Hello fellow Pilots! Wally the Pilot here, writing to you from across the pond. I'm with our illustrious women's basketball on their first European trip in over 20 years, giving you live updates of what we're doing these next two weeks. This blog will be updated daily for your perusal. With that being said, let's jump right to it!

DAY 1: THE JOURNEY BEGINS...

The day is finally here! I left with Portland Pilots Women's Basketball this afternoon from PDX International on a 10-hour flight to Amsterdam. Now personally, I like to do most of my traveling by riverboat, but I thought these Pilots did an excellent job getting us to our first stop. Here I am relaxing in the fine Amsterdam Airport Schipol.



After another two hours, we finally arrived in beautiful Split, Croatia! We finished our day taking in some of the sights of Old Town Split. Split is a city along the Dalmatian Coast, home of the former Roman emperor Diocletian. I might not be an emperor, but I felt like king of the world being along the water -- not to mention seeing all the other sights of the beautiful Ancient City.
 

After over 20-plus hours of travel and sightseeing, I think it's time to rest. There will be plenty more in the coming days. Anchor's away, Pilots!



DAY 2: A DAY FIT FOR AN EMPEROR

Day 2 has come and gone, and it was a jam-packed day for us Pilots. Our day started with a trip back to Old Town to visit Diocletian's Palace. Diocletian was a Roman emperor in the late third and early fourth century, the first (and arguably only) one to retire from the job. Retirement's not an option for old Wally – we've got WCC championships to win.
 
Still, we learned plenty about ancient Roman times, took wonderful pictures of the historic architecture, and more importantly, captured just as historic selfies (See below).
 
But this trip isn't just fun and games. It's... well, just mostly fun and games. Anyways, after a day of fun, The Pilots played a basketball game today. They took on an all-star team of some of the best players Split had to offer. It was a fun game that saw your Pilots pull away in the second half, earning a dominant 95-57 victory.
 
The final tradition that comes from today is the Split Basketball Rubber Duck. The rubber ducks, donning a matte of brown hair and a little basketball, recognize the student-athletes who were particularly spectacular throughout the day. Today our winners were... Emme Shearer and Caitlin Monahan!
 
Most Pilots have been trained to inherently not trust the ducks. We'll allow these ducks. They are cute after all. Until tomorrow, shipmates!

DAY 3: RIVER DAY

Finally, back in my natural habitat! The Pilots got to enjoy a wonderful day on the river on Thursday, tubing down the River Centina. It is the most water rich river in all of Dalmatia and is just over 100 kilometers long (or just over 55,000 fathoms, for the real riverboat Pilots out there).
 

Despite a few flipped tubes, the Pilots were off to spend the rest of the day however they please. This was the final day in Split for Portland, with tomorrow taking us to the cities of Ston and Dubrovnik. To relish the memories, here's our posts on X of the fearless leaders -- head coach Michael Meek and AD Scott Leykam -- making their way down the makeshift water slide.
 

Come for the photos of the Pilots tubing the River Centina, stay for the video of Adventure Meek riding down the makeshift water slide ??

Having an incredible time in Dalmatia! pic.twitter.com/TlKEt0DGv7

— Portland Pilots Women's Basketball (@PortlandWBB) August 16, 2024

 

Bonus pics and a video of our AD Scott Leykam taking on the water slide. Feel comfortable saying he's the first AD in the WCC to take on the River Centina, and that's why he's the best ?? pic.twitter.com/0bS9M2S1f2

— Portland Pilots Women's Basketball (@PortlandWBB) August 16, 2024

DAY 4: THE JOURNEY CONTINUES

The journey continues for Pilots Women's Basketball! We left beautiful Split today for Dubrovnik, one of the cultural centers of the country. We embarked on our journey making just a couple stops along the way.

Our first stop was the Pelješac Bridge, a recently completed bridge that offers beautful sights that only Croatia can provide. After that we made a quick stop in Ston, exploring the medieval town that is home to one of the longest continuous defense walls in the world: The Walls of Ston.
 
Finally, we made it to Dubrovnik. The Pilots spent most of the day exploring Old Town, taking in the sights both high and low as they rode the cable car up to see all that the city and the surrounding islands have to offer. After exploring from the top to the town itself, a fascinating square where popular HBO shows Game of Thrones and The House of the Dragon are filmed. No dragons today, as I'm sure they're too afraid to face old Wally.

