On Sunday morning, we headed from England to SCOTLAND!!!! It was about a 5 hour drive so we stopped at the Manchester United stadium on the way. Going there was such an amazing expereince; the pitch (field) was perfect and the culture and history of the team was so rich. After that, we stopped for lunch at a little place close to the border. We arrived in Edinburgh around 7pm and then we ate dinner at the University of Edinburgh, which was our home for the remainder of the trip. Afterwards, we walked around trying to find the festival everyone was talking about. August is festival month in Scotland and the place is crazy and exciting. After a failed attempt to find it, a few of us decided to head back; however, we encountered a group of Scotsmen playing the bagpipes. They asked us to highland dance and Natalie, Molly and Nicole took them up on the offer. Apparently, Nicole didn't quite live up to the professional highland dancer that went before because she was given the silent treatment by the audience (haha).
The next day, we trained with two Scottish coaches and it was a really fun session. After training, we went to Edinburgh castle where it was absolutely raining cats and dogs. After wandering through the beautiful castle, we hit the streets for some shopping before heading back to get ready for the event of the trip, the Edinburgh Military Tattoo concert. This concert was at night right outside the castle and consisted of bands and militaries from around the world. There was a special emphasis on Scottish music and the bagpipes. It was one of the most amazing things that everyone on the team has every experienced. Even the rain couldn't ruin it!
The next day we had some free time in the morning to go shopping and then we went for a bus tour of Edinburgh. Our tour guide wore a kilt and showed us some of the most historical and infamous parts of the city. The countryside was breathtaking and everyone enjoyed seeing the parks and lochs (lakes)that Scotland has. That night we had our final game against the SCOTTISH PREMIERE LEAGUE TEAM, THE HIBERNIANS, who are in third place in their division. They were by far the best team that we played; they were 20-30 years old who have 5 current national team members and 2 retired members on the team. We went down 1-0 and then game back 1-1 with a chip from Natalie as the keeper was coming off of her line. Then we went down 2-1 and came back to finish the game 2-2. The second goal came from a great pass from Kim and then a back corner finish from Natalie. We played so well together against a very high caliber team. Tying Hibs was definitely one of the main highlights for the team!!!
We left Scotland Wednesday morning at 3 am to begin our long journey back to the states. We are now all sitting in the airport completely exhausted and ready to go home. The trip was so much fun and we wish it didn't have to end but luckily we all have a wonderful, fantastic pre-season to look forward to:)
Thank you to all the parents and supporters we had at each game. The trip was a great bonding experience and we really enjoyed the different cultures. See you all soon!
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