VA ODP Girls, Day 7: FC Rousette and Olympic Marseille

French Riviera

Our final day in France provided us with a fantastic day full of shopping, sight seeing, and enjoyable games.

The first stop of the day for the girls was a shopping trip in to downtown Marseille to pick up final gifts for families along with the last visit to the picturesque pier. 

We then travelled to the small and beautiful town of Casse. This provided us all with some down time to really get into the south of France culture on the sea front. The local cuisine was superb and for many this will be a highlight of their trip. Next up was our matches!

The 01 girls finished up with a game against local side FC Rousette who were fantastic hosts and provided our girls with an insight into the community and culture surrounding a small semi professional soccer club in France. 

VA ODP Girls, Day 6: Another day and another game!

VA ODP Girls 2001 in Marseille

Today may have been our most rewarding and toughest day of all. As you can imagine the girls are starting to tire with the games and the traveling. We have been getting through but this has created some great team bonding experiences and both teams have really come together.

We arrived in Marseille late on Tuesday evening but were up early for breakfast and then walked down to the pier along with seeing multiple tourist attractions in the city. The girls loved the pier and spent a good 20 minutes taking pictures and enjoying the sea breeze and fresh air along with the scenery. After, we visited the local shops followed by a team meal at a local restaurant. We then travelled to a local stadium for the 2001s game against a Regional French Federation select team.

VA ODP Boys, Days 4 to 6: Bienvenue à Marseille

VA ODP Boys in Marseille

Day 4-After a hearty breakfast and one hour training session, the boys got the opportunity to walk through the old, walled city of Perpagnin to explore and buy gifts for back home. After lunch it was on to the Spanish town of Peralada for their 2nd match. 

The 01's took the field first and were rewarded for their efforts with a 2-0 victory. Emerson Kuzemka, in the 21st minute and AJ Cousins, in the 68th minute, found the back of the net for the visitors with two quality goals from a nice build up.

In the 2nd match the 2000's played a much better game than the first one as they hung on for a 2-1 victory. Scott Signorelli on a solo effort, in the 33rd minute, beat three inside the box to score the goal of the trip so far. And Ethan Stewart on a penalty kick, in the 70th, were the Virginia marksmen.

The teams were buoyant on their return to the hotel and their late team dinner prepared by, of course, the chef boy Ardee of the region, Jean Pierre.

Day 5 was a travel day and a new adventure as the group heads north to the French Rivera and the port city of Marseille.

VA ODP Girls, Day 5: Final Days in Perpignan and Nimes

VA ODP Girls '99 vs. Nimes

Today we said goodbye to Perpignan after 5 amazing days in such a great city. The girls had become accustomed to the routine and had enjoyed in the city! They certainly were sad to say Au Revoir to Perpignan!

The final morning spent in Perpignan was a perfect time to allow the girls some downtime and shop in the historic area of town before packing their bags and leaving for Marseille. 

VA ODP Girls, Day 3 and 4: I can now speak 3 languages in a day

Practice time?

Day 3 - After two pretty frantic days the 99 and 01 girls were able to use Sunday as a rest and recovery day. It started with a light recovery and tactical walk through session in the morning. The sessions allowed the girls to physically recover and gave the coaches time to prepare for the game to come on Day 4. The most unique part of the practice, except for the amazing singing from the 2001 girls, was the backdrop of the Pyrenee mountains. After practice both girl's teams left in good spirits and in better physical condition than when they arrived.

The highlight of the day though came with our trip to Collioure. Picture the most beautiful place you have ever seen and I'd be surprised if you have seen a place like this. Collioure was rich in beauty and had tremendous character along with a wealth of history. The girls were able to walk around the small town and enjoy what it had to offer. The day ended with a walk around the historic sites and then dinner at the hotel. 

VA ODP Boys, Day 3: Game Time

VA ODP vs Giron

The two boys teams, after a long lay in, traveled to the 2nd largest city in Catalonia, to play the club team of Giron. This was the group's first game and were chomping at the bit to get started and out of the gate. 

The 01's took the field first and put on a magnificent display as they struck the ball around with precision and guile and racked up an 8-0 victory. The team played very well in their first match and found the weaknesses in the Spanish defense time and time again.

VA ODP Girls: 3 Flights, 4 Goals, and the tales of two cities!

Perpignan

No one said it was going to be easy, but the experiences for the 2001 and 1999 girls have been ones they will remember for many more days to come. One of the major themes within VA ODP is that our players focus on the things they can control so that they can deal with any situation that is thrown at them and they certainly have done that over the past 2 days. Both groups have went through travel difficulties but have stuck together to provide the foundations of great team unity. Whether it was flight changes like the 2001 Girls experienced or power outages in Amsterdam for the 1999 girls, they both arrived in Perpignan (France) in good spirits.

As the 1999 girls arrived in Barcelona on Friday they were able to visit the home of FC Barcelona, the Nou Camp. What an experience for them all to taste the home of one of the most history rich clubs in Spain and world soccer. The grand size and character of the stadium is something that words cannot describe so I will not waste your time trying and leave the pictures posted to tell a thousand words. After the tour we got on the bus and travelled to Perpignan, France. Once we arrived we were treated to a wonderful dinner at the hotel and then the girls were ready for bed. In the early hours of the morning on Saturday the 2001 Girls would arrive at the hotel.

VA ODP Boys: Day 1 and Day 2

Day 1:

Both boys ODP teams, upon arriving in the sun drenched city of Barcelona, embarked immediately on a 2 hour tour of the famous stadium of Barcelona FC-Camp Nou. 

Home of FC Barcelona-Camp Nou

They visited the press room, locker rooms, and team bench where Messi, Neymar and Iniesta call their home. After a brief bus tour of the city the teams headed north, ate a hearty meal and checked into the team hotel in the French city of Perpignan. The teams, after a long day of travel, were very tired and poured themselves willing into their beds for a much needed good night sleep.

Day 2:

The two boys teams, after a sound and fitful sleep, powered down the exquisitely and meticulously  French prepared breakfast and headed out to their first training session. At the Perpignan football centre they took to turbine (field) número  3 to run off the jet lag, and reacquaint themselves with their teammates-all with the snow capped Pyrenees looming in the background.

Virginia ODP Spain/France 2015 Itinerary

Day 1 Thu. 26	Group 1: Departure from Washington Dulles airport on flight KL652 to Amsterdam at 07:00pm. Group 2: Same outbound as above Group 3: Departure from Reagan Washington National airport on flight DL151 to Atlanta at 01:30pm. Arrival in Atalanta at 03:34pm. Fligh KL624 from Atlanta to Amsterdam at 04:35pm.
Day 2 Fri. 27	Perpignan Hotel Ibis and Hotel Adagio	Group 1 and 2: Arrival in Amsterdam at 07:30am. Flight KL1671 from Amsterdam to Barcelona at 10:20am. Arrival in Barcelona at 12:30pm. Group 3: Arrival in Amsterdam at 05:45am. Flight KL 1665 from Amsterdam to Barcelona at 08:05am. Arrival in Barcelona at 10:15am. Sightseeing in Barcelona Transfer to Perpignan in the evening

Virginia ODP Belgium/Holland 2014

Relive the memories of last year's adventure.
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