In summary, my travel in Austria ...

Thursday, February 2nd

I came back to France one week ago and I wanted to do a last article about my mobility in Austria.
First of all, I am very happy that I did this mobility because it helps me to be more mature: this is a very good experience to do because I think that you can grow a lot when you are nearly alone in a country that you don't know, with people that you don't know.
I met a lot of different people and I think that "sharing" was the main word to think about. It's very rewarding to be open to others. I am so happy now to know all of the people that I met in Austria, my host family who was really great and Alina (the perfect host sister).  
I will not forgot Eva who was the PERFECT friend and companion during three months and a half!! 

I also did a lot of progress in learning because I can now adapt myself in differents educational systems, do some presentations in front of pupils or adults that I don't know and speak a very different language. I learned english a lot because I spoke it with Alina, her family and her friends and now I think that I improved a lot about it.

For the german, I will say that I can understand a bit the language but it stays very difficult for me to undersand a discussion or even more to speak. I think that german is a difficult language so you must be very patient when you are learning it. I will maybe continue german because I think it would be pitty to stop after learning the bases!

The teachers told me that I will feel older compared the the students in my class, in the school and my friends. I don't feel a real big difference between me and my friends or my class, I think it just changed a lot compared with the Austrian. For me, I am now with my friends like if  I stayed here because nothing really changed.
Now I just continue my life in France, because it's also good to go back home! 

For Alina who came back to France with me, it's also going well and I show her Bordeaux, my family, friends ... 
I just think that it will be 5 very cool months together like these 4 months in Austria!!

This blog will finish on this article so in summary, I think that I gown up a lot during this mobility and it was a fabulous experience that I will always remember! 

My first bal experience and the day at the ski world cup

Sunday, January 22th

Hello,

I didn't write any articles since maybe two weeks but I have some very good reasons:

- I went skiing a lot with my host family: we were in a lot of different places and it was a lot a fun!

I also saw the skiing world cup: that's really impressionant because they go really fast (about 100km) and I think you that they have to be very strong (their legs were so sinewy!!).

That 's really cool because in Austria, there is a lot of sun almost every days so when we go skiing, it's really pleasant!!

- I went to a bal in Salzbourg. It was the first time of my life that I went to a bal!
It was organized from a dancing school (they do this every years).
We all had to wear a very elegant tenue and the men were not allow to go in without any tie!!
That was a beautiful place with a discotheque for the young people!

I saw my host sister with her partner and a lot of pupils from the school where I am where here ! The dances where beautiful but there was a lot of people because they were almost five hundred on the dance floor!! I was nearly the entire evening at the discotheque with my host sister and some friends, that was really a very good moment, with a lot of fun! I will always remember this moment.

- I am doing my project in a very intense way because I will do my presentation on wednesday (the next week) so in three days!! I am a bit stressed but I am sure I will be fine!!

In one week, I will go back to Bordeaux!
That's funny to think about it because the time passed soooo fast!! I am very happy to see my family and friends! And I am very exited to show Bordeaux, my family, my friends, my school and a lot of others things at Alina who will come to Bordeaux five month. So, this exchange is really not finish  and I am happy about it!!

XOXO (always wanted to say it)

The Hohensalzburg Fortress in Salzburg

Thursday, January 3rd,

When you think about Salzburg, the fisrt thing that you think about is his castel. The castle in Salzburg is an unmistakable landmark providing the city’s world famous silhouette, up on a little mountain which gives a lot of charm at the city. 

I therefore inquired about it for explaining what is this castel and his history. 

"The Hohensalburg Fortress" (it's called like this) is probably Salzburg’s most famous landmark. 

A lot of tourist come there to visit it and to admire the beautiful view of the city from the top of the hill. Hohensalzburg Fortress can be visited the whole year round. 

It can be easily reached on foot using the path up the mountain, and since 1892 a convenient railway service has been provided by the Salzburg Fortress Funicular in Festungsgasse. 

Besides the medieval rooms the romantic courtyard and the bastions regularly serve as scenery for events like the "Fortress Concerts".

The construction of the fortress began in 1077 under Archbishop Gebhard von Helfenstein. 

This original design was just a basic bailey with a wooden wall. In the Holy Romain Empire, the archbishops of Salzburg were already powerful political figures and they expanded the castle to protect their interests. Gebhard's conflict with Emperor Henry IV during the Investiture Controversy influenced the expansion of the castle, with the Archbishop taking the side of Pope Gregory VII and the German anti-king Rudolf of Rheinfelden. The castle was gradually expanded during the following centuries. The ring walls and towers were built in 1462 under Prince-Archbishop Burkhard II von Weißpriach.

Hohensalzburg castle was refurbished from the late 19th century onwards and became a major tourist attraction  leading up from the town to the Hasengrabenbastei. 

It stands today as one of the best preserved castles in Europe.

