Snitschel and Gluwein

Oh man did we have a blast in Germany and Austria! Although I think we had a better time in Austria, because I spent most of the morning in Munich, by myself, with no map, no understanding of the lang., NOTHING! But I had a nice time. Thankfully Alexis (she got the brains in the family) and I had planned to meet in baggage claim Friday night and then head for the hotel. Well she also suggested that if we couldn't find one another before 11:15, we should individually head for the hotel and meet up there. Well that is EXACTLY what I did. I had arrived, early, which I didn't think happened in Europe from my previous flight experience... and I checked for Alexis's flight to see where she got in. Of course it was in another terminal so I strayed from the aforementioned plan and went in search of her. But to no avail!
Then when 11:15 came around I said ok, Plan B. But i had no idea how confusing the Munich subway station is, plus at 11:15 there was no one there to help you figure it out. I think I may write to the mayor or something because one would think that at an international airport there would be some staff to help us lonely stragglers onto the subway (metro). But anyway... to continue...


Much to my relief I found a Spanish couple that was just as perplexed as I was and we figured it out together that we needed to get a zone 4 ticket and that would get us into the Hauptbahnhof (hop N off... as I like to say...) aka the main train station. Of course one more thing had to go astray in that the ticket kiosks would not accept a 20Euro note so I had to search for a place that could give me change. Well what did I find, but the Information center!! Why hadn't I seen it before?


I finally make it onto the train, its now 12:15 and HOUR after I left the Flugeheim (airport) and realize that I get a nice break for 45 minutes before I will reach the Hauptbahnof. I find a comfy seat, which is really roomy... you can fit two people on the bench, although at 12:15 at night I figured not the best idea to share a seat with someone.


Once I sat down and took a breath in the midst of the thinking where could Alexis be I met a man from Wales. He was making polite conversation but I got a little skeeved out when he said he lives in Munich and knew the train system well but he didn't know if this line went to Hop N Off. It was pretty amusing but I cracked open my book to dissuade him from further conversation. Not to mention the crazy German boys behind me. Now as many you have lived in cities and rely on public transport, you know what its like to travel with drunken boys. But the Germans put the DRunk in drunken!

They were obnoxious as heck. They were jumping around or on top of one another, screaming and so forth. I was contemplating changing my seat but this was like 15 min into the ride and I really didnt want to draw attention to myself. I was quite relieved when they disembarked the train, I could finally read in peace.



When I eventually reached Hop N Off I realized that I didn't know how to get to the hotel. So I followed the signs for a taxi and when I reached the surface, I found a group of Germans that began to ask me questions. I said that I didn't speak German nor knew where I was. Then oddly the guy says to me, Well I am from this neighborhood where are you trying to go? I gave him the name of the street and he said oh it sounds familiar but I am not sure where it is. As SOOn as he left I looked at the street sign directly in front of me, and I was on the street that I needed to be on!



I get to the hotel and there is a message for me saying, "No plane, come tomorrow" or something in German. Alexis had missed her flight and would arrive Sat. around noontime. SO I made the best of it, went and got some sleep. I got a nice wakeup call from my big sis, who said that we would meet at the train station around noon but that I should go check out Munchen over the course of the morning. SHe also recommended the outdoor market. I had a bite to eat and was off. The Glockenspeil was super cool, but I didn't get to see it chime, unfortunately. There were tons of people there. Then I headed for the market, where I found tons of fresh fruit and veggies. Not to mention some great looking cheeses and spreads. I wanted to get some cheese but didnt know what to ask for, since it was all in german! I eventually got some AWESOME humus and bread with some apples. The market was really crowded but there were plenty of places to sit and relax with outdoor picnic tables and benches. I can only imagine what the scene must be like in the spring and summer!

I then made my way to the station to meet Alexis where we would head to the neighboring country, of Austria for the remainder of the weekend. The train was about two hours and we had a great chat while we snacked on our fresh munchies from the market. The austrian countryside is beautiful! I really felt like I was in the Sound of Music or something. MAybe its just the white washed houses with the dark roofs and the mountains in the background but it was awesome.

The train arrived and he hitched a cab to Haus Reichl, our B &B for the weekend. What a treat the house was huge! The owner, Francesca was delightful but continued to speak to us in German even though it was clear we didnt speak any German. But hey, when in Rome...

