Jacob JamesGoes to

SPAIN!!

Dear Family and Friends,

I would like to thank you for supporting me for my trip to Spain. It was an amazing experience and I could not have gotten there without your help. It was my first time on a plane and I really enjoyed flying. I visited two different cities in Spain. The first city was Barcelona. I got to tour the Barcelona stadium and go down to the field and got to touch the field. I hope to play there someday. The other city we went to was called Castellon. This is where I played my tournament. The people of the city were very nice to us. We visited the city hall and the mayor came out and greeted us.

I ate squid rings; I will not be eating those again. My favorite exotic food was paella. But the best meal I ate was after our last soccer game. Our coach took us to the local Burger King and I ate a triple burger with 3 cheeses and a whole ton of bacon. And I ate it all! My tournament went well. I got to play and room with one of my best friends. I got scouted by Athletico Madrid, and Barcelona was watching me in that game as well. We lost in the quarter-finals. The game was tied 4-4, so we went to penalty kicks. I was the first to take the kick out of both teams in front of about 200 people. I made it! We ended up losing in penalty kicks 5-4. During the tournament I made my first 2 international goals and had 4 assists, including the one to put us into penalty kicks. I had an amazing experience in Spain. I was blessed by God and by all of you to help me go. Thank you again for all of your support!

I have put together some slides and pictures to hopefully give you an idea of the great time I had. Enjoy!!

Love,Jacob

This is me leaving and saying goodbye to my class. Gonna miss my friends, but sure won’t miss school. Off to the airport…

Mom said she wouldn’t cry… Yeah right!

First time on a plane, just happened to be 9 hours…

The eagle has landed… First day in Spain, downtown Barcelona! Hola amigos…

View from our hotel, Placa d’Espanya

Expanding my horizons at the Museo Nacional d'Art de Catalunya :)

Me at Camp Nou. Home field of the best team in the world, Barcelona FC.

Leaving for my first international game...

We beat Espanyol FC 3-2 this game. Couldn’t believe I was actually

playing in Spain!

We were honorary guests of Castellon and met the mayor. We were the first teams from the US to ever play there.

Marcos Senna played for Villareal and the Spanish National team. I liked him because he wears my favorite number. I had my picture taken in his locker, but didn’t know that later I would meet and get my picture taken with him.

Found this baby in the parking lot at the Villareal fields and couldn’t resist. Yes, I touched it but don’t tell anyone :)

Taking questions at my press conference… Not really, but a kid can dream can’t he??

Opening ceremonies of the tournament. I was honored to be asked to carry the sign for our team. USA USA USA…

Time to go to work…

We had a pretty good tournament and ended up winning 2, tying 2 and losing 2. Experience of a lifetime!!

Last day in Spain, and we had some time to tour the Olympic park and village from the Barcelona ‘92 summer games.

Montjuïc Communications Tower which was used to transmit the games. It also works like a giant sundial.

Heading home. Hard to leave because I will miss playing in Spain, but happy to be going back to see my family and friends.

Thanks again for your willingness to help me accomplish my goal. It really was a chance of a lifetime, and would not have been possible without YOU!!

For more pictures of my trip, please go to…

Jacob James - Spain Dropbox