I am now able to confidently navigate the train systems here in Vienna. I went to visit dear Annie Johnson today. It was great to have someone to talk to that shares a common history with you. You wouldn't believe how much you miss reminiscing about old times until you have no one to do it with
We met up at Stephansplatz but it took us a whole hour to find another! We were literally wandering around the exact same area at the exact same time and somehow missed eachother! Oh well, it worked out in the end! While I was looking/waiting I took a look around the cathedral. It was gorgeous. I have a picture but the lighting is not very good. My phone camera is not so hot.
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
A Concert Anyone?
Today I played in my hostmom's concert. She is a teacher at a music school and asked me if I wanted to play a song. It was a lot of fun. Those of you who have ever taken private music lessons know how these concerts go. The audience is only family members, everyone is super nervous even though they know pretty much everyone they are performing for, and there are always the little kids who don't play very well but everyone claps for them the hardest because they try so hard. However the one thing that was unlike any other small music concert I have ever seen were the accents. All of the songs except one were in English. And everyone sang them in thick German accents. It was a little hard to keep a straight face. It took a lot of strength not to laugh and listen as though I couldn't speak English and didn't know that you shouldn't say "I treamed a tream in zime gone by, vhen hope vas high and life vorse living" when singing "I Dreamed a Dream" However once you got past the accent they really all did a wonderful job and it was a lot of fun! I wish Sophia (my host sister) could have sang her song because she really has a beautiful voice, but she was sick. There will be another concert after the upcoming break and I think she is going to sing then. Maybe I will get to sing again as well, I really did have a blast!Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Hello world! I just finished my second day at the "Wiener Sängerknaben" (Vienna Boys Choir School). It is very very different from school back home. It seems to start and end at a different time everyday, so I really don't know what is going on half the time. Well thats partly because its all in German. But surprisingly I can understand a little of it, however its not enough to actually learn anything. I mostly can just follow along with what the lesson plan of the day is. There are only 20 kids in each class. So it makes a total of about 60 kids in the "High School" part of the school. Everything is very relaxed. On my first day two boys were outside playing during one of our many free periods, they lost track of time and missed a whole class. They barely got in trouble. Can you imagine what would have happened in the U.S.? Yikes!
The school building itself is beautiful. It actually used to be a castle! I will have to take some pictures. I have one picture of the view from my classroom window. Our classroom overlooks the gardens. Even in winter they are beautiful.
Everyone is very nice and helps me with my German. They all speak a little English so we are able to communicate in half German half English. But because of this I feel like I'm forgetting how to talk in English like a normal person! I think in half German, and half English and speak in broken German and broken English. It makes you feel a little handicapped because you sound illiterate most of the time haha.
Unlike in the U.S. the class here that is easiest for me to understand is Math. First of all because Math is a universal language, but also because I have already done most of the stuff that they are working on. Today we did a little basic trig. SOH CAH TOA does not exist here in Austria. Instead of "adjacent, opposite and hypotenuse" they have "adjacent, gegenteil, and hypotenuse" but they pronounce hypotenuse different. Sin, Cos, and Tan are all the same words but the way they pronounce them is entirely different. But enough about Math! On to the food!
The food in school I think is very good, but I have heard a couple of the students complain about it. This is really funny because compared to American cafeteria food it is basically gourmet. I mean they actually COOK THE FOOD at the school. They don't grab a box off of a shelf, reheat it and call it a day. They have this dessert that is to die for. It is called something really weird that I can't pronounce or spell. Basically it is fruit preserve with whip cream on top. But its not really whip cream, its more like a mousse but not quite as thick. It is heaven.
The school building itself is beautiful. It actually used to be a castle! I will have to take some pictures. I have one picture of the view from my classroom window. Our classroom overlooks the gardens. Even in winter they are beautiful.
Unlike in the U.S. the class here that is easiest for me to understand is Math. First of all because Math is a universal language, but also because I have already done most of the stuff that they are working on. Today we did a little basic trig. SOH CAH TOA does not exist here in Austria. Instead of "adjacent, opposite and hypotenuse" they have "adjacent, gegenteil, and hypotenuse" but they pronounce hypotenuse different. Sin, Cos, and Tan are all the same words but the way they pronounce them is entirely different. But enough about Math! On to the food!
The food in school I think is very good, but I have heard a couple of the students complain about it. This is really funny because compared to American cafeteria food it is basically gourmet. I mean they actually COOK THE FOOD at the school. They don't grab a box off of a shelf, reheat it and call it a day. They have this dessert that is to die for. It is called something really weird that I can't pronounce or spell. Basically it is fruit preserve with whip cream on top. But its not really whip cream, its more like a mousse but not quite as thick. It is heaven.
Saturday, January 26, 2013
German Word of the Day:
Handtuch
Direct translation: A hand towel. Used for drying your hands after washing.
My translation: A small piece of purple fabric needed desperately after a shower, too small but does the job. It may be small, but it dries fast!
Leave it to the American to expect fluffy white towels and complementary shampoo to be provided in the bathroom!
