Dana's Year Abroad: 2008-04-06

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM:

Taking in the view of Brussels from atop a car garage with Brooke, Kendra, and Jennifer! We also started to sing the Spice Girls up there!

The Acromium...built for the world fair in the 1950's. Really neat to see at night.

Yeah...I am so strong!

PARIS, FRANCE:

I was pretty excited when I saw the Louvre! This is the museum where the orginal Mona Lisa is...supposedly it is much smaller than one expects.

The EIFFEL TOWER! Kris, Brooke, and I in the middle of this world-wide known structure.

The world's biggest roundabout with 9 lanes...and this big gate structure that I don't know the name of!

The Eiffel Tower...at night. It is really beautiful at night, escpecially when it sparkles.

Us girls at Notre Dame. It really is magnificent and the windows inside are beautiful.

I can fly! I can fly...with the pigeons.

BARCELONA, SPAIN:

The coolest teeter-totter ever!

A really neat tree that we all pretended to be monkeys in!

Ah, we just really love each other!!

Me, Brooke, and Kris saying good-bye to this part of the sea before heading to Mallorca!

MALLORCA, ESPANA:

This is the view we had out of our ballcony of our apartment!

Me, the Mediterranean Sea, and the sun!

Rachel, Brooke, and I on the beach!

I can fly. I can fly! This is becomming a trend! Notice the Frisbee...yeah, I was totally gonna catch it!

Rachel is much more talented than me when it comes to flying! She almost had the Frisbee!

Me, Brooke, and Rachel=CRAZY! We are running into the freezing cold sea here!

Our apartment, the great couches/beds, and Kris's laptop that we used probably too much!

Horse back riding!

Our mountain climbing experience. This is just the beginning!

We made it to the top!

I am on top of the world!

Coming down...what more can I say?

Our poor legs! Kris's, Brooke's, and Mine were burning! I don't know if you can see them...but there are scratches all over them!

CAKE AND ICE CREAM...need I say more? Oh, and a movie!!

Chilling at our hotel by the pool getting some good tans!

In Alcudia on the wall of this small sweet town.

The view with the fog. It was so pretty even with the fog.

Cutting fresh oranges for fresh orange juice!

Kris, Me, Rachel, Dr. Stegen, and Brooke all waiting for our great Mallorcan meal!

Eating ice cream with our suckers!!

The spanish cathedral in Palma de Mallorca. It is really big and spectacular.

NORTHERN EUROPE:

Hanging out with my parents and have a great time. My Mom took most of the photos, so I am sorry to say I do not have any to share with you here. Except, this great photo of my Dad trying on an original authentic Austrian HAT! I think it fits him well!

Liebe Freunde,

Believe it or not, but my time here in Salzburg, Austria is winding down oh so quickly. I arrived in Frankfurt, Germany on September 2, 2007 and began my adventures of Europe, Salzburg College, and much more. In less than a month, on May 3, 2008, I will be flying back into Chicago, Illinois and greeting my home country for the first time in eight months! I can hardly imagine what all I have experienced and what is yet to come.

However, even as unbelievably close my arrival home is, I still have a few more weeks to enjoy here. In addition, I recently spent 2 weeks gallivanting around Europe again having the time of my life.

On Wednesday 5, March, my Economic and Politics of the European Union class boarded a train together on our way to Brussels, Belgium. The next two days would be spent learning more about the European Union in the actual city where most of the business is done today. We had an overnight train together and arrived in Brussels Thursday morning. We were able to learn all about the regional committees of the countries in the EU. We also then were able to meet a Parliamentarian and go into the Parliament Building. That was really neat as most people are unable to get past the security into the business area of the Parliament.

We learned a lot about the EU and even got to sit in the conference hall where big meetings go on. There was a meeting about the Role of Women in The EU going on. We were able to sit in on some of the speaking and use the headphones to hear the translations of the speaker. The EU has 27 members and 23 official languages including German, Slovakian, Gaelic, Lithuanian, and many others. It was the neatest thing ever to sit in this hall and hear all those 23 languages that were being translated simultaneously as we sat there while the speaker spoke in French. It was so fascinating.

