“Knight Watch”
Former Gopher Leslie Knight is playing professional basketball in Switzerland. Check back regularly to read her entertaining blogs about her life on the European pro-circuit.
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> Date: 12/14/2008
> Subject: Swiss Cup
>
> I am going to start off this e-mail by telling you a little bit about
> something that occurred in the midsts of this past week. This past
> Wednesday, my team played in it’s second game of the Swiss Cup. A little
> background information on what the Swiss Cup is and what it means, in the
> words of my General Manager, Filippo,
>
> “Swiss cup is another tournament we play, less games but almost the same
> importance, 'cause who wins the cup is allowed the next season to play
Euro
> Cup as well as who wins the conference... we reached now the quarter
finals
> (then eventually semifinal and final) so max 3 games to play. We will
play
> also another Cup called League Cup, but that is less important, even if
is
> still a prize to win :-)”
>
> Ok, now with that being said you all remember who we got absolutely
> pulverized by last weekend? Neuchatel. And how many points did they beat
us
> by? Almost 60. Now, the team that we played this past Wednesday is a team
> by the name of Sierre. Sierre is also in our conference, and the first
time
> that we played them we lost by about 20pts, however, at the moment Sierre
> is the best team in our conference. Yes, Sierre beat Neuchatel just a
> couple weekends ago. So, going into this game not many people had faith
in
> our little Riva team, but all that doesn’t mean anything, right? All that
> matters is that we have faith in ourselves, and that morning I woke up
and
> told Keisha that for some strange reason I just had a good feeling about
> tonight’s game. Well, I probably just gave it away but on Wednesday
night,
> Canti Riva Basket bolted out of the gates and never looked back. We took
it
> to a very unsuspecting Sierre team, and showed them our pearly whites as
> they numbly exited our gym dreading their 5 hour bus ride home. Now,
there
> is one moment during the night’s events that stands out in my mind above
> all the rest, above the baskets scored, above the horrible calls, above
the
> half time talk, and above the automated radio recording, chanting RIVA!
> RIVA!, that the Riva fans would blast during timeouts and dead balls.
What
> was this memory searing experience that took place immediately after the
> final buzzer sounded and all of our teammates, coaches, president and
vice
> president stormed the floor? Hands down, without a moments hesitation it
> consisted of me finding myself in a situation where I was holding a grown
> man in my arms. Not only was he in my arms, but his feet were not on the
> floor, and he was covering my hot, sweaty, flushed cheeks with kisses of
> pure happiness, excitement, joy and pride. Who was this mystery man? None
> other than Willy Trimboli, our 5 foot tall vice president. He caught me
> totally off guard and with the way he was acting along with the rest of
my
> team I would have thought that we just won the NCAA tournament! People
here
> treat the Swiss Cup like it’s the chalice of ever lasting life from the
> movie Indiana Jones, and every step that brings us closer to actually
> holding it in our hands is a momentous occasion! Let me tell you though,
> bouncing back and knocking Sierre out of the Cup was a very, very nice
> feeling.
>
> Ok, now to scale back a few days in the week. On Monday there was another
> Mercatino de Natale (Christmas Market), but this time it took place in
> Chiasso just a couple blocks walk from my apartment. It’s always a
pleasure
> to stroll up and down the walking streets and gaze at all the interesting
> knick-knacks, but even better is walking while sipping on hot vin brule,
> which is hot red wine.;) Of course everyone and their uncle was out
walking
> with their dog, and the dogs were dressed to impress as well. People say
> that you are what you eat, or that pets often times resemble their
owners,
> well that could not be more true. Each of these tiny little dogs was
> dressed in a very fashionable jacket, equipped with different types of
> colorful thread, pom pom balls and I even think I saw some sequins! Never
a
> dull moment when people watching OR tiny dog watching.
>
> Tuesday night was also a night in which I will forever remember.
