Austrian Audventure: Salzburg

I heard from a lot of people that Salzburg is really pretty. And I love how Vienna sounds. So last weekend I embarked on an alliteration adventure in Austria (pronounce the As similarly, please). I took the bus to Munich Thursday night, in order to get an early train to Salzburg Friday morning.

Shortly before I left, the adventure began when Deutsche Bahn announced a strike to last from Thursday to Monday. Woooooo!

Not Wooooo. I got real nervous until I did more research and realized that my trains were operated by the Austrian bahn company, which meant everything should run smoothly (if be a bit crowded).

So, with a heart attack checked off my to-do list, I set off to Munich. I slept at a hostel, one which I would recommend to people wanting to be social and make friends, buuuut I mostly I wanted to sleep, which was a bit hard. A very sleepy Sara(h) boarded a train early Friday morning, but on the upside the train was (weirdly) super empty and I had a whole compartment to myself!

The train ride was short, and I got into Salzburg around 10am. I was greeted by bahn employees handing out free gingerbread to everybody, so you know, off to a good start.After I figured out the luggage storage situation I found myself kind of just standing in the middle of the station, unsure what to do next. Or how to get to any of the places I had thought about going. Picking up a map seemed like a good idea, so I did that, then walked to Mirabell Gardens.

Given that when you google image search Mirabell Gardens most of the pictures that come up portray sunny days, frolicking children, and Julie Andrews, there was a huge difference between what I had in my head and what I saw in real life. However, the gardens were still beautiful.

The gardens were complete with someone dressed up as Mozart.
I think this freaked me out more than any silver person ever has (and those of you who know me know there are very few things I can't stand more than silver people). He just gave me the heebee jeebees! And, being Salzburg this was by far not the last "Mozart" I saw. Aye.

After this, I wandered my way to the old town, and found a place to eat Salzburger Nockerl.

So here's the thing. Before going to Austria I googled tasty Austrian foods to eat while I was in Austria. I came across Nockerl, and then looked into restaurants that served it. The fact that more than a few menus added in the food's description that is was for two or more people should have warned me.

Buuutttt, the place I picked out didn't have that in the description (one reason I picked it), and it was less expensive than the places with this note (another reason). So I thought I was in the clear, until this arrived at my table:

I should also add that as I first came in, I was the only one in the restaurant. As I waited for the small planet to arrive to my table (it's a 25 minute wait), more people filtered in. All of the English speaking customers happened to sit in my section, and we started chatting. More so even when the Nockerl arrived, and no one could hold back looks and comments of shock and awe.

Now I love sweet things. And raspberries. And I hate wasting food. But as soon as I saw this thing I knew I would not in a million years be able to finish it. I even wondered if the employees in the back were taking bets on how much I would be able to get through.Seriously this thing was just so big. I thought I would be able to get through two mountains, and was satisfied with this settlement. Afterall, how filling can egg whites be?

Very filling, it turns out. I finished half the dish (1 1/2 mountains). Which, I still think is pretty impressive.

At this point I was friends with everybody in the restaurant. I perpetuated the stereotype of loud American as I talked to an american couple from Ohio two tables away (to be fair they started the conversation, normally I wouldn't do this!). And I was invited to a drinking festival by the couple sitting at a table behind me (which I had to decline due to a late afternoon train to Vienna). 

Luigi in tow, I left the restaurant to wander the Getreidgasse-a cobblestone shopping street in Salzburg where all the shops have iron signs hanging out front, even McDonald's and little souvenir shops looks fancy. 

I had an embarrassing moment when I tried to buy stamps to send my friends and host family postcards. I asked the woman for a stamp for "Ausland" and one for "Deutschland", to which she reminded me that Deutschland is ausland. So, awkward. I also found out that postage costs almost twice as much in Austria as in Germany. So those of you waiting for a Viennese postcard, they are coming! I waited to come back to send them. And those of you that got postcards from Salzburg, count yourself among the lucky few, or side effects of Sara(h)'s naivete. 

While I was walking around all day, I kept seeing this large castle on a hill in the distance. Finally, I decided that I was going to walk up to it and see what the deal was. I couldn't figure out where it was on my map, because nothing in the direction it was was labeled a castle of sorts.

Turns out, it was a fortress (The Festung Hohensalzburg). Thus why I couldn't locate it on the map as a castle. Anyway, I decided to take a look inside, and wandered through the catapult gate, around the vulture tower, and through the cannon gallery. 

Then, I saw it.

A sign to go into the torture chamber.

Not that I am a crazy person. Or sadistic. Or masochistic. Or that I experience more schadenfreude than the normal human. But I was real curious about this and wanted to see a torture chamber.I had high expectations, yo!

I waited excitedly to get a little headset to walk around this section of the fortress. Finally, we were let in.

I

Was

So

SO

Disappointed.

Why was I disappointed, you ask? What could possibly go wrong with a torture chamber?

