Pictures

For all those who don't have Facebook and can't see the pictures I put up there, here is a link where I have put some pictures up. I don't think you have to be a google user to see them.

http://picasaweb.google.com/caitlin.galo

Remember that one Time I went to Poland...

So, I have just returned from what could be called "The Suckiest Weekend Ever"


So, Friday after school we get lunch and then proceed back to the hotel to get our stuff. We barely make our train, for half of our group was late. After getting settled on the train, we realize that the car we are in does not, in fact, go to Poland. So we have to pack up all our crap and maneuver ourselves to another car. When we to our correct, reserved car, some old ladies have camped out in it and have sweet talked the attendant into letting them stay there...so we all have to split up on the train. Our train is then delayed and hour and a half because of

1. The train we were connecting to was late
2. There was a FIRE on the tracks we were supposed to be on...so we went in a huge circle around the city

When we finally arrived in the disgusting city of Krakow, we proceed, with all of our backpacks, to try and find our hostel. You may be asking, was it in a shady location? Well...YES. It was like back in some alley. When we get in there to check in, it turns out that the hostel has lost Bintu and Allison's reservations. Naturally. So we have to spend 2 hours figuring it allllll out. By this point it is like...11:30 and we thought we would be done and checked in by 10. So, now that is was this late, we couldn't get any food (haven't eaten since lunch, BTW) or find an ATM so we could have money for breakfast at the hostel. This is the point in the story where I take comfort in the fact that we still have free WiFi at the hostel......

.......

OH. Wait. It wasn't working. So we had no way to plan our next day to Auschwitz. We decide to meet at 9:30 the next morning to go out for the day. So, Denton and I proceed to go to our dorm (we were all split up...luckily I got the guy in the group...so I had a less likely chance of getting raped. Kayce and Bintu are supposed to be in the dorm next to ours. You may be asking...what is the name of your Hostel, Caitlin? Well, it was called "Bling Bling". BLING BLING, seriously? Anyways, so we get into the room...and there are 12 beds in there...all occupied by boys, with one other girl. The lights are off and it was so creepy. So Denton and I take our bags and go to the back of the room. Kayce and Bintu come in and tell us how when they walked in their room of all guys, they were all drunk and watching football on their beds. So, Kayce and I decide to share a bed. I don't even take my jeans off. I just take off my shoes and get in my sleep sack. I didn't want to touch anything else. When I get up the next morning...there is a guy staring right at Kayce and I. It was just a great start to my morning. So after getting ready, we head down to meet everyone. We had to deal with the hostel bookings again, which then took another 45 minutes. After finally leaving the hostel, we get to the mall where the ATM and McDonalds is. We take out money and head to MickeyD's for some breakfast. Oh, but what's that? McDonald's in Poland doesn't serve Breakfast? Of course not. So I had Subway for breakfast yesterday. We leave the mall and head to the bus station to catch a bus to Auschwitz. We get one and hop on. We think the ride is going to be like 30 minutes. It is another hour and a half on this like "church bus" little thing. By the way, chickens just roam around the streets in Poland.

So we finally get to Auschwitz and sign up for our tour. Which was great. It was very emotional and moving to be there after studying about it for so long. It was an incredible experience. I wish you could have seen it. It is impossible to describe. We walked all over Auschwitz 1 and Auschwitz 2/Birkenau. We saw the barracks and work fields. We also went into a Gas Chamber and Crematorium. It was the saddest thing I have ever seen. They had kept all of the original things at the camp. We saw pots, shoes, clothes, pictures, letters, and suitcases that were all found when the Red Army liberated the camp. At the end of our tour of Birkenau, we were at the end of the old railroad tracks that would run the train right up to the platform where people would be sorted. They built a memorial at the end of the camp, and cut the tracks off forever. However, from the memorial up to the front of the camp, the tracks are still there. I walked the entire length of the camp on the tracks. It was so moving.

After the camp, we caught a shuttle back to Krakow. We caught the last shuttle for a while...and it didn't have enough seats...so I had to sit on the floor of a Grey Hound bus for another hour and a half. When we got back to Krakow, it was around 6...we had planned to be back around 1. So we didn't get to see any of the rest of the city. Everyone in the group decided that they wanted to go back on the night train, rather than stay again in the hostel. So we tried to work that out, but we got a lady who didn't understand us to try to explain it to us. She told us it would cost us $300 to get back...so we decided to go eat. We went back to our trusty McDonald's and got some food. We then went back to the hostel, in hopes that the front desk worker could help us reason with the Polish train station.

