Guns, Culture, and Life Updates

To introduce a lesson a American Cultural Etiquette and some of the cultural differences between America and Austria, I asked the students in my 5th Form class today who had been to America. I then asked what observations they had made about cultural differences. This is how part of the conversation went:

Me: For those of you who have been to America, what kinds of cultural differences did you notice during your trip? Or if you haven't been to America, what do you notice from movies, tv, or just general observation?
One Student: I haven't been to America, but I know one differences is that Americans love their guns. For example, after this shooting in Newtown, Americans say all we need is more guns to make these things stop happening. I think that's very wrong. Why will more guns solve the problem?

Now this was not at all the kind of answer I was looking for. I was thinking something more along the lines of "Austrians never talk to random people in the street but Americans are more friendly" or "American servers are much more attentive than Austrian waiters" or something equally fluffy. Luckily,  though, this gave me the opportunity to talk about gun control and the Second Amendment and explain why this is such a controversial issue in America. In the interest of presenting a broad perspective, I tried to defend gun rights advocates, even though I wholeheartedly agree with most of the arguments the students were making. This little interaction, which was really only a small part of a much larger, very fun and interesting lesson, reminded me that there are some ideas so prevalent in American life that people not from America simply cannot understand. Because I'm so used to the NRA and "right to bear arms" arguments, the fact that people own guns and assert their rights to own guns doesn't seem unusual to me. To outsiders, though, Americans appear crazy. Guns are very uncommon in Austria (aside from hunting of course) so these arguments that have been circulating America recently about gun rights make Americans look deranged and excessively violent. All the kids seemed to ask "why do you need guns?" To a group of people who have grown up in a place where the NRA and "my 2nd Amendment Rights" are not household phrases, guns seem unnecessary. To them, the issue is black and white: More guns means more people dying, fewer guns means fewer people dying, therefore fewer guns are better.

I think this gun rights issue speaks to a deeper interest so clearly manifest in the American mindset that isn't so firmly established in Austria: personal liberty and freedom. Of course Austria is a democracy, where voting is incredibly important and freedom is taken seriously, but there is little, if any, discussion of individual liberty and personal rights. Austria's "Bill of Rights" has many of the same provisions as the American Bill of Rights, but it isn't appealed to regularly the way Americans talk about "first amendment rights" or "second amendment rights." It seems that this intense concern for individual liberty and great fear that some person or organization might infringe upon that liberty is a uniquely American phenomenon. At least according to my very limited and amateur observation.

IN OTHER, LESS THOUGHT-PROVOKING AND RAMBLY NEWS, here are some quick life updates, since I haven't written in a while:

• This is the end of the semester, which means we have a break next week! I'll be going to Amsterdam and Bruges with 3 other TAs and one friend of a friend! I have wanted to go to Amsterdam for a long long time and I've heard that Bruges is absolutely beautiful, so I could not be more excited about this trip. Fingers crossed for good weather!
• Tomorrow I am taking a step out of reality and going to a BALL. Yes, Balls are things that still happen in the 21st century! Austrian Ball Season is between Christmas and Ash Wednesday, and there are literally hundreds of balls going on around the country during this time. Most of them are put on by companies, trade unions, universities, cities, social clubs, or charitable organizations. There are some pretty comical ones, including the "Doctor's Ball," the "Volunteer Firefighters Ball," the "BonBon Ball" and the "Kaffeesiederball" (put on by owners of coffee houses). The most famous and most elegant are the Opernball and the Wiener Philharmonikerball. The one I am going to is put on by the Technical University (supposedly the best one for people my age). I'm going with a big group of friends and I fully plan on meeting a prince there, so get excited for that update soon. I'll be sure to write all about my experience, hopefully before I leave for Amsterdam, but if I don't have time, then soon after. I am SO excited. I've been watching lots of YouTube instructional videos on how to waltz...this is going to be interesting.
• School has been kind of dull lately because a lot of classes have been cancelled due to teachers being sick, students taking tests, or skiing field trips. I haven't had too much to do or too many exciting lessons, but once the next semester starts, I expect things to pick up again.

Ready for the Ball!

That's all for now--stay tuned for what will hopefully be grand, elegant, and romantic stories and pictures from the coming attractions!

Salzburg: The Rainclouds Are Alive

I'd love to say that the reason it took me over 3 weeks to get my act together and write this blog post about the remaining days of my winter break was because I was too busy gallivanting with Austrian royals and charming the malleable minds of eager youths. But that would be a lie. I've had plenty of free time but just been much too lazy to write because the idea was daunting. But here I am, with lots and lots of pictures and hopefully interesting stories to tell. 

