The Bethel University volleyball team is traveling together in Brazil from May 23-June 2. While there, the team will be playing top level club teams and running youth clinics in multiple cities. In addition, they'll enjoy several group activities that showcase the beauty and culture of Brazil. To see more photos follow the team on Facebook or @BethelRoyalVolleyball on Instagram.
Days 1-2 - Cosette Carto and Ellie Van Namen
Recap:
Our first two days in Brazil were full of so many highlights and new experiences! We arrived in São Paulo early Sunday morning and headed right to a cafe for some breakfast. Then we headed to walk around the national park in São Paulo (Ibirapuera), which was beautiful and full of people running. Later in the day we got to practice together before heading back to the hotel to get some much needed rest.
On Monday, we explored a market and tried all new kinds of amazing fruits. There were so many unique foods there, and I (Cosette) ended up buying some strong Brazilian coffee beans to bring home to my parents! We learned all about the specific fruits that Brazil has that I've never tried, like a pine cone shaped fruit called pinha. My absolute favorite was the fresh mango (Ellie).
We then enjoyed lunch and headed to play our first match. Although the match didn't go as we wanted, it was exciting getting to play against a high-level team from Osaco Voleibol Club and get to know them after the game. It was such a memorable experience playing against a team that really pushed us and made us better.
What Was Good/What Did We Learn:
Our favorite part of the day was our conversations with the girls on the opposing team after our game. Though we couldn't communicate perfectly, they knew some English and were very kind and welcoming to us. We learned that even through language barriers you can make real connections with people from a different culture! Outside of this, we have loved getting to know our teammates on a deeper level and am looking forward to all that is to come in the next week!
What Was Hard:
I (Cosette) have never had such little sleep in 24 hours, but even though the exhaustion was hard, it was a great start to the trip.
Day 3 - Mattie Petersen and Coach Gretchen
Recap:
Our third day in São Paulo was full of amazing memories and great moments! We started the morning by heading to the Altino Arantes Building, one of the biggest skyscrapers in the city. It was super cool to explore. Each of its 31 floors is decorated with something completely different. The absolute best part was the top floor, which looked out over the entire beautiful city. We were able to take photos of the view.
Afterward, we left to grab some lunch at a buffet. We could get whatever we wanted, but we had to eat within reason because we had a big volleyball game right after. We fought really hard and we won our match! Afterward, we got to hang out with the other team to exchange shirts, take pictures, and actually get to know them and their names, which was an awesome experience.
What Was Good:
We had a quick turnaround in the gym right after the match because we got to host a clinic for local girls who were 9–12 years old. That ended up being my absolute favorite part of the day. They were so eager to learn and just loved getting to talk to us and play games, all while practicing skills like serving, attacking, and passing. Before we knew it, the day was over. Learning more about their culture and sharing so much joy and laughter has easily been the highlight of my year. I honestly cannot wait to enjoy more of this on the rest of our trip.
What Was Hard/What Did We Learn (from Gretchen):
The volleyball in Brazil has been significantly more challenging than it was on previous Foreign Tours in other countries. The team we played on Day 2 from Osasco is a regular national championship contender in the U21 age group with their women's program. They were tall and long and very physical, and we weren't prepared for the speed of their play in that first match. The ball is also very different from the one we play with in the U.S. Our passing and serving were most affected and that makes everything difficult. While we had moments that we competed well, overall that first night was hard for us.
But playing a team that was so physical and talented right away did elevate our play for the second match. Osaso really did teach us a lot and made us better. In our next match against Club Athletico Paulistano we were more disciplined in covering our hitters, we served more aggressively, and made a lot of great defensive plays. Every athlete on the trip has contributed in significant moments of a match, and I'm very excited at how much depth we're building.
You can follow more of the trip here: https://www.instagram.com/bethelroyalsvolleyball/
