Mariazell in the Austrian Alps

My incredible journey has officially begun! After packing for four days solid, I managed to somehow fit 5 months worth of clothes and belongings into two very large suitcases and a carry-on. My experience on Austrian Airlines from JFK on Tuesday was one of the most comfortable and enjoyable international flights I've ever been on, and definitely soothed my nerves slightly as I set off for a country where I knew absolutely none of the language. That really frightened me. I don't think I've ever been in that situation by myself. However, I'd been waiting for this adventure since high school, and it was finally time for me to study abroad and try things on my own! I was excited to explore Vienna, learn a new culture and language, and meet new people. It's the chance of a lifetime, and I intend to take advantage of it.

8:25am local time and I had landed in Vienna to start my IES Abroad program. There were quite a few other IES students gathering in the airport, waiting to be transported to the youth hostel in Mariazell, where we would spend our Orientation Weekend together, getting to know the IES staff and each other. I was dreading the upcoming icebreakers, but we thankfully were not forced to do anything of the sort.

Youth hostel right outside Mariazell. It's one of the nicest I've encountered!

Mariazell is three hours south of Vienna in the Austrian Alps, and is absolutely gorgeous. My friend Anna and I decided to skip the afternoon nap and explored down a creek by our hostel and found this fabulous view of the alps. It was like I had landed in an oil painting.

"The hills are aliiiiiiiive...!" I honestly just wanted to run around here and sing that.

The next day, we all took a tour of the tiny town of Mariazell up in the mountains and I was amazed by how clean and beautiful everything was. Even the air smells nicer and fresher here! All the shops, buildings, and houses were brightly painted in pastel colours and the weather was gorgeous.

Shops in Mariazell

As a group, the other students and I toured the Priker Schnaps and Lebkuchen (Schnapps and Gingerbread) factories, as well as a candle-making factory. We were able to watch how rolled candles were made from beeswax and learned fascinating things about the colour of beeswax before moving on to see inside the gingerbread factory. The place literally smelled like Christmas. We weren't told the secret gingerbread recipe, but we were all able to sample some of the delectable treats! We then washed those down with enormously potent schnapps...just the smell alone was enough for me!

Gingerbread that has redefined the Christmas season for me. The shop has already received orders for Christmastime, and I'm about to send my own in soon.

Anna, Elise, and I in front of the basilica

After we'd finished the tours, we learned of the legend of Mariazell, where a monk, Magnus, was able to escape robbers in the woods by holding his small statue of Virgin Mary up and praying to her. At the last minute, a giant rock split open and he was able to scramble through and climb up the mountain without the robbers in pursuit. He was so thankful that the Virgin Mary had listened to his prayer, that he built a cell around her in the area, which later expanded and grew into the Mariazell Basilika as people added to the cell to make it more impressive as the Virgin Mary began to answer all of their prayers. The name "Mariazell" came from "Maria-in-a-cell" because the statue was in a cell as the town around her grew. The cell is now the Mariazeller Pilgrimage Basilika and is stunning. Both the inside and outside are intricately decorated and carved. We went inside to tour and unfortunately entered as soon as Mass had started... We tried not to disturb anybody as we looked around, but we received many cold stares, so we quickly shuffled out.

Anna and I in Mariazell

We then had some free time to wander around, so two of my friends, Anna and Elise, and I headed down a small street market. We looked at the numerous rosary beads for sale, glanced through postcards of the picturesque little town, and even practiced our absurdly limited German as we ordered drinks at a cafe. (The extent of our German is "bitte" (please) and "danke" (thanks) and a few other odd words). It was nice to sit and relax in the sun, like all the other inhabitants of Mariazell were doing.

Anna and Elise attempt German in the street market. Luckily, iced-tea is "eistee" in German, so easy enough!

The day after touring Mariazell, we headed to the Erlaufsee Mariazell, or the glacial lake by Mariazell. The lake was a sparkling green and blue and nestled between the towering Austrian Alps. It was absolutely lovely, and so peaceful-looking. The weather wasn't too bad, and there were a lot of people enjoying the water and the sun by the lake. My friends and I joined some sun bathers by the frigid water, and were shocked to see how openly some of the Austrian men are. One man decided to sit down right in front of us and change out of his swimming trunks and into regular shorts. That wasn't the only show we got that day, though it might have been one of the most memorable.

Boats docked on the glacier lake

We spent almost three hours relaxing by the lake. Some people took advantage of the slides in the middle of the water, while others rented paddle boats or hiked around the expansive lake. My friends and I dipped our toes into the crystal clear water, then sat and had drinks under bright red umbrellas that contrasted with the landscape and made the area look like a postcard. It was very peaceful, until an enormous gang of elderly, leather-clad bikers decided to buy cakes and drinks from the snack shop and sit down next to us. It was quite amusing seeing their age and then the Harley-Davidson attire they all wore. We were all laughing, and one of my friends was brave enough to go up to them as they walked back to their bikes and asked to take a picture with them. She got not only that, but was able to sit on the bike and have her photo taken with Mariazell's old, historic train sitting in the background. We finished off the evening by watching some traditional Austrian dancing by men (and boys) in lederhosen doing some incredibly funny slap-step to the accordion played by a man named Hans. They put on quite a performance, with lifts, jumps, play-wrestling, fire, and chopping wood, ending with passing around small honey cookies and honey schnapps shots. Even though Mariazell is a small mountain town, it had proven to be an eventful place to spend a weekend!

Umbrella beach

Leather motorcycle gang with the historic Mariazell train in the back

Lederhosen and Hans = an eventful spectacle