It was called a torture chamber because they used to store the tools for torturing there. 

What.

Even.

I was so excited over a storage closet.

-_-

I did my best to recover from this disappointment by drowning my self in some nice views. For the most part, this did the trick.

After this, I rushed down the hill to make my way back to the station to catch my train to Vienna :)

Sara Eats a Brezel the Size of a Small Planet

So, ya'll know I can't make a fast decision to save my life (which would be very unfortunate should this type of situation arise). So -ahem- abouttwomonthsago -ahem- when I went shopping for a dirndl to wear to Oktoberfest, I certainly had my work cut out for me.

A dirndl is a traditional Bavarian (yes, I realize I'm not actually in Bavaria, but still) dress type deal. I had seen them in a few clothing stores, and enough people who knew I would be around during Oktoberfest told me I should get one, that I knew eventually I should take a look at them. So, when I told my host mom I was going to go to Munich for the day about two weeks before Oktoberfest, she suggested I buy a dirndl while I was there, since there would be many more options than here.

Silly me asked, "So......can you get them at any store? Or are there shops specifically for dirndls?" I assumed that the answer would be the first, but it turns out there are stores (open all year, I think, not like pop up Halloween stores) where you can buy just dirndln and lederhosen. That Saturday, armed with lots of information on where to go for a dirndl, I wandered into Munich (I use "wander" loosely here, really I just took a bus.)

But, firstly, I wanted to go the the Viktualienmarkt for lunch. After getting lost on may way there, turning what is normally a 30 minute walk into 45 minutes of wandering down empty streets trying to figure out exactly where I was, I found the place. The market was packed of course, since it was Saturday. I wasn't really sure what I felt like eating, until a woman walked by me with a bretzel the size of planet Pluto. Then I knew. I waited in line for what felt like forever until I was finally able to ask for a grosse breze.

It was well worth the wait, and the salt-to-brezel ratio was perfect. That being said, it was still a lot of salt and I forgot to bring water (don't tell my host mom, she thinks (and is right) that I should drink more water just generally).

My pal Luigi was of course then present as I embarked on dirndl shopping,. However, considering how much I like German food, and how much of it is present at Oktoberfest, I thought having a food baby would make for a more accurate dress size when dirndl shopping.

Not that I thought it would be easy. I don't love love to shop (although I don't hate it so much anymore), and I am really indecisive, but I did not anticipate being so overwhelmed when I wandered into Tracht & Mehr to look for a dirndl. All along the walls were dirndls in every size, material, color, and length. Then there were aisles of blouses, aprons, and petticoats. I had no idea where to start. I wasn't even sure about my European size. I just stared at the dirndls. I looked to see what other people were doing. I walked out to take a deep breath. Then walked back in. A smiling woman in a dirndl asked if she could help me. Really, I should have just said yes. But, too embarrassed about my German and limited communication skills I said not yet. I stared at the dirndls some more. Then, still real overwhelmed at all of the choices, left to take a walk around the block (or more accurately, to the Milka Chocolate World).

When I returned, I had convinced myself that my German was not so terrible I wouldn't be able to understand simple questions, and that since it was a big city and the women working there were around my age, they probably spoke some English. It could work. I wandered back in to the shop. I didn't really know how to ask for help, so I waited until another smiling dirndl woman came over and asked if I needed help. I did, I told her, but also explained my German was not so great. She said it was no problem and switched to English. .

Mostly, I didn't know if I was supposed to try on a million blouse/apron/dirndl/petticoat sets, or pick things one at a time, or what. Turns out the process was pretty much try on dirndls and a blouse until you find one you like, then figure out the apron and petticoat situation. After trying on a million dirndln, then deciding that a different size was better and starting the process over, then trying to figure out the apron color, I ended up with this:

After an umburrassin' number of hours. That I won't mention here. Mostly because I don't remember exactly. Maybe three hours. 

It was a real long day. Good thing Luigi was still hanging around, because I had just a short amount of time afterward to get to the bus!

My Name is Sara and I Come from the U.S.A. and I speak....Speutalianish?

(Insert the usual apologies for not writing sooner here)

So let's be real, this language thing is a Struggle Bus.

I came here knowing close to zero of the Deutsch. I used Duolingo a bit, and flipped through a textbook, but I was not prepared to communicate with anyone unless I was saying "I eat bread. I drink water. I like chocolate.". I think I maybe almost didn't get my Visa (you have to know German for a visa here), because the woman had no idea what I was saying , so she just kept repeating the question over and over, which made me think I had understood wrong. But that's behind me, whew!

I tried to pick up the language as fast as I could, but when I would try to speaking with the kids I would start speaking Spanish when I didn't know the word in German. This helps no one- not only because I am supposed to help with their English but they also don't speak Spanish. For the most part I have stopped doing this, but every so often a word slips in when I am speaking too fast. Also I often just say pobrecito to my youngest.

