Holland, Belgium and Germany Trip

If you read my previous post you will remember that my dad is a college soccer coach and takes his team on trips every three years. The next trip they went on was in 2015 and I was again lucky enough to be able to go. This was a 10-day trip to Germany, Holland, and Belgium.

When we arrived, we drove to our hotel in Kamen, Germany. The hotel we were staying at was one that was specifically for soccer teams. This hotel had a field for training, a track and a nice gym.

The next day the team had a training session in the morning. After training, we drove to Dortmund where we had time to explore the city. The city of Dortmund has a lot of history that is reflected in its culture.

Later that night that team had their first match against a semi-professional team. Much like my experience in Brazil, I found these matches to be quite interesting as the opposing players had so much skill and were fun to watch.

The next day we headed back to Dortmund where we were able to tour Signal Iduna Arena, home to professional club Borussia Dortmund. During our tour, we saw all of the club’s trophies, visited the team’s bench and even went inside the locker room. Being able to do this was absolutely incredible.

The stadium itself was very big and one of the things our tour guide pointed out was a part of it called “the wall.” This is a huge seating section where all the passionate fans, dressed in the team’s yellow and black colors, stand and chant very loudly for the entire game.

The day would continue with some awesome soccer action as our next activity was watching a professional game between Erndetebruck and Darmstadt. These are two smaller clubs who were facing each other in a cup match.

Despite the two teams being smaller, what amazed me the most was the atmosphere at the stadium. The stadium was not huge but nonetheless, it was still packed with fans who were passionately chanting and cheering the entire game. This was fascinating as I finally got to experience a European soccer game and it was just how I imagined it would be.

A couple of days later we saw another cup match between Viktoria Cologne and Union Berlin. Vitoria Cologne was the home team and also the underdog in this match. The stadium was much like the last one, small but packed with people and the atmosphere was just as good. Viktoria Cologne ended up winning the game which was awesome because the fans went crazy at the end.

We then traveled to Dusseldorf, Germany. That night, we were able to explore the city and experience nightlife in a German city.

The next morning, the team had a training session with a coach from the first division team FC Koln. After the training session, we stayed for a festival they were having to kick off their season. This festival was very cool as it had had music, food and lots of things to do.

The next day we traveled to Mierlo, Holland. Our next hotel was a lot like our first one as it was exclusively for soccer teams. This hotel has had a lot of professional teams stay at it for training camps or when they had a match against a team nearby.

The hotel was also packed with things to do. It had a bowling alley, basketball court, squash courts and more.

In the morning, the team had a light training session and later would have another game. I also really enjoyed going to these games since I was able to see the clubs' training facilities.

The following day we visited Amsterdam. When we first arrive, we were given a guided tour from which I learned a lot about the city’s history.

Next, we visited Amsterdam Arena which is the largest stadium in Holland and home to one of the most successful clubs AFC Ajax. On this tour, we also visited the team’s bench as well as other parts of the stadium. It was a very cool experience and I would definitely recommend any soccer fan to take a tour if they are there.

Our time in Holland was completed the next day with a visit to the Dutch Olympic Training Center where the team had a training session with two academy coaches.

Our last full day of the trip took us to Burges, Belgium. We first explored the city and had lunch on

our own. Afterward, we went and visited Jan Breydel Stadium home to Club Brugges, a first division team in Belgium. This stadium was not as large as our previously toured ones but it was still filled with a lot of history and character.

As our trip finished up, I headed back to the United States with more exciting travel experiences and stories. I really enjoyed this trip as being able to see three European countries and experiencing the culture in each was incredible. I would definitely recommend visiting these three countries if you are considering going to Europe.