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9.20Yesterday was the kick off of the Rupertikirtag Feiern which is Salzburg's town festival. In true Austrian fashion, all the men whip out their lederhosen and the women their dirndln! It is very amusing. They have every 'traditional' food imaginable, though I had to limit myself to a pretzel and a schaumrolle, which is basically a marshmallowy cream filled croissant. However, the festivities continue until Wednesday, so I have ample opportunity to sample the other variety of foods!
schaumrolle
Without a doubt, the highlight of the day was a group of teenage boys dancing in the shortest lederhosen I have ever seen...you'll just have to take a look for yourself!
9.17Wednesday was the one-month mark of my journey in Europe. It is crazy to think I am already 1/4 of the way through this experience! I can't help but think back on my last visit to Europe (4 years ago) which was only a month long. I have already surpassed that time period, yet it doesn't feel like more than a week has gone by!Katie and I were done with class at 10:30, and we started our 'afternoon' searching for a craft store. I ended up buying enough yarn to make two scarfs, mind you I've never knitted a thing in my life...here's to hoping Katie's a good teacher!
After lunch, we ventured out to Schloss Hellbrunn. It was used for the exterior shots of the Von Trapp house in "The Sound of Music." The gazebo featured during the song "I am Sixteen, Going on Seventeen" is also housed on the castle grounds. We took a tour of the Wasserspiele (a series of 'trick' water fountains), and we had a great tour guide. When he collected my ticket, he actually spoke to me in German (even though he'd spoken in English to nearly everyone else in the line)! This may not seem like that big of a deal, but it is very common for other Austrians to speak to us in English as soon as we stumble over a verb conjugation or use the wrong pronoun. In their defense, they are often glad to have an opportunity to use their English. It's just frustrating when you're trying to make the most out of the experience by speaking in German.
Once our tour of the fountains concluded, we checked out the interior of the palace. It was your average 'old restored building of importance.' Not exceptionally impressive, but interesting to note that no one actually lived at the castle. It was merely a 'summer home' that was put to use a few times a year!
On our way back we made a pit stop to see the gazebo used in the "Sound of Music." It took an opportunity to act the part of Liesel.
As I have now been in my new home of Salzburg for nearly two weeks, it seems like the appropriate time to reflect upon the impression this beautiful city has made on me.I honestly don't think the fact that I am living in Europe and the fact that I can see the alps out my bedroom window has hit me yet! Our first week of classes has come to an end, and coming from the perspective of a bio major, I'm thinking this semester is going to be challenging, yet easy at the same time. Challenging in the sense that three of my four classes are largely based on group discussion and participation (much unlike biology lectures back at St. John's). On the other hand, however, I have more time than I know what to do with, at most I have 3 hours of class each day, and not a single lab! I have been done with my homework by 8 or 9 every night...this is a foreign concept to me! Furthermore, I don't have a job while I'm over here, so that also frees up a few extra hours every day. I am definitely thankful for this, as it allows me time to truly explore my new surroundings and become more of a temporary citizen rather than an annoying tourist. Surprisingly, I found the transition of living in Salzburg rather smooth (which is probably why the reality of living in Europe hasn't quite sunk in yet). It's weird to think of life back at CSB, and realize that I actually still go to school there, etc. I have done a little more exploration of Salzburg in smaller groups which has really help me find that connection to the city I have been looking for. When your traveling around as a group of 22 (or 27 if you include our director and his family), you automatically stick out as being tourists, even if that is not really the case.Tomorrow is the beginning of our second week of classes. It sounds like we'll be having a bit of a field trip in my art history class, something I'm looking forward to as it will provide another opportunity to really take in Salzburg for what it's worth! Also, after talking with my program director, it sounds as though there will be a change with my German class, either switching up a level, or having the professor increase her level of difficulty. Things are finally getting situated, which is a great feeling!
9.13
The morning began rather uneventfully, doing a bit of homework and getting organized, however the afternoon's events more than made up for that. Around 2:30 about half of our group headed out to catch a bus to a fussball (soccer) game. The bus ride took much longer than we anticipated, about an hour and ten minutes, yet we never even left Salzburg! We were worried about finding decent seats, as it was a free game and we got there later than we'd wanted, so we were surprised to see that the stadium actually wasn't that full, and we were able to get relatively good seats. The Salzburg Red Bulls (nothing like blatant sponsorship) started off a little rocky, but they ended up winning the game. Unfortunately, it was absolutely freezing, which put a damper on things. However, that gave us a great excuse to go to a cafe! We headed back into the Altstadt and found our director's favorite cafe. All in all, it was a very fun day!
my current address:Rachel SinnenInternationales KollegBillroth Strasse 10-18/430B5020 Salzburg Austria
9.5
Our last official day of orientation was a blast! We met up with Maia and the two girls at the train station for a bit of a day trip to Hallein where we got to explore the salt mines. We started off by putting on some awesome white jumpsuits (ghostbusters-style) and then we headed into the mine via train, followed by SLIDE (just like the miners did), followed by boat, followed by another slide. They had an amazingly cheesey video (auf deutsch) that explained the salt mining history of the area. Once our tour was through, we walked down the mountain side back into Hallein for lunch -- we had kebaps (delicious! it's essentially a bun with meat (lamb or chicken typically), lettuce, onion, tomato and sauce. You could say it's like a gyro, only on a bun instead of a pita) and ice cream (highly recommended by Maia, Kaethe and Lena). Following lunch, we checked out a museum in Hallein about the history of the Celts and salt mining.
