Deutschlandsberg and Orientation!

Sorry for the quick post yesterday; I have been so busy with orienting myself with Austria that I haven't had much time for anything else!  Like I said yesterday, my plane landed early and I met a ton of people in the airport and on the bus to orientation in Deutschlandsberg, a really small, quaint town in the Styria region of Austria.

Upon our arrival we had about an hour to do whatever we wanted, so I jumped into the shower because I was such a greaseball at that point.  We're staying in a youth hostel on a mountain in Deutschlandsberg, and my room has a gorgeous view (seen below).  My roommates at the hostel will be my roommates at the apartment in Vienna, and they are all really nice.  There have been no problems getting along and we all can't wait to share an apartment.

 

We've basically been in meetings the entire time we've been here, learning about how to "squeeze the juice" during our time abroad.  The director of our program specified that our classes will use a "culture as classroom" ideal, which means we will be spending most of our classes going to museums, opera houses, and other cultural places around Vienna.

In the morning we were separated based on our German skills and knowledge.  The beginner German speakers (myself included) had to go to a Survival German meeting.  We learned very very very VERY basic German.  I can now speak maybe 10 words.  Here's the sentence I spoke to the instructor: "Mein name ist Kathleen.  Ich studiere in New York.  Ich komme aus Amerika.  Ich bin zwanzig."  That's about the extent of my German and I'm not very sure that means anything... it should mean something along the lines of: My name is Kathleen. I study in New York.  I come from America.  I am 20.  Obviously I have mastered the language already.

The Rathaus of Deutschlandsberg

Yesterday we got some free time to wander around Deutschlandsberg, and I went with a few friends down the mountain to look at the town.  The town is really adorable, and is apparently famous for its white wine. We put money on our new Austrian phones and walked around for about two hours.  The buildings are all really old and beautiful, and my favorite was the city hall (or Rathaus).

Last night we had an "Austrian Surprise" waiting for us in the lobby/common area of the hostel.  Helmut, the housing coordinator/resident party-starter of IES told us that we were about to see "how crazy Austrians can party."  A group of Austrian folk dancers all wearing lederhosen came out and performed and taught us a few dances.  It was SO much fun and we all had a blast learning the dances.

Just in case you were wondering, the beer in Austria is absolutely incredible! Here is a photo of my first legal beer in Austria!

Deutschlandsberg is beautiful, but I can't wait to get to Vienna.  We haven't even gotten to see it yet!! We're leaving Styria tomorrow at noon and will be in Vienna at around 4:00.  I'll post about Vienna later!! Until then, Auf Wiedersehen!

Here are a couple more photos of Deutschlandsberg.