March 10
Epic
evening adventures: me and Allyson. Goal: to go up in the Eiffel Tower and the
Arc de Triomph! Decided to take the metro instead of walking from the Notre
Dame- proud of us that we figured it out all by ourselves! (Kendall had been
doing the majority of the navigating during the week…) Got to the tower,
couldn’t really figure out where the lines were, so we decided to climb up the
stairs for 3.5 euros!! What an undertaking! It really ended up not being too
bad! I was pretty happy with my stamina! :P Got some neat pics and of course,
most importantly, bragging rights!! Then, directly after that, we took the
metro to the Arc! Climbed up to the top of that, took some more pics, success!
All in all we climbed a total of a little under 4000 stairs, including both the
going up and the coming back down!! But it was awesome to see the city lit up
at night. J
Went back to the hostel with a feeling of accomplishment, indulged in some
delicious chicken quesadillas, and then enjoyed the last night hanging out and
laughing a lot!! J
Great end to our independent Spring Break!!
March 11
Getting
home from Paris: Me, Victoria, Allyson, Kendall, Molly Anne. We were late in
getting ready that morning (had to wake up super early…) everything was a
little tense, we were struggling with our giant suitcases. The metro line that
we were on broke, they made everyone get off, time was ticking, thank the Lord
that the stop they made us get off at was the only stop that had a connection
to our final destination. Powerwalked to the airport bus, got there literally a
minute before it left, our tickets wouldn’t validate by the machine, thankfully
no one checked, then we thought we missed our terminal stop, it looked the tram
was heading back to the highway! We got off at the next terminal not knowing if
it was the right one, but again, thankfully we ended up being right where we
needed to be, checked in, a sign said it would take us 45 min to clear
security, but it didn’t, my bag was selected for a random security check, the
worker took his sweet time, but we made it to the terminal before our flight
started boarding!!! I literally don’t know how- only by the grace of God!! That
day ended up being from like 5:30 in the morning to 7 pm at night, and we had to
get up and leave for Vienna the next morning! Craziness!
March 13
Opera
adventure in Vienna! So for our Music History class, each of us was required to
go see an Opera while in Vienna, and out of the two choices, I really wanted to
go to the Marriage of Figaro, because I actually know and like the Overture,
having played it in orchestra on multiple occasions. J The only slightly problematic
thing was that I was going to have to go straight from an Art History field
trip at a museum, to the Opera House, by myself, with not a whole lot of extra
time to spare, and let’s just say I hadn’t been paying particularly close
attention to the layout of the city… So the time comes for me to make my way to
the Opera House, and we had finished late so I was already even more pressed
for time, but Becca had given me directions (albeit vague) to “go right, and
you’ll eventually see it.” So, naturally, I take off powerwalking in the
opposition direction (don’t ask, I don’t know why this ALWAYS happens to me!)
and go for a couple blocks when I realize my colossal blunder, “Crap! I have
been walking Left instead of Right!” I lose no time turning around, and made
good time retracing my steps, but I’m still not seeing any of sign of the Opera
House being on my right. So I ask two girls for help, turns out they aren’t
from Vienna either, but they showed me where I was on the map and told me which
metro stop to get off at. Yay! I get to navigate the metro by myself! But
seriously, I managed to do that without difficulty, extremely proud of myself
for that, but when I emerged from the depths of the earth, I came out in front
of St. Stephen’s Cathedral, with no Opera House in sight. (Keep in mind that
Kendall and Allyson had said they would meet me at 5:30… and by this time I
think I was fifteen in minutes late and still not even within sight of the OH.)
Insert a bit of irony: I had been sorta longing for some alone time after 3
weeks (this was at the end of spring break) of constantly being around people…
so thanks Lord, for making sure I ended up all alone in Vienna wandering about
by myself. ;P Asked some more people in a store how to get to the OH, and
thankfully they pointed me in the correct direction! Ten minutes later I
arrived (over 45 min late to the appointed meeting destination) so I didn’t see
any of sign of the girls. I walked to the door where I might purchase standing
room tickets, but there was no line- so I automatically assumed that they were
sold out. Bummer! I was really looking forward to going to the Opera with those
friends! I walked back toward the corner, seconds away from admitting defeat
and going back to the hostel, but something made me turn around and go in and
ask if there were any more tickets left. Besides, the girls probably had still
decided to go to the Opera even when I didn’t show up. So I go inside, get
instructions from a very helpful lady who spoke English, went to the counter,
got a ticket (in the center standing area too! How did that not get sold out?!)