Our last stop of the day before exploring the town were the basketball courts of Dubrovnik, an ingeniously designed space that Architectual Digest called one of the best courts in the world. Dyani Ananiev holds the honor of being the first Pilot to make a shot on the courts.
 
Until tomorrow, Pilots!

DAY 5: THE BOAT TOUR

Today was a relaxed one for the Portland Pilots, as we took a private boat tour to two islands near Dubrovnik: Kolocep and Lopuld. We traveled to the islands, swam, ate good food, and tried our best to coax Adventure Meek out once more to jump into the Adriatic Sea with us. Our persuasion attempts were unsuccessful.

Despite that and also despite the fact that I was unsuccessful in convincing our boat captain of my riverboat piloting credentials, we still enjoyed the small islands immensely. The rest of the day was free time for the rest of the team to enjoy.
 
Until tomorrow, Pilots!

DAY 6: THE FINAL GAME IN CROATIA

Today was our final full day in the Republic of Croatia. Like yesterday, the Pilots had free time all morning to do what they wanted, enjoying what the Grand Admiral Hotel had to offer. After a morning full of swimming, relaxation on the beach and good food, it was time to lock in.

The Pilots played their second game of the European trip on Sunday, taking on KK Buducnost Podgorica, a Montenegrin professional team. Much like the first game, the Pilots wore down their opponents with an impressive press and tight offense. Portland won by a score of 82-39. The game also featured a t-shirt exchange as part of the pregame ceremonies.
 

Game 2 of the European trip ?

Relished every second of it. Great showing by the Pilots ?? pic.twitter.com/QCfaDB3vkP

— Portland Pilots Women's Basketball (@PortlandWBB) August 18, 2024

While we're sad that our time has come to an end here, we're even happier to have spent it in a beautiful country in the first place. Athens awaits!

DAY 7: ARRIVING IN ATHENS

It is with great sadness we must announce that our time in Croatia has come to an end. Ole Wally here felt right at home by the water, but it was unfortunately time for us to move on to the next stop. So we packed our bags, waved goodbye to the rocky beaches of the Grand Admiral Hotel and moved on.

Now the Pilots begin Act III of the European Tour -- a trip to beautiful Athens, Greece! We arrived in the afternoon and made our way to a wonderful portside lunch at Allou Gialou. After a four-course meal, it was off to downtown Athens for a city tour.

There were two big stops on the tour. The first was the Panathenaic Stadium, the home of the first ever modern Olympics back in 1896 and again in 2004. The Pilots posed in front of the Olympic stadium before heading off to the grand finale of the tour -- the Acropolis of Athens.

Literally translating to "high city", the Acropolis is home to many ancient buildings of Greece, including the legendary Parthenon. The Pilots took in all the views that the high point had to offer, and of course posed for a couple pics.
 
More to come in the next few days. Until tomorrow, Pilots!

DAY 8: THE FINAL GAME

This day marked the beginning of the end. The Pilots played their final game of the European Tour, taking on a group of Athens All-Stars in an exhibition match. The contest was held in the same gym that NBA star Giannis Antentokounmpo grew up playing in, and also the gym that was featured in his Disney+ series, Rise.

The Pilots shined on the day, winning 92-49 to finish the European Tour a perfect 3-0! Dyani Ananiev was dominant in the contest, hitting five 3-pointers. Most importantly, she was awarded the final rubber ducky of the trip.

One more day abroad for the Pilots. Until tomorrow!
 
DAY 9: THE FINAL DAY

The final full day for Portland in Athens has come and gone. The Pilots spent most of the day at a water park/beach located in Alimos. Ole Wally and the gang were right at home on the water, enjoying the beach-side views and a seemingly endless supply of inflatables. The Pilots spent most of the morning and afternoon basking in the Mediterranean weather.

After the beach, the Pilots had some time to unwind before going to a rooftop dinner at 180 West. We enjoyed one of the best dinners we had on the trip, and Coach Meek was awarded a statue of Nike, the Greek goddess of victory.

Tomorrow is all about travel. Until then, Pilots!