone and figured what better time and place to try some escargot. My friends had raved about how good it was when they tried it in Le Havre, so I had high expectations for the dish despite my hesitations. I didn't enjoy it as much as my friends did, but needless to say, I'm glad I can say that I've tried it.
From a different perspective, my teammate Sam Miller spent a majority of the day shopping. She reflected upon her experience:
Walking down the main strip of shops in Paris for the first time is an experience that could elicit awe from anyone. Every famous designer I have ever heard of seemed to have their nicest store in Paris. Louis Vuitton, Coach, Gucci, Armani, Alexander McQueen, Michael Kors, Versace and many more. The design and architecture of the stores themselves even seemed to match the beauty of the clothes, jewelry, shoes and bags inside. Similarly, the people walking around displayed their most stylish clothing in order to feel like they belonged amidst the sea of high end fashion. As I walked past David Yurman and gawked at an emerald and diamond necklace fit for a queen, I could only daydream of one day being able to do more than just window shop. Safe to say the fashion capital of the world did not disappoint.
As Sam was wandering through the streets of Paris, the juniors headed back towards the other side of the city near a Ferris wheel that we spotted on our way in. As we walked down the streets, I noticed the beauty and the intricacy of each building. It seemed that each one was of high importance by the way they were built and the architectural detail involved. I couldn't tell the difference between the historical sites and the apartment buildings. It was something that you would never see in New York City.
We finally and safely made it to the Ferris wheel amidst dodging heavy traffic and large pedestrian crowds. We each paid 12 euros to ride the Ferris wheel for 10 minutes and it was the best 12 euros we could have spent. We were all very nervous (especially Becca) before riding it all the way to the top, but once we got there, it was impossible to be scared. The view was beautiful and you could see every inch of the city. Its limits were endless!
We pointed out a direction that we wanted to head from the top of the Ferris wheel. The rest of the afternoon we spent walking around a square with a pond and stopped at a cute coffee shop within the wooded area of the square. We ordered coffees and hot chocolate, and we sipped them as we chatted looking out onto the Louvre and surrounding lawns.
The last thing on our agenda was to get a crepe, of course, from one of the local street vendors. We happily ate them as we headed back toward the bus to end our day of exploring in the beautiful city.
Day 6 – Mar. 16
Calum Bishop – Sophomore – Lake Forest, Ill.
The weather in Le Havre could not have been better for our first day off on Thursday. We were pleasantly surprised at breakfast when Coach Koski announced that training was cancelled. Everyone had been working hard all week with the gritty performance in the Stade Oceane on Wednesday being the culmination of that hard work. Following breakfast, everyone went back to their rooms to take naps or shower and get ready for the day.
Most of the time spent on this trip had been used for soccer purposes, so it was awesome to have some time to see the port city of Le Havre and all it had to offer. After a long nap, Mark Forrest, Matt Morana and I went to get a bite to eat at an Italian restaurant on the docks that we had visited the first day. The weather was sunny and warm, so pizza and soda outside was a relaxing experience. Following our meal, we made our way around the shops at the docks and each bought various items. We then visited the HAC club shop across town where we all got souvenirs to remember our experience in Le Havre.
At 6:30 pm, the men's and women's teams left the Novotel for a night of dinner and socializing with the HAC women's team. There was good food and music. It was a thoroughly enjoyable time for everyone involved as we got to experience certain cultural differences that we would not have known otherwise. We all returned to the hotel around midnight and got some rest before the highly-anticipated day out in Paris on Friday.
Kalin Ojert – Senior – Doylestown, Pa.
Bonjour mes amis! Kaymar here to supply the Day 6 update of the Lehigh Soccer France trip. The team was in high spirits at breakfast this morning because of the fresh win we got under our belts from our international debut. The team's mood was further improved when the coaches made the announcement that training would be canceled and we were free to spend the day as we pleased. The team broke into a wave of applause upon hearing the news. I, however, tried to persuade coach to not only retract this decision, but to also to make the practice a few hours longer. Despite my best efforts, Coach did not budge.
