One month and this is what I know...

- “Ich komme aus Kalifornian” gets you more attention than you want

- curbs just jump out at you, thus always watch where you’re walking

- I have a new found love for soups

- Cobble stone is all too common, ergo heels just don’t work. I live in my black flats!

- an unhealthy amount of German vocab words. We keep on getting new lists, we keep on memorizing new words, and I am still in awe that there is room in my brain for more. Sometimes (well, often) German words just come out subconsciously and 9 out of 10 times used in the wrong context

- German grocery stores are stressful and you have to buy your own plastic bags to carry everything in it and the cashiers look at you funny

- the men who hang out in Irish pub Murphy’s Law are sehr gut! I am never disappointed J

- Chocolate here is amazing. Well treats in general are really. Mozart balls. Milka. Swiss. Chocolate dipped fruit on sticks. Ice cream. Pretzels. Can I take all of you home with me??

- Edelweiss beer is amazing (and it is the first beer I actually have ever craved in my life!!)

- Ab workouts are vital

- There is a reason why no one wears flip flops here

- I believe in the buddy system

- EU class topics (I actually am interested in and understand!): Immigration is still a pressing issue for Europe, fertility rates are at an all time low, and the Treaty of Lisbon is trying to get passed in October; a clause that will help unify the 27 countries and create a President that would work better to create a stronger voice internationally

- I have so far won the clutz award. Hands down.

- Holly and LJ get more attention because their blonde

- Not having TV or accessible internet is good for the soul

- PUREL IS A MUST (this one’s for you, Jenna) / Bye Bye Germ spray (thanks, mom)

- Always have your student ID card wherever you go. Otherwise you can’t close.

- I have a postcard problem.

- The Monchsberg is a WORKOUT. Oh let me tell you! And 4 weeks later and it hasn’t gotten any easier

- Holly can scream

- Mom, I’m running low on Luna’s, a new shipment soon?

- Pizza at Il Sole. That’s what God created on the seventh day.

- Here, it really is about quality of life over what you can buy. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist (or a long stay) to see how genuinely happy and content people are with their lives. They live for the small things. I hope I can carry that with me.

**** so I was sitting here, about to wrap up my post when I realized I have three amazing girls who are living this exact experience right along side me. This was actually a great idea because we had the funniest conversation of my LIFE. I love these three!

LJ’s LIST:

- Don’t go to chain & whip themed clubs, eat chocolate everyday, try everything, wear a drendal to Oktoberfest! And no seat at Oktoberfest = no beer = no fun, you really do walk everywhere, SS is nicht sehr gut, Remember when?, don’t sleep with your windows open, meal stipends only make it one night, run from men who pull your hair, hide your Werther’s, don’t steal full-length mirrors, Wasser is hard to come by, buy a watch!, the Oktoberfest cookies are for decoration only, “you know you’re drunk when you said you’ve been to the moon.”

ABBIE’S LIST:

- Make friends with the bar tenders, you can get internet and beer at McDonalds, don’t be late for ANYTHING, don’t speak German in Irish pubs, always lock your door, be the first one in line for eggs, ALL AMERICAN BEER SUCK!, laziness and obesity is only a problem in the US, always put the cat in the boys room, only take as much as you can eat, happy hour is the best hour of the day, beware of WODKA & men that growl, Austrians don’t care about the Sound of Music, Sweaty Jim = early class dismissal, you have to pay for everything! even the bathroom!, Drunken durams = delish, and fires can start when converters smoke.

HOLLY’s LIST:

- don’t buy an elevator pass, eat pancakes on steroids at that one restaurant, coming home before midnight is unacceptable, go Cannoning in Switzerland, a flask could be a good investment: take this to art gallery’s, soccer games, bars, concerts, tell people you are in “movies” in Hollywood, don’t listen to anyone who said don’t bring a lot of stuff… I have one pair of shorts, bring your small camera or you will never take pictures, the washing machines are not my friends, 6E Wodka haunts you in morning (LJ knows) eat Eva’s soup, study German in the morning before class, put Eva on your ipod so you can listen to her everywhere; like the train station and at bars, don’t loose your sunglasses at McD trying to sneak under the child line to avoid the 50cent bathroom fee, wear your drendal out of the store, puke in Switzerland, and have people tell stories about it, beware of exchange rates, bring flats!

♥

Countdown to Greece: 2 days.

Vienna!!!

