The next vacation location was in the capital city of the tiny Atlantic island of Bermuda. On this vacation, I was about nine or ten years old and still had the naivety and innocence of someone this age. As a result, I fed into the rumors and humorous scandals of the “Bermuda Triangle” where planes would fly into the area and get lost, never to be found again. At first I pleaded with my mom not to go and to choose a different location (in retrospect this was so stupid). After her reassurance we still packed and headed out the door towards another fun tropical vacation. Admittedly, I was not 100% convinced as on the plane I did not sleep and was just waiting for something bad to happen. Luckily nothing ever did, and it went on to be one of the best vacations.

Even at such a young age, I could see and understand that everything was so expensive. Being an island and a commonwealth of the crown, almost everything in Bermuda is imported to the island from the UK. As a result, prices on almost everything were much higher than you would expect from trinkets to meals and events. However, getting to experience some of the culture in a former British colony was still a lot of fun. Everyday around 2, there was high noon tea. This meant delicious cakes and cookies along with hundreds of different kinds of tea to explore. To save money, at some point in the vacation we stopped eating lunch and substituted the complementary high noon tea for this meal to hold us over until another expensive seafood dinner.

The best part of the vacation for me though was meeting someone who to this day still supports me in my soccer career. One day at the hotel, I was kicking the ball around with my dad and brother. A team from New Jersey happened to be on the island staying at the same hotel as they prepared for a game against a local team. Seeing me kick the ball around, a player named Ansgar Otto came up to me and started kicking around with me. After a few minutes of messing around, he invited me to his game later that night and gave us his contact information. Of course I went to the game and got to witness one of the best players I had seen up to that point. On top of that, I made a life long friend who happens to live in my area now, and roots for my career now that his is finished.

https://www.worldatlas.com/na/do/18/where-is-puerto-plata.html – Map of Dominican Republic and Puerto Plata

As a ten year old, one summer my family and I took our second vacation to the Dominican Republic to visit the city of Puerto Plata. Puerto Plata is located on the northern tip of the country, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. Staying at a tropical resort, we enjoyed all the activities you expect to come with it: great beach, pool to lounge at, exciting excursions, restaurants with a bounty of options, and great hospitality not only from the resort staff, bit also from the local people when leaving the resort. This vacation is memorable for me because of all the great food I ate, and one excursion in particular that let me see a lot of beauty in the country.

In the Dominican Republic, fish is a commonplace on the table being that it is an island country, especially in Puerto Plata where the town borders the ocean. Chicken, however, is also very popular in Dominican dishes as it is easy to cook and therefore can be combined in many different ways to create a meal. One of my favorite dishes was “pollo guisado”, a chicken based dished served with vegetables and a savory sauce to cover, normally around lunch time. Another one of my favorites was tostones, which is twice fried plantain served as a side dish, or an appetizer.

Photo of Tostones

My favorite part of the vacation was the excursion we took. Early one morning, we took a tour of the countryside and eventually up into the mountains. Along the countryside, there was an interesting juxtaposition of the rich and the poor. The closer you were to the city, the bigger and nicer the properties were. As we got further from the city though, you started to see real poverty. People living in hut-like structures lined the roads, knowing that tourists would be coming through the area. They tried to sell anything they could to our group while on our horses, ranging from flowers for a dollar to waters and other snacks. Once we got to the top of the mountain, the sadness you feel from witnessing that is replaced by awe as you can see the city for miles. To top the journey off, the horses take you back down the steep mountain at an exhilarating pace, making you feel as if you might fall to your death and giving you the thrill of a lifetime.

Photo by “lhvcresorts”

https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/colombia – Map of Colombia

One summer as a vacation, my family and I spent a little under a week in Cartagena located in Colombia. Cartagena is located on the northern shore of Colombia, bordering the Caribbean. It is a city with lots of history and culture and one of Colombia’s most popular vacation places.

