Check out the new pictures from the trip from Turkey to Armenia!
[slideshow id=1]
We just uploaded many videos from the last two weeks in Washington DC and Florida! Come check out our youtube site!
Armenian participants' arrival at Dulles Airport
Sunday January 30, 2011
Yesterday we finally arrived to Washington. We were so exhausted but also happy because our program has officially started. We arrived at 4-H Youth Conference Center. We all were happy to see our friends again. Because we all were so tired we went to sleep immediately.
We had our first workshop with Simay and Professor John. We discussed a lot of things. Then we played a game. It was fun! We imagined that there was a river and the whole group had to pass it walking on only papers without falling in it. Then we met Florian. He also used to play basketball. We discussed the main idea of basketball. He made us understand that through basketball we can understand life, make strong friendships and, what’s the most important, to play not only for you but for the whole team. We asked him loads of questions about his basketball career and he was glad to answer. Then we went to watch St. John’s College High School practice. We like the way they train because they work very hard and are very serious about basketball. After that, we talked to the players about the high school sport system in America. We’ll watch their game on Tuesday. I hope they will win!
In the evening we had our last workshop with Simay. In the workshop we split into groups and thought up rules to invent a new game. As James Nay Smith formed the rules for basketball in the end of the 19th century, we tried to create a game together. We did not do it as well as him, but it was fun!
Monday January 31, 2011
Participants taking a time out at practice with Coach Craig Esherick
Today we had our first practice at Rockville Sportsplex. It was perfect because our Coach was Craig Esherick. He was the head coach of the USA Olympic team in 1988 in South Korea. We couldn’t even dream about practicing with him. Just after lunch we went site-seeing around Washington. We saw one of the most important buildings in DC, the residence of government, the White House. We took a lot of photos in front of the White House! We also saw the Washington Monument. It is so high!
Then we went to watch the Georgetown Hoyas and the Louisville Cardinals. We were surprised to see such a big court because we have never seen a court that large for basketball. Some of us were supporting the Cardinals, but in the end the Hoyas won!!!
Tuesday February 1, 2011
Meeting at U.S. Department of State with Assistant Secretary Ann Stock
Today we met our old friend Gheorghe Muresan. We had really great memories from our time in Turkey with him. While we were practicing with him, I remember our feeling when we saw him for the first time. We also went to the US State Department to meet with the organization that funded our program. We talked about our camp in Turkey and the US. We thanked them for organizing this because this program gave us the opportunity to meet and communicate with new people as well as represent our countries.
After the meeting we returned to the Rockville Sportsplex for a practice with Gheorghe. Gheorghe brought another coach with him, Eddy Jordan. We learned new skills for defense and had a great time.
As you remember on Sunday we watched the St. John’s practice and today we returned to watch their game against the Dematha High School. Although St. John’s lost, they played very well!
Wednesday February 2, 2011
Love! Peace! Unity! And having fun! We started our day like this in our hip- hop class with Joy of Motion. In this class we learned new dance skills. Then we created our own dance.
Keep checking back for more updates!
Participant of the Turkey-Armenia Basketball program with coach Eddie Jordan
The participants of the Turkey-Armenia Basketball program are having a great time in Washington, DC! They’ve worked with talented coaches such as Craig Esherick (former head coach of the basketball team at Georgetown University) and Eddie Jordan (retired American professional basketball player and former coach of the Philadelphia 76ers, Washington Wizards and Sacramento in the NBA).
They’ve also worked on their movement skills at the Joy of Motion studio, engaged in team building workshops with Dr. John Ungerleider and visited popular landmarks in Washington, DC like the White House.
Click on the You Tube icon on the right hand side of the page to watch videos of their experiences. And keep checking back for more updates!
After an exciting and productive program in Turkey, we look forward to re-uniting the participants of the Turkey-Armenia Basketball program in the U.S. In a matter of days, the participants will be together again to attend clinics, NBA basketball games, college basketball games and interact with high school basketball players in America.
Administered by
Funder
Funded by the
US Department of State,
Bureau of Educational
and Cultural Affairs
Partner
wl-admin
Amanda Bischoping