Lettere d'Italia: Day 7
8/24/2004 8:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Aug. 24, 2004
Day Seven Photo Gallery
Italian Fact of the Day:
The city of Venice is built upon hundreds of man-made islands in the middle of what was a marsh. Wooden beams were driven through the water until they could be supported by clay, and the buildings were built on top of the wood, which is now petrified. The islands of the city are connected by more than 400 bridges and divided by approximately 177 canals.
Ah, Venice.
The Terrapin basketball team packed up on Monday and said "arrivaderci" to Florence after breakfast, only to travel to the next stop on their Italian tour. In the early afternoon the Terps reached the historic and beautiful city of Venice, on the Adriatic Sea in the northeast of Italy.
The picturesque city of Venice is unlike any other - it has the look and feel of a completely different world. Divided by canals and crossed by bridges, the city does not allow any cars, trucks, buses or the mopeds that the Terps have seen just about everywhere else. Transportation is exclusively by water or on foot.
Upon arriving, the Terps unloaded all of their gear from the bus and piled on to a water taxi, which sped them from Venice's shipyard to their hotel. Along the way the Terps were able to take in some of the sights of the old city as many historic buildings line the Grand Canal.
The team hotel is right in the heart of downtown Venice, settled next to the Grand Canal and is a stone's throw from Piazza San Marco (St. Mark's Square). Outside there are many shops and vendors that line the streets, which in Venice are extremely narrow.
After lunch, some of the Terrapins headed out to get acclimated with St. Mark's Square and the downtown area surrounding the hotel. Many found that walking around in Venice is quite an escapade - you never know what will be around any corner. Also, if one were to lose his or her bearings it can be an adventure to get back, but we haven't lost anyone yet!
Before dinner the Terps loaded up onto gondolas for a floating mini-tour of the city. Everyone - especially the big guys - was very careful to maintain balance as this was not the time for an evening swim (although at first it looked like Mike Jones and everyone on his boat were destined to take a dip for sure). One would think that Hassan Fofana would struggle aboard a gondola, but he was fine (and dry) for the duration of the tour.
It has been mentioned that the Terps have been attracting attention and curiosity from tourists and locals alike, as we have run into many international fans or just passers-by that want to know about our team. Hassan Fofana is definitely one of the more popular Terps among the Europeans and other visitors - at 6-9, 290-pounds, he is one of the largest individuals many of them have ever seen. Many tourists have asked to take a photo with Hassan, and occasionally a large group of people, especially children, will follow him around just to see what he will do next. While we're on the topic, a group of tourists mistook Travis Garrison for Michael Jordan while in Florence (but he did score 18 with 18 boards on Sunday night!).
After the ride, the Terps and their travel party enjoyed an excellent dinner at their hotel, overlooking the Grand Canal. After the sun set many made their way back to St. Mark's Square to listen to the orchestras that play outside the cafes.
On Tuesday the Terps spend some time in the city of Venice before taking on Kiev (Ukraine) in the evening. Be sure to log onto umterps.com and get all the latest news from Italia!
A domani! Ciao!