If you'll remember, dear reader, after Michal and I finished our week in Barcelona we came back to Austria to continue the European exploration. We spent one day in Vienna, which consisted of a grand tour of the major hits of the Vienna inner city including the famous museums, the Ringstrasse, the Hofburg, St. Stephen's Cathedral, other churches, the Parliament, my favorite building the Rathaus, the University, etc etc. I also introduced Michal to the Austrian delights that are Wienerschnitzel and Käsespätzle. But then bright and early the next morning we hopped on the train headed for SALZBURG! Salzburg is probably the second most famous city in Austria but it's actually quite small. It is only the 4th largest city and there are only about 150,000 people--smaller than Irvine! However because it is the birthplace of Mozart and home of the Von Trapp family, it's a huge tourist destination, and after visiting, I understand why it's so beloved.

We started our Salzburg experience with a Rick Steves walking tour of the old city. This took us to lots of churches, each with its own charming little cemetery (you know how much Michal and I LOVE cemeteries). One of the highlights of the tour was the Salzburg Cathedral, which I liked much more than your typical cathedral. I thought it was definitely unique, and was shocked to learn that it was built in only 14 years!! An interesting piece of trivia about Salzburg: for hundreds of years it was ruled by an Archbishop, meaning the political and religious authority rested in the same man. Talk about power. For this reason there are lots of huge gorgeous palaces within the city and just outside, because these archbishops had SO much money. This also meant that the political and religious histories of the city intertwine a lot, which I of course found fascinating!

Courtyard cemetery at St. Sebastian's Church

The old part of Salzburg and the hilltop fortress,
as seen from the other side of the river

And there's ole Wolfi

Outside of the Cathedral

 The pictures below are of St. Peter's church cemetery, probably one of my favorite parts of the old city of Salzburg. This cemetery was more like a garden with impeccably-trimmed and beautifully-cared-for graves. This is also the cemetery that inspired the directors of Sound of Music--although the scene where the Von Trapps hide in a cemetery was shot on a Hollywood set, the cemetery was modelled after this one (you can see the cages below are similar to the ones in the film!)

St. Peters is also the home to some catacombs built into the cliff behind it.We were able to climb up and see these catacombs, and with the climb we got some nice views of the city below!

Getreidegasse is the most famous shopping street in Salzburg. It's a narrow cobblestone alleyway, pedestrians only, with lots of original architecture, most famous for these wrought-iron signs. Walking down the street you really do feel like you've been transported back in time. There are lots of specialty shops, tons of Tracht stores, and of course several enticing bakeries. Even the McDonalds has to have the iron sign, and although it has the classic golden arches, I would have missed it, had Rick not pointed it out. It's impressive when even a McDonalds blends in!

Getreidegasse is also home to Mozart's Birth House

 Our next stop was the Fortress Hohensalzburg, the hilltop castle built consistently over a period of about 700 years. Interestingly, although this castle was equipped with all the defenses a hilltop fortress needed, it was never actually used for defense. The only time someone tried to invade Salzburg, the city surrendered. The invader was Napoleon, so I'd say maybe they made the right choice. Instead, the castle was used for pleasure for various archbishops, who had the place furnished with glamorous bedrooms and concert halls. There were some prisoners held there as well (including one archbishop who was imprisoned because of some Catholic-Protestant struggle that I can't remember, but since every struggle for hundreds of years was Catholic-Protestant, it doesn't surprise me). Now the caslte is home to several museum exhibits, some cooler than others. Although the hike up was kind of rough, the view from the top (despite AWFUL weather) was breathtaking!

Michal's first Käsekrainer!

 After a long day of trekking all around the city and seeing almost everything the old town and castle have to offer, Michal and I headed back to our hostel. As is typical of many hostels in Salzburg, our hostel caters to the cliche-happy tourists by showing the Sound of Music every night. I've probably mentioned this before but Austrians hate the Sound of Music. Hate might be a strong word. Actually, hate implies that they actually know what it is. In fact, most Austrians (most Europeans) have never even heard of the film, let alone seen it. I've mentioned it in class a few times and always get blank stares. The teachers generally know what it is but either they haven't seen it or they think it's a silly movie full of stereotypes that just make fun of Austrians. I have a lot of feelings on this argument and wont get into them now, but suffice to say, there's a reason the only Sound of Music tours offered in Salzburg are in English. [The distaste of the film in the German-speaking world might have something to do with the fact that the German title of the film is "Meine Lieder, Mein Traum" which translates to "My songs, my dream"--WHAT? Dumbest title ever.]

So we watched the movie in a room full of Americans and Australians, some more familiar with the film than others. Michal and I, the hilariously witty people that we are, provided our own snide, charming, and undeniably hysterical commentary throughout the film, but it was unclear to us whether our fellow viewers thought us funny or annoying. We'll just imagine they thought us funny.

