With only two full days in Italy left in our trip, the reality of heading home is upon us! But not before we get in our final game against the Italian National team and get a chance to explore Rome. Today we did the former, and tomorrow will be the latter.
Our day started a little later than usual, which by day nine, I think we all needed and appreciated! We left the hotel at 10:00am for a day of sightseeing in Trieste. 90 degrees with 80% humidity made for another hot day.
Trieste is a port city located between the Adriatic Sea and Slovenia and has a very rich history spanning multiple cultures and traditions. Because of its location and water access, Trieste has been occupied since the 10-century B.C. — that’s over 3,000 years ago. Since that time, Trieste has been conquered six times, explaining the natural blending of cultures and architecture seen throughout the city. It wasn’t until 1954 that Trieste was finally solidified as Italian territory.
Our first stop was the Piazza Unita d'Italia which is considered the city center.
From there we broke up to explore the city center. Some girls decided to...wait for it...shop! 😁 Others walked around the city to take in the various historical sites including Castello di San Giusto, the Roman Theatre of Trieste, Arco di Ricardo, and the Monumento ai caduti Trieste.
The Molo Audace, a stone pier dating to the 18th century, provided a beautiful view of the water and shoreline of Trieste.
After taking in the city sites for a couple hours (and of course gelato 🍧) we headed to see the Miramar Castle. This spectacular structure was built between 1856-1860 by Carl Junker working under Archduke Maximilian. The grounds of the castle includes a beautiful sprawling garden including two ponds, lotus flowers, and a bronze statue of Maximilian.
After exploring the city, we headed back to the hotel to rest for a bit before our final game with the Italians.
Heading into to this game, we talked a lot with the girls about the complete 180 this would be from our previous games in Europe. The Italians are currently the top-ranked team in Europe and are the favorites to secure one of six bids for the 2020 Olympic Games. So we knew the competition would be fierce.
The pitching was was by far the best many of our girls have ever seen — rise balls that jump 6-12” right as it gets to your hands. It took us a few innings to make adjustments, but eventually we put the ball in play.
The final score was 4-13 in favor of the Italians, but the opportunity to play and grow against a team we will all watch on tv next summer was priceless. And our recently graduated seniors have one more great story to tell about their playing days 🥎 ❤️💙
If you missed the game, you can watch the replay here: https://www.pscp.tv/w/b9yTczE1MDI3MDd8MW1ueGV2bXJrTGFLWLW4nOSWbn_0doB8KTwFI4jCKvyZRqzBxXfmdnll3mxM?t=1s
Tomorrow we will pack up and catch the morning train to Rome. The trip is a little more than 4 hours which should put us in the city by noon/one. We will get a half day of high-speed touristing to take in the “must see” sites before heading to the airport the following morning to come home.
We know we are speaking for all the girls when we say this was a life-changing trip. To see living history and experience different cultures with every city and country explored was nothing short of incredible. We can’t say it enough, but THANK YOU to everyone who helped to make this trip a reality. It has been everything we could have ever imagined!
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