First of all, I'm really sorry! I've been so busy this week and on Sunday I had to finish this massive English project... But I will tell all now.
So Monday and Tuesday last week were really quite unspectacular. Except I found out that Alex had to have an operation. Luckily all went well! But that comes later.
Then Wednesday I had dance class like always and it was the last one of the beginner course and the second to last one of the year. We learnt the basic step of disco fox and practised heaps of others and also did this turn-y thing that looked really complicated but actually wasn't too bad for the tango.
Then Thursday was really sad because it was like a little leaving party in Vienna for Flore... :'( She's already back in Belgium and will be there for 10 days before flying to Ireland for 5 months. The time has gone so fast! I can't believe it's nearly Christmas, it's so crazy. Even though we didn't do that much it was still cool to hang out and plus we went to the Rathaus Christkindlmarkt which was awesome! There are these Christmas markets all over Vienna and it was my first one and it was really cool. And on Friday I went to the one at Schönbrun with Chrissi and Flo. It was nice as well, but apparently it's more for "cultural tourists" so it wasn't as big or impressive as the one at the Rathaus.
Then on Saturday was Kekse backen Tag with AFS! First of all I went to Constanze's English lesson and enthralled them with a sort of presentation on NZ. But seriously, they all seemed to be really interested and everyone here finds it so weird that Christmas is hot in NZ! I find it weird that it's cold here... I actually can't believe that tomorrow is Christmas... It shouldn't be this cold! Plus there's way too much school... I should've had a month free but I don't even get a day before! Now that is weird. But anyways, the biscuit baking was cool and it was so relaxed and nice to just hang out the whole day. Then that night we went out punschen (read earlier... drinking punch, but it's warm and not like the gross party kind but actually nice) in Baden and we were meant to stay like 3 hours, or that was the plan, but it was so cold that everyone only stayed like an hour and a half and by then Anna and I were frozen. And she was even wearing my gloves as well. Bit of a Tauranga softie...
Saturday night she stayed the night at mine and then on Sunday we just hung out around the house, slept and such. Quite a restful weekend really.
Then on Monday we had the Stammtisch again. There were quite a few people there this time and it was really fun to see all the people that you don't see very often and for everyone to just hang out and chat.
Then Tuesday... First of all, I made Christmas mince pies, from scratch, without a food processor, the mince and the dough and they taste REALLY GOOD! Whooo! I was quite proud of myself because I thought that they would possibly by horrible or at least different... But in reality not so different from Nana's! (Although, of course, not as good Nana. :D) Then I played Monopoly with Constanze and I felt really bad because I totally bankrupt her. Even though I didn't buy any of her properties, I've just got a head for business... Well. Kind of.
Then last night I went shopping in Vienna afterschool for a few last-minute Christmas presents and managed to get everything (I hope...) so I'm all set for tomorrow! And then I had dance class and it was the first week of the new course (bronze)... Originally there must've been at least 30 of us and space was always really tight. Now... There were 7 boys who were actually taking the class and 3 who were kinda like assistants, (that was really embarrassing, I just had to look up how to spell that...) and they dance when there aren't enough guys. And there were 12 girls. Quite a dramatic reduction really! Evidently lots of people don't actually like it, they just go and do the beginner course because everyone else does... But seriously, it's such an awesome idea I don't see why not!
Then today I just had school and I still have P.E. this afternoon... Then I'm free, yay! Btw, the reason that this post is called the Christmas Eve of Christmas Eve is because here they celebrate Christmas at night on the 24th. Which is actually quite convenient because you guys will all be celebrating at the same time that I am! But it is interesting, and also that you have to wait the whole day for presents... Not sure if I'm going to like that... But yeah, today is technically the Christmas Eve of Christmas Eve!
So I shall update you all on the going-ons here after Christmas and hopefully give a detailed Christmas post on Sunday. Ciao for now!
Friday, December 24, 2010
Monday, December 13, 2010
Another Week Closer to the End...