9-24 Hotel Post in Vienna

"Vienna!! After a full day of traveling we are (finally) cozied in our hotel room in our pj’s. We left Salz at nine this morning, drove until noon where we stopped off at this monastery—Melk. At this point I was so done with being on the bus and wasn’t properly informed that we weren’t getting lunch until 2pm, I wasn’t in the best of moods. So instead of carrying around my sweater, camera, and bag I left it all on the bus—my personal form of boycott. While everyone was wide-eyed and taking pictures on the tour I was hungry, CRANKY, tired, and all the above.

Anyways, Melk was very pretty. The outside was all painted yellow, for some reason having to do with a King’s favorite color, and the murals on the inside were stunning. The world’s oldest book (dated back to the 9^th Century) was in the library there and we got to see it, very cool!

With food finally in our stomachs we were ready to board the bus and continue the two more hours to Vienna. But oh wait… engine issues. Neat. Our driver said in broken English that “sometimes this happens.” Sometimes this happens??? What does that even mean? Sometime the bus doesn’t turn on? Holy moly, let’s just say that Mario the bus driver was not on my list of favorite people. We ended up getting to the city close to 5pm, got to our Hotel Post (Abbie and I shared a very spacious double with a shower head that had amazing pressure J) and we were let loose to explore for the rest of the night.

We unpacked a little and then headed out to do a little sightseeing. Now I can sympathize with Hilary and Liz, being put in an unfamiliar city and just told to “go” see things is easier said than done! We walked along the Danube River for a little while and bought a few postcards, then made out way to this really cool Gothic Church, which actually had a mass going on. Lots of candles were lit with prayers and you could heard the pastor giving his sermon. Outside the church we ran into a group of break dancers who were performing in the middle of the main square, it was a great opportunity to people watch J

We stumbled upon this yummy Asian place for dinner. Then we went a got ice cream at this very big, very crowded (always a good sign!) homemade icecream place. OMG so good!!! I got mint chocolate chip (which they call pefermintz here) and coffee (Kaffee). Totally hit the spot. We are back in the hotel now, a lot of people went out looking for a fun discoteca, but with an 8am wakeup call tomorrow morning I’m thinking sleep over booze might be the best idea."

9-27 Back in Salzburg!

Didn’t have time to journal the days in their entirety because unlike trains, buses make me nauseas! SO I’m going to fashion a list of all the things that stuck out.

- the opera, Die Fleirermaus!

- Underground bar called Flek… very yummy drinks J

- The Art History museum… I walked around by myself, very peaceful, got 1 ½ to just roam around, found the portrait of Jane Seymour… from The Other Bolyen Girl! Wanted to take a picture but the stupid security lady was watching me like a hawk

- The open flee market… I got this super cool elephant bag and a stud for my ear piercing! Oh and some presents, very neat. Reminded me a little of Pick Place, substituting German confusion for anything as simple as buying a bracelet.

- The beautiful weather! Jim says he hasn’t been to Vienna with any group that had better weather than we had!

- Oh… minor bummer. I am SUCH a clutz. In Munich I fell down stairs in a Starbucks and hurt my knee. In Vienna I decided to fall flat on my face off a curb I did not properly acknowledge and bloody up my other knee… a chunk of skin is definitely missing (cute, huh?) These injuries on top of my stress fracture makes me a walking emergency case.

"For the first time since I’ve been here, when the bus pulled into our little nook I got off the bus and it felt like home. Next Friday will be the ONE MONTH marker for my stay so far in Europe. It has really flown. In a way, I want to push back the clock and make time pause since everything here is so different, exotic, and intoxicating. We have really taken to the Austrian way of life and tried our hardest to understand and appreciate everything that goes along with that responsibility. I love it here, I do, but on the other hand, thoughts of home come so often its becoming tiring to constantly have to keep them at a healthy distance. It has only been a month. September. I can’t even get up enough courage to look at a calendar and physically see all of the days that are between me and December 19^th. Too many. To say I missed home would be accurate. But more than that I miss faces, voices, and the people that make me, me."

Salzburger SchloBkonzert

Concert Review: Salzburger SchloBkonzert

After every concert we have to write a Concert Review to talk about what we liked or didn't like and basically what we found interesting during the performance. I thought I'd post it instead of reiterating what I already wrote. On Friday in Vienna we're seeing an opera!

"I wasn’t sure what to expect going into our first concert. I do not have a huge Classical music background but I knew that hopefully after this semester I would feel more confident in identifying it and having a more in-depth grasp on the culture that surrounds it.

