Trip wrapup: Memories to Last a Lifetime

Early morning at the Brussels airport. Tired after an action-packed week!

We've been back in the U.S. for about 24 hours now, and it's been good to be home. The guys had a number of items they were excited to get back in their lives: Taco Bell, Mt. Dew and ESPN Sportscenter were among the tops on most lists. Everyone will be busy looking back through their photos and posting more images to social media. We'll share stories of our adventures with family and friends. And, coach Aaron Aanonsen will start thinking about where he would like to take the next trip, which would be as early as 2017 (per NCAA rules). There is a wonderful story about our trip in the local Luxembourg newspaper here.

One important thing to share is that everyone was impressed with our team. From their play on the court to the way they carried themselves off the court, our tour guides and everyone we encountered during our travels had nothing but good things to say about these ambassadors from Lakeland College. On the same note, everyone we met and worked with welcomed us with open arms. People were please we were visiting, and went to great lengths to make sure we were enjoying our stay. The Luxembourg people have tremendous pride in their country, and they loved this change to show it to some new visitors.

The Muskies and the Musel Pikes before Tuesday's game.

The group explored many amazing sights - the Vianden Castle, the American Military Cemetery in Hamm and the massive, beautiful cathedrals in Trier, Germany, and Strasbourg, France, to name a few. It was also interesting to watch the players (and their parents) who are new to Europe learn the cultural differences. Most places don't have air conditioning, and there are no screens on the windows. As one of our tour guides, Luxembourg native Robert Johanns, put it, "There are no bugs." Eating out was another big adjustment. Restaurants don't deliver ice water to your table as you're seated. In fact, if you ask for water, you're likely to get a bottle of mineral water that'll be added to your bill, so we did a lot of asking for "still" water. And, unlike the U.S. where most restaurants are looking to flip tables quickly, eating out in Europe is a social event unto itself. Meals can stretch into hours, and your server won't bring your check until you ask for it. Frankly, it was a welcome change of pace!

As we return to the "real world" of summer jobs and off-season workouts for our players and the daily grind for the parents, we reflect back on this special week together. I hope you enjoyed reading about our travels.

The view from high atop old Luxembourg City.

Day six: Time to Say Äddi

We just wrapped up a wonderful farewell banquet, capping off this amazing trip to Europe. It's hard to believe our week in Europe has come to an end, and we're busy packing for tomorrow's very early bus ride to Brussels to head home. Our last meal together was a chance for everyone to review a week that was filled with opportunities that some will never experience again. The trip demonstrates the value of studying abroad, even if it's for a week. Giving young people the chance to immerse themselves in another culture allows them to experience all at once the similarities and differences that exist around our world.

The group spent the morning at the Luxembourg American Military Cemetery in Hamm. It is the final resting place of 5,076 Americans who lost their life in World War II, including General George S. Patton, Jr., who asked to be buried with his troops. We heard a fascinating presentation about the Battle of the Bulge in WWII, which was fought over a large section of northern Luxembourg. We had some time to walk through this quiet, moving place and reflect on the amazing sacrifice made by so many during WWII. These sacrifices must never be forgotten.

Members of the team behind Gen. Patton's grave.

Lakeland players taking in the vast number of graves at the cemetery.

After lunch and some shopping in Echternach, which is Luxembourg's oldest city and home to the tomb of Saint Willibrord, the patron saint of Luxembourg, we headed to the Little Switzerland region of the country, which offered the hearty members of the group a 3-mile hike on rocky trails through the beautiful forest in this area. Near the end of the hike is an impressive waterfall, which had everyone grabbing for their cameras. The photo at the top of today's entry is some of the guys sitting at the top of the waterfall.

Several of our players have been joined on this trip by their parents and other family, and it's been neat to see them creating their own special memories. Freshman Jacob Servais and his parents, Tom and Shelly, connected this week with relatives from the Servais family living in Luxembourg, and they visited the town where the Servais family originated. Senior Stan McKenzie and his wife, Mary, made the trip their honeymoon since they were recently married. And today, senior James Oshkeshequoam asked his girlfriend, Kim Awonohopay, to be his wife! What an amazing way to finish up a special week.