Mini freak-out at the fact that I have less than two months! :O I feel like I've been away from home for a really long time but only here for like a few weeks... On the other hand, my German is way better than a few weeks. Yeah! :D
So Monday was a short day, as always thankfully! We finally moved on from the bloody alps in Geography... And actually it was really interesting. We're talking about society and families and things and so our homework was to find out about our family tree. It actually really interested me so I sent an email to Granddad straight away asking what he knew about Mum's side and got to work on finding out about Dad's side... And I found out so much. I knew that his grandparents on Grandpa's side had his middle name and Alex's middle name (Estelle and Allan Kincaid) and when I googled them I managed to find her mother as well which was really cool. But then, when I googled her and her husband (Alexina Boulanger and Octave Brousseau) I managed to find our family going back to the 1600's! Seriously, starting from Andre Pepin who was born in 1600. It was so awesome. And even more awesome is the fact that we have French-Canadian roots. It was seriously exciting and I'm attaching the link of the family tree for any inquisitive family members! :)
Then on Tuesday it had rained during the night and then frozen. So that meant, the paths were incredibly icy! Luckily I left really early, because it took about half an hour to get to school whereas it's usually a 20 minute walk... Plus I nearly fell over about 10 times... But all that aside, I finally got there and had a French test which I thought didn't go that well, but results come later in the post... Also on Tuesday, I dyed my hair... Brown... Not like super drastically purple or anything, but still a change when I've been blonde my whole life! It took my host family as well as me a while to get used to it! But it looks really cool and I really like the colour.
Then on Wednesday we had the day off school. A great advantage of living in a primarily Catholic nation is that you get all the Catholic holidays! It was the day of a Saint (Maria Empfängnis), so I got to sleep in and then have a really long Skype with Kate G which was really cool. Btw, Clementine we must Skype sometime. :P And then Nick, Noémie and Stefan came over and we went sledding (well, tried to. The snow wasn't the best, but still a laugh), had a snowball fight and made a snowman. So a cold but good day!
Then on Thursday it was Conny's graduation from University. Even though she's staying on to do her doctorate, it was still a big deal because she's finished with her master's and could theoretically go and get a decent job now. It was really cool (although one of the professors who spoke had a really really REALLY long speech... But still!), it was awesome to celebrate with her. And I got to meet Rudolf's two other brothers as well. The older one was a lot like Uncle Skip, man it was weird... An Austrian version of Skip, Dad! Haha.
Friday I got my results of the second French test back! Another top mark... :D Must be all that French blood... Haha.
Then Saturday I met up with Anna and Nick in Vienna and we had a great NZ Christmas shopping day together. It's weird, thinking about it, it's the first NZer day that we've had! It was great to catch up and just be around normal accents for a day... :P Plus I got pretty much all the presents that I need so very productive as well!
Then today not much, just hung around at home and ate goose for lunch... It was actually quite nice but an interesting experience... I tried not to think of little geese running around quacking... Well, now I have to go and study for my English test tomorrow... Like seriously, I have no idea how the American voting system works! Help from any American family?
Till next time!
So Monday was a short day, as always thankfully! We finally moved on from the bloody alps in Geography... And actually it was really interesting. We're talking about society and families and things and so our homework was to find out about our family tree. It actually really interested me so I sent an email to Granddad straight away asking what he knew about Mum's side and got to work on finding out about Dad's side... And I found out so much. I knew that his grandparents on Grandpa's side had his middle name and Alex's middle name (Estelle and Allan Kincaid) and when I googled them I managed to find her mother as well which was really cool. But then, when I googled her and her husband (Alexina Boulanger and Octave Brousseau) I managed to find our family going back to the 1600's! Seriously, starting from Andre Pepin who was born in 1600. It was so awesome. And even more awesome is the fact that we have French-Canadian roots. It was seriously exciting and I'm attaching the link of the family tree for any inquisitive family members! :)
Then on Tuesday it had rained during the night and then frozen. So that meant, the paths were incredibly icy! Luckily I left really early, because it took about half an hour to get to school whereas it's usually a 20 minute walk... Plus I nearly fell over about 10 times... But all that aside, I finally got there and had a French test which I thought didn't go that well, but results come later in the post... Also on Tuesday, I dyed my hair... Brown... Not like super drastically purple or anything, but still a change when I've been blonde my whole life! It took my host family as well as me a while to get used to it! But it looks really cool and I really like the colour.
Then on Wednesday we had the day off school. A great advantage of living in a primarily Catholic nation is that you get all the Catholic holidays! It was the day of a Saint (Maria Empfängnis), so I got to sleep in and then have a really long Skype with Kate G which was really cool. Btw, Clementine we must Skype sometime. :P And then Nick, Noémie and Stefan came over and we went sledding (well, tried to. The snow wasn't the best, but still a laugh), had a snowball fight and made a snowman. So a cold but good day!