I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed the Salzburger SchloBkonzert. It was nothing what I expected but in a good way. One of the things we were told to focus on was how we felt during the performance and what details we noticed or picked up on. One of my most overriding feelings had to be alertness. I didn’t want to miss anything. I didn’t want to turn my head and not hear the piano come softly into the piece or hear the plucking of the viola. When the music started I was surprised by how pretty it sounded; like a light, it literally lit up the whole room. I think the room itself helped. The intimate setting really made the audience feel more connected to the musicians and feel as if they too were apart of the performance. The first movement really set the tone for the rest of the concert. It was upbeat, but not in an obvious way. Both musicians were focused and serious, but at the same time you could instantly see how much passion they had for their respect art forms. The woman on the viola often looked extremely concentrated, but I caught her a few times looking at the music like it was her world. They may come off of as dramatic, but being apart of the audience in a setting when we were in such close proximity to the performers, it felt that much more personal.

I know this “personal” feeling will not be the same for all of the concerts we see because some of them will be in huge halls or auditoriums, but I think this setting for my first Classical concert was ideal. Along with this feeling, I felt oddly included in the music. Instead of a situation where you are watching a movie or watching a performance from afar, I didn’t feel excluded or out of place for not knowing a lot about the art. I feel as though I could appreciate it even without an extensive musical background and I think that is essentially what it is all about. I will never be a musician but at the same time never want to feel as though I cannot appreciate someone else’s talent. We live in a world, where, with all the differences people exude, we strive to find a small place in us for it all. I hope to find a small place for this culture in myself and at the same time take the effort to absorb the history that goes with it."

OkToBeRFesT, MUNICH

9-17 On the train to Munich.

"Officially our first travel weekend! I have only been on a train one other time in my life and that was in Oregon, Europe is quite different, ha! I almost don’t want to be writing right now because of how pretty the countryside is. Sometimes we will go for ten minutes without seeing one house or road and then we’ll come across the coziest looking home tucked in a hill with cows in their yard. There are 12 of us girls traveling to Munich this weekend. 12 girls and 2 hotel rooms. Hmmmm the adventures of college traveling! There will definitely be plenty of stories.

Tonight is going to be low key I think, maybe a little walking around and then bed. We all went out last night and are exhausted, most of them are sleeping as I’m writing this (power naps are really vital to successful traveling I have quickly found.) Tomorrow is dedicated to a full day of sightseeing, out on the town tomorrow night, and then OKTOBERFEST all day Saturday!!

Love the girls I am traveling with. Such a diverse, fun, LOUD, adventurous group. Ready for some German hotties!!"

9-18 In the hotel in Munich.

"First day in Munich and I can honestly say it was one of the best days I’ve had in a while. With no set plan we headed out of our hotel, grabbed a quick 2E breakfast and were immediately dragged (by Holly of course) to a used drendel (traditional German dresses) store because she was determined to buy one to wear for Oktoberfest. To make a long story short, six out seven of us girls walked out with 40E or less drendels. (myself included). Omg, it was hilarious. I don’t really know how I ended up in a dressing room trying to zip the zipper that runs from your bikini line to your bust, but it happened nonetheless. Mine is peach/coral with a light blue apron & white sleeves. We plan on wearing them tomorrow, to German class on Monday, and pretty much to every costume party I attend from now on. Ha!!

After that glorious purchase we boarded the S-bahn to the heart♥ of Munich where I was instantly overwhelmed by the hustle and bustle of everything. Since opening day of the festival is tomorrow, the city was swarming with thousands more people than normal any other time of year.

I don’t know how it happened, but one second we were stepping off the S-bahn, the next we were on the sidewalk taking pictures of this huge old church/town hall place across the street, and the next we were following these two (slightly older than college aged) tour guides who give free tours around the city. They rely completely on tips and our guy, Ricky, was amazing! He took us on a two-hour tour of all the little historical spots in Munich; the city Senegal, St.Peter’s Church, the Mirabelle Gardens, and so many things we would have just breezed by. He told us his whole life story, how he’s from Canada and was planning on just visiting the city for a month, and the month quickly turned into two years and counting. How cool?! After the tour he took us to get a beer and then, finding out that we were planning on conquering the chaos of opening day, he took us on the S-bahn and showed us the 3k walk all the locals take to the festival grounds (in order to avoid the thousands of people who will take buses and trains.) He took us through the actual grounds and showed us all the tents, the good ones to go to, and where certain things were. He was literally God sent!