So its been two days I think, maybe one.... i'm not sure. Welcome to the joys of jetlag! Anyway its been one or two days since I landed in Vienna. I still haven't seen the city, I've been kept under house arrest by AFS personal (this is another way of saying "AFS Orientation). Me and a bunch of other AFS students are staying at a youth hostel, or for those of you who know a little German, that would be a "jugendherberge" Its nice, clean and simple. So far I've only caught a glimpse of Austria and that has been mostly through windows. On the plane, on the bus, and from my dorm window. So far what I have learned about Austrians is:
They don't have towels in the jugendherbergen, I did not bring one and had to purchase a small "Handtuch" from the front desk. It may be small, but it is the wonderful color of purple, which makes up for its size ;) although a six foot tall blond still needs to partially drip-dry.
They are very punctual. "Punktlichkeit" is seriously very very very very important. Woe is me. The chronically late, for ever never on time Swede has been thrown into a very unfriendly waters. The worst part is there are no clocks, and I have no way of telling the time, my phone doesn't work and they took it anyway. Talk about the worlds biggest guessing game. To give you an idea of just how punctual they are I have a little story.
Setting: The dining area at the Jugendherberge
Characters: Me, a couple hot Australians, and a janitor
Plot: Finishing our meal
The AFS students are currently not the only people staying at the jugendherberge, I happened to stumble across two very attractive Australian teenagers in the cafeteria. They heard me talking in my American accent and were all interested in the U.S. We started talking at the salad bar, I'm waving my hands around as I talk and send my water glass flying all over the floor, luckily nothing broke, and I kept my cool. This girl did not get all red in the face! After we bonded over a flying water glass I sat with them at dinner. They were fascinated with how cold Wisconsin was and could not believe that fish could actually live in freezing water and that we were crazy enough to fish for them. They tried to talk in an American accent and it was quite funny what they thought stereotypical American sayings were. Things like "y'all" and "like" were used quite often. I tried to talk in an Australian accent and they said I sounded too British. I asked them what a stereotypical Australian saying was and they replied, "Shall I put some shrimp on the barby" or something like that, but then they had to go and explain that you actually can't put shrimp on the barby cause they just fall right through! It was great. They had also found a sweatshirt in Vienna that said "Austria, no kangaroos!" So those of you who thought I was going to Australia are not alone. Anyway, back to being punctual. We were sitting and talking and one of the staff came up and told us we had five minutes left to eat because he had to clean the dining room. The Australians laughed and said ok we'll be out in a bit. I told them they better set a timer cause Austrians are very punctual. They laughed and sarcastically said "ok we'll make sure we are out in exactly five minutes" So we set the timer and would you believe it, in exactly five minutes and zero seconds later the janitor was back. EXACTLY FIVE MINUTES, ON THE DOT, LITERALLY DOWN TO THE SECOND. I am being dead serious. These people must have clocks for brains. It was seriously unreal.
So far I've learned more about Australians than Austrians. My roomate is also Australian, what do you know maybe I will see a kangaroo before I leave! I'll be keeping you posted!
Over and Out
Signe
They don't have towels in the jugendherbergen, I did not bring one and had to purchase a small "Handtuch" from the front desk. It may be small, but it is the wonderful color of purple, which makes up for its size ;) although a six foot tall blond still needs to partially drip-dry.
They are very punctual. "Punktlichkeit" is seriously very very very very important. Woe is me. The chronically late, for ever never on time Swede has been thrown into a very unfriendly waters. The worst part is there are no clocks, and I have no way of telling the time, my phone doesn't work and they took it anyway. Talk about the worlds biggest guessing game. To give you an idea of just how punctual they are I have a little story.
Setting: The dining area at the Jugendherberge
Characters: Me, a couple hot Australians, and a janitor
Plot: Finishing our meal
The AFS students are currently not the only people staying at the jugendherberge, I happened to stumble across two very attractive Australian teenagers in the cafeteria. They heard me talking in my American accent and were all interested in the U.S. We started talking at the salad bar, I'm waving my hands around as I talk and send my water glass flying all over the floor, luckily nothing broke, and I kept my cool. This girl did not get all red in the face! After we bonded over a flying water glass I sat with them at dinner. They were fascinated with how cold Wisconsin was and could not believe that fish could actually live in freezing water and that we were crazy enough to fish for them. They tried to talk in an American accent and it was quite funny what they thought stereotypical American sayings were. Things like "y'all" and "like" were used quite often. I tried to talk in an Australian accent and they said I sounded too British. I asked them what a stereotypical Australian saying was and they replied, "Shall I put some shrimp on the barby" or something like that, but then they had to go and explain that you actually can't put shrimp on the barby cause they just fall right through! It was great. They had also found a sweatshirt in Vienna that said "Austria, no kangaroos!" So those of you who thought I was going to Australia are not alone. Anyway, back to being punctual. We were sitting and talking and one of the staff came up and told us we had five minutes left to eat because he had to clean the dining room. The Australians laughed and said ok we'll be out in a bit. I told them they better set a timer cause Austrians are very punctual. They laughed and sarcastically said "ok we'll make sure we are out in exactly five minutes" So we set the timer and would you believe it, in exactly five minutes and zero seconds later the janitor was back. EXACTLY FIVE MINUTES, ON THE DOT, LITERALLY DOWN TO THE SECOND. I am being dead serious. These people must have clocks for brains. It was seriously unreal.
So far I've learned more about Australians than Austrians. My roomate is also Australian, what do you know maybe I will see a kangaroo before I leave! I'll be keeping you posted!
Over and Out
Signe
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)