University of North Carolina Athletics
Letters From Europe: Martina Wood
May 25, 2008 | Women's Basketball
May 25, 2008
I woke up this morning and the first thing I did was press the automatic button to open the shade to look outside my window. There it was - the Swiss Alps!!! - so far in the distance with the sun beaming on my face and through the sky!
Today we were scheduled to leave at 9 a.m. to go on a hiking and lake excursion. We were told if weather permitting, we would be able to go hiking and white water rafting. We loaded up the bus and headed up the Alps. I wasn't prepared for what I was about to see. I turned to my left and there was this gigantic, breathtaking view of the Swiss Alps. I took at least 50 pictures before getting to our destination!
We arrived and walked toward the train that took us all through the Alps. Yoz, one of our tour guides, told me at breakfast that we'd reach an altitude of 9000 feet, and that we did!! There are no words to explain what I experienced today. You see it on TV, in magazines, but until you are face to face when it becomes so magically real. What made it all the more special was that my teammates were there right beside me. We all had our heads hanging out of the train in awe!
We made it to the top and started to hike. I don't know what it is, but this team just loves to take pictures. We stopped on one cliff and had a photo shoot. We took photos in just our bathing suits in the freezing snow. There was one shot where the team had their backs facing the camera while looking in the distance at the massive landscape. That photo to m represented what a part of our team is about. It was a very humbling moment that no one can ever take away from us.
We went on to play in the snow. Alex Miller got stuck so the team had to help pull her out. Some of us jumped in and dug her out of the snow and that turned into a big snowball fight. We just had a blast being inside that mountain. We continued to explore the Alps then got back on the train to head back down.
While water rafting was next on our list, on the train ride down we took a power nap to get ourselves rested for what was about to happen. I've never been rafting in my life. I've only seen it on TV and in magazines. Let me tell you how psyched I was when I saw all that cold water rushing down the streak, hitting massive rocks. In just a few hours I would be on a boat trying to dodge those rocks.
We arrived to the site and were instructed on what to do. We were required to wear wet suits!!! We all began laughing at one another because of how tight they fitted. We put on our helmets, jackets, life jackets and boots. We had a demonstration of what to do and not to do on the raft.
GAMETIME! We made it to the river and got our raft ready. We all had seven people including the instructor in the raft. Without the instructor in the raft, we'd all be overboard in the water. In my raft were Iman, Heather, Laura, Alex, Rashanda and Italee. We had a pretty strong group.
We did everything together, had our own rafting chant, carried our boat to the river, rowed in sync. Whenever the instructor yelled "left forward", the left side of the boat would stroke forward. Same for backward. When we hit a drop he'd yell "down" and we'd all tuck ourselves in the boat. To recover he'd then yell "everyone up" and we begin paddling. This water was EXTREMELY COLD. The first drop we hit soaked us all. It sent an adrenaline rush through my body and right then I went into a zone. I felt like I had been doing this all my life.
It was a great team building experience. As we continued down the stream we found out that Jessica had fallen out of the boat. We were all laughing. She seemed to find it funny herself. I lost my paddle on the second drop but recovered it. The stream was very violent but I managed to say in the boat.
We reached the end of the stream that connected to a lake. This lake by far was one of the most captivating views I have ever seen. The lake stretched toward the mountains. It was wide and the water was nearly blue! The last thing we had to do was jump in the lake from the raft and swim to the edge. Heather was the first to flip, then Iman, Laura, Italee and finally Rashanda. Bless her soul she screamed so loud when the cold water pierced her body. I jumped in and we all just started to swim. At that moment I just floated in the water and closed my eyes to soak it all in. It took us 10 minutes to reach the edge. I yelled for John, our instructor, to pull me back into the raft. My feet were getting too cold.
Today was the most fulfilling, unforgettable experience in my life. We all managed to make it out of the raft. We ended the day with a cookout - chicken and hamburgers, salad, potato salad and chips. We fellowshipped with one another and headed back to Lucerne.
Today I made memories that I will never forget. We are headed to Germany tomorrow and return to Chapel Hill on Tuesday. Time flies when you're having fun!
