Ich liebe Österreich!

1 March:

I took the bus for the first time today. Easy as expected. Probably won't buy a pass as I hope to ride my bike more often than not. We will see how that goes though. 

Met international students and Johanna downtown to register with the city. Met two from Iceland and one from Finland. Everyone I meet is from a different country. Registering didn't take long at all. We found two more malls Megan and I didn't know existed. One is seven stories. Pretty much everything you would need, grocery store, restaurants, H &M, and a Best Buy wannabe. After getting more necessities on our list, we had lunch; Greek chicken pita. Johanna recommended it, sehr gut (very good). We then had lunch outside in forty degree weather, but the sun was shining and if anything it felt very warm. There is little wind in the city since we are in a valley. So don't have to worry about the windchill so much. Took pictures, having a great time and laughing as always! 

Sehr Gut

Maria Theresien Straße

 We then went to MCI (which is very modern and extremely nice and new). This is the main campus downtown, I will have orientation and one to two classes here this semester. Rest will be at MCI III which I hear is gorgeous and overlooks the city. We got our temporary class schedules. One class will be a week long (9-4) each day and then you meet the next week once and that class is over. Then the next week you start a new class. I think I like this! Basically what I'm saying is I have seven classes with a lot of time off when I'm here. Hallo traveling around Europe! 

Made our way to the train station and bought a student ID card which will give us 45% off each train ticket we end up buying. Also a grocery store in the train station which is even open on Sundays. Nearly everything is closed on Sunday as it is a day. I got some ice cream and fruit juice. Beir is cheaper than any other beverage here. As you know, (Sunny!) Red Bull Is from Austria. It is everywhere! Not sure if they have it in the states as I don't drink carbonated drinks, but they have a Red Bull that is half Coca Cola half Red Bull. 

We then went to a cafe at the top of the mall. Latitude 360. Wow! My new favorite cafe. Circle glass cafe that has a 360 view of the city. There is seating inside and outside benches all around with cushions. We took these pictures here. Had a great cappuccino and Megan had a hot chocolate. 

Panorama View

We then set up bank accounts, had dinner with Johanna and bought some groceries. 

Took the bus home and set up phone and inet banking all in German. Thank you google translator! Starting to begin hanging up maps and posters in my room.

2 March:

Woke up, got ready, and  met two people who live on my floor from Spain (Sevilla and Cordoba). 

The buses runs very frequently, saw my bus go by when walking out the apartment and two mins later next bus I needed was there. 

Whenever you cross the street, if there is not a pedestrian stop light, you just walk across and everyone stops for you. I think more people ride bikes or the bus than drive here. Also, the license plates here all start with the city or area they are from. Salzburg, Innsbruck, and many other cities. There is a town here that is abbreviated as IL so it makes me happy when I see it! 

 

Waiting to meet Megan to go to the bank, I swear I though I saw her three times! Haha. Definitely not though. Wonder what her bus story will be today. :) We bought a card and flowers for Johanna because it was her birthday. 

Alles Gute zum Geburtstag

Had MCI orientation which went very well. Great school. Met even more international students from even more countries. We are an official melting pot. We went up to the top of MCI which has tables and a grass area with a spectacular view.

MCI Campus

Third floor

 Then made another trip to Ikea. So much fun. Had chicken schnitzel and cranberry sauce. Another great meal as always. Bought a bedside table a few plants for my room. I will post pictures of my room finished soon.  

Around seven we went to the same Irish pub again, but this time for orientations. We had a pub quiz. A lot of fun. Tried white wine with lemonade which is a typical drink here. Very good. Then went to La Copa: a karaoke bar on Wednesday nights for Johannas birthday!  

Johanna took me home because I haven't studied the bus schedule yet. I just know during the day it goes very often, then most nightliners run once an hour, but not necessarily on the hour. Have to look up when my bus schedule runs late at night. All I know if that it's the N2 nightliner.  

Got home, had to take a shower as it was extremely smoky in the bar.  There was a smoking and nonsmoking section, but the karaoke and all the fun was happening in the smoking section. 

3 March:  

Somehow woke up to my alarm vibrating because I never turned the ringer back on. Dreamt that I was learning German all night! Rode the bus to day two of orientation.We learned that you knock on desk after class if you enjoyed the lecture.  

I have a three day weekend so that will be good. Especially beacause everything on my to do list since being here is nearly finished. Inet, bank acct, register, phone, orientation, ikea, etc. A  lot to do in the first week. Will go running this weekend and hopefully buy a bike also. 

