Vancouver: Moving to Vienna!

{Vienna}

...so this morning I got the good news that I've (finally) been given a school in Austria to teach English at next year.  Two schools actually. In Perchtoldsdorf (or P'dorf) and in Maria Enzersdorf*... which to my unfamiliar ears sounded like two little sticks-in-the-mud. But low and behold, both are actually just suburbs of VIENNA!!! (both are about 10 miles from Vienna, 10 minutes by car, about 18 minutes by train, according to the ÖBB... which, technically, is close enough to constitute me living in Vienna!).

This is what I've found out so far about my new homes-to-be:

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Perchtoldsdorf:

{Palace Gardens}

{Vineyards and Church}

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Maria Enzersdorf:

{Lichtenstein Castle}

{Hunyadi Palace}

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Vienna:

{Castle Schönbrunn}

{Art History Museum}

{City Hall}

{Street Scene One}

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{Perchtoldsdorf: X marks the spot :: map of Austria}

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More to come as I find out... 

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* Sorry, some links are to German webpages! 

Vancouver: Graduation!

Master's Degree? Check! 

After a grueling two hour oral exam with three of my (ahem) hard-ass professors, I've finally done it! A master's degree in German Literature. No more all-nighters, no more missing out on fun things to finish books... free time is mine...

The exam was pretty intense- 50 books (10 each from the Medieval era, Romanticism, Naturalism, Contemporary and Theory), but actually went really well. I also had to turn in a Master's Essay. I wrote about a German film entitled "Free Rainer: dein Fernseher lügt." All in all, I would have done a few things differently, but it went pretty well in the end. :o)

That afternoon we all went to the on-campus bar and drank some beer (mixed with Sprite!). We sat on the patio because it was a beautiful day out. Susanne and I had to leave early to go to our beloved karate class. It kicked my butt this time- so sore!!! Hi-ya! 

{ Larrabee State Park }

Friday I went shopping all day in Bellingham with my friends Lydia and Susanne. After a picnic at Larrabee State Park, we ate delicious gelato in Fairhaven and checked out stores downtown. Lydia and I introduced Susanne to Ross, which she loved. (and I believe, bought two pairs of shoes!). I found a pair of roman sandals, which, since Colin and I love the show Rome, was pretty exciting.

Last night we celebrated and went out dancing at the Honey Lounge (downtown in Gastown). Good Stuff!!

 { I'M GRADUATED!!! }

{ UBC - my school no longer! }

Now, just to find a job for the summer in Vancouver and to hear back from Austria about teaching there next year.  :o)

Vancouver: Easter at the Olsens

It's been pretty nice here in Vancouver the last few weeks. Here are some pictures from my, Andi and Susanne's treck to Wreck Beach, UBC's only nude beach. 

{wreck beach}

{me and Susanne}

{clothing optional, heehee}

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And here are some shots from a walk Colin and I took from Kits Beach over to Granville Island, one sunny day.

{my Colin}

{stairs to nowhere}

{the dog park}

{burrard st. bridge}

{the ocean reaper}

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Last weekend I went home with Colin to spend Easter with his family at their house in Aldergrove, BC. His parents, Dan and Sabine, run a little farm with horses, ducks and chickens. :o)

{the little Olsen farm}

{our easter tree}

{delicious easter brunch}

{dying easter eggs}

{Tarte Ta-tin and Osterbrot}

{german scrabble}

{spike: puss n' boots}

{reflections of a lonely duck}

{little chickies}

{going for a walk}

{colin's horses}

{this sign points north!}

{neighbor horses... get it?}

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This is where I spent many hours spent slaving over essays in preparation for graduation.

{my desk}

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Taking a break from work, I met up with Colin, Stella & Andi, and Susanne & Philipp at Brown's Social House. Stella flew back to Germany on Saturday :o( But I'm sure we'll see each other next year!

{colin & stella}

{me and susanne}

{dine and dash... get it?}

Vancouver: Graduation looms.

Vancouver: Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Here's a tasty recipe I tried out today....

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

350º

Makes 12

ingredients 

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2 large)
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line twelve 1/3-cup muffin cups with foil muffin liners. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Mix mashed bananas, egg, melted butter and milk in medium bowl. Stir banana mixture into dry ingredients just until blended (do not overmix). Stir in chocolate chips.

Divide batter among prepared muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake muffins until tops are pale golden and tester inserted into center comes out with some melted chocolate attached but no crumbs, about 32 minutes. Transfer muffins to rack; cool.

