The Story of Schnitzel

As I was meeting up with all of the other Rotary exchange students (50 total) to board the bus for our tour across Europe, Baptiste (or as we call him Jean Pierre) the French exchange student showed up carrying a well loved garden gnome.

Turns out he picked up the gnome from a neighbor's lawn to take with us. The gnome dubbed "Schnitzel" became our mascot and pictures were taken of him throughout Europe. We did have some trouble taking Schnitzel everywhere though as security kept checking inside him. Schnitzel had to remain in the coat check in places such as the Vatican and a few museums.

Best of all, Jean Pierre will be returning the statue with a photo album and postcards explaining that Schnitzel just needed a vacation.

The district 1940 Eurotour was a trip of a lifetime. When I returned I stayed home from school for a few days because I was insanely tired and a little ill as I think everyone was.

Day 1 - Berlin-Dresden:
This day was mainly a catchup day for everyone. We stayed up most of the night talking in a really neat hotel in which each bedroom had a theme and was decorated in a very feng shui sort of way.

Day 2 - Dresden:
We went on a bus/walking tour of Dresden to see popular landmarks and then we had free time the whole afternoon to explore. I served as a translator most of the time and I learned how difficult it was to understand German and to translate it instantaneously. It is funny; when I think in German I adopt an accent apparently.

Day 3 - Dresden-Prague:
We spent the majority of the time on a boat tour enjoying the rolling hills and historic buildings and castles. We then boarded a bus to Prague. After settling in we were given free time to explore Prague's night life. My group was lucky enough to catch a spectacular fireworks display. Most everyone in Prague spoke either German or English so we got around fine.

Day 4 - Prague:
We received a highly in-depth bus/walking tour of Prague's historical districs and modern downtown. Tours were bilingual first in German and then repeated in English as many of the exchange students were new. The exchange rate in Prague was the best we had experienced in Europe and many went shopping. I bought a scarf. That evening we went to an incredibly weird dark light show which led to many jokes afterward concerning the things Rotary takes us to.

Day 5 - Prague - Vienna:
On the drive to Vienna we stopped at this really wierd dive of an amusement park which was Medieval themed. When we arrived in Austria we were given free time to roam the city and I went with Nishita the Indian exchange student and a few others to check out all of the Indian import stores for mehindi (henna). We ended up buying tons of mehindi, Indian food and a Bollywood film for an Indian party in the hotel later that night.

Day 6 - Vienna:
We went on a bus/walking tour of the beautiful Austrian city and then that evening we went to a Mozart and Schumann concert complete with singing and dancing in which Jeremy (Canada) played a very key role with the triangle. :)

Day 7 - Vienna - Venice:
We spent the majority of the day driving to Lido de Jesolo, Italy (a small town just right outside of Venice. Our hotel was situated right on the beach and despite the cold weather, many went swimming.

Day 8 - Venice:
We woke up early to travel by boat to Venice, but just as we had left we realized we had left Koki the Japanese exchange student who speaks very little German and English behind. We turned around and everyone was worried we would miss our boat, but we managed to arrive just in time. Venice was by far my favorite city. I loved the small winding streets. We were given the majority of the day so simply roam around on our own. We all bought fancy traditional Venice masks. We then had a chance to ride with water taxis to another part of the city where we received a small walking tour. That evening we walked to a small laundry mat to wash our cloths as we were all in desperate need of fresh socks and underwear. But we did not pay the extra fees for the dryer as we figured we could just lay everything out on the balcony. This did not work out as it rained and we ended up having to return the next day and spend a second long cold night in the laundry mat drying our cloths.

Day 9 - Venice - Rome:
Again we spent the majority of the day in the bus, but this was not a problem. I enjoyed simply having the chance to chat with other exchange students and speak a little English. We did not drive directly to the city; instead we walked to Rome's incredibly dirty and complicated subway with our two-day packs. In Rome our hotel was extremely dirty and disgusting. We then sat down to the worst disappointment of Italian food. We were all a bit letdown by Rome which had more of a large city feel than the historic one we were expecting.

