Final Score: Italy

Our last days in Italy were upon us, and it was a mixture of happiness and sadness.

We spent our last three days in the beautiful city of Como, Italy. Surrounded by the beautiful view of the lake, we soaked up as much of the experiences as we could. Our first day was filled with exploring the different shopping centers and food surrounding the lake.

Our first stop was a trip to a beautiful restaurant on the lakes shore. It was a white and glass building where you could see the busyness of the streets but also the view of the water and villas along its shores. After filling up our stomachs, we were free to explore. And of course, as basketball players, the first stop was to the local Foot Locker. After shoe shopping and looking around the rest of the plaza, we ended the first night with some gelato; the only way you can end a night in Italy.

Our second and final exploring day was upon us. Our coaches put together a boat tour for the beginning of the day where we traveled across Lake Como in order to reach another city on the opposite side. Along the way, we saw villas that are owned by many famous people, one including George Clooney’s getaway home, and a villa that was used in one of the Star Wars movies. There were so many beautiful places that I just kept saying to myself, “I want to stay here forever.”

Once we got there, we were told that we were closer to Switzerland than we were to Italy. But while in the town, we had time to look around and shop. And what did I buy you may ask? Gelato. Always gelato.

Finally, our time was up in the town and we had to head back. On the way back, we stopped at a small waterfall where we saw some of the locals jumping off the rocks and bridges around it. It was great to be able to just sit and see how the people in those towns and the county in general act on a regular basis.

When we arrived back where we were staying we had a few hours before we had to get ready for our game. I and a few of my teammates decided to walk along the shore again to find a new place to eat. We decided to stop into a place that served seafood. And it did not disappoint. After a great lunch, we headed back to the hotel for a quick power nap before the game.

It was finally time to leave and we were ready for our last game in Italy. You could see that everyone was excited to play, knowing that was the reason that we were there in the first place. That energy was portrayed on the court where we beat the final team by 30+ points. The excitement for the season was at an all-time high on the bus where the energy didn’t seem to go down.

After getting back to the hotel and taking a shower, it was time to hit the town one last time. All the last-minute shopping and gelato eating you could think of was done to the max. We stayed up talking with one another about our favorite places that we had visited and how we couldn’t believe that we had this amazing experience all because of basketball.

Now that I am back home, I have reflected on the time that I spent in Italy, whether it was playing basketball or exploring the towns. And my excitement for our season and my future endeavors is very high. I will forever be grateful for the experience that basketball has given me and I can’t wait to see where it takes me in the future.