We owe tremendous thanks to Kevin Wester and the folks at the Luxembourg American Cultural Society for helping us plan this trip. Kevin, along with Robert and Marianne Johanns (who I mentioned yesterday) put together an awesome experience for our group, and we're very grateful.

I'll make one more blog post tomorrow night when we're back in Wisconsin. We're also going to put together a video highlighting the week, and we'll share that when it's available in a few weeks.

Day five: Memorable Trip to France for the Muskies

The team in front of the flags of the 28 member countries of the European Union.

Our fifth day in Europe took us to our fourth country of the trip as we spent a good portion of Thursday in Strasbourg, France. The basketball portion of the trip wrapped up last night, so these last two days are packed with sight seeing.

A few of the guys outside the massive Strasbourg Cathedral.

The two big highlights of Strasbourg were the incredible Strasbourg Cathedral de Notre-Dame, regarded as one of the most beautiful gothic cathedrals in Europe. It is a massive building that dates back to 1015, and the detail around the cathedral is almost unbelievable. We had a few hours to walk around the medieval old city center surrounding the cathedral, and the group enjoyed the free time to grab lunch, do some shopping and soak up being in France. Most of the group loved watching a street vendor interact with Coach Aaron Aanonsen's wife, Brye, and junior Joey Burris' grandmother - there is a video of that below.

A bit of detail of the exterior of the Strasbourg Cathedral.

Stan and Mary McKenzie enjoy lunch at a picturesque Italian restaurant in Strasbourg.

After lunch, we had a unique opportunity to visit the European Union Parliament. This is a by-invitation only appointment, and our trip leaders from the Luxembourg American Cultural Society made this happen for us. The parliament, which works a lot like the U.S. House of Representatives, was not in session today, but we toured the building, sat in the viewing gallery of the parliament chambers and learned more about how the EU's system works in a conference room used by political parties.

European Union Parliament chamber.

Jacob Servais, Travis Kell and Mitch School in an EU Parliament meeting room.

We headed back to Luxembourg for dinner. We have eaten well all week, but tonight was a real treat! Two of our guides, Robert and Marianne Johanns, live in Luxembourg, and they've done an amazing job of scouting out places for us to eat. Tonight was an Italian spot in Rumelage in southern Luxembourg. The main course was a trio of pastas - spinach and ricotta ravioli with a cream sauce and bacon, penne in a light tomato glaze and beef filled tortellini in a hearty meat ragu. Dessert was one of the creamiest pieces of tiramisu I have ever eaten - and it had our players raving (one of our freshman notes it in the video below). We very much indebted to Robert and Marianna for the amazing hospitality. Their pride in their homeland shows, as well as their desire to make sure we have a great time (and get to the bus on time!)

Tomorrow is our last full day here, and includes what will be a moving visit to the American Military Cemetery in Hamm (which includes the burial place of General Patton), a hike through Luxembourg's Little Switzerland and a farewell dinner back at the hotel. It's hard to believe our week is almost done! It has truly been a memorable time with terrific people.

Here are a couple of videos from today:

Day four: Muskies Storm the Castle and Pick Up a Nice Win

Our players will be hard pressed to find a more picturesque place to take a selfie! Wednesday was a wonderful day in Europe, as the Muskies posted a solid win in their final game of the week, and we saw some of the most amazing scenery on the trip.

Warming up for Wednesday's game in Coque National Sports Center and Arena.

In the evening, the team beat the Luxembourg U18 national team 75-63. This was the same team that beat us on Monday, but Lakeland started the game with a 20-3 run and led 30-8 en route to a nice win. After three full days in Luxembourg, we're all getting used to the time change and to walking around during the day. The teams we have played could not be more gracious, and there is a great deal of interest in our visit here. Pictures from Tuesday's loss to the Musel Pikes can be found here on the Luxembourg TV website. The U18 coaching staff stopped by our hotel after tonight's game to visit. There is great competition on the court, but real respect once the final horn sounds. The games have been a wonderful experience, thanks to our hosts.

