4/8/12-4/9/12 Easter and Rome

4/8/12
Happy Easter!!  Today did not feel like Easter because I was not with my family.  I miss them so much and wish I was there to do my usual Easter thing!  Thankfully I have wonderful friends here who made it feel homey as we celebrated Easter today.  We went and got Roggie’s Pizza for lunch.  We had a picnic in the Bishop’s house (it used to be his house now Santa Chiara uses it as extra rooms for students).  It was so much fun being with them and becoming a family!  Then we watched Remember the Titans!  Such a great movie!  Alex’s dad lives in Poland and he brought her Polish candy!  Of course she shared with us and it was yummy!  To top off the Easter events, we went to go do laundry!  At least for dinner, the Santa Chiara staff made us a wonderful Easter dinner that consisted of mashed potatoes, ham, salad, and cake!  They decorated the room with Easter eggs and flowers!  It was wonderful!  All the students dressed for the occasion.  We stayed after dinner and played a game with the Kansas kids and other A&M students!  We are really becoming close to the other students from all over the United States that are staying here also.
4/9/12
Today I went back to Rome with my friend Ashleigh.  We went to the Trevi Fountain (and this time I actually made a wish when I threw the coin in).  We went to this market place, and ate some awesome pizza and gelato!  It was a rushed day because it takes forever to get there and back (about a 5 hour journey together).  Oh and of course you cannot forget the shopping that we did!  It was really crowded in Rome because there were still people left over from Easter the day before.  I cannot believe that I navigated Rome with a map pretty well!  I am very proud of myself!  Today was a fun day!
Today I also found out that Palo died today.  He is the one who had the vision of Santa Chiara.  He wanted a place where students could come and study in Italy and learn about the culture.  He taught all the classes at first, changed the beds, and so much more.  He had a vision and made it happen.  I have not met him because he was hospitalized in Rome since the beginning of February.  He died of a rare form of cancer.  Apparently he was a really great guy who made everybody’s day better.  It is a devastating loss for Santa Chiara.  Please pray that this program keeps going.
Ciao

4/7/12 Spring Break Wrap Up

4/7/12

I am currently on a train back to Italy.  This means my great adventure through Austria, Germany, and Switzerland is over!  Very sad day!  Within the past month, I have used many modes of transportation.  I have used an airplane, tram, train, bus, walking, running, subway, trolley, car, and there might be more I just can’t think of them at the moment.  That is a lot of modes of transportation!  When I get back to Texas, I will never want to use my car again.  I will want to walk everywhere!  Train is now my new favorite mode of transportation.  Do we have passenger trains in Texas?  Not many.  And the view!  Who wants to see ugly buildings and land when you can see castles and gorgeous mountains?  Sorry I am complaining, but I do not want to leave this beautiful sight.  One of my friends said, “To bad I wasted money on a round trip plane ticket because I am not going back to the states!”

Although I do not want to come home, this experience has changed me.  I will not come home the same person I was when I left.  This spring break trip was kind of a self-discovery trip for me.  I feel like I know more about myself more so than I did before I left.  I know more about my likes and don’t likes, what kind of person I am, and who I want to be.  I know that I can survive the world on my own and how to be independent.  I have traveled most of Europe without the help of anyone except the three other girls around me and some people that speak English in the town we are in.  We made a plan and executed it.  We did get lost, but that is a part of life.  I now have a new confidence within me that needed to come out.  I am not afraid anymore of life!  I want to go out and live it!

I have learned a great deal from this experience that applies to my life.  I have learned these not only from my experience, but the way the group functioned and how other people acted.  I will list them, but they are not in a specific order.
1. Do not be afraid to miss your train, there is always another one
2. You have to be flexible in life
3. Everything does not go your way
4. Don’t be afraid to experience new things
5. Be patient
6. I love my family and friends
7. Don’t be rushed all the time.  Have time to sit, breathe, and enjoy the view
8. Have the confidence to take the lead
9. Live life to the fullest
10. Be prepared for anything
11. Even though it is cloudy, the view is amazing

This is not all of them, but the major ones!  Well now it is time for me to relax from this trip.  I still have 5 more hours on the train and all of them will consist of me sleeping!  For one last time before arriving to Italy…

Auf weidersehn!