Tori, Walsh, Laura, Coach Madi and I decided to spend our free day gallivanting around Le Havre and exploring all of its nooks and crannies. We headed to City Centre for some shopping and lunch. We bounced from boutique to boutique, raiding Le Havre of all of its fashionable attire and cute accessories. I think the deal winner of the day was Coach Madi – she found two pairs of boots for 52 Euro! Tori was a close second and is now having some issues fitting all her new purchases in her suitcase. If anyone wants to express mail her another bag, it would be greatly appreciated.
On our way to get lunch, we stopped in the HAC store for some team merchandise. The coaches were also on the search for some swag and were in the store, so we decided to get lunch together afterward. We decided to really treat ourselves to a fancy lunch and found some fine dining in City Centre – pizza. Honestly, one of the best pizzas I've ever had the privilege to enjoy and I am a very experienced pizza consumer. We topped lunch off with a coffee and once again ventured out to the shops.
Laura and I devoted the rest of the afternoon to finding the best macaroons in Le Havre. I think we each had about 34 macaroons from about nine different bakeries – our plane back to America might not be able to get off the ground. After a lot of careful consideration, we concluded that the Nutella Chocolate Ganache Macaroon was the fan favorite. Walsh informed us that the worst flavor was the lemon and chocolate one. Intrigued, I had to sample it for myself and immediately regretted this decision. It is confirmed that lemon and chocolate should not be mixed together.
Since we hadn't eaten much yet, we decided to meet up with the Justin, Jake, and Danny from the men's team to get some dessert. Walsh, Laura and I had some chocolate caramel coffee drink with a lot of whipped cream and the boys enjoyed some gelato. We closed off the afternoon with a walk along the water on our way home to the hotel.
The only thing that was on the itinerary for the day was the much anticipated meet up with the HAC women's team at la discotheque. Both the men's and women's team have been very excited to disco and we have spent a good portion of the trip so far preparing our disco dance moves. It was really great to meet all of the girls we played against in a social setting, so we were able to get to know them not only as players, but just as regular girls too. It was also very entertaining watching everyone disco and I think we represented not only Lehigh well, but I also think we represented America well. When Disco Inferno came on, I saw Justin Worley doing some pretty groovy moves. I couldn't tell if he was dancing or if he had to go to the bathroom though. Either way, he was king of the disco.
That's all for Day 6 - thank you for tuning in! Check back in tomorrow to hear from Sam and Adrianne about our day in Paris!
Kaymar, signing off!
Day 5 – Mar. 15
Matt Morana – Sophomore – Shrewsbury, Mass.
When I went downstairs for breakfast, there was a general sense of excitement throughout the two teams – it was game day. After a post-breakfast nap, we went to a renowned restaurant in Le Havre, owned by the king of French soccer/former Le Havre Athletic Club president, Jean-Pierre Hureau. This man is so influential to French soccer that the mayor of the town has one photo in his office, and it's of himself, Hureau, and a French soccer legend named Zenedine Zidane.
Following lunch, we had a pregame meeting in the hotel, during which Dr. Birky told us to "feel our hands and feet" when we're in the stadium in order to feel grounded and level-headed. His words didn't truly hit me until we walked through the tunnel and onto the field. The rush of emotions that hit me was incredible as I took in the sight of over 25,000 seats and a beautiful grass field.
With President Simon in attendance, the game was one that I'll never forget. Every person on our team gave 110% against these professionals. Although the 1-0 result was disappointing, we were proud of our performance.
Following our game, we watched our women's team dominate their match vs. Le Havre Athletic Club's women's team and then had a nice dinner in the stadium with them afterwards. So far, an unforgettable trip and a day that I'll remember for the rest of my life.
Lexi Chang – Junior – Morris Plains, N.J. & Sabrina Mertz – Sophomore – Orefield, Pa.
Game day! (Jour du Match!) Today we were fortunate enough to have the chance to eat lunch at Le Bistrot des Halles, which is owned by the former president of the La Harve Soccer Association, Mr. Jean-Pierre Hureau. He is an inspiring figure in French fútbol and was extremely welcoming towards our entire club. We were served a delicious meal of roasted red pepper sauce over chicken and pasta, and we finally some had some healthy green beans to balance out all of the bread we've been eating.
