Days 8 and 9 - May 24th and 25th

I woke up this morning relieved that coach cancelled practice because we got back so late the day before. I also think it had something to do with the club having its 100 year anniversary and the countries 200 years anniversary the next day. The only thing we had on our plate was to show up at the club at 9 for the opening of the club museum that they've been working on for while. I spent most of the day watching movies and reading a book. Fabri called me at about 5 and wanted to go shoot but wanted somebody to shoot with and he knew I wouldn't say no. We went up there at about 6 and shot for about 45 an hour. We couldn't do a lot of drills with movement because the floor was so dirty from them installing an air conditioner. I guess it gets really hot in this town in the summer and that’s during the middle of the season. Fabri was telling me that it gets so hot and humid that they sometimes have to have the games in the morning when it's cooler because the floor is so slippery. After shooting I went back to the hotel to get washed up and ready for the celebration. I didn't think we were going to be there long so I didn't eat before. When we got there the first thing I saw was this huge projector on the wall that had a countdown with 3 hours left on it. It was like new years. With a half an hour there had to be close to 4 thousand people in this old gym. There were speeches giving and a band to play music. I realized I was going to be here for while so fabri and I went to the hotel to eat around 10:30. We came back at an hour later in time for the countdown. These people were going crazy waving flags, sports jerseys, jumping up and down, and standing on their chairs 20 minutes before the midnight and who knows how long after. It was cool seeing a town so supportive and proud of their club. They also had a big fireworks show. The next morning came quickly. I got some breakfast at the hotel and rested until lunch. I’m glad a have fabri because he found out and told me that I’d have to eat at the other place the team eats at because the hotel restaurant is closed today. I walked over to his house and we went and ate. It took a while to get the food but it was. I had spaghetti with pesto sauce and piece of grilled chicken on top. After lunch I went back to the hotel to rest before practice. Practice was good but I felt like I was running through water. My legs didn't wake up till the end of the practice. The last game I played well and hit the game winner. After practice fabri and I asked coach if he could drive us to one of the only restaurants open being it was a holiday and he did. Fabri ordered empanadas (which are a traditional Argentinean dish) that were filled with ground beef and spices and I think a raisin or 2 to as some sweetness. They were really good. As we were waiting for our food the owner came out and starting talking with us. You could tell he loved what he did by the way he talked about food. He told us on Saturdays they have this "buffet" where they serve fiambres. It wasn't explained really well to me but it sounds like there will be a variety of meats (salamis, hams, beefs, chicken, sausages, etc) as well as cheeses. They told us that if we wanted to come that we needed to let them know because it was usually packed and they would need to save a table for us. I said yes before fabri could say anything. Anybody that knows me knows that I love food. Ha-ha. The owners so were nice, they even gave us a ride home. That is one thing I love about the Latin American culture. They are so giving. So off to the hotel I went to turn in for the night.

