2008 Elephants Highlight Video

The 2008 season for the Catania Elephants was filled with some incredible highlights.  Playing in the Italian Football League's top division for the first time, we were the highest scoring team in the league and made it all the way to the Semi-Finals.  The following video chronicles the best of the offense, defense, and special teams throughout the season.  Enjoy!

2008 OFFENSIVE STATISTICS

Team Offense: 

50.3 Points per Game, 

463.7 Yards Per Game (305 pass / 156 rush)

Passing - Jason Johnson:

191 for 310, 61.6% completions, 3052 yards, 45 TD, 9 INT.

QB Rating: 184.3 (League Rank #1)

Rushing - Enrico Lombardo:

190 attempts, 1411 yards, 7.2 yards per carry, 18 Rush TD.

(League Rank #2, Top Italian)

Receiving:

Matt Epperson: 66 catches, 1183 yards, 15 TD. (League #1)

Claudio Mangano: 56 catches, 938 yards, 12 TD. (League #2)

Gregorio Barbagallo: 25 catches, 414 yards, 5 TD. (League #8)

Congratulations again to all of the Elephants for a great season!!!

~ J. Twice

The Final Flight

And just like that we're back in North America!

Exactly 179 days after first stepping on to the continent of Europe, we boarded an Air Canada flight on Thursday and returned home to Edmonton.  In fact, our final flight home from London to Edmonton was... boring.

As in, uneventful, mundane, almost (dare I say...) easy.  

Taking our luggage from the hotel to the train station was painless (less than two blocks with no stairs), the Heathrow Express shot us directly to the airport in 15 minutes, and Air Canada DIDN'T EVEN BAT AN EYE when we checked in 4 large suitcases each weighing 50 pounds.  I think the 'luggage gods' had decided we had suffered enough... and I apologize that there is not anything witty or entertaining else to say!

One personal note:  For a company that gets its fair share of criticism, Air Canada exceeded ALL of our expectations on our transatlantic flights.  The new plane we flew home had plenty of leg room, and we were treated to a full dinner and drinks, ice cream, snacks, and constant refreshments, along with a personal TV entertainment system with all the latest Hollywood movies.  ATTAWAY, AIR CANADA!  

~ J. Twice

A Day in London

Life always depends on your point of view...

London is a great city, and we were lucky to spend 24 hours exploring the town before catching our flight back to North America.  However, when doing so be sure that you MIND THE CLOCK - as things do happen at very specific times in London... let me explain:

We checked into our hotel, cleaned up, and hit the city at 10pm on our first night looking for some Fish 'n Chips and a great, authentically English experience.  Yet were absolutely dismayed when we realized:

10pm: KITCHENS CLOSE.  We were looking for an English pub to serve us the traditional "Fish 'n Chips", yet all the places we found stopped serving food at 10!  This would be unheard of in Catania, and definitely made us more than a little "bonkers."  Instead, we found a regular place of Picadilly Square but still missed the atmosphere.    

11pm: PUBS CLOSE.  After being turned away once, we thought after dinner we could at least find a good ol' English pub to eavesdrop on some accents and enjoy the local scene.  However, we were again shocked to hear that 11 is closing time for the English variety.  (Apparently the police were having to hand out too many 'red cards' and thus want people to head home earlier!)  Instead, we found an Irish place called O'Neill's that had terrific atmosphere.

12pm: TRAINS CLOSE.  Strike 3 and we were OUT!  After O'Neill's we went to take The Tube back to our hotel and it too was closed!  It was as if we had been dropped off one-hour too late in a time machine!  At least the busses were still working, and eventually made it home... one hour after our curfew (i'm sure.) 

What says London better than Flats and Mini-Coopers?

The next morning we had a very relaxing time walking around the Notting Hill neighborhood (of Hugh Grant fame), then toured the Kensington Palace (home to Princess Diana for 16 years), and Harrod's, the world's most famous and outrageous department store.  It was smashing baby, yeah! 

In Hyde Park I did my best fountain impression.

The Sunken Garden at Kensington has been manicured perfectly like this for over 100 years!

