One Third and Kroatien

To put it simply, I've been flat out busy for the last month and a half (or so...). The four month mark has officially come and gone and it's incredible to think I've already spent a third of a year in Austria! It's funny looking back remembering being amazed at reaching simply four WEEKS in Austria. This past month has flown. It hasn't really felt like it while I've been living them, but looking back they have! One of the main reasons for this is because I've had things to constantly keep me going, to look forward to. I haven't had a free weekend (with just the family, chilling at home) for 6 weeks which is the main reason I haven't written more here. It turns out that quite a few people actually read my blog (as in not just my family!) and I've had quite a few compliments about photos and information and writing. I am shocked but also immensely grateful about them all (and feel pressured more than ever to do a good job...)! Thank you! But more thoughts later. For now I want to tell you about my trip to Croatia. For those who hadn't heard, my host family and I travelled to Croatia for the Easter long weekend. IT WAS AWESOME!!!!! Four days definitely wasn't long enough to spend there, but I relished them immensely.

Early on Good Friday morning (literally - about 5am) we all packed into the car to just casually drive to Croatia... We stopped somewhere in the middle of Slovenia to have breakfast and then kept on going. I was kind of worried about what it would be like with such very young kids for a 6 1/2 hour drive, but I was very pleasantly surprised at how well they behaved themselves! There was no fighting, hitting or screaming, very little whinging and crying and quite a lot of silence! I remember car trips from when I was that young; they always seemed to take FOREVEEEER and there was lots of noise and singing and squabbling and unrest. But these kids were great! Our desitination was the island of Krk just off the coast, and on there, a tiny little town perched on a rocky outcrop called Vrbnik.

Finally we got there. After a quick lunch, we all went down to the beach (except Georg) and spent hours down there. It was awesome for me to be back at the water again. Even though it wasn’t anything like an Aussie beach (no waves, no sand) and even though I don’t normally live on the coast - I miss it! The sun was shining, the birds were singing, the beach was clean and the water was FREEZING. We amused ourselves by skipping rocks, climbing along the rocks, lying in the sun and attempting to catch fish and shrimps with Carl’s net. Walking around in the water your feet get numb, and if you stand still for long enough, a shrimp may find a resting spot on your foot. I managed to ‘catch’ a beautiful little red sea urchin, much to the enjoyment of the kids (including myself!). It is just an incredible beach. The water is so picturesquely blue and clear, and the ocean is so silent.

How deliciously wonderful!

Part of our 'beach'

Carl's occupation for the weekend

We eventually went back up to the apartment because everyone was hungry and we had heard there was an Easter procession on that evening. We went and had delicious and HUGE pizzas, and something I found really interesting was the fact that the waiter could speak Croation, English, German and Italian. You certainly don’t find service like that in Australia! It’s so normal for people to speak at least two languages here though. Europeans are cool. And have really, really good language education (which Australia really should learn from…). After dinner we walked to the Parish Chapel of St. John, a 14^th century stone Church, where the Good Friday Easter service was being held. The church was absolutely packed out, but somehow people still kept managing to squeeze in there or just stood outside waiting. I was cautious going in because I was honestly felt a little guilty because I thought maybe it was more important for someone to take the place I would stand in, but I decided it was an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity so I may as well. Turned out that although the church was really full, there was just a bit of congestion right at the back, so I got a nice place and didn’t feel like I was in the way.

The church service was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever experienced – I literally cried I was touched so much. I’ve never been to a Catholic church service before, and so that was really interesting in itself, but the fact that it was in Croation, in this incredible old stone church and the whole town was there, made it even better. Their praise and love of God was so strong. They all sang in their rich, Croation, incredible perfect harmonies filling this church on a hill with sound, love and hope. I can’t explain how moved I was by it all. Croatian is such a beautiful language, which I would really love to learn! After about an hour of standing inside enraptured in the spectacle, I decided to go back outside to see what the rest of my family were doing. Georg had already taken the boys home because the whole service ran a LOT longer than anyone expected, but Nine and I stayed around with Freya waiting for the procession to start. Soon enough it did. Hundreds of (very brown!) men and women came filing out of the church all singing. Priests and young boys with candles and crosses, then we walked around the tiny, narrow, cobblestone streets, winding between houses and gardens in the calm dusky evening. We got back reasonably late, but it was definitely worth it. It was an incredible day. Here's a bit I filmed of the procession. I LOVE the singing.

