Back to Reality

Monday was definitely a day of rest. WE got back to our dorms around 11:39am and right when I got back to my room I jumped in the shower. It felt so nice! I unpacked some of my stuff and relaxed a bit. I went and talked to Matthew about his time in Greece. We shared all of our stories from our trips which was a lot of fun. It was weird being away from the rest of the group for so long so it was good to all be back together. I spent the rest of the day relaxing and getting my stuff organized. Luckily Matthew helped me with my computer so I got to Skype with Mom. It had been a while since I got to talk since my computer wouldn’t turn on for the last couple days of our trip. I always love it when we get to Skype! I then went to bed at a fairly early time. It felt so nice to sleep in my own bed!

Tuesday we had classes again and getting up for it was a little rough. We had our study abroad class at 9:00am which was pretty laid back so that helped. We talked about our trips a little bit which was nice. It is fun to hear what everyone did and we talked about different cultural experiences which was interesting. After class I did some much needed grocery shopping and ate lunch. I rested until we had our art class at 3:00pm. I was really happy because that is when I got to see Aimee. She is the one I missed the most and it was nice hearing how her break was. We had a lot to talk about and the fact we had class didn’t really stop us. J It was really frustrating because when we got to art we found out it was another three hour session. Everyone forgot about it and it was not what we wanted to hear. That is such a long time to have class and it doesn’t help that class is incredibly boring. Tuesday night I did some homework and still had some catching up to do on sleep.

Wednesday started off really horribly and it definitely brought me back to reality. We started the morning off by getting our Philosophy midterms back which was absolutely terrible! Let’s just say it completely ruined my day. On top of that we had another art class which we normally don’t have. The day got a little better when I got my German midterm back. I did really well on that test so that made me feel better. Getting all of these tests back make me realize that I am in school. This next month will definitely be spent doing more work. It is a good thing we don’t have any more big trips planned otherwise I would really not get anything done! Wednesday night we went to Stuart and Lisa’s house for dinner which is always really nice. They make so much delicious food! We had chicken and rice with a really good salad. It is so nice to have a real meal! It is crazy how much I miss home cooked food.

Thursday was actually a pretty productive day. I didn’t have any class so I got up and did some shopping around the city. I had to get a few things and Matthew came with me which was fun. It was a beautiful day! I felt like I haven’t been in Salzburg for ages so it was nice to walk around a bit. I also went to Media Markt to get some things for my computer and it was really strange because the lady said they don’t accept credit cards. Now that I think about it I am sure she meant they don’t accept Visa. They have really expensive things so I doubt they don’t accept credit cards. Anyway, I didn’t end up buying anything then because the closest ATM didn’t accept Visa either. It was sort of frustrating. That is another thing that I realized is that not too many places take cards. Every time I go grocery shopping I have to pay with cash. It is kind of strange. Thursday was another really nice day so in the afternoon a big group got together and played football. It was a lot of fun! We stopped just before the sun was setting so I found a bench and watched the sun set behind the mountains. It was absolutely gorgeous! It was very peaceful and I watched it until it went under. Afterwards I jumped in the shower and later that night we got together and hung out in the common area. Later, Dan, Sean, Aimee, Kevin, Kolby and I went to Flip. We go there a lot because they have good music and it is a good place for groups. They actually have room for bigger groups so it is nice. It is always fun hanging out with them. Never any drama, just a lot of fun!

Friday I slept in which was so nice! It was really nice outside again so I went and read my book on a chair in the courtyard. It was really nice despite the fact that the book I have to read is incredibly boring. At 1:30pm I had to register for classes for next semester and for the first time it was really easy! I got into all the classes I needed which was a first. Usually I have to email the profs to let me into their classes and it is really stressful. Not this time! The timing of my classes isn’t the greatest but it is ok. After registration a group of us went out and walked around Salzburg. We went into some stores and just walked down streets we rarely go to. It was good to spend some time in Salzburg. I missed it! The night was pretty relaxed. A group of us just watched Inglorious Bastards and then went to bed. Nothing too exciting but it was nice to have a calm night.

On Saturday Aimee, Jen, Chris P and I got on a bus and headed to the Lake District. We had to figure out what bus to get on and once we did it was a 45 minute ride. We went to a small town called Mattsee. It had about three lakes surrounding it but we only walked around one of them. It was so gorgeous! The weather got better throughout the day and it was really nice seeing the rolling hills with the mountains in the background. We just walked around the lake and took our time. It was a nice change from always being in the city. At one point we came to a little town called Gebertsham and I don’t even know if you could call it a town. It had about 5 houses and a church. It was really cute! As we kept walking we came to another “town”. It was funny because the town had a map of where the houses were and it said who lived in each one. I thought it was funny! Throughout the day the sky opened up which was nice. The sun started going down and it was so pretty! We caught the bus back to Salzburg around 3pm. We were pretty tired from all the walking but it was a really fun day! It was something different that we hadn’t done yet so it was well worth it. When I got back I took a much needed nap which felt so good. When I got up I actually did some homework which was shocking. Doing homework on a weekend is usually really difficult for me! Haha! At about 10:30pm I took a break and a couple of us went to Murphy’s to meet up with Jake, Dan and Sean who had come back from Munich. We didn’t stay out long but it was a good homework break.

Sunday morning I got up and went to church at the Cathedral which I have been wanting to do for a long time! I haven’t been in Salzburg on a Sunday in so long so I didn’t have a chance to. Aimee and I went and it was really nice and relaxing. The masses here are strange sometimes because it seems like people just stand up and sit down when they want. At some points in the mass half the people would be sitting and half would be standing. We didn’t know what to do! Haha! Then at communion everyone just rushes to the front and they line up by the altar. There were no lines or anything. It was very strange but an interesting experience for sure! Then afterwards we went to Café Tomaselli for hot chocolate. It was a very nice way to start off the day! We got back to our dorms and started on homework which was not too fun but I actually got a good amount of it done. We had a lot of stuff to do so I was glad that I didn’t get too distracted. Tonight we are going to a restaurant for dinner which will be nice because we never go out to eat. I don’t even really know of any restaurants around town. It should be nice.

Sorry these posts are so delayed but it has been kind of a crazy week! J