Further ramblings
So the past five days were my “first week of classes.” Let me point out here that, of the 8 classes I was signed up for at the time, only four of them met. Of that four, the first (Understanding Literature) lacked a present teacher so we eventually all left and the middle two (Speaking and Language, the Historical Dimension of the German Language) were way over my head as they both turned out to be hardcore linguistics classes. So for all intents and purposes I’ve been to one class so far, with the rest starting next week. Some first week, eh? So now I’m in seven classes:
Culture of Wine
Foundational Issues of Austrian History (Middle Ages to 1700)
Understanding Literature
Austrian History and Culture in a European Context (through SUNY Binghamton)
German-language Literature (through SUNY Binghamton)
Slovenian History, Culture, and Language
The Laws of the European Union
and apparently with seven I have a fair bit of breathing space if I want to drop one, or if I have trouble next semester. With the exception of the first SUNY course, they all meet only once a week for 1.5-2 hours. Teachers here apparently don’t talk so much with the students during classes, though they seem very available afterwards. Plus, almost all of my classes are (1) in German, so I’ll be getting better but also (2) Vorlesungen (lectures) so if I can’t keep up there’s no hw, just a test at the end that I have the semester to prepare for. Sweet nectar.
My health insurance is finalized and I’m only really waiting to for the first bill so I can set up an automatic payment system through my Austrian bank to take care of it every month. We’ve all got our stipends now (300 Euro a month, or somewhere I guess in the area of 400+ dollars) so I’m eating just fine. All the supermarkets near us are pretty well stocked, but sometimes I’ve gotta make excursions to the Turkish grocery stores or the Thai market for special goodies (pronounced Singha, Kirin Lager, and peanut butter). Plus I now have my Österreichische Ausenthaltsbewilligung, so I am officially a resident of Austria now! How very fortunate that for a meager 110 Euro I get to stay here. I wonder how much they charge for citizenship. . .
So it looks like I’ll be heading up to Nijmagen in the Netherlands to visit Case in the first weekend of November (we’ve got a nice four-day weekend then). Turns out it’s the birthplace of Eddie van Halen. Goody. Maybe his home is on their version of the National Register of Historic Places. Or a list of things to be demolished, either/or. I’m also considering a trip in the near future to Florence to visit Noah and Ansley, but that sorta depends on how long they’ll be there and when I get a good opportunity to go (and hopefully a good deal on a ticket).
I’ve come down with a bit of a head cold here, but it’s no big deal, just drinking lots of tea and taking things easy with the walking and the cold and rain. Seems like today’s gonna be pretty light, just gonna clean up the room a bit, head to the supermarket to get some beers and snacks, then Leslie, Paul, and I are gonna check out the Cubs game (should start around midnight here, local time, so not too bad. . . ).
So as it stands, everything except my insurance is paid for and set in stone, my classes are getting started (in German, which is OH so fun), my appartment is nice, the weather sucks, the city is great, and I’m having a wonderful time. HA.