When our tours with the EU ended, we were free to explore Brussels at night. Brooke, Kendra, Jennifer, and I went to the city center. We went on top of a parking garage to get a 360 degree view of Brussels and then walked around. We also got waffles and some good kebaps. We saw Jeaneke Pis, a little statue of a girl who is peeing into a fountain. The fountain actually is not running, so it is just the statue itself without the effect of the water. After seeing the city center, we headed out to go see the Acromium, a huge structure built for the 1958 world fair.

We got to the Acromium and saw it all lit up. It was super pretty and neat. Many people had told me before it was a waste of time to see it, but I think seeing it at night is totally worth it! It is very high with these balls covered in lights. We all really enjoyed it and took many photos before heading back to go to sleep.

The next morning we had one more meeting with a lady from the EU. After another EU morning, we were free to go and start all of our 2 week travels!! Brooke and I headed to the train station. We were running a little late and were getting very nervous when our tram didn’t show up very quickly to take us to our train. Luckily the tram came, we made it to our train, and found it was 25 minutes late…we had plenty of time!

On our train, we were off to Paris, France. Only an hour or so later, we made it into the city of love. It was raining and Brooke and I were tired of walking around, so we finally found a hostel and settled in. When it was dark and much clearer out, we ventured out again and made our way to the Eiffel Tower.

I have heard so many bad things about Paris and especially about the Eiffel Tower. Many say it is ugly, small, and so unattractive. When Brooke and I came around the corner and saw the Eiffel Tower sparkling in the night, we found it so beautiful and amazing. At the hour every night for 10 minutes, the Eiffel Tower sparkles its light. Luckily, our first impression of the Eiffel Tower was many lights flashing in the darkness of the night. We stuck around for awhile and enjoyed the pretty night and the bright Eiffel Tower before heading back to sleep.

The next morning, Brooke and I were supposed to meet our friends, Ryan and Kris, early at the train station. In order to get the cheapest rate, Brooke and I were in separate rooms and I did not wake up in the morning until 7:00; we were going to leave the hostel at 6:15. Luckily Brooke went without me and Ryan, Kris, and she made it safely back together. We ate some breakfast and were ready to explore the city again.

We decided to go on a Free Walking Tour that is put together by the New Europe Company. We got to see the Notre Dame Cathedral, the Louvre, many famous buildings and gardens, old bridges with crazy men’s faces, and loads of other things. One of the most interesting places our guide pointed out to us was the place where the "Immortals" live. These "Immortals" are the men and women who are pretty much the idols of the French Language. They define words, make up new ones, and try to keep the French language without any wester (American/English) influence. These "Immortals" are so strict about keeping French ‘French,’ they were so mad when the IPod came out and they learned that Apple patented the IPod name. Even though the "Immortals" couldn’t make a new French name for this little device, they would not to be shut down. Instead, they changed the PRONUNCIATION! Instead of saying I-Pod like the rest of the world, the French pronounce it "E-Poe."

We learned a lot about Paris and saw many things! We saw the Eiffel Tower once more and the big gate thing that I forget the name to. It is a big structure that sits in the middle of the world’s biggest round-about. This round-about has 9 lanes for traffic. There is an underground tunnel that will take people from outside the traffic to the center where the gate is. However, some crazy people either don’t realize this or are just stupid; but attempt to run through the 9 lanes of MOVING traffic to get to the center. I don’t want to know how many tourists are hurt or killed a year from attempting that.

It became night and it was time to say good-bye to Paris and Ryan as Brooke, Kris, and I boarded our train bound for Barcelona. We found ourselves in a first class car, were given water and ear plugs, and I fell fast asleep just to wake up in the morning in Spain.

In Barcelona we had no planned things to do and proceeded to walk around the coastal city. We used the internet, sat on the beach, looked at a small market, sat on a bench, looked at the old buildings, walked through a garden, and again sat on a bench. We finally had some direction and went to see a church or cathedral structure called the La Sagrada Familia. It is a very unique church that they have been building for over five years I think and they don’t plan to be done for another ten or so! After seeing this church, we finally found ourselves a hostel, walked around some more in the rain, went to sleep, then went out walking again.

