Übung macht den Meister

This week I was really able to see what the phrase `Practice makes perfect` really means. I managed to do some research and the closest translation to it is `Übung macht den Meister`.

I have had a pretty good week having Wednesday off from school was pretty awesome. I was picked up by Georg's mum and then we went to Chiemsee the largest lake in all of Bavaria. It is roughly 60km from Munich. In this lake there is an island 'Herrenchiemsee' where King Ludwig II built the neues Schloss which translates to New Palace. We went on a tour through the new palace and it was amazing, unfortunately we were unable to take any photos whilst inside the Palace but it was an amazing sight.
There is only one problem and that is that King Ludwig II ran out of money about half way through the building process and just ditched the project.

Sunday was really really great.  We went to the other side of Bad Aibling and to be honest I thought it couldn't get any bigger. Matt, Michi and I went to Therme Bad Aibling where we were able to swim and relax.  One pool connected to outside so the water was really warm and the snow was all around.  It was refreshing to put your head up and then sink back down to stay warm.

Till Sunday
Josh

Chiemsee

Herrenchiemsee

On Wednesday this week there was no school. So Josh, Georg, Lisi and I went to Chiemsee. First we caught the ferry to the island Herrenchiemsee, where the palace that was built by King Ludwig II in 1878 is. The Palace was never finished due to the King running out of money and him being found dead with his Doctor in the Lake. No one knows what really happened that night when they were out for a stroll and no one will ever know. I think that's what made me like the Palace more, all the mystery behind it. After touring the Palace and then heading into the Museum we caught the ferry to Frauenchiemsee. It's the second largest island in Chiemsee. On the island there is a Monastry which is about 600 years old. Each year they hold a Kristkindlmarkt which attracts lots of tourists to the island. It was getting late so we had some Kaffee and Kuchen and then caught the Ferry back to the mainland. On the drive home it started to snow a little bit, but it didn't stay. That night Georg and I had Plattlerprob, Bavarian dance, from 1900 until about 2000. It was the third time we've had it and I'm catching onto it quite well, and Georg is also. It's heaps of fun and we always have a good time.

 On Friday Georg and I went for a swim in a river when it was about 3 degrees outside and the river was even colder. Although we nearly froze it was really funny and we felt awesome after it. Saturday we cooked with Georg's mum and made Christmas biscuits, 'Weihnachtsplaetzchen' but there aren't many left becuase we ate so many already!

Sunday we went to Therme Bad Aibling becuase the weather was wet and cold. We stayed there for about three hours and then left to go to the cinemas to see 'Catching Fire' in the Hunger Games series. It was a good film, even though I couldn't understand all of it. After the film we all left and headed home for another day at school the next day.

Only 3 weeks left

I've been here now for 7 weeks already, but it feels like I only got here 3 weeks ago. Time has flown, probably because I've been having such a good time.

This week the weather wasn't the best, so we couldn't do much outside of school. Although on Friday after school I went with Kathi's family to Switzerland. It took us about 5 hours to drive to Aesch a town about 15km outside of Zurich. We stayed with Kathi's mum's best friend, Christina. That night we settled in, being ready for Saturday. On Saturday we went into Zurich for the day. We walked around the city, looking at many shops. We saw Falsenegg lake and ETH Zurich. A university of engineering, science, technology, mathematics and management. Albert Einstein graduated from the university in 1920 and later came back to teach there also. Time flew and before we knew it we had to leave because it was getting dark and cold. So we left and headed back to Aesch for dinner.

Sunday we went to the local school in Aesch where Maxi, Christina's son, goes to school. It's a small primary school with a Basketball/Soccer court, a small playground and a table tennis thing. We left Aesch at about 1400 to head back to Germany becuase we had school the next day. So we said our Goodbyes and drove back to Germany arriving at about 1900.

This week was a really good one, even though we didn't go out much it was nice to stay and relax for a bit because we have been busy the past 7 weeks and it was nice to slow down a bit.

Until next week,
Matt

G'day Zurich

G'day everyone all is well here in Deutschland. I am having an amazing time.  This week was really a break through with not only my speaking skills but with the way I interpret German. I am finding it hard to speak English.  The first thing I say is German and I find it is so good.

On Friday night straight after school Kathi, Matt and I went by bus to Holzhausen where we had lunch and then we began our drive to Zurich which was great to see some sights along the way and also to catch up on some sleep.  We arrived at Kristina's (a friend of Kathi's mum) house and we get unpacked and retired after some dinner.

