19 January
In intensive German, we continued our review of adjective endings and I find myself paying attention to my use of them much more. I find the German adjective endings quite difficult to get consistently right as an English speaker, even after years of practice. The review and training helps to place everything straight in my mind once again, while living in Austria gives me the chance to practice the review for several hours every day. After German class, I continued to work on my Consulting Workshop paper and then headed over to Nate and his wife Bethany's house for dinner in the evening. We talked about their work in Austria and I enjoyed talking with them about our experiences learning German, especially since Americans packing up their belongings and moving to a German-speaking country does not happen that often. I finally wrapped up my paper after returning from their house and thought I turned it in late, because my computer loaded the paper slowly online at the last minute...then I realized that Austria is 6 hours ahead of the time when the paper was due back in the States. Yay for time differences!
20 January
Tuesday ended up becoming a day of all-around catching up and hanging out with people. After a short German test (which I found later that I aced!), I went home to work on an application for a student organization back at school for which I recently received a nomination. In the middle of the afternoon, I returned home to go grocery shopping. This time I went shopping at the grocery store, Penny Markt, instead of Billa, where I originally went. My sister Catherine and I later skyped and she helped me with my long list of cultural woes, making me incredibly thankful yet again for the way her international experiences influence and help me. In the evening, I cooked pasta primavera for my roommate Georg, his girlfriend, and his girlfriend's sister. I am so excited to get to complete daily activities like cooking in German, because I learn new words every time...and they stick in my brain! They don't just run away like when you learn them in a book!
21 January
We took our first outing as a German class today to the Rathaus and the Parlament in Vienna! As we learned in class, Austria's government runs with a two-chamber Parliament. The two chambers are the Nationalrat, the lower house and the Bundesrat, the upper house. The rooms and art stretching within the Rathaus and Parlament astounded me, especially the room where the Bundesrat meets. This room contains a chandelier inside which 16 people can fit! Art surrounds the top of the walls, depicting Austria's history from past to present, along with classical figures of justice and other values. We also rode the Pater Noster afterwards, an antique, constantly moving elevator which cycles between floors at the Rathaus. Due to safety precautions, Vienna will not repair the Pater Noster if it breaks, so I'm glad I got the chance to take part in this piece of history while it still exists! In the afternoon, I worked more on my application and then headed back home to meet my roommates and landlord at a local pub. The landlord was too busy to come, so I hung out with Georg and Kevin for awhile and talked about life in Austria and the U.S. I tried asking for a drink menu by asking for a "Trinkmenü", but received a very confused look from the owner of the pub. My roommates quickly corrected me and I learned that the word for drink menu is actually "Trinkkarte." Moments like these make the words cement in my mind more and more.
22 January
I realized that the second week of intensive German would soon end and could hardly believe I already lived in Austria for 2 whole weeks. After German class, I went to a small café and worked on my application essays while enjoying a chocolate "Teuferl." I went over to my friend Henry's house in the late afternoon and cooked Asian food with another friend, Stephen, and him. Afterwards, I went to my first meeting with ÖSM. I followed our discussion topics fairly closely, but still found it difficult to make relevant comments at times.
23 January
I went to buy tickets for the ball at the Technische Universität Wien next week! I find myself getting lost less and less each time I try to find a new place, but I still need plenty of improvement for navigating the streets of Vienna. I returned back to the IES Center, where I continued work on my application and then spent time catching up with my friend, Allie, before the meeting for our English teaching internship. I planned to go home and finish my application after the meeting, but ended up exploring Vienna with my friend, Ben. We wanted to go somewhere to eat, but ended up wandering into the Tirolerhof Cafe. I tried Sachertorte and Viennese hot chocolate for the first time. Sachertorte surprised me, because I realized it contains a layer of marmalade. Viennese hot chocolate made with real chocolate is infinitely better than powdered hot chocolate in American cafes! We wandered over to a Kebab stand, where Ben got a Döner Kebab and I got Bötek (basically Turkish pidé).
