Great first day.  Sunday, July 11th we had our parent and player meeting and handed out all of our gear.  It really hits the players when they try on the Stars ‘n Stripes uniform.  Reality of going abroad gets the blood pumping.  A light training session to introduce our Brazilian warm up, pretty sure my Sns alumni are rolling their eyes about now.  Kids off to last good meal with the family.

Monday, July 12th, meet at Dallas Love Field, boys in their red SnS tops and black SnS pants.  A few good byes and some long hugs and we are off to our gate.  Unfortunately we lost a player at the last minute to Covid positive test so we replaced him with another staff member, Rachel Hise as Rachel will help us photo the entire group.  So we have 14 players and 3 staff and tons of excitement.  Flight one to Houston, no issues, smooth and simple.  Approx 3 hour layover allows the boys to mingle and chat and start to get to know each other.  They will become extremely close over the next 12 days and one of the best part of our trip.  Flight number two, Houston to San Jose, Costa Rica.  Also smooth but lots of paperwork getting through passport  control but no worries, Coach Ed is organized and has all in order so we go right through without a hitch.  Handed out our first punishment and guess who it is?  Most parents are praying that their son did not get caught first, lol.  And the winner is, Braden Wright, and we will let him inform his parents on the crime.  No worries, I can guarantee that each player will have some form of sit ups or push ups over the next 12 days so be sure to watch the videos and pics.  Arrive at our Hotel Martino and what a palace it is.  Unlike Coach Ed to book such a lavish accomodation but with Covid still hurting the travel industry it was affordable and the boys love it.  Great first meal and no issues getting to bed right away.  Phones are in my possession as well as passports and tomorrow will be our first full  day on tour so wish us luck.  Ciao, Ed

Girls start us off with a barn burner as we tie another US team 2-2

Boys 18 won their first game vs a team from Norway 1-0

Boys 18 have to play again in a few hours and lose to a very good Norwegian team 4-0

Boys 15 tie a Danish team 1-1, should have won.

Girls end the first day losing to an older American team, counted as a friendly 6-0

Lunch and dinner are at the headquarters and its quite good.  No complaints but we walk everywhere and kids legs are tired so need to watch injuries.

back to school for end of day meeting, pass out Player of the Day awards and curfew.  Good first day

wish us luck tomorrow, Ciao

July 13th – day 2 on tour

6:30 am meet and 7 am breakfast so an early start to our day.  And what a breakfast we had.  Typical Costa Rican breakfast with rice and beans and eggs and ham.  Add meat and cheese, bread, pineapple, papaya, etc, and to top if off we ate on the balcony overlooking the property in the sunshine.  Just gorgeous.  Weather is perfect, as we are in shorts and short  sleeves, around 70 degrees in the am.  After breakfast we depart at 8 for training.  First time we get to be on the field together.  Costa Rica is still in Covid protocol so we need to mask up and follow guidelines, etc.  Its ok, boys are flexible and we keep to our group.  Had good session and then toured the stadium where we play our first game on Wednesday.  boys are excited.  back to hotel, change and then leave for  the beach.  We stop along the way to walk across a bridge that overlooked a valley with a river and underneath us were some huge crocodiles, at least 20 of them, and they were awesome.  boys loved it.  Back on the bus and we go to Jaco Beach, but not before we stop so the boys can get some fresh cocunuts and drink the juice.  Nice scenic overlook as well.  Now we find the beach and right to the water they go and body surfing and jumping waves for hours.  Lunch was a local restaurant that served some great Costa Rican cuisine.  We have a rule on tour that you finish your food and clean your  plate but this was hard as the servings were huge.  The boys did the best they could lol.  Back to beach to watch the sunset and jump a few more waves and then about an hour drive back to the hotel and it was quiet ride as the entire group was asleet.  Too funny.  Shower and then dinner at hotel and another great mea.  boys back in their rooms by 9 so they can rest for  Wednesday and our first game.  wish us luck please.  Ciao, Ed