Saturday was another long, exhausting, beautiful day. I woke up at 6 to Carl bawling his eyes out at something, and it felt like FOREVER before he stopped but it was probably only a few minutes. Eventually I got up, had breakfast and got ready to face the day! That day we decided to try and find another beach not too far away.

I was absolutely captivated by the sea in Croatia. I’ve never seen the ocean so calm – such an expanse of water so calm. The ocean is wild and rough. Unforgiving, deep, terrifying. The profound quietness and calm of the ocean there is almost unimaginable. And the incredible blues and greens. I can’t describe the beauty of it. It’s just unbelievable! Of course I love the Australian oceans too. For a start we have actual sand. The beaches on Krk consist of beautiful bleached white, pink and orange rocks, but they can be REALLY painful on your feet! The beach for me has always meant waves, sand and wind. But I love it all.

LOVE

So, we spent the morning on the beach, which would have been lovely and still had there not been singing, whinging, shouting, crying children! But the sun was out and the water was cool (i.e. FREEZING) so that made it kind of bearable. After our little picnic lunch we went into town to have an ice cream and a wander. The more I see of Europe the more amazed I am! It’s just like in all the pictures! I guess I should know that it really looks like that, but to see it all with my own eyes is so much more incredible. Vrbnik is set on the hilly cliffs with nothing flat except the ocean. It’s a gorgeous little town with ups and downs, the amazing water, tiny narrow streets, gorgeous gardens and moody houses with cracked walls, tiny doors and stray cats. Perfect. Sometimes I find it hard experiencing all these amazing things ‘on my own’. I want to be able to tell someone everything that comes into my head, to be able to take spontaneous adventures and be able to look back with someone and say ‘Oh do you remember that one time in Croatia…’ but in a way that’s what I have this blog for! To share my adventures with you for an audience who actually has a choice as to whether they want to hear it or not!!

The narrowest alley we could find and a typical door

Easter Sunday. A day I thought was going to be dreadfully hard, but it was one of my best days this year. For the last couple of years for Easter, my brother, sister and I, along with a bunch of friends, volunteer at the National Folk Festival in Canberra for 4-5 days, filled with IMMENSE fun, memories, excitement, music, food, folk and camping. It is the highlight of my year. Of course this year I missed it, but I’ve realised now that was ok. I was in Croatia having the time of my life with another beautiful family.

I was woken up early by Carl and instantly remembered the overwhelming excitement getting up early for Easter would always give me. Got to be honest though, it still really excites me! We went straight outside to search for real eggs, chocolate eggs and bunnies, and presents! I felt so incredibly lucky and loved. My Mama had sent an AMAZING rocky road egg (rocky road doesn’t exist in Europe!!), Nine’s parents gave me some chocolates, Georg’s a lovely German children book, and Nine and Georg (slash the Easter Bunny) gave me a pair of ROLLER BLADES. HOW COOL IS THAT?! It seems to be pretty normal to give kids presents at Easter here (something I’ve discussed with other people here!) which was nice but certainly something I’m not used to! Theo got a pair too, and Nine had brought Carl’s with, so in a big hurry straight after breakfast, off we went.

View of Vrbnik from one side of our balcony

Sunday morning. A beautiful view and a beautiful breakfast!

It doesn’t help that we were staying in an apartment right on top of one of the hills. The view was worth if, but trying to roller blade down a steep hill (with cliffs and an ocean at the bottom) for the first time in years was HILARIOUS to say the least. I felt so immensely uncoordinated and if I’m going to be honest, I may have fallen over a couple of times… I had to get Georg to hold my hand! However eventually I got a little more confident and was soon off on my own, chasing after the kids. I have SO much more respect for actual skaters *Damiano*.