Doing a Pub-Crawl tonight… (10E for drinks all night) thanks to Ricky and our amazingly random, lucky, productive day in Germany!!!"

9-20 In the hotel.

"Just finished breakfast. It feels SO nice to have a good 8-9 hours of sleep under our belts. Finally. These past three days have been so busy, crazy, exhausting; A BLAST. We had the best first day of sightseeing, found our A+ tour guide, Ricky, totally stumbled upon an all inclusive 10E Pub Crawl, Abbie and I met these two German guys, Christian and Daniel, at this hostel/bar called the Wombat, who chatted us up for two hours, bought us drinks, and told us all about the culture in Munich.

With two hours of sleep to go on, Abbie and I were quite the troopers waking up with everyone else at 5:30am to get our drendels on and for the biggest, most intense, beer festival in the world.

But before the fun could start we had to stand in a crowd of very loud Europeans from 6:30am-9am. I don’t really know how to properly describe these 2 ½ hours. At one point I wanted to reach up and clear hair from my face, but I could not move either one of my arms to do so. LJ, Kelsey, and I were to the point of tears. Everyone was taller than us, smoking cigarettes (at 7am) and blowing it directly into our bubbles of allotted oxygen. For a solid 5+ minutes (I would have timed it but I couldn’t move my arm to look at my watch) I had a very tall man’s elbow firmly lodged in my sternum. Towards the end I got so panicky that I was going to trip (from the intense shoving) and literally get trampled to death, I started laughing (gotta love those teetering emotions.) And could NOT stop. People were staring at me and if I was able to communicate with my two-weeks of German I would have told them to go to hell. But of course Ava and her sweet spirit didn’t teach us the word for ‘hell’. Special. I have never been so uncomfortable (and so unable to do anything about it) in my entire life. IN MY ENTIRE LIFE.

They started serving beer at noon and luckily one of the guys in our groups mom reserved three tables outside so we could sit down. Once the beer started coming everyone got happy. The afternoon was wonderful after an exhausting morning, two liters did me well J All in all it was an amazing weekend, everything and more I wanted from Munich and our first official weekend trip. Next stop, Vienna!"

Some words to keep it interesting... Kebaps, vodka-redbull shots in alleys, laugh-crying, Ricky, STARBUCKS!, kiwi’s, Milka club…, Mein Name ist Gafar.

It's a cliché but I love it all the same, all we can do is live for the moment

After lunch, getting ready for EU class.

"In our lit class today we talked about the story of Oedipus and the overriding theme of fate and freedom of choice. Jim asked the class if we believe in fate and although I have been asked that question before, for some reason it really resided with me. The concept of choice. Conscious decisions one makes and accepts all results (and repercussions) those choices entail. How we have come to the moment that is now. What choices, the good and the bad, that have landed us here. Fate, the idea that something is destined to happen—therefore ones conscious decisions no longer bear the same significance they would if we lived in an ultimately random world. I believe that things happen for a reason, that good things will find their way to good people, and that there is someone out there for everyone. But fate? It seems the world is too complicated a place to fit such a small, four-lettered word. If fate was real, I think too many people would sit and wait for the good stuff to happen instead of going and living it. Appreciating the moment, that’s the best I can do."

—Just finished a traditional Hungarian lunch –the beef goulash was delicious!!

Just a few bumps in the road

Saturday night, in sick.

"It’s a Saturday night and I’m staying in because I have some sort of bug L. We think its something I ate and I thought I would feel better in the morning but it definitely stuck with me all today. Abbie and LJ left to go out on the town tonight and Holly’s in Switzerland for the weekend. I wish I could have gone with them! But I spent all of today on our tours of the Salt mines and Sound of Music nauseas and getting sick on the bus. Gross. So hopefully by just staying behind and watching a movie with two other girls who opted out of the bar scene I will feel better tomorrow.

This has been quite the weekend for our group! One girl sprained her ankle, some people’s things have gone missing, one other guy is sick and I got some sort of food poisoning. One week in and we’re falling apart! Ha! No, just kidding J I’m taking Airborne and drinking lots of fluids, just woke up from a 2 ½ hour nap that I desperately needed and by tomorrow I think things will be better.

On a happier note the tours today were amazing! The buses left at 8:45am and we didn’t get home until 6:30pm. A picture says a thousand words so I’ll share many, but it was quite the day!