There we met Joe. Joe is a bright spot in this lovely story. Joe is from Wales, and had been couch surfing for a week. He is going to be gone for another 2 months. However, he was flying home today, because yesterday he realized that he could not live without his ex-girlfriend and he had to see her and tell her. So he flew home to say I love you. It was such a good story.

After getting our stuff from the "Bling Bling" hostel, we went back to the train station and tried...once again to reason with the ladies there. See, we had already bought a round trip ticket when we bought our ticket to get there, so there should be no problem with us just getting on a train and coming home. However, these ladies kept telling us it would cost like $50 to get home. No advances were made...so we decided to just get on the train and hope for the best...

So we get to our train car...and the conductor proceeds to tell us it is full. SO. We get on the car next to it, which is going to Prague, and when we get to the right station, we will just switch trains. We are supposed to switch around like 2 AM. So we all decide to try and catch a little sleep. I fall asleep on the floor until we get to the train station. We all wake up in a panic and get all our stuff together to hop onto the other train. I am gathering my stuff when I realize....

My purse has been stolen.

With my D200 Nikon camera and iPod inside.

I have all my money, cards, passport, train tickets, phone on me while I was sleeping, just to be safe. And it is a good thing I did. My purse was stolen out of our car either while we were sleeping, or while we were trying to get all our stuff together. I try to talk to the Police...who....of course...DON'T SPEAK A LICK OF ENGLISH. The one who does just kinda laughs at me and says "Sorry". So my camera and my iPod are gone. GONE. WHILE I WAS ASLEEP LESS THAT A FOOT AWAY.

After thoroughly searching the car, I just give up and get on the other train. I then proceed to have a breakdown. I called you and dealt with it on that end. After freaking out, I finally settle down into a seat. I can't sleep now, because I am too paranoid to fall asleep on the train anymore. We get back to Vienna, and I walk back to the hotel by myself because the other girls have gone on ahead, and I just wanted to chill for a bit.

Now I have slept like three hours and feel better about it all. So Allison and Claire and I talked through it all and Claire freshly remembered that when we woke up, the door was open. She distinctly remembers shutting it after the ticket person left, but when we woke up, the door was open. So...mystery solved...kinda I guess. And we were taking pictures on the train, so it is possible that someone saw me with it and wanted it. Claire also had 100 euros stolen from her money belt as well.

It has just been a ridiculous weekend.
C

Coldplay

Hey everyone.

Not much has been going on these last couple of days; we have all just been hanging around Vienna. Sunday we all watched "Before Sunrise" which is a movie entirely set in Vienna. It was great to be able to recognize places that we go everyday in the movie. Monday was just a sleepy day as we all recooped from Prague. Tuesday I got two packages from Mom, which was really exciting. After that I went off into the city by myself and went shopping. It was lots of fun. Yesterday was fun as well. We found an awesome restaurant/cafe right down the street from school. It had great food and free WiFi (always a plus). After that, Bintu and I did yoga for an hour or so, and then I got ready for Coldplay.

It was the most amazing concert I have ever been to. We stood on the floor really close to the stage. The band was incredible. They played every song I could have asked them to play. Chris Martin is fantastic live. They opened with "Life in Technicolor" and then about halfway through played "Viva La Vida" and went straight into "Lost!". They ended with "Death and All of His Friends" and did "Yellow" as an encore. They also plays "Clocks", "Speed of Sound", "Politik", "The Hardest Part", "Fix You", and many, many more. It was fanstastic.

I am headed to Krakow, Poland tomorrow for the weekend. We are going to Auschwitz on Saturday and then we are coming home Sunday. I will be having my first experience with a hostel then. I will post when I get back.

Love and Miss you all.