The rest of the day spent in Krk – the main town on the island. I spent about an hour trying to catch fish with Carl in his net, then we all went and had ice-cream for lunch! We wandered around the town and I found a cute touristy shop where I bought some GORGEOUS little hand made ceramic houses, which I just had to buy.

Someone else couldn't think of a better way to spend their Easter!

Offshore

A rather common occurance. I love it!

My family was really patient with me and waited around outside while I was looking. When I came out again, Georg and Carl were running around playing soccer with Freya’s ball, so I joined in having a lot of fun - the most fun I’d had in ages! It’s the little things! Eventually after more walking and eating, we went back ‘home’ and had a beautiful dinner of pizza in an incredible restaurant balancing on the edge of a cliff. It was a lovely day. Something, which really struck me that day, was the power of language. A lot of the people we met on the island spoke German. It made me realise how my German’s coming along and it felt like I was really putting it to a practical use. It’s interesting trying to talk to people in your second language when it’s their second language too, but your only form of communication.

I wrote this in my diary that evening:

“I’m here sitting on the balcony with Georg. We’ve been sitting here on the couch for the last half an hour (it’s now 10pm) reading/sewing, drinking wine, and now I’m writing. It's all pretty quiet. No traffic, the sea is mirror-still, occasional dog barking, people singing in the distance. You look out into this immense darkness. There are no stars and no reflections in the inky water – even with the lights of a distant town sparkling on the hill. The church steeple is lit up tonight – a soft green, the highest point you can see. The air is clean and sweet and radiates calm.”

Our view from dinner (we were eating on the terrace outside)

The last full day in Croatia was another good day, but kind of felt like a dream coming to an end; wanting to catch those last fleeting thoughts and escape reality for just that tiny bit longer. I was woken to the sound of roller blades thumping up and down the hallway, children crying and the usual chaos. I have SO MUCH RESPECT for my parents. How does someone put up with so much silliness?! No wonder parents are such big fans of peace and quiet! After breakfast I went down to the marina with Carl to do some more fishing even though I didn’t particularly feel like it (I bend under his every whim!), though I ended up enjoying myself.  We caught some shrimps, I managed to catch a positively HUGE fish (about 15cm :P ) and we saw an awesome starfish which I almost trod on. Eventually we left (after a couple of hours!) and walked up one of the hills looking out to beautiful views. I take far too many photos.

The Marina

View from someone's vege patch at the top of the hill. Jealous!!!

After lunch the whole family (even Georg!!) went down to the beach for the last time. It was beautiful (again), and after throwing and skipping stones and building towers, Carl and I decided to go SWIMMING! I decided to look for a place where I could just jump right in because I knew if I’d tried to walk in from the beach, apart from being painful and slimy, I would probably give up because I would only be able to take one step at a time. Let me tell you one thing. That water is COLD. It averages about 18˚ in Spring, 8˚ in Winter and 28˚ in Summer. That is a BIG difference.  But I always go swimming at the beach, no matter what the season (unless it’s dangerous… or maybe the Baltic Sea in the middle of Winter…). So I found myself a rock to jump off and after a lot of deliberating I decided it was ‘now or never’ and dived in. OH MY GOODNESS IT WAS FREEZING. I promptly went very red and very numb. However it was one of the most worthwhile things I’ve ever done. I was clever enough to bring my goggles with me. Fish, water, colours, sun. It was incredible. I dived down and the first thing I saw was hundreds of blue sea cucumbers which were actually kind of scary until I remembered they couldn’t do anything to me. I made some fishy friends – silver fish with a black spot on their tails which wouldn’t swim away. Blue and yellow striped fish. Big fish, small fish, lots of slimy white and green rocks. I felt like there should have been a shipwreck down there for me to explore! It was magnificent. And cold. So I got out after not all that long and lay in the sun until it crept behind the impending clouds, when we went back to the apartment and roller bladed on the balcony, played memory, and I read in very valuable silence while Nine took Freya for a walk and I had managed to distract the boys with doodle jump on my iPod. Finally it was bedtime. Finally it was really silent.