My Austrian culture class starts on Monday. I have class pretty much all of March and then I have a few classes spread out each month from then on. And by spread out I mean like five days in a row of each month and maybe two other days at some random time. Hallo Ryan Air, Easy Jet, and train station!

Had a break between classes and got some Chai tea and walked around the city some more. 

One of many trams in the city

Johanna, Megan and I had Running Wok for lunch which is a Chinese restaurant right by MCI. Sehr gut. 

Second part of orientation was introduction to Austrian culture. Austrians are very non confrontational and avoid conflict, which is good in my opinion. Only 7% of Austrians go to church each Sunday. 

After class we walked around town more as we had a break before our meeting time to finalize our class schedule.

Just to let you know, I don't pay for the bus anymore. Very very rarely do they check to see if you have a ticket (which I have four on me just in case), but I don't stamp them when I get on the bus. I could by a 6 month pass, but once I have a bike I won't be riding the bus as often anyway. If I bought this 6 month card I would just have it in my wallet and never stamp it anyway. Most people do this, so I just blend in, minus the card. :) If I get caught I have four months to pay the fine of 65 euro which isn't going to happen :)

When back at the apartment I explored around the building a bit. There is a pizza place, grocery store, and post office under my apartment! 

Akademikerhilfe

 Nearly finished with my room. Just need to hang up a few more pictures and a calendar. I put up a big map or Europe which I am putting all the places I have visited. It’s a work in progress obviously.

Met a lot more people in my apartment tonight. Just as excpected, everyone is really awesome. Everyone is from a different country: USA, Canada, Thailand, Bulgaria, France, Spain, Finland, Italy, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. I love it. We all cooked our dinners and hung out in the dining room for a few hours and just talked. Then the guys and I all played ping pong downstairs in our community center which is extremely large and very nice. We played down there for quite a long time also. A lot of fun, very very happy with my accommodation. They all invited me to go skiing and snowboarding tomorrow. I passed only because I need one day to rest and catch up on everything. I’ve been very busy since arriving six days ago. Hard to believe I’ve been here for that long already. Each day something here impresses me more and more.

Akademikerhilfe

 

Magic Pizza

After the pizza last night, we headed back to the hostel. Hung out there, spent time with two guys from South Korea and the girls from Illinois. Megan and I eventually decided we would go to bed early so that we would get enough sleep and wake up early. Well let’s just say I slept from 9 to midnight. Woke up at midnight and was not tired at all. Felt like  I just took a nap and was ready for the rest of the day. So we all ended up hanging out until about 2 a.m. and then Megan and I eventually fell asleep after laughing for another hour.

28 Feb 2011: Moving Day

Woke up this morning, had our last breakfast at the café downstairs and met Johanna to begin our moving day! We took two trips as our luggage would not fit in a small European car! We got Megan moved in very easily and quickly, returned back to the hostel, checked out, and got my luggage to make our way to my apartment for the next five months; Akademikerhilfe. Honestly have no idea how to pronounce it yet. After arriving here, checked in quickly, got my key, and dropped my luggage off. Next stop, Ikea! We already knew there were certain things we needed for the room such as sheets, pillows, comforter, etc. Got quite a lot at Ikea and managed to spend little money. 

After awhile in Ikea we decided to have lunch at an Italian restaurant. Wow. The pasta was quite tasty. It wasn’t heavy and extremely filling like pasta in America. Fresh ingredients. Really enjoyed the lunch and even saved some for dinner tonight. Did a little grocery shopping after, got some laundry detergant and body wash. 

Made our way back to my apartment and beging unpacking everything! There is plenty of space in my room. I still need to get a few things, and most importantly hang stuff up on the walls. I will post a much better picture of my room when it’s completely finished. You get the idea now though. 

416

 

Oh did I mention that I have a horrible view… I face the garbage and big industrial plant. I'm going to have to keep my curtains and windows closed pretty much all the time. So noisy and ugly. I guess I know my Cailtlyn disliked this place so much when she was here. Take a look at these pictures…

Looking left out my window.

Looking straight out my window.

Looking to the right out my window.

Oh wait, I have an unbelievable view!!!! I keep noticing more and more mountains! I’m on the top floor of our building, which is great. I know I’m going to love living here.

