Dresden

I feel as if I've started many a entries like so, but I must say -- what a wonderful city!

There was an interesting mix in the style of the city where it was obviously modernized but as we wandered into the old city there was an obvious shift into where the true culture and history of  Dresden lies in the artistry of the cathedrals. I was fascinated by how far the city has come from being completely destroyed.  It was interesting to have a tour guide that grew up in the city when it was destroyed and how she showed us then and now  pictures to give us an idea of the complete destruction the city suffered.

Next we went into the Frauenkirsche and it was absolutely gorgeous on the inside and out.  They remodeled the outside in the style of the time, using some of the stones from the original church before it was destroyed.

After the tour was over we went to a restaurant called "Schnitzelgarten" and it was literally the best food I've had in my entire life. Not to mention I was really hungry, so I basically ripped the giant piece of schnitzel to shreds. It was glorious. After lunch we wandered with Henrieke, and did a bit of shopping.  Later that afternoon we went to see "Hunger Games" which was a great movie! Surprisingly I understood most of it, despite the fact that it was in German.  After the movie we met up with the rest of the group and did a bit of bar hopping with our friend Anna who attends the University in Dresden.  She had jut celebrated her birthday the previous evening so we just continued the celebration. Overall and awesome night!

Day 2:

 The next morning we left for the Konigstein Fortress, and man was that an adventure. We began by taking a train along the beautiful Elbe, watching as the ice slowly melted and the bird sat along the glistening slabs of ice. We made it into the city and we looked up to see the Fortress sitting on top of the mountain in all of its glory. We hiked to the top of this mountain -- Thought I was going to die.  I had an asthma attack on the way up, which was brutal because for awhile it felt like we were ascending straight up.  I stayed back with Matt and Casey and we toook our time to  take pictures and observe the scenery.  As Jackie says "I now have a new appreciation for an impregnable fortress" because that was a rough hike to get to it. Sometimes the path would narrow or be extremely rocky, with steep falls on one side. I can't even imagine how armies would make it up there, especially in winters.

Once inside the fortress it was even more magnificent.  It was so beautifully constructed the way it was basically carved out of the mountain.  It was interesting to see the way things operated back in that time, such as where they stored the food, the well, and all the canons strategically placed around the fortress.  After wandering around in the castle for awhile we got ice cream at one of the small shops up there. It was one of the most delicious things I've ever tasted. Fresh Strawberries and all. We took a nice relaxing nap in that same pavilion soaking in the beautiful sun that had just emerged.  

 

Leipzig Pt. Zwei

This was our second visit to Leipzig, this time much warmer, therefore much more enjoyable. I already deemed Leipzig as one of my favorite cities even though it was frigid the last time we were there. This time we visited the US Consulate.  We got a presentation about possible internships and how the U.S. Consulate operates, and what they can and cannot do for Americans in foreign countries.  Next there was a presentation of how American's typically view Germans and vice versa.  it was interesting because some of the stereotypes that Americans my mom had told me before I left, but I've proven many of them untrue.  Except that some Germans are not the friendliest to foreigners, that I've experienced a little of, especially when my German was non-existent. But I've also met plenty of Germans that are very welcoming to foreigners such as some of the friends I've met here.

After the consulate we went to Leipzig University for lunch, and their food was DELICIOUS. I was definitely impressed, makes me hate the CDR even more, thank goodness I don't have to eat there next year. After lunch we visited the Völkerschlachtdenkmal or  the Monument of the Battle of the Nations. It was an interesting building nonetheless, the reflecting pool made it very pretty.  After wandering around inside for awhile we decided to climb to the top, I have literally never been so claustrophobic in my entire life, the higher we got in the monument, the narrower the staircase became.

But the view from above was beautiful, and well worth the hike. we could see all of Leipzig from the top of the monument, every looked so small from above, but it was a beautiful day to be up there, the weather wasn't too bad, so we could just stay up there and enjoy the view.

After making the journey back down the fortress we all went our separate ways Henrieke, Juliana, Judith, Vanessa, Dylan, Evan and I all wandered around the city for awhile and at in a delicious cafe, called Lukas, to relax. We also went to H &M (one of my favorite stores that I've been to in almost every city we've visited) and shopped for a bit before it was time to  catch our train.