Then on Thursday it was Conny's graduation from University. Even though she's staying on to do her doctorate, it was still a big deal because she's finished with her master's and could theoretically go and get a decent job now. It was really cool (although one of the professors who spoke had a really really REALLY long speech... But still!), it was awesome to celebrate with her. And I got to meet Rudolf's two other brothers as well. The older one was a lot like Uncle Skip, man it was weird... An Austrian version of Skip, Dad! Haha.
Friday I got my results of the second French test back! Another top mark... :D Must be all that French blood... Haha.
Then Saturday I met up with Anna and Nick in Vienna and we had a great NZ Christmas shopping day together. It's weird, thinking about it, it's the first NZer day that we've had! It was great to catch up and just be around normal accents for a day... :P Plus I got pretty much all the presents that I need so very productive as well!
Then today not much, just hung around at home and ate goose for lunch... It was actually quite nice but an interesting experience... I tried not to think of little geese running around quacking... Well, now I have to go and study for my English test tomorrow... Like seriously, I have no idea how the American voting system works! Help from any American family?
Till next time!
Monday, December 6, 2010
Week of Snow
So. Experiences with the snow. It's snowed everyday for this past week which is totally freaking awesome! But, it means that the temperature hasn't been above about 3 degrees the entire time. I'm surprised I still have two hands really. Although, thanks to the gloves that Nana gave me, they've been very warmly protected!
Monday, not much happened, just the start of the snow fest... Except Rudolf drove me to school which was really nice, because it was snowing in the morning. And on Tuesday I had a French test with my 8th year class, and it actually went really well! I wasn't sure, because I never managed to finish one of the books and the other one I didn't read because I came into the class too late. But so I had three hours to write about one book and a bit of grammar and I found that I could actually do it quite well! So hopefully the mark reflects that...
Wednesday, more snow. And it was really cool, in history we were talking about like the Austrian first republic and the events leading up to WW2 and everything and we were reading this text. And the history teacher asked the class what the word "pragmatisch" meant. Now I know what you're all thinking, it looks extremely similar to an English word! But I had to think about it for a bit, how to explain it in German, and I thought for sure someone else would know. But no one did. So the teacher says, "none of you know what it means?" So I put up my hand and he bursts out laughing and says, "see, the exchange student from New Zealand knows what it means and you guys don't!" Never have I been happier for my extensive vocabulary in English than knowing that "pragmatisch" (pragmatic) means useful or practical. Then I made cookies that afternoon to celebrate. And because I wanted to, but you know.
Then on Friday I had a German test with my class of littlies who are about 10/11 years old. I had to write a story from a real life experience and it wasn't too hard so hopefully it went okay! And we got our results for the math test back. Total fail with 3 points from 48. Good thing Wellington Girls' doesn't need any marks... But then it was better in history and psychology, actually really interesting in psychology. First of all we were talking about the pre-frontal cortex of the brain and what it does (thanks dad! :D) and then we watched this movie on these people, "savants" who had all these freaky abilities. Like one guy could remember a number like 50 digits long and then do 60^33 in his head! And this other guy could be told any date and tell you the day of the week, and when it was a date on a day that he's been alive, also the weather and what he was doing... Crazy people! But, very interesting.
Then on Saturday we tried to do an AFS Flash Mob, but it failed because only 6 people showed up... And, the guy that was organising it with me was an hour late so we waited for ages in the cold! But we did actually end up having a good time and the other guy that came is a host brother of a friend of my host sister's... Kinda complicated... But so his host brother was at my house for my host sister's birthday party and so we went back together and had a really good time hanging out with 20 of Constanze's closest friends... But seriously, it was cool.
And then today was her birthday so we had a real family day and a nice lunch and cake and presents and it was really cool. Chrissi gave her some RTD's because she's legal to drink now... And I gave her a Converse shoe charm for her bracelet because she has like 4 pairs! I thought it was quite appropriate! And so another week, hopefully more snow, and I have Wednesday off, yay!
Till next week...
