Sunday, January 29, 2012
Halfway through/5 months!
I cannot believe it is already my half way point on this exchange.. These past months have FLEW by so quickly.. that I can't even wrap my mind around it. All I do know, is that this experience has opened up my eyes to something that I never thought I would be able to experience. This dream like time of my life is one of complete happiness, utter depression, random mood swings, good byes, hellos, crying, laughing, etc etc. I will always remember this experience for what it is, that being myself. I am slowly learning now that I cannot focus and love anything or anyone else in my life, if I cannot focus and love my own. I am taking the advice that everyone has given me and putting it into use. Day by day.. one day at a time. I am going to try and somehow slow this exchange down.. even though I know it will not be possible. :D Some of the people I met here, the amount of the language I learned, and the culture in general.. makes this life changing for me. I am not ready to come back, but when I do.. I know that I will have grown. Grown from that excited and nervous kid in August, who didn't know what to expect.. to a person who can stick up for himself, learn what's good for himself, and live his life freely and how he wants. I will grow into someone that I, myself can love.. I am taking these next months and not having a moment of thought of home, not a moment of sadness, and not a moment of regret at what happened these last months.. and just going to enjoy myself because I feel like I deserve it. I also learned this last month, that making decisions to situations, in regards to things in your life you thought would always be there for you, does not always have to include what other people want (or what one thinks they want). I learned to take a stand for myself, and bounce back. It has been a hell of a month. My emotions have never been so low. But when there is low, there is a will to go back high. That is my objective for this next month. To focus on myself. Nobody else, and do what makes me happy.
Monday, January 23, 2012
Flight back home!
I have chosen my flight back home already, probably looking at the first week of July! July 6th most likely.. I wanna get home before my momma and sister's birthday! and also little Lilia's :) I am excited to see you guys, but am not ready to go home yet :D I still have a lot to learn about myself! It still feels like it's all a dream :O
Thursday, January 19, 2012
A couple of previews for this video :D
Failed first attempt at making a 2 second video, by making it last 13 :D thanks Maja :D
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
I'm making this sort of video for the rest of my exchange year!
2011 from hey_rabbit on Vimeo.
I started yesterday, and will continue it until January 17th, 2013 :D !! Such a cool idea!Monday, January 16, 2012
Austrian Alps Ski Vacation!
DAY 1
I just got back a couple of days ago from a ski trip in Austria for Christmas with my new host family, and it was amazing. We stayed in a wohnung (apartment) high on the side of a mountain near the village of Ellmau in the Austrian Tyrol. It was an amazing experience.. both learning how to ski and bonding with my family! :D From Lingen, the drive started at 6 AM on the 23 of December, and lasted until about that evening at 6PM. My host dad and my host brother Alex all drove together to Stuttgart to pick up my host mom (who was there already to visit her family) and I got to meet my host grandma and grandpa! Such nice people! I learned that she is originally from Croatia, and I ended up speaking Polish to her, and her, Croatian to me.. and due to the similarities of the languages, we managed to communicate! It's amazing how similar some languages really are. We got there at around 1 in the afternoon, and she made us food and we all talked until about 3, and then said our good byes and headed out to Ellmau! This time, the ride was about 2 or 2 and half hours long, with much traffic as we were driving through Munich. Nonetheless, we got to Ellmau safely at 6 pm, and decided to go out to eat with everyone! Christopher (Oldest host brother), Sandra (Christopher's girlfriend), Alexander (Younger host brother), Andreas (Host Pop), and Andrea (Host Mom) and me (Host..uh..Me. :D) all made up the table as we sat and enjoyed, not only each other's presence, but the garnished Austrian specialties on our plates. I had, for the first time.. (and I wish I had taken a picture of this..) REAL Austrian Wiener Schnitzel (It's called Wiener because it is from Wien, (Vienna) Austria :O I never even thought of that..for some reason :/)). I kid you not readers, it was as big as my head. The plate could barely hold onto that slab of meat.. *Picture from google ;)*
I enjoyed every minute, and we returned to our apartment and settled in for the night. Our first official night in Austria was over.