Last sunset off the balcony

Vrbnik is a beautiful, beautiful town. Narrow alleys, cobble stones, stairs, little doors and tunnels, chiming bell towers and that medieval history, all perched precariously on a high cliff top looking out to the bluest ocean you will ever see. From now on I will try my best to convince everyone to go there.

It was sad to be going back home. And that’s how I’ve been thinking of it lately. Home. I have two homes now. I have two families, two lives, two homes. Some days I never want to leave and can’t think of any reasons to. Others, all I want to do is get a hug from Mama, play a game with Tim, talk nonsense with Claire or garden with Dada. Having two lives is a struggle, but in a way I know I’m the only one making it that way.

Eighteen

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

To me! Two weeks ago it was my 18th birthday. To be honest I had been dreading this day as well as the Easter long weekend, basically the whole time I've been here. I mean - my 18th birthday! You only turn 18 once... I was also dreading the fact that I would have to spend it away from my twin brother. This year has been hard enough already without him and having a birthday (let alone a 'big' one) just seemed impossible... But, I actually had a wonderfully pleasant surprise and had a really lovely day - probably one of the best I've had here yet! I will start at the very beginning though, because I had a few celebratory days. The first letters started arriving a week before my birthday, and letters are the best. There's something completely wonderful about receiving things in the mail. Knowing that the person you're corresponding with was the last person to touch what's inside that mysterious envelope. Well, that's how I find it at least :) 

On Friday the 15th of April I had band as usual. It was one of the other member's birthday as well, and so a whole heap of us went to a local Heuriger (like a little traditional wine-tavern: they're EVERYWHERE in my area) and had a couple of drinks and nibblies. It was lovely to celebrate his birthday and mine as well (early!) and I ended up getting home about 12 - REALLY LATE. I get so tired here, so it was difficult and a really long day. It was nice to be out with people though.

On Monday (18th) Spring holidays started (YAAAAAAAAAY), and I caught up with the other 2 Aussie exchange students for a wonderful day in Vienna. Katherine was staying over at Jess's house for a few days, so I met up with them and it was just so wonderful to see them and to be able to talk to people and just have some good Aussie fun and company. We met on Mariahilfe Straße which is the main (or most well-known) shopping street in Vienna and has quite a nice variety of shops. We each bought some new clothes for ourselves (because you can't bring enough clothes in your suitcase to last a year!), wandered slowly, had lunch and gelatos and went to 'Thaila' the big international bookshop. AKA my new best friend. It's SUCH a good bookshop and has a huge English section, as well as a really comprehensive German section. We probably spent about an hour in there reading and it was just nice to sit down with a book with friends in companionable silence. From there we moved on to the highlight of my day: the Aussie pub in Vienna!!

We walked in, and everything's decorated with Aussie road signs and things and of course lots of beer signs. Especially for Fosters which for some reason everyone thinks we drink, but no one actually does... Here's the website if you want to check out more about it! Anyway. We went downstairs and sat at a table, generally admiring the Aussieness of it all and being bubbly and happy. Because I was the birthday girl, Jess and Katherine really kindly bought me my drinks and dinner which made me feel very special and happy! Everything was pretty overpriced and the waiters were all American or British, but we had a lot of fun and were very loud and raucous nonetheless. 

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Jess's kangaroo burger! Yay for good Aussie burgers, but ESPECIALLY the chips!

Jess, me and Katherine digging into my birthday cake :)

We ordered one slice of "Grandma's Mud Cake" because we were so stuffed after our burgers that we couldn't eat one each! The waitress brought it out with a FIREWORK CANDLE (it literally said that on it!) which was shooting flames everywhere, and was honestly the best birthday candle I've ever seen. Jess and Katherine sang happy birthday to me VERY LOUDLY and then we dug in. It was lovely to have a loud, honest catch-up with some friends.

On Wednesday was my actual birthday.

I was woken up about 7.30am to my WHOLE host family opening the door and walking into my room singing happy birthday carrying a cake aflame with candles and with Georg toting the camera. It was a little overwhelming but so lovely! They made me blow out the candles then we all went down to have a lovely breakfast.

