Its always weird when trying to book flights , i am almost at the point where i can start booking ... only problem is i need to confirm with my hosts that the days i have chosen match . When i get to South Africa i wanna make sure i get my maximum ice time along with maximum experience .... i mean its a long friggin flight and i am not sure how often i will get the chance/opportunity to go down there . I spoke with the GIHA yesterday ( Gauteng Ice Hockey Association) which is the governing body for the area i will be visiting . They are associated with the SAIHA (South African Ice Hockey Association ) ... i gave them my potential dates that i would love to be there helping at any capacity , whether it is teaching adults to skate or helping kids .... obviously if there is a goalie around wanting some pointers i will be more then glad to do that also ! I was a bit surprised when i was asked what i needed/wanted to go to South Africa ??? When i responded that i am paying my own way i was told that most people that contact ask for upwards of $10,000 . This obviously makes me sick that there are so many people out there trying to see the world on someone else's pocket book !!! The whole point of these trips for me is to help . Help doesn't usually come with a price tag . Most of us should realize that playing ice hockey is not a cheap thing , and not all the families of these children playing in other countries are rich ... we should not treat them like money trees ready to pluck .
Yesterday i also decided to make my trip longer to accommodate the wishes of my friends in Morocco . Khalid Mrini has asked me to visit for 10 days this time . Khalid once again is the President of the Moroccan Ice Hockey Federation . Now i have to figure out my itinerary not only in Morocco but in South Africa also . In South Africa i am looking at safari's , visiting cities like Johannesburg and Cape Town , possibly going skiing in Lesotho ... yeah it is a lot with not enough time .... i may have to add more days pending on what my travel buddy(s) want . Same thing in Morocco as i really want to visit Marrakesh, Fez and some other great cities along with being available to do as many ice times with the kids there again . It will be a looser schedule in Morocco as we went with the flow last time and i see that being the best bet to maximize experience there :)
The last and easiest part of the trip is Spain ... i will fly to Barcelona to join the Rainman All-Stars at a tournament . Hotel is booked and everything is organized by Rainer , i already have paid for most of it so its the least of my worries . Really looking forward to playing with old friends at the end of a long trip ... Dom , Rainer and Melanie i will see you all in Barca . So at the moment i am looking at flights from Toronto -Cape Town , Johannesburg - Casablanca , Rabat - Barcelona , Barcelona-Toronto ..... won't be cheap but it will be worth the trip . I can't guarantee that this won't change from now until the day i actually book everything but this is pretty much the preferred route . Oh yeah there will be many stopovers on those routes :( hoping to get some Lounge Passes to use for my longer stops . If you are willing to donate any to me please let me know , the more the merrier :)
This is gonna be a great summer ... crazy part is that when i come home i will stay for a week then head off to Texas to meet up with fellow Aston Villa Supporters ... we are all going to watch our favorite football team play a couple exhibition matches ... and at the moment i am not decided if i should bring my gear or not LOL ... more then likely my bag will be destroyed (or lost) by that point hahaha!
Yesterday i also decided to make my trip longer to accommodate the wishes of my friends in Morocco . Khalid Mrini has asked me to visit for 10 days this time . Khalid once again is the President of the Moroccan Ice Hockey Federation . Now i have to figure out my itinerary not only in Morocco but in South Africa also . In South Africa i am looking at safari's , visiting cities like Johannesburg and Cape Town , possibly going skiing in Lesotho ... yeah it is a lot with not enough time .... i may have to add more days pending on what my travel buddy(s) want . Same thing in Morocco as i really want to visit Marrakesh, Fez and some other great cities along with being available to do as many ice times with the kids there again . It will be a looser schedule in Morocco as we went with the flow last time and i see that being the best bet to maximize experience there :)
The last and easiest part of the trip is Spain ... i will fly to Barcelona to join the Rainman All-Stars at a tournament . Hotel is booked and everything is organized by Rainer , i already have paid for most of it so its the least of my worries . Really looking forward to playing with old friends at the end of a long trip ... Dom , Rainer and Melanie i will see you all in Barca . So at the moment i am looking at flights from Toronto -Cape Town , Johannesburg - Casablanca , Rabat - Barcelona , Barcelona-Toronto ..... won't be cheap but it will be worth the trip . I can't guarantee that this won't change from now until the day i actually book everything but this is pretty much the preferred route . Oh yeah there will be many stopovers on those routes :( hoping to get some Lounge Passes to use for my longer stops . If you are willing to donate any to me please let me know , the more the merrier :)
This is gonna be a great summer ... crazy part is that when i come home i will stay for a week then head off to Texas to meet up with fellow Aston Villa Supporters ... we are all going to watch our favorite football team play a couple exhibition matches ... and at the moment i am not decided if i should bring my gear or not LOL ... more then likely my bag will be destroyed (or lost) by that point hahaha!
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