As we walked through the city, the tension I daily experience between American and Austrian culture rose to the forefront of my mind. The city of Vienna contains a plethora of new, exciting experiences which American study abroad students want to explore. With other Americans, I find it easy to experience the magic of the physical city. With my Austrian friends and roommates, I find myself experiencing the heart of the people. I wondered if I could compare an Austrian living in Vienna to an American living in Washington D.C. to further describe the tension. Both cities contain historical monuments of their respective countries, but citizens living beside them may not see the city with the same eyes as outsiders. For instance, a person living in Washington D.C. once told me they rarely visited the monuments there. A Viennese recently told me that he finds it normal to walk past 500-year old buildings. Thus, it seems that people living in historic areas may grow accustomed to their monumental surroundings. This leads me to wonder, what connects the history of Vienna to its modern-day inhabitants? As an outsider, how do I experience and learn to see them as a united whole?
24 January
I visited a local market with a classmate for an assignment and discovered that I live two short Strassenbahn stops away from a lovely market, called Kutschkermarkt, full of fantastically delicious bread, cheese, vegetables, and fruits! Later in the day, I planned to go to the Haus des Meeres (literally, House of the Sea...an aquarium) with my program. The opportunity ended up not working out, so Allie, Stephen, and a couple other friends and I went to explore other local museums, including the Haydn Haus. Josef Haydn, one of Austria's famous composers, lived in the house for the last 12 years of his life. Although simple, the peace inside the house and garden overwhelmed me. Moments like these, in which one truly feels rest, stimulate my desire to travel and see the world. The world stops for a time and you sense the beauty around you, drinking in the full experience of the history, natural beauty, or physical beauty before you.
Samstag, 24. Januar 2015
Week 1: Getting Lost and the Flatness of Culture Shock
12 January
On Monday, we began our intensive German classes at noon. I unpacked the night before, after having dinner with the family from whom I rent. The morning felt somewhat slow and quiet, and I freaked out that I would never build friendships with my roommates. With great fear and trepidation, I left later in the morning to navigate my way through Austrian public transportation to the IES Center. While I did get lost, I made it on time for class, orientation, and a meeting about sports opportunities in Vienna. I got terrifically lost on the way home, but my landlord came and rescued me with a car ride home. My earlier fears about not making friends with my roommates quickly dispersed, as we hung out and ended up playing a game based on an Austrian comedy show where you need to complete different dares.
13 January
We continued intensive German class today and I ventured out into the city later to begin buying the things I need for daily living. This included getting credit for my cell phone, buying school supplies, and grocery shopping. While I complete these things quite normally back home, each store proved a new cultural experience in itself in Austria. I learned about how NOT to deal with U.S. credit cards when buying cell phone credit first, and then accidentally asked for a 1 kilo of salami at the deli (thinking that 1 pound = 2.2 kilos, instead of 1 kilo = 2.2 pounds!). The nice deli lady convinced me to buy a more reasonable amount of 100 grams of salami. My night finished with learning about the differences between Austrian and U.S. school supplies at the bookstore, then coming home to finish homework.
14 January
I started to face frustration in my intensive German class which contains several levels of speakers, even though we are considered the most advanced class. I did not feel challenged by the content we studied, but soon began to realize that basic information about Austria (provinces, capitals, small cultural things) and reviewing grammar would prove incredibly useful as I now use it in my everyday life. The results of our test and recent homework also made me realize the amount of mistakes which still litter my conversational German, and I am thankful for a teacher who points out my mistakes to polish my German speaking and writing. On Wednesday (14 January), I spent time at the apartment of Lisa, my roommate Georg's sister. We talked through several different cultural issues like typical things to cook in Austria and typical activities with Austrian friends. Lisa studied in the USA during high school and is so helpful with her perspective!