went into the foyer, and right in the center of my vision was a welcome sight:
Kendall, Allyson, and Rusty looking fine and taking pictures on the huge
steps!! To say I was relieved would be an understatement. I just walked over
and gave Kendall a big hug, startling them all! Rusty exclaimed, “What the
heck?!” and I replied, “Yeah I know, I got lost!” He said, “I knew it!” So I
quickly went and reserved a spot, came back, they wanted to see where I was,
and it turned out that there was enough room to squeeze in by them!! Wow. What
an evening! I was so thankful that somehow everything worked out! J I really enjoyed the
Opera, and it was even better as I was able to be by friends rather than all by
myself! Thanks Lord!! ;)
March 14-17
Budapest
weekend!! Like always, meeting up with Natalie was quite the adventure. For those who don’t know Natalie Holmes is a
college friend who graduated from OBU a couple years ago, and now she is living
and teaching in Budapest, Hungary! First of all, the train that I got on from
Vienna to Budapest was delayed for over two hours because of crazy blizzard
weather! When it finally arrived at the station, I walked around and looked for
Natalie but didn’t see her anywhere. The whole time I was praying that somehow
everything would work out, because I had no way to contact her- my phone
doesn’t work outside of Austria, and besides I didn’t have a number for her or
anything. I spotted Greg, Becca, and Colette- thankful for that because I had
been with them on the train but then split to try and find Natalie! It would have
been super sketchy to remain at the station by myself, at night, in a
completely unfamiliar place and language!! So I decided to go with them to
their hostel and try and get on the Internet to communicate with Natalie there!
Becca sweetly paid for my metro ticket since I didn’t have any currency to
exchange at the moment. We made it to the hostel without difficulty (the whole
time I actually felt pretty calm, wasn’t too worried, I think I was trusting
that the Lord would work things out somehow) Got on the Internet, saw a message
from Natalie with a number to call, the hostel let me use their phone! She
answered on the first ring, and I was able to tell her where I was so she could
come and get me! Sure enough, bout fifteen minutes later we were reunited! So
great! Thanks Lord for taking care of me! It was still a long process to get to
the house where she lives, it was a little ways out of the city, and we had a
typical experience (for me) of getting on a wrong bus, not really being able to
communicate, walking around at night etc. But, on the positive side, we did
have ample time to talk and catch up! It was wonderful to finally arrive
though! She is living with some missionaries and they have a beautiful home!!
It’s a lovely, big house, and apparently their ministry includes hosting other
missionaries weekly! So cool! So Natalie was super sweet, she made me a
delicious combination of potatoes, chicken, mozzarella cheese and salsa, plus
some yummy bread with butter and honey, warm and sweet orange tea, and cookie
dough for dessert! I felt at home sitting by a counter in the big kitchen with
a familiar friend! My spirit felt so refreshed, and then I was able to take a
nice long hot shower, and took my time getting ready for bed! Slept so soundly
in my first American style sheeted bed in Europe!! I can’t even fully convey
how great this weekend was about to be!
The next
morning, woke up to the SUN streaming in the window at 7am and lazily stayed in
bed snoozing off and on for the next couple of hours! It was heavenly! When I
finally got up, had a delicious breakfast of a type of scrambled egg casserole-
man I miss eggs!! Toast with honey and coffee. J
Lounged at the dining room table for a while and enjoyed chatting with my sweet
southern belle hostess and her friend. We talked about nail polish and
pedicures: so funny how homey and feminine that is. My hostess is super sweet,
it makes perfect sense that the house is beautifully decorated: she is tiny and
super hospitable, basically reminds me of an OBU belle. She is originally from
Tennessee I think! Got to go up to their attic, where I journaled and had some
devotions for the first time in awhile after my big SB travels! It was a
glorious sunny day. The blue sky was dotted with fluffy white clouds, the sun
was glinting off the snow-covered rooftops, green mountains graced the distant
horizon. Wow. It was peaceful stillness all around with the occasional whispers
of gusty wind. My soul felt so content! After relishing the quite aloneness for
a bit, me and Natalie went in to see the city! First, we had lunch- yummy
chicken paprika with dumblings- so DELICIOUS! And, as always, the conversation
was great J
It was so beautiful outside, we walked around and saw lots of beautiful
buildings! Went to a fun coffee shop, got the biggest latte I think I’ve had in
Europe! Haha. Got to finish up at the castle district when the sun was setting!
The sky turned an incredibly rich blue velvet! Made for some neat pics! On our
way back home, stopped at this mall and I found the cutest store ever!! I was
taken with the chic jewelry and had my first major splurge moment of the
semester! ;) Cute earrings are my downfall ;P Delightful little things J I loved walking around
the city in the nice weather, but I was also looking forward to going back to
my weekend home away from home(s) ;P The restfulness of that place was pretty
stinkin’ hard to compete with! Natalie and I had made big plans for Girl’s
Night! Back at home we changed into comphy clothes, got some snacks, nail stuff
and hair stuff, and my laundry haha. Went downstairs to the basement apartment,
(which side note: I’d be perfectly content living there as nice as it was!!)