Outside of the workout club

Outside of my Hotel

The street I walk down everyday

Zuccardi Vineyard

The staple wine Santa-Julia

Wine tasting room

Part of the vineyard

7000 wine barrels

Day 5 May 21s, 22nd, and 23rd

Uneventful night and morning, Ate the usual breakfast, lunch (didn't have a morning practice), and rested before practice. Practice was the same as usual but my team got stomped in the one game we played. No excuses and earned it. We also had it at 6pm instead of 7pm because we were leaving at 11pm to go to a city called Mendoza to play a friendly game against a team that was put together there. So I headed back to the hotel to eat and get packed up. Before I left the gym the coached asked me if I wanted them to take my basketball shoes. I told him no that it was ok and I’ll take them myself. I guess that's one thing I’m' trying to get used to; a professional team that take care of washing you practice and game gear. I kind of like it. Fabri told me they would take my shoes and give them to me at the game and that they do it for the whole team. I’ll take advantage of that next time. It makes it easier to pack. So I get back the hotel back and pack and eat and head for the bus. The bus is really nice. It’s got about 5 really comfortable seats in the front with little table in between some them. The back is full of bunks. With 2 on the floor we slept 11 back there. They were all made with pillows and sheets. The trip was supposed to take about 10 hours but it took 12 because we were behind slow trucks and couldn’t pass. half of the team including the coaches sat more in the front and 5 of us (fabri, Juan, Andres, emi, and I) sat in the back playing Uno till we got tired and then slept the rest of the way there. I woke up before most of them and started a book I brought. when fabri wakes up he informs me that the city of Mendoza is at the base of the Andes mountains (makes me think about the movie "alive") and that it's not far from the highest peak in Argentina (he said about 7,000 kilometers). Unfortunately when we got there it was cloudy so we missed out on the view but it was nice to see a big city again. We get to the hotel about 1pm and grab lunch/pregame which consisted of 2 big slices of quiche (one spinach in crème sauce and one ham and egg) and spaghetti with tomato sauce and a white cheese grated on top. That’s when they dropped a surprise on us. They told us to go rest for about an hour and a half and be back down to the lobby at 4 because we were going to go tour a famous winery nearby. I thought it was kind of weird being on a game day but I didn't question. I think it was out president’s idea. So I go to my room and flip through some the channels and on every other channel they have this parade going on. Come to find out on this next Tuesday Argentina will 200 years old and they are celebrating for the whole week before. I don't know what it will be like in Sunchales but BA (Buenos Aires) was parting. I ended up watching watch an episode of friends, two and a half men, and the big bang theory. I head down to the lobby and meet one of the other Americans who had just flew in. His name is Tyler field and he's from a small city about 1 hour north of San Francisco. He has been playing and down in Argentina for 8 years. He married an Argentinean girl about 3 years ago and got his citizenship last year. They a young girl and one on the way and they live in Buenos Aires where he flew in from. So we jump in a van and head to the winery. It took about 30 minutes to get to the exit for the winery. It was 7 kilometers off the highway and all 7 kilometers for as far as you could see were filled with grape plants and olive trees. Really beautiful. We arrived at the compound called bodega familia zuccardi. We walked in the gate and took a right went to the where the tour starts. We had about 5 minutes so we walked around the store they have. The whole building were in was made of wood. Lighter than cherry and beat up a little. Very rustic and dimly lit. So are tour guide shows up and she takes us through the whole process starting where the grapes get dumped after they are picked. She walked us through the process till they were barreled for aging. I’m glad Tyler shower up because he speaks both English and Spanish fluent so he was able to fill in a lot of what I wasn't understand (which was quite a bit). She then walked up into the tasting room which was attached to shop were in before we left. Everybody was a little on edge about tasting in front of the president before a game. He didn't care at all and urged us all. The served 3 wines (white, red, and a sweet dessert wine). I only tasted the dessert wine because that is what my wife likes on occasion. I was going to get some but trying to keep it safe through china would be almost impossible and Tyler said they sell most of their stuff in trader Joes. After tasting a bunch of the guys bought some wine and we headed back to the hotel to change and leave for the game. We only had about 15 minutes before we had to leave. We get to the game and everybody is tired. But we get ready and go take care of business. The team wasn't that good but they've been playing together a lot longer that we have. We had a lot more talent and we got stronger as the game went on. We ended up winning 92-77. I started off shooting bad but came back in the second half. I ended up 13 points, 5 reb, 5 assists, and 3 steals in about 25 minutes. The website said I had 9 but everybody points were off. The coach was happy with the win but knew we had to get a lot more intense and crisp if we were going to compete in the tournament in china. After the game we showered up at the hotel and went to a restaurant were the other team was at as well. It was a BBQ place like I ate at the other day but nicer. We all got full but we didn't leave the place till 3 in the morning! That was the presidents doing. It looked like we couldn't leave till he was ready and he was having a good time and he was also drinking a little. Come to find out Argentinean like wine like Mexicans like their beer. I couldn't believe how many bottles of wine these people went through but nobody got out of control at all. Right before we left it started to hail and rain really hard and everybody ran to their car to try and move them under something. I guess they get pretty bad hail storms out here. This one didn't end up being one of them. Just a lot of rain. We finally left at 3am like I said. We played a couple games of Uno and hit the bed. I again woke up earlier than most and earlier than I expected, 10am. We still had 5 hours left in the trip so I grabbed my book and read. While I was readying my coach asked me if I wanted some ma-te which is tea. They serve it quite differently. They have a little cup in which they pour the tea mixture (what you would probably find if you ripped open a tea bag) and pack it to the brim. Then they pour a couple ounces in the cup. They have a special straw and it is pinched on both sides so you don’t get the tea and not the tea mixture. It reminded me of passing a peace pipe around. After one person finished their couple ounces then more would be put in the tea pot and it would be passed to the next person. I asked if there was a special purpose to the tea (is it supposed to relax you or give you energy?) and they told me that there was nothing special about it and that it was just tea. Kind of cool experience though, and good for bonding. After my tea and went back to my book and until my Uno opponents woke up and we played till we got back, which was 4 Sunday afternoon. So here I sit after taking a shower waiting for the restaurant to open so I can eat and come back and get caught on some much needed sleep. Love you family and miss you all!!