15 January
On Thursday, I went to talk with one of the IES staff about my experience in Austria so far. I originally thought that living in Austria would thrill and excite me, but I actually felt very flat during the first week. After talking with her, I realized that shifting cultures can provide such stimulation that it causes a person to shut down. I wondered if this experience reflected the stress of being an RA during sophomore year, when I felt so many pressures from school and involvement that I often felt shut down to typical stress triggers. In the afternoon, I registered with the authorities and completed homework. I headed over to a local church in the evening for a prayer time, in order to connect with students from Austrian Student Ministry (ÖSM). I met a missionary, Nate, and another student, Johannes, who help run the church.
During the evening, I noted that the church for the prayer meeting belonged to the Mennonite denomination. My Mom's German-speaking ancestors who emigrated to Canada also were Mennonite and fled religious persecution in Europe. Growing up, I heard story after story of the Mennonite persecution, immigration, and will to survive. I thought it interesting that my first spiritual experience in a German-speaking country occurred in a church of the same denomination...as if I completed a circle started by my ancestors, from fleeing to returning.
16-18 January
Last day of the first week of intensive German! Three hours of German a day does not bother me, but three hours of primarily German grammar quickly becomes taxing. I started to look forward to the next week which would contain more activities throughout the city. Outside of German homework, I completed a paper for the Consulting Workshop during the weekend. The paper summarized research and reflections on companies I visited during the Chicago trip before coming to Austria, whilst consuming an unpleasant amount of time.
On Monday, we began our intensive German classes at noon. I unpacked the night before, after having dinner with the family from whom I rent. The morning felt somewhat slow and quiet, and I freaked out that I would never build friendships with my roommates. With great fear and trepidation, I left later in the morning to navigate my way through Austrian public transportation to the IES Center. While I did get lost, I made it on time for class, orientation, and a meeting about sports opportunities in Vienna. I got terrifically lost on the way home, but my landlord came and rescued me with a car ride home. My earlier fears about not making friends with my roommates quickly dispersed, as we hung out and ended up playing a game based on an Austrian comedy show where you need to complete different dares.
13 January
We continued intensive German class today and I ventured out into the city later to begin buying the things I need for daily living. This included getting credit for my cell phone, buying school supplies, and grocery shopping. While I complete these things quite normally back home, each store proved a new cultural experience in itself in Austria. I learned about how NOT to deal with U.S. credit cards when buying cell phone credit first, and then accidentally asked for a 1 kilo of salami at the deli (thinking that 1 pound = 2.2 kilos, instead of 1 kilo = 2.2 pounds!). The nice deli lady convinced me to buy a more reasonable amount of 100 grams of salami. My night finished with learning about the differences between Austrian and U.S. school supplies at the bookstore, then coming home to finish homework.
14 January
I started to face frustration in my intensive German class which contains several levels of speakers, even though we are considered the most advanced class. I did not feel challenged by the content we studied, but soon began to realize that basic information about Austria (provinces, capitals, small cultural things) and reviewing grammar would prove incredibly useful as I now use it in my everyday life. The results of our test and recent homework also made me realize the amount of mistakes which still litter my conversational German, and I am thankful for a teacher who points out my mistakes to polish my German speaking and writing. On Wednesday (14 January), I spent time at the apartment of Lisa, my roommate Georg's sister. We talked through several different cultural issues like typical things to cook in Austria and typical activities with Austrian friends. Lisa studied in the USA during high school and is so helpful with her perspective!
15 January
On Thursday, I went to talk with one of the IES staff about my experience in Austria so far. I originally thought that living in Austria would thrill and excite me, but I actually felt very flat during the first week. After talking with her, I realized that shifting cultures can provide such stimulation that it causes a person to shut down. I wondered if this experience reflected the stress of being an RA during sophomore year, when I felt so many pressures from school and involvement that I often felt shut down to typical stress triggers. In the afternoon, I registered with the authorities and completed homework. I headed over to a local church in the evening for a prayer time, in order to connect with students from Austrian Student Ministry (ÖSM). I met a missionary, Nate, and another student, Johannes, who help run the church.
