t-day special

at this time last year, i was miles away from family in the warm caribbean sun, walking the streets of the colonial zone in the domincan republic's capital city of santo domingo. with banks of the ozama river knifing through the heart of the over populated city and the caribbean sea forming the southern border i was far from the cold fronts that were passing through the midwest and the great lakes region.  by this time, i was still not fully acclimated to the humid climate of the south and was craving just the slightest hint of wind burn on my lips and my mother's sweet potato casserole that was sure to warm my insides.

cup o joe

before vienna, the idea of coffee and cafes was nothing more than another episode of friends to me. now it means a quiet place to catch up on work emails, place to read and listen to classical music, surf the web, or just people watch. in fort myers, i have slowly begun to spot more and more cafes as i branch out to the local surroundings. my two main hubs are borders at gulf coast town center (lame but close to work, cheap, and the baristas are very friendly) and blackhawk coffee at bell tower shops. i have routinely spotted more in downtown fort myers that i would like to check out

a comparison of the two

i wanted to take a minute to give me readers an idea of the differences in the attention to detail that europe has compared to what i witnessed in santo domingo. it seems like every country has some sort of national monument to pay homage to their heroes of the past. the picture to the left was taken at the altar de la patria/ altar of the nation also known as tumba de los padres de la patria/ tomb of the patriarchs of the country or more simply the national mausoleum. built in 1976 and made of

final thoughts on the dr

this is one that i have been meaning to write about since the first day, and i am glad that i waited. where i am getting to is the driving habits of this country. i want everyone to read what i am about to write then close their eyes and really imagine the words i just typed. think about how much we complain about the drivers in the states, i know i do about the traffic patterns in fort myers due to the many different driving cultures that converge in this area every winter; midwestern, new england, city, country, all forged into one creative chaos. lets take it a bit further, try to think of what it would

santo domingo, a hidden gem

today i grabbed my camera and just went for a walk. while living in vienna during my study abroad trip last spring, this was one of my favorite ways to spend my weekends and down time. i not only felt that it was a great way to get out and moving, but also a way to discover the inner beauty of a city. every walk led me to new appreciations and findings that i had not yet noticed. you can sometimes walk by a building a hundred times and notice nothing, and that

finding some street grub

after training today i went out in search of some street grub. by this time at night i was tired and hungry and in no mood to cook. the grocery stores were closing this was was my last resort. i have been reluctant to eat much off the streets or even the smaller local diners for fear of the food quality, but tonight i swallowed the pride and set out to subdue my craving.

training day 4-revenge of the pitch

after monday nights training, i found new confidence in the facilities here in the dr. that however was to be short lived. for starters, those who know me realize it takes a lot to get me upset to the point where i am mad. usually i take things for what they are and i do realize that i am in a country where wealth is not common and the facilities suffer because of it. but i made a lot of changes to come down here to play, ditched my family on thanksgiving, missed out of opportunities to see my best friends, all of which i have not seen since august. the last thing i want to feel is that i have been cheated on a chance to perform well.

dominican republic, the good, the bad, and the ugly

i have realized that i have not mentioned too much about the dr itself, for starters, it is a far cry from the comforts of the states. the city is very lively, the people are extremely friendly and helpful, the the history is second to none in the americas, and i am staying in the heart of the zona colonial, in other words, i am sitting on a historical bedrock. outside of my hotel is a 3 minute walk from where christopher columbus lived after he discovered the new world and another 2-3

a far cry from the states

after three days of sight seeing, walking up and down as many streets that i can, and this view from my hotel window... i have officially began my playing experience. to say an "experience," is to undermine the true meaning of the word. in the states, i have been spoiled with grass fields and a playing career that minimizes dirt and gravel pitches. at wilmington, and even high school to dig deeper into the memory banks, the fields were plush midwestern grounds

the dominican republic

one of the guys on the team i coach at fgcu, francisco, plays for the dominican under 20 national team and we were talking about his role on the team and this and that. anyway, he asked me about playing soccer and i told him that naturally i would much rather play than coach (as much as i enjoy coaching, its just not the same) and that if given the chance, i would jump on the opportunity in no time. he began to tell me about a coach he knew...i have heard that before and most of the time it turns into nothing more than the conversation that transpired...fast forward a couple of weeks, his coach