The highlight of the day was the stop this afternoon at Vianden Castle, which is one of the most recognized photographs of Luxembourg. As soon as our double-decker bus pulled up to the overlook across from the castle, we knew this was something special and everyone grabbing their cameras. The team shot above is from the overlook with Vianden Castle in the background. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are filled right now with shots from this lookout. As we drove from small town to small town today through steep inclines, winding roads and peaceful lush green forests, it's clear that Luxembourg is a very beautiful place.

Lakeland President Dan Eck and several members of the team look over gifts at a shop in Vianden.

In the morning, we drove to north Luxembourg and enjoyed seeing famous photographer Edward Steichen's "Family of Man" exhibit at the castle in Clervaux. We had a group lunch at a restaurant in Munshausen, dining on a delicious local meal of chopped chicken in gravy over a biscuit, pommes frites (Europe's version of french fries), a salad of greens, a tasty soup to start and the most luscious apple and custard tart for dessert. They are taking very good card of us here!

Tomorrow is shaping up as a special day. We head to Strasbourg in France to visit the medieval old city center in the morning (which we are told is incredible) and we've been invited to the European Parliament in the afternoon. Look for a full report tomorrow.

Here are a number of videos from today, including talks with players Joey Burris and Kurt Jansen, and a visit with Sheboygan native Trent Wurtz, who was instrumental in planning our games here.

Day three: A Trip to Germany and Game #2

Before I share our Tuesday, I wanted to point out that you can comment on these posts or ask questions of our players in the comments section below. If you have some questions you'd like me to ask the guys, please share them.

We'll start with tonight's game against the Musel Pikes, a professional basketball team in Luxembourg. The Muskies used a sharp defensive effort to lead 36-33 at halftime, but ran out of gas in the second half and lost 74-56.

A shot from Tuesday night's game.

The game was held on the Pikes home court in Stratbredimus, and a large crowd came out to watch the American college basketball team and to wish one of their players farewell. Sheboygan native Trent Wurtz had announced that this would be his final pro game. Trent graduated from Sheboygan North High School in 2002, played two seasons at George Mason University and two seasons at Indiana State University before a seven-year career in Europe that included stops in Copenhagen, Spain, New Zealand and Luxembourg. Trent was instrumental in setting up the three games for Lakeland this week, and he joined the Muskies for a post-game dinner at a nearby hotel. After the game, the mayor of Stratbredimus offered a toast to the visitors from the United States. You catch watch a video of his toast at the end of the blog.

The Muskies with Sheboygan native Trent Wurtz (#15 in white in back row).

From left, Trent Wurtz visits after the game with Joey Burris and Justin Ward.

The group spent much of the day in Germany (our third country on this trip) and saw some amazing history. The first stop was Trier, Germany's oldest city dating back to 16 BC during the reign of the Roman Empire. The group visited the massive, beautiful Trier Cathedral, which is the home of the Holy Robe, an artifact that many believe Jesus Christ wore before his crucifixion. You can read more information about this fascinating history here. The authenticity of the robe has not been verified, but it is an important symbol to millions, and several of our players were amazed to be standing so close to a piece of clothing that may have been worn by Christ.

One other interesting sight was the Porta Nigra (Latin for black gate), the largest Roman city gate north of the Alps and an amazing physical link to the Roman Empire. The photo at the top of today's blog has the team standing in front of the Porta Nigra.

There was also time in Trier to do some shopping and grab lunch. And on the bus ride back from Trier, we stopped in Saarburg, a tiny German community that might remind you of Elkhart Lake, where several people feasted on some amazing looking (and tasting) desserts!