During my time there, I enjoyed myself eating various combinations of seafood and chicken dishes native to the country and lounging out at the pool, marveling at how or hotel was shaped like a massive cruise ship. Some days I would try and go to the beach, but it was not my favorite place to relax; the sand loosely resembled dirt and scorched my feet on top of that absorbing all the heat from the beating sun.

My two favorite activities during my time in Cartagena came on my second to last day in the country. First, during the day my family and I visited this island off the coast of the country that was technically still a part of the country. On this island no bigger than a shopping center (and probably smaller than that) live a native non-Spanish speaking people who have been there for hundreds of years, and have isolated themselves from society. They live a traditional lifestyle where they catch and make all of their food, and family is the center of their whole being. Economically, they rely on tourism to bring in extra money, as tourists like us often visit the island and spend a day there. During the day, they prepare food for you, take you snorkeling, and make gifts for you to take home after the excursion is over. After spending time on the beautiful white sand beaches, I was awed by the countless colorful jellyfish out in the water that you could actually touch and hold if you were brave enough. And of course, the food was excellent as the native people were great hosts.

That night, we had the pleasure of taking a carriage through what is known in Cartagena as the “Old City” or “Ciudad Viejo”. This place is where the first people in Cartagena lived. It is marked by its cobblestone streets and old design buildings that line the streets. The most interesting thing about the Old City is the tall stone structure that surrounds the whole city. To give historical context, the stone structure, that has cannons pointing out of it on all sides, was built to protect the city during the country’s successful revolution versus the Spanish empire. Getting to see the historical side of the city was a fun way for me to cap off a great trip.

Image by FC Nordsjælland

One year after playing in Ireland, I was invited back across the Atlantic to play in Denmark for the club FC Nordsjælland (pronounced nor-sah-land), located in the suburbs of Copenhagen, about 30 minutes outside of the city. I stayed for two weeks in the city along with my mom and aunt in my first European style hotel, constructed more like a flat with a small bedroom and even smaller living room. Outside of the hotel room came a difficult adjustment for me. In the beginning of August in Washington DC, it is normally around 90 degrees and sunshine all day. While having learned it was a milder Danish summer than most, the temperature average during my stay was in the mid 50s, even dropping as low as 34 during a game one day. Another challenging nature aspect I had to adjust to was the sunrise. Never before had I visited a place where the sun was coming up at 4:45/5 in the morning, signaling the beginning of the day to the construction crew next door. Combine this with the jet lag I combated the first week, and you have a cranky teenager who was trying to work off of two maybe three hours of sleep.

While in Denmark, I did get to visit and see some interesting places. I waited in line for 1:30 to see Snoop Dogg perform at the famous Tivoli Gardens one night. I also got to eat at a Southern style restaurant with a Danish twist that served some of the best fried chicken and biscuits I’ve had, to my surprise I will admit. Not to mention, eating at Danish restaurants gave me a lesson on their society. There is no need to tip a waiter in Denmark, because a 25% tip+tax is already included in your bill. While this number may seem outrageous, it offsets the fact that the government provides public services like health care free of charge and offers a year long paid maternity leave! One of my favorite parts of this trip was visiting the museum known as Louisiana in Humelbæk, Denmark located north of the capital. The museum has exhibits showcasing beautiful African art among many places, as well as giving a stunning view of Sweden across the body of water separating the two countries.

Image by Visit Louisiana

Lastly, there was the soccer part of the trip, the main reason I was there if you could tell. I was blessed to be given the opportunity to train for a week with the group and play in three games in their preseason tournament against some of the best teams in Denmark, ultimately finishing in 3rd place. Off the field, the language was a barrier. I tried to learn Danish, and for a little could do small words like bathroom, girls, mom, and ball. Otherwise though, I was reliant on a select few players’ broken English to explain drills and activities to me so that I was not completely lost. Thankfully, the guys were great and made the trip much the worthwhile.