Freiburg.

As a quick reminder, I went to Freiburg to visit my friends John and Toby (whom I know from Pomona). As such, I spent much of my time in Freiburg just chilling and hanging out. Anyway, here is the trip in detail:

Saturday:

My train got in about 20 minutes late, then I had to figure out the tram system - I am sure the German mass transit system is very effective if you know how to use it, but if you are new in town, good luck! I finally made it to the tram stop and was met by John. Fortunately, he had just gotten there despite the fact I was 30-40 minutes later than expected. He thought I was going to call when I was there, but had just realized that I didn't have his number. So, I guess everything worked out in the end. After dropping my stuff off at his place, we went to go get supplies for dinner. John is part of a dinner rotation and it was his turn to cook, so I helped him make chili. Bearing in mind that neither of us had ever made chili before, it turned out really well! After dinner, we just hung out for a while.

Sunday:

Tourist time! We started the day decently early, and enjoyed eggs for breakfast, giving the copious fog time to burn off. Then we toured the Altstadt. After quick rounds there, we met up with Lou - who had been our taste tester the night before - and headed out to the Schauinsland, which is a mountain in the Black Forest near Freiburg (accessible by public transit). We were clearly not the only people with this idea, because the tram and bus were packed! Then it was a twenty minute cable car ride up to (near) the top of the mountain. A short hike took us up to the observation tower, which a afforded a tremendous view. Apparently you can see all the way to France and Switzerland from up there. Plus, the Black Forest is beautiful with its autumn foliage.

Several people on John and Toby's program quite enjoy football (English) - including Toby - so we met up at a pub to watch the Manchester United vs Manchester City game. The game was fun to watch, the stew was phenomenal, and the Hefeweizen was the best beer I have ever had. That is honestly not saying much because I only had my first beer a couple of months ago in Budapest and have not had many since. After that, we just relaxed in John's apartment, did homework, and watched a movie.

Monday:

Started nice and early, John had 9am class. I walked through the Münstermarkt, which is a market that forms in the square around the Münster (cathedral) every weekday. I also went in the Münster, which very much upholds the tradition of beautiful interiors in major European churches. It was foggy again, but I hiked up the Schlossberg (a large hill within walking distance, topped with an observation tower) hoping that the fog would burn off before I reached the top. It didn't, but all was not lost. It is quite a surreal experience to climb up into the fog, then hike through a forest permeated by that fog. When I made it to the top of the hill and then the top of the tower, the experience became truly awe-inspiring. I was still on the fog, so I couldn't see anything, which is exactly what made the experience so breathtaking. I was totally secluded - I could barely make out the tops of the trees when I looked down at them through the fog. I was all alone, seemingly on top of the world - it was as if I had completely removed myself from the earth. Sure, I could still hear the birds and the cars, but they seemed worlds away. Complete solitude - for some, that is a scary thought, but for me, it was amazing. I used the term "surreal" earlier, and I wish I could more accurately describe the feeling I had up there, but that is as close as I can come.

Maybe this sounds crazy, and it probably is, but I could have stayed up there for hours. Of course I had to leave eventually. Also, I was afraid someone would come along and ruin it, and perfect moments like that are so hard to come by. Sure enough, as I walking down the hill, I passed a family not far from the top and heading up. In the end, I didn't get the great view of the city I had initially sought, but I think I gained a much richer experience.

I descended the berg at a very relaxed pace. Then I paid the Johanneskirche (big fancy church) and the Altstadt another visit before I met up with John for bratwurst at the Münstermarkt, grabbed my stuff, bought a souvenir, and headed to the train station to begin the long trek back to Budapest.

Frankfurt am Main.

I flew into Frankfurt on Friday night, and I was hoping to do some sightseeing that night. Well, that didn't happen. My flight got in 30 minutes late, then getting to the Hauptbahnhof (main train station) was much more difficult than it should have been. First, the ticket machine for the subway would not take my €20 bill, so I had to go buy an overpriced pack of gum in the terminal. After buying the ticket, I couldn't find a system map to figure out which train and which direction to get on. After finally figuring all that out, I had to wait 20 minutes for the train to actually depart. I didn't get to my hostel until around midnight, very frustrated and hungry at that point - needless to say, this was not a good first impression of Frankfurt. I dropped my stuff off in my room, got some food at the fast food joint right next to the hostel, and went to bed.

