Day 4 - Joella Pounds

Joella Pounds is a sophomore guard from Clifton, N.J. Last season, she battled through knee injuries to play in 16 games for the Blackbirds

Day 4
Today the team traveled to Izola, Slovenia to enjoy a barbeque at Polona’s grandparent’s house. We enjoyed traditional Slovenian foods, starting off with minestra soup and bread. Then we ate chicken, cucumber, French and bean salads, cevapi and sausage.

During the meal, we were fortunate enough to try Polona’s family homemade wine. We finished the meal off with desert. The choices were between potica, which is a piece of bread filled with nut cream and raisins, kremsnita-that had a lemon flavor to it, and waffles made with chocolate, which we refer to as wafer cookies. For the record, the waffles taste a lot better here then in America!

After the barbeque, we came back to Ljubljana and toured the city for a couple of hours. We went shopping and enjoyed ice cream…Definitely the best I ever had. The scenery was beautiful and gave us the opportunity to take plenty of pictures and enjoy the Slovenia culture.

Then we went to support our graduating seniors and coaches match-up against a team of players that used to play with Polona when she was in Slovenia. Unfortunately, they lost in overtime by one basket. The highlights of this game had to be Coach Gaitley blocking a shot, getting a steal and Jen drawing a charge.

After the game, we enjoyed pizza and more deserts with Polona and Sara’s family and friends.

Today was a great experience. I enjoyed trying different foods and getting to know Polona’s family and friends. They were very kind people and have made our time here enjoyable. I’m looking forward to meeting Sara’s family tomorrow!