This prepped us for the next days events: THE SOUND OF MUSIC TOUR!!!! This tour included a huge party bus and enthusiastic but not so funny tour guide that led us around to many of the sites used in the filming of the movie, or sites that were important to the real Von Trapp family. While we were driving, Helen, the tour guide, tried her best to get us to sing along with the movie soundtrack. That didn't go so well (of course I obliged willingly). She also shared some cute stories about the filming process, the actual Von Trapps, and the many many historical inaccuracies (which I refuse to accept as reasons to dislike the film--we're not watching a documentary people, we're watching a fictional musical that if anything, paints the subject matter in the absolute best light possible). Below are some pictures. If you imagine the skies much much bluer and the trees much much greener and the people generally happier and singier, you'll maybe recognize the places from the film! And if you haven't seen the film, stop reading, watch it, then reevaluate your life and choices and people you choose to spend time with.

Mirabell Palace Gardens, where most of Do Re Mi was filmed
(they ran through this thing, when it had more leaves)

Steps they use for the end of the song, where each step is a
note and then Julie Andrews hits that ridiculously high note

More of Mirabell Gardens, just because they're lovely

Leopoldskron Palace, used for the scenes on the lake and the back porch of the house. FUN FACT: A different house was used for the front of the house and even the back exterior shots, so they had to do a lot of funky filming. If you watch the movie, this house itself never appears in the film, just the back porch, the garden, and the lake!

Closer in, where you can see more of the back porch.
So much happens there. I really love this movie.

As if this needs a caption....Although apparently too many people
got hurt while trying to reenact the 16 Going On 17 dance
scene that they closed the gazebo, and nobody is allowed
inside anymore. Tourists ruin everything.

The fields of Schloss Hellbrunn are alive.

Attempted drive-by picture of the house they actually used for the exteriors
of the Von Trapp house in the film. Now it's a dorm for the Salzburg music
school. Not fair. I should have practiced more.

Mozart Bridge in the old city, the children also ran across this during
Do Re Mi. And looked off the edge in wonderment, as I am doing.

Church in Mondsee, a small town outside of Salzburg, where they
filmed the wedding scene. The church at the Nonnberg Abbey,
where they were really married, was too small for the camera equipment.

Considering I named my blog after a line from a song in the Sound of Music and my first post had a photoshopped picture of me inserted into the film, I clearly don't care that the film has about zero historical accuracy and is chock full of stereotypes about the country. It's just a wonderful movie (even if the acting is terrible) and I love it. And the tour was awesome. 

We ended our time in Salzburg with a trip to the Salzburg Museum, where we learned a lot about the history of the city and saw some lovely art. All in all, I LOVED Salzburg. Despite the absolutely horrible weather, I still found it to be beautiful, charming, quaint, and very friendly. I'd love to see it in the spring or summer! As always, thanks for reading!!

Barcelona Day 6: La Sagrada Familia!

In the past several blog posts I have mentioned La Sagrada Familia over and over. But what exactly is this mysterious monument, you may ask? Well, Michal and I finally visited it on our last morning before heading to the airport to fly back to Vienna. La Sagrada Familia is a huge (understatement) church, designed by Antoni Gaudi (surprise surprise).  We stayed in a place pretty close to this imposing building so we went to check it out our first night there, and were disappointed to se so much scaffolding set up all around it. I mentioned to Michal that it seems like every church or cathedral I visit is under construction when I visit, but she mentioned to me that it’s actually not under construction…it is still being built!! It was begun in 1882, but because of monetary issues and the simple fact that it takes ages to build something of that magnitude, it still is not done. The current projected end date is sometime between 2030 and 2040, but who actually knows?! 

Anyway, this place is gorgeous. The outside of the church is designed to have 3 facades: the Nativity Façade (the only one Gaudi actually completed before he died in 1926), the Passion Façade (completed by a different artist in a complete different, but still cool, style), and the Glory Façade (not done yet). It is difficult to describe how the church looks from the outside because it’s so unique, but the best I can come up with is that from afar it kind of looks like a drip sand castle. I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

We entered through the doors in the Passion façade, which you can see in the pictures below. The figures decorating this façade are very angular and clearly works of modern art, which is strange to see in a church, I feel.  Apparently there is a lot of controversy over these figures, with a sort of “love it or hate it” debate, and I can definitely see why. I’ll let you decide for yourselves how you feel J 

I liked these pictures on the floor of the entrance

Michal was disappointed by the inside of the church, because we had both thought that it would be very full, with tons of detail, the kind of place that you can stare at for ages and constantly see something new. On the contrary, it was very very plain. I still liked it a lot, though. The stained glass windows (my favorite part—I LOVED them) harkened back to the Gaudi tiles of Park Güell. Rather than showing a picture or telling a story, they were just very very bright, colorful, abstract jumbles. The nave is huge and supported by giant pillars that are designed to look like trees. The idea is that when you stand in the nave it feels like you’re on the floor of a forest. It was really neat, I thought.