The City of A Thousand Spires

Hey everyone. I am back from my first weekend trip. This weekend we went as a group to Prague in the Czech Republic. I fell in love with the city. It is an amazing place. We left on Saturday morning around 8ish. After a long bus ride (5 hours) across the Czech Border (where there is no border control, luckily) we arrived in the wonderful city of Prague. After getting oriented with the city, we had 6 hours on our own to wander the city and explore. Old Town Square is the most amazing place. The famous Prague Astronomical Clock is there, as well as a Starbucks. Haha, I realize the two are not in the same caliber...but seriously...I had to get a decent sized cup of coffee. The coffee in Europe is served in like teaspoon amounts. Finally I had the chance to get a good sized coffee...and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

The area Prague is in is called Bohemia. I thought that was interesting because when you think of Bohemia, you think of the Bohemian Revolution which was prevalent in Paris, but this town was actually named Bohemia. It was interesting. After hanging out in Old Town Square, we wandered around to find food. We found an awesome little Italian place that also took Euros! (Thank goodness, because the Czech crown is the most confusing thing...ever) There we met this group of guys from London who were there a Bachelor Party/Weekend. They were hysterical. After lunch we wandered around this awesome little market full of unique Czech trinkets. After wandering there, Kayce and I got out Starbucks and then wandered father towards the river. We saw awesome views of the city. We then all met back at our bus and headed to our hotel, which was about 10 minutes outside the city. However, this was not a normal hotel. It had a casino, and swimming pool, and A BOWLING ALLEY. It was incredible. Our whole group went down to bowl, and it was one of the most fun expericences I have had so far. It was awesome. Even our professor was bowling with us. It is was just a great time to relax and have fun. We then just hung out and journaled until bed.

After waking up and getting ready the next morning, we left for our tour of Prague. We had an awesome tour guide who was 27, so it was easy to relate to her. We went and saw: St. Charles Bridge, The Prague Castle Complex, The Prague Astronomical Clock, Old Town Square, and many other awesome places in the city. We walked for probably 4 hours on our town, it was great. It was nice to have someone tell you all about the city, especially if they live there. We then had like two hours to get lunch and finish up seeing the city. We went to lunch at this famous Bagel Shop called Bohemia Bagels...it was great...and they spoke English. I bought a print of the city and it was amazing. I love it. After our tour we headed back to Wien.

I loved Prague, and I think everyone should go at some point. It is a beautiful place, and an awesome trip. It is nice to be back in Vienna though, because at least here I know my way around better than in Prague...and I at least know enough German to get around. In the Czech Republic, it was like being back in Vienna on day one. I miss everyone at home, and I hope you are all well. I am great here, I just wish everyone could be here to experience this.

Love and miss you all.

Hey guys.

Not much news from yesterday. Took a really really long nap yesterday afternoon. After that I woke up and went to dinner with Denton, Bintu, Kayce, and Allison. We went to this great chinese place and then got ice cream and watched a movie. Kinda boring, typical day.

This weekend is Prague, so I will update after that.

Lots of love.

Mr. AZ

So yesterday was a good day. After class, I went back to my room and ate lunch there. I took a very small nap, and then Allison came in and we got our stuff together and went for a walk with other people to the Hundertwasser area. Hundertwasser was this awesome architect and artist who has all these incredible buildings all over Europe. Here is a picture of the building we saw. It is called the Hundertwasser House. We went to the little cafe there and hung out and did German homework for a while. After that, we headed back to Hotel Therresianum. After laying around for a couple of minutes we got ready and went out to eat at the Mexican Restaurant next to our hotel. It was great to be able to have food that we have at home. It was a nice change from Schnitzel. After that we met up with everyone else who was going to the concert and hopped on the U-Bahn to the venue.

It concert was amazing. Jason Mraz is possibly even better live than he is on CD. He is such a poet. I loved it. However, we were standing and so it was very, very crowded. It was interesting. He sang and spoke completely in English, which was awesome. It was so nice to be able to understand what someone was saying. Hearing English was a treat.

This morning was interesting as well. It is only 11:30 here, and so far I have almost broken my nose on my sink, and I fell into my bathtub while the shower was running, fully dressed. So for those of you who were worried I might change here, don't worry...I am still as clumsy as ever.

We are headed to Prague Sat. morning, so I am sure I will have some good stories after that.
Hopefully tomorrow I will get to update.

Love from Austria.

Hey everyone! The last few days have been great. We are finally settling down into the city here. It is great, but really really cold. Yesterday it got down to 43 and it was raining all day. I guess it isn't really that cold, but it feels so cold for September. I had to go by a hat and gloves because I was so cold!