Monday, not much happened, just the start of the snow fest... Except Rudolf drove me to school which was really nice, because it was snowing in the morning. And on Tuesday I had a French test with my 8th year class, and it actually went really well! I wasn't sure, because I never managed to finish one of the books and the other one I didn't read because I came into the class too late. But so I had three hours to write about one book and a bit of grammar and I found that I could actually do it quite well! So hopefully the mark reflects that...
Wednesday, more snow. And it was really cool, in history we were talking about like the Austrian first republic and the events leading up to WW2 and everything and we were reading this text. And the history teacher asked the class what the word "pragmatisch" meant. Now I know what you're all thinking, it looks extremely similar to an English word! But I had to think about it for a bit, how to explain it in German, and I thought for sure someone else would know. But no one did. So the teacher says, "none of you know what it means?" So I put up my hand and he bursts out laughing and says, "see, the exchange student from New Zealand knows what it means and you guys don't!" Never have I been happier for my extensive vocabulary in English than knowing that "pragmatisch" (pragmatic) means useful or practical. Then I made cookies that afternoon to celebrate. And because I wanted to, but you know.
Then on Friday I had a German test with my class of littlies who are about 10/11 years old. I had to write a story from a real life experience and it wasn't too hard so hopefully it went okay! And we got our results for the math test back. Total fail with 3 points from 48. Good thing Wellington Girls' doesn't need any marks... But then it was better in history and psychology, actually really interesting in psychology. First of all we were talking about the pre-frontal cortex of the brain and what it does (thanks dad! :D) and then we watched this movie on these people, "savants" who had all these freaky abilities. Like one guy could remember a number like 50 digits long and then do 60^33 in his head! And this other guy could be told any date and tell you the day of the week, and when it was a date on a day that he's been alive, also the weather and what he was doing... Crazy people! But, very interesting.
Then on Saturday we tried to do an AFS Flash Mob, but it failed because only 6 people showed up... And, the guy that was organising it with me was an hour late so we waited for ages in the cold! But we did actually end up having a good time and the other guy that came is a host brother of a friend of my host sister's... Kinda complicated... But so his host brother was at my house for my host sister's birthday party and so we went back together and had a really good time hanging out with 20 of Constanze's closest friends... But seriously, it was cool.
And then today was her birthday so we had a real family day and a nice lunch and cake and presents and it was really cool. Chrissi gave her some RTD's because she's legal to drink now... And I gave her a Converse shoe charm for her bracelet because she has like 4 pairs! I thought it was quite appropriate! And so another week, hopefully more snow, and I have Wednesday off, yay!
Till next week...
Monday, November 29, 2010
Two Weeks without Posting...
I'm really sorry that I didn't post last week! Tbh, I was feeling quite lazy really... But it's all okay, everything's coming this week! I just hope that I can remember...
Not all that much actually happened during the week, well, the week before this one, except I got my French results back from a test, so my first test in Austria. Top marks of the class! Mrs. Bryant, I hope you are proud. And reading this. :)
Then on the weekend (last weekend) Anna came to stay, she was having problems with her host mum and plus we wanted to go clubbing. So on Friday we stayed up late talking and then slept in for ages on Saturday which was really nice for a change! Then Saturday night was our big night. We ended up going to a few pubs and walking around a bit, people gradually peeling off our group of 11 to start off with as the night wore on... But Anna and I really wanted to go dancing so we went to this club that we'd heard about and actually ended up having a really good laugh and and a good dance too.
Then this week I made some really nice cookies with brownie mix on Monday. If you're ever stuck for an idea, it's really good to just put more flour into a brownie recipe until it's cookie consistency because they're really nice!
Also on Monday we found out that a guy from our class had a motorcycle accident on the weekend, we're not entirely sure but I think it involved a tree and going too fast, and now he's in hospital in an induced coma and none of us know what's going to happen. He could be fine but he could also be brain-damaged or paralyzed so we're all hoping for the best, especially because he's always been so nice to me.
Then on Thursday it was Anna's birthday and her host mum threw her a surprise party at the movies. Which was kinda strange because Anna has now moved families and her host mum knew... But you know, nice of her and all. So small but select (4 people from 40 invitees...) we all trekked it over to St. Pölten (about an hour away from me) to celebrate with Anna. It was actually really good to be there for her birthday.
