AnnieG
Anne Groelz Joined: July 12th 2006
Logged in: October 27th 2009
Logged in: October 27th 2009
Travel Blog Posts
Thanksgiving Feast
Last Thursday was a big day for Americans, and many turkeys, too. Even though Thanksgiving isn't nationally celebrated in Austria, the Central College group sure did. I believe all total we had somewhere around 30 people. The turkey was provided by the directors, but everything else was supplied and cooked by the students. It was a true test of our culinary skills. :-) We had so much food and it was all delicious! The traditional dishes were present (turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes & gravy, pies), but we also had a few non-stereotypical dishes (manicotti, Korean stir-fry). Everything tasted absolutely wonderful, and thank goodness for leftovers! Leftovers are heavenly for a student on a budget. :-) The Central College classroom was transformed into a dining setting, lit by candlelight once the meal started. Yours truly baked two ... read more
View of the Lake
On the weekend of October 21-22, we made an overnight trip to Graz, Austria. This trip was arranged by Central College for us students studying here in Vienna, so all we had to do was pack our bags and enjoy the ride! What a way to travel. :-) Saturday morning we were up bright and early to catch our train. The train ride there was in itself a pleasure. We traveled through the hillsides, in amongst the trees, all of which were changing colors. It was a gorgeous sight. Upon arrival in Graz, we found our hostel and unloaded our bags. After we grabbed some lunch, we made our way to the Tourist Information office, where we met our guide for the day’s tour. We joined a larger group of people and all hopped onto a ... read more
Train Station
I’m a bit behind in my posts, but intend to catch up a little here in the next few days. Time flies just as quickly here as it does in the U.S. :-) On Sunday, October 15th, a group of four of us made a day-trip to Bratislava. Bratislava is an easy day-trip from Vienna by train. The ride there is just over an hour long, so really you could just go there for a night on the town if you wanted! We’d heard that everything was cheap in comparison to Vienna, and found that the food certainly was. I can’t verify the other merchandise. First off, the exchange rate is incredible if you’re coming from Vienna to Bratislava: 1 euro = 37 Sk’s. We weren’t, however, told that Sunday is a poor day to go ... read more
Stephansplatz
Welcome to Vienna!!! It’s a wonderful city, really, and I have been enjoying myself to the fullest. :-) I wasn’t able to move immediately into my dormitory because mine is used as a hotel during the summer and didn’t open as student housing until three days after I got here. I was put up in another student housing for two nights before I could move into mine, which was alright, but I was happy to be able to get settled into my own room. My dormitory is incredibly nice and I have about a 20 minute commute to where my classes are held. Most everything in the building looks brand new. I live in a double-room and we have our own bathroom, so I only have to share it with one other person. :-) Every floor ... read more
Oldie but a goodie
Time to play catch-up! This post is dedicated entirely to all of the cities that I visited in Germany last month and haven’t written about yet. If you’re interested in hearing about Vienna first, wait about 15 minutes and another post will be on its way, I promise. :-) A group of us students decided to take a day-trip to Stuttgart since most of us have only seen the hotels there. (Stuttgart is a major hub in Germany, so a lot of the students flew there and then made their way to Schwaebisch Hall.) One of the newest attractions in Stuttgart is the Mercedes Benz Museum. It is only a few months old and houses a massive collection of Mercedes Benz automobiles, starting from the very beginning when just the engine was being developed. I’ll admit, ... read more
Central Station
On August 29th I walked into the Amsterdam Central Station at 6:30 am on the dot. Seven minutes too late for the first train to Brussels. The next train wasn’t for another hour, so I made myself cozy and pulled out my book. I was reading “The Sucker’s Kiss,” which I had started on my ride to Amsterdam. I found it a little ironic that the main character made his living as a pick-pocket and here I was in pick-pocket central. I was very fortunate the entire trip and didn’t lose any of my belongings. In fact, I came back with more than I left with. Gotta love souvenirs. :-) Brussels and I got off to a rocky start. I had asked the man in the Information booth at the train station where I could find ... read more
New 'do
Hi there! This will be short, but I felt the need to share this with you. We have the same staff working in the cafeteria as we did last month, and as part of our daily routine, we have to show our student card when we pick up our meal to prove that we've paid already. The lady who runs the cashier at the beginning of last week told me that since she knew me from the month before, that it wasn't necessary for me to show my card every day. So, every day for the past week I've simply said "Guten Tag!" and gone on my way with tray in hand. Yesterday afternoon I decided to get a haircut, which turned out quite well if you ask me. I found a picture in a magazine ... read more
The streets of Amsterdam
Ahh…the Netherlands. Ok, so all I saw was one city, but I stayed three nights and explored it thoroughly by foot. I was surprised by Amsterdam, but in a good way. Its reputation precedes it and the one that I had heard, I now feel gives people a poor impression of the city. The only preconception I had of Amsterdam was that of its reputation with the Red Light District and drugs. I found that the Red Light District isn’t the only thing that Amsterdam has to offer, it’s just the only thing that people in my generation talk about after visiting there. I think that if I had spent a week there, I wouldn’t have found myself being bored at any given time. I arrived in Amsterdam around noon without any housing reservations, and as ... read more
Dom Cathedral
I imagine by now some of you probably think I’ve fallen off the edge of the earth, and while that might make a good story, I am glad to say that it is not true. As this post will prove, I am still alive and doing quite well. Four days ago I arrived back in Schwabisch Hall after my 10-day trip and just three days ago classes started! All of the new students arrived this week, as well, so numerous introductions have been made and time spent getting to know each other. Needless to say, I’ve been a very busy woman. I also needed time to sort through all of my pictures so that I could show you the very best in my posts! :-) I have decided that trying to fit a week-and-a-half’s worth of ... read more
Dough Machine
Well hello there! It’s been awhile since I’ve been able to update, and I have much to catch you up on, so sit back and enjoy yourself. :-) Last week I had the wonderful opportunity to try my hand at making a food that is a significant part of the German culture: pretzels! And I don’t mean the tiny, hard pretzels you buy in bags at the store; I’m talking about the big, soft ones sprinkled with sea salt. They’re so good! At any rate, Wednesday afternoon my class and our teacher met at a local bakery called KronMüller. The bakery is literally across the street from my housing and I have frequented it several times since arriving in Schwäbisch Hall. Their food is delicious and I was very excited to be able to go “behind ... read more