I (Yes, three paragraphs starting with I. Clearly I'm not an English major.) should also mention the region I'm in has a really strong dialect. My host mom has said that she's had au pairs who come here already speaking German, but due to the dialect and accent they still had trouble understanding what people are saying. In this sense it was helpful to not know German beforehand, because I was somewhat of a blank slate when picking it up.

Let's fast forward three months. When I leave the area (whether it's to Hamburg, Berlin, or Switzerland), I have more trouble understanding people. This is mutual, as I'm sure that between my American/Swabian/toddler accent and grammar, I am not the easiest to understand either. Usually, if they can, people (sometimes in annoyance) switch to English to speak to me.

An interaction I had in Hamburg:
Me: Ein Milchkaffee bitte
Barista: Ein Filterkafee?
Me: Nein, ein Milchkafee.
Barista: Was?
Me: Ein Milchkaffee?
Barista: (really annoyed) What do you want? A filter coffee?
Me: Milchkaffee (poiting to menu board)
Barista: What?
Me: Yes, okay, a filter coffee.

People have given me mixed responses to the German abilities I have acquired. Sometimes they're impressed at what I have picked up in the time I've been here, and sometimes they tell me I need to learn German because I'm in Germany, or more blatantly that my German is simply not good (to be fair this was said to me by a kid, who maybe are not always the most tactful of creatures). So really, I have no idea how well I'm doing.

However, I have become frustrated with the people who tell me to learn German, or think my host mom shouldn't speak English with me.

I try to be understanding when someone says something like this, because I think this belief or type of statement comes from feelings of isolation or being left out of the conversation when they don't understand everything, rather than from maliciousness. The problem with trying to be understanding about it is that I really do empathize with the situation/feeling, but I assume I experience it much more often than the person and thus sometimes get annoyed and can't always help thinking "Actually, this is my life every day. I think you can handle just a minute of it."

On the one hand I know I signed up for a language barrier in coming to Germany. And I know the people who say things like this to me did not sign up for a language barrier in just coming to lunch/going out for the evening/etc, but on the other hand that is still no excuse to be rude or to make someone feel like lesser of a person because they have not mastered a language in three months. Actually, I can think of no excuse for doing this.

It's also just hurtful and frustrating when someone says this because I'm really picking up as much German as I can as fast as I can. It isn't that I'm not trying. Or that I have no desire to learn the language. In fact, I really resent the whole "You don't need to speak German/Italian/French/whatever language, everyone there speaks English!" notion I heard a lot of before I left for here.  This is not actually true. And it's disrespectful. Also why would you choose to live in a country with another language with the goal of experiencing a new culture and not bother to give the language a try?

It is just that becoming fluent in a new language is really hard. And I would like to see any one of these people who have said these things to me go to a foreign country with a foreign language in which they have no background and simply learn it. With no formal instruction. And largely from a toddler. And then, to not be relieved when someone speaks their native language to them. Because sometimes it is just nice to have a break from struggling to make yourself understood and to understand what is being said.

Lastly, I think the point of an Au Pair (or one of the points, really) is a cultural exchange- not just a one way street of absorption. Which means sometimes speaking German. And sometimes English. And sometimes minion babble. Which means it is totally fine if my host mom wants to practice her (already very good) English. And it is really no one's concern!

Finally though, I started my language class last week. Since I have been here for three months, it's pretty easy so far (We spent two days learning how to say our name, where we are from, and what we speak). Although now I am having the reverse of the trouble I had when I first got here, in that I've tried speaking Spanish to some people in my class, and it comes out German. So basically I don't know what I speak anymore.

Minion babble. That's what I speak. Bananas!

Basically, the language barrier is a daily ride on the Struggle Bus to Struggle Town where I eat Struggle Pudding. But, I know how to order ice cream and coffee to-go, which makes up about 90% of my interactions outside playing with the kids. So that's good!

What I Learned in School Today

1. Minion babble is the same in German and English. Which I guess makes sense as it is another language.

2. The German title for Despicable Me literally translates as "I am simply incorrigible"

3. "It's so fluffy I'm going to die!" in German translates as "It's so fluffy I'm going insane!"

4. Mike Wasowski is Mike Glotzkowski (Gluts-kah-ski) in German

5. Baking soda is hard to find, but check the American section of the grocery.

6. Nutella is wonderful on a fresh soft bretzel.

7. It can be cheaper to buy a BMW (I think this was the car brand mentioned to me, otherwise just insert another fancy German car company of your choice here) online from America and having it shipped, than to actually buy it in Germany. Even accounting for switching some things over(like the speedometer to km/h instead of mph). However, it won't come with any sort of warranty this way.

8. Even I can get tired of Despicable Me and minions.

9. Human statues/silver men are just as scary here as they are in America.

10. There are Dunkin Donuts here. A lot of Dunkin Donuts.

11. "Cookies" refers specifically to chocolate chip cookies, while "keks" (pronounced cakes) refers to any type of cookie.