Day 10 - Rome:
This day changed my impression of Rome as we had a chance to visit Vatican city and all of the city's major historical sites. We were lucky because it was culture week in Rome so all of the museums and historical ruins were free entrance. Jeremy and I got incredibly lost after being separated from the group while buying a melon form a fresh fruit stand. We walked the whole day just trying to find our way back, but the melon made it all worth it. It was the best fruit I have ever had in my life and we received special treatment from the vendors after they saw my mehindi and mala.

Day 11 - Rome:
We all woke up early for an audience with the Pope. We were very lucky I believe to be invited to this event as we were what appeared to be the only group with no religious affiliation but I am very glad we had the opportunity. I was very impressed with the Pope as he recognized each group present and personally gave a short message in Latin, Italian, German, English, Polish, Russian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and maybe even a few other languages, I can not quite remember. We spent the whole morning waiting in line and then running to get seats but it was worth it as we managed to sit third row from the front. After the audience we had free time to find lunch and wonder around the city. We saw a few more things but everyone in my group was so tired, we simply slept in a field by the Coliseum. That night we drove to dinner before driving through the night back to Austria. At dinner we realized we had lost Fredrico (Chile) in the subway. Thank goodness we eventually found him a few hours later still in the subway.

Day 12 Insbruck - Nesselwang:
After riding in the bus the whole night we were all exhausted. I did not sleep at all. Rotary booked two hotel rooms so we could shower (3 min each) and then we took a walking tour of the city. The city reminded me alot of home because of the Alps and just overall mountain town feel. And I love the Austrian-German accent. We needed to spend a minimum of 9 hours in Insbruck so the bus driver could sleep. We had a short walking tour of the city and then we visited my favorite exhibit of the tour the Swarovski Crystal Museum. I think most people were just weirded out and confused by the museum which was designed to invoke various moods, but I found the whole place beautiful, and intriguing. That evening we drove to the small town of Nesselwang. Here we stayed in the best hotel of the tour.

Day 13 - Fuessen:
This day we visited the most famous castle Neuschwanstein. It is the one Walt Disney based his castle after. It was absolutely beautiful to visit and a nice change from the Baroque castles we had been touring up until this point. After the tour we rode a gondola up into the Alps and had a snow ball fight in T-shirts and sandals. After this we rode in Alpine slides, and returned to swim in the swim hall by the hotel which was really nice and complete with lazy rivers and slides.

Day 14 - Nesselwang - Linderhof - Munich:
We drove to see another small castle with beautiful grounds and caves underneath. But Jeremy and I did not get a chance to see the caves, because we got separated from the tour group by accident while appreciating the gardens. There was a festival that evening in Munich and we spent the night at an American style carnival. I knew my stomach could only handle one ride so I told everyone to simply take me to the biggest. Ew. Carny rides....

Day 15 - Munich:
This day we visited another castle and surprised all of the other tourists by breaking out into the Macarena. We ended up receiving around 16 Euros in chance tossed by on lookers! After the tour we visited the most famous beer garden in Munich and ate traditional German food. That evening we went to the Hard Rock cafe for dinner. Bavarian people know how to have fun.

Day 16 - Munich - Berlin:
It was a bit strange to be driving home. We spent the majority of the day on the bus and everyone was a bit sad. We passed around books for everyone to sign.

Day 17 - Berlin:
It was a bit odd to be a tourist in Berlin as by now I consider myself more of a local, but it was fun to see things again. I feel like an expert on Berlin history and historical sites. We were lucky enough to receive an exclusive tour of the German parliament building which is not normally given. That night we had our last dinner together and many cried. We sang and many shared funny memories. It was really difficult to say goodbye because although I had only known most of the other exchange student for a short time, our like circumstances led us to develop deep bonds which I had only experienced with a few people in America before. At the beginning of the year we were 50 nervous students from all around the world, speaking all different languages and coming from all different cultures, but by this time we were one single shared culture and we spoke a language with no words. It was just so difficult knowing we would probably never see each other again. It is so much different to transition from saying "Bye have a good week" to "Bye have a good life." People move in and out of your life as easily as they entered. But the greatest thing I have learned on my exchange is that people are people no matter where in the world. Nothing is going to be forever, but it is incredible remembering people, places and past conversations and knowing that you will not forget and more importantly that they too will not forget. Overall, nothing really matters besides kindness and compassion to all.