Editor’s note: Tyler Walker writes for the Daily News.
Two members of the Ball State Quidditch Team lived a dream only few get to take part in. They traveled to Germany for the Quidditch World Cup on July 23 and 24.
Tyler Walker, a beater, and Jason Bowling, a seeker, were part of a 21-person team from the United States.
Both Walker and Bowling called the trip in its entirety amazing.
“The cities we were able to visit, the new friendships that were made and the experience to represent my country all made it a trip that I will never forget,” Bowling said.
Team USA played seven games over the two days.
On the first day, the team played, and won, against Brazil, Germany and Norway. Those games helped decide seeding for the second day.
On the second day, the team faced Catalonia, Belgium, the United Kingdom and Australia.
The team lost to Australia in the finals, taking home silver. Bowling described the match as a “back-and-forth battle that never went out of snitch range.”
While the tournament was the main part of the trip, the players also got to explore Europe a little, going to both France and the Netherlands. They traveled with other members of Team USA as well as a member of Team Brazil.
In France, they spent their time in Paris, seeing sights such as l’Arc de Triomphe, the Palace of Versailles, Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower.
“Those were all great, but my favorite was our last day,” Walker said. “We traveled with a group of seven and while some were getting ready to go out, the rest of us went and played soccer with some French kids. When we went out that night, we were accompanied by players from the French National team. They took us to the Seine River and we danced on the river until 2 a.m.”
For Bowling, the highlight of Paris was climbing the Eiffel Tower.
“It was something that I have always wanted to do since I was a kid, and on top of that the view was beautiful. You could see all of Paris from up there,” Bowling said.
In Amsterdam, they stayed in a hostel and got to explore the city. The trip made Bowling want to visit other countries as well.
“The best part about it was just how beautiful the city was,” he said. “It was also really cool how it has so many canals running through it, kind of makes me want to start planning a trip to Venice.”
The biggest takeaway from the trip for Walker was how different each culture was compared with that of the United States.
“There were so many instances of, ‘Oh, we are not in the U.S.,’” Walker said. “Nothing [was] ever life-threatening, just different. I also became really close with the whole team, especially the seven of us that traveled together. I would do it again in a heartbeat.”
Bowling, who was originally named as an alternate and was only able to make the trip after another seeker dropped out, said his biggest takeaways are his new friends and the new quidditch knowledge he gained after playing with some of the best plays from all over the world.
“Now that I'm back, I don't think I could have ever imagined not going,” Bowling said. “The trip in itself was something that I will never forget, and playing Team USA is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for most. I wouldn’t trade anything in the world for the memories I made on my World Cup journey.”
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