Pumpkins, Pumpkins

Happy Halloween! I'm actually not much of a Halloween enthusiast, but who could be opposed to watching 'It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown' and carving a pumpkin?! I also made pumpkin puree from scratch, and it turned out very well.

Halloween dinner requires a Halloween napkin bib.

Carving away!

Jenna being creative and adventurous!

My kitty pumpkin

Playing in the Woods

Wednesday in the Wienderwald!

In our apartment we have a list of all the things we want to do before the end of this semester, so today we decided to tick one of the adventures off the list and headed South to the Vienna woods! The forecast called for clouds and rain, but we lucked out and only got a drizzle. The leaves are falling and the recent rain made the air fresh and delicious. Autumn hikes have a special place in my heart! 

The city of Vienna behind us.

The walking area had a couple play structures along the way, so we stopped to take advantage of the vacant slides and swings. So what if we're in our twenties? 

More meandering through the woods!

Sometimes it's fun to pretend to be children!

Natalie the turtle

So much fun meandering through the woods with these girls. : )

My lovely roommate, Jenna!

Are you wearing the same thing as me?

After coming home I had some lunch watched a bit of TV and took a nap! It was nice to spend a lazy afternoon and night in.

Hola Amigos!

It was a bit of a slow start getting to the meat of today. (Not literal meat, of course. I don't eat meat.) I had work this morning from 10:30-12:30, but I felt like I was just prolonging the pain until my 3:30 exam! I finally had my exam though, and I'm not going to say it went well, but it's over, and until I get it back with a red letter next week, that's all that matters!

This evening Natalie, Andrea, and I went to Fresco Grill, a little tex-mex restaurant. Can I just say, I missed my burritos and chips with salsa! It made me so happy! And yet spoke English and Spanish better than German! It was fun to whip out my Spanish. It was so yummy, and a great outing to a part of the city I haven't seen!

Later this evening Andrea as I made what I will forever call Snikerknödel. Mmm! They are essentially crescent dough wrapped caramel candies rolled in cinnamon suger. They turned out so well, and were especially good hot out of the oven! Highly recommended! We forgot to take a picture until the end because we were so excited about eating them. :)

This evening ended with listening to a Capella music and singing/dancing. I am so glad to have a break from school from until next Monday! More baking, outdoor activities, and festivities to ensue!

Let the Wild Rumpus Start!

Last night, post blog post, the internet in our apartment stopped working. That always seems to happen on Sunday nights when we're trying to finish up our homework and studies and preparing for the week. Argh! At about 9:30 I was ready for bed, but it felt too early to go to bed, so Jenna and I decided to rearrange out apartment! Unfortunately we only have two tables, so there wasn't much to rearrange. It still entertained us for about an hour. And we made mega desk.

Our attempt at creating a better dance space!

What mischievous children we become when our RA Kati is out of the house.

This morning I had my internship, where I read "Where the Wild Things Are" about eight or nine times. I have the book pretty close to memorized now! The third graders really liked the book, and it worked out well since most of the vocab was at their level, and the kids were able to help each other understand everything. That book has great illustrations!

This afternoon I had two midterm examinations, and I am so glad to have those over with. They actually went quite well, and I felt adequately prepared. I hope tomorrow goes similarly. 

Happy rumpus-ing, wild things. 

Wochenende in Wien

I realized this morning that I forgot to write a blog post last night, that's alright though, because I think this weekend will appropriately fit into one post. Although I am very pleased to be done with my German midterm, that was only the start of a series of midterm exams. So, this weekend has consisted of little other than studying.

Yesterday morning I woke up fairly motivated, and decided to get started right away, then proceeded to spend three hours of studying per exam (music history, Austrian art, and psychology). I took a few breaks in between to work on another project: quiche! Quiche is one of my favorite meals, and worked appropriately as a study break. I ran out of butter and had to use olive oil at the end, so the crust was a bit of a bugger situation, but it was still quite delicious!

Butternut squash, mushroom, and red onion quiche!

Excited to eat! 

I also got to Skype with a friend last evening, which was a nice reward, and I slept 11 hours (a combination of going to bed at 10:30 and falling back 1 hour)! It was very welcomed sleep.

Due to the success of yesterday's study system, I decided to employ the same plan for today. After a couple subjects though, I needed to get outside. I went for a walk around my district and found two parks full of people playing soccer, reading, playing with dogs, running, etc. It was the perfect day for outdoor activity (according to accuweather) - about 18 degrees Celsius! It was nice to get out of the apartment and away from my books to feel the sun on my cheeks and smell the leaves.

Our apartment's attempt at seasonal decor.

Well it is time to get back to the studying! Have a good week!

Friday is my Favorite Day

German midterm is done!! So glad that's over! I had a fun evening in with friends, which was hopefully enough socialization to keep me going with my studying the rest of the weekend!

Enjoy the fall festivities!

Drip-Drop, Pitter-Patter

If I wasn't paying attention today I might have thought I was in Oregon! The day started out dark and rainy today, which made us all want to stay in our cozy apartment, but by 10:30 it had stopped raining, and by about one it was sunny!

Other than my time with the third graders playing Autumn themed vocab games, my dad consisted almost entirely of studying for my German midterm! I am finally feeling fairly confident! Tomorrow is the big day, and I am SO looking forward to having it over!

Aber, ich muss jetzt schlafen! Ich bin sehr müde!
Gute nacht, jeder!