Cinthia’s
> Aunt, Onorina, had invited me to a Gospel Choir concert in Lugano and so
I
> spent the night amongst a crowd of Swiss people while listening to Gospel
> music. The choir sang familiar songs like “This little light of mine” and
> “He’s got the whole world in his hands.” The choir even had all of us
> standing up, dancing and singing a few words. I was happier than a clam
> because it was the first time since I have been here that I was the one
who
> got to translate what was being said. One song in particular asked us to
> sing “Amen” over and over again. After the concert I asked Ono if the
word
> Amen was the same in Italian and she responded, “yes, it means a man, or
un
> uomo.” Now, after hearing her say this I was somewhat confused because un
> uomo in Italian means literally, A man. I proceeded to explain to her
that
> “amen” is what many people say after saying a prayer. Immediately a look
of
> recognition spread across her face and her and her husband, Roberto, and
> Cinthia all started laughing. “Well, that changes the whole meaning of
the
> song, doesn’t it?!” We laughed about this for the whole drive home. I
also
> got a kick out of the woman standing next to me. For the majority of the
> evening the choir had all of us clapping to the beat. The entire audience
> would be clapping together and this one woman standing next to me would
> forever be clapping on the off beat! ha, I laughed silently to myself and
> continued to enjoy the concert.
>
> Wednesday, before tasting our sweet victory over Sierre I was tasting
> delicious Christmas cookies! I joined Cinthia and her mom, Liliana, in
> Liliana’s kitchen where I helped make my first batch of Swiss cookies or
> should I say Biscotti. The three of us sat at the kitchen table and
punched
> out quite a few christmas trees, bells, stars, mushrooms?, bears and
> hearts, while the cheery music of Christmas danced in our ears.
>
> I also made Christmas cookies of my own, American Christmas cookies! I
> brought quite a few of them to our game on Saturday and everyone was
asking
> me what the colorful cream was that covered the cookie. I smiled and
> replied, “Frosting!” knowing full well that the word meant absolutely
> nothing to them. I tried my best to find ingredients besides frosting in
> which to decorate my cookies, but for the life of me I left the grocery
> store empty handed. Here in Switzerland they have no such things as red
> hots, or decorating gel, and so I bought two items that I had no idea how
> to use and just prayed that I would figure it out when I got home.
>
> On Saturday we had a conference game against Troistorrent. The first time
> that we encountered this team that hails from the French side of Swiss I
> was unable to play due to a sprained ankle. Saturday, however, found me
> feeling good and excited to play. The game was extremely physical and I
> found myself sprawled out on the floor more than usual. We started the
game
> off down by 6pts, but we rallied back, took the lead and not once was
there
> another lead change. I was so proud of our team. Everyone contributed and
> people stepped up and hit really big shots. The game itself was a
complete
> team effort. Now we have the whole week to practice and we will be taking
> on Helios for our last game before the Christmas break!
>
> Quick side note: On Sunday I had the opportunity to watch my first men’s
> volleyball game. There was a World Cup volleyball tournament taking place
> in Lugano, but it wasn’t the official world cup, just a slightly lower
> level of competition. We watched Slovenia play against Bolivia, and then
> the championship game was between Italy and Brazil. All of the different
> national anthems were played, which I thought was pretty cool and they
had
> each country’s flag hanging up on the walls.
>
> Our last game will be on Sunday, and I will be taking off on Monday to
> return to the Land O Lakes, so this might be my last e-mail until I
return
> in January, we’ll see. This does not mean, however, that all of you are
let
> off the hook for updating me on your lives! ha, I love hearing from all
of
> you and really appreciate the time that you take to drop me a line;)
>
> Take care everyone, enjoy the holidays and safe travels to wherever you
are
> headed! love, Leslie
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> Date: 12/8/2008 10:09:05 AM
> Subject: Mamma Mia!
>
> Wikipedia says that the Italian expression, Mamma Mia, is used to express
> surprise or anguish. Throughout my younger years in elementary school and
> even into junior high I can distinctly remember shouting out "Mamma Mia"
> and pretending like I was a real italian woman with lots on my mind. As I
> have gotten a bit older I haven't given the saying much thought but
always
> just assumed that it was just another stereotype and that not many
Italians
> actually used it in their everyday vocabulary. Well, perhaps not everyone
> does use it here, but I can honestly tell you that a lot of people do!