Vancouver: Der arme Heinrich

Below are a few words I had to look up today while studying for the Medieval section of my reading list. A lot of the stories have to do with King Arthur, although the story these words come from are not related to Arthur. (below is a picture of the original story)

This particular story (which I really enjoy) is called Der Arme Heinrich (Poor Heinrich) about a nobleman who is struck with leprosy by God (nobody knows whether it's a test or a punishment) and the only cure is the "heart blood" of a willing virgin. Hopeless, Heinrich sells all his belongings and moves to one of his outlying farms. There he meets the young (unnamed) daughter of his steward, who becomes his companion. Three years later, he tells her of the cure for his leprosy and she decides to sacrifice herself for him (because she thinks this is her opportunity to ensure her salvation). She convinces her parents and Heinrich (the leper) it's a good idea (her talk is described as inspired by the holy ghost). She and Heinrich travel to Solarno, where the Dr. tries to talk the girl out of the operation. Just as he’s about to cut, Heinrich peeks through the door, sees her naked, beautiful body strapped to the cold operation table, and yells to stop in the last second. Through comparision between her beauty and his deformed body, he recognizes the monstrosity of decision. Through this inner change of heart he accepts God’s Will. The girl loses composure, curses Heinrich for not letting her die and not wanting her to get to eternal life. After traveling home together, the two decide to marry, Heinrich regains his earlier status and the two enjoy eternal bliss. 

Mensch Meier!:  Jeepers Creepers!  

sich mit etwas abfinden:  to accept or come to terms with something

schmählen:  taunt or abuse

die Fassung:  balance or composure

die Genesung:  recovery

der Aussatz:  leprosy 

entstellt:  deformed

die Fügung:  stroke of fate, fortune

Vancouver: One more month...

Only one more month until the (so-far) biggest day of my academic career: a 2 hour face off with 3 of my professors, testing me on a 50-book list of works I've "read". Getting a little nervous! Teaching is still going well [here's a picture of my classroom- got lucky there! What a great view] On top of that, I have a big presentation coming up- in front of the whole department! I'm talking about the quality of German Television and a film entitled Free Rainer- the same topic as my Masters Essay. I've decided it'd be a good idea to serve popcorn. At the last colloquium there wasn't any food and I think it might make people less eager to listen carefully. But I'm sure it'll all go fine and be over with before I know it, and I'll end up with a little piece of paper telling people I've worked my bum off for 2 years. ;o) 

But it's hasn't all been studying- although most of it has. 3 weeks ago we all went ice skating together [There's me and Colin taking a break] and 2 weeks ago we had  a marvelous 9 course meal at my friend's place downtown. He lives on the 32 floor of a building on the beach, so we spent a lot of time on his balcony seeing the sights. But, Oh, what a meal! Everyone brought a main and a dessert and wine pairings for all. I didn't get to drink too much since I was presenting a paper at a conference the next day, but that's ok, 

everything tasted so good! [Here's a picture of me and Susanne at Mads' place for our Seafood Extravaganza!] Since it's almost spring here (although it did snow last weekend) I've been trying to buy tulips as often as possible. They are so cheap (only 2.99 for a bunch) and they're one of my favorite flowers (besides Hydrangeas and Daphne) so I like to spruce up my house with them. Especially if I have to be inside studying all the time. I've also found it easy to take "baking breaks" to bake something tasty while studying. Last week I made brownies for Colin and I think I'll make him some cookies too. :o) It gives me something to break up the studying with and I also get to make Colin happy! Speaking of making happy- he made me the best dinner last night- Salmon and shrimp pasta. Yum. Luckily there were some leftovers, so I get to have them again today. 

I hear back from Fulbright next month as to where I'll be placed to teach english in Austria. Everyone cross your fingers for Vienna!!!

Vancouver: Is it spring yet?

It seems that I've been waiting forever for a taste of spring... and we got one today! It was so gorgeous that my roommate Solen and I could actually go for a bike ride around our neighborhood. Now, hopefully it'll stay this nice for the next few days. This week is reading week, and besides a trip to Whistler thursday with Colin, not much is going on except working. Dates to turn in my MA essay and for my MA exam have been scheduled (April 10/23) and so the work begins. I also have quite a few things to do besides that to graduate, but hopefully it will (and I'm sure it will) all work out. Busy busy! I've been cooking a lot lately- for Valentine's Day Colin and I made a delicious Butter Chicken- I've got the recipe if anyone is interested! :)

Vancouver: Raindrops keep falling on my head...