Finally, it was time to experience the main reason we traveled all this way to France – Game Day. Walking into the stadium from our bus felt like a red carpet had been rolled out for us. All of the little boys and girls playing soccer were waving to us and saying their cute little "hellos" with their French accents.
We had the chance to watch our Men's team play before us, who put on a great showing against the HAC professional reserves. After watching our Men's team, we were escorted to our locker room and waiting for us were two plates of delicious croissants. Mr. Volpe and President Simon privileged us with an inspirational pregame speech.
Walking out to play under the lights in the massive stadium with cheering fans was a moment that we will never forget. The atmosphere felt like a FIFA game because the starting lineup walked out through a tunnel out onto the field with a young team of girls. President Simon and Stacy Shiffert had the ceremonial tap off and the game was off to a start.
HAC started off strong with their possession but we were able to hold off long enough to open the play and scored two goals in the first half. In the second half, we made a couple adjustments in our shape and took over the game, scoring five more goals with a wide variety of players and opportunities. Sidonie had two, Sabrina had two, Grace had two and Kayla had one goal.
After the game we signed autographs for the kids in the stadium, took pictures with the HAC girls and started a slow clap with the entire crowd. The clapping was a promotion for the Women's World Cup in 2019 in France. Through this experience it became prevalent that we were part of something larger than just us being able to showcase the women's program, we were helpful in developing women's soccer in France. Since soccer is such a huge aspect of our lives, it was super exciting to be able to help promote women's soccer in another country.
We ended the night with a buffet styled dinner with the HAC players and coaches. This was a great time to intermingle and gave us the chance to be able to talk to some of the foreign players.
Day 4 – Mar. 14
Ian Marshall – Freshman – Roswell, Ga.
As someone who has spent eight years studying the French language and its culture, I've developed a preconceived notion of what it's like to live in France. In middle school I was taught about the quaint little countryside cottages and dinners that are served in multiple courses over a three-hour span. Most of the time I had brushed these off as rash generalizations of a culture that were mostly just stereotypes used to classify the French people. It wasn't until Tuesday when I was able to finally take my knowledge and put it into practice.
The day began with a light training session amidst a heavy onset of fog. We then participated in a sports psychology session where we reflected upon the brevity and courage of the American soldiers in Normandy and applied their escapade to our own experiences within the world of soccer. Next, we departed for Étretat, a small town about 20 kilometers from Le Havre. From there, we were able to climb a set of cliffs that ran along the English Channel and do some exploring within the city limits. I noticed that the further I scaled up the cliffs, the wider my view of the city and the ocean became. This provided me with a bit of a revelation. One where I realized that in order to see more of the world, I had to climb a path (both literally and figuratively).
The areas with the best views would coincidentally have the hardest path to climb. I also noticed how much easier it was to scale back down the cliffs than it was to return back up, which is applicable to how it's easy for us to descend to places of familiarity, but difficult to travel back to a place we once struggled to reach. Taking a physical activity like hiking a cliff and turning it into a meta-physical state of mindfulness probably isn't applicable to everyone who went to Étretat, but I personally found it to be an insightful evocation of both the body and mind.
The most interesting part of the day (for me, at least) came at night when my roommate and I were picked up by a Le Havre executive for dinner. With this being my first time in a French-speaking country, I figured it was the perfect opportunity to capitalize on enhancing my path to fluency. This was further assured when I discovered that my host spoke very little English, resulting in me translating for my roommate and myself over the next four hours.
What I learned at the dinner was eye-opening. The countryside, the meal, the atmosphere, the hosts - they were exactly what I had always pictured them to be when I first began learning French. As an 11-year-old, I always envisioned myself having a four course meal in the countryside with a French family, but it never became anything more than a vision. Tonight, that little pretend scenario in my head kindled into a full-fledged reality – one which I could've never imagined coming to fruition.
