Kaylee Manns Rookie Year in Review: Part Two

Former Cyclone All-American setter Kaylee Manns recently completed her first year of professional volleyball in Switzerland. Over the next few weeks, Manns will be recounting some of her experiences with FKB Düdingen for Cyclone fans.

Hey Cyclones!

After filling you in on life on the court last week, I thought it'd be a good idea to give you an idea of what my life off the court was like in Switzerland too.

Naturally, there were some adjustments I had to make, living in Switzerland instead of the United States. For one thing, the Swiss don't refrigerate a lot of their food, including milk or eggs, which was gross for an American like me. Also, everything is much more expensive over there. For example, a liter of milk cost five Swiss Francs, which means a gallon of milk (3.79 liters) would cost about $24.70! A package of two chicken breasts cost about 15 Swiss Francs, or almost $20!

Fortunately, like NCAA student-athletes on scholarships, professional European volleyball players have their rent, food and transportation paid for by our teams. In addition, and unlike the collegiate system, we also receive a personal salary each month like professional American athletes. I personally loved not having the responsibility of paying rent and utilities monthly, as my time at ISU showed I couldn't seem to remember to hand in my rent check at the same time each month.

The thing I missed most about living the U.S. versus Europe, other than my family and friends, was the size of everything in the States. In Europe everything (apartments, streets, cars, etc.) is small and compact. After growing up in a country where everything is oversized, from the size of the houses to the meals in restaurants, downsizing took some adjustment.

On my first day of apartment hunting, I walked into a normal-sized (by America's standards) apartment, WITHOUT TV, to find two guys sitting on the sofa chatting. A bit surprised and scared, I used my third grade English and hand motions to ask, "Who are you?" The two then began to smirk and giggle at my 30-second three -word phrase. I mean, how was I supposed to know these guys spoke English? In America, a girl doesn't exactly move in with two random guys and everything is fine and dandy. Either way, these two guys, and another girl, became my roommate for the next eight months.

Two of my roommates actually studied and worked in New York City and Colorado, and it was wonderful to have all of them around to chat with about my culture, and I learned a lot about theirs as well. We would have dinner nights when they were only allowed to speak French, hoping that I would catch on. But when December came around and I proceeded to tell someone who sat next to me "goodbye" instead of "hello," they kind of gave up on me.

My roommates are definitely what I miss most about living in Switzerland and I still keep in touch with them and my Swiss family, with whom I had such a great time living.

Until next time! Go Cyclones!
Kaylee

Previous post:
Kaylee Manns Year in Review: Part One

Iowa State University Athletics

Kaylee Manns Rookie Year in Review: Part Two

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