Super delicious cake with German, Aussie and Austrian flags on :)

On the small table in the kitchen was sitting all my cards and presents. From Omas and Opas, a huge parcel from my family, from friends and from my last host family. I was really overwhelmed then, and I wasn’t quite sure what to do first – breakfast or pressies! But Nine seemed pretty keen for me to open things. I started opening cards and just felt so sprinkled with love it was unbelievable. I was especially in awe and SO happy at the present my host family gave me – a ticket to the Ballet at the Viennese State Opera House, plus a pair of earrings, plus what we did for the rest of the day AND just hosting me in the first place. I feel so blessed to have such loving, kind and genorous people as a family here! After breakfast I skyped home and was lucky enough to speak to my whole family and wish Tim a happy birthday, for 1 hour 20 mins. It was amazingly wonderful and just reminded me again why I love them so much. I unpacked my big parcel over the phone, which included practical things like more Summer clothes, but also some really special things just for me :) Gotta love the amazing technologies we have these days!

While on the phone the door bell rang so I went down to get it. It was the post for me!! The post man had a HUGE bunch of flowers for me which I had to sign for. I was absolutely captivated. Who would be sending me flowers in Austria? I went inside and unwrapped them, and inside was a card from two of my BESTEST FRIENDS! It made me feel so so so loved! So I proudly showed my family over Skype. After hanging up, I went out with Nine and Freya for the day (Theo had kindergarten, Carl soccer camp and Georg work). We went to Schönbrunn Palace which is the former Imperial Summer Residence for the monarchy in Austria. It has over 1400 rooms (although we only looked in 40...) and it is completely over the top and AMAZING. It really made me want to become a conservator or historian more than ever and just blew me away with the depth of history and culture.

Grounds of Schönbrunn

Me on the stairs - just for a bit of perspective

The lines were reasonably long (although not too much so - we only had to wait half an hour) because it was an absolutely gorgeous Spring day and so there were a lot of tourists. We had a little time to wander around, and luckily enough there was an Easter market in the grounds of the castle. Every time I go out and see a bit more of Vienna I realise how much more there still IS to see and that there's a surprise waiting for you around every corner! I've always loved markets so I was really happy to be able to look around a traditional Austrian one. There were stalls selling all kinds of things, from traditional kids toys, pottery, hand-painted hand-blown eggs, dumplings, wood crafts, beeswax, and books.

One of the bright, colourful toy stores!

Beautiful hand-painted Austrian porcelain.

After the tour (which was mind-blowing) we had a yummy lunch bought from the market. I realised something which amused me - one of those little ways I've changed. I was sharing my food with Freya, just a fork-full here and there, and I suddenly thought how different I was. At the beginning of my exchange I would never have thought of doing that, but after so long it just came naturally - that's just the way it is! Then we did lots of walking through the palace gardens (which are GINORMOUS and beautiful).

Spring!!

Eventually we left to pick up Theo from kindergarten and Carl from soccer and I was feeling really happy about the day. We went home and ate my delicious cake outside in the garden in the beautiful Spring sunshine with a lovely cool breeze. I ended up lazing around outside for hours, eating, laying in the hammock, listening to music, sewing. That's what life's really about I think and it was nice having my birthday in Spring as oppose to the normal Autumn. Eventually Georg came home and we all got ready to go out for dinner.

Theo being a bit of a clown just outside the house before we left.

For dinner, at my request, we went to an Italian restaurant. There happens to be one just down the road so we walked there in the cool, dusky evening. The food was delicious and Nine and I reflected on our day with Georg and just talked about whatever. We left around 8.30 to go home which was pretty late for the kids. I raced Theo and Carl most of the way up the hill in high heels. It was good to find out I can still run in them but I was pretty stuffed! I love this family and I feel pretty happy most days when I'm with them. I just feel so comfortable and like we have just so much in common.