After unpacking everything, I met a some students living here in the apartment (Thailand and Bulgaria). They seemed very nice. Stefan from Bulgaria immediately asked if I was training for a competition, which was interesting. I told him I enjoy being active and love to run. Haha! Few students are here currently as school doesn’t start until March 7^th for most. I however have orientation this week starting Wednesday. The internet works very well here in my room which is a relief.

If you would like to send me something in the mail (which I highly suggest you do!), I now know my official address.

Akademikerhilfe

Matt Hendrix

Schutzenstrasse 43/416

A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria Europe

Tomorrow will be another productive day as Johanna is taking us to register here in Austria and also set up our bank account so that we can pay for our housing and phone bill each month. (Both cheaper than in the states!) I should then get my phone officially set up with internet and more calling minutes and texting for the month. Also plan on running around the area tomorrow afternoon to become more familiar.

I will be taking the bus for the first time tomorrow, so we shall see how that goes! Should be an adventure. Once I buy a bike, it will only take me about 15 minutes to get to downtown Innsbruck. Not bad at all. Exercise and save money!  Looking forward to getting to know more people in my dorm, become familiar with this area of town, and the bus routes. Just a matter of time. Everything during my trip thus far is exceeding my expectations.

Grüß Gott Innsbruck!

Ready to go!

Goodbye everyone at the Hyatt!

Boeing 777

24 Feb. 2011

Well I left Orlando after hanging out with friends all day! Day went by in the blink of an eye. Got to see all my coworkers at Hyatt and the space shuttle launch before heading through security. Before I knew it I was on the Boeing 777 sitting in 16F with plenty of legroom. Made my last phone calls and turned of my phone for quite a few months! Had an enjoyable time on my flight though. Couldn’t believe I was beginning something I had been wanted to do for many years. Had a cranberry and vodka and watched Modern Family. It was starting out great! Eventually got served some veggie lasagna, salad, bread, and cheesecake. Oh did I mention a glass of wine also? I’m not a lush I promise. Had so much on my mind and was very excited so it was difficult to fall asleep quickly. I had woken up at 6 am and my flight left 12 hours later. I was hoping I would be very tired, which I was. But falling asleep was difficult. I eventually fell asleep for about four hours. There was an old cute couple sitting next to me on the flight who was asleep also. I woke up in the middle of the night to the old man sneezing and then immediately the old woman screaming “ Yuahhhh Yuahhhhh…. Small pause. Ohhhhhhugggg. Ohhhhhhhhh.  Ohhhh…” The sneeze woke her up and she was apparently out of it and couldn’t comprehend what had just happened. They started laughing a lot and I could hardly hold it in. I had to put the blanket over my  face so they couldn’t see me laughing so much. Fell back asleep and woke up to breakfast and had some English tea. Landed in London about an hour later. Went through security and headed to my gate for my flight to Innsbruck. Next flight happened extremely quickly, as I fell asleep for 75% of the flight. 

About ready to land in IBK.

Just laned in IBK. Mountains in the background.

 

25 Feb. 2011

Woke up to the plane about to land and mountains all around. We flew right over downtown Innsbruck. Innsbruck literally means bridge over the Inn (Inn River runs through IBK.)Mountains were gorgeous. I was still half asleep and kind of out of it so I was just going through the motions. Got my passport stamped and went to baggage claim. My bags were there in less than two minutes. Used a cart and got a taxi to downtown where my hostel was. Checked in and walked around the city a bit. Had a delicious slice of pizza. (20 minutes from Italy border). 

Hostel for the first few nights.

Went back to the hostel and took a nap and then met up with my MCI buddy (Johanna). She is extremely nice and funny. We rode in her car back to the airport to pick up Megan (the other student from UCF studying abroad here). We headed back to the hostel, then went out do dinner with Johanna. We ate at a restaurant, which was very good. I had a chicken salad… typical I know. There were few chicken options and I didn’t want chicken with cocktail sauce.  The restaurants always have a complete smoking section and a also a nonsmoking section. Made a trip to McDonalds to steal the WiFi once again. We honestly can live without WiFi for a few days, but we wanted to check in with all our friends and family back home. I didn’t eat McDonalds… but they do have curly fries there! Made with 100% Austrian potatoes! Met Nathan who is from Illinois who has lived in Austria for nearly two years. He is teaching English here in Innsbruck. He’s also very good at speaking German. Johanna, Nathan, Megan and I then went to an Irish Pub right near MCI. Made it back to the hostel around 1 am and stayed up talking until 3 a.m. First day in IBK. Success. Amazing. Very impressed. 