12. "Eis" means ice cream, which can cause disappointment if you ask a child if they want ice after they hit their head.

13. Children (and sometimes adults) swear in English because it isn't as bad as swearing in German. This makes for interesting dinners.

14. In German, there are separate words to differentiate a human eating from an animal eating.

15. The concept of a food baby crosses language barriers. Next we will see if the concept of naming your food baby does.

16. According to my youngest at least, babies are delicious. (I SWEAR I NEVER SAID ANYTHING LIKE THIS AROUND HIM! In German, at least)

17. "Muesli" refers to all granola, cereal, and muesli type products.

18. Mimicking German you learned from a 2.5 year old just leads to confused stares.

19. Figuring out German sentence structure became a lot easier when I started copying the sentence structure my host family uses (mistakenly) in English.

20. Jam comes in all flavors. All. Flavors. Mango, strawberry, pineapple, cherry, ginger, plum, grape, blueberry, raspberry, lime, kiwi, apricot, peach, rhubarb, lemon, apple, and any (I do mean any) combination thereof.

21. Some things are just hard to explain, period. Whether it's the issues within the American educational system or the point of marshmallow fluff.

Hamburg: Sara Eats Blue Food and is Introduced to the Cruel World of Claw Machines

My Sunday in Hamburg started bright and early at 6am. My friend and I really wanted to go the Hamburg Fischmarkt, but it goes from 5am-9:30am, so we had to get an early start.

We decided to take a longer route there, so that we could ride the ferry in. The ferry we took was decorated as an advertisement for the Lion King, so you know, that was worth getting up early for in itself.

Awkward angle for a panorama

I know what you are thinking when I say that I went to a fischmarkt. "But Sara, you are a vegetarian (A world's most awkward award winning one, at that), why on earth would you get up at that ungodly hour to smell some fish?"

The Fishmarkt did have a lot of fish, yes. But there were fruit auctions where you could get large baskets of fruit (I am talking needing two people to carry it back kind of big) for ten euros. As well as pasta auctions. And live music. And bakery and coffee stalls (where I got a franzbröchten the size of my head). And little tents to buy trinkets. Despite our exhaustion, it was a lot of fun. 

Most importantly I found and purchased a blue cupcake.

I saw the little truck the first time we wandered around the market. The man asked if I wanted to take a picture, I am guessing I was staring at the blue cupcake and smiling a little too much. Buuuuut, I was embarrassed and said no thanks and kept going.

Then we passed it a second time. I wanted the blue cupcake SO BAD! My friend said that I could get one and save it for later (I like blue. I like sugar. But even I have limits- it was too early in the morning!). Again, he asked if I wanted one, so I asked what was in the blue one.

To be honest I don't remember. I was just so happy (the company's slogan is "It's a happy thing" for a reason). Something about raspberry. Or wildberry. I do remember that it was a vanilla cupcake and a surprise (or special) filling (this tasted like a blueberry muffin-in the best possible way). We chatted for a bit (it turns out he opened the first cupcake place in Germany), then I walked away with my happy little cupcake.

I was *real* excited to eat it. I wasn't sure how long I would be able to hold off. 

Let's go back to my previous post where I A. talked about choosing directions from a human instead of a smart phone and B. talked about not planning too much when I go to a place. 

Well, before going to Hamburg I told myself that it was a very long journey to plan zero things for, and I decided to give the whole going from A to B to C type of travelling and sightseeing a shot. I found a walking tour that goes around to different attractions in Hamburg and thought I would give it a try. What else was I going to do with my day, after all?

My friend told me how to get to the nearest subway station so that I could get to the center. As I was walking, I mostly forgot exactly which turns to take and how to get there. So, I looked up how to get to the city center (or rather, the exact meeting point of the Rathaus) from where I was. The transit app gave me different directions than my friend had, but I thought I would give them a try.

I am never trusting a smartphone again. Rather than sending me to the Hamburg Rathaus, it sent me to one (I think Rathaus just means town/city hall or something similar) a ways outside the city. Which I didn't realize until we passed a stop that I remembered was near a museum I was mildly interested in a bit outside the city.

Least to say, I missed the tour. But, this was also maybe for the better, and I instead walked to the lake where I consumed my MOST DELICIOUS CUPCAKE EVER. Seriously. It was so good. I have never liked a bought-cupcake so much. I should have bought two. Or five. Or ten.

After this I went on the ferry, and took in a loop so that I could look at the city. It was really beautiful, but I was also maybe falling asleep-the inside of the ferry was so warm and I was so tired!

I then decided that I should maybe consume something green. Not neon green. Vegetable green. Although Hamburg is a city, it was still a Sunday so my options were pretty limited outside the Starbucks and McDonald's realm (I was hungry, but not desperate). I did manage to find a sandwich with green things on it, and to drink an "iced" (I use "iced" because it was more just not-hot than actually cold) macchiato. 