SUPER high ceiling

These four columns (only 3 in the picture) have the symbols
of the 4 evangelists on them (lion for Mark, Eagle for John, etc)

My favorite part of the church, by far, was the Nativity façade. Now this is a piece of art/sculpture/architecture that you really could could stare at for days and days and still find new things. The various sculptures on the façade tell the story of the nativity, as the name suggests, with incredible detail and artistry. The events included are the annunciation, visitation, flight to Egypt, wedding of Mary and Joseph, massacre of the innocents, adoration of the shepherds and magi, presentation of Jesus in the temple, Jesus at work, and a few others. One part I thought was especially cool was the way Gaudi included certain names and words in the sculpture but weaved them into the figures themselves so you almost don’t realize there are words there. The whole façade is really a work of incredible genius. Like I said, I could have spent hours staring at each section of the façade, taking in each and every detail.

You can see where the older stuff ends and newer stuff starts

That concludes the chronicle of our time in Barcelona! In general, I found it to be a lively, fun city that I would certainly go back to again in the future! I can’t say it’s my favorite city I’ve ever been to, but I definitely enjoyed it and I highly recommend a trip there for anyone looking for an interesting destination to travel to!

Barcelona Days 4/5: Lame then AWESOME

New Years Day was kind of a dud. The weather was rough, nothing was open, and we were tired. So we walked a ton, sat on the harbor during the non-rainy part of the day, people-watched, bought our tickets for the next day’s adventure, watched some Doctor Who and Modern Family, and went to bed early. After lots of busy busy days we needed a day to just explore and rest.

The NEXT day, though, our last day in Barcelona, was absolutely fantastic. We took a train out of the city to Montserrat, a mountain with multiple peaks close to Barcelona. We took a cable car to the top of the mountain, through a very very thick cloud cover, emerging ontop of the clouds into a sunny wonderland. Although we were worried about the weather because of the fog and clouds we saw from the train, we were so high up on the mountain that we had abundant sunshine and a really cool of the cloud layer itself. The way the clouds moved with the wind and the way the sun hit the clouds and mountains at different angles made for an incredibly stunning sight.

Montserrat is home to the Santa Maria de Montserrat, a Benedictine abbey that remains to this day a functioning monastery. This monastery is home to the Black Virgin, a statue of Mary with Jesus on her lap. Legend has it this figure was discovered in some caves by shepherds in the 9^th century. They tried to move it to a church but at some point it became extremely heavy so they couldn’t move it anymore. They then decided to build the monastery around it! We began our day by hiking down to Santa Cova, a chapel built around the caves in which the black virgin was supposedly found. The coolest part of this hike (other than the views of the clouds) was a series of sculptures in varying styles that lined the path and told the story of Jesus’s life, from the visitation of Elizabeth and Mary to Jesus’s ascension into Heaven. It was cool how each sculpture had its own materials, its own design, and likely its own artist. I thought that was a cool addition to this hike, making it feel almost pilgrimmagy. 

Next we visited the Basilica itself. There was a nice museum about the history of Montserrat, the monastery, and the black virgin. They also had a section on the monastery today and exactly what the monks who live there do on a daily basis. It showed an example of the schedule in a typical day as well as some videos of the monks working, eating, walking, etc. The monastery is also home to a very famous and renowned music school. The boys choir, made of only about 30-40 boys ages 9-14, is quite prestigious, and the end of the exhibit featured a pretty elaborate music video of the boys singing with a Catalonian opera singer and pop star. Michal and I enjoyed it a lot. I also enjoyed the basilica itself. I found it to be really beautiful, both inside and out. We decided to wait in line to go into the room where we could see the black virgin, and I was glad we did, because the hallways and stairways leading up to it were very ornately decorated and again quite beautiful.

Black Virgin in her little alcove, overlooking the nave

Hallway leading to the are with the Black Virgin

Our final adventure of the day involved yet another funicular up to the highest peak of the mountain, St. Joan. There are a series of hermitages up there, as well as little chapels and more viewing points. The funicular dropped us off at the foot of a path going up to peaks, so we decided to climb to the very top. It was one of those experiences where paths kept branching off the main path, so anytime we saw something going up, we took it, and ended up hiking up some very precarious steps and slopes with loose gravel, but we eventually made it up to the very very top of the mountain and the reward was well well worth the questionable nature of the climb. We could see for miles and miles and miles, all the way out to the ocean on one side and across several mountain ranges to the other. I honestly feel like we could see all of Catalonia from up there. The sky was the most perfect blue, there was a light breeze, the sun was huge—everything was so perfect.

We had a picnic up on top of the mountain so we could soak in as much sunshine as possible, before slowly making our way back down to head back to the city so we could pack our things and get ready to leave the next day.