and commenced a great night~ We ate popcorn with marshmallow chunks, chocolate
ice cream with leftover cookie dough chunks, watched some Pirates of the
Caribbean, did our nails, looked for a train ticket back to Salzburg, then
moved upstairs so Natalie could trim my hair! ;P Watched “Yours, Mine &
Ours” and to top everything off, even got to call my family on an international
phone! Talked to Mom who was with Grandma and my Aunt and Uncle in Wisconsin
(probably the only time I’d talk to them while I’m over here) and even got to
call Karl!! Boy was he confused when I was like, “Hey Karl! It’s Emily!” J #BLESSED Natalie did
an excellent job on my hair, it turned out even on all sides and got rid of a
bunch of split ends! ;P Such a great night! Finally went to bed around 2am, and
woke up the next morning to go to my first English church!!! So pumped!!! [Oh
breakfast: ate the best yogurt I’ve ever tasted!] Natalie introduced me to some
folks, then the worship music was all familiar to me and I LOVED harmonizing
again J
Marvelous Light, Before the Throne of God Above, etc- some of my favorites! The
message was super good too! Need to remember to make sure my priorities are in
order: do I value people’s souls more than my own self-preservation? Then after
church it was time to head to the train station to go back to Salzburg. Again,
the Lord graciously provided, turns out my ticket was cheaper buying it in
Budapest than if I would have gotten a round trip! Found Becca, Greg, and
Colette on the train, and enjoyed a nice 6 ish hour trip back? So blessed. The
Lord made sure I got there safely, got to stay in a real home, and Natalie paid
for everything! Wow! Definitely going to pass on the blessing when I get the
chance! Loved Christian fellowship, special delight of getting some cute new
stuff, and of course Girl’s Night, talking to my family on the phone, sunny
weather etc. Thanks, Lord!
March 18
Bus
adventure. First day back, going home from school, waiting for my bus in the
drizzling rain. See a number seven- thank goodness! Curious chain of events:
Number 1- can’t figure out how to open the bus doors… that’s weird… a lady finally
lets me in after seeing that I am clearly struggling, awk. Number 2- go to sit
in the back, there is this new raised portion! Hm, that’s interesting! Then
notice the TVs embedded in the ceiling, I guess our bus route must have gotten
new buses! Cool! Number 3- staring out the window, all of a sudden realize that
this area is looking really unfamiliar… then realize that I’m going somewhere
that I’ve never been before! So after a moment of dramatic internal conflict, I
get off at the next bus stop. Look at the bus driving away, sure enough, the
number on the top says 27. Not 7. Definitely just got on the wrong bus!!! So
it’s raining, I have no raincoat or umbrella, I don’t know where I am, call
Franzisca, she doesn’t answer, call Anna, she doesn’t answer either, call
Gabriel, he answers! Haha classic. I have to explain that I’m lost, can he help
me figure out how to get back?! He very patiently helps me figure out a plan of
action, I walk back in the direction I came, giving him updates on the bus stops
that I pass. Finally get back to familiar territory, and eventually get home.
Never gonna hear the end of it, Hanz, Franzisca and Victoria all teased me to
no end at dinner! The famous remark was that my spring break must have been a
little too long!!! Sigh. Always happens to me!!
March 21
Got to see
a modern dance performance! So neat! It was really cool and at the same time
pretty weird. The dancers are all college age students from all over the world
studying at this famous school in Salzburg! Melody, one of the girls from
school had a high school friend who is currently a student there! So fun!
Afterwards, we went to a restaurant, in an attempt to not be culturally
impolite, I ordered my first beer- and… it was disgusting. I didn’t even drink
half of it. I’m never gonna develop a taste for that stuff! But I guess the
most exciting part of the night was sitting across the table from the cutest
dancer I had seen! (I guess I should admit that I pretty watched him for the
entirety of the dance performance…) so it giddying to be within a couple feet
of him- haha I’m so dumb! I think I would prefer to just admire from afar,
because I totally couldn’t think of anything to say and hence was quiet and shy
the whole time. Hehe I’m such a girl!
March 22
Running
adventure. Had an impulsive desire to run. Told Franzisca and she said I should
try and run to the German border! It’s not far she said. It will only be about
twenty minutes away she said. Uh huh. Nope not really. It took me 45 minutes of
running and walking to get there. And I was ready to give up on multiple
occasions, but then I just really wanted to be able to say that I had run to
Germany. I confess bragging rights was really the sole motivation that kept me
going! ;P But I eventually made it! Boy did I feel accomplished! Pretty proud
that my ankle help up for that long too! (It definitely got kinda sore on the
way back!) But I calculated that I think I ran/walked about 7 miles!! Not too
shabby if I do say so myself! When I got back, met Victoria and she wanted to
run there too! (She had tried earlier but wasn’t sure where it was so she
didn’t quite make it.) So I said I’d bike while she ran to show her the way! So
I certainly got my exercise that day! Then we took an alternative way coming
back home, and wouldn’t ya know it I took a wrong turn and we had to wander a
bit before finally finding our way. But it was a glorious day!!! And well spent
in my opinion. J
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