During the evening, I noted that the church for the prayer meeting belonged to the Mennonite denomination. My Mom's German-speaking ancestors who emigrated to Canada also were Mennonite and fled religious persecution in Europe. Growing up, I heard story after story of the Mennonite persecution, immigration, and will to survive. I thought it interesting that my first spiritual experience in a German-speaking country occurred in a church of the same denomination...as if I completed a circle started by my ancestors, from fleeing to returning.
16-18 January
Last day of the first week of intensive German! Three hours of German a day does not bother me, but three hours of primarily German grammar quickly becomes taxing. I started to look forward to the next week which would contain more activities throughout the city. Outside of German homework, I completed a paper for the Consulting Workshop during the weekend. The paper summarized research and reflections on companies I visited during the Chicago trip before coming to Austria, whilst consuming an unpleasant amount of time.
Despite my paper, I still managed to get to know more
Austrian students over the weekend and take part in several activities. I went out spontaneously late on Friday night
with Lisa, her boyfriend, and Lisa’s best friend. We spent time at a local café and then went
to a local bar, where I experienced paying for the area where you can hang up
your coat at Austrian bars! I enjoyed
speaking German for several hours with everyone hanging out and could start to
feel myself becoming more comfortable expressing myself in German.
After hacking away on my paper during Saturday, I went
out to a jazz restaurant with my friends on Saturday night. My friend Allie found the place and encouraged
all of us to check it out with her. We
arrived a little late, but entered the restaurant with a 1 euro student
discount for each person in our group. The
lady collecting the cover fees laughed at us a little bit when we asked for a
student discount. Upon walking inside,
we realized that we were the youngest people there by nearly 40 years. We chose to remain unashamed of our youth and
sat in the basement of the jazz bar, enjoying a few drinks and Austrian jazz
music. Allie told us that online
information said the original structure of the jazz bar was built in the 900s! Needless to say, we greatly enjoyed hanging
out in this 1000-year old building amongst the peace of jazz music wafting
through the air.
The next morning I walked over to a local Austrian church
and experienced my first entire church service in German. I followed almost everything, especially
since the pastor is not a native German-speaker. I often heard that non-native speakers of a
language understand each other more easily than native speakers. I left afterwards and went over to Lisa's, where we cooked Marillenknödel (apricot dumplings) together.
Week 1: Orientation Weekend
I sit here at the end of my second full week in Vienna, needing to catch up on blog post for the last two whirlwind weeks! I decided to take a day-by-day journal style approach to these catch-up posts, but will attempt more thematic posts in the future focused on cultural and linguistic reflection.
9 January
As I mentioned in my last post, my program held an orientation in Mariazell over the weekend. Since everyone arrived on Thursday together and I arrived later, it took time to meet people and orient myself with others in the group. I hung around the Austrian RA and another girl I met on the bus out to Mariazell, but met a couple friendly girls in my apartment, Allie and Megan. The IES Staff plunged immediately into information about the program, encouraging us to get involved with internships and other opportunities in the cities. We enjoyed a "traditional" Austrian evening afterwards, where a group from the Steiermark (an Austrian province) put on a performance of traditional Austrian singing and dancing. Hearing them talk was my first introduction to the dialects of Austrian German...I could hardly understand what they said!
10 January
I woke up the next morning starting to feel slightly more adjusted to the time change. Interviews for housing situations, German class placement, and teaching internships took up most of the morning. In the afternoon, we took a wonderful adventure to the town of Mariazell and saw a pilgrimage basilica there. The basilica contained a nearly 900 year old wooden statue, now covered in gold and other ornaments. We stood next to the small chapel containing the statue, discussing the legend behind the church and the role of the Catholic church in Austria. The quietness and beauty of the church inspired my awe, especially upon realizing that people from all different nations have found peace and unity here for nearly four times as long as my home country existed! After the Cathedral, I ventured around the town Ben and Megan and tried out some of the local "medicinal" Schnapps. Back at Mariazell, we experienced a thorough lesson in Austrian waltzing!
