Mass update
So a couple of days ago Graz had itself a big ole festival called Aufsteirern, basically filling most of the space between Jakominiplatz and Hauptplatz with little green tents offering info on hunting in the region, lederhosen (for Gents) and Dirndls (for the ladies), various toast sandwiches, wursts, pretzels, and a local favorite, Sturm (a naturally carbonated early-grape young wine that tastes like raspberry lemonade and has a pretty decent kick to it as well). The whole thing was a bit much, so we didn’t stay long, though long enough to get ripped off on an overpriced gyro and a schnitzel sandwich. Things are settling in pretty well here, though I’m still waiting for roommates to come in. I bought some warm weather clothes a few days ago and, as it turns out, this was a good thing; it’s gotten really rather cold and wet around here in the last 12 hours and I’m very thankful for my new, warm hoodies. The storm has been quite impressive though, and on a number of occasions the thunder has literally rattled me in my seat. The hills here are beautiful, with the mist pouring down from all sides into the valley that is Graz, and the lightning seems to have some strange ability to last for a couple of seconds in the sky before fading. Magic.
The german intensive class is progressing well enough, though the test we had on Friday was a bit rough (got a 2-3, where 1 is best and 5 is worst) and I think my Deutschskillz (TM) are really starting to come together. I’ve finally got enough groceries that I’m no longer just buying more every few days, and it’s nice to be able to prepare FOOD food, not just meat+cheese+bread. In fact, we’ve got avocados, onions, tomatoes, apples, bananas, jams, bread, meat, cheese, vinegar, oil, pasta, sauces, herbs, salt, pepper, and (contrary to the warnings of many abroad-studiers before me) PEANUT BUTTER. Two weeks here, and I managed to find the stuff at a Turkish grocery store; not only that, but the Turkish stores are open on Sundays and there’s a fair few in the area, as well as a Thai market (which also offers some other homesick pleasures like okra and black-eyed peas, though I don’t yet know how exactly one cooks these up delicously). As you can tell, I’m really quite proud of myself.
Yesterday Leslie, Paul, and I went to the Ikea here, and by here I mean far, far away from where we actually live, but technically I suppose still in Graz. As it turns out, Ikea is Swedish for “incredibly cheap, awesome shit that you didn’t think you needed until you walked through our crazy doors.” It’s a very specific word, created as you can tell by a very specific people. Leslie got a whole boatload of crapola, including some crazy set of various items that all have in common only two clear things: they are made out of plastic and can probably (hypothetically) be used in a bathroom. I got a towel.
So we’re all on track to get our residence permits, in approximately ten days, and I’m covered in terms of health insurance. I now have an Austrian bank account, into which the school will very kindly deposit my monthly food stipend (can’t wait for that; I’m gonna use it to buy fancy clothes and cheap beer!). We’re close to the end of the Deutsch-Intensive course and the Humanities faculty at the Uni-Graz has as of today opened registration for classes, so I need to get on that whole “registering for classes” thing. I figure I’ll just wing it. What’s the worst that could happen?
As far as I can tell, that’s all the happenings here right now. I’ve met a few people, tried a few new beers, seen some lovely parks and a couple of castles, climbed a (small) mountain, and eaten (and even made!) some terrific food. I’m happy, all told, and I’m incredibly comfortable here. I’m even starting to understand people through the relatively thick and occasionally bizarre Styrian accent, though an encounter with some folk from Salzburg a few days ago was a nice reminder that Hochdeutsch isn’t dead, just far from the norm here. Hope you’re all doing well (that is, all three of the people reading: hi mom!) and I should have some interesting new pictures sooner or later. As soon as I can make them smaller.
Geteiltes Glück ist halbes Glück
So far, the internet situation here in my Studierendenheim is pretty crappy – Leslie, Jessica, and I can´t seem to make the frigging download go so that we can use what I am sure is a very special and very wonderful internet. This wouldn´t be too big of a deal, except that the only internet cafe we´ve found so far seems a little pricy without much in the way of quality. In any case, there might be a delay in updates here, as well as any people hoping for e-mails or much in the way of facebook activity. I´m settled in fine, though, and Graz is very beautiful (if not a little cold and wet at the moment), and the train ride here was long but incredibly scenic, especially once the delays, train changes, and brief bus ride around some construction were over. Tired. Hungry. And tonight, we all get a free beer on the Uni at a place called the Bierbaron near campus. Whoopdidoo.
Again and again and again
It’s been another day in Frankfurt, and I’m actually really glad I spent another (that is, a second extra) night here. I walked around some more and decided to get good and adventurous (. . .) and actually cross the Main river, and I couldn’t be more glad. It’s a really lovely part of town, and I spent some time sitting in the park there reading Brave New World (I can’t thank Owen enough for lending me a copy at the end of last year, and I hope he forgives me for not remembering to give it back or even to start it until today). I would kick myself for not bringing my camera, but it’s a moot point since the software for the camera-to-lappy dealy-bopper I got before I left doesn’t work with my lappy (it won’t take those mini-CDs) and in any case it was raining, which I understand is somewhat bad for the life span of a camera. This city really does strike me as a most excellent town, if more so to live in. It reminds me of Chicago, but in deeper shades of silver and blue, which turns on my aesthetic libido like nothing short of Greek revival architecture.
Last night was pretty uninteresting, just sort of bummed about. In my room was a very nice young Canadian girl, an old, cute perv of an Indian man from Calcutta (who politely informed me that porn here is astonishingly cheap) and the smelliest, loudest-snoring Kraut you could ever imagine. I don’t think I’m supposed to use the word Kraut where German people might read, but at this point I can’t exactly untype it. . . that strikes me as only more awkward. But God almighty damn was it hard to sleep through the racket and, in all seriousness, the funk that this guy was giving off. He must have left early this morning, but I can still sort of detect it; to give you an idea, before I ever even saw him, I walked in the room and new I would have at least one new roomie that night because his stench was still there. Potent.
So all in all, things are going rather well. I’m consuming more than just Sprite and roasted half-chickens from the Doner place next door, and I’m even getting vitamins now (thank God for Germany’s love of fruit juices in jaw-dropping combinations like pineapple-orange-mango-passionfruit-carrot-pear-grape). I look forward to going to Graz tomorrow, even if I don’t look forward to the train ride. I have two minutes to do my changeover in Selzthal, and I really hope to not screw that up. Hope and pray that I don’t end up in the cosmopolitan megalopolis of Selzthal, Austria (population ~1800). At least in Linz I have 10 minutes to do the switch.
One more thing
I need a razor really bad. I’m starting to grow one of those high school beards. Like, the crappy kind. Where the hell do you buy a razor in Germany? I’m terribly afraid of walking into a store and asking, only to find out they only sell, I don’t know, ducks or football bats or something like that. I can’t explain it. Maybe the Schlecker? The fear is too great to go it alone. . .
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