DAY 2
Waking in the morning feeling like P. Did... no just kidding. Waking up at around 8 the next morning for breakfast, I finally got to see the Austrian Alps, first hand in the day time....
Needless to say, it took my breath away. There is something about waking up to the fresh clean air of being 800m in the air, that ensures your day to be a beautiful one. After breakfast, Andreas, Christopher, Sandra, and I, all headed down to the ski shop to rent our skis! Now this was my first time touching a pair of ski's in my life, and the first time I wore ski boots as well. I can not even begin to explain the pain that those shoes brought upon me. It was hell. Not only that, due to the way the shoes force you to bend your knees, it looked like I was walking around like a cholo the entire time around Ellmau (Good for me everyone had ski shoes on ;D). SKI's RENTED, 4 DAY SKI COURSE PAID, SHOES, STICKS, SKI'S.. all ready to go, and all ready to start the next day (Christmas) on my ski course.. I forgot to mention, Sandra is also a beginner, so we had Ski Courses together the entire time! We ended the day with the excitement of both the following day being Christmas, and the beginning of our ski adventure to unfold.
I just got back a couple of days ago from a ski trip in Austria for Christmas with my new host family, and it was amazing. We stayed in a wohnung (apartment) high on the side of a mountain near the village of Ellmau in the Austrian Tyrol. It was an amazing experience.. both learning how to ski and bonding with my family! :D From Lingen, the drive started at 6 AM on the 23 of December, and lasted until about that evening at 6PM. My host dad and my host brother Alex all drove together to Stuttgart to pick up my host mom (who was there already to visit her family) and I got to meet my host grandma and grandpa! Such nice people! I learned that she is originally from Croatia, and I ended up speaking Polish to her, and her, Croatian to me.. and due to the similarities of the languages, we managed to communicate! It's amazing how similar some languages really are. We got there at around 1 in the afternoon, and she made us food and we all talked until about 3, and then said our good byes and headed out to Ellmau! This time, the ride was about 2 or 2 and half hours long, with much traffic as we were driving through Munich. Nonetheless, we got to Ellmau safely at 6 pm, and decided to go out to eat with everyone! Christopher (Oldest host brother), Sandra (Christopher's girlfriend), Alexander (Younger host brother), Andreas (Host Pop), and Andrea (Host Mom) and me (Host..uh..Me. :D) all made up the table as we sat and enjoyed, not only each other's presence, but the garnished Austrian specialties on our plates. I had, for the first time.. (and I wish I had taken a picture of this..) REAL Austrian Wiener Schnitzel (It's called Wiener because it is from Wien, (Vienna) Austria :O I never even thought of that..for some reason :/)). I kid you not readers, it was as big as my head. The plate could barely hold onto that slab of meat.. *Picture from google ;)*
I enjoyed every minute, and we returned to our apartment and settled in for the night. Our first official night in Austria was over.
DAY 2
Waking in the morning feeling like P. Did... no just kidding. Waking up at around 8 the next morning for breakfast, I finally got to see the Austrian Alps, first hand in the day time....
Needless to say, it took my breath away. There is something about waking up to the fresh clean air of being 800m in the air, that ensures your day to be a beautiful one. After breakfast, Andreas, Christopher, Sandra, and I, all headed down to the ski shop to rent our skis! Now this was my first time touching a pair of ski's in my life, and the first time I wore ski boots as well. I can not even begin to explain the pain that those shoes brought upon me. It was hell. Not only that, due to the way the shoes force you to bend your knees, it looked like I was walking around like a cholo the entire time around Ellmau (Good for me everyone had ski shoes on ;D). SKI's RENTED, 4 DAY SKI COURSE PAID, SHOES, STICKS, SKI'S.. all ready to go, and all ready to start the next day (Christmas) on my ski course.. I forgot to mention, Sandra is also a beginner, so we had Ski Courses together the entire time! We ended the day with the excitement of both the following day being Christmas, and the beginning of our ski adventure to unfold.
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