And on Friday two major things: first was a math test that I completely failed. Math here is ridiculously difficult. Especially when we got a formula to work out the answer to, and the rest of the class did an entire page of working whilst I used my calculator. They really need these calculators here, they are true life-savers. But you know, that was only one problem, so for the rest yeah... Good thing I don't need marks for math in NZ! But then. IT SNOWED!!! It was sososososo cool. Man. Then on Saturday there was snow on everything. Hehehe!
So then on Saturday I went and joined Constanze's class again for English. It's so weird learning about your own language like that. Like all of the present perfect, continuous and past imperfect tenses. It was pretty cool though. And there's a guy who went to an international school for ages in Constanze's class, so he's this Austrian guy with an american accent, total crack up! Then I met up with Juan from AFS and we went ice skating. My first time here, although I've been twice before in NZ. Not that I'm particularly good, but you know. Only his second time, and this guy from Ecuador where they don't have seasons because it's hot like 90% of the time was really good! He actually taught me how to do it. Then tried to push me but haha I pulled him over too. So it was actually heaps of fun but today my legs really hurt...
And then today was the first advent in Austria. It's a countdown of the first 4 weeks before Christmas and every Sunday you light another candle on this wreath that sits on the table until the fourth one which means it's nearly Christmas! It's pretty cool actually. So we went to Church this morning and then had lunch with some family friends before it started... SNOWING AGAIN! And it still hasn't stopped at 11pm. Awesome. So Barbara had to take Constanze to her dance school (like the one I do) and then Barbara and I went "punsch trinken" in the snow... It's sort of like punch but not as gross. Well actually it's way better and warm and very typical Austrian so that was really cool. Except that I forgot to put my second pair of tights on so I was wearing one pair of relatively thin tights when it was 0 degrees. Hm. Should really remember that next time...
So, again sorry for the late post but I hope the adventures of, well, me, are still interesting and keeping you all up-to-date on my life in Austria! Till next time...
Not all that much actually happened during the week, well, the week before this one, except I got my French results back from a test, so my first test in Austria. Top marks of the class! Mrs. Bryant, I hope you are proud. And reading this. :)
Then on the weekend (last weekend) Anna came to stay, she was having problems with her host mum and plus we wanted to go clubbing. So on Friday we stayed up late talking and then slept in for ages on Saturday which was really nice for a change! Then Saturday night was our big night. We ended up going to a few pubs and walking around a bit, people gradually peeling off our group of 11 to start off with as the night wore on... But Anna and I really wanted to go dancing so we went to this club that we'd heard about and actually ended up having a really good laugh and and a good dance too.
Then this week I made some really nice cookies with brownie mix on Monday. If you're ever stuck for an idea, it's really good to just put more flour into a brownie recipe until it's cookie consistency because they're really nice!
Also on Monday we found out that a guy from our class had a motorcycle accident on the weekend, we're not entirely sure but I think it involved a tree and going too fast, and now he's in hospital in an induced coma and none of us know what's going to happen. He could be fine but he could also be brain-damaged or paralyzed so we're all hoping for the best, especially because he's always been so nice to me.
Then on Thursday it was Anna's birthday and her host mum threw her a surprise party at the movies. Which was kinda strange because Anna has now moved families and her host mum knew... But you know, nice of her and all. So small but select (4 people from 40 invitees...) we all trekked it over to St. Pölten (about an hour away from me) to celebrate with Anna. It was actually really good to be there for her birthday.
And on Friday two major things: first was a math test that I completely failed. Math here is ridiculously difficult. Especially when we got a formula to work out the answer to, and the rest of the class did an entire page of working whilst I used my calculator. They really need these calculators here, they are true life-savers. But you know, that was only one problem, so for the rest yeah... Good thing I don't need marks for math in NZ! But then. IT SNOWED!!! It was sososososo cool. Man. Then on Saturday there was snow on everything. Hehehe!
So then on Saturday I went and joined Constanze's class again for English. It's so weird learning about your own language like that. Like all of the present perfect, continuous and past imperfect tenses. It was pretty cool though. And there's a guy who went to an international school for ages in Constanze's class, so he's this Austrian guy with an american accent, total crack up! Then I met up with Juan from AFS and we went ice skating. My first time here, although I've been twice before in NZ. Not that I'm particularly good, but you know. Only his second time, and this guy from Ecuador where they don't have seasons because it's hot like 90% of the time was really good! He actually taught me how to do it. Then tried to push me but haha I pulled him over too. So it was actually heaps of fun but today my legs really hurt...