4/6/12 Luzern Switzerland

4/6/12
Today was a nice, relaxing day.  Luzern Switzerland is known for their lakes and mountains.  We decided that we wanted to take a boat ride around the lake to see the gorgeous mountains and lakes.  Even though it was foggy, the view was still magnificent.  I feel like I say this a lot, but my pictures do not do it justice.  The water was aqua blue and so clear that you could see the bottom of the lake.  The Swiss Alps were stunning.  I enjoyed this boat ride very much and probably took way too many pictures.

After the boat tour, we did a Rick Steve’s tour of the old town.  As usual, we saw churches and old buildings.  There was a bridge that dated back to the 1600s that we walked across.  It was made to provide protection for the city behind it.  They had paintings on the bridge that told a story and each painting had a skeleton in it to remind people that you cannot escape death.  I think that is not a great way to live life!  It is kind of depressing.  The buildings in old town are so pretty.  They have very decorative paintings on the outside of the building.  There is the wine square where people, back in the day, got their wine from.  One of the buildings in that square has a painting of the story of the wine god.  Another building, where we ate, had an elaborate painting that has a Marti gras* theme.  I ordered a traditional Swiss dish and it was good, but interesting.  It was grilled cheese (not the sandwich but literally grilled cheese) and potatoes.  Like I said…interesting.  I really liked the old town!  It was nice and relaxing.  Most of the shops were closed because of Good Friday.  It is ok because I have already spent way too much money!

As we finished touring old town, Rick told us about a lion carved out of a mountain.  We wandered over to the lion and it was so awesome!  It was a 35 foot lion that was carved out of a mountain.   It was so realistic; if it wasn’t gray from the rock I would think it was a real lion!  It was a very neat sight to see.
Next, we walked down the riverfront.  This is lined with cafes, hotels, park benches, and squares to play games and play music.  We sat here for a while taking in the view of the mountains and the lakes.  It was great just to sit and relax.  We saw people playing a Swiss game where you throw a small ball and you try to move it with bigger balls.  We saw people playing guitars and enjoying the day.

Since all the shops were closed, we went back to the hotel to get ready for dinner.  I was loading some pictures to facebook and fell asleep!  It was a really nice nap and I think I slept for a while.  This trip has made me super tired from all the running around we have been doing!  Today we got to sit and breathe in the lake and mountain air.  Today was a great day as have been all my other days!

Auf weidersehn!

4/5/12 Cinderella Castle

4/5/12
Today we woke up at 5 A.M. and that was after only getting four hours of sleep because of the movie the night before!!  We went to the Neuschwanstein Castle.  This is the Disney castle that you see whenever you watch a Disney movie.  Cinderella’s castle is also based off of this castle.  This was built by Ludwig in the 1800s.  He died before it was finished.  It is surrounded by mountains and waterfalls.  It is so gorgeous!  It was really foggy and muggy today so we did not get a very good view of the surrounding area of the castle.  I bet it is GORGEOUS when the sun is out!  We toured the inside of the castle.  It is very fancy!  If you had to go to one castle, you should go to this one.  The paintings, art, and decorations are beautiful.  Although Ludwig was crazy, he was very technologically advanced for his time.  We spent time there, but not a lot because we had a train to catch to head to Switzerland.

I am headed to Lucerne, Switzerland as I am writing this.  Claire, Ashleigh, and I decided not to go to Paris because it was Easter weekend and we were not guaranteed to get a train back to Italy in time to teach.  Instead, we are going to Switzerland.  We are spending all day Friday in Switzerland and going back to Italy on Saturday.  We will see the amazing sights in Italy for Easter, and then take day trips the rest of the time.  I am actually really excited that we are taking it easy tomorrow because we have been going nonstop every day since last Friday.  We literally have used every minute of our day to sight see and shop.  Only once did we actually sit and do nothing for an hour.  I am exhausted!

Auf weidersehn!

4/4/12 Dachau (some material maybe too graphic for children)

4/4/12 (parental guidance advised)
This morning I went to Dachau, which was the first concentration camp built and was a model for the rest of the concentration camps (1933-1945).  When I stepped off the train and entered the town Dachau, I saw a quaint little town.  I could not believe a concentration camp was placed right in this town!  When the bus dropped us off at the concentration camp, we could not see it.  All we saw were trees and a beautiful landscape.  As we moved down the path to the concentration camp, I started to get butterflies in my stomach.  Not the kind that you get when you’re excited, but the kind you get when you’re nervous and/ or sad.