Lainey's first soccer game

Sunday May 23rd

Lainey and Chloe at their first soccer game =)

My first 10k run was today and it was wonderful I did way better than I thought I would I ran the 6.4 miles in 1hr 12sec. Then Andrew and Lainey came and did a 1/2 miles run and they were so awesome Lainey killed it she ran so big and while she was running she said "mom, mom I'm tired" and I said "Do you want to stop" and she said "NO" and ran the whole thing. Andrew was so ready he started out really strong and then got a little tired but he still finished strong. I was so proud of them they did so great.

Day 4 May 20th

Woke up this morning around 8 and forced myself to go back to sleep for an hour cause I couldn't fall asleep last night again. Our practices don't end till 9 so I don't eat till 9:30 usually (last night 10) so I think my body just takes a bit of time to wind down. Anyways I got packed up for weight and a shooting practice and headed down to eat the usual breakfast. I didn’t see the mini fridge the first couple days but it had some cheese and ham in it so I put that one some toast and it gives me a little more fuel than just jelly. After breakfast I headed off to practice. Nothing new. Just weights and then we paired up with teammates to shoot. I was with Marcos who plays point and 2 guard. He one of the few guys that speaks a little English. My shot felt good and I beat him in the one contest we did. It’s tough because you have to be focused because everyone can shoot open shots here. After practice I got some shots up with one of the point guard’s emi (spelling). Walking back felt good. Its shorts and t shirt weather for me. 65 and a bit humid. I showered up when I got back to the hotel and watched the rest of a movie that I started last night. I think it was hot tub time machine. Pretty hilarious. Right after the movie I got a call that my food was ready do I took my iphone with me a made a bunch of calls while I ate. My phone shows up an unavailable or 0012345. So if you see that answer because it's most likely me. For lunch I had round ricotta filled ravioli. It also had some pieces of bacon or pancetta (Italian bacon) in the cheese. The dish felt a little undercooked to me but I ate it anyways. I also had milaneza again but it was chicken not beef. If you order just milaneza its just beef. To get chicken you order milaneza suprema. It was really good. After lunch I sat out by the pool and played a Sudoku on my iphone. The sun wasn't out but the fresh air was nice. I went back to my room and rested till practice which was good. We went over the plays and scrimmaged a bit. My team won all three scrimmages. After scrimmaging I got some more shots up, stretched and came back to hotel to eat my usual late dinner. Dinner was really good. I had gnocchi which is potato pasta with tomato and white sauce mixed. I had them put some steak on top. After dinner I had some ice cream and that put me into a food coma. I was stuffed. After I got back to the room I realized my room hadn't been cleaned since I’ve been here. It really hasn't needed it but it's getting there. I asked fabri about it and I guess I have to leave my key at the front desk while I’m gone. I’ve looked forward to talking with my family all day because Lainey had her first soccer practice which finally came around 1am my time, which was ok because I don't have an early practice tomorrow. It sounded like she had a lot of fun running around with her best friend Chloe who is on the team as well. Reena said she got upset when someone stole the ball from her. She’s gets her competitive nature from her mama. I can't wait to get back and watch her. Got to get some rest now. We have one more practice tomorrow and then we head out to a city called Mendoza to play a practice game there. One of my teammates told me the city is at the base of the Andes and isn't far from the highest peak which is 20,000ft or more.

