Aug. 20, 2001
Becky Burleigh Diary - Day 7

We tried to pack a lot into our final full day in the Netherlands. We did our usual jog & stretch in the morning and then we loaded the bus for a day in Amsterdam.

Katie Johnston, Stephanie Freeman and Mary Ebert at the Dam Square in Amsterdam. Most of the group started the day at the Anne Frank house, while others were taken to the Dam Square. The Anne Frank house is a very popular tourist stop in Amsterdam, so they waited in line for about a half an hour before they could enter the house. The team could split the wait time by visiting a small shop that billed itself as "Amsterdam's Smallest Gallery". The shopkeeper sold drawings she made of the city of Amsterdam. She took U.S. currency, which was a bonus since many members of the team were running low on gilders. Almost everyone is familiar with the story of Anne Frank, but until you actually see the tiny living quarters, you can't really grasp the hardships these people endured while in hiding. It was something the team was glad they were able to experience. After the Anne Frank house, the bus picked up that party and they chose to either go to the Dam Square and shop or visit a fishing village. The ones that went to the fishing village were able to see some working windmills. They also went to some shops that make cheese and wooden shoes. A few pairs of wooden shoes will be making their way back home in our luggage.

Megan McMillan checks out a pair of wooden shoes at pregame lunch.

After picking up everyone near Amsterdam's Central Station, we returned to the hotel for pre-game meal. We then made the short trip to the field for our final match of the tour vs. the Holland National Team.

	The match was part of a sport teachers' conference, so there were a couple of hundred people at the match - by far the biggest crowd of the tour. It all looked like Gator fans, though, since the colors of the Holland National Team are also orange & blue.
The match was attended by a sport teachers' conference.

It was a scoreless first half, but we scored twice in the second half to win the match 2-0. Abby Wambach scored both goals for us. Jan, our bus driver, awarded his player of the game honor to Casey Hamel. I was happy that we didn't give up a goal in the four matches we played vs. women's teams during this tour. During the match, a group of 8-10 collegiate-age men started cheering for us.
	The UF coaching staff talks to the Gator team prior to Monday's match.
	Florida defeated the Holland National Team 2-0 in its final match of the European Tour.

The Gators played the Holland National Team on Monday evening.

	The group took a liking to Stephanie Freeman and called her name all during the post-match stretch. They followed the team to the bus and Stephanie got to sign autographs for her Netherlands's fan club, including signing a couple of the fans' chests.
Freshman Stephanie Freeman following the match.

Florida's bus driver, Jan, gave his Player of the Game award to Casey Hamel following the Holland National Team match.

Eric, our tour guide for The Netherlands portion of the trip, poses for a quick photo with the Gators before bidding the team farewell.

Jan had picked up pre-ordered pizzas, which were waiting for us on the bus. We ate them on the way back to the hotel and Eric, our Netherlands tour guide, bid his farewell to us. Eric is 21-years old university student and is quite popular with the team. I don't think he minds the attention - he spent a good amount of time in the back of bus visiting with the team.

Tomorrow we have breakfast at 6 a.m., then head to Amsterdam for our flight back to Orlando. This is my final installment of our European Tour. I hope you enjoyed reading about the adventures of the Gator soccer team as they toured and played in England and The Netherlands. Hopefully you can come to the Gators' season opener on Friday, Aug. 31 vs. Utah at the Percy Beard Stadium. Tot Ziens from The Netherlands!