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Germany 2015 - June 19

Friday again - it was unbelievable that a whole week had passed already!  On the way to school our bus stopped and shut off at random places at least six times.  Apparently that bus doesn't always work.  The first class I sat through was chemistry, and then English.  After the Pause (a 20-minute break that they can eat and talk and whatever) we had German and then French and lastly, art class!  Officially my favorite class to sit in, because Cassandra and I got to draw with colored pencils and talk with their art teacher in German, and she was really cool.  For lunch after school we had goulash and a sort of doughy ball and salad.

Later we went to Burghausen with Nici, her mom, and Cassandra, and Elli's mom.  It was the most awesome place I had been yet.  Burghausen is the longest fortress/castle in Germany and it's amazing.  We checked out the inside museum part and I loved hoe it smelled so old!  We also got to go up to the very top, on a small roof-part.  The view was, as Elli taught me that day, atemberaubend (breathtaking).  Cassandra had me take a picture of her doing a handstand up there, on top of the castle (she's a gymnast) and our German hosts looked afraid as I was cheerfully snapping photos.  :)  We then (us four girls) walked down to the old town of Burghausen, which is adorable and beautiful.  On the way down we passed a very short door, which we joked about it being a "Jake-sized door" and Elli sent him a picture of it....he replied that it looked perfect.  Down in the town we went into another church and then we got ice cream and then met up again with our moms.  The river by the town is the border between Germany and Austria, so we then drove across the bridge over into Austria!  We went to a place where we got a view of the entire fortress and the picturesque town.  It was so amazing!!

Then we drove back across another bridge to Germany and stopped at a place to get another view...unfortunately, we didn't get to see that view because there was a bunch of drunk Austrian men there.  I had never been around drunk people, but even I could tell they were drunk!  The one guy talked to our German hosts and their moms and gave them all a kiss on the cheek saying "welcome to Austria!" and Nici's mom was like, "...we're in Germany..."  Cassandra and I were like, oh please no, and thankfully he only shook our hands.   Then when they found out that Cassandra and I were Americans, the one guy's like, "Hi, good to meet you!  that one over there -" (pointing to another guy) "- doesn't have a girlfriend."  And...he still doesn't.  That was quite an interesting experience, to say the least.

We drove to Nici's house and had supper there.  Then we went to a go-cart place, where a bunch of us Germans and Americans were meeting.  Thankfully, I wasn't the only one who didn't want to actually drive a go cart, because Veronica and Lea didn't want to, either, so we just took pictures and watched.  Driving a car like a normal person is, I think, a lot more fun.

We left around 10:00, and then our little foursome (and our mothers) went to what they called a "bonfire" and Cassandra and I called a "building on fire!"  There was a small, US-sized bonfire, but then there was their 12-meter (39.6 feet) high structure that was on fire.  It was a little weird, though, that there was a witch on top, like a homemade with-thing.  Everyone watched until it finally went up in flames.  They had a lot of these "bonfires" while we were in Germany, which were to celebrate the summer solstice.  A little after that we left and went home to bed.  

The old town of Burghausen down below

George's Gate (according to my sister, who was there in 2007)

Inside one of the larger parts

In Austria looking across onto Burghausen - of course, it is not the whole fortress - it took me three pictures to get the whole thing!

Elli and I 

Go-carting

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