Day 3 May 19th

Woke up at 10am this morning. I couldn't fall asleep and ended up knocking out at 2:30 am which I’m glad weights and shoot around were optional. I went to eat breakfast (the same thing as yesterday) came back to the room and decided to go get a couple of shots up. I got dressed and went to the club were fabri was lifting some weights. He said if I wait a couple minutes for him that he would shoot with me. I was waiting in the weight room with him doing some abs and lower back stuff on a mat. After about 10 minutes fabri took off to his house to meet the guy who was hooking up the internet. He said he'd be back and then we’d shoot. I finished my workout and decided to go shoot because I didn't want to be there all day. I got 20 minutes into my shooting drills and he walks in the gym mad cause they guy didn't show up. He said it was typical here in Argentina and I told him that's the way it was in Mexico as well. It’s funny because they don't even call. They’ll show up later ready to do whatever their supposed to do like they never missed the first appt. So we shot together of another 30 minutes and I headed back to the hotel to get cleaned up and eat lunch. Walking to and from practice is nice. It only takes me about 10 minutes but it a nice warm up and I get to see a bit of the city. A couple things I’ve noticed are that there are probably as many little motorcycles and bicycles as cars on the street. I haven't seen a car bigger than a ford ranger here that wasn't strictly meant for hauling materials. I’m not sure if the need isn't there or gas is that expensive. I saw a gas station and after doing the math I think it's about $4 a gallon. Also instead of speed bumps there are speed dips. If you didn't see them coming or know where they were you could really mess up your front end. There are lots of stray dogs that steer clear of you. Not sure why cause I haven't seen anybody beating or mistreating them. And the sidewalks seem to be the property owner’s option to have one or not. On the corners it's usually grassy. I’m not sure this is typical of all Argentina. When I got back I got a chance to see the family on Skype. My daughter Lainey asked if I could just come home for a minute to play with her outside and then I could go back to work. I love her so much! I tried to explain that I couldn't but by the time I was done explaining she was on to something else. I then lunch with consisted of a chicken breast, plain white rice with parmesan cheese, and a salad that consisted of cut up tomatoes, lettuce, and what tasted like vinegar and lemon juice. The chicken was a little dry which wouldn't have been as bad if they brought what I ordered which was the same thing with a creamy mushroom sauce on top. That’s ok. I didn't do anything about it because they bring me my food from across the street and I was being lazy. After lunch I head back to my room to and try to get on the internet which isn't working and I’m not sure why. They are doing construction somewhere in the building but because everything is tile it always sounds next door. I eventually went down to the lobby and the guy at the desk reset it for me. The rest of the time before practice I relaxed and started to watch the movie "legion". The internet is slow so I let it download while I was at practice. Practice was good. We did the usually stretch, warm up, and shooting and then we went over the systems half court and full court. I got a little winded after the second but a good winded. My team won all our games except one. After practice I talked to the coach for a second and asked him there was anything he wanted me to change. He told me to shoot more and that he trusted my decision making skills. So that was good. After practice I found out one of the guys that's been practicing with us is leaving tomorrow to play with the national team in some tournament in San Antonio. He wanted to eat at an Argentina parrilla or a BBQ and invited me to go with him and a couple guys from the team. It was really good. It was kind of an all you can eat place. They just kept bringing out mini BBQ's with different cuts of meat on it. The first that came out shocked me a little. It had tripe (intestine), kidney, some sausage as well as a blood sausage. I ate a little of everything and it was all surprisingly good. I’m not sure I would eat much more kidney but the rest was ok. the next to come out was I think brisket but it tasted like they boiled it first and threw it on the BBQ so the outside could get crispy. When they asked for another cut they said they were out of everything else so we kept eating the brisket till everyone was sick. For the sides they brought 2 dishes that I’ve never seen before. One was French fries that after they were done were thrown in a pan and eggs were cooked with it. Odd but good. The other was grated carrots with scrambled eggs lumped in the middle. I don't know what it is with eggs but I’m sure I ate enough protein for the week. As we were leaving my teammates pointed this huge concrete fenced compound that was the house of the richest guys in the area. They said he was the owner of the biggest insurance company in Argentina. That was the other company that I could remember in my first blog. Know I’m back at my hotel winding down watching the Lakers beat up on the suns. Got to rest up because tomorrow is a double practice day.

