Leaving Home/ First Days

The toughest part about pursuing a pro soccer career in Cyprus was leaving New Jersey. I knew I would especially miss Hoboken, not only because of the strong friendships I have established there but also the extracurricular activities that Hoboken offers at night. I would now have to start a whole new life in a place where the culture, food, language and weather were all different than what I was accustomed to. However, being half-Cypriot and having visited the island for vacation in the summers, I knew I would get acclimated after a few weeks.
So as I arrived on the island and settled into my new living quarters, I realized the experience was much like when I was a freshmen coming into Stevens. I would be moving into a new dormitory with a new roommate. However, the dormitory in my case is my grandmother's house and the new roommate is my grandmother. After getting settled, I had to meet with the coach and the president of the club to speak about what they expected from me. It was a good meeting and it helped me understand more about the organization and how they do things.
In the days after the meeting I had to do a couple of different things before I could start training. First, I had to go to the physio (trainer) to test the strength in my legs and to see what muscles in my legs needed to be stronger. This helps the coach get an understanding of what I need to work on in terms of strength. The second thing I needed to do was get a full medical to make sure I was healthy. I had to get x-rays of my chest, blood test, urine test, and an ecocardiogram. Luckily everything came out normal and I passed the medical. After passing the medical I was free to begin training so I was excited.