Sprachkurs was wonderful!

I wasn't able to update my blog while I was at the Sprachkurs (language camp), however I did write in my journal multiple nights so here is a little taste of what you would have seen...

23. Aug. 2009 (Sunday)

I arrived at Language Camp in Altmünster one week ago and already a lot has happened. There are about 40-50 exchange students from both Austrian districts here. We are staying at a boarding school and have classes each day except for Sunday. Our daily schedule is as follows:

7:15 am 8:00 am -- Frühstück (breakfast)

8:00 am - 12:00 am -- Unterricht (instruction)

12:00 am - 1:00 pm -- Mittagessen (lunch)
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm -- Unterricht (instruction)

3:00 pm - 6:00 pm -- freie Zeit (free time)

6:00 pm - 7:00 pm -- Abendessen (dinner)

7:00 pm - 10:00 pm -- freie Zeit (free time)

10:30 pm -- Gute Nacht (good night)

On Saturday we only have classes in the morning, but the teachers had an outing planned for the remainder of the day. We took a boat tour on the Traunsee, which is the lake in Altmünster. During our free time we are allowed to do pretty much anything. Most of us walk down to the lake and sit along the beach all day or we have even walked to the neighboring town, Gmunden, because it is a little bigger and has some good shops. At the beginning of the Sprachkurs I was in the Beginner class, however I was moved up after four days to the Intermediate class. As far as the homesickness is concerned I have been doing really well. This afternoon was the first time that I really missed everyone back home. There were a couple hours that were really hard so I walked into town with a friend that I had met, Jackie, and she helped me to feel better. Earlier today a few Rotarians and our teachers took us to a town about 30 minutes away called Hallstatt to tour a salt mine that has been in use for over 3000 years. The salt mine was really cool and the town was adorable. We were able to walk around for a couple hours before we drove back to Altmünster.

(here are a few pictures)our group taking a cable car up the mountain

walking through the salt mine tunnels

view of Hallstatt as we came down the mountain

28. August. 2009 (Friday)

Today was another great day! I woke up at 6:00 am to work out with Chantel (Canada), Jackie (Canada), Martha (USA), and Josie (USA). During class Doris, our teacher, taught us about the command form and reflexive verbs, two things that I didn't know. Derrick (USA) and Nolan (USA) sit beside me in class and they are excellent at keeping me entertained whenever class gets boring. A few people get fairly annoyed with Derrick because of his constant energy, but he reminds me so much of Mason that I love spending time with him. I'm positive that if him and Mason met they would get along perfectly. They think so alike it's crazy. We received our tests back and I did much better than I was expecting. Most of my errors were because I didn't know the vocabulary and not because of grammar. Unfortunately the vocabulary is going to take monotonous memorization, but I am determined to do it! After class I played volleyball with Ben (Canada), Carlos (Mexico), Jackie, Libbi (USA), Martha, Josie, and Charlotte (Belgium). Then we all walked down to the beach for some amazing Austrian ice cream that is so much better than anything back in the USA. After dinner Zach (USA), Derrick, Libbi, Chantel, Mark (USA), Jackie, Raquel (Brazil), and Martha went to the lake and sat on the dock for about half an hour. Before we returned to the school we decided to have a race so we spun in circles for a minute and a half and then ran to the playground to see who could make it first without falling over. I almost face planted into somebody's bike. By this time it was almost 9:00 pm so the boys were hungry again. We met up with Carlos, Nolan, and Ben on our way to a little cafe where we all ordered baguettes. Once we reached the school we listened in awe while Carlos played piano for half an hour. He is absolutely incredible! As we were walking up to our rooms Jackie and Chantel somehow managed to convince me to sing a Canadian folk song with them in the talent show the following night. The song was in French though so I had zero idea what I was singing about... lol

