Author Archives: Andra Tanase

Oral presentation and the final course from B1.2

In the final week of the B1.2 class, we have to prepare an oral presentation on a theme of our chosing. The students from the class are paired in teams of two, and they have 15 minutes to share their presentation with the rest.

I must say, in the first hour of the German class, when I first heard about this assignment, I was quite dreading it and thinking ‘what could I be speaking about for 7 minutes…in German?!” but since then, with a lot of practice and a lot of lessons, my confidence has improved and I have been quite looking forward to it.

My colleague and I have chosen the theme “Healthy living” and are going to touch up on the subject of sports, the importance of healthy eating, sleep and other habits that are good for us in general. The presentation has to have a clear structure, to be divided into smaller subsections so our colleagues can follow it easy. We’re also encouraged to use engaging images or even music, and to prepare some questions for the audience – to keep them hooked.

The presentation finally happened today and I must say I’ve enjoyed the whole experience. I can see that I’ve come a long way since the beginning of the class and even if only a short time has passed (one month) I feel much more confident in expressing my thoughts in German. My colleagues were also well prepared and had very good and fun presentations. Tomorrow is the last session of the B1.2 Kurs in which we’ll get our test results back and give some overall feedback and go over things that weren’t so well understood.

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Hauserl am Stoan

Every time I visited Vienna, in the months leading up to the big move, I took a trip up to Hauserl am Stoan, a wonderful little Gasthaus outside on Vienna, on Höhenstraße. Before you reach there, there are many little spots where you can stop and admire the view over this beautiful city.

Inside Hauserl am Stoan you will find welcoming, friendly staff – one of the best things I like about it – and a related, carefree atmosphere. The place is very rustic, decorated with many traditional ornaments thrown together over the years. Large wooden tables accommodate hungry guests and promise them delicious home-made treats: Orangen Marmelade, Pumpkin Pie with plum compote, baked apple slices with cinnamon sugar. Yum! The main courses and soups are also very good and very reasonably priced.

They also have themed parties and events, such as for Halloween and other major holidays. It is surely my favorite getaway location, for a relaxed weekend evening, in the outskirts of Vienna.

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Schönbrunn Zoo

Last summer, on one of those fabulous hot Vienna days, we took a visit to the Schönbrunn Zoo. It’s a really interesting landmark to see, as it is the World´s oldest zoo, constructed in 1752.

See more than 700 species of animals, such as giant pandas, Siberian tigers, orangutans, and elephants, or you can immerse yourself in the Amazon and experience the tropical rain forest. There is also a panorama train you can take, but we haven’t gotten around to that, since it was pretty late and we didn’t have time to see the whole courtyard, up to the Gloriette.

We did however see lions, penguins and elephants (for the first time ever for me!) and I was quite pleased with the upkeep of the place – the animals had sufficient time to move and run around, the cages were huge and well taken care of, and they sometimes even had a special area that was completely obscured to visitors – this is the reason why we unfortunately didn’t get to see the polar bears.

It was a really interesting outdoor experience and I definitely wish to go back next spring and perhaps dedicate more time to it. What do you think of the oldest zoo in the World?

Sisi Museum

Who, visiting Austria, hasn’t heard about Sisi? A well known figure, with a fascinating story, and yet frequently misunderstood. I was intrigued with her, ever since visiting Schönbrunn, and wanted to learn more, so I paid a visit to the Sisi Museum.

It’s found in the Hofburg, in the Stephan apartments and here you can find numerous personal trinkets that once belonged to Elisabeth, which are used to help bring the Empress’ true personality to life. Over the tour, you learn about her life as a young girl, about her life at court, the so called ‘Sisi Myth’, her travels as well as about her assassination.

I realise that for Austrians, Sisi is probably such an overtalked subject, a clichee even, but for people who first come here, it’s a pretty nice story that gives you a glimpse into the life of Austrian Royalty.

 

Wurst home made

Last night we chose to have something what many Austrians enjoy – The Käsekrainer. I have tried a few wurst varieties while in Vienna, but so far this one is my favorite. It contains cheese, which really compliments the meat. I bought it at a local supermarket, but I’m guessing it can be found all around.

How do you prepare it?

You cook it in a pan, with a little oil, for 15 minutes on one side, or until you start to hear the cheese popping. Then you turn it over on the other side and repeat the procedure. Simple and tasty!

Serve in a plate, next to a few pieces of bread and of course, mustard. If you like, you can enjoy a nice, cool beer with it too. Mahlzeit!*

By the way, Mahlzeit is what Austrians say for “Bon Appetit”

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Naschmarkt

In the first few days after moving to Vienna, I had a hankering for cooking with fresh fruits and vegetables. Unsatisfied with the selection from the nearby supermarket, I set out to find a nearby market: there had to be something better. And not five minutes from where I live, I found this colorful, chaotic crowd of fruit and vegetable stands, seeds, incents, music, outdoor shops and terraces where people can chat, have fun and enjoy a nice day out.