Christie - like all members of "The Commonwealth - feels a strong connection to the Royal Family and enjoyed her Starbuck's outside Princess Diana's old digs.

Going to Harrod's with my wife was like taking a Muslim to Mecca... the ultimate pilgrimage required to be done once in a lifetime to be complete.  I was blown away as well, after touring the "Room of Luxury," the "Egyptian Hall," the 7 huge rooms of food (including a Krispy Kreme), and finally, the "Pet Kingdom."

And in closing our time in London, I came across a hidden, valuable life lesson on a lowly city bus that may just reveal the one secret to success in life.  If applied, this one powerful phrase will make not just revolutionize bus safety, but make the entire world a better place:

~ J. Twice

French Dogs

Europe is generally a very "dog-friendly" place - but Nice had perhaps the most dogs we've seen on a human-canine ratio.

Here's 3 of the dogs Christie met while in France.  Enjoy!

~ J. Twice

Homeward Bound (The Incredible Journey)

Sign #8 that it is time to go: You have not one but TWO holes in your sandals.

A few years back, there was a movie released entitled, "Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey."  While the story of Christie and I returning to North America is not quite as heart-warming (and doesn't involve cute animals), it seems nearly as epic when you stand with 8 bags on your back while sweating through your shirt in the middle of the London subway system.  Let me bring you up to speed...

Christie was definitely not happy to leave the beach...

After 3 amazing days in the French Riviera, it was time to head for London and our connecting flight back to Edmonton.  However, just like in Catania, we were still packing enough luggage for a small army (or at least 4 teenage girls.)  The first hurdle was getting to the Nice airport.  Good News: A hotel employee volunteered to drive us there for a fraction of the cost of a taxi.  The Bad News: His car was a "Renault Cleo" ... which makes the Nissan Micra look like an SUV.  They did not think our luggage could fit & were shaking their heads at us, but I quickly made them believers!  

YES!!!  Another successful cram job!

The drive to the airport was without incident, and I loved the sign indicating the departure drop off area: KISS AND FLY.  That is so cute it makes me want to make a keyboard smiley face :-)

However, once inside it was not at all fun and games.  We were flying EASYJET, which despite their name, orange colored logo, and overall happy demeanor, are notorious within "European Flying Circles" as being sticklers for luggage weight.  We chose the most jovial looking employee, and batted our eyes at her in attempt that she would take pity on the hapless Canadians.  (In such circumstances, it is best to avoid any reference to George Bush and his foreign policy, especially in France.)  Everything seemed to be going great - until she informed us that the 'sports bag' we had booked had a 10kg weight limit and that we were over by 30 kg!  At 10.5 Euro per kilo, we did the quick math and knew it was going to be ugly.  Luckily, we were able to talk her down a little, but still ended up paying 100 Euro per person!!!  EURO-LUGGAGE IS GETTING RIDICULOUS!!!

As for the flight itself, it went smoothly -- however I did have a hilarious and slightly confusing conversation with a flight attendant as the plane was getting ready to depart:

"How long is the flight, ma'am?"

"Well... it usually takes an hour and fifty-five minutes, but we are taking a short cut so we hope to do it in an hour-forty..."

SHORT CUT?  Was she serious?  Now, I'm no pilot or "navigational expert" - I just am curious to know how one can find a short-cut while flying in a straight line from point A to point B.  One theory involves a "flux capacitor" and the "Space-Time Continuum," or perhaps they were just planning on skipping the little "scenic tour" of Denmark on our way up... 

Happy to be back in an English Speaking Country!

Our flight - shortcut and all - got us safely into London at 6:30pm.  We caught the "Stanstead Express" train into the city, then made a connection onto the underground metro system (The Tube).  We finally arrived at our hotel around 9, and counted our blessings that we were now just one flight from home!

Let me tell you... stairs SUCK when you have lots of luggage!  You should have seen the looks on people's faces as we lugged our stuff from the train to the "Tube."  Our favorite reply was, "Don't worry - we're only here for the night."

~ J. Twice

An Evening in Old Town Nice

The cours Saleya at dusk glows with a million different colors, languagues, and tastes.

