Playing Catch-Up

Well as it turns out I didn't go to Bratislava.  I considered all the events that were going on and decided that I should push it to another weekend...

I did go down to Graz to visit my friend Lea (Elizabeth in the normal world, Lea in Waldsee), see the city that I love, and go to the Bauernbundball (Farmers Guild Ball).  I remember posting this last year about how I could see myself living there, and it's still true.  Every time I'm there I just walk around admiring the beauty of the city and wishing I could be there more often.

The Uhrturm (clock tower) on the Schloßberg (castle hill) at night.

 I must have a hundred pictures like all of these in Graz, but I couldn't stop myself from taking pictures! Plus this is probably the best camera I've had while there.

Kunsthaus Graz (art museum), otherwise known as the Friendly Alien.

Murinsel- a manmade island that has a cafe and amphitheater on it. 

Murinsel/Schloßberg on a sunny February day.

 The weather was pretty amazing for February so I spent all day wandering around Graz snapping pictures and enjoying the sun and bit of warmth.

The Murinsel and Kunsthaus Graz.

With the lovely weather I could see the mountains from the Schloßberg!

Looking up the stairs on the Schloßberg to the Uhrturm.

Lea and I ready for the Bauernbundball- Tracht (traditional dress) required! 

There was a Trachten fashion show that included these guys wearing Tracht bike outfits! They also did some pretty impressive unicycling on stage. 

The whole line-up of Dirndls, Lederhosen and general Tracht

After the fashion show Andreas Gabalier performed- as you can see in the background he's the Volks Rock n' Roller.

Andreas Gabalier is pretty much the definition of a Steirer Bua (Styrian Boy), he sings in the Styrian dialect, plays accordion, dances around in Lederhosen.  Here's the song that he's most well known for- I sing a liad für di (I sing a song for you)

If you're into it (or you want to hear something with more English) you can also check out the theme song for the Skiing World Championship held in Schladming, Austria this year: Go for Gold (in the video there are some really cute pictures of Andreas- plus the lyrics).

The Bauernbundball was a lot of fun- I had never realized how good men look in Lederhosen, and Dirndls are pretty flattering for women too.  The only bad thing was in the club area people didn't return their glasses/bottles to the bar... they just dropped them.  So the dance floor was covered in broken glass, and Lea and I both got glass in (or through) our shoes.  There were also over 1,000 people there, so we never did meet up with my friend Domenica who got us the tickets.

I came back from Graz on Saturday (Feb. 9th) so that I could prepare my lessons for the week and get some rest before the craziness of Fasching (carnival) kicked off.

On Monday Erin, her friend Chris and I had tickets for the Casino Redoute, which is the biggest/craziest ball in Baden.  Last year I heard a lot about the Redoute from my students who showed up for school drunk and still wearing their suits, so I decided I had to check it out this year.  I'm glad that we went, but I don't know if I would go again.  It's really a ball for all the high school aged kids in/around Baden, so I saw a lot of my current and former students.  I think they were all happy to see Erin and I, but it's a bit strange drinking around them (or seeing them drink even though it's legal here)- plus drinking/partying/staying up late on a Monday night when there's school the next day is strange.  I don't work on Tuesdays, but even so my body/schedule was messed up for the rest of the week.

The main ballroom in the Casino.  I'd never been inside before, it's a rather grand place!

Erin, me and Chris.  A Redoute is a masked ball- hence the masks on our heads.

Roomies! I gotta say, we're looking good!

In the club at the Casino Redoute with some of my students from last year (except the kid in blue... I don't know who he is).

 We had planned to go to the Fasching parade on Tuesday afternoon, but Chris had made plans to head into Vienna, and Erin and I were too tired to be bothered.  It was also rather cold and snowy, unlike last year, when spring started on Fasching.  According to friends who were there we didn't miss anything!

On Friday our week of events went on! One of Erin's students, Natalia Kelly, was in the Austria rocks Song Contest to pick Austria's entry to the Eurovision Song Contest.  Erin and I went to the ORF studios to see the show live with a bunch of Erin's students (and some of my former students).  It was really great, I've never been to a live TV show before and we had some choreographed crowd dance moves and we had to clap our arms off!  Each of the 5 contestants had to perform a song that had won a previous Eurovision contest, and then they each performed a song of their own that would represent Austria this year.  They were all decent, but of course Natalia was the best and she won!

Before the show started.

 This is the winning song- Natalia Kelly, Shine.  

On Saturday night Berndorf had their Maturaball (the last event of a never-ending week).  It was held in Hirtenberg this week, which is in the middle of nowhere!  Luckily a colleague of mine had 2 spots in her car for Erin and I, otherwise I don't know how we would've managed getting there and back.  I wish I had taken more pictures at the ball because the 8th form did a really great job of decorating.  The theme was 50's, so there were pictures of 50's stars all over, records, and a handful of people in 50's outfits (besides the Matura class).

The traditional opening dance, performed mostly by 6th-7th formers.

The traditional dance kept being interrupted by the 8th formers doing their 50's dances.  It was very entertaining and well done!

Erin and I got a lot of stares for dancing in the club area, but we had a lot of fun, and the students got a good laugh out of it.  We were ready to go home when our ride was at 1am,  I heard from some students on Monday that they were there until 6am on Sunday... there's no way I could've managed that after the exhausting week I had.

I guess the week doesn't sound so busy here as it really was, but having classes the week of Fasching is nearly pointless.  The students seemed to be drunk/hungover/sleep deprived all week, plus my inner clock was all messed up coming off vacation and the Monday night ball.  It did lead to some funny moments in class... but this post is long enough!

In other news it's now absolutely official- I won't be able to get a 3rd year here in Austria.  The chance was small that I'd find some way... and really I was a bit torn about staying here longer or coming back to Wisconsin for a few years (until I get the itch to move back to a German speaking country and get my masters or get a job at an international school or whatever).  So for now I guess I'll be looking for a job in the Midwest come September... let me know if you hear of anything!