July 14th – game day number 1

Breakfast at 8:30 am and boys are eager to play.  we leave at 10:30 am for our first game at 11:30 vs Carmelita.  We start pretty well but concede a very nice goal and are down 1-0.  Colin Story converts a PK to tie it at 1-1 and right away we concede another goal and once again we are down 2-1.  Colin jumps on a 2nd ball off a defender and buries a left footed volley and we are tied 2-2.  Right before halftime, a bad communication in the back leads to another goal and we end the half losing 3-2.  Made a few adjustments at half and the boys responded as once again Colin scores to tie it at 3-3.  Game is back and forth and another breakdown leads to yet another goal and now we are down 4-3.  A few subs and position changes lead to more chances and guess who, Colin Story ties it up at 4-4.  The boys are eager to win the game and push forward and create some chances but we also give up a few chances before the final whistle as game is tied 4-4.  All in all, a deserving tie as both teams played well and considering its our first game together, very pleased with the result, but could be happier.  A group photo with Carmelita and a great experience for all.  Off to the mall for lunch and some down time and then we return to our hotel.  Some of the boys hit the sauna and steamroom and others chill in the pool before dinner at 7:30.  Food here has been awesome.  The breakfast today was  served on Banana leaves and our dinner was the bomb.  Weather is great as well, hanging around 70-75 degrees, some clouds but no rain.  Boys in bed early as we have a 4:30 am wake up call as we are going white water rafting tomorrow.  Should be a ton of fun.  Sorry for the lack of pics as the website is very slow so I am posting lots of pics on the Stars ‘n Stripes facebook page and Coach Eddie is posting pics and videos on the Stars ‘n Stripes instagram page.  Hope all are enjoying it.  

Fyi, tradition at Stars ‘n Stripes calls for a player of the day after each game and at the end of the tour, the player of the tour gets to keep the jersey.  Similare to Tour de France stage winner wearing the yellow  jersey.  This years jersey is a national team jersey from Costa Rica and today the POD is Colin Story.

more tomorrow, Pura Vida!  Ed

July 15th – white water rafting day

4:30 am wake up and quick breakfast and on the bus at 5 for our day trip. Off to Guapiles River and about 3 1/2 hour drive but scenic, some traffic, but still pretty cool drive.  We had 3 boats of 6, 6, and 5 and yes Moms all had helmets and lifevests on.  We had great guides and they instructed us all about rafting, etc.  2 hours of rapids, then break for lunch and  swimming and another 2 hours of rapids.  The entire experience was spectacular!!!  Truly one of the greatest ecursions of Stars ‘n Stripes in our 35 years. Boys were raving all day and night, on the bus, at dinner, etc.  And speaking of dinner, lasagna tonight.  Food has been awesome, no complaints and best thing is that the  boys are required to  eat every morsel on their  plate.  No snacks to munch on, no trips  to the fridge, just 3 solid meals a day, all healthy.  Been a great trip so far.  Tomorrow we transfer to  Cobano so the boys will all have their phones from 8:30 am on so expect some calls and texts.  I will require all to contact  home as well.  Rest assured all, boys are having a blast as well as the staff. It helps when we have  such great young  men.  Off to bed as we are all exhausted, 9:30 pm curfew tonight.  Big transfer tomorrow so wish us luck.  Pura Vida!!  Ed

July 17th – Montezuma Beach

Our Cabinas are really cool. Small and simple, just beds and a bathroom but it overlooks the Pacific and the people are so friendly here.  6 boys to a cabin, 4 boys to a cabin, 4 boys to a cabin and all are doing great.  We have to bring our stuff inside at night as racoons and other rascals are about.  Training at 7 am as we walk down the steep hill, trust me as I keep bringing it up, it is steep.  Word as spread to the town that we are here and 6 of the local boys join us for training and we have a blast.  We actually agree to play a game against them later this afternoon,  After training we walk but up the hill for breakfast, Costa Rican cuisine again, its awesome.  Rest a bit and then we get a ride down the hill so the boys can shop and see some of the town.  They are getting experienced with haggling but they do well.  Actually, get ready for some cool souvenirs too as they got some cool stuff for the families.  Once again we walk up the hill for lunch and then rest up before we walk down again for our game at 4 pm.  We go up 1-0 as Colin scores again but we get cocky and find ourselves down 4-1.  Izzy gets on the Costa Rican scoreboard to make it 4-2 but they score right away again to go up 5-2.  Tanner scores a nice free kick to bring the score 5-3 and we play great the last 15 but cannot score and end 5-3 but great fun.  Walk back up the hill for dinner and curfew at 9 as boys are dead.   Player of the game was Stephen Lopez.  big game tomorrow so wish us luck.  Pura Vida!!!  Ed

