I'm going to go back there someday
They say "you can never go back." And on the whole they are right. I've been back to my childhood church and school and it's different. I watch my home school academy change and grow as various family members still attend. As a teenager, I attended a retreat every summer that Rebecca attended last year, and the differences between our experiences were bittersweet.
As I said in earlier posts, "it wasn't like this before" and that's been a constant source of pain this vacation - things have changed and rarely has the change been for the better. So it was with extreme trepidation that I headed into this section of our vacation. We were going back to the small town of Gaming (pronounced as if it rhymed with bombing) in Lower Austria where our college's Study Abroad campus is.
First off, despite the fact that rationally this makes sense, it's still a bit bizarre that there are ROADS that lead to Gaming. When you always reached it by train, the idea of driving was hard to wrap the mind around.
Secondly, since when does Gaming have a CHINESE RESTAURANT?
We stayed at a little Pension (a bit like a B&B) with the most effervescent woman running it. I never ate at her restaurant during my semester, but even back then students who had gone would speak of the personality that is Irmer. And she hasn't changed.
One of the major draws of going to Gaming at this point was the Adventmarkt. When I was here, it was a dozen and a half stalls of crafts and whatnots (and peach wine!) in the courtyard. This year, we bought our tickets, walked in and were surprised to find that there were only 10 food stalls and nothing else. I was a bit stunned and felt a looming dread of one more moment of "this isn't what it used to be."
The guy we were supposed to meet (obviously) wasn't in his office (since it was Saturday) and we didn't really know what else to do, so we walked over towards the chapel and saw an arrow to the left of the door marked Eingang. The Adventmarkt had not only grown over the past 17 years, it overgrew and was now utterly full throughout the entire Pralatensaal, Audimax, Intensive German room, and the ITI classrooms. (Or for those of you who've never been there: the entire second floor of the building surrounding the courtyard.)
Plus, they now have entertainment.
As I said in earlier posts, "it wasn't like this before" and that's been a constant source of pain this vacation - things have changed and rarely has the change been for the better. So it was with extreme trepidation that I headed into this section of our vacation. We were going back to the small town of Gaming (pronounced as if it rhymed with bombing) in Lower Austria where our college's Study Abroad campus is.
First off, despite the fact that rationally this makes sense, it's still a bit bizarre that there are ROADS that lead to Gaming. When you always reached it by train, the idea of driving was hard to wrap the mind around.
We stayed at a little Pension (a bit like a B&B) with the most effervescent woman running it. I never ate at her restaurant during my semester, but even back then students who had gone would speak of the personality that is Irmer. And she hasn't changed.
One of the major draws of going to Gaming at this point was the Adventmarkt. When I was here, it was a dozen and a half stalls of crafts and whatnots (and peach wine!) in the courtyard. This year, we bought our tickets, walked in and were surprised to find that there were only 10 food stalls and nothing else. I was a bit stunned and felt a looming dread of one more moment of "this isn't what it used to be."
The guy we were supposed to meet (obviously) wasn't in his office (since it was Saturday) and we didn't really know what else to do, so we walked over towards the chapel and saw an arrow to the left of the door marked Eingang. The Adventmarkt had not only grown over the past 17 years, it overgrew and was now utterly full throughout the entire Pralatensaal, Audimax, Intensive German room, and the ITI classrooms. (Or for those of you who've never been there: the entire second floor of the building surrounding the courtyard.)
The kids were simultaneously fascinated and terrified
by the Krampus, a group of devil-like monsters
who snatch the bad little children while St. Nick gives candy to the good ones.
There's a reason why Grimm's Tales were written in this area of the world.
Of course things have changed. We don't recognize any of the professors, priests, staff. The library has been replaced by a second computer lab. The grocery store in town has doubled its size and is covered in neon lights.
The cell phone tower in the background is new.
But Death still hangs over, reminding "Brother, Remember Your Death"
And the walk into town is still and peaceful.
And it is, as always,
perfect.
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