And We Can't Stop

It's Wednesday! Day three of my nine day marathon. I got to check off my listening quiz today, which I think went very well, so now my focus returns to German, then I can start worrying about other midterms Friday afternoon! Whew. What a week.

Other than completing my listening quiz, and being productive with German this evening, I had a great dinner of roasted Brussels sprouts, potatoes, and garlic! And the timing worked out perfectly with transportation today, so I didn't have to wait for any trams or buses! I think I made it home in record time. Welcome to the life of a student in Wien...

Well ya'll, it's late and I have some zzzzs to catch. Wishing you a wonderful week!

Tirami-swamped Tuesday

The days continue to rush by, and the lists keep getting longer! I felt like there was so much to do today that there as no way I would get it all done, but I am feeling a bit better, and did actually get a bit accomplished!

This morning in German we started a practice midterm exam, and worked in small groups, slowly, making sure we really knew how to do every section. Then while I worked in the library, my friend Andrea sat with me and we studied more German. After two hours of work in the library, we found the German department head and asked questions/reviewed important concepts that were still confusing. In total, we spent almost four hours on German. I am feeling quite a bit better about what I still need to study for Friday. It feels like I am having to learn five weeks worth of material in one!

Andrea and I decided to treat ourselves to what we thought was going to be a lunch of crepes (according to the outside sign). However, there weren't crepes on the menu. I ended up having the lunch special of a salad with a margarita pizza. It was quite good! And to my surprise and delight, the lunch was finished off with a small piece of tiramisu!

 

 

It was so creamy and sweet, and the chocolate was a little bitter. Mmm...

 

I also got mail today! Those simple things certainly help get through the busy days!

The Most Manic of all Mondays!

Monday started too early for this girl who was busy, busy, busy this weekend, and I was feeling flustered about the amount of homework I had not accomplished! I felt very tired and a little bit grumpy (the former normally results in the later) most of the day.

I got to spend a couple hours working with the third graders this morning on Autumn themed vocabulary, which included a song, bingo, and some silly acting on my part to make sure they were understanding, among a few worksheets to test their understanding. I love the fall season, so it was a fun lesson for me to teach! Here is a photo of the school:

 

When I finally got to go home for the day, I discovered four other slightly disgruntled suite-mates, so we all ate our dinners together and collaborated a bit on our German homework, then let out a good scream, which made us feel quite a lot better! I am certainly looking forward to being done with midterm exams! 

Wachau, Here I Come

Sunday was our IES trip to The Wachau, and I wanted to include a few pictures but was experiencing a series of technical difficulties, so sorry to be getting this up late!

At seven am on Sunday morning, I was tempted to sleep in and skip the trip, but I managed to get myself out of bed and with my apartment mates made our way to the meeting spot, and I am so glad I did! It turned out to be one of my favorite days this semester!

We started the foggy morning at the Melk Monastery, which was originally built as a castle by the Badenbergs and later donated as a Monastery. The Monastery has been almost completely rebuilt in the late Baroque style.

Here is a photo of the front entrance. The monastery currently also functions as a school for about 900 secondary students.

A foggy morning looking over Melk.

Bethany and myself.

My lovely friend and apartment-mate, Natalie. 

Can you believe this library?! Beauty and the Beast, anyone?

And the magnificent, if not overwhelming Cathedral. Not an inch was ignored in the planning of this Baroque space. It is impossible to capture the "oh my" feeling when stepping in the back door.

The gardens are turning into a burst of beautiful fall color!

Next we went for lunch to an adorably traditional Austrian restaurant where we had a lovely meal. The soup and apple strudel were the highlights!

We then hiked up the hill to the ruins of Dürnstein Castle. It was the perfect lookout to the Danube valley and vineyards below. I loved how the castle was built out of the side of the hill, and used the rocky terrain as a basis and some walls of the castle. We had a wonderful time scrambling around like mountain goats!

The day continued into the evening with a great meal and more beautiful sights!

Sat with Nat!

After a lazy morning, cleaning the kitchen, doing laundry, and organizing my brain to prepare for the next week and a half, Natalie and I decided to find a cafe to do work in.

Natalie with the tea and hot chocolate in the Cafe Museum:

Me with my tea and homework, being very European:

What a well behaved doggy!

It was another beautiful day, so it was fun to have the little excursion to the koffee house, and this evening was concluding with more good food and cake!

Adventure Friday!

Sorry this post is a bit late! Once again it was a late night, but I wanted to give the post the justice it deserves!

Friday! That's a good thing in its own right! The sun was shining most of the day, and I just had to make it through an hour of German before I could call it the weekend. In the afternoon I had another adventure into the outer district areas of Vienna, and enjoyed the colors of the changing leaves. It was a wonderful fall day for a walk through the vineyards. Although the weather has been somewhat fluctuating, I feel it has been a very nice fall overall, and I'm used to constantly changing and unpredictable weather.

Isn't this valley gorgeous?!

If I go missing you know where I am. 

A rural girl at heart.

This evening was a whole new adventure! Most of you know that I would prefer to stay in with my PJ's and a movie on a Friday night, but this week I decided to experience the night life a little bit! I went out with a couple girl friends, and had a great time. I was shocked at how many people were out and about so late. I miss so much when I'm sleeping!

I rewarded myself with some of my famous German (Austrian??) chocolate cake on return! I tried out a new cake recipe that had soft peaked egg whites, and it might be the most moist and fluffy chocolate cake I've ever had. Definitely a repeat!

Love from Liebhartsgasse!