> Every Thursday when I drive with Carlo to basketball practice he must use
> the expression at least 3-5 times on the way there AND again on the way
> back! My italian teacher, Marco, also uses this expression but he
shortens
> it a bit and slowly drawls out "oh, mamma!" The sad part about this whole
> thing is that I have started to catch myself using this expression as
well!
>
> Another random thing that I have found to be kind of interesting is that
> whenever I ask someone how old another person is, they tell me 91, 93,
84,
> all of these numbers are of course referring to the year in which that
> person was born. I think that this is quite strange so I asked my friend
> why she just doesn't tell me if the person is 17, 15 or 24 and she
> responded, "ah, I don't know." I enjoy learning more and more about the
> italian/swiss way of life every day.
>
> This past week was full of practice and workouts. I had a chance to
attend
> one of Cinthia's volleyball games on Wednesday night which was fun, I
> always am intrigued to listen to the players and hear the different
things
> that they say to each other. The instructions and words of encouragement
> are all the same as they are in the States, just in a different language.
>
> Thursday morning I went with our Vice President, Willy, back to his
> elementary school to lead his little 3rd graders in their basketball
unit.
> The drive to his school was quite beautiful because his school is located
> further up on the mountain and so there is more snow than where I live.
All
> the pine trees on the mountain sides are lightly dusted with white snow
and
> where there are no trees there are circles of just pure white and the
> occasional house. Everywhere I look reminds me of some beautiful ski
> resort. The first time that I went with him to school and lead a
basketball
> session, his co-teacher had to help me translate all of my drills and
> games. This time around, however, I was able to do most of the talking
and
> tell the students what it was that I wanted them to do. I was pretty
proud
> of myself;)
>
> The rest of Thursday unfolded quite normally with Italian class and
special
> needs practice. Oh how could I forget this, the day before on Wednesday,
> Keisha, Polona and I were headed to the gym but the traffic was so bad
that
> we opted to try an alternate route. We had absolutely no idea where we
were
> going but we thought that it wouldn't be too hard to figure out, our
little
> world that we live in is not too big, right? Well, we found ourselves
> driving on this old, narrow, cobblestone road out in the middle of no
> where! We couldn't see too much because there were these old brick walls
> that lined the sides of this "street" and all that we saw around us were
> rows and rows of grape vines. I was so certain that we stumbled onto
> someone's private driveway and that we were going to end up at their
front
> door. The three of us couldn't stop laughing and we all were just kicking
> ourselves for not bringing a camera. Eventually, after winding around and
> around on this deserted street, road, driveway, whatever you want to call
> it, we unknowingly arrived in a neighborhood. I swear that this
> neighborhood popped out of thin air because there was nothing in sight
and
> then all of a sudden it just appeared. 20 minutes late to our yoga class
> the three of us quietly tiptoed in and joined the group. I was kind of
glad
> that we got lost though because I have been living here now for almost 4
> months and I had never seen the beautiful land that we just accidently
came
> across.
>
> Friday was kind of fun because I went and visited one of my teammates,
> Letitzia, who lives in Lugano. We went to this little cafe called La
> Bottega del Caffe. The major attraction to this place is their array of
> different kinds of hot chocolate. There are 32 kinds of hot chocolate on
> their menu! To say the least, I had a somewhat difficult time deciding,
but
> ended up getting some sort of exotic strawberry. Along with the great
> tasting hot chocolate, which is more like hot pudding, our waitress
brought
> along slices of apples, pears, bananas, and grapes for us to dip into our
> "drink." After our little treat we took a stroll around Lugano. She
showed
> me her school, which is right on the lake and is absolutely gorgeous. I
> must have told her several times that I couldn't believe that she
actually
> lived here! The lake, the mountains and all the Christmas lights honestly
> just take my breath away.
>
> Friday night was the night of San Nicolao. On this night all the little
> children put their shoes by their window and if they were good little
> children that year, San Nicolao will stop and fill their shoes with
> candies. So, Saturday morning on the bus ride to Neuchatel some of my
> teammates had brought their goodies to share with everyone else;)
>
> The bus ride was long, but enjoyable. We drove through rain, snow, and
> luckily some sunshine as well. Driving through the German part of
> Switzerland in a town called, Bienne where the Rollex watch factory is
> located, I look out my window and see street signs that say Kongresshaus.