Today represented the true beauty of this trip. For some, the fact that they are in Europe for the first time is a dream come true. For others, it's the opportunity to play against such tough competition in an elite environment. For me, it's something as simple as a dinner with a man, his wife, and beagle. And that's what makes this week such a unique experience. We all have different ways of being grateful, yet a commonality lies in the fact that our gratuity is never anything less than intense.
Madeline Walsh – Senior – Evanston, Ill.
Hi all, here is a little update from day four of exploring France! Today we had the opportunity to explore an old fishing town Étretat. It is about half an hour to 45 minutes away from Le Havre, but through the French country it seems a bit longer. I would describe the drive to you all, but naturally I fell asleep during the bus ride.
When we arrived we drove through part of the town and to say that our massive coach bus stood out would be a colossal understatement. We unloaded all 60 of us and made a short walk to our lunch spot; it was an older restaurant with the fireplace roaring, old wooden tables and red checkered table clothes. We packed our group in there and managed to leave maybe three tables open for anyone else. We had two options for lunch; either cod with potatoes or veal with rice. I decided on the cod since it was an old fishing town. It probably took me about three to five minutes to clear my plate. Easily one of the best pieces of fish I have ever had. After lunch, we were served coffee, and not coffee like I am used to, but as the French drink it: dark, strong and bitter. I poured my packet of sugar into it and knocked it back knowing I needed the energy to get everything out of this day.
Leaving lunch, a group of us walked over to the water and the cliffs to determine which side we wanted to climb. We decided to head up towards the church. If any of you reading this know me well, you know that I am afraid of heights and as I am typing the rendition of this moment, my hands are beginning to sweat.
I slowly approach the stairs with the group and begin to climb. Luckily the whole thing was not too steep, but as my friends sat on the edge of the cliffs and took their artsy pictures, I stood idle on the stairs waiting for them to finish so we could make it to the top. Once at the top, the view was unbeatable. It was nothing like what I had seen before. I was lucky enough to stand as close to the fence as I could and capture a picture. It was absolutely breath-taking and we stood up there and took everything in.
As we finally made the descent down, we were debating on whether or not to make the trek up the other side or to explore the town. We decided to explore the town and see all the shops and restaurants. We began our exploration back through the main road that had led us to the beach, which was home to our restaurant from lunch. We veered right and walked down one of their many narrow streets and began to find the hidden beauty in their buildings. We continued our journey through the stores that were open and purchased some trinkets for our families and for ourselves. The town was quiet because it was not the season for everyone to be there, similar to a Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket and the Hamptons, where only some things are open and the towns are only filled with locals or school tours.
Our next mission was to find a true French crepe. We had some trouble with this as one creperie after the other was closed, so we decided to walk into a bakery. I indulged with a chocolate Eclair, which as far as I knew were always filled with butter cream, but this one happened to be filled with chocolate. I was like "wow!" when I discovered that after the first bite. I was like a child on Christmas. Needless to say the eclair lasted less than a minute.
With bellies full of chocolate, we headed the other direction in the town. We stumbled upon a church and a cemetery. Not thinking much of it, we began to walk away as Kay Ojert wandered towards it. We followed shortly after only to find that we could actually walk into the church. The pews were not the traditional pews that we all know today, but actual individual seats with smaller seats in front to kneel on. In the cemetery the graves were above ground due to flooding in the town. All in all, this gem that we stumbled upon was gorgeous.
We wrapped up the day and headed back to the hotel. With a quick power nap, we headed down to the lobby to meet our host families for the evening. My roommate, Laura, and I were with a family whose children play at the Le Havre Academy (HAC) and the father coaches the U9 team. The evening was filled with laughter, learning some French and consuming multiple courses of traditional French food. This has been an unforgettable trip up to this point and we are looking forward to continuing on our journey with our match against the HAC girl's team in the big stadium, Stade Oceane!
Day 3 – Mar. 13
Jacob Gottwald – Senior – Schnecksville, Pa. & Justin Worley – Senior – Reading, Pa.