Then we were off the explore, and boy and I glad we did because Sat. was the brightest day and we were able to see a little sunshine. But boy was it chilly and the wind nearly knocked us over a few times. We went out into the Old Town that is where Mozart was born and grew up, although in two different houses. THere is also the oldest fortress in all Europe in Salzburg too. We held of on the fortress for Sunday. Because it was so chilly we had to find us some gluwein (aka mulled wine) to warm us up. We came upon this cute restaurant but unfortunately they were out of the gluwein but we tried Punsch instead. Its pretty much the same thing but with less flavor. We met a nice couple from Salt Lake there which was enjoyable.



We continued our walk around the city and found a traditional Austrian rest. to eat at. It was delicious. I had Deer Stew with a white bread dumpling while Alexis had Boiled Beef with brocolli and apple/horseradish slaw. Both were yummy. We defiantly pigged out a bit, but hey vacation rules apply, right?

Once we were finished we went to fetch the bus, which we thought we knew how to get back, but oh no we didnt. The road that the bus uses is a little pitch black road in the suburbs of Salzburg. We had a few landmarks in mind, but because of the darkness we couldnt see any of them. When we asked the bus driver finally, which was a feat in itself she says, MAdre Mia you are very far! Well no duh! we figured as much. But we were able to stay onthe bus until turned around to make its way back to the center and got off at the right stop. Then as we were walking down the dark path, Alexis says to me, "Is that a person standing over there?" I immediately said no, because what would someone be doing out in the dark this late at night, plus if there were someone there I would not want to attract any attention. Thankfully we realized the next morning that no it wasn't anyone but a bench or wood structure.

Sunday morning Francesca served us a huge Austrian b-fast with ham and cheese sandwiches, yogurt and a soft boiled egg. The egg was really tough to crack, but we made it out ok, with a bit of a mess, but there is a first time for everything.

We headed out for the Fortress, which was at the top of the city. Rather than taking the Funicular (train up the hill) we got our exercise on and walked. I think we were both a little pooped out when we reached the top, we could definitely feel the burn that's for sure. The fortress was really cool. There was a torture museum (i know its only cool for some people) a tour of the top tower (where Alexis lost her cooky hat in the gale force winds, which we were able to find later). It was a great use of 7 Euros. Alexis has got all the good pics so keep your eyes peeled for those.

Monday we freaked out because my alarm didnt go off to get us up for the train back to Germany. But thankfully Francesca woke us up with time to spare. It was kinda humiliating that we couldn't get up, but I am glad we didnt miss our train.



I had a "supah" time and I hope that our next adventure will be just as memorable! But I'm not sure where to next, maybe Barcelona in the Spring.... But I am excited because Alexis is coming to visit my neck of the woods in May and I am really pleased.

Guttentag!

Hola amigos!
Because I have a long weekend while the students go off to ski I am heading out myself, with my big sis to Germany and Austria for the holiday. We are staying in Munich for the evening and then tomorrow we head to Salzburg, Austria. Do you hear yodolling? Its ringing in my ears!
Have a great weekend yourselves and I'll get a phone card to call folks on Tuesday, another day off! WHoo Hoo!!
Hasta la vista baby...

What an AWesOME weekend!