It is Monday the 10th of March and we sat on a bench in a small garden for a good hour or so after eating our breakfast of bread, pretzels, oranges, and yogurt. We watched some interesting people walk by including a man practicing some Tae Kwan Do, little boys playing with a little play car, and a girl playing soccer with her grandpa. We finally moved from our bench, and took one last trip to the sea before flying over it. On our way we passed a super interesting playground and tried out the coolest teeter-totter ever. We then saw the beach, took a picture, got a train to the airport, and boarded our plane bound for Palma de Mallorca.

It was only about fourty-five minutes after taking off did we begin our descent onto the little Spanish island of Mallorca. It was so exciting after landing to be in such a beautiful place full of relaxing activities. At the airport we met up with Rachel, who had flown down from Salzburg after a weekend in the Czech Republic when her real destination had been Slovenia. It was great to see Rachel and we were all excited together to head to what would be our home the next five days.

We were very lucky and were able to quickly catch the bus into town. We were even luckier when we then caught the last bus for another two hours bound for the other side of the island where our hotel was. It was sometime after seven when we got in and we easily found our hotel only a block off the beach. We got settled in and took a trip to the grocery store. That first night in our awesome little apartment we cooked rice with shrimp and vegetables. We had cake and milk for dessert, which would later become a nightly ritual. After a long day of travel, we all were tired and went to sleep early to prepare for some rigorous days ahead of us!

Tuesday morning the 11th of March greeted us with beautiful weather and sunshine. We made some eggs for breakfast along with toast made on the stove. We were unable to drink the water from the faucet and instead had to buy it in the store. We also enjoyed some really amazing fruit juices with our favorite being peach and grape juice.

We were all excited to get out to the beach and headed out there in summer attire. We walked through the FREEZING cold Meditteranean Sea and soaked in the sun. We also then played Frisbee on the beach and took some amazing diving photos into the sand. It was great to just be able to enjoy the weather and be outside and just relax. Eventually we got hungry and enjoyed meat and cheese sandwiches before heading out to lay by our hotel pool the rest of the afternoon.

We really had a hard life and after the sun started to set, the weather got chilly, so we headed inside. We went shopping again, not forgetting our cake and milk. We also checked on a horse-riding activity that our hotel was offering. After making a meal of rice, meat and veggies, we decided to explore the town at night. We were in the Port d’ Alcudia, a very small port town on the sea. There were plenty of different places to go to chill and meet others, but none really looked truly great. So, after a lot of walking around, we went in one place for awhile and eventually went back home to go to sleep.

The next morning, we were on a quest to ride some horses. A man came and picked us up along with a girl from England and a couple from Sweden. We were all ready to go ride some horses. We went 15 minutes from our hotel and all got on our horses. We were being led by an older man through Mallorcan woods and also some parts of a town walking and trotting. We then were passed on to a younger man with long, curly blond hair. He took us through winding paths of sand and dirt in a forest or woods of some kind. He stopped us once and asked if we all wanted to gallop. Of course we were ready for the challenge. It was so fun to be galloping on sand in Mallorca and just having a great time. At one point in time we were able to see the beach and the blue of the Sea, but unfortunately we did not walk the horses along it.

Our ride was coming to an end, but after we went through a gate once, the guy who was leading us, his horse must have spooked and somehow the reins on one side of the bridle broke off and the horse got loose. It was a little funny as the horse was not any of ours, but at the same time it made us wonder. He luckily caught her and we were back on our way. Brooke swears that with him as our guide it almost felt as if we were in a movie with the good-looking Spanish horse wrangler. I guess I have to agree with her. I asked if many of the horses were that crazy and the guy told me this was the first time since last fall that the horses had been out for a ride. I am so glad he told us that at the END of our ride!! Oh well, it was super fun and really a great ride. I think we all had a good time.

After getting back to the hotel and finding some lunch, we were all ready to brave the cold Sea and jump into it!! So, we got our swimsuits on and headed to the beach. We needed someone to document our craziness and Kris willingly volunteered. Therefore, Brooke, Rachel, and I ran into the sea and dove into the freezing, very salty water. It was so cold, but also invigorating. In order to warm up a bit, we played some more Frisbee before all four of us jumped into the water one last time. I really think the people on the beach thought we were crazy, but there was no point in wasting the Sea and not jumping in!