11 January
We left Mariazell in the morning and faced major snows on the way down, which made our arrival later than expected. Back in Vienna, I navigated back to the IES Center with a student assistant and other students who left luggage there in addition to myself. I experienced my first "opportunity" to pay for public restrooms and to ride the U-Bahn without buying a ticket accidentally (U-Bahn = Vienna's public transportion which runs on an honor system)! Eliza, the student assistant, called a taxi for me and then I headed out to my apartment. I chose to do independent housing for study abroad, because I found a connection to a Viennese family through a professor at IU. They live upstairs and I live downstairs with two Austrian students. I met my roommates and some of their friends at the apartment, along with my roommate's sister and her boyfriend, who live down the hall. I enjoyed getting to speak German with so many people, but realized my current language level makes it difficult for me to process everything going on in a group.
9 January
As I mentioned in my last post, my program held an orientation in Mariazell over the weekend. Since everyone arrived on Thursday together and I arrived later, it took time to meet people and orient myself with others in the group. I hung around the Austrian RA and another girl I met on the bus out to Mariazell, but met a couple friendly girls in my apartment, Allie and Megan. The IES Staff plunged immediately into information about the program, encouraging us to get involved with internships and other opportunities in the cities. We enjoyed a "traditional" Austrian evening afterwards, where a group from the Steiermark (an Austrian province) put on a performance of traditional Austrian singing and dancing. Hearing them talk was my first introduction to the dialects of Austrian German...I could hardly understand what they said!
10 January
I woke up the next morning starting to feel slightly more adjusted to the time change. Interviews for housing situations, German class placement, and teaching internships took up most of the morning. In the afternoon, we took a wonderful adventure to the town of Mariazell and saw a pilgrimage basilica there. The basilica contained a nearly 900 year old wooden statue, now covered in gold and other ornaments. We stood next to the small chapel containing the statue, discussing the legend behind the church and the role of the Catholic church in Austria. The quietness and beauty of the church inspired my awe, especially upon realizing that people from all different nations have found peace and unity here for nearly four times as long as my home country existed! After the Cathedral, I ventured around the town Ben and Megan and tried out some of the local "medicinal" Schnapps. Back at Mariazell, we experienced a thorough lesson in Austrian waltzing!
11 January
We left Mariazell in the morning and faced major snows on the way down, which made our arrival later than expected. Back in Vienna, I navigated back to the IES Center with a student assistant and other students who left luggage there in addition to myself. I experienced my first "opportunity" to pay for public restrooms and to ride the U-Bahn without buying a ticket accidentally (U-Bahn = Vienna's public transportion which runs on an honor system)! Eliza, the student assistant, called a taxi for me and then I headed out to my apartment. I chose to do independent housing for study abroad, because I found a connection to a Viennese family through a professor at IU. They live upstairs and I live downstairs with two Austrian students. I met my roommates and some of their friends at the apartment, along with my roommate's sister and her boyfriend, who live down the hall. I enjoyed getting to speak German with so many people, but realized my current language level makes it difficult for me to process everything going on in a group.
Mittwoch, 14. Januar 2015
Off to Austria!
Welcome to my study abroad blog! I will study in Austria with the Institute for the International Education of Students (IES) from January - May 2015. Throughout my time in Austria, I will record my travels, daily experiences, and observations on here. Hope you enjoy reading the ramblings of a Midwestern girl exploring Europe for the first time!
My life included cross-cultural and linguistic interests for as long as I can remember, making the decision for study abroad a natural one. My parents often invited international visitors into our home and my oldest sister took off for Russia during her last year of high school, when I was around 4 years old. Watching my older siblings learn German and my own German studies beginning in early elementary school fostered my deep love of languages. I found a deep personal connection to the German language after my mom shared with me about my German-speaking heritage and the community surrounding it, which extended back to the Ukraine and Prussia.