And then today was the first advent in Austria. It's a countdown of the first 4 weeks before Christmas and every Sunday you light another candle on this wreath that sits on the table until the fourth one which means it's nearly Christmas! It's pretty cool actually. So we went to Church this morning and then had lunch with some family friends before it started... SNOWING AGAIN! And it still hasn't stopped at 11pm. Awesome. So Barbara had to take Constanze to her dance school (like the one I do) and then Barbara and I went "punsch trinken" in the snow... It's sort of like punch but not as gross. Well actually it's way better and warm and very typical Austrian so that was really cool. Except that I forgot to put my second pair of tights on so I was wearing one pair of relatively thin tights when it was 0 degrees. Hm. Should really remember that next time...
So, again sorry for the late post but I hope the adventures of, well, me, are still interesting and keeping you all up-to-date on my life in Austria! Till next time...
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Venice...
I think the title safely says it all! The start of the week was slightly average, I was sick for two days and then we had a school trip on Thursday so I wasn't exactly at school much. BUT I did manage to teach my P.E class netball. And although it was being played in a totally wrong way, I think they liked it and I liked finally having some semblance of my sport again!
So, on Saturday we left for Venice at 6 in the morning. Meaning I had to get up at 5.15AM. It was cruel and unsual punishment, but luckily I had a shower on the Friday otherwise it could have been a lot worse... So we started our 6 hour long drive and my host mum, sister and me slept for the most part because it was so early! We got to Italy at about 4 hours, and it was actually quite disappointing. I was expecting border control or some sort of big fanfare, but there was only a sign saying "Welcome to Italy". And it looked exactly like the part of Austria that we had just left. This sort of thing is confusing for a girl who's lived her whole life on an island! But then I realized that actually it was Italy when I saw a sign and realized that I actually couldn't read it. I thought it said we were 1000m above sea level, but apparently it said that a toll bridge was 1000m away. Slightly different... So we drove on through the countryside of Italy and it got way better, actually starting to look like a different country! Then when we got to Venice I got my first taste of what it was like not to understand anyone when we got to the parking garage and Barbara had to talk to the guy. Luckily she can speak Italian otherwise it may have turned out differently!
So we parked the car and then walked across the road to the bus station. Which, in Venice, means the boat station. Because the whole city is covered in canals, the only way to get around is either walking or by boat. How cool is that?! It was different than I expected it to be... It was certainly majestic and mysterious, but I didn't realize the effect that the water has on the buildings, making the water-facing sides quite dirty. And I also didn't realize that a lot of the houses are built on the water. Like literally, you couldn't walk out the back door or you'd fall into a canal. That was really cool. Our hotel was nice as well, like a lot of the buildings it had quite a plain façade, but it was very richly and beautifully decorated on the inside. So after we got settled in, we went for a walk to St. Mark's Square, the central point of city. It was massive and there were heaps of tourists (and pigeons!) but you know, we were tourists too so it was all okay! We walked from there to the biggest bridge in Venice and as we were standing there looking out at the grand canal (the biggest canal) I turn around and this other girl turns around at the same time and it's Sarah from America who is also an AFS student in Austria. What are the chances?! It was so surreal, meeting each other in Venice after having not seen each other since arrival camp (she lives in Kärtner which is about 4 hours away from where I live). So we ended up having a coffee together at a coffee house that we found and talking for so long that the waitress asked us to leave! Like literally, it was really funny. It was great to catch up with her and talk about everything that's different with our lives now.
So that night we went to a real Italian restaurant, and being the only one who could speak enough Italian, Barbara had to order everything for us. Although, it's quite good that she can speak it otherwise we may have been quite lost! The next day it was early to rise, although not quite so early and we went to the otherside of the city and looked at some churches before Constanze and I went off to try and find an infamous Hard Rock Cafe in Venice. It turned out to not be too hard, and we had an extremely overpriced sundae and chips. But it was still cool. Then that afternoon we walked around Venice some more and went to a couple of other churches and then the Accademie museum with heaps of Italian art. Very renaissance. Then that night was another real Italian restaurant with real Italian pizza! Very yummy.
