It is Thursday and we have just arrived in the city of Tandil, which is about four hours southwest of Buenos Aires, and known for their knives and cheese. I plan on purchasing both before the end of the day. Yesterday was the longest day/night of the trip. After playing in Mendoza on Tuesday night, we got on a double decker bus and drove through the night. The bus was very nice and similar to seats in business class on an airplane minus the individual televisions. In the morning, we picked up the Argentina National Team and made it to the tiny town of San Caytano making our total trip just under 18 hours! The town looked deserted when we arrived, but the whole city must have been waiting for the big match. We were a scene driving in a double decker bus through the tiny streets of this town. The match was our first against the Argentina National Team and the first game went very well. We lost the match in four sets, but surprised our friendly hosts in the first set.
At this point in the trip we are now traveling with the Argentina team from town to town playing each other, driving in the same bus and dining before and after the matches together. The kids are starting to talk to each other which allows for some good bonding and everyone is able to practice the other language. I am most frustrated not knowing Spanish and will be purchasing my Rosetta Stone when we return!
Tonight we will be playing the match in Tandil where there are posters everywhere saying Argentina vs. USA. Although we are from the University of Nevada, we are truly representatives of USA. All for now.