> Switzerland has 3 national languages and just when I am feeling better
> about the progress that I have been making with my Italian, we drive a
few
> hours and the next thing I know I am in a restaurant and cannot
communicate
> one iota with the cashiers or the people taking my order!
>
> The game itself was not pretty. We lost, 109-52. I can't say much besides
> the fact that we turned the ball over a lot, did not play well against
> their zone and likewise they picked our zone apart to perfection. We have
> another game this Wednesday and I just hope that we can bounce back a
> little bit.
>
> Sunday morning I went to Varese, Italy. There was a chocolate market
taking
> place that had every type of chocolate that you could imagine or want,
not
> to mention free samples;) We meandered around Varese and walked through a
> really nice garden that lead into the Comune of Varese. It was a
beautiful
> day and many people were out having picnics.
>
> Sunday night we celebrated Cinthia's birthday, which had occurred on
> Friday. She and her family had rented out a cozy little bar where
> approximately 60 of her closest friends and family came to help her
> celebrate. I spent the whole night talking mostly in Italian and trying
so
> hard to decipher what everyone was saying that when it came time to go
home
> my brain was desperately needing a break. The music, however, is always
> American which gave me a little comfort.
>
> Well, that's all for now. We have 3 more games until I come home, so
> hopefully I will have some better news for all of you next week!
>
> take care~
> love,
> Leslie
>
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> Date: 11/30/2008 5:05:07 PM
> Subject: 2 Thanksgivings?
>
> First off, I want to wish all of you a HAPPY belated Thanksgiving! I hope
> that this Holiday found all of you in good company, eating fine food, and
> feeling thankful for many, many things.
>
> Secondly, you're probably wondering about the title to this e-mail,
> especially since it is different from the usual "ciao" that I am sure all
> of your are bored of seeing/reading. Well, I almost hate to admit it, but
> it is just so funny that I will suffer the embarrassment and share it
with
> all of you anyway. After 22 years of living on this planet, and most of
> that time being spent in the U.S., you would think that I would know the
> date of Thanksgiving? Well, I really surprise myself sometimes;) On the
> 25th of November, which was a Tuesday, I woke up thinking that it was
> Thanksgiving. After getting out of bed I promptly scampered into Keisha's
> room, gave her a big hug and said "Happy Thanksgiving!" Now, the really
> funny part is that she looked at me, gave me a big smile and wished me
one
> as well. Now, she is 25 years old so she's got 3 more years of
Thanksgiving
> experience on me and she too thought that it was Thanksgiving! Ha, it
> wasn't until that evening at dinner when I wished the two Americans on
the
> men's team a Happy Thanksgiving that I was made aware of my mistake.
These
> two guys looked at me like I must have been from another planet! I was
> slightly embarrassed, but we all got a pretty good laugh out of it;)
>
> So, onto the festivities of this past week. Bellinzona is the capital of
> Ticino, which is the Cantone that I live in. The city of Bellinzona is
best
> known for its 3 castles, Castlegrande, Castello Montebello and Castello
> Sasso Corbaro. These 3 castles are among some of the most important
> surviving examples of medieval military architecture throughout all of
the
> Alps. The Dukes of Milan are the ones responsible for the construction of
> these castles during the 15th century. Now, tourists such as myself will
> find these castles in great condition as they stand tall and proudly
> protect a land that is now free of invasions and deemed as neutral. As I
> strode down the long castle walls of Castlegrande, climbed the many steps
> that lead up to one of it's towers, and ventured through its dark, cold,
> damp tunnels, my mind did not have visions of dancing sugar plumbs, but
> instead had visions of soldiers. Our world's historialc buildings,
> paintings, letters, instruments etc. never cease to leave me feeling
> awestruck. I could almost feel the cool wind on my arms as I imagined the
> soldiers sprinting past me through the tunnels. Looking out on the castle
> grounds I could practically see the soldiers as they drilled, marching in
> perfectly straight lines as they yelled orders and gave responses.
