Trip ‘Down Under’ a great experience for Weiser student

Weiser’s very own Grace Soulen was chosen this year by the “Down Under Sports” program to travel to Australia for a week to play volleyball on a team with fellow Americans against the local Australians.
 “Down Under” goes through a process to choose athletes that will suit their program, and Grace Soulen was a perfect fit. A volleyball player and athlete for Weiser High School, as well as an upcoming senior, she was talented enough to get chosen for this year’s group.
 Soulen’s trip, hosted on the eastern coast of the country, in the Gold Coast in Surfers Paradise, Queensland, a northeastern state of Australia, started on July 13 and went through July 22.
 However, since she crossed the International Date Line during her 14-hour flight from Los Angeles, Calif., to Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, she actually arrived on July 14 and was a day ahead of time here in Idaho.
 Her week on the Gold Coast was filled with lots of volleyball and fun activities during her free time. After Soulen arrived in Brisbane, she and her fellow teammates went sightseeing at some top tourist points in the city. While waiting for their hotel check-in time, the group got to know each other by doing some team building exercises on the beach. Afterward, they settled in for the night to prepare for the busy week ahead.
 The next day Soulen had an open morning to explore as the rest of her group had not yet arrived due to a delay in Vancouver, Canada, including her coach. Taking advantage of her free schedule, Soulen decided to go scuba diving, an experience she absolutely loved.
 Once the rest of her team finally arrived, they had practice later that afternoon before going out to dinner.  
 On Wednesday, the group woke up for an early morning practice to prepare for a scrimage against a local high school later that day. They played two girls teams and one boys team. Scrimmaging against the local high school teams was super fun for Soulen.
 On Thursday, Soulen played in an all-day beach volleyball tournament. She said that although it was very different from indoor volleyball and much more difficult, she had a really fun time and loved it.
 Friday was the designated free day for the girls. Soulen used this day to ride on a glass-bottom boat and go snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef, which she stated was one of her highlights of the entire trip.
 “One thing about snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef that was super amazing is that when I dove down far enough and sat right next to the coral, not quite touching it, just having it right behind me, I could hear the whale songs crystal clear,” Soulen stated.
 “I wish I could have held my breath forever. It was incredible,” she said.
 During the last two days of the trip, on Saturday and Sunday, they had their big indoor tournament. The teams did pool play the first day, positioning themselves for the bracket play the next day. They played seven matches, getting tired near the end. However, Soulen expressed that it was good volleyball and the team was becoming more synced and playing much better.
 “It was a lot of volleyball and we were really tired, but you could tell that by the end we were getting the cohesiveness of our team down and knew who was going to do what by the end of Sunday,” Soulen said.
 Sunday, July 21, was the second day of the tournament. After finishing up pool play, it transitioned to bracket play. After the tournament, the team went out to dinner together.
 Soulen then traveled back to the states the next day on July 22, where she said she had to adjust back to Mountain Time Zone and recover from jet lag, as night and day are basically flipped from Idaho to the Gold Coast.
 With great coaching and having played a lot throughout the week, Soulen said she definitely improved in her volleyball skills. The level of play was about a step up from high school level.
 The girls she played with were all very nice, easy to get along with, and great competitors.
 Although it was a bit tough in the beginning to play well as a team, as none of them had played together before, after a lot of practice together to learn how one another moves and who will get what ball, the girls became a much more unified team that ended up being very competitive.
 During her time in the Down Under, Soulen also got to see much of Australia’s unique wildlife. One of her favorite animals she saw was the koala, which she got to touch and hold as well. In addition to the koala, Soulen also saw and petted many kangaroos, which were, she said, surprisingly big, some even as big as and bigger than herself. Some other land animal wildlife she saw included wallabees, crocodiles, emus, and lorikeets.
 In the ocean, Soulen saw a vast array of marine life as well, including starfish, manta rays, many different types of fish, sea turtles, and whales.
 As the team stayed on a coast-side hotel, much of the food they ate was seafood. As a lover of seafood, Soulen greatly enjoyed the restaurants. According to Soulen, most of the food there wasn’t much different than American food.
 However, she said, ketchup was the exception. In Australia, they call it tomato sauce, and it is much sweeter than the ketchup in the states.
 When the girls didn’t have practice or meetings, they were allowed to wander around the town and explore. Surfers Paradise is also a lively place at night, which Soulen said was very enjoyable with her teammates.
 Another activity Soulen was able to do was go surfing. Although slightly frightened of sharks, Soulen loved the experience and was very happy she took the once in a lifetime opportunity to surf the beautiful famous waters of Gold Coast, Australia.
 Although there were many fun and amazing things to miss about her trip, Soulen expressed that she would miss the people the most. She made some friends with some of the locals, including a worker who she bought a sweatshirt from. The locals, along with their “super cool accents,” were extremely kind.
 “While some countries aren’t super welcoming to Americans, the Australians were super kind to us. We have really amazing, kind people in Weiser, and the locals are just as nice,” Soulen said.
 Overall, the trip cost just under $6,000. To raise money to afford the trip, Soulen auctioned off her car, selling tickets to the generous people in the Weiser community, to whom she is very thankful to for all their support.
 “I would not have been able to do it without the support of our amazing community, and so thank you to all of you who bought a ticket. It meant the world to me and was such a great experience that really broadened my horizon to new cultures,” Soulen stated.
 Overall, Soulen is so happy and grateful she was able to travel to Australia to play one of the sports she loves in such a beautiful country, being an experience she will always cherish and never forget.
 

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