30. August. 2009 (Sunday)

Today is Mason's 16th birthday! Right now I am sitting back in my own bed at home. Yesterday after class we had a really great time. Even though it was raining and cold, Jackie, Raquel, Libbi, and I decided to walk to Spar (Austrian grocery chain) so that we could stock up on food for our train rides the following day. Afterwards we went to the beach and watched all the ducks and swans on the lake. Once we returned to the school we began to practice fervently so that we wouldn't forget our words later that night during the Talent Show. Our singing group consisted of Chantel, Martha, Jackie, Libbi, and I. Plus Aiyana (USA) was playing guitar for us. Chantel really wanted to get dressed up so we all wore dresses, did our makeup, and put Canadian tattoos on our faces. We actually sounded pretty good except for one line when the majority of us forgot our lines, but everyone loved it. The song was called Un Candien Errant and was really pretty. I have already downloaded it to my iPod. The rest of the talent show went really well. I had no idea how talented and gifted most of those people are. Nearly everyone performed and did superbly. Afterwards we had a big dance party in the girls' lobby and the teachers ended up extending our curfew to 12:30 am which was really nice. This morning Libbi, Jackie, and I woke up at 6:00 am so we could walk to the lake one last time and watch the sun rise. It was beautiful but freezing cold! After breakfast we finished packing and got a ride to the train station where I bought a Summer Ticket which allows me to travel on any train in Austria for free until September 13th. Unfortunately there was damage to the tracks so we had to take a bus to the next station and we ended up missing our train so we had to wait another hour. I was travelling with Bailey (USA), Jackie, and Max (Mexico). This is my last week of summer break before school starts so I need to do some shopping for clothes and supplies before the week is over. I might end up going to visit Jackie in Wien sometime later this week so that we can do some shopping together.

...as for today (Monday) my host parents threw a bar-b-que for me so that I might meet my other host families. All of the parents seem very nice and I got to spend the evening with four of my new host sisters. They are great and took me out into town for a couple hours. They are all around my age and I will most likely be in the same class as one of them, Marlene. I cannot wait to get to spend more time with all of them because they seem really amazing and I've never had a sister before.

Updates... finally

Sorry this has taken me so long to write. I haven't really had that much time though...

My flights from San Antonio and DC went well. I actually slept most of the way to Vienna so I didn't feel that horrible when I arrived. I was met at the airport by my host father, club Counselor, club President, and her daughter. My host mother was still at home setting up for a breakfast that they were having for my arrival. Later that afternoon I went into town to set up my bank account and register with the city. So I think that means that I am an Austrian for the coming year because they said I still have to de-register when I leave! But I don't know...
On Saturday my host parents took me to a small village about five minutes away to see an Austrian folk group perform for the evening. Apparently they were really funny, unfortunately I couldn't understand anything. However there was one point when they performed in English, but the accent was a mess!

Right now I am in Altmünster for my German language course. (That's why I haven't updated in forever). I have been here for a week so far and I'll be here another week trying to learn as much German as I possibly can. I've met some amazing people and I know without a doubt that some of these other students will be my friends forever after this year. I have to go though because there is only one computer and other students are waiting. I'll write more when I get back to my host family's house.

letzten Tag in den USA... (last day in the USA)

Today is my very last day in San Marcos, Texas before I leave for Melk, Austria! I cannot believe how quickly it has come. There are a few things I need to run into town to get, but other than that I am just going to have a swell day. Kaitlin and Rissa are taking me to get Deblazios (YUMMM) and then we're heading out to watch the varsity volleyball game. Andrew is going to tag along so we can give him a hard time, lol. Then my brother promised to make me his absolutely AMAZING hamburgers for dinner, since I'm not sure if I'll find one outside of a McDonalds.

I talked to Katherine (she was the exchange student to Austria this past year) yesterday and had the few questions I had answered. Just talking with her has made me soooo incredibly excited for this experience. Every time I talk to a Rotexer or a fellow outbound student, I cannot begin to describe the excitement and other feelings that well up inside of me. This is going to be the best year of my life and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to live in such a stunning country with such rich history. Hopefully whenever yall see me next time I'll have an Austrian accent and will constantly be going back and forth between English and German.

I want to thank everyone that has made a difference in my life leading up to this point. I have the best family and friends and I love all of yall so very much. Good luck in the coming year. I know most of my friends are going off to college and moving away from home. Yall will all do wonderful this year so don't worry too much. Please keep in touch and let me know how everything is going. I would love to hear about all the horror stories of the weed-out classes and how Atkin's class really was harder than any college class we'll ever take.

AHHHHH...... I am soo excited!