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Venice Dreaming

July 20, 2015 Leave a Comment

A few weeks ago, I received the best kind of email.

Hey, I’m going to be in Venice for a couple of days. The hotel’s already booked. All you have to do is get there.

Now, if that’s not a dream come true, I don’t really know what is! I don’t think I need to tell you how I responded to that email, but I’ll give you a hint: lots of exclamation points and emoticons with huge smiles.

So I’m dreaming of Venice. It’s a bucket list item. And you know, I started this website with the idea that I would write helpful blogposts about how to visit these gorgeous places like a pro. But here’s the thing, I’m not a pro.

I hope you’ll keep reading now that you know that.

What I can promise is that I’ll share my experiences with you: good, bad, emotional, or just silly.

Have you been to Venice? Do you have tips for me?

A Friday Fiasco: When German Sticks in My Throat

July 16, 2015 Leave a Comment

“Are you going to learn German?” It’s been asked of me many times in the last three months of living in Austria.

Well, I’ve finally cashed in (seriously though) on my answer of “Yeah, I’m going to take a month-long course in the summer.” 450 euros exactly.

When it comes to learning languages, I am not a natural. I have to work at it. I still can’t tell the difference between Austrian German, Swiss German, Germany’s German, Czech, or any other European language. This horrifies and surprises some Austrians. Spanish was my language love, not German! I’m decent at Spanish and in a pinch I’d probably be okay in a Spanish-speaking country. Okay. Actually. I’d be MUCH more comfortable in a country that spoke Spanish.

But life seems less about comfort and more about growing.

Anyway, the other Friday, I stood in front of my classmates to read two paragraphs in German. Public speaking is not my favorite, but I can do it (maybe with even a bit of finesse). And apparently, I come off confident (it’s fake, I promise). The teacher told the class to stop the reader and correct the pronunciation. Cool fear traveled the back of my neck.

Every other word I spoke, the class stopped me for correction. My American tongue just couldn’t get the hang of the back of the throat sounds, and before long my throat was being unhelpful in another way. And my heart beat a cadence that only I could hear: don’t cry. don’t cry. don’t cry.

Good news. I finished reading the entirety of the two paragraphs.

Bad news. I fled to the bathroom with tears brimming at the edges of my eyelashes.

In the bathroom, I cried because I couldn’t pronounce Heimatstadt, Zurzeit, Sternzeichen, etc. But then, I found I was crying for other reasons. I missed my own culture, my own language, and my own home, where everything makes sense.*

I just want to go home. I whispered that sentence in between gasps to the open window that led to nothing (just a long window well where you could just barely see the sky). Whimpering, I wiped the tears from my cheeks, trying to gather myself to return to the classroom.

I considered just leaving. After all, the grade of this class wasn’t going to any higher up.

But then, I realized I couldn’t leave because that’s not living bravely and I always want to live bravely, and I’d see my classmates the next day anyway. What was the point of hiding? They had seen the tears coming (my face gives me away Every Time).

I went back to the classroom.

But on the way home, I cried on the ubahn (the underground) among all the commuters. I cried on the train. It was a record-breaking day for me. I hate crying in front of people. I hate crying. I hate missing. I hate that I’m susceptible to culture shock just like everyone else.

And you know what, it’s okay.

So wherever you are today, just know that it’s okay.

*side note: I love Austria (the people, the culture, the history, etc.), and I am thrilled to be living and working in this country.

Visiting Slovakia: A Retreat from Life

July 13, 2015 Leave a Comment

I know that I ought to be telling you all the best sights to see in Bratislava, Slovakia. But I’m going to fail you today, so maybe you’re already clicking away from this post. Don’t leave! Well, that’s okay, I guess. Do what you gotta.

(I kind of really love this cat.)

First of all, Slovakia is gorgeous! And Bratislava is a perfect day trip from Vienna if you want a tiny change of scenery during your visit to Austria (that is, if you visit there first).

But when I went, I didn’t need to see anything. All I needed was rest, and I didn’t really understand that was what I needed until afterwards when I was coming back to my flat and my office.

While in Slovakia, I had no responsibilities. I was there to support a friend who would be speaking in an international church there. All she wanted was for me to be there. So I brought a book. And I didn’t ask for the wifi password.

Disconnected.

Utterly and completely.

And it was wonderful. I couldn’t clean my flat while I was in Slovakia. I couldn’t write more in my book. I couldn’t run errands. I couldn’t go into the office on the weekend.

Basically, I was forced to take a retreat. I slept in on Saturday because when I dully woke in the morning sunlight, my tired brain checked my to-do list only to realize that nothing could be done. So back to sleep.

I slept better those two nights than I have in weeks in my own bed, in my own room, in my own flat.

I guess that’s all to say that you need to force yourself to get away. We talk about it a lot, but you really actually need to do it. Even if that means just turning off your phone for the day. That’s a perfect little getaway.

So how will you get away this week?