here is the web site...you can put down that you can copy and paste the article spanishdict.com and get a translation. http://www.sunchalesbasket.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=933&catid=1&Itemid=2

day 2 may 18Th
got a good 8 hours of sleep and didn't need my alarm. i sat there for a bit gathering my thoughts and decided to see what they had for breakfast. i get down there and it's not bad. i ended up eating an apple, toast and jelly, and some juice. they had some little croissants and some yogurt you drink. i couldn't do it. i then headed back to get ready for my 10am practice. when i got back i got a phone call from my agent in Brazil. he told me that he talked to the owner and that they were going to switch me rooms so i had Internet and i would be eating at the hotel (both of which i knew by now, but i didn't tell him that). he also said the owner watched the practice the night before and liked me so far. we have a friendly game this Saturday and I'm sure that will be what they are wanting to see. I'm not worried only cause i tell myself not too. I'm going to give it my best and try to fit in and if they don't want me after that then it wasn't meant to be. by 9:30 i i was waiting in the lobby and nobody came. since i walked home the night before from practice with my teammate fabri i had an idea where it was but i didn't know I'd be walking this morning so i didn't pay that close attention. i ended up asking the hotel manager and he threw me a map. if i did it on my own i would have gotten close but not all the way there. on my way i realized i had mis-packed. it was freezing! i brought 2 long sleeve shits (1 dress shirt) and one pair of jeans. oops. i walk in they are all looking at me like I'm crazy. i told i forgot warm close and china was supposed to be hot and they were laughing at me. fabri told me the guy that has all the layer gear was in Buenos Aries getting things ready and wouldn't be back till tomorrow so he let me borrow a sweatshirt till then. practice consisted of weights and some shooting drills that were full courts to get a good sweat. there were teams of 3 and my team won 3 out of the 6. fabri and i also took some extra shots after practice. my shot felt better today but not where I want it to be. after i get back from practice i order food from the receptionist cause the restaurant isn't open yet but the kitchen is. i got a milaneza (breaded and fried meat; in this case beef) with a red sauce, ham, and cheese covering it. when i ordered it i thought it was going to be more like parmesan chicken but it was really good anyways. it came with mashed potatos and a salad. In between ordering my food and getting it i was able to switch rooms. the new room does have Internet but it's not as updated. I'm not complaining cause it has everything i need. one thing i appreciate is the water pressure. everywhere I've lived in Mexico always has bad water pressure. ahh, the little things. after eating i came bad to my room and relaxed before practice. watched an episode of the office (miss you Hun!!), and some espn online and wrote some e-mails. practice is good. we warmed up and stretched and then did some shooting drills with teams of 3. i didn't shoot well at all. it was frustrating. i think i was just just out the weights from earlier in the day. then we played some 3 on 3 situations that were parts of the plays that we would be putting in later. my team won all the competitions but 1 i think. i played way better than i shot and i felt like the team i was with had good chemistry. i do like the style of play down here. if your open you get the ball most of the time and they expect the same. it's a bit different than Mexico. you pass the ball and your not getting it back most of the time. after practice fabri came to eat with me again at the hotel. i had some roasted piece of beef with a white sauce, mashed potato's, and french fries (i know weird combo but i didn't have a choice today cause they had a big group coming in today i guess so we ate what they gave us). then for dessert we had this half vanilla half chocolate ice cream dipped in chocolate with a caramel sauce on top with a wafer. really rich but good. after dinner i headed back to the room were i showered up and turned on the Orlando/Boston game. so here i wait for Reena to get home to i can see my lovely family on Skye. talk to you tomorrow everyone!