We went shopping again of course, relaxed and cooked the rest of the day, and watched a movie together along with our cake and milk. We made fake potatoes that night, and never before have had I tasted better fake boxed potatoes. They were unimaginably too good for being boxed.

Thursday morning came bright and early, and we were all ready for a challenge. We vowed we were going to climb a mountain by the end of the day. We set out and walked straight towards the closest rise out of the ground.

I don’t really remember if we thought the mountain was closer than we anticipated or if we thought it was farther than we thought, but in the end we made it to the foot of the little mountain. We were not sure exactly how to start walking up it, but eventually crossed the highway and just started walking up. There were not any real paths so we just headed straight up. It was quite an experience. There were many rocks and scratchy brush and it seemed as if the top of the mountain continued to get farther and farther away…as it generally seems to do when you climb a mountain.

The sun was really warm as we climbed and before we knew it, we were all sweating and getting rather tired. We were truly getting a workout. After awhile we finally just tried finding the fastest way to the peak. We considered turning around, but we all agreed we wanted to see what was on the other side. From down below, we hadn’t realized the great incline of the mountain and were second guessing our decision to climb up there. However, we finally made it up to the top. It was such a clear day that from one side we looked out over Port d’ Alcudia and far off into the sea. When we turned around we looked out into a long stretch of beautiful green forest. It was spectacular to look at as we ate our peanut and butter sandwiches and cookies.

After our quick lunch, we found ahead of us a great challenge…How were we going to get down? The way we came up was very rocky and would potentially be slippery and dangerous. The other way down was more vegetative but came to a very impossible way. We finally decided to take the grassier way and then veer off back to the same path we came up where it wasn’t as rocky. So we headed down.

I am not sure how long it took us to realize it, but soon we found out it was going to be more of a challenge to get down than it was to get up. The grass was not slippery, but Brooke, Kris, and I were wearing shorts and our legs began to burn from many scratches. Also, the way we chose was totally not easy at all and we had to stop periodically to reassess our path. In addition, we had originally decided we were going to veer off and head down the way we came after the rocky part. However, as we continued, we must have forgotten that idea and soon ran into not so easy ways. We were all losing hope and becoming frustrated…but all we could do was laugh. The bottom of the mountain was not coming closer at all.

I don’t know how long it finally took us, but eventually we made it to concrete and Kris saying, “I have never been so happy to be on concrete before in my life.” We three with shorts came out of the brush with red legs covered in cuts and scratches and Rachel’s foot was not working the strongest. We slowly headed back to our hotel. Our mountain trek is one that we still joke about.

Back at the hotel, believe it or not, we all just sat down, watched some sports on TV and took a nap. We spent the majority of the afternoon doing this. Thursday night we made a nice supper and sat down together to watch yet another movie and enjoy some cake and milk. We settled into bed early that night.

The next morning was Friday. On Monday when Rachel was on her way down to Mallorca from Salzburg, she ran into one of our College’s directors, Dr. Stegen. Dr. Stegen’s husband and she were also on their way to Mallorca for holiday in their vacation home. They had invited us over to their place for a Mallorcan meal and just to sit and relax. So, we walked the thirty minutes to the town of Alcudia where Dr. Stegen was to pick us up.

Alcudia was such a quaint little town which was at one time a Roman settlement. It had an old city wall in which we were able to walk on top of and see the small town buildings and pretty landscapes. We also saw some old remains and some other really neat sites. I’m glad we had a reason to walk out that way or we would have never seen it.

Dr. Stegen picked us up and drove us to a really high look-out point in the area where one can usually see the sheer edge of the cliffs as they drop off into the sea. It was a beautiful day, however, for some reason there was fog and clouds right over the area in which we were trying to look at. Even with the fog, the view was amazing and the clouds made for interesting pictures of the mountain peaks. We were not able to see the mountains dropping off into the sea, but it was still worth driving up there. After that, we headed to Dr. Stegen’s place.

Their place was back on these wonderful country roads where bikers were whizzing by us. It was so amazing when we pulled into their little drive and saw the most super little home surrounded by ripe orange and lemon trees along with a swimming pool. It was as if we were in paradise with the sun bright and the atmosphere so wonderful. We were able to pick some oranges for freshly squeezed juice and sat down for a great meal of Mallorcan chicken with mushrooms, carrots, and tomatoes in an olive oil sauce and also a tomato salad and bread. The meal was ever so good tasting.

