Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Basketball Foreign Tour -- Day 6
August 14, 2012 | Cowboy Basketball
Aug. 14, 2012
Day 6 – Goodbye, Barcelona ... Hello, Gran Canaria
After quite a contest Sunday night, the Cowboy Basketball team packed up their belongings at the Eurostar Cristal Palace early Monday morning and headed for the Barcelona airport. The flight was at 7:30 am, so they left the hotel at 5 am, an early morning considering they didn't get back from dinner on Sunday night until around 11 o'clock.
Everyone made it to the bus on time, and there were no issues getting everyone on the flight. The airlines they were flying on – Vueling – is like the American Airlines of Spain. There were at least 25 check-in lines, and all of them were packed with people. It was actually quite amazing that the team made it through check-in and security as quickly as they did.
Getting on the airplane was another experience all in its own. Once through the doors at the gate, there was a spiral staircase down to a bus that would take the passengers out to our plane. This happened three times before the plane was full.
The flight from Barcelona to Gran Canaria took approximately three hours, give or take. There was also a change in time zones, as the Canary Islands are about 150 miles off the coast of northwest Africa and the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The islands are still above the equator, probably at the same longitude as south Florida or southern Texas.
Once on the ground, a very nice tour bus took the team to their hotel, the Lopesan Costa Meloneras. The airport is on the southeast corner of the island of Gran Canaria, and it is in a rather desolate-looking place, lots of sand, dirt and cacti. After about 30 minutes of heading west along the southern coast on Highway GC-1, the team arrived at their hotel. It was learned that the Canary Islands are to the Europeans what Hawaii is to America.
The Lopesan Costa Meloneras is absolutely beautiful. There's an infinity pool right out the back of the hotel lobby that stretches for nearly 100 yards straight towards the Atlantic Ocean. The beach is probably a five-minute walk from the hotel lobby, but the beach is not the main attraction. It is a rocky coastline, with large black boulders serving as the steps to the water.
Once everyone got checked in, the team headed to the 19th Hole, a restaurant just west of the hotel along the boardwalk, for lunch. Everyone on the trip was more hungry than tired, and sleep would have to wait.
After lunch, everyone was on their own to explore the resort, hang by the pool, or simply take a nap. We had dinner at Terrazos, a steakhouse right next to the hotel and with a beautiful view of the ocean. The steak came out in medallions, lightly seared, and then each individual could cook it to their liking on a hotplate that was brought to the table.
The Cowboys play their third game of the tour on Tuesday at 7 pm. However, the location has yet to be determined. There was apparently a huge sandstorm in the Sahara Desert in Africa, and despite being 150 miles away, some of the sand came across the ocean and dusted over the island on Saturday. There is sand all over the tennis courts at the resort, and N.C. State had a game cancelled on Sunday night due to the dust that had gotten into the gym and all over the court. It is the same gym OSU was originally scheduled to play in.
Game time for the contest against the Gran Canaria Select team is schedule for 7 pm local time (1 pm Oklahoma time) on Tuesday evening.