Saturday was when the real sight-seeing began.  We started the day by driving from the little village of Aesch where Kristina lives to the central part of Zurich where we could see some very historical buildings and there was an amazing lake named Falsenegg we walked around a part of it and looked at all the little differences to Germany. Going into every shop we could see why this part of the city had such nice cars -everything was extremely expensive.

Sunday was a day to say goodbye to everyone and before we left we played some table tennis and basketball at the local primary school in Aesch. We left from Aesch at around 2pm and arriving home at around 7pm.  We had a really relaxed night and got ready for school the next day.

I can see us having a very action packed week next week after us having such a relaxed time this week.

3 weeks left...

Bis Sonntag

Getting colder...

Since going back to school on Tuesday we have had a pretty relaxed week. The weather hasn't been the best either.

On Tuesday at school we had sport. In sport we played some Soccer for most of the time and then we did a little bit of High Jump, but we ran out of time to get a proper competition going. After school I rode to Kathi's house and played some Basketball with Josh. I left at about 1900 and rode back to Georg's house when it was only about 0 degrees.

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were all pretty relaxed. On Wednesday we had afternoon school and the weather was bad so we couldn't do much after that.

On Saturday we went to Rosenheim in the afternoon to see my exchange partner from last year, Benni.  We stayed in Rosenheim till about 2130-2200 then Georg's father, Hans, came and took us back home to Großkaro.

Sunday I went with Kathi's family and Josh to the Bavaria Filmstadt. It's a Bavarian Film studio and they make Movies. Some of the movies which were made there are, das Boot, Sams im Glück, Wikie and more. Once we got there we had a tour around the studios and went into some of the Museums which had some of the things they used in the movies. We then went into a big studio where they had many interactive games and videos. We spent a good 2-3 hours in there after making a Star Trek like movie with a group of people. We then left and as we were leaving it started to Snow! I was then taken home and said goodbye.

Logo of the Film City

This week I wasn't very busy and it was a relaxed one, but next week will be more interesting....I'm sure.
Until next week, Matt

Winter, she comes

My week was very chilled out due to the weather being pretty soggy.

The more I am learning about Germany and its culture, language and all the other little differences the more eager I am to increase my German skills.

On Monday we had regular classes then I went to Matt's house. We got there at around lunch time, ready to go relax and eat lunch. We just relaxed until Georg came home then he took us for a walk and we saw some sights near his house and then quickly made our way back due to Winter kicking in.

On Friday after school, Kathi, Steffi, Franz and myself went to Munich.We travelled to Munich by train and we arrived right under the Marien Platz which is a big square for shopping in Munich and there is everything you could possibly want.

At around 7:00pm we caught a train to a small village near Tutzing, the name alludes me but we were picked up by Kathi's Dad and we continued on to her house from there.  Kathi's Dad owns a stable where people leave their horses and then they pay him rent.

Saturday I helped clean the stables which was interesting, learning what goes into taking care of horses and how to act around them. We then went back up to their house, ate breakfast and they showed me some nice views around Oberhof.

Sunday was an early start.  We cleaned the horse stable and then Kathi's Mum came and picked Franzi, Kathi and I up and brought Matt along with us to the Bavarian Filmstudios.  This was amazing.  We watched some of the cartoon skits and films by Michael Herbig. The small percentage of his jokes that I understood made me crack up laughing.


This was an amazing week and the amount of German I have learnt is really coming out in the way I can speak to people and joke around in German.

Till next week

Josh

YES ROME!!!!

 
Montag  we picked up Matt's parents(Paula and Nev) and went to Austria for the day touring around showing them some sights.  We went up to the top of a hill and there was a Kapelle which is a small church where you can go to pray without any distractions. Here we could see to Rosenheim, Bad Aibling  and many other cities and small villages.  After this spectacular sight we drove through the mountains to the most amazing cluster of waterfalls.  It was one of the best views I've ever had in my life, it was amazing.

Tuesday was Austria again but just Georg, Matt and I went by train to Kufstein.  We went to Festung Kufstein which translates to Kufstein Fortress.  This was a beautiful old castle remarkably well preserved and we spent a better half of our day there looking at all the information and pictures.
In the last room we looked at we saw the largest movable organ in all of Europe it was breathtaking.



 Wednesday was nice relaxed day, because we had Paula and Nev West come to Kathi's for coffee and cake.  We introduced them to her family. It was nice and also a good test to see if I had gotten better at translating from German to English.

Thursday we went for a bike ride to Koblermoor and went to the Eisdiele (Ice-creamery), I know first time someone said ice-creamery in German I felt a little uncomfortable. We then cycled along the river to Bad Aibling and then I got picked up from Georg's house to get ready for Wok Paradies, a Japanese restaurant where you can choose your food and watch them cook it.