There’s a mixture of smells and aromas, things old and new for sale and dishes from all over the world to try out. I haven’t yet tried something prepared entirely there, but I bought some tomatoes for home, which tasted really delicious and fresh. Whenever I need fruit or vegetables now, the nearby Naschmarkt is my first choice. Have you been there yet?

Myra Falls

Last summer I was here for an extended visit and had a bit more time to travel and sightsee. One weekend we drove up to Myra Falls, in Lower Austria. It’s a beautiful system of waterfalls, which extends for 20 something flights of narrow wooden stairs, on which you can walk up to get to the top.

There were very many tourists there on that hot summer day, as it was on a Sunday, but the falls gave a very pleasant breeze which made the heat bearable. The water was splashing everywhere around you, very loud and wild, and we photographed everything on our way up, and then down for the descent, because we wanted to take that beauty home with us.

When you get to the top, there is a lovely meadow and there you can find a small place where children can play, while the adults relax with some well-deserved refreshments. I really enjoyed that Sunday at Myra Falls and would definitely add it to the ‘must see’ list in Austria!

Mein Deutschkurs

I’ll tell you a little bit about my Deutschkurs and the atmosphere in the group. This is already our third week in class and time is going by so quickly. We’re covering a lot of ground fast, it’s an Intensive course, so we meet four times a week (Monday – Thursday) for three hours a day.

Sometimes, because of this, you feel like there’s so much information that you receive every day, and many homework to catch up on over the weekend. But at the same time, there’s an advantage to having the information fresh in your brain, as opposed to, let’s say a course that meets twice a week. Ultimately, I think that everybody chooses what’s best for their learning style, a half-intensive course allows you for more time to ponder the new information and perhaps gives it time to sediment, but it could also mean that you forget many things learned the week before.

The people are really friendly and committed to learning, they are from all over the world – Indonesia, Peru, South Korea, Mexico, Spain, Poland, Romania, and so, just like me, they want to improve their level of German so they live better here. Our teacher, Sinen, is gentle and pleasant, and helps us in any way she can. She tries to many the class as welcoming as possible, and that really shows, by including games and entertaining ways for us to engage with each other and practice speaking German.

Yesterday I’ve decided to book my next class, which starts in October, because I think I’m benefiting from being part of the DeutschAkademie environment and it’s helping me with adjusting to my life in Vienna. Thanks for reading and following!

Figlmüller – best schnitzel experience

So one can’t move to Vienna without trying their delicious marker – the Schnitzel. For this, we decided to go to one of the most recommended restaurants – Figlmüller, which you can find in the First District. Many people on tripadvisor were saying that it’s a great culinary experience and the best schnitzel in Vienna, so I had to try for myself.

First, we couldn’t find a table, but luckily they opened a second location just a few streets away from the original Figlmüller, so we had better luck there. Wollzeile and Bäckerstraße are the streets of the two restaurants. This traditional restaurant offers schnitzels for over 100 years and the ambiance is really lovely. Waiters are friendly and courteous, other guests seem to be enjoying themselves wholeheartedly and they have really good beer as well. We each ordered a Wiener Schnitzel, with a side dish of potato salad, but as soon as they brought it to the table, I could see that we could have easily split it. The schnitzel was the size of the plate, and I was told it isn’t even the biggest possible size that you can find in Vienna. Wow

It was really delicious, just enough crunch and rich meat, and was beautifully complimented by the potato salad, cranberry sauce and drinks. Of course, I had to take more than half of it to go, but this just meant that I enjoyed it later as well. My recommendation is – you have to try it for yourself.

What other good places for traditional food have you found in Vienna?

Haus des Meeres

This weekend we discovered Haus des Meeres, an Aqua Terra Zoo just up the street from where I live. It’s 9 floors full of various fish, underwater animals and some species of reptiles, birds, monkeys and even bats! It’s really cool if you have the chance to schedule your visit during feeding times – information for which you can find on their website- so you can experience firsthand how sharks, fish and alligators devour their food. Rawr!

 

I really loved the giant turtle that I’ve seen there – it was a first experience for me – and enjoyed the slow but elegant way they move and twirl amongst the water bubbles. The whole place is very well kept and the animals seem good taken care of.

Aside from the beautiful things that you get to see, there is also a cozy rooftop restaurant, with a spectacular view over Vienna. I spent the better part of an hour admiring the near and far buildings of this beautiful city that I have moved to.

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Café Sperl – an incursion into the past

Down the street from where I live, on Gumpendorfer Straße 11, you can find the famous Café Sperl. This traditional establishment is really old, founded in 1880, and you can feel the vintage atmosphere as soon as you set foot in. All the original furniture has been preserved, the tapisteries from olden ages, and a visit at Café Sperl is like a dive into the history of Vienna.

It is said to be the scenes of many artists and writers over the years, Franz Kafka for instance, and it has also been used for many scenes from movies. Here you can find traditional foods and drinks, including many varieties of local coffees and of course the famous Apfel Strudel. What do you say, would you be curious of such a traditional outing and incursion in the Viennese past? Let me know in the comments below.

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