I got up early on Saturday to see the city. I walked along the river to the Altstadt (Old City). I somehow managed to avoid mobs of tourists, until I was in the Altstadt. This was a beautiful area, especially the Frankfurter Dom - a gorgeous cathedral made from red stone. Just in front of the Frankfurt Dom, there are ruins dating back to Roman times that were uncovered thanks to bombing during WWII. I was nt expecting that, but it was really interesting. Then I strolled up to the Alte Oper (Old Opera), passing the Paulskirche on the way. The Paulskirche is a very politically important church in Frankfurt - it was the seat of the Frankfurt Parliament, the first freely elected parliament in Germany. Unfortunately the Paulskirche was closed for the day. The Alte Oper is nestled in a lovely park, and the building itself is gorgeous - though I wasn't able to go in. Next I went to the Goethe-Haus, which is the restored 18th century house of Goethe (famous German poet). Not only was it interesting to see what houses were like in the 18th century, but the fact that it was Goethe's house made it even more interesting for me because many of the Schubert songs that I sing are settings of Goethe's work.

Then it was time to cross to the southern side of the river to get lunch at the restaurant that created the first Frankfurter sausage. I'm going to lie, it tasted a lot like a hot dog - a good hot dog, but still... However, the Spaetzle (German noodles) and the soup were phenominal. I also tried the Apfelwein (apple wine), which is very popular in Frankfurt. The name kind of says it all: it tastes like a mixture of apple juice and white wine. Honestly, I think it just dulled both flavors - I would have preferred either plain apple juice or white wine.

After lunch, I still had about an hour to kill, so I strolled along the Museumsufer (Museum Bank/Shore), which is along the southern bank of the river. There are a ton of museums here, but I didn't have time to go in any of them, just enjoyed the view from outside. I also relaxed by the river for a little while before getting my luggage and heading to the train station. My train to Freiburg left 20 minutes late, but at least I was fortunate enough to find a free seat.

Vienna.

I finally have time to write about my recent travel! Actually, most of this was written going to/from Freiburg, and I now have time to transcribe it to my blog.

Day one (Friday):

We arrived in the early evening and found our hostel, which was a fair ways outside the city center, despite being named Meininger, City Center. However, it was right next to the subway, making everything really accessible. Then we found some cheap food near the hostel. I am not sure if it was just because I was really hungry, but the €2 schnitzel sandwich I had was amazing. Then we went to see all the major sights in the city center lit up at night. These include the Stephansdom (big cathedral), the Peterskirche (baroque church), the Hofburg Palace (home of the Habsburg dynasty), the Rathausplatz (city hall square), and Parliament. There was a carnival going on in the Rathausplatz (complete with cheesy music), which seemed a little out of place among the Gothic architecture. After that, we called it a night.

Day two (Saturday):

We got breakfast at a bakery and then repeated the circuit we had made the previous night to see the buildings during the day and go inside. The interiors of the Stephansdom and Paulskirche are stunning, though for completely different reasons. The Stephansdom is a Gothic cathedral, so the interior was airy and austere. On the opposite end of things, the Baroque interior of the Peterskirche was opulent and gilded. You will probably not be surprised to learn that I prefer the former style. While in the Hofburg, we visited the Ancient Arms and Armor Museum and the Ancient Musical Instruments Museum (strangely enough, in the same building). Most of both these collection comes from the private collection of the Habsburg dynasty. We got bratwurst from a street stand for lunch and headed to the UN headquarters in Vienna. Unfortunately, this is closed on the weekend, so we headed to the Mozarthaus. The Mozarthaus (where Mozart lived for a while in Vienna) cost a fair amount of money; since we didn't have that much time to view it and had already spent money on the earlier museum, we decided not to go in.

The Ancient Arms and Armor and Ancient Musical Instrument Museums are part of the Kunsthistorisches (Art History) Museum, so our ticket also got us into that museum. So, we headed back to the Kunsthistorisches Museum. However, we were sidetracked by a companion protest to Occupy Wall Street. My companions decided to follow the protest into the Hofburg Palace courtyard, but I decided to go inside the Kunsthistorisches Museum. We only had a little bit of time because we wanted to get a nice dinner that night and go to a concert. So, I was only able to see the entryway and the temporary exhibit of ancient coins. The entryway to the museum is incredibly gorgeous, and it was really interesting to look at coins from various points in history and compare them with modern coins. We followed through with our plan and had a nice dinner. I got another schnitzel, this time a real Wiener Schnitzel, in the sense that it was veal. In case you are unaware, the reason I tended toward schnitzel while in Vienna is because Wiener (English: Viennese) Schnitzel originates in Vienna. Then we went to an organ concert in the Peterskirche. It was a good concert - not the best organ playing I have ever heard, but the setting was very beautiful - after which we hung out for a while at a nearby pub.

