I am currently on a bus en route to Athens after spending the weekend in Dallas, Tx with the UGA Women's Basketball team. It was a pretty good trip even if it did end with an early defeat.
Luckily we did not take a bus all the way to Dallas, Tx but rather a plane. Also, just as a kicker, this particular plane was chartered by the University of Georgia, so we got special treatment. Our bus was allowed to drive onto the tarmac, where we were met by our own security checkpoint. Our bags were checked and we were screened before loading directly onto the plane. It goes without saying that I still haven't seen the inside of an airport! That being said, this was my first plane trip EVER, so I was not sure what to expect. Well, it wasn't bad at all with the exception of the rare occurrence of turbulence. The scariest part of flying was definitely the landing bit. Take off was fun, like a roller coaster. Mid-flight was relatively smooth and relaxed. However, landing was a completely different beast! When the plane begins to slow down and descend, it shakes a lot. Finally, when the landing gear makes contact with the tarmac, it feels like you have just crashed! Nonetheless, flying was a fun adventure!
We had the entirety of Saturday to roam around Dallas as we pleased, so I took full advantage of this time. I started the day with some friends on a failed search for somewhere to eat brunch which ended with eating just lunch at an awesome Mexican restaurant called the Iron Cactus. I recommend the meatloaf as it was pretty good. After lunch, we toured the Dallas World Aquarium, which turns out to be more of a zoo than an aquarium. The first part of the tour was a rainforest theme complete with birds flying around wherever they pleased. It was pretty cool and worth every penny of the $20 price tag. Dinner was, well, interesting. We ate at a joint called Dick's Last Resort. This is no ordinary restaurant. The waitstaff is rude and throws stuff at you and makes goofy looking hats out of butcher paper upon which they write insults such as "I eat my boogers" (I saw this one on a kid that couldn't have been older than 2 or 3! lol). This may sound bad, but it is all a part of the atmosphere. The humor is rather crude at times, but if you are willing to endure the B- food, it is hilarious! After that, I went back to the hotel and hung out with some other friends until like 3am. It was a fun day!
Sunday rolled around and I woke up around 10:30 and walked to McDonald's to get some breakfast because I had pretty well blown my $60 per diem on Saturday's exploits. We met in the lobby of the hotel to leave for the game but before we could leave, none other than the great Herschel Walker appears in the door of our hotel. We all freaked out and swarmed him and requested pictures with one of the greatest Bulldawgs of all time. After the impromptu photo shoot, we left for the game optimistic that we were going to whip Texas A&M and move on to the second game of regionals on Tuesday (and get another $60 in per diem). Well, the game did not go as expected and we lost, thus we came on home.
The band's ensemble was slightly off kilter. We only had two trumpet players rather than the six that we should have had. We were nervous about having to step up and play one-on-a-part, but we pulled it off. I usually play 3rd part, but today I had to play 2nd (and a little 1st on Glory when I forgot the 2nd part). It was very intimidating to play music that I have never practiced in a performance situation, but thanks to a lunchtime rehearsal, it went ok.
The flight home was pretty similar to the one out there, except that it was a good bit quicker! I left out one important (funny) detail about a tradition the band has when it comes to take-offs on band trips. As soon as the plane starts down the runway we start calling the Dawgs "Goooooooooooooooo..." and as soon as we are in the air we complete the cheer "DAWGS, SIC 'EM!!!". I can only imagine what the pilots and stewardesses thought about this, but we found it hilarious.
All in all, it was a pretty good trip. I enjoyed hanging out with my fellow band members and getting to know them a little better in the more intimate setting of Basketball Band.
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