July 18th – game day

8 am breakfast and then depart for Jicaral, about 2 hours by bus,  Jicaral is a great little town and they welcome us with open arms.  The club president meets the group and welcomes us.  We go to a stadium to change but the field is not ready so we go to another field to play, a very nice grass field.  And its hot!!!  Costa Rica is separated into Zones and some zones have lots of rainforest, etc, so the temps change often.  Game time at 10:30 was above 90 and crazy humidity so we decided to play 3 halves of 30 minutes each half.  Very good atmosphere with fans, etc, and both teams are ready to go.  Good start by both with chances created by both teams but Jicaral scores a nice goal and then another and before you know it we are down 2-0.  Colin continues his scoring and we end the first half 2-1 down.  2nd half starts strong for them and they score early and go up 3-1.  Stephen scores from long range to make it 3-2 with about 2 minutes to go.  Somehow we lose our heads and give up a goal with less than 10 seconds in the half and its a killer as we had the momemtum and we are now down 4-2.  Really hurt us with that last goal and the boys are dejected.  You just cannot afford to have mistakes in the last few minutes of a half.  The last half is our best one as we create chances and put passes together.  Unlucky not to score as Tanner hits the crossbar and we miss a few close chances and in the last minute we give up a breakaway and the final score was 5-2.  But its a good game against a very good team.  We go into town for lunch together and then we go to a local beach to unwind and chill before we drive back.  Another great day and a beach is always welcome.  Rest and shower and then dinner at 8 before curfew at 9 pm.  We are getting lots of requests for more games and we are trying to balance rest versus playing and of course the boys want to play which is awesome.  Might have another game tomorrow so wish us more luck.  Player of the game is Tanner Markee.  Pura Vida!!!  Ed

July 20th – Game day

Breakfast at 7 am as we have long transfer for our game.  We say bye to our host Martin and his wife and family as they were great.  We sang to them last night and they are so happy with our boys.  Love their discipline and their behavior.  We really do have some great boys.  Time to pack and we leave at 8 am for Nicoya, which is in a Blue Zone.  Please google it as there are 5 in the world.  A Blue Zone is an area of fantastic lifestyles and they have a high number of centurions, which are people who live to be over 100 years old.  Game at 11 am and its hot again, over 95 degrees and we once again play 3 halves, this time 25 minute halves.  We are getting better and are more organized and we go up 1-0 as Carson Gibbs scored off a corner from Stephen.  We earned that goal and the boys are looking great.  But, and you know what I am going to say, yes its true, we once again give up not one but 2 goals in a quick 5 minute span and end the 1st half down 2-1.  Boys get a tongue lashing at halftime and we have a new goal, no goals in the 2nd half.  We play team defense and it works.  End of 2nd half and its still 2-1.  Now we are getting it.  Once again we commit to team defending in the 3rd half but with a little more attack and once again we earn a corner kick and once again Stephen puts in a great ball and Landon Rodriguez equalizes and its 2-2.  Boys are pumped and we continue to be organized.  We create a few more chances but also almost give the game away in the last minute but game ends 2-2.  Best performance on the tour so far and proud of the boys.  Its hot, really hot and we stop at a market to grab some waters and gatorades to hydrate and catch our breath.  A quick stop in Nicoya at an old church, built in 1490 and surviving earthquakes, etc. We do a quick tour and marvel at the beauty and Coach Eddie explains to the boys what a Blue Zone is.  It really is pretty cool so hope you all research it.  We see a huge iguana and the boys are spellbound by the size as are the staff.  Check out the pics on our social media.  Back on the bus and we hit a Soda on the road, hope you remember what that means, and we have another great Costa Rican lunch.  Personally, I think I am bringing a few pounds home with me.  Now we have about 3 1/2 hours back on the bus but the scenery on the way home is spectacular.  Its like we are in Jurassic Park daily with never ending trees and green scenery.  Monkeys in the trees as we ride the bus too.  Everything is overgrown as the weather in Costa Rica is very tropical and its just awesome.  Recommend a visit here if you can.  People are so kind and so humble and simple and love us being here.  Still Covid Freaked out with masks, etc, but thats ok, we understand and are eager to follow the guidelines, kind of, LOL.  Back to Hotel Martino although I wanted to stop at the beach and see the sunset but only the bus driver, Paulo and myself, were interested in the sunset so I gave in and we drove to Hotel Martino.  I already regret missing out on the sunset.  Darn kids!!!  Dinner at 8 and kids all called or texted home before  phones back in my possession for the last time.  We have another game tomorrow but first all of us are getting a Covid test in the am as required to re enter the USA so wish us luck on all fronts.  Player of the game was Carson Gibbs.  Pura Vida!!!  Ed