After our meal we were surprised by another treat, Almond cake and almond ice cream. The two sweets complimented each other so perfectly and we all had to have seconds! We enjoyed the rest of the afternoon with conversation and basking in the sun outside on the patio. It was a great afternoon and we all enjoyed it immensely.

After they drove us back into town, we decided to spend the rest of our last afternoon no where else than the beach. We got dressed and headed out to lie out. It seemed like a good idea at first until maybe 10 minutes later we realized we were actually freezing rather than tanning in the sun. So, our attempt at sunbathing had failed, but we just headed back to enjoy our last night in Mallorca together inside.

We made a super spinach, rice, and chicken meal along with enjoying our last cake in Mallorca. We had originally said we were going to explore the night life again, but were so tired we instead went straight to bed.

It was Saturday the next day and early in the morning we got ready, packed up and caught the bus back to Palma de Mallorca. On our arrival in Palma, Rachel headed to catch her plane to Ireland while Brooke, Kris, and I explored Palma. We spent the morning finding breakfast and then good places to sit down at.

We did go and see the Spanish Cathedral which was really cool, but mostly we moved from one bench to the next just sitting, chilling, and people watching. It was maybe our laziest day yet, but it worked for us! We at one time decided to get some ice cream to eat with red lollipops and sat down to enjoy that. Brooke and Kris have decided they are going to perfect lollipops and ice cream to be enjoyed together and market them to the world. I think this will never happen…

We were going to be really early to the airport, but we had nothing else better to do. So, we grabbed our bus to the airport and took a nap before checking in and boarding our Ryan Air flight to Frankfurt. If none of you have ridden a Ryan Air flight before, be thankful. Although they may be cheap, the entire flight entails the loudspeaker going non-stop with ads and commercials the entire flight. Our flight was in the evening, so I was hoping to sleep, but that did not pan out like I had hoped. But, luckily we made it safely to our destination and grabbed our bus to the main Frankfurt airport where we would spend our night.

It was now Sunday and we were in Frankfurt with nothing to do. So, we found an internet café and wasted our time there for awhile. Brooke and Kris found a hotel and checked in before we went and explored what Frankfurt had to offer. It was rainy and cold, so we just walked a while before we got hungry when then we ate at Pizza Hut. I hadn’t had their pizza in over eight months and it was like heaven to me!

Because it was raining and on Sunday nothing is open, we agreed on going to see a movie in German. We watched Horton Hört Ein Hu, or Horton Heard A Hu in English! The seats were super comfy and all three of us at one time during the movie dozed off. However, it was a cute movie we all understood and was worth our time. We then headed back to Brooke and Kris’s hotel to chill before my train left for Amsterdam. I took a shower there and we watched some Arrested Development on Kris’s computer.

Finally, we went to the train station, had some supper, and I boarded my train bound for Amsterdam. I arrived at the Schiphol airport around 1:00 am and settled in for a nights sleep on the chairs there. I slept until 8:30 or so when I was able to greet…

MY PARENTS!!

My mom and dad were able to come visit me for a week here in Europe and our first destination was the great city of Amsterdam. They looked good after their long-haul flight from Chicago and we readily headed to our hotel. After checking in and getting our stuff together for a day on the town, we headed to the city center for some food and fun.

We grabbed some lunch and then caught up with the New Amsterdam Tours to take a free walking tour of the city. Mom and Dad were initially concerned about a 3-HOUR WALKING TOUR!! However, they soon found out it was not all walking and it was actually really informative and fun! We learned all about the red light district with the oldest woman at 72, the old sailors’ chapel, all the canals, the Coffee House tradition, a piece of magical holy bread, Anne Frank, and so much more. I can never become sick of Amsterdam and the city is just so filled with history. Late afternoon the tour ended and I am happy to say that my mom and dad enjoyed it very much.

We were going to go and visit Anne Frank’s house, however the line was super long and mom and dad were really feeling the flight by then. So, we headed back to the hotel for them to take an early night and I hung out with some other people there before heading to sleep myself.