We saw where the prisoners got off the train and the platform they walked on.  Then we walked through the gate that said Arbeit Macht Frei which means hard work sets you free.  Every prisoner walked through this gate.  As I walked through the gate, I could not imagine how the prisoners felt, or if they even knew they would enter a place that is Hell on Earth.  As we walked through the bunkers, I could not breathe.  Cramming 50 people into a 15 person bunk is not ok.  The bathrooms and toilets were gross!  Nazis even hung people in the bathrooms and said they committed suicide.  It was heart breaking.

Then we crossed a bridge, which to me was the bridge of death.  It was the bridge that led to the crematorium, gas chambers, and the execution range.  They wanted to keep this part separate from the camp so the prisoners would think that they were here to work and nothing bad would happen to them.  First, I walked into the changing room.  This is where people would leave their clothes, thinking that they were going to take a shower after their long journey on the train.  Second, I walked into the gas chamber.  This is where they were murdered.  Then I walked into the last room, the crematorium.  This is where they cremated the dead bodies (I would not doubt that they also cremated live bodies).  When I walked into these places… there are no words to describe my emotions.  It is so hard for me to even write about this without wanting to throw up.  When the Nazis were fixing to lose the war, they started mass murdering people.  The crematorium could not keep up, so they had to throw the bodies in a pile in the back.  Next to this grave was the execution range.  They would shoot people right there on the spot, looking into the prisoners’ helpless eyes.  They would also shoot guards or Germans who defied their rule.  Makes me sick!

So I am going to rant about how sick this makes me for this paragraph, feel free to move on to the next paragraph.  One man manipulated people to kill millions of other people with different views on life.  How could people just stand by and let that happen?!  It just takes one bully, one manipulator, one person to start such a tragedy!  This could happen again!  It is our job to speak out against what is wrong, and not just hide in the shadows and let this happen!  What were the people, living in this quaint town, doing when millions of people were getting killed in their own back yard?!  Yes, I understand that they would have died too if they were caught helping but it should not have even gotten to where a concentration camp was being built.  Or even one man blaming the Jews for his own crappy life!!  It makes me sooo mad!!  Next time you see someone being picked on or see discrimination happening, stop it!  Don’t stand by!  Do something about it!  So that was my rant! How bought we move on to the rest of my day!

On a positive note, there was a convent built behind the concentration camp after the war.  Nuns come and pray every day on the grounds for the people who were killed, their family, and that it never happens again.
After the concentration camp, we went back to Munich.  We went shopping and wandered around.  Then we went to eat at a really good restaurant!  We sat outside the café and acted like we were European!  It was great fun!

After we ate, we went to rub the lion’s nose for good luck!  It was not an actual lion; it was four statues lined up.  The locals rub their nose for good luck and riches.  While we were rubbing the nose, a man from Munich told us about why they do it and that he has been lucky but not very rich.  While we were taking pictures of rubbing the lion’s nose, people would walk up and rub the nose when we were trying to take a picture.  It seems like it would be annoying, but it wasn’t.  It was so cool to see the people determined to rub the lion’s nose for good luck!  It means that we are in the “in” crowd because we knew about it and a lot of tourists do not!

After we got some luck, we went to see… (Drumroll please!)  The Hunger Games!!!  No, it was not in German.  It was at the English movie theater.  I did not think I would see this movie in theaters!  I was so happy to be able to see it!  In Germany, they have assigned seating in the movie theater!  That is crazy!  Overall, today was a wonderful day of history and excitement!

Auf weidersehn!

4/3/12 Munich Germany

4/3/12
The sun is peaking through the clouds.  I can hear the rush of the river.  The breeze is gently hitting my face.  There are people playing music on the bridge nearby.  We are sitting here studying the word of God and looking at the glory he created.  The mountain tops, the river, this amazing day.  This was the start to my awesome day.  We went to the river to relax and journal before we left for Munich Germany.

When we arrived in Munich, we met up with Caroline’s parents.  It was so nice to see a parental figure!  Immediately, they gave us hugs!  We went to a church with a clock tower after we put our bags away.  The church is in City Center, which is a bustling place with shops and restaurants.  There was a soccer game and a ton of people were gathered doing chants (watch the video on facebook).  When we were taking pictures of the crowd, a guy snatched the camera out of Mrs. Pownell’s hand!  Then a bunch of people came over and got in a picture with us, and the dude took our picture!  Good thing he did not run off with the camera!  When we were taking the picture, a guy came up and almost gave Claire a big smooch on the lips!  I would say these guys were drinking way too much on a Tuesday night!

