Winter Wonderlands

Dear All,

I am back home in Storkow now after my very long but totally worth it trip to Austria for Christmas. When I left here it was just rainy, but when I got back, it had snowed, so I went from one snowy landscape to another. It's great. Last week my last few lessons went alright, but once the project was over on monday, I was pretty much on vacation in my mind. As were my students, so that worked out about right. Except for the ones who had to take an english test on the last day before vacation. But that meant I didn't have any lessons on that day, which was nice for me! Thursday I spent cleaning up and packing for my trip, and that evening I visited with Familie Florschutz. We played Rummy and I didn't win a single round. Oops. But they are very impressed that I can shuffle cards the fancy way. This is not as widespread in Germany as I feel like it is in the states, because my students get pretty impressed by it too. Thanks for teaching me, mom! :)

Friday Lars took me to the train station at 4:30 in the morning so I could get my train. The train ride went as smoothly as it could, considering how long it was. I make friends everywhere, so on the first half of the ride I met an ethiopian freelance magician and actor, and on the second half a very shy professor of greek-catholic theology, which is a mix of orthodox and catholic that came about after one of the failed attempts to reunite the catholic and orthodox churches. I know a lot about it now, because that was sort of the only thing he knew how to talk about without being really nervous. Anyway, I didn't have to pay for my own cup of coffee the whole way, which I consider a success. Gerald was there to pick me up at the train station when my train made it in to St. Poelten surprisingly on time. In austria they like to show that they are not as fanatically detail oriented as the Germans are. We picked up Park a little later when his train got in, and then drove to Gerald's parents house. If you want to find where I was on a map, it'll take a little estimation. Once you see St. Poelten, look for Krems to the northwest a little. Then look for a big hill behind Krems, away from the Danube. Somewhere in there is where his parents live. The name of the town closest to it is Traunstein, not to be confused with the bigger Traunstein in Germany. Once we had stopped making hairpin turns in the snow driving up the hill to his parent's house, it was easier to enjoy just how beautiful the landscape was. I took pictures, but getting to see it all first hand was a real treat. It was great to be with friends from wooster again, especially when the whole point was to eat cookies, decorate the tree, drink gluehwein, and eat some more. And take a nap when you felt like it. I got to sing in the choir on Christmas eve, but I didn't make it to the other services when I was there because I was sort of fighting a cold. And singing in an unheated church isn't really the best for that. Gerald's parents were very nice hosts, and by the end of our stay there, I could usually understand half of what they said, most of the time. I have a hard time with Austrian dialects, but I managed ok. His parents helped by speaking more clearly for me. And repeating. a lot.

On the 26 (Stephanestag, St. Stevens day, which explained to me finally why "Good King Wenceslas" is a Christmas song) we went to Vienna to pick up Angelica at the airport, also a language assistant from Woo last year. I got a recomendation from the theology prof to see what the exhibit at the Albertina art museum was, and it turns out they were showing drawings by Egon Schiele, one of my favorite expressionist artists. I was really excited, but since lots of drawings of naked people colored blue and orange wasn't everyone's cup of tea, I went to the exhibit while the others walked around vienna some. It was so great I bought the catalog (some also because for a catalog it wasn't really expensive, even though it was really nice). Then we went on the giant ferris wheel in Vienna, which is about as kitschy as it gets, but still a tradition. Still, the highlight of the trip wasn't any activity we undertook, but definently getting to be with friends and catching up. Talking to people with so many of the same reference points was so refreshing, not having to explain life wooster or life here, just being able to say "you know?" and knowing the other person does. Ahh. I couldn't have had a better reminder at Christmas of just how important friends are. And thanks again Gerald, for inviting us to spend the holidays with you!

So on that note, I will wrap this up. If I can I will see about uploading a picture or two some time in the near future. I hope that you all had a very merry christmas, and I would love to hear more about what it was like when you find the time to write me an email! Until then, all the best.