Sunday April 30, 2023, Essen, Germany

Today I played tennis on the red clay at ETUF Essen, then walked along the Baldeneysee where a regatta was taking place. The sun was shining and the Germans were out in force!

I played on the slow red clay of Germany today with Anne, a player from this area who plays on the women’s 40+ team for ETUF Essen. The clay was especially slow since the outdoor courts only opened up about two weeks ago. There are also both indoor clay (bubble) and indoor carpet (permanent) courts at the club. The bubble is coming down tomorrow I believe. Anne is a nice player and we had a good hit..then she was off to watch her daughter play field hockey, which is a big sport in this area. The club also has indoor and outdoor field hockey, fencing and is right on the Baldeneysee, a lake (fed by the Ruhr River) which is used for sailing and rowing.

Today a Regatta (series of boat races, in this case, rowing) was taking place. The stands are right next to the club and there was a lot of activity. There were also sailboats on the lake, and lots of people walking around the lake, from infants in strollers to the elderly in wheelchairs and walkers. It was a nice sunny day (cool but it hit the low 60s) and a holiday weekend…it was busy. Ice cream and French fries were also popular here, and so were the many asparagus (white of course) menus at the restaurants overlooking the lake. I walked a few miles, then returned to the hotel as it was 3pm and time for lunch!

Tomorrow morning we have our first team match..it’s a 60+ team but I have no idea what to expect, that will be tomorrow’s report! It’s an away match, that’s all I know.