During the early 20th century it was used as a prison, holding Italian prisoners of war during World War I and Nazi activists (before the Anschluss with Germany) in the 1930s.

Today’s exterior was designed by Archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach. 

Of particular interest are the fortress museum and the medieval stately chambers. The interior of the fortress was furnished to impress with magnificent gothic carvings, ornamental paintings and frescos, and decorative gold leaf – all of which attests to the wealth of the prince bishops. 

What are the Austrian stereotypes? Are they true?

Thursday, December 29th



Like the French people, the Austrians are victim of stereotypes on their country, population, traditions... These stereotypes are abusive generalizations that are not applicable to the entire population.









Here are some examples:

- "The Austrians are rood stocks": the Austrians are often considered like rood stocks because their standard of living is particularly high.
Is it true?
I think that for me it depends with who you are. My host family is generous and welcoming so I will say that with them it is really not true, for the rest I cannot say if it is true or not because I even don't know if the French people are rood stock (it's also a French stereotypes). It depends of the people that you know even in Austria so I think it's a bit like in France for this. Of course, there are some countries more generous in general because it's in the culture so my opinion is share for this stereotype.



- "The Austrians are mountaineers in traditional dungarees": the first image that we have of an Austrian is a mountaineer with a big beard and a Tyrolean costume. This "Austrian character" witch is imposed in the collective imagination because of the Austrian traditions and the topography of the place, is now really not in the trend!
Is it true?
No! This picture of the Austrian people is not true. The Austrian are as modern as the French people and make shopping in Zara! Of course, because the traditions are very important in this country, I saw sometimes some people wearing this kind if clothes but it was more for fun, shows our disguises!




- "Austria is a very green country with a lot of mountains": everybody have this first picture of Austria: a small coutry very green with a lot of mountains" because of the importance of ecology and agriculture biologic in this country. Also the picture of the Austrian mountaineers support the picture of the mountains.

Is it true?

Yes it's really true, Austria is a lot of mountains and big green spaces. It is the pictures that I had in France about Austria. Thus, the landscapes are beautiful and with the snow it's fabulous!

 ‐ "Austria is the the small Germany": Although that Austria and Germany share the same language (even not the same language because Austrian and German are really not exactly the same)and that Austria was part of Hitler's Germany between 1938 and 1945, they are very different countries on a lot of aspects. Historically, Austria was not a German province but the head of the powerful empire which covered central Europe, the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Austria have his own culture, both from an artistic and philosophical point of view.
Politically, the extreme right is much more powerful in Austria than in Germany, where parties like this have been strongly lowered.
What do you think about it?
I was thinking that Austria and Germany are the same but my opinion changed and I saw really well the difference between these two countries when I went to Stuttgart (the lifestyle, the city, language, landscapes...)


- "The Austrian eat just bread, sausage and potatoes": Ok, this is true. The Austrian eat a lot of bread, sausages and potatoes. This is a food very product in Austria (ex"wurstel") and in the traditions. It doesn't mean that I eat a lot of this because I am in a Swiss family but I see everyday people eating this kind of food. The Austrian eat also a lot of brezels!          

- "The Austrian are all blond and tall":that's a very famous representation about the population in countries of the North-.Ouest of Europe. Here is the card of the percentages of blond people in Europe.

Geographical distribution of blond hair in Europe: yellow represents 80%, light orange 50-79%, light brown 20-49%, dark brown 1-19% and black 0%.

Here we can see that the Austrian are in the light brown part and we are in the dark brown (except for a little part of France)? Thus, they is more blond people in Austria than in France.

What do you think about it?
I really feel that the Austrian people have not exactly the same physic as the French people because there is more blond people and they are taller than in France (I feel small!)

The ski day with the school!

Sunday, December 18th 

Wednesday, we went with the school in a skiing day!

It was organised since a long time and the packages were funded by the banks so we just payed the bus to go! The station was at one hours drive so we left at 8:30. In the bus, we were all very exited: we put the music and Eva and me were a bit stressed because Eva had to rent some ski and for me it was the first time of the years that I go skiing.

The teacher was also a bit stressed because he was thinking that we can't ski. 

So, we arrived, put the ski and directly, we came to the first cable car to go up to the mountain and ski!

We did blue pistes at the beginning and it was really cool!! We did after a lot of red and one black!

They separate the groups in two parts: the faster and the slowly group. I was in the faster group with Alina, Tessa, Eva, Nina, Marlene, Nikky and girls from other classes. In the morning, we skied nearly 3 hours! 

At noon, we ate in a high altitude restorer: we could take some sausages with bread and it was free. I took after with Eva a chocolate cake with ice cream: it was delicious! 

In the afternoon, we skied one hours because we had to go at 15:30 for being at school at 16:30.

In summary, it was a perfect day because skiing is so funny and we were all together!