Johanna, Megan, Me, Nathan

26 Feb. 2011

Megan and I woke up around 10 a.m. so we could have breakfast downstairs in the café. We had sandwich baguettes with jam, and my favorite; Nutella! Also had hot chocolate, corn flakes, and we were served two pieces of cake….at breakfast! Back to the room to nap until 1 pm… Showered got ready and explored the city much more. Saw the Inn river and a guy fly fishing. The river was extremely clear.  Walked more around the city and managed to find Sill Park which is a very nice mall!I bought some gloves that my finger tips go through so I can still use my phone. On clearance… 1 euro!  Also got some shoes, a backpack for my notebook and macbook for school and a nice warm cozy hat! On our way back, we bought pasta sauce and nutella, and bread to make dinner here at the hostel. I love seeing people walking down the streets with snowboard in their hands and ski goggles on their head. Transporation here looks extremely efficient. Trams, Busses, Bikes, Trains. Airport. Many options! 

Megan and I shopping. Didn't buy the chicken hat, I promise.

Those are the smaller mountains in the back..

Random strasse.

The Golden Roof

 After arriving back at the hostel we made dinner, Nathan came over and hung out with us for a bit, and we planned to go to bed early, although we didn’t end up falling asleep until 1 a.m.

27 Feb. 2011

Another breakfast downstairs in the café and we met two other girls staying in the hostel for a few days. Where from? The US. What state? Illiniois! What school? SIU and U of I! Small world! Kathleen and Rachel are their names. Kathleen was wearing an Illinois hoodie! They are both studying social work here and will be at MCI as well. We already know we have one class together (Austrian Culture and Cuisine). Great to already meet people. We showed them the McDonalds for free i-net so they could check in with friends and family back at home.

We have this theory as to why everyone is skinny here. I’ve yet to see a fat person and this is day three. I’ve seen two pregnant people. So here are our theories so far. 1. They walk or ride their bike everywhere. 2. They smoke. 3. There are few benches. 4. Ingredients in food are healthy and fresh. 5. Portions sizes are smaller 6. Very outdoorsy (Skiing and hiking). 7. Their desserts aren’t extremely rich and full of pounds of sugar like in the states. 8. Must walk up hills. 9. Clear air and water. 10. Altitude.

We are all moving into our apartments tomorrow which should be interesting! Hope it all goes well. Have my phone halfway set up already. I have 100 free text and 100 free minutes until I get it officially set up online where I will then have inet on my phone. Must get my registration form signed first, then set up a bank account, and then activate my phone. Tomorrow should be a very productive day with moving and Ikea. Looking forward to it. Remember you can text me at 321 775 5151, but you just can’t call me. I should be on Skype more often once I have WiFi at my apartment.

The Inn River.

Went running with Megan and Nathan today. Ran along in Inn river. 6.2 miles. Guess I’ve started training already! Got to see a lot more of the city. It's a big city, but not so big that you can't get around by bike if needed. My apartment, downtown, and campus shouldn't be more than a 15 minutes from each other. After running, went to Magic Pizza and had a HUGE slice of spinach and goat cheese pizza. Delicious! Probably going out with the IL girls later tonight.

Seriously having a blast here. Obsessed with this place already. Perfect for me.

Less than 24 hours?

One last update before I'm in Europe! 99% packed at this point with the exception of last minute things (toothbrush, deoderant, etc!) Had another going away party this weekend, this time in Florida! Another great time with friends! I'm going to miss everyone so much!!

Let's hope all my traveling goes smoothly tomorrow. My flight leaves at 6:30 pm. Jason is taking me to the airport around 4:00 so I can check all my bags and then we are going to head up to the helipad at the airport to watch the last Discovery Space Shuttle launch at 4:50! After that I'll head through security and be on my way from there. Wow... This is all so surreal.  Looking forward to beginning my adventure though!

ONE WEEK AWAY!

Wow, hard to believe that in just seven days I will be beginning my journey. My life is changing dramatically in just a matter of days. Living in a country I’ve never been to. Speaking a language I know very little. New school. New apartment. New friends. New everything basically!  Lots of packing and a list of things to do this week before I leave.

I had a great trip back in Illinois. Relaxing and fun time with friends and family. Had a birthday party/going away party for my at home which was fun! Hate saying goodbye to everyone, but know this will be one of the best experiences. Wish everyone could go with me! Well I will keep this short for now. Be sure to check back often as I’ll be updating more frequently as my journey begins. 

My Austrian flag cupcakes!

One week!