Howdy folks...
I had the best weekend yet here in Madrid this past weekend. It was gorgeous out so I took advantage of it and went for a long walk, read a TON and it was fantastic. Friday night I met my friend, Juan, at his local bar for a drink. It was nice to see him again, since I hadn't seen him in forever. Then Saturday I got up early, and read like crazy! I am currently reading The Eight by Katherine Neville. Its runs the same current that Dan Brown and James Rollins. It talks about a mysterious chess set (which reminds me that I had to teach myself how to play back when Dad was convinced that my arm WASNT broken!) It seems a bit silly but its really a fast read and I am already more than half way through. I have been trying to get better at not watching too much tv, but I let it go for nights when Grey's or House is on. Although House looses its appeal in another language. But Gina and I spend Wed. nights watching Grey's together, which is lovely. Anyway getting back to my fabulous weekend....
So saturday as I said I went for a long walk, and as a reward stopped for a coffee at Starbucks and to continue my reading... I say its a treat because ALL Spaniards treat Starbucks like Coldstone or BR. All they ever get are frappucinos or other sweet drinks, plus on top of it they add all sorts of syrups and powders to it. With the high consumption of coffee in this country I was surprised that people doctor up their coffee so much! But it was great sitting outside in the 50 degree weather with just a sweatshirt on and reading for two hours. I loved it and hope to do it again real soon.
Then in the evening I headed over to Connie's house for our girls night in. We mangaied on goodies like baked feta that was AMAZING. Plus the best part was how easy it is... although you should have an oven... boo hoo... Then Connie made some breakfast burritos with scrambled eggs, cheese, red pepper and salsa. To die for!! We had planned to watch an American film, but that idea quickly went out the window as we spent our whole evening chatting away. I had a super long conversation with Connie's Mexican roommate, Eva. It was great to have another new person to practice my Spanish with. It didn't hurt that I put in a few good words for Connie either. There is tension between them sometimes because we are all always over at Connie's and can sometimes get a little rowdy....
Then for Sunday's big day I had my luncheon with the Americans and Gina. We had planned to meet at one for a walk around a new park, since ALL we ever do is go around Retiro we thought it would be a nice change of pace. But because we were up sooo late the night before we had to push it back a bit. But I am sooo glad we did because I found an amazing park just down the street for my house. Its awesome because.... it has a driving range, soccer field, track, tennis, and fountains! Its sweet and when I get new shoes I will be there at least twice a week. Well I should say weekend because that's only ONLY free time these days. Plus I may have accepted yet another tutoring job for Mondays!
After a good hour speed walk around the park we all came back for lunch. I decided to keep with my "ligera" theme (Gina claims all I eat are Corn Flakes) and made fresh steamed broccoli, with an amazing salad and Tarragon Chicken (thanks in full to Linda and Janet). The salad consisted of thinly sliced red onion, carrots, blue cheese, walnuts, figs (Sarah B uses cranberries, but I couldn't find any) and then you add some Balsamic Vinegar and olive oil. IT was a great success! We have semi decided to make it a regular thing on have a big luncheon on Sundays now. I hope we can keep it up
When the Americans left Gina and I had a nice time relaxing watching some tv. WE were all beat from the fabulous meal. Then El grupo called and invited us to see The Oxford Murders so we booked it to the train to make it there ontime, only to find out that el grupo had not even left the restaurant yet! But whilst we were entering the cinema I got a call from PAt and Dad who have successfully arrived in Cabo and we in fact running off to a Gringo bar to watch the Pats game. I am very glad to hear that they made it safely and without any problems (that I know of).
It was a relaxing yet super fun weekend. Of course I am bummed because I am missing out on game night on Friday with El grupo because.... I'm going to Austria and Germany with my big sis Alexis for the weekend. Que emocionante! I am really looking forward to it.

Keep me informed about what's on your ends and have a great week!

What life SHOULD be like....

So I am finishing up my first full week of school in the new year, and it AWeSOMe! The kids are great and I am having a wonderful time with them. They are responsive, cooperative and laughing. I realize that other teachers I work with in the program are more active than I am with their students, but I know at my school it would drive the classroom teachers crazy if I moved things around the room for half and hour just for one activity. It's jsut been a wonderful week. I had a great weekend last weekend getting back into the swing of things. The program kids met up a few times which is always a hit, and a blast. Then the work week just started off to a great start and here we are on Thursday and I jsut want it to continue. With the first graders we ahve finished the family, which they all can identify everyone in their household. Its so awesome to hear them say something authentic in English, granted its still in chunks but the point is they feel more comfortable trying it out. I knew in the beginning that I am not the type of teacher to force a student to speak, and I think for once its actually working to my benefit. I, myself, have also found myself speaking MORE English with them, which is a pleasant surprise!
As many of you know, in the beginning I struggled to say more than 3 words in English, let alone maintain a thirty minute class all in English. I think now the classes and I have a good balance which we are both content with.
I laughed my butt off with the third graders today as we have been creating sports riddles. I came up with certain questions that they students had to answer in order to form the riddles. In the beginning it kind of flopped with on class, but as teaching is ALL about trial and error, I didn't let it get me down and I changed to form of the lesson for the other classes. Each time I learned a bit more about how I should organize the info so that they could take it in and then formulate their own riddles. It was really fun and I think some of the kids had some great sports, like Beach Volleyball or Bandmitton! I was stumped on the badmitton one. Plus it was super cool that the student that had badmitton barely EVER speaks. So to hear his riddle I was flabergasted! I told him I was very happy and pleased with his riddle, I think he appreciated it too.
But then of course I was brought back to reality in the afternoon, when I went to the OTHER 3rd grade class and there were only four students who had completed their riddles!! Out of 27 students only 4 did their homework. Even their homeroom teacher was pissed. I forgave them and we did some examples in class so that then over the weekend they are in cjarge of making up two more riddles on their own. It's ironic to me because this particular class has some really smart students in it, but they ask so many silly questions just to be inquisitive. The hard part is of course I don't want to discredit their creative side, but they ask questions like, I have been swimming with my motorcycle helmet on, so that must be a type of protection. I laughed with them but it was aggrevating that sentences like that continued to come up, because I couldn't tell if they understood the point of the question. Then many of them were simply guessing off the top of their heads, rather than paying attention to the hints that I gave them. It shows me how different their are though, thats for sure!