After this I decided it was time for one last stop at the Sommerdom. I was exhasuted, and really just wanted to sleep. But, I am not one to turn down a ferris wheel, so I headed in that direction (after looking at a real life map. No more of this smartphone business!)

It was just as fantastic the second time around.After walking the full loop, I rode the ferris wheel, and got a
nutella filled doughnut.

Then I got it in my head that claw machines can't be that difficult. They are just hard for kids. And, after walking around the dom many times I had seen my fair share of claw machines. Many of which had minions in them. I kept thinking, how hard could it possibly be to just aim and push a button?

So, I decided to give it a go. And let me tell you, those things are awful! There was nothing wrong with my aim, but the claw always dropped my minion! I decided that maybe the minions were too heavy for the claw. I found a machine with smaller minions (albeit they were the minions with little outfits, and I am not about that life). Only to see that they came with a smaller claw. WHAT EVEN IS THIS. All. I. Wanted. Was. A. Minion!

And thus, I was introduced to the cruel world of claw machines.

Like this. But giant.

As a thank you to my hosts, I wanted to bring them doughnuts back from the dom (the kids are too little to go yet). I went back to one of the doughnut stalls where you could see them being made in front of you. While I was there, I saw these things that looked like giant doughnut holes with chocolate sprinkles. Obviously, I wanted one. I decided to save it for the ride back the next day though. I was completely sugared out.

Spoiler alert: It was not a giant doughnut hole. It was rum cake. Sara's naiveté and desire for chocolate get the best of her again!

The next day, I had a short bit of time in the city, which I spent with a chocolate franzbröchten by the lake. Not a bad end to the weekend!

Hamburg: Sara Wins the Award for World's Most Awkward Vegetarian and Goes Carnival Crazy

First, it has come to my attention that it appears I am not working-that I just traipse about eating blue things and looking at pretty landscapes. Although I do a whole lot of the latter, I promise I am working! I just changed a little boy's diaper. And yesterday we played with train tracks. I am also engaged in an ongoing war of "Got your nose!", and I am involved in the saga that is "Papa Hund und Baby Hund" (Papa dog and baby dog). So. I am working. And I'll write about that soon! But for now, Hamburg :)

Last Friday I took the train to Hamburg (about 8 1/2 hours), getting in the late afternoon. I was immediately overwhelmed by the humidity and number of people I was surrounded by. Seriously. The train station and streets were just packed. It was a very weird, slightly disconcerting feeling to feel overwhelmed by this aspect of a city. I had not realized until now how accustomed I had become to living in the countryside. I would not venture to say I have never been overwhelmed by a city, just that normally this overwhelmed feeling usually comes from "wow this place is so beautiful" , not "oh my god there are so many people."

Another thing-normally before this I would have looked up directions to where I was going from the train station. But the night before I was tired and said to myself "Sara, that is what a smartphone is for. Just look it up once you are there. Or if you must, on the train." So, I plugged in the address of where I was going (I couch surfed just outside the city) into the tranist app I had downloaded. The directions had me making all sorts of transfers. I remembered that my host said they were a short walk from a subway station, so I looked that up on the map instead, and made the executive decision to trust a human over an app.

I couch surfed with a family (which I realize is uncommon, normally it is hip/hippie/hipster youngins with an extra couch). They invited me to eat dinner with them, which was nice. I had never couch surfed before and hadn't expected they would feed me.

The problem is that I forget I am vegetarian. Or rather, I forget I must tell or remind people. Because at this point most of the people I interact with (at least over food) know.

So, we sat down to eat, and that is when I realized I should have asked what we were eating beforehand. The dad had made a very tasty-smelling casserole, and I couldn't quite tell what was in it. I told myself that since I wrote on my couch surfing profile I'm vegetarian, they must know. I told myself that ignorance is bliss and not to look to closely at the food or ask. I decided I could pick around any meat parts I noticed. I sat there feeling real awkward and not knowing when or even if to mention it. Before I had taken a bite, it came up that there was mince in the casserole.

Well, there went my blissful ignorance.

I was fine picking around the meat bits. But I knew this would look weird without explanation. I thought I could make it look like I just didn't finish all my food-although this would require taking substantially more food so that it wasn't just meat left on the plate. I realized there was now no non-awkward way to mention it. I couldn't decided if it was weirder to say it after I had picked around the meat, hoping they wouldn't notice or say anything, or to mention it before (Meat eaters, please weigh in! I will take note for further awkward situations). I decided to mention it. Lots of awkwardness and apologies ensued, and I insisted I could eat around it (it was quite easy, actually). Whew.