The next day was Monday and our last day in Venice! Far too short... But we did some shopping in the morning and I bought myself a mask and some glass things from a couple of the millions of glass shops in Venice. Apparently it's quite popular. But they do have beautiful things. Then we went to St. Mark's Cathedral and it was amazing, the entire ceiling is decorated with gold enamel and it just looks stunning. After that we did a bit more shopping before having to go and pick up our bags and start the long journey home. There was also an AFS Stammtisch (chapter meeting thing) that night (well, last night) so as soon as we got home I caught the train into Vienna and caught up with some other AFS people. So a very tiring day!
Venice was amazing, and if any of you ever get the chance to go there I would highly recommend it because it's such an awesome city. Ciao for now!
So, on Saturday we left for Venice at 6 in the morning. Meaning I had to get up at 5.15AM. It was cruel and unsual punishment, but luckily I had a shower on the Friday otherwise it could have been a lot worse... So we started our 6 hour long drive and my host mum, sister and me slept for the most part because it was so early! We got to Italy at about 4 hours, and it was actually quite disappointing. I was expecting border control or some sort of big fanfare, but there was only a sign saying "Welcome to Italy". And it looked exactly like the part of Austria that we had just left. This sort of thing is confusing for a girl who's lived her whole life on an island! But then I realized that actually it was Italy when I saw a sign and realized that I actually couldn't read it. I thought it said we were 1000m above sea level, but apparently it said that a toll bridge was 1000m away. Slightly different... So we drove on through the countryside of Italy and it got way better, actually starting to look like a different country! Then when we got to Venice I got my first taste of what it was like not to understand anyone when we got to the parking garage and Barbara had to talk to the guy. Luckily she can speak Italian otherwise it may have turned out differently!
So we parked the car and then walked across the road to the bus station. Which, in Venice, means the boat station. Because the whole city is covered in canals, the only way to get around is either walking or by boat. How cool is that?! It was different than I expected it to be... It was certainly majestic and mysterious, but I didn't realize the effect that the water has on the buildings, making the water-facing sides quite dirty. And I also didn't realize that a lot of the houses are built on the water. Like literally, you couldn't walk out the back door or you'd fall into a canal. That was really cool. Our hotel was nice as well, like a lot of the buildings it had quite a plain façade, but it was very richly and beautifully decorated on the inside. So after we got settled in, we went for a walk to St. Mark's Square, the central point of city. It was massive and there were heaps of tourists (and pigeons!) but you know, we were tourists too so it was all okay! We walked from there to the biggest bridge in Venice and as we were standing there looking out at the grand canal (the biggest canal) I turn around and this other girl turns around at the same time and it's Sarah from America who is also an AFS student in Austria. What are the chances?! It was so surreal, meeting each other in Venice after having not seen each other since arrival camp (she lives in Kärtner which is about 4 hours away from where I live). So we ended up having a coffee together at a coffee house that we found and talking for so long that the waitress asked us to leave! Like literally, it was really funny. It was great to catch up with her and talk about everything that's different with our lives now.
So that night we went to a real Italian restaurant, and being the only one who could speak enough Italian, Barbara had to order everything for us. Although, it's quite good that she can speak it otherwise we may have been quite lost! The next day it was early to rise, although not quite so early and we went to the otherside of the city and looked at some churches before Constanze and I went off to try and find an infamous Hard Rock Cafe in Venice. It turned out to not be too hard, and we had an extremely overpriced sundae and chips. But it was still cool. Then that afternoon we walked around Venice some more and went to a couple of other churches and then the Accademie museum with heaps of Italian art. Very renaissance. Then that night was another real Italian restaurant with real Italian pizza! Very yummy.
The next day was Monday and our last day in Venice! Far too short... But we did some shopping in the morning and I bought myself a mask and some glass things from a couple of the millions of glass shops in Venice. Apparently it's quite popular. But they do have beautiful things. Then we went to St. Mark's Cathedral and it was amazing, the entire ceiling is decorated with gold enamel and it just looks stunning. After that we did a bit more shopping before having to go and pick up our bags and start the long journey home. There was also an AFS Stammtisch (chapter meeting thing) that night (well, last night) so as soon as we got home I caught the train into Vienna and caught up with some other AFS people. So a very tiring day!
Venice was amazing, and if any of you ever get the chance to go there I would highly recommend it because it's such an awesome city. Ciao for now!
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