Tomorrow I have to go fetch my student indentification card from the foreigners office. The nly stinky thing is that I have to stand in this mega long line just to get a piece of plastic! That's life for you though, huh? Plus then from there I run to tutoring to help a girl my age prepare for an interview, which actually would probably be good for my too. Its just going to be a long day of public transportation and listening. Then after school I think some of the Simmons peeps are going to have a girls night in and bake cookies and watch an American film. Its sounds relaxing and I am excited for it. Gina is going to attempt to make oatmeal cookies tonight so we'll see how that goes!

It was quite a procedure to translate and convert the measurements and tempuratures to metric, but good practice. We'll have to wait and see if I can remember it for the next time! I hope she doesn't burn them too much!
When she tried to make Mac N Cheese she put like three cups of milk in it and over boiled the pasta. It strange because otherwise she's a great cook, although all she makes in white rice with beans, a staple in our house. It's as if lived in an Asian nation that is chock full of rice fields! But gotta love her cause she feeds me. Nah, we have a blast and love watching Anatomia de Grey's together on Wednesday nights. Its another great thing I like about me roomy.
Til next entry....

Happy New Year!!!

I have lost touch with this so called "Blog" thing for too long.
Hope everyone had a fabulous holiday season and I understand many people are back into the swing of things in their respective homes. I was very fortunate to spend the holidays with Alexis and Kate in London for vacation. We had a blast! We stayed in a sweet house, thanks to Alexis's boss, and as a special treat Alexis took us to Paris!! (only for 7 hours) but we made the best of it. That's when you put on Travel Mode, as the Meghans call it. Although I was told by my sis's that its dangerous and too difficult to keep up with. But hey I slowed the pace down a bit and then everything went swimmingly.