A day after the 4-0 victory against Le Havre's youth academy, today was a nice change of pace with tourism and reflection. The team practiced early this morning and culminated training with a competitive game of horseshoes. Soon after training we all boarded the bus and set out for the Normandy area.
The first stop on our Normandy visit was a commemorative guided tour of a World War II museum, where we were able to gain a new perspective of the troubling period from a French point of view. Nazi Germany occupied France for four years during the war, forcing French citizens to give up many of their humanitarian rights that we, as college students especially, take for granted every day. Though the US fought valiantly in a war majorly overseas, the war for France was a fight to liberate their home country that had been stolen from their own backyard.
We then travelled to the infamous Omaha Beach, where thousands of American soldiers gave their lives to give back France its freedom. The beach itself is beautiful with a large flat sandy area that morphs into rolling hills and cliffs. It was a sunny, cloudless afternoon and some of the lads even took off their shoes for a quick step into the chilly channel. It was hard to fathom that this beautiful beach was once covered in blood and bodies. A harsh price was paid so that we could pay homage to this hallowed ground.
Despite how many times we've been told the number of casualties suffered during the battle to take Normandy, or how many times I've watched gut-wrenching depiction of the U.S. storming the Omaha Beach in "Saving Private Ryan," it's still hard to comprehend the magnitude of how many lives were lost...until you walk among their graves.
There were more than 11,000 white stone crosses commemorating the lives of those who died in just one of five rally points during the battle. The visit struck home a little extra for Jack Miskel, a junior, who was able to locate the grave of his relative, Theodore Miskell, a private in the 23rd Infantry.
Though it's difficult to wholly understand what life was like for the brave men and women who gave up their lives to preserve our freedom, it certainly gives us a tremendous amount of respect and perspective about what it means to sacrifice for our country.
Lidia Breen – Sophomore – La Grange, Ill.
As a huge World War II nerd, today was the day I was most excited for: Normandy! But before we could get to the most exciting part of the day, we had to go to practice. Haha, just kidding! Practice was super fun today!! After a pretty early wakeup call and a breakfast of croissants and fruit, we headed over to the HAC academy for a quick session. After some shooting drills – only one lost ball, courtesy of Sidonie – and a very competitive game of 8v8, we ran back on the bus to grab a shower and set out to see the Normandy Coast.
The bus ride there was about an hour long through the rolling French countryside. When I fell asleep on the bus, my team only made fun of me for five minutes which was nice!! We finally arrived to the Museum about D-Day in Caen and took a self-guided tour through the exhibit, which contained artifacts and photos from D-Day and the entire war.
From there, we hopped back on the bus to actually go see Omaha Beach. For those who don't know, Omaha Beach was one of the five beaches that was attacked on D-Day, primarily by American forces, and it had the most casualties of all the beaches on D-Day. The beach was breathtaking and we all went down to the sand to look back up at the cliffs.
Next, we drove up to the American Memorial Cemetery. It was beautiful, but solemn as we could visualize the sheer amount of people who gave their lives to help win WWII. My favorite part of the day came when Sabrina Mertz, Jess Sacco, Ashley Maziarz and I stumbled across a German bunker! We were wandering away from the group, like usual, when we found a memorial next to a huge hole in the ground. Naturally, I decided to climb inside the dark tunnel and discovered that it was an abandoned bunker that the German soldiers had used. Since we were running late to the bus, like usual, we had to sprint back to get on in time for the long bus ride back to Le Havre.
We ended the long, tiring day with a dinner in our hotel and then some of the team went out to search for some dessert. After some chocolate mousse and tarts, we went back to the hotel to head to bed. After a full day today, everyone is very excited to head to Étretat tomorrow for some free time and some beautiful scenery!
Day 2 – Mar. 12
Paul Steingraber – Sophomore – Harleysville, Pa.
Normally I don't tend to sleep very well in hotels, but after all the travel and switching of time zones, it didn't really matter. I think most of the team joined me in hibernating like a bear in winter for approximately 12 hours. The motivation to wake up came in the form of a delicious French breakfast, complete with scones, croissants, fruit, yogurts and of course, a baguette or two.