Highlights—

*the fashionable jump suits we got to wear in the salt mines

*(our tour guide in general) HAHA he was dressed up as a solider? Or maybe a drill sergeant, anyways he was hilarioussssss

*OH! I de-boned my first trout this weekend…!! Um, yes so proud of myself. It came grilled whole on my plate and instead of panicking I dug in and it was delicious J

*got mom a birthday present!

*saw VERY native Austrians walking around in the small town we stopped at to see the Church where the baron and Maria got married… lederhosen and all!

*we took a picture in front of the very gondola where Liesl and Frank sang “16 going on 17” SO PRETTY

*got Sound of Music stickers for my scrapbook!!

*had my first experience of throwing up ON A TOUR BUS, IN EUROPE, IN A (TOO-SMALL) PLASTIC BAG, IN PUBLIC, TRYING TO DO IT QUIETLY SO I DIDN’T GROSS PEOPLE OUT, wanting to legit sleep on the bus and miss seeing the hill where Julie Andrews frolicked. I won the trooper award (along with Jo who hobbled around on a sprained ankle) Hands down."

Sitting in the Republic right now, (turning into our new favorite place!) and was pleasantly surprised that Sunday mid-mornings have live music! Two guys on guitars are playing right now and just sang "Wonderwall" ... its so friendly here! Side note: I'm feeling lots better today... knock on wood, the nausea is gone :) Today is dedicated to playing some catch up on homework for tomorrow, aka German verbs and conjugations and EU reading. I read a lot this morning while the girls were still passed out from their eventful night, but the book is dense! We want to walk around a little today too, even though the past two days have been so packed with sightseeing and tours and bike riding. Oh! I forgot to write about our biking adventure!!! on Friday! It was amazing! My stress fracture is still healing so "low-impact" things like bikes are really good for it. After a frustrating beginning to the whole-- paying for the bikes at a machine that has an English option but might as well not because every other direction was German-- it honestly took us forever to pay BUT once we did we were off! We biked all along the river that runs parallel through Salzburg and into some more residential areas which were really pretty and had tons less traffic so we didn't have to stop as often to cross busy streets. I don't know what it is, but biking seriously puts me in the best mood. I probably sound so dorky, but we biked for at least 2 1/2 hours and it was the best time I've had here so far. The houses were so cozy, the people watching was so fun, and I felt like we really took the time to trek through the heart♥ of Salzburg; the place Ava wants us to soon feel comfortable enough to call home.

Pictures, pictures, pictures!!

the lake where Maria and the kids fell overboard!

I ♥ the Sound of Music... (the bus ride, not so much...)

"I am 16... going on 17" GONDOLA !!!

LJ and I with our tour guide! :D

on the train into the mine!

the gang in our sweet mining jumpsuits!

bikes! in front of the Sound of Music cow :)

how cute??!!

Tessa Rosa... best Bailey's hot cocoa everrrr!!

The hills are alive!

After dinner, before a run downtown.

"Just about to run out to get a hot tea down into town. Just finished the most amazing dinner Kelsey created, whole-wheat penne with chicken and vegetables we got at the open market today. Tomorrow we are going on the SOUND OF MUSIC TOUR!!! & touring the famous Salt mines in Salzburg. “Salz” actually means “salt” from way back when, so we were told it was something we should NOT miss. It is an 8-hour tour, all day tomorrow; we are going to be such tourists… I love it! Haha. Oh and don’t worry Nana… I’ll go again with you J Tonight is karaoke night at one of our favorite pubs but I think were forfeiting it to watch the Sound of Music movie tonight so we can be prepped and rested for a full day of walking and pictures!"

Errands that were on our to-do list today:

- buy tickets to do the Sound of Music tour

- drop off postcards (aka locating the post office)

- find the outdoor market to get produce for dinner

- find the silver&blue Mozart chocolates

- check e-mail

- buy “Austria” t-shirts… they look like Puma brand, so cute J

How errands actually went today:

- asked 5 different people where the post office was… 2 of which actually “Sprechen Sie Englisch”

- the internet connection at the café decided to be fickle so we almost bought tour tickets 6 times… woooo for “7^th times a charm!”

- Almost bought horse meat instead of chicken for our dinner… I really wish there were pictures along with way-too-long German words

- FOUND THE MOZART CHOCOLATES

- T-shirt shopping: ummmm it’s just too early on in the semester to be buying clothing, language barrier and all…

Side note: I have learned more German in this one week (four classes to be exact) then I could ever imagine. Although it is intense and we joke that it is more of an “immersion” program, I know it will be so helpful when getting around… and maybe soon shopping will become easier!