My table full of love. ♥ Cards and presents and FLOWERS(!!) galore :D 

So, I'm 18 now. Sometimes I feel different when I say that, but I'm sure that's just a mind thing. 18 used to be this huge incredible age. People who were 18 were adults; had maturity, responsibility, knowledge.  Sometimes my chest puffs up with the thought of myself being 18 but then I realise it's just an 'age' and doesn't mean anything. It doesn't mean I'm not still a kid, that I don't still love and adore my parents and value their opinion above anything else. That I don't still get sad and cry and hug my teddy. That i don't run around hills in Austria singing "The Hills Are Alive With The Sound Of Music" at the top of my lungs. And it definitely doesn't mean I know what I'm doing with my life and what direction it will take next. In fact, I think you're more sure of what you want to be when you're "grown up" as a child than you do when you actually "grow up". (I know I used to want to be a butterfly. Then a dancer. Then, then, then...) I'm still a kid. And I'm ok with that.

A Little Thing Called Faschings

Before it gets too long after this event (although it's already been more than a month - on March 8th...!) I wanted to write a bit about 'Faschings' or 'Carnival' because it was a wonderful and unique experience!

The idea behind Faschings dates back hundreds of years. It was traditionally a Roman Catholic (of which there are many in Austria) festival but is now celebrated in various countries around the world. It is essentially a big celebration to start the beginning of Lent - 6 weeks of fasting before Easter. To get rid of all the rich food and drink, communities would get together and have huge feasts and celebrations. Nowadays it's lost a bit of its traditional meaning, but is essentially a HEAP of fun and a great celebration for everyone! My Faschings was a pretty unique experience. For all of March I didn't go to school (due to moving families, lack of space/interest in schools etc.), and so instead of celebrating at school, I did something a little different - I celebrated with Carl's school instead!

I set off in the morning with Janina and Freya (and Carl) to school. There the kids all dressed up and we helped paint their faces then they helped paint ours... Interesting!

Beautiful artistry on my face... Yes, I wandered around Vienna like this for a day!

Janina went home with Freya, leaving me with the class (and the teachers) - a simply overwhelming experience. We all caught the tram, train and subway to Stephansplatz (the very centre of Vienna) to have our own little celebration - drinking fizzy drink, shoting cans of silly string all over each other and throwing confetti. Then the wonderful tradition of KRAPFENS! Krapfens are like the Austrian/German equivalent of our 'jam dounuts', but about a thousand times better. They're eaten all year round, but are particularly popular for Faschings. I'm not quite sure why but possibly because they're basically deep-fried butter, eggs and sugar with jam inside. Perfect for fattening yourself up before Lent! The day was really cold, so it was nice to have something to munch on. One of the teachers went down to the subway and bought coffees for the "adults", and asked the bakery if she could bring down the kids to warm up a little, even though they wouldn't all have money. They said it was fine, but then while we were drinking our coffee, two staff members of the bakery came up with a free krapfen for each of us! It was such a sincere, lovely surprise!

CONFETTI FIGHT!

The Ice Bear takes a krapfen

Pippi Langstrumpf (Longstockings) rather satisfied with her krapfen!

 After going back to the school, getting picked up and having 'doner' for lunch, Janina, Carl, Henrich (Carl's friend), Theo, Freya and I then continued on to Bisamberg - another town just outside of Vienna - for their Faschings celebrations! Stalls lined the main street selling food and drinks (mostly alcohol) and soon enough, the parade started. Most people come dressed up so I didn't feel (very much) out of place with my interesting face paint - at least no one else cared!

Golden Ladies

Theo was in the Polizei for the day!

Kind of crazy old man!

Gorgeous little girl and some long legs!

The parade included floats for all kinds of things - most of which I totally didn't understand. Lollies are handed out (well, more thrown out), cups of schnapps and wine, fruit, krapfens, then there was the train throwing out coal. The Austrians can be immensely silly and are rather bold and ready to laugh at themselves. This is a great characteristic which I'm looking forward to seeing more of! All in all it was really just a lot of fun and the atmosphere was great to be around.

As I said - not quite sure what the point of each of the groups was - here the women were dressed as men and the men as women - Adults mind you!

Throwing (and blowing) streamers out into the crowd

Flapping feathers out into the crowd (for some reason!)

More up-to-date news soon!