Monday was the first day of class. Our German teacher is this awesome guy who sounds EXACTLY like Arnold Schwarzenegger but with a stronger accent. It is hysterical. He is rather intimidating. After classes Allison, Claire and I (Those are my roomates) went back to our room and then went to the grocery store. We would have gone out into the city, but when it rains here there is not much to do but shop and sleep, haha. So we went to the grocery and then came back and hung out in the hotel. We watched Phantom of the Opera and wrote postcards and journelled. After that we decided to go out for dinner with Tyne. We ended up going to an awsome little cafe for coffee before dinner. This cafe is famous for all the music and literature that was written or composed in it. Writers from all over will come and sit in this little hole-in-the-wall cafe and write. It was awesome. Tyne had his like second cup of coffee ever. He hated it. After that we went to BK, seems to be a trend, and got on the internet for a while.

Yesterday was a really fun day too. After class, Allison and I decided to go out into the city for a while. Along with Chelsea, we went to Bizi Pizza in Keplerplatz. It is this awesome pizza place where the waiters are super nice. The chef there loves us. His name is Julius. When we come in, he sings "Don't worry, be happy at us". It is awesome. After pizza we went to this store called "Cosmos". It is like our Best Buy, but more random. I had to get some headphones because I have somehow lost mine...and I really need some for this weekend when we go to Prauge. We then went into another store called "New Yorker". It is a really, really Americanized store. It is their version of what we wear in America. i.e: Neon colors, lots of plastic jewlrey and shiny leather purses. It was just interesting to see. We left Keplerplatz and then went to Stephensplatz, which is where Stephensdom is. It is pretty much our main turf. Everything is there. Imagine like Times Square but more quaint and with a huge Cathedral and one of the world's most famous Opera houses in the middle. Here we went to H&M and Zara and looked around. We had a lot of fun looking around in H&M. It is an awesome store. I have to go back and get a jacket there later today.

After shopping we went to go pick up our tickets for the Jason Mraz concert we are going to tonight. Allison and I decided to strike out on our own and find the obscure ticket place. We went to Mariahilferstrasse, which is another big perdestrian shopping area. We ended up having to ask 5 people where is was. It turns out we had to walk all the way to the Mus ems Quarter and the tickets where there (all this time it is raining by the way). After getting the tickets, we found an awesome cafe/bakery where we got Melange (Half Coffee/Half Milk drink) and Apricot Cake for like 2 euro...which is really cheap. It was an awesome find. After that we headed back to the hotel and did homework and hung out until dinner. We went to a place called Sparky's and got some food and then ended up back at BK. After returning to the hotel we commenced with our nightimte ritual of journaling, writing postcards and watching a movie.

Today will be good too. We are in class right now, and then after class I am not sure what we are going to do...but I am really hungry and could really go for some Gelato (our favorite place Tichy ice is closing next week...so we have to stock up now!) Tonight is the Jason Mraz concert at the Gasometer...it will be awesome. I will write more tomorrow!

Lots of love from Across the Pond.
Auf Wiedersehen.

Oh, Vienna.

Hello everyone! Yesterday was a really fun day. First, We went to mass at Stephensdom, which was great. I really enjoyed the ceremony. It was very cool, and the cathedral is incredible. I took communion there with all the regulars and crossed myself. It was interesting to experience from the perspective of being raised in Church of Christ all my life. It was all very formal. The serman was preached in German, but he also spoke in Italian, Latin and English.

After that we went up to an overlook of Vienna which was also an incredible. We took a bus up to the top of the mountain and hung out up there on the overlook for a while. Then we then walked down off the overlook into wine country. So many grapes!! We also saw a lady who sold us these incredible apples and pears. We got a kilo for 1 euro! It was great. The houses on this hill are perfect. Seriously, I want to move there and have a vineyard. It is where I want my family to be. After that we came back and went to dinner at the Italian place next to our hotel. We thought about going to the showing of Swan Lake at the Rathouse, but it was too cold or me. We were pretty much freezing all day long. Lots and lots of layers. Instead, I hung out in the room and caught up on some sleep.