Another rainy day in Vancouver! A few friends from Germany emailed to say it was snowing over there- I'm so jealous! I'd love for a few flakes to fall. Especially this weekend- I'll need some cheering up, because as we end the term, the stack of work on my desk just gets higher and higher! Looking out the window right now it seems more like 7:30 instead of 3:30! 

So, I've been 25 for about 2 weeks now, and I don't like it one bit. All of my friends are settling down, and I'm ready to go backpack around the world! There's so many things I want to do first, so many places I want to go! Luckily, Colin is on the same page, so that's good! 

2 Weeks ago I threw a collective birthday party for myself and my friends Susanne, Florian and Mads. (we all have birthdays right around the same time). The party turned out to be a great success! We even turned my dining room into a disco! All in all, a very very good time. 

The next weekend my parents came up for a visit. They met Colin and we all played card games and walked around Granville island. We also went to see Dinosaurs 3D at the Imax- boy, my dad was loving that! I never knew he liked Dinosaurs so much! :o) It was a fantastic visit and great to see them!

Friday will be my last German 100 class before we give the final test- they will be presenting skits and I'm really excited to see them try out the german I taught them. 

These last two weeks will be intense: I have a 20-min presentation, 2 final papers and 31 German 100 Finals to correct. Not to mention finishing my Fulbright application to teach english in Austria and my proposal for the CAUTG (Canadian Assoc. of Univ. Teachers of German) conference in Ottawa in May. Whew. And just when you think it's over, well, over christmas break I have to read a book called "Das Zimmermädchen" and write a book review about it. :o) Something tells me break will go by quite quickly!

Thinking about time always reminds me of this quote from Goethe's Faust:

"Werd ich zum Augenblicke sagen: Verweile doch, Du bist so schön!" 

("I will say to the moments: Linger! You are so beautiful!")

Last weekend Clover and Derek came up and went with Colin and I to a concert. The next day (after a might tasty breakfast) we all went over to Lighthouse Park. Although it takes a while to get there, it's always worth the effort. :o) That evening we went to see the new James Bond film (I swear, Colin was so excited he was going to burst into a million pieces!) Unfortunately, we were a tad late and ended up sitting in the 2nd row! I think we had a good time anyway, though :o) 

This weekend will be a bit quieter- lots of working and cooking. Tonight I'm making Veggie Lasagna (I have a great recipe if anyone is interested!) and tomorrow we're going to Granville Island for some scallops and veggies for some fettuccine! Yum! And afterwards some magnificent fried banana creation Colin's been raving about. I love having a boyfriend who loves to cook! I think I'm getting spoiled :o) 

Happy Thanksgiving to all my american friends!  

Vancouver: Fall Back

Everything in Vancouver is going well- busy though! Last weekend we had "canadian thanksgiving", so I got to go down to the states (and my mom made me turkey!) for a visit. We had a BBQ at Suzies and I got to see all my best friends. I stole this picture from Suzie's blog since my camera was broken (thanks Suz!). I've since gotten a new one- so be on the lookout for tons of new pictures!

School is going well, my students are about to write their mid-term, which I'm sure scares them, and scares me a bit as well, since I'll have to correct it all! Today we did a lesson on Mozart and read a whole text together! Pretty exciting. My little 8 year olds are doing ok as well, although let me tell you, teaching them is most likely the most stressful thing I've ever done. It's exhausting to try to control 8 squirrely 8 year olds! Today one of them, Alsek, told me that – and I quote – I wasn't as retarded as he'd thought. Compliment? Anyway, in my second class, Matthew dropped his shoe in a water filled ditch during the break, and who came to the rescue? Only the best teacher ever! I got down (in a dress, mind you) and leaned over the edge to fish out his waterlogged shoe, while all three little boys were holding my ankles. Thank god no parents were around to witness that little scene. Poor Matthew had to go shoeless for the rest of the time. 

I got a fun tip this weekend from my friend Nik about my master's thesis. Not many of you know, but I've picked a thesis topic- mass media manipulation and quality television in Germany. Basically the idea came about from reading a text by Walter Benjamin called (translated from the German) The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction

and also recently seeing the Hans Weingartner film Free Rainer. Anyway, Nik tipped me off to the debate in Germany spurred by a famous literary critic, Marcel Reich-Ranicki, who refused an award at a TV awards banquet on Oct. 12th in Cologne, basically saying all the other shows recieving awards were crap. Interesting. But now I have a very controversial and appliciable topic! 

