Home Sweet Klagenfurt

Hey Y’all,
So it has been a crazy week and I am sorry for the overdue update. First of all the good news, I have decided to accept the contract for this team, Klagenfurt VBK. The decision was not easy but I feel that after examining all of the different components, Klagenfurt is was the best option. What are these “different components” you might ask? Well, a few of the important things to consider when signing for a European team are Money, Quality of competition, Living arrangements, Team chemistry, Local geography/culture, Language barriers, and of course food. So how did Klagenfurt VBK fare under these measurements? Well the money isn’t the best, but its enough to live on. The quality of competition is good as is the level of volleyball (the team is in top division). The living arrangements will be nice. The owner of the team owns a small apartment complex where most of the team lives. Starting in late October I will move into my own apartment there. The team chemistry is not so good right now but a huge bonus of this team is that there are already three Americans on the team (Jake Schud, Taylor Evans, and Chris K.) This is great because it gives me a certain level of support that I would not have gotten on other teams. As far as geography is concerned, Klagenfurt is very beautiful. I have never lived outside Southern California so I am looking forward to living in an alpine environment. As far as language goes they speak German here, but most of the players speak fairly good English as well. The coach unfortunately speaks almost no English so even though I have already been here a few weeks we have only spoken a few times. I will be beginning a German class next monday and I will also be using the Rosetta Stone language software to supplement my class. Lastly, in my contract I will be guaranteed about 5 or 6 meals a week from local restaurants who sponsor the team. So I will have to make most of my breakfasts and lunches, but this is actually better because it is very difficult to find a restaurant in Europe where you can be out in only an hour. (Restaurant service is normally much much slower than in the US). So after taking into consideration all of these factors I decided that this is where I belong. Like I said it was not an easy decision, especially know that I could make more money at another club, but all things considered I feel I will be happiest here.

So after that winded explanation of why I chose to stay I want to give you a little glimpse of what my weekly life here will be. Here is a basic schedule of my training and weekly activities.

Monday:
10:00-11:30 Weightlifting at Atlantisfitness
16:00-18:30 Practice
19:00 German Class
20:30 Coaching Job

Tuesday:
9:30-11:00 Morning Practice
18:00-20:30 Evening Practice

Wednesday:
10:00-11:30 Weightlifting at Atlantisfitness
18:00-20:00 Evening Practice

Thursday:
9:30-11:00 Morning Practice
18:00-20:30 Evening Practice

Friday:
19:30-21:00 Evening Practice

Saturday:
9:30-11:00 Morning Practice
18:00 League Match

So this is pretty much the weekly schedule for my volleyball. The gym we train at is about 10-15 minutes by car from the team apartment. Right now they are renting a room at a Youth Hostel for me so the gym is a little farther. Today I will take a 15 minute bike ride to the team apartment and then get a ride with the rest of the guys.

I still have not found my cord to transfer my pictures. I hope to post those witthin the next couple of days. I have decided that the way I will do posting from now on is to write little daily entries every one or two days and then post them all as one update on the weekend. I want this to remain a fun thing that I do for my family and friends who want to know what’s going on in my life and not something that I feel is on obligation. So that will be the way I do things from now on.
I hope all is well with everyone,
Cheers,
Adam

Klagenfurt, Austria

So I left Duncan and Zwolle, Holland last Wednesday to come tryout as a setter for a team in Klagenfurt, Austria. I screwed up on my flight information and actually had to spend an expensive night in Vienna before arriving by train in Klagenfurt by Thursday midday. Klagenfurt is in the south of Austria and is completely surrounded by mountains. The city is about an hour to the border of Slovenia and Italy and the Mediterranean Sea, which creates a warm climate in the summer, and bright sunny days in the winter. The city is located on the eastern shore of the Lake Wörthersee, which is the warmest and largest alpine lake in Europe with drinking water quality. Apparently they also play a big FIVB beach event here in the summer on the lake, and the city was just host to the 2008 European Cup for soccer.
One big plus of being able to play here would be that there are other Americans on the team. Jake Schud (U. of Hawaii), Chris Kozklark (Loyola Chicago), and Taylor Evans (BYU) all play on this team. The other players on the team are mostly local players. There are some young players who are just coming up from the youth teams and then there are two older players in their thirties. All of the guys are really friendly and have been fun to hang out with. We were able to go out as a team on Saturday night and ended up at a dance club until 5am. Needless to say this team consists of ambitous partyers. Last night we played our first scrimmage match against some a very weak team from Slovenia. It was a friendly match so we played five whole sets. I played in the 2nd and 4th sets and won both. Even though our opponents were not very good it was great to compete and sort of test our level as a group. The after game ritual consists of beers in the locker room (I'm assuming only after wins, but maybe losses too, who knows). I am supposed to find out today if I will be staying for the season and recieving a contract. If I am offered a contract it seems likely accept, but if not then I do some laundry and just get ready for the next adventure.
Pura Vida,
Adam
P.S. I misplaced the cord that connects my camera to my laptop so when I find it or can borrow one I will upload more pictures.

some pictures from Zwolle

Well I am in Klagenfurt, Austria at the moment but I wanted to post some pictures of my time in Zwolle with Duncan. I was only there for a couple of days but I wanted to post some pictures of my time there.

To Zwolle

Well I left Tilburg yesterday morning for Zwolle in the north of Holland. On Sunday I played in a tournament against two top division Belguin teams. We lost both matches but all the games were close. I played outside hitter which is not my normal position, but the team was short players due to injuries. It was challenging to say the least but I had a good time and it was a fun way to leave the team. The night before the tournament the family I was staying with had a party for the daughter, Selena, because it was her birthday. She had a bunch of her friends over and they hung out and listened to music and had some beers. It was nice to meet some other young people in the area and see what they are into. Most of them were in school still but a couple had jobs ranging from construction to finance. So yesterday I left and took a train into Zwolle. It took about two hours and I had to change trains twice, but all in all a pretty easy trip. Duncan Budinger, an old teammate was waiting at the station when I arrived. He walked me to his apartment and we had some food. The family I was staying with in Tilburg was amazing but I am happy to be staying with a friend for a little while. Hopefully I will hear from my agent soon and know where I will be heading next.
Pura Vida,
Adam

Pictures and an update from Tilburg

So it seems my position here may not be as permanent as I had recently hoped. While the coaches and the management like how I play and they very much want me to stay, there may be a problem with certain rules against bringing in players outside of the European Union. While I am hoping the situation will resolve itself I have no idea what the outcome will be. I should, however find out within the next couple of days whether I will be allowed to play or not. If not, I shall continue my journey and try to find another team.
Anyways I wanted to post a couple more pictures of where I have been living and my hosts. As I had mentioned before I am staying with an extremely generous family and have greatly enjoyed my time with them. Posted here are two pictures of Niek's family and I having dinner last night at one of their favorite restaurants, and two pictures of their home in the town of Helmond. I shall add another post as soon as I find out if I can stay here or not.
Pura Vida,
Adam