The family had another couch surfer that weekend, and we spent Saturday exploring the city together. It was so nice to spend time with someone my age. I have lately been wishing I had a friend or someone to explore the area with, but I also know that I like walking a lot. And biking a lot. And am not a fan of cabs or running from attraction A to attraction B "because I am in ______ so obviously I have to see ______". This is not to say I don't like touristy things (I like Boudin's, cable cars, and Chinatown as much as the next person). I just want to see them if they are inherently interesting to me, not because that is what I am ":supposed to" or "have to" see when I am in a city.

So when I have found myself wanting a friend, I have reminded myself of this-that even if I had a friend here, it would not be likely that they like to explore places similarly. Well as it turns out, the girl and I were on the same page about all of this, so we spent the day walking around, utilizing the transit system, and going to a few nice places.

First, there was a walking tour I had heard about which, rather than going to five churches and ten monuments and talking about King something and King something the second, walks around a few neighborhoods to talk about street art, gentrification, and political movements in the city.

WWII Bunker, now a climbing wall

Churchin' about

After this, we went to St. Micheal's church, which has a very nice view of the city. After sitting in the pews for a bit, admiring the architecture (and also cooling off), we climbed up the tower.

Wow.

Just wow.

It was so beautiful. You could see everything (including the Sommerdom, which although I had been excited for before, made me even more excited).

After this we went to the Planten un Blumen park and walked around for a while. It was quite beautiful, and a nice break from the city and concrete (which is not something I often want a break from #ihavebeeninthecountrysolong #whatevenisthisfeeling).

Japanese Tea Garden

Then we decided to go to the Hamburger Sommerdom, which for those of you who don't know is basically a HUGE CARNIVAL.

As in a 3 kilometer (1.86 miles) long carnival.

It was amazing.

There were so many things I wanted to consume. Most of them blue and sugary. My friend did a very good job at helping me pace myself so I did not just eat the first thing in sight. Instead we walked around the whole thing, scoping out the best places to eat. After a "dinner" of french fries (Insert my mom scolding me here "Sara"), I got something called a quarkbällen-it was made with quark cheese, but not in a quark-filling kind of way. It was a doughnut, basically, but very light and fluffy and covered in cinnamon sugar. The Dom had about a million doughnut stalls, but we found the one where you can see them making them on site. So tasty!

Quarkbällen

Typical American

After that we were so beat though, so we headed back to our hosts' home to get ready for an early morning at the Fischmarkt... Which I will continue about später!

Sara(h) and the Holy Grail

It was Friday, the 18th of July, 2014 at around 18:30 when I first saw it.

Immediately I knew I wanted it. No. I needed it. The little boy carrying it smirked at me. He knew.

Unfortunately, I had a prior engagement to attend to and little time to hunt down where it had come from. I had already lost the smug child in the crowd, and there would have been serious repercussions had I snatched it from him.

I sped walked through the carnival grounds, looking frantically for it. Past a Hawaiian hut. Past numerous booths advertising their wilted churros. Past biergarten after stage after pommes booth after biergarten.

I had to find it today. I couldn't waste time tomorrow when I returned looking for it.This was my holy grail. This was what I had wanted my whole life. I only now realized it.

I wanted it more than a fat baby emperor penguin. I wanted it more than a pre-pinappled baby. I wanted it more than I wanted naturally electric blue hair.

I searched.

I stopped everywhere.

I peered into booths selling everything from scarfs in July to hollowed out bread on a stick.

I gestured around frantically and spoke in broken German to anyone who paused to listen.

They didn't understand my panic.

They didn't understand how badly I needed this.

It was so hot. I was sweating. My eyes darted around furiously. I had checked every square inch of the promenade where the carnival was set up. I was ready to give up.

Finally. I approached one last booth. There was nothing remarkable about it. In fact, there were over a dozen other booths that looked exactly the same. I was even sure I had checked it already.

But then, I saw it. Glowing. Radiating. Screaming my name.

I had found it.

Saturday afternoon could not come fast enough. I biked as fast as I could, leaving a zig zag trail of dust and gravel behind me. I hastily locked up my bike and wiped the sweat off my forehead.

I made a beeline for the promenade.

I walked.

And walked.

And walked.

Surely, it had been closer yesterday.

Surely, I must have passed it already.

I stopped and backtracked. In my haste I must have overlooked it. It couldn't have disappeared, right? I had waited all my life for this. I couldn't come this close and not get it.

Finally I saw the cursive lettering. The pink candy stripes. I pushed people out of my path as I made my way towards it. Old people. Children. I didn't care. This was the holy grail, after all.

The woman asked if I wanted it now or later.

As though "later" was an option.

Ha.



I refrained from grabbing it from her as she reached over the counter to give it to me. I even walked to the beach, where I was able to sit down and fully enjoy the fruit of my hunt.

That is the edge of my phone case.
NOT a hipster vignette.

It also came with a smurf gummy.

Dora the Explorin: The Sequel

This past Sunday, I biked to Bregenz, Austria.

Still in Deutschland, almost there! Ish.