Day three (Sunday):

Two of my companions, Cory and Ashley, and I decided to attend mass at the Stephansdom. We was a beautiful service, even though we couldn't understand most of it (them even less than me, because I could pick out a few words). We left after about an hour in the intermittent flow of tourists. Then we headed to the Schönbrunn Palace - the summer residence of the Habsburgs. The palace is aptly named - its name translates as "beautiful fountain" - the palace is very beautiful indeed. Being poor, cheap study abroad students, we decided not to pay for entrance into the palace but just explored the grounds, which are well worth exploring. We were able to stroll for several hours enjoying the tree lined avenues and various fountains. Then I departed from Cory and Ashley to head to the opera!

The Vienna State Opera was at one point the pinnacle of opera world, and is still among the top opera houses in the world, and I got to see Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) which is one of Mozart's most famous operas. It was AMAZING! Everything about it - the singing, the acting, the sets, the lighting, etc. - were very, very well done. There was an added bonus: I was hoping to catch a performance of the Vienna Boys Choir, but that was cost prohibitive. However, there are three youths in Die Zauberflöte, who were played by three boys from the Vienna Boys Choir. So in a way, I did get to see a performance of the Vienna Boys Choir. After the opera I met up with Cory and Ashley to explore the Karlsplatz, which is a park with a beautiful church, the Musikverein (concert hall), and other impressive buildings around it. Then we called it an early night.

Day four (Monday):

We started the day by checking out of the hostel and going to the Wittgensteinhaus (the house of a famous mathematician - we are math students after all). Unfortunately, the Wittgensteinhaus has been turned into an art gallery, so that was a little bit of a bust. Then we went back to the UN and this time got a guided tour. It was interesting to step onto international soil and learn about the UN. As someone who would typically consider himself politically apathetic, I was surprised how much interest I actually had in the UN. Our tour guide was Austrian, but spoke flawless English (which I am pretty sure she learned from a Scott, because she had a perfect Scottish accent). After that we went back to the Hofburg to get souvenirs and back to the Karlsplatz to relax for a little bit before heading back to Budapest.

I really enjoyed Vienna. It is such a beautiful city, but it is sooo expensive. I was prepared for food to be expensive, but I did not expect everything (museums, etc.) to cost so much. I really want to go back to Vienna when I actually have the money to burn on museums and lots of concerts (and of course more opera)!

Preparations.

Sorry I haven't written anything lately, but I haven't been doing much. Just the usual - you know, class, homework, sleep, repeat. Well, I guess that's not quite true, I have been doing a lot of planning - for weekend trips. Even though I tried to avoid this particular scenario, I will be traveling some place different for each of the next four weekends. I will try to write a post about each, but I am going to be really crammed for time - I'll still have to do homework and study for mid-terms and all that. Anyway, I thought I would at least let you know where I will be going. If you have been to any of the places that I am traveling, I would greatly appreciate any suggestions for what to do, where to eat, etc.

Here goes: Tomorrow I am heading to Vienna. Right now, I have only two definite plans. I am going to visit Schönbrunn Palace and I already have a ticket to see Mozart's Die Zauberflöte performed at the Vienna State Opera! I am soooo excited for the opera - it's going to be amazing! The following weekend I head to Germany. Two of my friends from Pomona, John and Toby, are studying in Freiburg, so I am going to visit them. However, I am flying into Frankfurt am Main (the Frankfurt that everyone has heard of and has the ginormous airport). Because my flight gets in fairly late (10ish pm) I am staying the night in Frankfurt and exploring a little bit before taking a train to Freiburg on Saturday afternoon.

The weekend after that, BSM has a long weekend (even longer than my normal weekend with no Monday classes) because we get Tuesday, Nov. 1 off (it's a national holiday in Hungary). So, I am taking that opportunity to travel to Istanbul! There's a slightly funny story how this came about, but as it happened, I am planning on meeting up with John (same guy mentioned above who is studying in Freiburg) for the weekend. That reminds me, I still need to book that hostile... Back to the point: to round out these great adventures, I will be spending the first weekend of November in Krakow. Nate, my oldest brother, is using my studying abroad as an excuse to travel Europe. So, we are meeting up in Krakow for the weekend, and then he is visiting me in Budapest for a few days. Then a little bit of R&R (though not too much because the weekend after Krakow, John and Toby are visiting Budapest...)

Well, if I am too busy to write another post anytime soon, at least now you know why.

In other news, fall finally hit. It appears Budapest has a case of Sudden Onset Autumn Syndrome, because the weather went from highs in the 70s to highs in the 50s overnight. Fortunately, many years in Michigan have prepared me for such radical temperature shifts. I am actually quite enjoying the cooler weather.

PS When getting ready for my trip this weekend, I saw that I hadn't uploaded my pictures from the zoo yet, so I am going to do that now if you want to check them out.