----these pictures are from St.Wolfgang, uploading finally worked! Enjoy!

You are only what you eat

Sitting looking out at such a sunny day!

"In our European Union class today we talked about the differences between American and European culture. Before the class even begun I looked around and thought I kinda already got it. It was sunny today so we had a BBQ on the lawn. Since the tables were already set up and our teacher was comfortable he just decided to have class outside, and start it late. People were still drinking their beers from lunch and when class started I thought it was weird only until our teacher went to grab another one. And then after all this, class ended a good fifteen minutes early because the sun moved and it was getting in his eyes so he wanted to leave and enjoy to day. In a nutshell, class outside + drinking IN class + not so prompt times = European living. I could get used to this…

We are reading The European Dream in class and, even though we’ve only just made it through the intro, I can already tell it will be a fascinating read. Europe is just soo different. And I totally hate myself for just writing that because I have read that exact sentence so many times and been irritated at its vagueness. What is soooo different? Of course cultures and customs play a part in the difference but it is so much more than that. The best way I can describe it (after not even being here for a full week) is the discussion we had today about food. To Americans, food is something that needs to be convenient, fast food has definitely added inches our waistlines, and IN N OUT is a place to be revered. To Europeans, food is something you can get your hands on. The idea of ‘slow food.’ You know the baker that bakes your bread, the farmer that raises the pigs you buy and the milkman and his cows. To elaborate on this point, Jim (our teacher) told us that our turkey for Thanksgiving is already picked out and at a specific farm, getting fat for our dinner in a few months… how weird??!!? Jim brought up the common phrase, “you are what you eat” and then added the European spin that they say about us… “you are only what you eat.” If we play into this notion, Americans are nothing more than greasy burgers and a disgustingly high annual pizza consumption rate.

Completely switching gears I am enjoying every minute over here. Abbie was on the phone trying to get her calling card to work so I came outside and am sitting next to an open window in our house. It is so homey here I already feel like in a few weeks it is somewhere I am going to be happy to come back to after long travel weekends. Ava tends to pretty rose gardens that line our yards, when I look out the window I have to remind myself where I actually am. We are done with classes for the day and have some down time before dinner. I want to try and make it to the internet café tonight but with all this German I’m finding Abbie, LJ, Holly and I are usually in our room quizzing each other on the next days vocab. Oh but I now know that not all of this (seemingly) meaningless vocab studying is a waste!! We were at a museum today and this man ran into me and said something completely foreign and I ALMOST ignored it until a light went off in my little head and understood him… he said “Entshuldigung” which means “excuse me!” Look at me go! I’m totally going to be fluent by the time December rolls around J"

A Day of First's (then again, isn't every day here??)

First...

• German class. & quiz... I now know how to say useful things like "Zahlan, bitte" (check, please) "Entschuldigung" (excuse me) and "weisswein gespirtzt" (white wine spritzer... my personal favorite)
• Eis kaffee. (iced coffee) & then realizing that this was actaully ice cream and coffee, not ICE and coffee. But a yummy surprise nonetheless!
• Time I have seen a real life chess game (like in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets!!) definitely took pictures, the pieces were as big as I am!
• Trip to the train station! We are planning on traveling to Munich next weekend and seeing Germany and going to OKTOBERFEST!!! I have only been to the airport in Germany (ha) and I was one tired girl, so excited!!
• German pretzel. (they are know for them)

We toured around Salzburg today after classes and got to see so much. Along with traveling, I am equally as excited to explore the city I am studying in. There is so much you can miss if you don't give the city the respect it deserves. I am in awe that there are people who call this their home. I am so glad we have Jim and Ava to show us around. This city feels huge and I know I would be completely lost without our very oun tour guides. We went to St. Peter's Cathedral and a few monestaries (one of them still up and working... with monks and everything!) Jim told us the tale of the "Red Bull" and how it originated here... Red Bull's world headquarters are in Austria, we took a bus by it on Saturday so it was neat to connect the story with something we saw. Ava could talk forever. She knows so much. Evey time period, war, and Saint that built this or painted that. I took lots of pictures but its so different looking at them on my camera than it is standing there, looking over all of Austria that is soaked in so much history. I have never been surrounded by buildings and rituals that are so old. The US seems like just a baby compared to what this city has seen.