Last weekend Clover and Derek came up from Bellingham and joined me and my friends Susanne and Phillip from Switzerland for the UBC Apple Festival. The weather was nice and the apples were crisp- I even tried a new "unpatented" apple called Golden Aurora Gala. Afterwards I took Clover and Derek to English Bay and to my favorite Indian restaurant, which I'm also excited to take Colin to someday soon! This week is pretty busy though- tomorrow I'll knock out some reading (since I'm swimming in it!), Wednesday there's a reading by Kevin Vennemann, a friend of Guido's from Berlin, on Thursday we're going to see Vicky Christina Barcelona (hmm... Woody Allen STILL at it, eh?) and then finally The Notwist concert on Friday. Saturday my friend Lydia and I are attending the Goethe Zentrum's teacher conference. I'm really excited, since I'll be attending a workshop about integrating the songs of Wir Sind Helden (my favorite band) into our german lessons! That evening I'm making enchiladas for Colin before we all go to the Parade of Lost Souls on Commercial Street- I'm a tree and he's a lumberjack... but believe me- we didn't pick them out together! ;o) More pictures to come...  

Vancouver: Back in the swing of things.

It's been about a month since I've been back in Vancouver. That means it's also been about a month since I've started the last year of my master's degree at UBC, which means that I'll be writing my master's Thesis this year. 

My first weeks here were hectic- balancing 2 seminars, swedish and teaching 3 classes (more on all that later...) but were made more enjoyable by the presence of Solen's friends from France, who shared our house for a while. I really enjoyed coming home to an environment francais and try to speak with Solen a bit (even if I tend to butcher the language). We also took a sunday to re-decorate our house. We covered the "charming" leopard painting over the fireplace with geometrical fabric, got a new rug and some new lamps, and hung new curtains in the dining room and kitchen. The place has never looked better! 

I started a new job 3 weeks ago as a german teacher at an after-school once-weekly german school in Richmond. I teach a group of 8 8-year-olds – 6 of which are rowdy boys! (which, yes, unfortunately, IS as bad as it sounds) and another class of 3 9-year-olds (which, by contrast, is heaven). I don't have too much experience with that age-range in general, but let me tell you, it's making me rethink the idea of procreation. 

My seminars at UBC this term are on "Nation and Migration" and "Critical Theory". Nat & Migrat (as I call it) is centered around the question if one can have a "national and normal" german identity after the Holocaust, and also looks at the idea of a "native country". We've got TONS of reading (about one novel per week with supporting articles) - but it's incredibly interesting and the discussions are always productive. Next on the list is "Critical Theory" with Steve Taubeneck- a class required for me to graduate but that I'm nonetheless happy to take. We've been mostly reading Nietzsche and Heidegger (moving on to Derrida next) which is great- plus for the final paper (25 pgs) I get to use the same topic as my thesis (and thus killing two birds with one stone, since I'll get 25 pages of it out of the way in the first term!) 

I'm also taking Swedish (3 times a week- not nearly enough!) and have become slightly obsessed- especially with anything musical by way of sweden- namely: Lykke Li (who I have tickets to see with Lydia - our new PhD'er - and Robb, her finance). Jag älsker svenska! 

My grown-up german class is going well- this year we're working with a strict study guide so there's not too much flexibility. Although that didn't stop me from inviting Florian (another new PhD'er from Munich) to my class friday to give a talk on beer (since I realized my lowly knowledge wasn't going to satisfy their thirst for information). I've also been playing german music before class- we've covered: Wir Sind Helden, Kettcar, Die Ärzte, Fettes Brot, Roger Cicero, Farin Urlaub, Tomte, Clueso, Seeed and the Notwist (who, although they sing in English, I advertised in class since they're playing here in a few weeks- and I'm going!).

Although I have tons of work to do, I'm excited for Friday night- my friend Colin (from last year) and I are going to see a hockey game- Seattle vs Vancouver! Doesn't get any better than that! Well- it kind of is on par with yesterday... I went swimming with my friends Florian and Susanne (she's a visiting PhD student from Zurich) in the Pacific!! We had a picnic on Wreck Beach and enjoyed the beautiful vancouver weather- which has been lovely! Vancouver is one of the best places in the world.