At 5, the clock tower on the church started to chime.  It has 35 chimes.  It was so cool!  It was like a musical jewelry box.  The figures toward the top were moving to the chimes (video on facebook).  Then we did a Rick Steve’s guided tour of Munich.  We went to see churches, cool buildings, and the Houfbrou House* where people drink a lot of famous beer and dance on tables.  Then we found a great place to eat.  Apparently we Americans are super impatient because when we asked the waiter for something, he would say “time, time!”  Caroline’s parents were so sweet to pay for our dinner!

When I got to the hostel, I found out tornados went through Arlington!  I heard a lot of buildings were damaged or destroyed.  My dad’s office was hit, but thankfully he went home for lunch!  I hope everyone is ok and that there was not severe damage to your home!  It is hard being away from home when bad things happen because it is hard to communicate what happens and you are not around to help make things better.  All I can do is pray that everything will be ok!

Auf weidersehn!

4/2/12 Sound of Music

4/2/12
Sorry this blog is going to be kind of long, but it is super interesting so read it!!!  Today I did the Sound of Music tour!  It was a BLAST!!  First off I will talk about the actual story of the Von Trapp family.  Maria lost her parents when she was a child.  She went off to live with distant relatives.  She grew up as an atheist.  She loved music and she heard a religious choir and decided that she wanted to become a nun.  Mr. Von Trapp lost his wife and was left with seven children.  One of the children became really sick, so they wanted a nanny for her, so Mr. Von Trapp went to the Abby (convent) to get a nanny.  Maria went to take care of the child.  When it was time for her to go back to the convent, the children did not want her to go.  The captain said the only way she could say was if he married her.  The children ran to Maria and asked if she liked the captain.  She said well yes we get along.  The captain walked up to Maria and said I am happy you said yes to marry me.  Maria was like I did?  Then they got married!  They did escape from the Germans, except they did not climb mountains.  When we went on the tour the mountain that they climbed in the movie, that we saw, leads to Germany.  They actually took a train to Italy then flew to America.  They had three more children, and now the grandchildren live in Vermont where they have a hotel and you can meet them!

We saw pretty much all the places that were used within the film.  Our first stop was the back yard of the Von Trapp home.  The lake, the grass, the balcony, and the gazebo were used for scenes within the movie.  The gazebo is not at this house anymore because people would jump the fence and disturb the people in what is now a hotel.  They moved the gazebo to a park by the confidence path.  The confidence path is where Maria danced and sang the confidence song on her way to meet the Von Trapp family.  My friends and I also danced on the confidence path with a lot of confidence with a tad bit of dizziness.  Also by the confidence path is where they filmed the front side of the house and the backside.  This house is in a different location and not by a lake.  When they do scenes with the lake and the back of the house, they take place in different locations.  This was difficult for the actors.  For example, when Maria and the children fall out of the boat and the captain is lecturing her, the lake is in the background of where the captain is standing, and the other house by confidence lane is where Maria is standing.  They had to shoot the scene in two different locations.  I hope that makes sense.  The house by confidence lane is also scene when Maria walks up to the gate and door for the first time, and when they push the car around the gate.  The inside of the house and convent were filmed in Fox Studies.

The convent used in the film is the actual convent that the actual Maria lived.  The actual Maria is actually in the movie too.  We drove by, but I do not know if I got good pictures because the bus was going kind of fast.  This was a sing a long bus.  We sang all the songs together while we took an hour drive to the church that they used to film the marriage scene.  On the way there we stopped at an overlook to see where they filmed the opening scenic view and the mountain they used to sing the song Climb Every Mountain.  The view was amazing!  By far the best part of any trip!  I felt like I was on top of the world!  I have not seen anything like it before.  The movie and my pictures do not give it justice!  It was amazing!  When we got to the church, there were also souvenir shops and the best apple strudel ever!   The town was gorgeous with a lake and mountains!  What a great day!

Now boys, I have a great way for you to win over a girl’s heart!  Back in the day, when a guy fell in love with a girl, guys would climb to the very top of a very dangerous mountain and pick Edelweiss (a white flower) and give it to the woman of their dreams.  How sweet is that?!  Edelweiss is the Austrian flower.  Also it is my favorite song from the movie!

After the tour was over, we went to the garden where they filmed part of the Doe Ray Me song.  The garden was so cool!  I danced through the vine covered walk way, ran around the fountain, jumped on the steps, and patted the dwarfs head just as they did during the song!  It was so awesome!  I was Julie Andrews for the day (only I am not as cool as her!).  Overall it was one of my top days!  Sound of Music will forever be my favorite movie of all time!

Auf weidersehn!