With Munich in our plans for the next weekend and a four-day trip to Vienna the following weekend, we are content with staying here this weekend and exploring the things we have on our to-do list. This list includes going to the salt mines, ice caves, biking around Old Town, and buying wine and delicious cheeses and fashioning a picnic near the river. With so much to do I feel as though we will be as busy as if we were taking the train somewhere.

Other facts that I thought would be fun to share:

*laundry machines are different here... and by different I mean confusing.

*there are horse-drawn carriages everywhere, it makes me feel like its the holidays constantly!

*lunch menu today: cream of broccili soup, tuna, mixed greens salad, fresh "brot" or bread with a variety of meats and cheeses & chocolate mousee... all homemade. It is really nice because Ava makes a variety of things and its all serve yourself so there is usually something for everyone. Good thing because I heard the word tuna and almost gagged.

*when you pass people on the streets they don't smile at you if they don't know you. Its totally a habit for me/I'm just a friendly person so I bet (if I don't already) I have "YES I AM AN AMERICAN" written on my forehead.

x's and o's to all those I am already missing. Postcards are in the works!

St.Wolfgang & the AUG

In my room after a long day of sightseeing!

"Today was a full day dedicated to touring Austria. We took a bus from town to the most quaint city, St. Wolfgang (w’s in German are pronounced with the v sound) and I could not take enough pictures! The city (well town is a better word for it) sits right on a gorgeous lake, water that reminded me of movies set in Greece. Every single house had window boxes overflowing with flowers and entire walls covered in sprawling ivy. A lot of the houses here use dark green as an accent color which I found interesting and very cool. We got to the town a little later than expected because half an hour into our drive a radiator pipe burst and started smoking. Jim and Ava took us into a café to get something to drink while we waited for a new bus. This was a prime opportunity for us to use our new vocab, “Grub gott” and “danka” while ordering green tea J

When we finally got off the bus Ava took us into one of the oldest gothic churches in Austria. She went into details about Wolfgang ans the legends that make up his past. Churches have always been interesting to me and this one was unlike any I had ever seen. It was so intricate and the ceilings were hand painted, dating back to 2,000 years ago. Such a time seems inconceivable, I was in a constant state of awe. Locals were walking in, lighting candles and saying prayers and I just stood there and watched. A family of three, the little girl being dragged by her parents chanting the German word for candy; an older couple looking sober and serious, their “goodness” so apparent I didn’t even have to hear them speak to know they were just good people. I took pictures of two of the altars so I could look back and remember, but I know they won’t do them justice.

Souvenir shopping and exploring the town I WANT TO HONEYMOON AT!!!! Filled the rest of our day. I got two postcards. Instead of taking the bus back we boarded a gorgeous boat that took us to the other side of the lake. I didn’t want the day to ever end!!

PS: ate schnitzel for the first time last night! Mystery meat to the extremmeeeee."

Sunday morning, hangover.

"I am lying in bed staring out at the green wonderland that sits at the edge of our backyard. It is just past noon and I am the only one awake out of my roomies. Our first Sunday, our first real morning to sleep in!

We went out last night, first big night doing SALZBURG and it was eventful! We started at the AUG which is kinda like the towns local watering hole for beer and socializing. We “American” girls show up in “going out” clothes aka dresses and to say we stuck out would be an understantement. HA. The whole concept behind the Aug is community; a place to go after work with friends for a beer. You don't need to spend a long time here to figure out how close-knit relationships between people are paramount. How the AUG works: You go up to the counter, order either a liter or half liter, then grab your “stein” or mug from the shelf, rinse it in cold water so your beer stays cold, and take it up to the man at the keg where he fills it up past the rim and spills it everywhere.

I thought by now one of my roomie would be up to start breakfast with me, but they are still dreaming so I can write more J Obviously we got in late if it is past noon and we are all still in our beds. I was the first one to make it to our room sometime around 2:30am I think. With that said, the Aug was definitely not our final stop last night.

After a few “steins” (which was only E 5.80!) we walked (FAR AND IN THE COLD!!) to O’Malley’s where a lot of people in the group ended up at. It was a Saturday night so it was packed and even though a table was hard to find I liked taking in the culture and watching the locals interact. There was a bachelorette party that came in dressed in white coats as nurses and they were hilarious!! There were at least 20 of them and they were so cute. They like working on their English so they tried talking to us and giggled when we kept saying “Grub gott” and “prost!!” (which means cheers!)

LJ and I met this Austrain, Lucas, SO funny. He loved us. & bought us each a drink. We were very appreciative and made conversation but we knew we had to get out quick because we are fast learners and know how Europeans like Californiaaiaiaa girls…. oh boy.