Friday was Rome I had no idea about what all the sights would look like right up close. We had that day to unpack and get well acquainted with our surroundings and go have a look at all the little wonders of Rome that were in our vicinity.

Saturday was when we went to the Vatican and I was speechless when I entered St. Paul's Cathedral, it was amazing. We were on a guided tour so we could walk straight past the 1 kilometre line and enter with ease. After the Vatican we headed to the hotel for a little sleep and woke up just in time for dinner.

Sunday was hands down my favourite day overall.  We went to the Colosseum and that was amazing, it was the one thing I was so passionate about seeing. We took some photos and then continued on through the lower levels where they had a small museum of relics and artefacts.

 This week was so amazing I am sad to say good bye to Rome.

Bis Später Josh

Holidays and Roma!

Holidays! This week we had a one week holiday, and it's also week five, half way through my exchange trip....:(
On Tuesday we went to see my parents, who were staying in Rosenheim. We picked them up and went for a drive to Austria and on the way back we showed them around the area and then went back to Georg's house for Mittagsessen. After Mittagsessen we showed them around Georg's farm and the cow halls. We then went to a Cake shop called Wiklstüberl. The cakes there are massive and you can't eat the pieces in one sitting, but the cakes were some of the best I have ever tried before. We left to go back to Großkaro feeling full and a little bit sick, but it was worth it.

View from Kufstein Fortress

Wednesday we went to Kufstein in Austria. Once we arrived there we went to Kufstein Fortress. They are unsure when the Fortress was built but it was first mentioned in a document in 1205. The Fortress was conquered in 1504 as well as the city by Emperor Maximilian I. We had a look around the inner city afterwards and then caught the train back to Großkaro. That afternoon my parents were invited to Kathi's house for afternoon tea. It was nice and we all had a good time.

Thursday we rode to Kolbormoor to the Ice Creamery and then to Bad Aibling. The weather was cold and a little bit wet but it was a nice long ride. That night we went to Kolbormoor again with Georg's family, my parents and Kathi. It was my parents' last night in Rosenheim so we all went out to Wokparadies, a Chinese restaurant where you pay 15€ and you can eat as much as you want. You can choose some food and they will cook it right in front of you or you can take some of the already cooked food. It was a great night.  Leaving at about 2100, we dropped my parents at their Hotel and went back to Großkaro. Josh stayed at Georg's house that night because the next day, Josh, Georg, my parents and I were flying to Rome!

Altare della Patria

Friday... I woke up feeling excited and ready to go to Rome, but I had to pack first because I hadn't done so the day before... So after packing everything and having Frühstück we were all ready to drive to the Airport in Munich. After getting to the Airport, checking in, going through security and then flying to Rome, being driven to our hotel, we were finally there. That afternoon we all went for a walk. We first went to Fontana di Trevi, then we kept walking and saw, Tempio Adriano, the Pantheon, Palazzo Madama and then went on to see the Piazzo Navona. We had Dinner in the square there and then walked back to our Hotel passing all those sights again.
                                                                                                                        

Saturday we went to Vatican city. It was weird to see

Fontana di Trevi

another country within a country. Vatican has its own Police and own Bishop, being the Pope.  We had to go through security to get in to the city. Once we got there we had a tour around the Museum and then the Sistine Chapel, which is one of the most amazing pieces of art work I have ever seen, it was 'mind boggling' to see the extent of hard work and skill that went into painting it. Spending a good half an hour or so in there it was time to leave and go on to see St Peter's Basilica, the biggest Church in the world and it was big. I could have spent ages in there but sadly we had to leave because our tour was coming to an end. The tour ended and we headed back to our Hotel, then Josh, Georg and I walked around the area near our Hotel, later we went for Dinner. Sunday was our second last day in Rome. We went on a tour Bus around Rome. We went to places such as, Barberni-Via Veneto, Porta Maggiore, S. Maria in Trastevere, Fori Romani, Campo De' Fiori, Pantheon, Spanish Steps and the Colosseum. Everything we saw was amazing, mainly the Architecture made me so amazed. My favourite thing we saw that day was the Colosseum. It was a place I really wanted to go and it was awesome. The Architecture and the size of it was unreal.

Colosseum

Monday we left Rome and flew back to Munich. We said our Goodbyes to my parents who were flying to Frankfurt and flying back home on Wednesday and caught the train back to Großkaro.  We dropped Josh back home, because we have school again tomorrow.

Rome was a great experience, and we all had a great time there. I can't wait to go back there when I'm older.

Ciao, Matt