Back to basketball for a moment - there is a great photo gallery of shots from Monday night's game located here. These were taken by photographers from RTL, the television station in Luxembourg. These photographers also attended the game against the Pikes, and we'll post that link when it becomes available.

Tomorrow we will explore portions of north Luxembourg, and play the final game tomorrow night.

Here are a few videos to wrap up today's post:

Day two: Learning About Luxembourg, Our Sister School and Game One

Danny Wimmer, Tyler Hass and Travis Kell with the beauty of Luxembourg behind them.

Hello from Western Europe where we've had a terrific day learning a great deal about the rich history and tradition of this small (often overlooked) but powerful country.

Our group spent the first half of the day touring "Old" Luxembourg City, which is the portion of the city that formed after its founding in 963 through the Second World War. We also spent some time in "New" Luxembourg - a bit more on that later. We had a chance to see and learn more about two of Luxembourg's central icons. The first is located in the heart of the city at the Monument of Remembrance, a beautiful gold statue nicknamed Gëlle Fra (Golden Lady) which sits atop the monument. It opened in 1923 as a tribute to the Luxembourg soliders killed in World War I, but over the years has become a great source of pride for a country that always seems to overcome long odds to survive.

One of the amazing views from high atop the stone walls.

The other iconic symbol is a statue of the Virgin Mary located in the massive, beautiful Notre-Dame Cathedral, which was erected as a Jesuit church in the early 1600s and today is a Roman Catholic Cathedral, the only one in this predominantly Catholic country. Our timing was especially good, as Luxembourg is in the midst of celebrating the annual two-week Octave, a religious celebration that centers on the statue of the Mother of Jesus. Luxembourg, like much of Europe, was ravaged by the plague in the 17th century, and the Jesuits prayed to the statue in hopes that their prayers would bring healing to their nation. When the plague began to subside, Mary, "Comforter of the Afflicted," was elected the patroness of Luxembourg City and the statue took an great significance. For the Octave, the statue is at the center of the altar inside the church, and masses, which are said each hour, attract thousands of people who make a pilgrimage to the city.

Another highlight of the day was the tour of the older parts of the city with a special guide, Marc Angel, a member of the Luxembourg parliament. It would be like getting a guided tour of Washington D.C. from a U.S. congressman, which is highly unlikely. (On a side note, Marc is currently running for a seat to represent Luxembourg on the European Union Parliament.) Marc shared with us his amazing knowledge of his homeland as we climbed the steep rock walls which for centuries protected Luxembourg from any outside invaders.

The whole touring group in front of the Luxembourg Parliament. Marc Angel is the third from the right in the first row.

After a lunch of goulash at the Luxembourg youth hostel and a bit more climbing (if you have ever walked around Europe, you know it's not for the weary!), we spent some time in New Luxembourg, which is the home of European Court of Justice and the European Investment Bank. Banks are the primary employer in this very wealthy city, followed by the European Union.

A team photo inside the University of Luxembourg.

Then we headed to the University of Luxembourg, one of Lakeland's international sister schools. Lakeland business professor Scott Niederjohn taught at the university last fall, and a Lakeland student (Paige Gerber) is studying here this semester. In fact, President Dan Eck had a chance to talk with her today when we stopped by the school. Before it opened a decade ago, Luxembourg students who wanted to go to college had to attend schools outside the country. Courses are offered here in English, French and German, and the university requires all undergraduate students to complete a semester studying abroad, which shows the value they place on learning outside their country. Lakeland will be hosting some students from Luxembourg this fall, the beginning of a strong exchange program between the two schools. The university has approximately 6,000 students, including 3,200 undergraduates. The student body is approximately 50 percent international with more than 107 countries represented, making it an amazing campus to learn.

One of the neat things about this trip is the way technology keeps people connected no matter where they travel. Luxembourg has strong wifi throughout much the city, so many members of our group are taking and immediately posting pictures on their favorite social media pages and keeping in touch with family via the web. Before tonight's game, senior James Oshkeshequoam talked with and blew kisses to his daughter back home in Sheboygan via Skype on a tablet (photo below) - amazing!

