My apartment

So I thought I would update everyone on what my living situation is here in Lithuania. Sorry for the corny video, but mad props to Amanda (my american teammate) for being the video choreographer.

I am having a good time here, and things are going well. Its officially been a week since I got here, and time is definitely flying. One big event of the week was me getting my bags that my parents sent from home. It seriously was like Christmas, as I have been living in the same clothes for a month and a half. All consisting of red, and black. Now I love Canada Basketball clothing, but wearing anything for a month and a half can get a tad boring.

I promise to post more, but I think the video was my first priority.

Until Next time,
Courtnay

First Update from Lithuania

It has been an eventful couple of days in Lithuania, and I will do my best to describe it all. First of all my travel to Lithuania- I got to the Prague airport with my teammate at 4, and we grab a quick drink and then tried to waste time before we could check-in. So after what seemed to be the LONGEST 2 hours of my life, I parted ways with Kaela and checked-in. I went to my gate, and went straight for my computer and checked emails and whatnot to pass time. About an hour before we were boarding the Internet cut out… go figure. So to my ipod I went, finally we were allowed to board! So my flight to Poland was quick, and then I waited a bit in Poland and then got on my last plane to Vilnius, Lithuania which is the capital.

And so it began… I was greeted by the team helper Justas, and we got in his car and drove the hour and a half to Kaunas- my new home for 7 months. The drive went pretty quick, I basically sat there staring out the window, until Justas would ask another question. There was not much conversation, as his English is not the greatest and I was soo ready for bed so the combination did not make for any stimulating conversation. I was taken to my apartment, and I was finally “home”. It was about 3 in the morning, so I quickly looked around the apartment and then headed to bed.

The apartment: I like the place they put me in, although it seems like I just took over someone’s place, as all the pots and pans, cutlery, furniture, even bedding was in the apartment ready to go for me. Its nice I don’t have to worry about simple things like pots, or towels. I have a tv and a dvd player, which will soon come in handy. The tv has a few English channels, which includes MTV. I have had it on MTV pretty much the whole time. There is no internet yet, which is a priority in my life, but im dealing with it. Im not holding my breath that the internet comes soon. The bathroom is pretty small, so I chuckle every time I walk into it. The washer is in there, and I have NO IDEA what the words mean, so I tried to set it up when I did my first wash….. lets just say it wasen’t the right setting! Oh well, trial and error will have to do.

I met my team, coaches, and trainers on Tuesday, and they all seem nice. Most speak English, but don’t speak it unless you are having a one on one conversation. I finally met my American teammate Amanda, we have chatted a bit before I came over. She has been here for a month already, so she has kinda shown me the way. I couldn’t imagine being here all by myself for a whole month! I have had a couple practices with the team, and although I still am adjusting it has gone alright so far. I have learned most of the plays, and am getting use to how the team plays. It will be fun to get out and play in games, and see how it all unfolds. For now I am going to just work hard, and enjoy the experience.

There is so much more I could share with you, but I will save the rest for another post.

Until next time,

Courtnay

Onto the next step

A new chapter begins today. I am currently sitting in my hotel room in the Czech. My other teammates left earlier this morning, with the majority of them leaving at 2:30am. I am not flying out until 8pm tonight, and my other teammate is not leaving until tonight, so me and Kaela are catching another bus the Prague airport this afternoon. Last night was sad, having to leave the girls that have become your friends and you have basically seen everyday, all day for the entire summer. We are all going our separate ways, and won’t be reunited until next summer. I have shared so many memories with them along with working so hard together to compete at the world championships. I can’t wait to see how they all do on their next teams.

Our team did not get the finish we wanted at the World Championships. 12^th place is not the worst thing that could have happened to us, but we as a team felt we are better then that. I came down to us not shooting the ball well, and not putting a full game together. Being is so many close games, and not be able to pull off a win is disheartening for sure. The strength and character of our team came out, as we always battled and never gave up. I am so proud of that fact of our team. For me personally, I learned so much this summer. I had many ups and downs this summer, as I realized what it takes to play internationally, and just how many excellent players there are in the world. I think this year will be a good year for me to work on some new skills, and become better.

With that being said, I am now heading off the Kaunas, Lithuania to play for my new team. I am excited and scared at the same time, which I think is normal for most first year players heading over to play professional basketball. It is crazy to think the time is finally here for me to go. I feel like this moment was always in the distant future, but now its real and in the present. My travel day is not to bad. I leave from Prague and fly to Poland, then Poland to Vilnius, Lithuania (the capital). I get in around 12:40pm and then have an hour and a half drive to Kaunas. I have had much worst travel plans, and Im sure I will sleep most of the time.