July 21st – game day vs. CS Herediano 

last game today and we are ready.  Breakfast at 8 and as usual its great.  depart at 9 for our game which is close, about 30 minutes away, kick off at 11 am and its overcast and cool, actually around 65 degrees.  Perfect as we are a bit worn out from the games and the travels.  Game starts where we ended yesterday, with team defending.  Our goal is not allow a goal in the first 30 minutes as we once again play 3 halves of 30 minutes each.  Not too many chances for either team and first half ends 0-0.  Some of the boys are really hurting so I have to sub often to keep them fresh, etc. but we are very organized and also very vocal which is awesome.  2nd half also ends 0-0 so off to the last half and boys are pumped as they want this win.  On a side note, during the last hafl we on the bench feel an earthquake tremor and it freaks us out.  Players on the field never felt it but both benches were stunned as it lasted about 3-4 seconds.  Crazy I know.  But back to the game now.  About halfway through the 3rd half Stephen breaks on the left side and clips a ball over the outstretched arms of the gk and the boys go wild as we are up 1-0.  Referee is pretty good but for some reason he tells the boys that the last half is now 40 minutes, crazy I know.  After a few words back and forth we agree on 35 so it is what it is.  To make matters worse we have a player get a 2nd yellow card and we play down a man until the ref allows us to put our 11th player back on since its a friendly.  We actually create some chances late as we hit the crossbar and the post but our opponents nail a bomb off the inside of the post as well.  Final score, 1-0 to Stars ‘n Stripes.  Well deserved win and the boys are really pumped.  Really proud of them and their improvement over the course of this trip.  Back to the hotel and then off to the Zoo for a little walking around, seeing the animals, which are really cool, and then lunch on our own at local Soda’s.  Afternoon rest before dinner at 8 and down time.  Some of the boys play pool, others are in the pool and others are chilling by the pool.  10 pm curfew tonight as tomorrow we visit the Paos Volcano, cannot wait for that.  Player of the game is Calvin Lewis as we finally get a shutout.  Still have a few push ups and sit ups as we continue to keep our discipline which is vital as we travel.  Pura Vida!!!  Ed

July 22nd – last full day in Costa Rica

We let the boys sleep in a bit, breakfast at 8:30 and another gorgeous sunny morning.  9:15 departure for the Volcano Paos, which is an active Volcano that last erupted in 2017.  Great drive up and up and the higher we went the cooler it became and the more moisture we encountered.  Ok, it rained like a dog and the Volcano was not visible due to the heavy fog and rain.  Which stinks as we so wanted to see it.  Oh well, need to return.  We saw acres of coffee farms and strawberries everywhere.  We had a prearranged lunch at Freddo Fresas, a great little restaurant and we drank Strawberry juice.  Boys could not get enough as they had refills after refills.  And it continued to  rain and rain.  Our first real rain of the trip.  Temp at the top were  around 40-45 degrees so first time we had to use our sweats and rain gear.  After lunch, we stopped at Starbucks Coffee Farm, its only main coffee farm in the world and most of the boys indulged.  Not me, still hate coffee but the scenery was spectacular which included a waterfall, etc.  Spent about an hour there and then we drove back and stopped at a souvenir store, a really cool one.   More rain and the boys chilled at the hotel and started packing.  Dinner at 8, still raining, and the boys recapped their 2 weeks.  Really cool to hear them speak about their experiences.  We then had our player of the tour, which keeps the jersey and the winner is Tanner Markee.  Well deserved.  A truly great trip with these boys and all enjoyed it tremendously.  It was our first Stars ‘n Stripes to Costa Rica and we will return, annually now.  Thanks to all for your support and we are looking forward to seeing all at the airport.  wish us a safe flight.  Pura Vida!!!  Ed

July 23rd – time to go home

Well its finally here, the day we have to go home.  Started early, 3:45 am as the boys played a prank on PJ as its his 18th bday and pretended to wake him up saying he was late and when they got him outside, they drenched him with water.  Great stuff.  4:45 am departure for the airport, wow its early.  Long goodbye to Fran our organizer as well as Paulo our incredible bus driver.  Great guys and cannot thank them enough.  Check in was fun as had to show proof of Covid negative tests but finally at gate by 6 am.  Flight at 8 then arrive at Houston at 1, 4 hour layover and finall flight at 5 and arrived back in Dallas Love field at 6.  Parents waiting for us at baggage claim and gave us a nice welcome.  Good to be home.  Great trip, Great memories, Great kids.  Really good to travel again with Stars ‘n Stripes and felt relevant again after 2 years without going abroad.  Already planning return to Costa Rica as well as Spain and then our annual Europe trip.  Thanks to all for a wonderful time and thanks to Costa Rica.  We will be back!  Wonderful country with wonderful people.  Pura Vida!   Ed