We didn’t have class this week because of our trip to the Alps. I had been looking forward to this trip since I signed on to the program. Everybody has heard of the Alps, and I wanted to be able to tell people that I had hiked them. I know that the Austrian Alps are not as big of a deal as the Swiss Alps, but I was excited all the same. We left on our bus (which was a little 70’s looking by the way) in the early morning to go on our Alpine excursion. Before we drove to the mountains though, we stopped off in the town of Wiener Neustadt for a tour. We met our tour guide in the main square of the town. My first impression of the town was very good because I liked the atmosphere. The main square was a little touristy, but I enjoyed walking through the side streets. The town seemed very European to me because of its small sidewalks, cobbled stone streets, and old buildings. I was excited to learn more about the town from our tour guide, but my interest in the tour waned after spending so much time straining my ears trying to hear what the tour guide was saying. She was a small older woman who had difficulty projecting her voice, so it was hard for her to keep my interest. However, I did learn a few interesting facts about the town, such as how it is a very old town that had been around since medieval times, but it had to be rebuilt after it was heavily bombed during WWII. While on the tour, we also visited the military school where the church that Maximilian was buried in was located. We also visited the gothic-style church where there were still some of the original pictures painted on the walls. One of these pictures was of a man being defecated (definitely not a pretty sight). Lining the 12 pillars of this church were statues of the 12 apostles. I really liked this church because it was different from many of the other churches that we had been to so far because its exterior was much simpler. It was not built in the baroque style like many of the other churches that I have seen so far. After spending some more time walking around the town, we got back on the bus and drove up into the Alps. We finally stopped at the base of one of the mountains, where we went up on a lift to get to our hotel. It was a little nerve-wracking to ride up this lift because all of us were making the car shake a little. The lift took us straight to the hotel, where we all checked in to our rooms. I was expecting a pretty nice hotel, but the place was a little more like a hostel, considering the fact that all 25 of us students had to share one shower. That was a little disappointing, but I quickly got over it because the view surrounding the hotel was great. Some of us started hiking the trail almost as soon as we got there, and we found a Jesus monument of sorts along the path. It was basically just a large cross with some phrases displayed across the front of it. I couldn’t read what it said because it was in German, but this discover was just further evidence of how religious the country of Austria is.
That night we all ate dinner together in the restaurant, where they served us schnitzel or pasta. At this point I was a little sick of schnitzel, so I ate the pasta. We were also served a complimentary shot of pear schnops, which I didn’t particularly enjoy. The beer served in the Edelweiss cups was pretty good though. After dinner, some of us went for a night hike, which was probably not the best idea considering how dark it was. The next morning, we all came down for breakfast. I have noticed that many of the places that I have stayed at in Austria have served some form of lunch meat for breakfast. Now I remember learning in my high school German class that Germans ate sandwiches for breakfast. I guess they do the same thing here in Austria. After breakfast many of the students went with Kathy on a 14 mile hike to the Habsburghaus, but I went with Stephanie for a shorter hike to the Ottohaus. The hike only took two hours, but we got back just in time for it to start raining. I basically spent the rest of the trip just hanging out and enjoying the view. We left early the next morning, and apparently it wasn’t soon enough for some people who said that the hotel was haunted. Anyway, we got back on the bus, but we didn’t go straight back to Vienna. We stopped in the town of Mariazell for a little down time. Apparently, this town located in the middle of the Alps is a major Eropean pilgrimage stop. The town is 850 years old, and is home to the holy statue of the Blessed Virgin, known as Magna Mater Austriae. The statue is a symbol for people searching for meaningful goals in their own lives. As a major European pilgrimage site, Mariazell is part of the “Shrines of Europe”. The Mariazell Basilica, which we all walked through, is one of the prettiest churches that I have seen so far. It is very elaborate and beautiful. We were only in this twon for a few hours though. We eventually drove back home on our 70’s bus back to Vienna.
The German words of the day for the 12th, 13th, and 14th are:
-wohin=where to
-gehen=to go. “Ich gehe zu das Schule”= “I’m going to school”
-bei dir=at your place
That night we all ate dinner together in the restaurant, where they served us schnitzel or pasta. At this point I was a little sick of schnitzel, so I ate the pasta. We were also served a complimentary shot of pear schnops, which I didn’t particularly enjoy. The beer served in the Edelweiss cups was pretty good though. After dinner, some of us went for a night hike, which was probably not the best idea considering how dark it was. The next morning, we all came down for breakfast. I have noticed that many of the places that I have stayed at in Austria have served some form of lunch meat for breakfast. Now I remember learning in my high school German class that Germans ate sandwiches for breakfast. I guess they do the same thing here in Austria. After breakfast many of the students went with Kathy on a 14 mile hike to the Habsburghaus, but I went with Stephanie for a shorter hike to the Ottohaus. The hike only took two hours, but we got back just in time for it to start raining. I basically spent the rest of the trip just hanging out and enjoying the view. We left early the next morning, and apparently it wasn’t soon enough for some people who said that the hotel was haunted. Anyway, we got back on the bus, but we didn’t go straight back to Vienna. We stopped in the town of Mariazell for a little down time. Apparently, this town located in the middle of the Alps is a major Eropean pilgrimage stop. The town is 850 years old, and is home to the holy statue of the Blessed Virgin, known as Magna Mater Austriae. The statue is a symbol for people searching for meaningful goals in their own lives. As a major European pilgrimage site, Mariazell is part of the “Shrines of Europe”. The Mariazell Basilica, which we all walked through, is one of the prettiest churches that I have seen so far. It is very elaborate and beautiful. We were only in this twon for a few hours though. We eventually drove back home on our 70’s bus back to Vienna.
The German words of the day for the 12th, 13th, and 14th are:
-wohin=where to
-gehen=to go. “Ich gehe zu das Schule”= “I’m going to school”
-bei dir=at your place
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