The big event of the day was our match against the Le Havre U19 academy team. I think as a team, we were all a bit unsure of what to expect from our opponents, but tried to approach the match with the same professionalism with which we'd attack a game in the Patriot league. We ate a nutritious pregame meal of salmon and pasta at the La Plume restaurant located at the Le Havre stadium before heading to the academy grounds for the match.
The weather for the game was perfect soccer weather: dark and windy with chilly rain falling. An exchange of banners, between our captain, JM (John Marc Charpentier) and the Le Havre captain, and the taking of an international picture (see @LehighMSoccer on twitter) served to give the game all the trappings of a proper international friendly. We defended hard in the first half, keeping Le Havre off the scoresheet, while Doyle Tuvesson finished off a counter to give us a 1-0 lead at the halftime break. After the interval, we continued to press and grow in confidence, with Doyle clinically completing his hat trick with two more excellent finishes. Mark Forrest added a fourth in style from a free kick, which looked strikingly similar to the one he had hit on me in training the day previously (see @lehigmenssoccer on Instagram - I guess practice really does make perfect).
It was a unique experience to be able to share the field with a team who loves the game we love, yet has so many differences in culture and language. Overall, it was a good result that should give us confidence going into our match on Wednesday against the Le Havre reserves.
After the game, we were treated to a tour of the Le Havre Academy facilities and learned more about the structure of the youth system. Their academy building houses, feeds and educates around 40 boys from the ages of 14 through 18, many of them from Paris. The remainder of their academy players live in the area and commute to the fields for training each day. They are continuing to develop their women's academy program, having started it two years ago. Afterwards, both Lehigh programs ate in the Le Havre Academy cafeteria, easily the best meal I've ever eaten in a cafeteria. Thank you to all the Le Havre Academy coaches and staff who have welcomed us in for the week and given us the means to train.
As a final thought for the day, I'd like to close with a sincere thank you to our generous host, Mr. Vince Volpe. This is a truly unique and wonderful opportunity for our program and the generosity he has shown us has been truly staggering and humbling. I simply cannot wait to see what the remainder of this week will hold!
Amanda Stratton – Junior – Dublin, Ohio
First and foremost, today was Adrian's birthday! It was a wonderful day full of soccer, walking through Le Havre and touring the HAC facilities. We started off the day with a breakfast of espresso, croissants, and fruit. The croissants were amazing and started off the day great. Following breakfast, the women's team had practice at the HAC facilities. We started with technical and progressed to possession with direction. Finally we ended with a game of 7v7 where the play was very intense. It was nice to get a practice in after a long first day and a good night sleep.
After practice, the women's team had some time to explore Le Havre and grab lunch on our own. I ended up eating at a Tex Mex restaurant called El Rancho. Mexican food may sound weird to eat in France, however, since it was Sunday, not much else was open. The food was surprisingly great though. We told our server that it was Adrian's birthday too, so he gave her a sombrero to take back as a souvenir. After lunch, we shopped around at the Docks, a strip mall, and got some more souvenirs.
Following our free time, we left to watch the men's game against the U19 HAC Academy team. It was rainy and slightly cold, but the men played very well. It was fun to watch them, and we had the chance to meet some of the players from the women's HAC team. They were amazing and very welcoming girls. Despite the language barrier, the two teams bonded a lot in a short amount of time and even had a dance-off during halftime of the men's game.
LUMS ended up winning their game 4-0. Following the game, the HAC staff gave us a tour of the HAC facilities including the dormitories of the players. We ended the night with a meal at the player's cafeteria. The food was great and overall it was a great experience, despite the rain. We are looking forward to getting after it tomorrow in practice and enjoying a day at Normandy Beach!
Day 1 – Mar. 11
Danny Gonzalez – Senior – Berwyn, Pa.