I really, really, really, like the sound of Bregenz. I think it's the bre sound, because I also really like how Bremen sounds.

The day started off with a forecast of afternoon showers, but I decided I would bring a raincoat and umbrella and go anyway. I seriously think I have used my raincoat more here than I did in Scotland. 

I sort of knew the way there, or at least I knew I should follow the bike trail signs to Lindau and go from there. Somewhere though, I missed a turn or took a wrong turn or was teleported to an industrial part of Kressborn. However, it took me a bit to officially conclude I was lost.

You see, as beautiful as my bike rides have been, the trails all look alike. Fruit orchards, green fields, and houses that I must work hard to wrap my mind around the fact that people actually live there. So when I saw some fruit orchards I didn't know if they were the same ones I saw on my way to Lindau, or new ones. When I saw cows, I didn't know if they were new cows, or ones I had seen before. I didn't recognize the industrial buildings, but maybe I hadn't noticed them before. I had only done the ride once, afterall. Finally, I decided I was too far from the lake for this to be the right path.

Here is the thing. I have recently acquired a smartphone. I don't really use it for more than I would a normal phone. But I think it has already made me a less resourceful person than I would be had I not had it at that moment. Because I was able to just pull it out and check where I was in comparison to the lake, and go on my merry way. Where is the adventure in that?! If I didn't have it I probably would have followed the signs to tourist information and asked for directions, or looked at a map there, or just biked in the general direction of the lake, but still-I will never know!

So, the ride to Bregenz was long, involved some detours, but I got there and it still hadn't started raining.

Here is the other thing. I don't really travel with much of a plan. I kind of just show up and see what happens. I had no idea what was in Bregenz, other than a mountain I visited with my host family a couple of weeks ago.

The day was spent wandering around town, I saw an outdoor opera stage on the water. A new one is built every two years for a month long festival in the summer. I was also really, really, hungry. So I wandered towards the "Old town" to look at the buildings and find something to eat.

Part of Festspiele. This year they are performing The Magic Flute.

I mentioned it was Sunday, right? Thus many things were closed. There were a few ice cream places, bakeries, and a pizza place open. These are all my favorite things. But for whatever reason I wanted none of this at the moment and kept wandering. Finally, my hunger outweighed what my tastebuds wanted, and I found a cafe to have coffee and cake in.

There were so many types of cakes. SO MANY. And we all know how good I am with decision making. So I stared at the cakes for a long time. And I stared at the coffee drinks for a long time (there were Austrian coffee and Italian coffee beverages).

I must have a "A" pinned to my chest (either for American or Ausländer). The woman behind the counter asked if I spoke English. I realize that the assumption was that because I had stood there for so long just looking, I was foreign and didn't know what to do (this situation has maybe arisen more times than I would like to admit). Although this is obviously true, I have just as hard of a time making decisions in America. She was very helpful and told me to sit down and that someone would come take my order shortly.

Linzertorte and Austrian style coffee

I had a linzertorte, and a coffee. The coffee came on a little platter with a glass of water, and a little cup of cream. I put the normal amount of cream I usually use in (about half the little cup), and took a sip.

It was so so bitter. SO BITTER. I added the rest of the cream (please, someone roll me around when I get back? If I can fit in my plane seat), and it was much tastier.

Afterwards, I walked around some more and looked at more buildings.

Then, I said to myself. Why don't I climb to the top of the mountain? How long could it possibly take? Yes, it was already after 5. Yes, I really had to use the bathroom. And yes, I had to bike back. But I mean, why not? So, I started following the signs for the trail to the top. After a while, the signs disappeared. So, I kept walking in a general upwards direction, remembering what happened last time I said "Hmm, where does this go?" and wandered into the woods.

I was walking.

And walking.

I really had to use the bathroom but was pretty far into the woods by now. I considered copying my middle child and peeing outside (he enjoys this activity greatly).

Finally, I found this sign:

Pfänder: 2 Std

I knew I was going to Pfänder. But I had no idea what Std meant. All I could think was Standard Deviation. But that would make no sense and not be proper notation. So I kept walking.

Then I remembered the German word for hours. Stunden. It would be two hours until I reached the top.

I kept going.

I did the math in my head. Two hours up. Two hours down. Two hours to bike back. It was 6pm. Which would put me in at midnight.

I kept going.

I could, afterall, take any number of shortcuts-either taking the trolley down from the mountain or taking the train back. But.... I am really not one for shortcuts.

I kept going.

It started to drizzle.

But....I kept going.

Finally, I stopped to reason with myself. The mountain was not going anywhere. It was raining. I did not want to get home at midnight and miss the game (as it turns out I could have done this and not missed the whole game). My legs would hurt so much. Also. I really, really, needed a bathroom. So, I turned around and marched back down. I passed some more pretty things and found a bathroom. Whew. I then waited around a bit under my umbrella (with some ice cream) for the rain to stop so I could bike back.



