July 11th

Last night's scrimmage at Sori was interesting to say the least. The match was set up at the last minute and when Newport saw their opposition was comprised mostly of some very young players there wasn't the usual enthusiasm as one would expect. But things turned out well as some of the Newport players joined the Italian team and ended up playing mainly against one another with the exception of a couple of Italian players the same age as our boys who evened things out. The setting couldn't have been more beautiful with the pool right on the Ligurian Sea similar to the Recco pool minus the permanent grandstands. In their place was a bar in the end zone where the Newport parents, along with some Italian locals, watched the game from behind protective netting to keep wayward shots from whacking people in the head and/or knocking beverages off of the tables. Some folks suggested a similar set-up at Newport could generate a lot of revenue but the Board of Education is unlikely to approve such a concept! All the boys played a lot and it was an excellent opportunity for them to work on the things that the coaches have been teaching them. It was good to see Renee and Matt Mclaren and Evelyn and John Yeager who arrived from Tuscany just in time for the opening sprint.

Annette and Tim Tauber and Maggie and Laird decided to walk from Camogli to Sori which is the next town after Recco. It didn't look that far on the map but two hours later we found ourselves arriving at the pool. It was quite the hike but provided some beautiful vistas of the coastline including some little coves packed with swimmers and sunbathers. After the scrimmage the boys headed back to the hotel for a 10 p.m. dinner and bed for they were going to be up and at 'em at 6:30 the following morning to take the bus to Camogli for their last morning workout of the trip.

Later this morning eveyone's going to board the train to Santa Margherita where we'll walk to Portofino and spend a couple of hours to see where the rich and famous hang out. We'll then board the boat for the trip back to Camogli and Recco in time for the boys to get some rest and a bite to eat before tonight's game against one of the top age group teams in Italy. Tonight should be the real deal and I'm sure Coach Lynch and Coach Delahunt are anxious to see how we'll do.

Tomorrow's (Saturday) plan look pretty exciting. A big tour bus will take everyone including the four sets of parents over to the Italian/French border where a game is scheduled. I will find out the name of the town where we're going so you can look it up on a map and get an idea where we'll be in relation to the Camogli/Recco area.