Although I possess German heritage, the country of Austria particularly held my interest. I cannot exactly explain my reasoning, but I know that tidbits from Austria´s Hapsburg empire, Mozart, Haydn, my sister´s experiences in Austria, The Sound of Music :-), etc all contributed to my fascination. Ultimately, a study abroad program in Austria fit the best into my university plan based on a variety of circumstances.
I left for Vienna, Austria on 8 January from Chicago, where I had visited several consulting firms with an academic program from my school. Upon later reflection, I realized that I encountered nearly three different cultures within a span of three days after leaving Chicago! The first culture was the Chicago business world, a far cry from the small Midwestern town in which I spent my teenage years. After an overnight flight (in which I fortunately slept due to a free seat next to me), I encountered a second culture in a maze of beauty and confusion amongst gorgeous Vienna streets and Vienna´s public transport system. Several friendly Viennese helped me make my way through a train, a subway ride, and a final interesting walk through Stephansplatz with my suitcases to the IES center! The study abroad staff at the IES center warmly greeted me and directed me to a nearby cafe for lunch, Cafe Oberlaa, where I experienced some excellent Viennese food!
I encountered the third and final culture by experiencing a piece of the U.S. in Austria amongst the IES study abroad students at our orientation in Mariazell, to which I went after lunch in Vienna. In mid-afternoon, I traversed my way to the bus station (with clearer directions this time), where I took a bus to Mariazell, a small Austrian town in the mountains known as a famous Catholic pilgrimage place. I ran into an Austrian RA for IES named Kevin on the bus and we had about a 2-hour German conversation! My conversation with him and asking for directions in German throughout Vienna made me realize that I can use my German decently in (some areas of) real life! But the next few days let me know the many lessons I must still learn...
My life included cross-cultural and linguistic interests for as long as I can remember, making the decision for study abroad a natural one. My parents often invited international visitors into our home and my oldest sister took off for Russia during her last year of high school, when I was around 4 years old. Watching my older siblings learn German and my own German studies beginning in early elementary school fostered my deep love of languages. I found a deep personal connection to the German language after my mom shared with me about my German-speaking heritage and the community surrounding it, which extended back to the Ukraine and Prussia.
Although I possess German heritage, the country of Austria particularly held my interest. I cannot exactly explain my reasoning, but I know that tidbits from Austria´s Hapsburg empire, Mozart, Haydn, my sister´s experiences in Austria, The Sound of Music :-), etc all contributed to my fascination. Ultimately, a study abroad program in Austria fit the best into my university plan based on a variety of circumstances.
I left for Vienna, Austria on 8 January from Chicago, where I had visited several consulting firms with an academic program from my school. Upon later reflection, I realized that I encountered nearly three different cultures within a span of three days after leaving Chicago! The first culture was the Chicago business world, a far cry from the small Midwestern town in which I spent my teenage years. After an overnight flight (in which I fortunately slept due to a free seat next to me), I encountered a second culture in a maze of beauty and confusion amongst gorgeous Vienna streets and Vienna´s public transport system. Several friendly Viennese helped me make my way through a train, a subway ride, and a final interesting walk through Stephansplatz with my suitcases to the IES center! The study abroad staff at the IES center warmly greeted me and directed me to a nearby cafe for lunch, Cafe Oberlaa, where I experienced some excellent Viennese food!
I encountered the third and final culture by experiencing a piece of the U.S. in Austria amongst the IES study abroad students at our orientation in Mariazell, to which I went after lunch in Vienna. In mid-afternoon, I traversed my way to the bus station (with clearer directions this time), where I took a bus to Mariazell, a small Austrian town in the mountains known as a famous Catholic pilgrimage place. I ran into an Austrian RA for IES named Kevin on the bus and we had about a 2-hour German conversation! My conversation with him and asking for directions in German throughout Vienna made me realize that I can use my German decently in (some areas of) real life! But the next few days let me know the many lessons I must still learn...
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