Argentina May 16th & 17th

So for the next month I will be posting some blogs from Robert about his time in Argentina and China so enjoy =)
day 1 may 16-17Th
the first flight to Dallas wasn't bad considering i was in the middle seat. good think i had a book and sleep to catch up on from the previous week getting ready. the only thing was every time i closed my eyes i saw my family (which isn't a bad thing). on the layover i ate at cousins BBQ. it was really good and i figured i have no clue what the food is going to be like so I'd better get a good last meal. the second flight was almost as good as the first considering it was almost 3 times as long (10 hours). i usually try to make sure I'm the last one on the plane so i have my pick of whats left. i got this seat where i could stretch out my legs. we also had our own individual TVs where we could watch what we want. i ended up spending most of my time watching the tooth fairy, lovely bones (weird one), reading my book, and cat napping. i got into Buenos Aries about 7 or 8am i think. I got through customs fine but had to pay a new foreigner tax ($131!) which you only have to pay every ten years i guess. oh well. i then found my driver Miguel who had my name written on a piece of paper. i had a hard time understanding him cause the accent down here is more Spain Spanish than Mexican Spanish as well as having a bit of a different vocab. we did OK though. OK enough to find out i still had a 6-7 hour drive ahead of me before i even got to my destination (charules ??? spelling). the way here reminded of a mix between I-5 and where we hunt birds in eastern Oregon. lots of game birds and very rural. i don't think i saw a building for over 250 miles. it was crazy. it sounds like all the cities are far away from each other. when i got here my driver dropped me off at the hotel and they didn't have a room for me. they told me that the gm was looking into another place and that i should wait. i pulled out my book and 30 minutes later the receptionist told me they had a room and took me to my there. not a bad looking hotel. a little old on the outside but my room is clean and looked like it just had a face lift. i sat on my bed and tried to relax. by this time it was about 3 or 4pm and i was supposed to have practice at 7. i unpacked a little and tried to get on the Internet. what a surprise, no service! that was the only thing i told my agent that i wanted; Internet in my room. and i don't have an adapter to even charge anything. i started to deflate a little and asked the bell boy if he could help. he told me that he would get me an adapter and that i would have to go to the lobby to get Internet until a room that had wifi opened up for me. so i go to the lobby and he finds me an adapter and i get on the slow Internet and call don on Skye and e-mail Reena. since it would cost an arm and a leg to use my phone from the states i decided to buy Skye credit for the month to call landlines cause i could wait to talk to people just Skye to Skye. after about an hour i head back to the room and it's 6. at about 6:20 i get a phone call and it's the coach (Javier) waiting to take me to practice. he takes me down the street a couple blocks which come to find out is about all of the city. I'm exaggerating but it's only got 20,000 people and 2 companies make up the cities economy (a dairy company and i can't remember the other). they love sports though. they have 2 basketball teams in the 1st division as well as 2 soccer teams in the 3rd division. and the 2 basketball team are about 6 blocks from each other. talk about cross town rivalry. so i get to practice and meet the players and go shoot around for a minute before practice starts. the coach goes over the first week plans and then we go practice. a couple players aren't here and will be showing up throughout the coming week. we stretch and run up and down the court a little. we do some team shooting and play some 2 on 2 and 4 on 4 and it's over. intense but shorter that i expected. and I'm impressed with the players. they all are very skilled. i think i had a decent practice but not my best but I'm trying to cut myself some slack; i just got done traveling for close to 24 hours. there are 2 guys on the team who speak pretty good English. one is fabri who reminds me of pau gasol. we were teammates on 2 on 2 and won all the games. after practice he comes back to hotel with me to give me the run down on eating. i told him I'm not picky and he ordered for us. i guess it wasn't something that was on the menu but they would make it cause he was friends with the cooks. it was really good. rice, vegetables, and a chicken thigh braised so the meat was falling off the bone. it also had some spices and I'm guessing some creme cause it was rich. he also brought out these vegetable crepes with lots of corn in it; also rich. i was so stuffed. we parted ways and i went back to the room and showered and here i sit in the lobby making calls. tired and full stomach. once i talk to family I'll go fall asleep while watching the second half of the Laker game.