The Lehigh Soccer Spring Break trip left from Bethlehem, Pa. at 12:45 p.m. where there was still a couple of inches of snow from the previous night. Our flight took off at 6:45 p.m. ET from JFK in NYC. Filled with energy from our goose sandwich lunch and excited for an opportunity of a lifetime, rows 40-52 on the Boeing 747 heading towards Paris, France started off as what Kevin Klinkenberg would call "lit." This elation soon died down for most after one movie's worth of time. Sleep consumed the flight until we landed in Paris, France at 7:30 a.m. CEST. From Paris we left to Le Havre, France, our main destination for the trip. Just a quick background on Le Havre:
- Located in Northern France along the English Channel
- Founded in 1517 by King Francis I
- Literally means "the haven"
- Pronounced (luh-hah-vruh)
- Population is roughly 175,000
- Average March temperature: 45-65°F
The drive from Paris to Le Havre took around two hours. Prior to settling into our hotel rooms, both teams walked 10 min to a local restaurant. The main dishes people ordered were pizza four frimoge and spaghetti bolognese. Being up for 20+ hours with no more than a few hours of sleep was certainly beginning to take its toll. Nick Facendo, among a few others, literally fell asleep at the restaurant in public.
Our next event after lunch was practice at 4:30 p.m. local time. We had a 30-minute period in between lunch and practice to get a nap in at the hotel, which most took up. We got to the practice facility at Havre Athletic Club (HAC). It may have been playing in an environment with a rich history of soccer (fut), or the naps, but we were ready to go. Our lack of formal sleep took a backseat. After a proper warm up guided by the legendary Coach Deming, we hopped into a 3v3 possession drill followed by a 4v4 to goal exercise concluding the quick workout. The hour long session was the ideal amount of time given we had a game the next day against HAC's u19 Academy.
The final event of the day was a team dinner at HAC's professional stadium, Stade Océane, with owner Vince Volpe. We were guided to a special box where messages on screens throughout the stadium read, "Welcome! Lehigh University."
Entering the box we got to shake hands with Vince Volpe, the reason this whole trip is possible. Vince Volpe is the owner of HAC as well as a Lehigh alum, Class of 1980. He is the former President and CEO of Dresser-Rand Group, Inc. His studies at Lehigh were in both Mechanical Engineering and German Literature. Mr. Volpe has spent time in Caracas, Tokyo, Paris, and many other countries around the world in what has been an extremely successful career. A personal story shared by our host with the underlying message being "tenacity" was truly inspiring. Vincent Volpe's success can be matched by his generosity. He opened up the doors with open arms to Lehigh Soccer and we are all very thankful for the amazing opportunity.
Following the delicious three-course meal, we arrived at the hotel around 9:00 p.m. The exhaustion of the group was evident as everyone headed straight for their rooms for a much-needed sleep. The day was over, but the week was just beginning.
Tori Pantaleo – Senior – Colts Neck, N.J.
Day 1, also known as the travel day, also known as the day of running on three hours of sleep. We arrived in Le Harve after about 12 hours of traveling and could not wait to explore and see the facilities we were scheduled to practice and play games.
As soon as we got to the hotel, we dropped off ours bags, headed back onto the bus and headed straight for the beach. We enjoyed the water and views of the sailboats along the English Chanel. We were very lucky to have beautiful weather and seized the day by exploring the city a bit. We were thrilled to be accompanied by our wonderful tour guide, Madeline. She showed us the ins and outs of Le Harve, the greatest spots to eat, and the best cafés to get coffee. Speaking of coffee, I could really use a cup. Ever since we have arrived everyone has assumed the French culture and has been drinking coffee as if it was water.
After lunch, both the women's and men's teams made their way to the HAC practice fields. We had a good practice and worked out our legs. Both teams were playing through very tired legs from the long travel day. This practice was much needed to get our focus ready for the week to come.
Dinner was such an awesome surprise. We had an incredible meal at the stadium where HAC plays. We had the opportunity to meet Lehigh alumnus and HAC owner, Vince Volpe, and learned a little bit about his impressive journey and admirable achievements in his career.
We are all so thankful to be given this opportunity. Everyone is super excited to see what's in store for the week to come and we are looking forward to more coffee.
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