Off to wake these chickes up and make breakfast (well I guess lunch) from groceries we bought yesterday; eggs, yogurt, and toast. I should have written about our first experience in a German grocery store. Simply put, I feel as though I could have dealt with ten Lucas’s better than we shopped."

-------just got to do a little catching up on the family and saw pictures of Meg and Austin ready for their first day of school! WOW! Austin you're growing up too fast. And the picture of hank missing me.... i miss him too!! He already looks bigger (if that's even possible)!! I miss all you guys to the moon and back... Mom: keep your updates as least sentimental as possible, I get sad over here easily at the thought of how long it will be until I see you guys!! ok? For some reason I try and post comments but it won't let me... I'll try and figure it out. xxoo♥

Hello Europe!

I am coming to you from Cafe Republic in the heart of Salzburg! I just ordered a latte machiatio and it came in a tall glass, layered colors of espresso, milk & foam, coupled with a tall spoon and amarettio mint, I think? haha... everything is new here. I love it♥ !!!!!!!

We don't have internet at our house (so whenever I have time to write or think of something I want to say I am not in immediate access to my blog) so at the house I journal. Therefore I have decided to write most of my posts in "journal entry form", so that when I do have an hour to come down here and blog I wont have to spend it stressing about what I remember from previous nights, I can just transfer my journal here, to my online home:)

On the airplane from LAX to Frankfurt.

"It feels like it took forever to get here, on the plane, headed to Germany and in a weird way I thought this day would never come. After a two-day, 18hr car trek with Dad from home to Redlands and a solid week of packing prior, sitting here didn't seem quite tangible. But nevertheless, here I am, squished between a older slightly grumpy woman and a German family of four. LJ and I tried to sit together but the best they could do was get us in front of eachother. Lucky for me I do have the bulkhead (sp?) so coach seems slightly more spacious, but then again I'm constantly bumping elbows with my fellow fliers. Joy.

Things that I'm already noticing and we haven't even crossed over New York yet...

- German is every flight attendant's first language (and when this surprised me I felt stupid)

- my first German word: Zucker = sugar (got a cute little packet for my tea) :)

- time is listed like army time. ie: 14:15...??

- I ♥ accents

- diet coke is called 'Coca Cola light'

My nerves have seemed to ease from quite a teary take-off... I've never traveled internationally, and to do so with no one sitting next to me and family I know I won't be seeing for four months is unnerving to be completely honest. Liz is already in Barcelona, along with Hilary and Nickie... it seems as though I was one of the last to take off towards what is guaranteed to be a semester to expect the unexpected. Alyssa put together the most amazing "how-to-salzburg" guide that I read through last night and it did help with the nerves.

We're coming up on 4 1/2 hours of flight time, leaving close to 5 1/2 left. The little boy sitting next to me only speaks German, so he keeps looking over at me while I'm writing this and it probably looks like Chinese to him. How weird :)

This is my first entry, the beginning of what everyone refers to as the most eye-opening experience college has to offer. While I cannot endorse that bold statement quite yet, I have no doubt it will be one for the books."

In my room (#3!!) on our first full day.

"I am here! After two flights, a taxi & a shuttle, we are nestled in our castle on a hill :) Our first night was quite the start! (ha!...ahhhhhhh!!!!) but I really won't have wanted it any other way. But I have to say it was weird waking up this morning at 7am to the dinging and donging of a nearby monastery bell through our open window.

After we unpacked a little we met and went down to town for dinner. Ava wanted to show us how to use the elevator so we took it down right into the center of town, across from the cute little restaurant we dined at:) and conveniently across from the internet cafe we will be using often. Dinner was WEIRD. The menu had some/little/no english (ha) I ordered polenta and spinach in a tomato sause and it came out looking like two slices of bread almost. But maybe the wierdest thing was being able to order a glass of wine with our meal. --defiantly not used to drinking in public!!

It was raining when we finished, the plan was to walk around town a little before crashing (exhaustion setting in with this crazy time change...) but instead we ended up at two different Irish pubs...."

---I am going to try and keep the following as minimally incriminating as possible so to all who are reading and have been here you will understand. Bla Bla. Eieldwiess. O'Malleys + vandalism delta love♥. Karaoke. Rainbow door. Walk up the hill. These are explained in detail in my journal however I am censoring a bit ;)

ORIENTATION DAY TODAY!!

miss you all, you know who you are xoo.