The heart of Nice's old town - its most colorful and interesting quarter - lies only a block behind its seaside promenade and simply oozes atmosphere.  The star attraction is the "cours Saleya," a bustling flower market by day and romantic place to dine in the evening, with a rainbow of patios offering every culinary delight.  We stumbled into the area almost unknowingly on our second night in the city and ended up having one of our most memorable nights in Europe!

... and looking the other direction the ambiance doesn't stop.  Above the Old Town lies "Castle Hill" - lit up with waterfalls and on a warm summer night, a perfect place to view the city. 

The energy in the Old Town at night you can just feel.

We ate at an Italian restaurant called "La Tavola" which served up bowls of pasta that were big enough for two, a legacy of Nice's Italian influence.  The cours Saleya has been used as a market since the 1300's, and has always been filled with Italian culture and cuisine.  (It wasn't officially French until 1860!)  The area truly is a 'mixing bowl' of Mediterranean traditions, serving the best 'Nicois' we could find!

An after dinner stroll took us deeper into the old town, up cobblestone streets and dusty alleys.  We passed eclectic little bars, cute shops, and interesting people.  Free samples enticed us to stop for local candy, and later continued on to find the best gelato in town.  

Coming from the Italian gelato kingdom, I was blown away when we came across FENOCCHIO - perhaps the most "on steroids" gelato shop in Europe!  At 11:30pm there was a line 15 people deep to be served, all clamoring for one of their 86 DIFFERENT FLAVORS!  They offered everything from tomato to lavender, nutella to M&M, cactus to avacado... it was amazing!  I think they had 14 different variations on chocolate alone.  (George - I need reinforcements!!!)  I settled on mint chocolate and cherry, but would return every day for a year if I lived there!  

Just one of their 5 flavor sections... "I'll have chocolate, please,"  "WHICH ONE??!!"

Doesn't take much to make me happy!

But perhaps the best thing about Fenocchio is that gives you the price for up to 15 SCOOPS!  That's my kind of gelato place...

~ J. Twice

Cannes-didly speaking...

On the red carpet in Cannes, pointing to our many fans...

For our second day in the French Riviera, we caught the 9:44am train and 30 minutes later stepped off at the famous city of Cannes.  Cannes is home to the world’s most prestigious film-festival each May, which shows even in the off-season as it is much more expensive and uppity than free spirited Nice.  It’s promenade feels like eerily like West Hollywood and is filled with the likes of Gucci, Fendi, and Louis Vuitton, while boasting a certain air of superiority that is also present in Monte Carlo (perhaps because they both play host to major international events catering to upscale audiences.)

If you get tired of the rocks in Nice jump a quick train to the sand in Cannes!

Cannes does, however, boast a great sandy beach where we spent the afternoon swimming and sunning… and refreshingly did not have to pay to use it as in Italy.  (I think the French may have the best beach system in Europe: free, clean public beaches and the option to pay for the Lido with additional amenities.)  The water temperature was 75 degrees F and felt as good as it looked.  We did of course also pose for the obligatory “Red Carpet” photos – and I vowed to return to Cannes ONLY if one of my films is screening.  (Outside of football, the film industry is my dream.)

The main street in Cannes could easily be Beverly Hills...

... filled with fancy hotels that host movie stars each spring.

When we’d had our fill, we jumped a quick 10-minute train to Juan Les-Pins, a neighboring beachside community that is much lesser known.  While Nice, Cannes, and Monaco all attract mobs of visitors, Juan Les-Pins has a sort of Orange County charm and is just quiet after spending time in the other cities.  It was actually recommended to us from Claudio, and we learned from a local that it is the top spot for British visitors… and once I spotted the beach I could see why:

Perfect sand in Juan Les-Pins...

Beauty and the Beach.

The sand at Juan Les-Pins is perhaps the nicest sand I have ever felt – sparkling white and as fine as powder!

If I can provide any “Rick Steves-esque” travel tip for the region, it is to spend at least a day of your French Riviera getaway on the beach at Juan Les-Pins!

Candy Necklace!

A fantastic lunch of salad, panini, crepe, and fries... doesn't get more French than that!

~ J. Twice