NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State men's basketball team will take an 11-day trip to Italy in which it will play three games in addition to seeing numerous historic and world-famous sites.
The NCAA allows teams to travel internationally during the summer once every four years. The team also gets 10 days of practice coinciding with the trip.
"I can remember when I went on an overseas trip going into my senior year here at Illinois State," said ISU head coach Dan Muller. "I remember going overseas and having a whole new perspective on the world. When you see different cultures, you better understand the history of some places."
The trip begins on Wednesday, Aug. 7 when the team boards a late afternoon flight out of Chicago for a direct flight into Rome, arriving on the morning of Thursday, Aug. 8 into Leonardo da Vinci Airport. After arriving in Rome and checking into the airport, the team will begin an afternoon guided tour of the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel.
"The most important part of the trip are the life lessons, the history lessons, and the perspective – it's so valuable," said Muller. "I'm also excited about the bonding experience. Any time you experience new things together, in addition to being some of the only ones to speak English – it brings people together. The whole trip will give the student-athletes an opportunity to build great relationships and bonds."
The next day (Friday, Aug. 9) will feature a team scavenger hunt in the afternoon around Rome, while a day later (Saturday, Aug. 10) the team will take a guided tour of the Coliseum. Later, on Saturday, the team will play in its first of three games on the foreign tour.
"The second emphasis of the trip is the basketball aspect and seeing the student-athletes compete," said the head coach. "We won't have even 10 percent of our "stuff" in, but seeing guys compete, seeing guys play unselfishly, seeing guys cheer for each other, that is a great benefit of the trip."
Sunday, Aug. 11 features a free day in Rome, allowing for those on the trip to explore Rome on their own.
On the morning of Monday, Aug. 12, the team will depart for Florence, and later take a Sunset Promenade Boat Ride in Florence. The next day, Tuesday, Aug. 13, the squad will do a bike tour of Florence, before playing in the team's second game of the trip. Wednesday, Aug. 14 features a tour of Academia and see the Statue of David and a visit to Mercato San Lorenzo.
Thursday, Aug. 15 sees the team arrive in Milan, where there will be sightseeing and a visit to Sforzo Castle and Galleria Vittorio Amanuele before continuing the travel to Treviso where the team will play its third and final game later that evening.
On Friday, Aug. 16 the team will take the train to Venice and get a tour of the city including a Gondola Ride. The next morning, Saturday, Aug. 17 the team will have breakfast and then begin a return trip back to Chicago, arriving back in the states in the late afternoon.
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