I think that the exhaustion is finally catching up with us all. We get so tired at night, because we are going hard all day long. Today is the first day of class. My german teacher sounds exactly like Arnold S. but with a stronger German accent. It is hardcore. Now I am in Humantites. I am not sure what all we are doing today, but tomorrow after class we are taking a day trip to Bratislava. Pictures to come. I am putting my pictures up on Facebook, so if you have one - that is the place to look at them. I am going to try and put them up on another site so that other people can see them, but Facebook is just the easiest way for me.

I hope everyone is well in the States. We are hearing scattered news about Ike, but we are praying for that situation. Let me know how all the election stuff is going, we don't hear any American news here...that isn't in German...which we don't understand yet. I would love it, if you want to, for ya'll to post comments on here, because it is really easy for me to check and respond on. I think you have to have a Google account...but I think a lot of people do.

I love you all, and miss you all.

C

Today was really fun. We got up and went to school for a bit and talked about random stuff for like an hour. Then we went to the Nochtmart which is like the Farmer's Market and got lunch and scarves (that's where I talked to you). I got a kabob sandwich, which was surprisingly great. Then we went to Schonbroon Palace which was the summer Palace for the Imperial Family. It was this MASSIVE palace and then a huge fountain, garden, and then after a hike up, there is this huge memorial. It was so much fun.

After that we went back to the hotel for a bit and rested. Tonight we went to a a place called Keplerplatz and ate dinner and Gelato! It was fantastic. Now we are @ BK uploading pictures and whatnot. I also had coffee last night...it was freaking strong...not my taste at all. Food here is kinda expensive, but you can find it for cheap if you try. There is a lot of fruit and what not in the Farmer's Market which is good.

I miss you all, and hope you are well!

Wien!!

Hey everyone! I have finally arrived in Vienna. I have officially been awake 32 hours straight. Our flights went great and we got to Vienna this morning at 8:30 Vienna time (so like 1:30 Am) home time. We have been up all day trying to kill the jet lag for tomorrow. It has been rough though. We have done a tour of Vienna and gotten acclimated to our hotel and school. We have ridden the UBahn (subway) all over town now, and have succesfully gotten places on our own with our very limited German. Now we are hanging out in the Burger King next to Stephensdom in Downtown Vienna. (BK has great free WiFi) Now that we are here, we are just enjoying the city. We are all really tired, so I will try and post more tomorrow when we have experienced more.

I love you and miss you all.

C

D.C.

Hello all.

I am in D.C. right now hanging out in Dulles airport. It is actually really nice, at least the international terminal is. We ate lunch in here at Five Guys (last American burger for a while) and we are now just laying around watching movies. Our flight leaves from here at 6 D.C. time. The other group won't be meeting us here for several hours, so we are just chilling for now. The flight here was on a very, very small plane. It was a short and easy flight, and now we are just hanging out. I suppose that the next time I will be on here is when I am actually in Austria, so until then.

C.

Tomorrow!

Well, it seems to be that time. I will be over the pond in less than 19 hours. I am officially packed and ready to go. 2 suitcases, a purse, and my hiking pack later, I think I will be make it there with all that I need for 3 months. And if that fails...there is an H&M right down the street.

I have said my goodbyes to my friends, and tonight is family night at the house. After sleeping in and doing my last minute laundry and packing, I think that I am finally ready to get on the plane. As sad as it is saying goodbye to everyone in the States, I can't wait to be living in Vienna.

I suppose the next time I write will probably be in the airport in DC (7 hour layover...joy). So, until then, Auf Wiedersehen.

T-18 hours and 16 minutes.

The Start of the Goodbye's

I strongly dislike saying goodbye to people, and seem to be doing it frequently these days. I just got back from a impromptu road to trip down to Samford to say goodbye to Allison. It was fun while it lasted, but, as the trend will go, I had to eventually say goodbye to her. It is weird being like "Well, I am taking off to Europe for 83 days...guess I will see you when I get back...in December...don't forget me..." Goodbye's suck. However, a really good friend of mine told me this the other day.

"There are no goodbyes, only backwards hellos".

So, For all of those to whom I don't get to say a personal goodbye to, I instead say "Olleh". whether you are a hugger, or a hand shaker, or any other kind of awkward goodbye, just know that I will miss you while I am gone.

T-3 days.

Lasts

Last Haircut = $15
Last Dinner Out with Friends = $10
Last Starbucks Before Class = $4

Having "lasts" do to before getting to travel abroad in Europe for 3 months = Priceless.

T-7 days.