Some very bizarre things have occurred in the past few days.
First, there was the "Erntedankfest" which is a very, catholic form of Thanksgiving. In thanks of the harvest, the church has a special mass and then people eat a lot of food. As a boarding school, all the students celebrate this festival in the school and then have a feast. At the service, all the students and teachers dressed up in "Tracht" (think lederhosen & dirndl) and there was singing (in English?) and a band and communion. This was bizarre because 1) I am not catholic and do no know what you are supposed to say to the Priest when he says x, y, or z. 2) Even if I knew what to say, I wouldn't know what to say in German.
Nonetheless, I stood out very obviously.
This is very different from my experiences in Switzerland and Germany which are only half as catholic as the Austrians appear to be...
The meal was delicious (deer and boar were the meet of choice) and I sat near all new people, many of whom did NOT know I was the new English assistant and assumed that I understood their Salzburgerland dialect (pssst, I DON'T)... but I did get offered the chance to participate in the tractor driving class so PERK!
The next day I went on a hike with two other assistants. We headed up the Gaisberg which was a HIKE. I was surprisingly out of breath, but the view was worth it. It had snowed the night before so it was a little chilly but the surround mountains were in full view! Sadly, my phone died so this is all I have to show of it:
Today, I travelled to the end of the bus-line: Mattsee. Mattsee is a lake town (see = lake, you pronounce it "say") in the Salzburger lake region.
The weather was AMAZING today, sunny, clear warm and perfect for a 5k. It was a women's only race and I took second.
This was an odd experience as the prizes were bizarre. The race-swag was pretty awesome in general: chocolate, bread, water, a towel, gum, magnesium tables. Post-race goodies included copious amounts of Red Bull (native to Salzburg) dozens of cakes and baked goods, bananas, apples and FREE MASSAGES! I took advantage of it all.
Then, the award ceremony took place. I received a trophy for being the first in my age-group, a medal, a bouquet, a gift certificate to have breakfast at the castle in Mattsee (mind you second-place in the 20's age group got a hair straightener, which I needed :/ ), and best of all....
a prom dress?
I kid you not.
This is by far the most absurd and strange gift to have received. Not only is it hideous, but it DOES NOT fit and I had to take the bus back from the race, so yeahhhhhhh.
I returned home and because it was so beautiful, I had to take Seesee out for a fall spin.
Seesee (short for Sursee) is my new vintage road bike with shimano everything and mustache handlebars.
It's love. Here is a picture of our adventure today :)
First, there was the "Erntedankfest" which is a very, catholic form of Thanksgiving. In thanks of the harvest, the church has a special mass and then people eat a lot of food. As a boarding school, all the students celebrate this festival in the school and then have a feast. At the service, all the students and teachers dressed up in "Tracht" (think lederhosen & dirndl) and there was singing (in English?) and a band and communion. This was bizarre because 1) I am not catholic and do no know what you are supposed to say to the Priest when he says x, y, or z. 2) Even if I knew what to say, I wouldn't know what to say in German.
Nonetheless, I stood out very obviously.
This is very different from my experiences in Switzerland and Germany which are only half as catholic as the Austrians appear to be...
The meal was delicious (deer and boar were the meet of choice) and I sat near all new people, many of whom did NOT know I was the new English assistant and assumed that I understood their Salzburgerland dialect (pssst, I DON'T)... but I did get offered the chance to participate in the tractor driving class so PERK!
The next day I went on a hike with two other assistants. We headed up the Gaisberg which was a HIKE. I was surprisingly out of breath, but the view was worth it. It had snowed the night before so it was a little chilly but the surround mountains were in full view! Sadly, my phone died so this is all I have to show of it:
Today, I travelled to the end of the bus-line: Mattsee. Mattsee is a lake town (see = lake, you pronounce it "say") in the Salzburger lake region.
The weather was AMAZING today, sunny, clear warm and perfect for a 5k. It was a women's only race and I took second.
(a bit of the Mattsee)
(Running on the path)
Then, the award ceremony took place. I received a trophy for being the first in my age-group, a medal, a bouquet, a gift certificate to have breakfast at the castle in Mattsee (mind you second-place in the 20's age group got a hair straightener, which I needed :/ ), and best of all....
a prom dress?
I kid you not.
This is by far the most absurd and strange gift to have received. Not only is it hideous, but it DOES NOT fit and I had to take the bus back from the race, so yeahhhhhhh.
I returned home and because it was so beautiful, I had to take Seesee out for a fall spin.
Seesee (short for Sursee) is my new vintage road bike with shimano everything and mustache handlebars.
It's love. Here is a picture of our adventure today :)
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