My Introduction Day

What an amazing day! I woke up at 6:00 am for breakfast. There was a brief team meeting to go over practice, and a fun soccer/hacky sack warm-up outside with the team, on my first sunny day in Harbin. Again, I just watched practice today to get a feel for the players level and to try and learn their names. The coach from Korea, who speaks English, spent some time with me, giving me some background and his impressions of the team. He is very knowledgeable and was quite helpful. Apparently, he has been hired to stay in China and coach the young players who will not make the trip to Finland next month as we can only bring 20 players.

Following practice, I had a meeting with the current coaching and administrative staff. They gave me the current and historical information on the team and its background. After that, I was formally introduced to the team as their new head coach.

The formal introduction was steeped in ritual and began with a meeting including all the players, coaches and staff from China Hockey. It began with the players all singing the Chinese National Anthem. Next, the top people from China Hockey were introduced and each spoke briefly. I was introduced at the end by Mr. Lan Li of China Hockey and I said a few words to the staff and team.

After the meeting, the China Hockey staff along with Charles Wang and his staff from the NY Islanders office in Harbin took me out for a big banquet, at a new Korean place in town. Everyone was so welcoming, it was an amazing cultural experience. Similar to my first meal in Harbin, we were in a private room with a round table. However the room and table was much bigger as we had a party of 14. While there, I met (and sat next to) the head of Harbin Hockey and was invited to one of the men's league games in Harbin (part of the Asian League). He asked if I could find him one good American for their team (as they are allowed one foreigner). Again their were lots of toasts as is the Chinese tradition, we had shots of something that tasted like vodka and whiskey mixed. I was warned ahead of time that it was very strong. This time at least, it was poured into a very small glass about the size of half a shot. We also toasted with beer. It was a local Harbin beer, an amber, and very good. Apparently, the Chinese are fond of finishing the entire glass of beer on toasts and as the guest of honor I probably ended up having a bit too much. Near the end of the meal, we had this dish that Lan Li jokingly called "Chinese Pizza.” The best way to describe it is a hamburger quesadilla, and it was very good. All in all everyone was very friendly, telling lots of jokes and having a good time.

The day finished with a scrimmage against a local “boys” team (men aged 20-23). They were a bit bigger and stronger than our team, but some good local competition, instead of scrimmaging each other. An exciting day in Harbin.


Tomorrow a couple of practices with a Sauna and massage for the players in between, before they visit their families on their Sunday off. Time to relax in my room (on the right) before going to bed.