The good news is that the team has my apartment, so I can go straight there. I have no idea what it will look like, or what to expect s that will be fun to explore at 3 am. As for my plans once I get up from my short sleep.. I have no idea!!!! I am sure I will have to do my physical, and meet the team. The possibility of me practice right when I get there may be very possible! Again I am very excited to see what the future holds for me.

I will update everyone once I get settled into my new place, and have everything figured out.

Until next time,

Courtnay

Goodbye Ostrava

So, I just finished packing my bags and getting ready to go to bed. Our team is flying to Karlovy Vary. Czech to finish the World Championships. We were informed our departure time is 5:45 AM.. yes am. Needless to say we will all most likely be sleeping on the plane. 


We lost to France tonight by 2 on a last second shot. It was disappointing for sure, but we have to move on from that and focus on finishing 9th. We have a day off tomorrow while we travel, and then a game the next day against Brazil. The winner goes onto the 9th place game, the loser goes onto the 11th place game. 


I think our team has battled very hard, and is ready to go get two wins to finish off the tournament. Time has really flown by. It feels like just yesterday we were boarding our flight to Paris from Toronto. The team is awesome, and even though we have had a couple tough games, we still manage to keep being our light-hearted goofy selves. 


Well thats all for now, I got to head to bed! 


Until next time,
Courtnay

World Championship photos

 Action shot against Tamika Catchings. (p.s my hair is INCREDIBLY long for me... this pic highlights it)

 Another action shot.. slightly different

My team :) and all the staff the day before the tournament kicked off!  I absolutely love our red uniforms.









The team after our BIG win against China. Such a great memory from this trip. More memories to come.

 Another celebration action shot!

Us after our game against Belarus, thanking the fans who are out here in the Czech supporting us.











I figured I'd post some photos, so you can see our nice new uniforms :).  We lost a tough one last night against the USA, as we just struggled against their size and speed. It was fun to play against my idol (Taurasi for anyone who didn't know) and all the WNBA stars.

Game today versus Greece, looking forward to a physical game for sure.

First round

So our team said goodbye to Athens, and have moved onto Ostrava, Czech.  Our games in Athens were pretty good warm-ups for how things were gonna go in Czech. Both games we lost, but were close the whole way through. We had bit of a rivalry feeling forming, as both game were extremely physical. Our last game we almost stopped playing, as both teams were having people get injured. We almost got into a fight with the Greek team in the second game. Needless to say both teams calmed down, and we played the rest of the game, injury free.

Now we have finished the first pool play or the world championships. We went 1-2, with a huge win against China. It was such a great game to be a part of, as we rallied in the second half to win, and make it so our team moves onto the round of 12. China was ranked #7 in the world, and we are currently ranked 12^th. Coming into the tournament, this was considered the pool of death.. but we conquered it! :)

The team is feeling pretty good about the way we have competed, and now we move onto play USA, Greece, and France. We are excited to play some more great teams, and taking the tournament one game at a time. We have the day off today, and most of us are just doing what we have done every other day, watching movies or shows on our computer. I have spent an incredible amount of time in hotels this past month. Lets just say I am ready to get out of the hotel for a nice team dinner tonight.

So that is all for now, I will try and update you after our next 3 games. Hope all is well with everyone else, time for me to watch another movie (go figure).

Courtnay

Pictures :)

This is a Picture looking down at one of the concert areas, they were setting up for a concert while we were visiting the Acropolis.

 This is the team standing after we got to the top of the Acropolis, The Parthenon is behind us. 

Me and my team-mate Chelsea posing for a pic.

Me and team-mates Tamara and Jordan stopping to pose for a pic during our mini adventure to the center of Athens. We had an afternoon off, so we decided to adventure to find some shops.
We even took the metro, and didn't get lost. I consider it an accomplishment!








This was some of us walking up to the top to see the gorgeous view from the top of the Acropolis. It was very hot for being September, none of us could imagine what it feels like in the dead heat of the summer.

This is another picture of the view we had at the top of the Acropolis, as you can tell you can see for miles all around. It truly was breath taking.












Well I figured I would post a couple photos for you, just to see a bit of what I am getting to experience. Sorry there isin't much description, but Greece is definitely a place I would love to come back and visit.

As for basketball, we went 1-2 in the France tournament, and we lost last night to Greece. We play Greece again tonight and then head off to Czech for the World championships. The whole team is really excited to start the championships, as it is what we have been working on all summer.

Until the next one...

Courtnay