The next morning, Tuesday, I had arranged to meet up with one of my friends from the Netherlands. We were able to hang out with her all day.

It was getting late and we were going to head to Groningen that night, but we ended up only heading to Dronten with Diana and spending the night with her there. Early the next morning we headed out for a day of adventure.

We took a bus to Zwolle and then a train to Groningen where we spent a couple of hours looking at the old town and buying some authentic Netherlands goods. We then hopped back on the train bound for north of Hannover, Germany. We were hoping to see the towns where some of our ancestors came from. We eventually made it to Nienburg.

In Nienburg we had hoped to take a bus to Bolsehle. We were told Bolsehle was where some of our family came from and where we would find a church and really nice people. The bus would not go south until later and instead we opted to take a taxi there. Using my limited German, we finally made it to Bolsehle. This town was really in the middle of no where and had maybe ten houses. We found a fire house, but no church. We also found a small cemetery where we talked to a lady who informed us Bolsehle had no church. This nice lady gave us an interesting ride in her car back to the village where we had walked maybe five minutes from!! It was a super gesture though.

We again talked to another lady and she told us the same, there were no churches in Bolsehle, but one in Husum three kilometers away. I suggested we walk to Husum, but my mom and dad were not as excited about the idea. Instead, we called the taxi driver back and asked him to drive through Husum and another town we expected some of our relatives came from. On our drive through Husum, we did see a church and a cemetery and expect that is what we were searching for. However, the day was getting late and we decided to continue on. Back in Nienburg we headed south to Hannover to catch a night train to Füssen.

During our not so successful journey through those small towns, it was apparent to us why our family settled where they did. The landscape in these northern German towns and the area around them is almost identical to the area where they settled in Northeastern Iowa. It is primarily flat with some small curves in the landscape covered in green pastures and scattered woods. It was really beautiful!

In Hannover we had to wait a few hours before our train left and grabbed some food in McDonalds (one of the only warm places to eat at). The people were not as friendly as we had hoped and we also had a strange confrontation with a man we believe was drunk, high or both. However, we finally boarded our train and got comfortable for the night.

The next morning we found ourselves in a world of white! It was snowing again. We arrived in Füssen and took a bus to the area of the local castles. The casltes include Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Schwangau. With the snow, the clouds were low and so the visibility was not the greatest. However, it was still pretty and we enjoyed a tour of Schloss Schwangau where a Bavarian ruler used to live. I know I should remember the name of the actual man, but my brain seems to forget any detailed specifics lately.

The tour was neat and then we found a nice restaurant to enjoy some Bavarian originals. Dad had a dish with potato noodles and sauerkraut, Mom had Käsespätzle, a kind of cheesy macaroni (one of my favorites dishes here), and I had a spinach strudel. We also enjoyed a Topfen Strudel or a cream cheese dessert. It was all super good! Es schmeckt gut!

After our time there, we found a train again bound for the super city of Salzburg. It was pretty late when we arrived and after checking in to their Bed and Breakfast, my mom and dad settled in for a good nights rest. I headed to my host family’s house to also get some sleep before some extensive site seeing!

Friday morning greeted us bright and early and we headed into the Altstadt or old city. During our walk into town, mom noticed the horse carriages headed in the same direction. I was hoping to surprise her with the horse carriage ride around town, but of course, my mom is the worst person to try to surprise…she ALWAYS figures things out before. Nevertheless, we headed into the Altstadt and enjoyed a really nice ride around on a carriage equipped with Half-lingers. It was really sweet and fun.

After our ride, I pointed out some other sites in Salzburg, got some sourdough bread, and then I took my parents to my college. Luckily there were people there and my parents were able to meet the amazing Gretel and the greatest cook, Brigitte. We even got some blueberry pancakes and ice cream!! I showed my parents the small Salzburg College before heading on.

I then took them to see where I did my photography project at the local farm near my host family’s place. After showing them that, we relaxed at the Bed and Breakfast for a while and had some meat and cheese with our bread.