So lets see.... since I have been back I have been UBER busy. But in a good way of course. I arrived back to Madrid on Saturday evening, just in time for 3 Kings Day but was sadly informed that the big parade and stuff all happened on Saturday during the day and that Sunday there really was nothing going on. But I swallowed my disappointment and took it in stride. It was certainly lovely to hear English all during vacation but I was sooo happy when I got home and could hear Spanish again. Although when I arrived at my house I was bummed because I imagined I would walk in the apt and Gina and the group would be there waiting for me, but NO the apt was empty and deserted. SO I threw my things down and went up to the rest. thinking that Gina would be there, which she wasn't either. BUT Arlene, my cuban neighbor, was there and we had a great chat. I even got to try the FAMOUS Kings Cake! It was delicious, but fills you to the brim! The cake consists of a sweet bread, kinda like a croissant bread and then they slather it with whipped cream in the middle. The tradition goes that everyone shares this huge circular cake, and the bakers have put a secret surprise inside the whipped cream. Whoever gets the prize then must pay for the cake. And they are pretty expensive. But its worth every penny. Well I only say that because I did NOT get the prize. But it was a good way to welcome myself back home to Madrid.
On Sunday I took my time organizing my things from the trip and uploading picts. It was quite nice though because I only saw Gina briefly that morning but she told me that she was working all day and that if I got bored to come up to the rest for a coffee and chat. Well whilst doing my things that afternoon, I got a phone call from Gina saying, Aren't you bored yet? I think she was really trying to get me to come keep her company. It was really nice though. I had a great long chat with she and a new girl at the rest. who is from Cordoba. I feel ashamed because I can never remember her name now, but we had a good time. I was up there for a good two hours just talking away getting to know some locals. A fabulous way to unwind.
Earlier in the morning I had spoken to Lawler, because I had brought home two cupcakes from this famous bakery in London that the megan's didn't get to on their trip, so I invited them over for a coffee and some sweets. Lawler showed up but Brennan was doing her own thing that day. Lawler showed me some wicked nice photos of Prague, which looks gorgeous and I must go someday.
Monday, being a holiday, the group came over for dinner and we were able to exchange our secret Santa gifts which we were all excited about. I was sooo anxious to see them all! We had a great supper, per le chef, Gina. She even strayed away from the typical meat stews and rice and beans to make Chicken Cordeon Blue, but without the cheese, cause Carlos is really picky, with a tasty salad, oh and I forgot there was rice and beans, whoops.
It was really special too because another friend, David, joined us for dinner which was great. We had a wonderful meal and then jumped into the presents. I got an awesome webcam from Carlos, but unfortunately it doesn't work. I am going to try and return it for another one to see if its the machine or my computer because its a spanish product but an American comp. I don't really know what is wrong but the comp doesn't recognize the device. Que lastima! What a shame. But everyone was super pleased with their gifts, one of which is now Carlos favorite game, CLUEDO, aka Clue the DVD edition. So we HAD to play a round before we all went home. The cool thing about this version is that its no longer a murder, but people steal objects around the mansion. We had a blast, so much so that we didn't go to bed til 3AM!! Can you believe it ! I knew at that moment I was in Spain thats for sure.

The reintegration to school was not so smooth. The kids were nuts! Everyone wanted to hear about what everyone got for 3Kings day and it was difficult to get any teaching done. But hey I realized it was ok because I was running on four hours of sleep, so I took advantage and went with the flow. It was good to back to a routine and to see the teachers again. Isabel, my boss even stopped me in the hallway to say that they had a gift for me and Connie. Oh man, was it smelly! They had provided each staff member with a traditional Hamper, but with all dried meat and cheese! Oh the smell was nauseating. But I put on a big smile and thanked them profusely. I already knew that this would be Carlos and Hugo's housewarming present! And we enjoyed it together as a group at lunch yesterday! The rest of the week went well and the kids are now in gear to work again which is helpful to say the least.

On Thursday night though we had a meet and greet with the group at where else, an Irish Pub of course!! We all talked about our travels over the vacation and had some drinks. It was good to see many of the people. Then Friday I just stayed in and watched some TV read my book and relaxed. Saturday I had a great morning reading my new book that Carlos had recommended me, called the Eight. Apparently its an International Best Seller, but I had no idea! Its really good except I find myself a bit lost at times because the story goes back and forth between a few different story lines. But I enjoyed sitting down with a good cup of strong Spanish coffee and reading the morning away. I was trying to hold back excitement the whole morning because I was finally going to see Carlos and Hugo's new apt. What I didn't know was how FAR it is from everything. It took us an hour to get there, which in Madrid is a long time for a train commute. Plus the neighborhood where they live is still being constructed so all there is in the neighborhood is a huge IKEA and Carre Four (Walmart). But I guess that's all you need in a new development.
The apt they have is super nice. Its small but it works for them, which is important. We had another fun filled day of Cluedo and Gina made a great beef stew kinda thing. The funny thing is that we were supposed to each lunch there but we didn't end up eating til 6! I was kinda bummed we had eaten so late because I was supposed to join the girls for Thai food in Sol but because we ate so late I had to decline. But then later I met them all at another Irish Pub to have a drink and see some other folks that didn't make it on Thursday. It was great! Although poor Brennan had an unwanted "friend" visit her at the Pub. Her old roommate, Southie was at the pub. What a small world! There were a few tense moments, but thankfully no one got a black eye. Then we all went to Brennan's for a sleep over since the T was no longer running.
All in all a great first week back. Although I am on a strict budget because in just three short weeks I am heading for Munich and Salzborg with Alexis. I am really stoked and can't wait for it.
Have a great week and hopefully soon we can "see" each other online with my web cam!