I only got a bit lost on the way back! And made it home in time to see the last million hours of the game :)

Explorations of the Area: Ravensburg, Lindau, and Meersburg

[As a quick warning this post may be forever long.]

You know what keeps me up at night? Worrying that one day, I will wake up and take for granted how beautiful the Lake Constance area is.

Okay, maybe I don't stay up worrying about this. But I do wonder if I will get used to it. If at some point I will look around and say, "I mean, it's pretty dec". I hope this doesn't happen, but who knows. Maybe I will look at one too many lakeviews, or castles, or cottages and start shrugging my shoulders instead of staring.

This is to say I have visited some sickeningly beautiful towns recently. The first town I visited was Ravensburg, just a short train ride away. My journey there was an adventure in itself. When I got on the train there was no sign or announcement letting me know I was on the right one. I just had to assume this was the one. At the next stop they announced something about the train going to Stuttgart-a far way from where I was going, and certainly not what I had bought a ticket for! I started panicking and tried to get off.  I decided to just sit down and see what happens. Maybe I could try to explain myself to the ticket collectors. Maybe they would by sympathetic. Or maybe I would wind up in Stuttgart with a large fine to pay. The train went on for a bit, and then an announcement was made regarding all the stops on the way to Stuttgart, including Ravensburg. Whew! But really, they couldn't haven mentioned that sooner?

The day was a bit overcast. I wandered around a lot in the older part of town. I bought a backpack, as my current drawstring bag had a large pickpocket-friendly tear in the side. As much as I like this new backpack, I have since realized that a black leather backpack is not the best for bike rides in the sun, but more on that later.

This past weekend I biked to both the Island of Lindau (there is a bridge, I didn't bike through the bottom of the lake), and Meersburg. When I went to Lindau it was also overcast, but I was just glad it was dry! Again, I did a lot of walking around. I wandered down to the port and looked at the lake. I climbed up to the lion, but did not go to the top of the tower, I think I'll say that for a clearer day.

Look at my lack of crazy eyes! Kind of.

 Then, of course I ended my day with ice cream before biking back. I picked a blue ice cream called Engelblau (which I think translates as Angel Blue). It tasted like bubblegum but I ate it anyway. At this point was my only blip in the trip, in which a man decided that it was appropriate to follow me on his bike to say, among other things that I didn't understand, that my shirt matched my ice cream. I was a bit insulted really, I mean did he really think I hadn't known that and planned it accordingly? (who doesn't match their ice cream to their shirt, after all? #ellewoodsingitup).

Okay, but actually it wasn't cool. After enough dirty looks where I made eye contact then deliberately looked away (Atlas Shurgged-style), he got the picture and biked away. Whew. I like making friends, but I am not that desperate.

In real life the colors matched more
and the ice cream was not
fluorescent, I promise!

On Sunday, I apparently had not had enough of biking, so I biked in the other direction to Meersburg. I had the brilliant plan to leave at midday and be on a path with little shade. Also, let's go back to that black backpack. Yeah, I have not been so sweaty for so long ever. Although I dried off (really, I was gross after the 2 hours), I never really cooled off once I got to Meersburg, as it was still pretty hot out.

Meersburg has by far been my favorite place so far. It was so beautiful I wanted to pinch the cheeks of a fat baby penguin and scream. I left my bike at the ferry stop, along with a million other bikes, and spent the day walking around.

To get out of the sun, I visited the Neues Schloss (New Castle). It was nice, but I think I might be mostly castled out. I mean, I want to look at the outsides of castles, and maybe the insides of a select few, but the insides are mostly just "and here is were King somethingblablablerg and Queen blergblablasomething slept" and some paintings of dead royalty. I think it really might be the outsides that I am just interested in, but we'll see.

This castle was pink.The 5 year old girl in me who had plans to move to England and wait until she was old enough to marry a prince died a little. There was a wedding going on, which was cool. I mean, how many people get to say they got married in a castle? It was very sweet, until they started playing Bruno Mars' I Think I Wanna Marry You at the end. Nothing says romance like "Oh hey, I'm bored. Want to get married? And if it doesn't last that's fine by me." 

Maybe I was being a bit judgemental. I really don't like Bruno Mars. But still. Of all the songs about love, why that one?

I walked around more, and finally I found a spot on top of a hill, where I just sat in the shade and stared at the lake and the old castle and everything for approximately a forever and a half.

The ride back was long, and I was exhausted. I stopped to get ice cream at what turned out to be an alcoholic ice cream place of sorts- there were different wine flavored ice creams, and lots of sundaes with liquors. Although I was really curious, I had to bike back and did not fancy getting a BUI :P

The best part though, was when I got home I saw this:

A note with directions to make pizza, with dough and other ingredients all ready to go in the fridge from my Host Mom :) Twas the best! I was so beat.

More biking adventures to come soon! As long as the rain clears up by the weekend.