Sophomore Brandon Hagenow snaps a selfie with a stationary guard.

The day wrapped up with our first game - although the Muskies came out on the losing side of a 76-64 score to the national U18 team. Tomorrow the team will face the Musel Pikes, a pro team that features Sheboygan native Trent Wurtz. In fact, he has announced he will be playing the final game of his career tomorrow, an odd twist ending to be facing the college 20 minutes from his hometown more than 4,000 miles from home. Trent came to tonight's game (as did Kayla Testschlag, another former Sheboygan star playing pro ball here in Luxembourg).

Trent Wurtz talks with Justin Ward after Monday night's game. The two will play Tuesday night.

Coach Aaron Aanonsen gives the team some instructions during a timeout.

Tuesday, we're headed to Germany and a visit to Trier, the country's oldest city, and Saarburg, before wrapping up the night with game #2.

We'll wrap up today's blog with a video visit with three of our freshman who share their thoughts about the trip thus far.

Day one: Moien! Wéi geet et?

For those who cannot speak Luxembourgish - and count me among them! - the title of today's blog translates to Hello! How are you? I'm happy to report that the Lakeland men's basketball traveling party has arrived safe and sound in Western Europe, and we already have a terrific day in the books!

Freshmen Mark Gryszkiewicz, Mitch School, Joe Whalen and Travis Kell at O'Hare Airport.

We had a very smooth trip from Chicago into Brussels in Belgium, and that's where we spent the first half of the day. We bused from the airport to the Grand Place, the central square in Brussels and this city's most important tourist destination and most memorable landmark. It's an amazing collection of classic European architecture and history. The team photo above shows the guys in front of the famed Brussels Town Hall, which was started in the early 1400s, stands 315 feet tall and is capped by a 12-foot statue of Saint Michael slaying a demon.

Coach Aaron Aanonsen (second from right) with some of the guys in the town square of Brussels. 

We strolled around Brussels for about four hours, first as a group and then we split up for lunch. If you're a chocolate lover, a trip to Brussels needs to be on your bucket list. The Grand Place is surrounded by shopping, and it seems as if there is a chocolate shop every other store. A lush taste treat is a Belgian waffle topped with fruit, warm chocolate sauce and whipped cream. Junior Joey Burris sure seemed to like it!

And no trip to central Brussels is complete without seeing the landmark bronze sculpture Manneken-pis ("Little man Pee"), a 24-inch tall sculpture dating back to 1619 depicting a naked little boy urinating into a fountain's basin. The boy is dressed in various themed costumes throughout the year, and a schedule is published on the fencing surrounding the fountain. It's another very popular tourist stop!

Manneken-pis

From Brussels, we took a two and a half hour bus ride to Luxembourg, our home base for this week. We arrived in Brussels at 9 a.m., but our body clocks were still seven hours behind, so nearly everyone took a welcome nap. We checked into the Parc Hotel in Luxembourg City, unwound a bit, then gathered in the hotel dining room for a wonderful welcome meal for the whole traveling party. One of the special parts of the trip is many of our players have been joined by their parents and other family members, and tonight's dinner was a chance for everyone to come together over a meal and look ahead to what will be a terrific week! Our tour guide, Kevin Wester, executive director of the Luxembourg American Cultural Society, has gotten an assist in planning our adventure from Robert and Marianne Johanns, who live here in Luxembourg and are involved with the Society. Robert shared a lot of great information about Brussels today, and we know he'll be sharing more as we dig into Luxembourg tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow, we have a very FULL day planned! We'll be taking an extensive walking tour of Luxembourg City, followed by a reception at Lakeland's sister school the University of Luxembourg. The day is capped off with the Muskies first game against a Luxembourg U18 National Team. Be sure to visit this blog again tomorrow and we'll share the sights and sounds of our day.

Each day of the trip, we'll be talking to the players to get their impressions. Today, we chatted with sophomore Brandon Hagenow.