I arrived back in Finland on Wednesday morning after a few blizzard filled days in Stockholm and an icy 17 hour trip across the Baltic Sea. I found out later that my Viking Line ship was one of the last ones to make it across before boats started freezing in the ice packed waters. Ice breaker vessels have been working hard to clear a path in the sea, so it should be an interesting trip back over to Stockholm.
My trip back to Seinajoki was like returning to a home away from home. It was great to see the management and veteran players once again and meet some new faces along the way. I even felt a few jitters as I jogged out onto the field to begin the first practices of the 5 day camp. After a few drills, it was like I had never left. The players responded very well in the camp and our attendance reached 30 players for the Saturday meetings and two a day practices.
In truth, we have lost a few guys to retirement, but there are some promising young players who are looking to step in and get the job done. I was reintroduced to the Finnish tradition of "sauna" on Wednesday night and then again at a team function/dinner on Friday night. I definitely missed this slice of Finnish life. There is nothing better than sweating out some stress while sitting in a hot sauna on a cold winter night in Scandinavia
Most of my time here has been focused on football and the meetings and practices that are associated with a camp experience. However, I did have some time to go to dinner with some friends and talk about our anticipation for the summer of 2010.
Now, it is time to head home and cross the icy Baltic waters once again. In just 7 weeks, it will be time to repack the suitcase and prepare for my return.
Lights out.
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