We again then headed into the city center where I wanted to show them the big Augustiner Brewery. This was Friday night and I was hoping they could try Leberkäse and other wurst. However, it was Good Friday and as the Augustiner Brewery is one of the monks, they didn’t have ANY meat being sold. Therefore, mom and dad enjoyed a See Lachts fish dish, a tomato and onion salad, and knödeln with mushroom sauce (dumplings). My Dad also had to enjoy some beer. Because it is fasting time, the beer brewed at this time is Fastenzeit Bier, fasting time beer. This means that it is thicker and stronger than usual! I think my Dad enjoyed it.

After experiencing the local tradition at the Augustiner, we headed back to our beds and enjoyed another good nights rest.

Saturday morning we headed back into town so we could go up to the Salzburg Festung, or Salzburg Fortress. On the way I showed my parents the Salzburg flamingos and a very special hobby farm. We headed on the walk up to the fortress. I had thought that we could walk up for free and see some of the things instead of paying quite a bit for the cart ride up and down. However, I was wrong and it was still rather expensive to get into the courtyard of the fortress. So, instead I took my parents on a nice walk through the Mönchsberg to see the city for above. It was a really nice and relaxing walk.

At the end of our walk, we were able to meet up with my friend, Cameron. He does Sound of Music bike tours during the summer and was going to show us some of the sites. He told us about the St. Peters Cemetery, some of the horse fountains, and other sites in the film. We took a lunch break before going to see Mirabellplatz.

Mirabellplatz is a place with beautiful gardens where a lot of scenes in the Movie was filmed. After seeing these sites, Cameron had to leave us, and we headed to Hellbrunn.

Hellbrunn is a huge park with a building complex that one of the Salzburg Archbishops built as a summer home. He was a very funny man and also built water games to entertain and trick his guests with. We took the tour of the Wasserspiele. The water tricks are really silly and neat to listen to. There is one part in the tour that entails a beautiful room filled with bird noises made exclusively from water power. It sounds so real. Another one of my favorite parts of the tour includes a huge wooden moving musical collaboration. I really don’t know what to call it, but it is a big thing showing the typical happenings of small town and has over a hundred or so movements powered only by water. It is really neat to see.

After the tour, we scoped out the large green grounds and also toured inside the castle. There is one room in the castle that is octagon shaped and is called the music room. It has the most amazing acoustics and magnifies every sound. It is my favorite part of the castle.

When we saw all we needed to see, we headed back towards town and walked to Schloss Leopoldskron, otherwise known as the Sound of Music house. We walked around the lake and saw the house. I think it is always just so beautiful and amazing to walk around the corner and see it sitting there on the edge of the water. I always like to go running around this lake.

We were finally toured out and headed to my host family’s place for a great meal of Wiener Schnitzel, Kartoffeln Salat, and Sachar Torte. This meal could also be told as breaded veal cutlets, German potato salad, and Austrian chocolate cake. It was really great and my Mom and Dad were able to chat with my host parents. I gathered a lot of my parents’ things together and when it was time to say good-bye, my host dad drove me and my parents to the train station. We said good-bye and left on our train bound for München Flughafen, the Munich Airport.

We made it to the airport and tried to settle in for a little sleep before my mom and dad had to check-in for their flight home. It was Easter Sunday morning around 7:00 am when we woke up and headed to the check-in counters. We got all the baggage checked and had some breakfast. It was then time for my Mom and Dad to go through security and back to the comfort of their home country and farm! It was really sad to say good-bye, but someone had to say it.

After they made it safely through the security, I headed back to Salzburg to enjoy Easter Sunday service at my church here in Salzburg. When the service was done, I was lucky to enjoy an Easter Brunch with my friends of the church. It would have been really great if my parents would have been able to stay one more day and I could have spent Easter with them.

But, not everything is as we want it to be or how we expect/plan it to be. We must take what we are given and be thankful for all the God blesses us with. I am very blessed that my parents were able to come and visit me and that even when they had to leave; I still had amazing friends to spend my time with and enjoy their company.

I am very sad to say that I will be leaving Salzburg in a very short time. I am looking forward to seeing my family and friends again and doing things that I have not done in a very long time. However, it is going to be very hard to say good-bye to the friends I have met here and the activities that I have enjoyed the last seven months.

I hope this finds everyone well! I am doing great staying super busy with school, hanging out with friends and enjoying my last days here in Austria. I will soon update you all again with the fun since my two week break.

Bis dann,

Ciao,

Dana