9.6
Saturday was filled with organizing my room, and doing some more substantial grocery shopping. That night we had dinner over at the Schroeder's. We had goulash suppe (soup), salad and chocolate cake. It was delicious! Once again, the kids provided us with endless entertainment!
9.7
Katie and I attempted to go to mass, but we just missed the bus we needed to get there on time. We decided to go into town anyway, just to better get our bearings. We found a fun little bakery and each got chocolate croissants, it was especially great because the lady in the shop actually spoke to us in German, whereas many other people automatically start speaking English if you stumble on a single word. We decided it should be our Sunday tradition to go there, after mass of course!
9.8
Today was our first day of classes. After senior seminar was over we had 3 hours until our next class, so Katie and I went on another adventure to find IKEA. Of course, things are never as easy as they should be, and we ended up walking all the way around IKEA (on a busy road, with no sidewalk) to find the entrance, later finding out that if we had simply walked through the nearby shopping mall, we would have gotten there without any problem at all! We didn't spend much time there simply because it took a good 1/2 hour to get there by bus, and we had to be back downtown by 3 for our next class.
9.3And so it began! We met up for our first day of Orientation at the Domplatz, and headed up the mountain side to the Festung from there...we definitely got our workout in for the day! Our program director, Dr. Schroeder, brought his family along for the day (wife and 3 kids), and it is sad to say, but they all speak better German than we do, even Karl who is not yet 5! At any rate, the kids provided us with a great deal of entertainment...especially Karl. He was wearing a 'Thomas the Tank Engine' hat, and proceeded to tell us all about the various engines, proclaiming 'James is the slender one!'
Once we arrived at the Festung, we were set free for a few hours to check out the fortress and enjoy the gorgeous weather. We met up again for lunch at a nice restaurant tucked in the side of the mountain, so again, the views were amazing! I am proud to say that I might actually like sauerkraut (I never used to be a fan, but the stuff I had at lunch was actually quite tasty!) After lunch, Maia and the kids parted ways, and the rest of the group headed down to our 'home base' at one of the University buildings to fill out some paperwork and such.
The Festung
Salzburg
jealous!?
the Alps!
Salzburg
9.2The day started off fabulously, being awoken at 3 am, so we would be to the airport in time for our 6:45 flight to Munich. All went smoothly, and we were delighted to find out it would only cost us 9 euro to get from the airport in Munich to Salzburg! (especially good news after we paid 20 euro each to get from our hostel in Rome to the airport in Rome!)We arrived in Salzburg only to run into our friend Jay, turns out we were on the same train and we didn't even know it! Another short taxi ride and we were dropped off at our dorms (sorry no pictures yet...I'll get there though, I promise!)Our rooms are pretty great...more storage than I know what to do with, and we have our own bathroom!The kitchenettes are not as great...no oven, and very little space, but I suppose we'll make do.In the afternoon we were greeted by about half of the group, and we all went our grocery shopping...nothing like overwhelming the city on our first day!The rest of the day was filled with getting settled in...you have no idea how great it is to finally stop living out of a suitcase!
8.27We left our hostel around 5:45 to get to the airport for our splendid day of travel: Paris-Munich, 5 hour layover in Munich, Munich-Rome. Word of warning: don't bring more than 20 kilos (44 lbs.) on a inter-European flight. Fortunately for me, Jessica's luggage was lost on her flight over to Europe, so she was able to check my other bag, saving me obscene fees. I'll spare you the boring details of the rest of the day...needless to say, we all got to Rome in one piece.
8.28In the afternoon we walked to the Vatican, and went inside St. Peter's Basilica. It was stunningly gorgeous. We also went below the Basilica to the crypt where many previous Popes are buried. The rest of the afternoon was consumed by waiting for more friends to arrive. We met Chris and Teresa at their B&B and then walked around to find dinner, along the way we just happened to bump in to the Colosseum, so we ate dinner on a patch of grass outside its entrance. It was stunning!
The Vatican
inside
Colosseum
inside the Colosseum
The Roman Forum
Pantheon
@ an Italian Restaurant
Spanish Steps
Stunning sunset over Rome
Trevi Fountain
8.30Katie and I were on our own for the day, again, we did a bit of aimless wandering, revisiting Trevi fountain in the light of day (I threw 3 coins in, so now I'm apparently destined to marry an Italian...). We spent a good portion of the afternoon at our hostel. Just before 5, we headed out to meet up with Chris and Teresa for a bit of a farewell dinner (they headed to Florence while Katie and I were going to be staying in Rome the next few days.)
8.31The day of the Vatican Museum. So, we just happened to luck out as the Vatican Museum is free on the last Sunday of each month (saving us 8 euro), and we figured that getting in line around 8:30 (the open at 9) would be more than sufficient. Boy were we wrong. The line wrapped around good 1.5 miles....we didn't even get into the museum until 10, and we weren't even close to the end of the line! Not to knock the Vatican Museum, but due to an over-abundance of people, the heat, and all the time we'd been spending in museums the past weeks I just lost interest really fast. I am glad I can say I've been to the Sistine Chapel...it is truly amazing, and I do wish I could have stayed there longer to take it all in, but there were simply too many people there to truly enjoy it. In the end, we spent nearly as much time waiting in line as we did in the Museum itself.
9.1Our last day in Rome. Katie and I headed out to the Catacomb of St. Sebastian, which are hardly conveniently located, but we found them none-the-less. We had a guide who took us through, and it was all very fascinating. It only lasted a half hour though, so it was a bit pricey in that regard. The rest of the day was filled with repacking and getting ready for our travels to Salzburg.
Nuns at the Church at the Catacomb of St. Sebastian
schaumrolle