>
> Besides thoroughly enjoying the castles, I also took a liking to the city
> itself. The buildings that line the cobblestone streets of Bellinzona
look
> to me like they have been covered in wall paper or wrapped in fabulous
> wrapping paper. Each building has its own particular design, but still
> manages to compliment the building next to it. I guess I am used to the
all
> brick houses that we have back home or the solid colors of siding, but
here
> it is not uncommon to see paintings on the facade of a building or some
> intricate design that wraps around the building like a tattoo on an arm.
>
> Wednesday passed quickly and faded into Thursday. Thursday or Giovedi was
> filled with weights, class, tea time and special needs basketball
practice.
> Practice unfolded a bit differently than usual because both of the main
> coaches were absent. In response to this situation I was put in charge of
> running my first practice. Fortunately I had been able to
watch/participate
> in a few previous practices because my background knowledge of what a
> basketball practice consists of is a little different than what these
> players are physically and mentally capable of doing. Not to mention that
I
> was having to explain the drills and what I wanted them to do, all in
> Italian. Thankfully though, there is one player from England and she
helped
> me to translate. She is a sweetheart and I just beem whenever I hear her
> say, "lovely!" My favorite part of the practice occurred during a break
> when I bounced a ball at my favorite player and encouraged him to play me
> one on one. If you can reach back into your memory and picture the "fire
> ball" that I accidentally kicked out of a game of lightening, this is the
> man I'm talking about. His name is Mario and he just an absolute joy. He
> usually frowns at practice and acts like he does not want any part of
what
> we are doing, but I managed to get him to crack a smile and that one
small
> act made my night. Oh, and I found out that he is theatre, which might
> explain why he is so good at putting up a false front.
>
> Friday morning I woke up to a white wonderland. I pretty much stayed in
all
> day because we were told not to drive our car since the tires have not
been
> changed. That night at practice we were also informed that our Saturday
> game was cancelled due to the weather. So, my Saturday was completely
free
> to do whatever I desired! Cinthia, her boyfriend Lucas, my teammate Liza
> and I decided to take the 8:45am train to Milan. We spent the day walking
> around the city, touring the Sforzesco castle, shopping, eating and
> drinking unbelievably expensive tea. How expensive you ask? Try 5 euros
for
> what is essentially hot water and a tea bag. Highway Robbery!
>
> Sunday around 11:30am I was picked up by Fabio, one of the coaches of
Sport
> Insieme, the special needs team, and we headed to the teams 40 year
> anniversary party. Around 260 people attended, including players from the
> past, present, parents, family and friends. Lunch was served, several
> people spoke, music was played, Champaign corks flew about the room, the
> dance floor was lively as ever and Elvis Presley even made an appearance!
> The lunch ended around 4:30pm and I left feeling well fed, but a little
> tired from doing a serious twist and shout on the dance floor along with
> the YMCA! oh, and they have a website and there is a picture of me on
> there, it is www.sportinsieme.ch. Once you are there just click "entra
nel
> sito"
>
> On the way home, Fabio took me to a Christmas market. He ended up buying
me
> a present that looked to me like a basket filled with cheese, bread, a
> rolling pin, ravioli and salami. Well, all of these little goodies were
not
> what they seemed but were actually all made out of chocolate! YUM;)
>
> Back at home Cinthia came over for my 2nd Thanksgiving. My mom sent me
> ingredients for making pumpkin pie and Cinthia had never tasted it
before,
> so we rolled up our sleeves and got started. I was a little nervous
because
> my apartment didn't come furnished with measuring cups or spoons, so we
> just kind of threw in a little of this and a little of that. The end
result
> was a golden brown circle of deliciousness! Cinthia was very impressed
and
> I was just so thrilled to have been the one to introduce her to this
> traditional American dessert.
>
> So, now it's almost midnight and my eyes are starting to close. Enjoy
your
> Thanksgiving leftovers and say hello to December!
>
> Love,
> Lesle
>
> oh, and GREAT JOB to my ballers back in MN!!!!!;)
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