So, here goes the first actual blog entry from Austria! How exciting...
Well, I arrived on Monday, tired, nervous and excited in equal quantities. I made it from Manchester to Cologne, Cologne to Vienna, and then took 3 trains to get to Krems. It was a long journey, but really beautiful once I arrived in Austria. It is just so green here!
I spent Monday night in a hotel, and then moved in to a flat with the son of a host family the school found for me. They have been amazing, I've been cooked 'real Austrian' food, visited a few coffee houses, been taken for lunch out, and even been given a bike to use for the year! I am feeling so blessed and grateful for this family!
It is even more beautiful here than I had imagined, and people are just so friendly! Ok, so in England we don't even make eye contact with people on the street, so it isn't difficult to be friendlier than that...but people actually talk to one another, greet each other... how very civilised!;)
Admittedly, I have not spoken all that much German..which is a big no-no, so I am trying a little harder with that. This morning I even braved my meeting at the bank alone, and successfully understood and communicated, so I can't be utterly hopeless, right?
I'm hoping to go for a little cycle down the Danube some time in the next week, and maybe even catch the train to somewhere for a visit...although I don't think I have even finished exploring Krems yet! If you are thinking about doing a year abroad, do it! It is really no way near as scary as you would think! Even with my fears of not understanding the Austrian accent, it is not as hard as everyone seems to claim...and people are at least a little slower and clearer when they speak to us foreigners...
So, I will keep you all updated on my adventures as they unfold! Bis dann!
