Naschmarkt

We had the day off today. So, this morning, Jenna, Coop, and I headed to a place called "Naschmarkt". Basically, it's a huge market in the city that you can go to to buy the freshest produce and some other cool things like souvenirs and wine and tea and those kinds of things. I always feel so "Euro" when I go here. Haha, whatever that means :)

After a busy morning, I spent the afternoon doing laundry and cleaning the apartment. This is a pretty good day for me! Nothing like a clean apartment! 

And word going around the team is that we are gonna be having next Monday AND Tuesday off! We NEVER get two days in a row off. I really hope that this is true because I'm already planning my trip to Paris! And I already have a giant list of things I want to do there! That would make for a pretty sweet blog post! So pray that I'll get two days off! :)

Now I think it's time to curl up and get cozy in my nice and clean apartment and watch a movie! I've been working my way through the movies that are nominated for "Best Picture" at the Oscar awards. I've already watched "The Descendants", "Midnight In Paris", and "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close". I would definitely recommend all of these. I think tonight is gonna be "Hugo". Gotta pass the time somehow :)

72 days... <3

Kayla

P.S. Here is your "The Office" clip for you! Have a good laugh! 

STOMP

So the other day we had the day off, and Jenna, Svenja, and I decided we were gonna do something fun that night!

We started off the evening with a tasty dinner at a Thai restaurant in the city. It was delicious! We had an amazing candlelit dinner and enjoyed a glass of wine! It was such a cute and homey little place. I loved it! I was even served a rose with my dinner :)

They even served us a free dessert wine. It was fabulous!

After dinner we walked through the streets of Vienna and made our way to a place called "Museumsquartier" which is where there are a bunch of theaters and showrooms where a lot of different kinds of shows and exhibitions take place. The three of us had bought tickets to see "Stomp".

For those of  you who aren't sure what "Stomp" is, here's a link where you can check it out. It's basically a group of people (in this case, 8) that use a bunch of random objects to make rhythms, beats, and music. They used things like brooms, matchboxes, intertubes, dishes, rubber tubing, and even their own hands and feet. It was truly AMAZING and inspiring! I would go see it again in a heartbeat! And I HIGHLY recommend that you go see it if you ever get a chance to. It's a show that everyone could enjoy. As a matter of fact, after the show I found myself wishing that my family could've been visiting me at the moment so I could've taken them with me to enjoy it.

The three of us loved it so much that we "stomped" the entire way home that night :)

Anyways, 75 days til I get to come home. Sending all my love to you (wherever you are in the world) from Vienna! <3

Kayla

P.S. I literally laughed out loud when I saw this week's episode of "The Office". The opening sequence is hilarious. And here it is for your enjoyment :)

Halfway Point

So, about a week ago, I hit my halfway mark of the time I'm spending here in Vienna. I seriously can't believe I'm only halfway done. But, whatever. Anyways, since I've been here, I've just been writing down my random observations of life in Austria/Eastern Europe, the people, the food, the culture, etc. It's become quite a large list of interesting things. Without further ado, here are my observations of Europe so far! Enjoy!

• The men smell terrible. Like awful. The best way I know how to describe it is that it's like a weeks worth of BO all jam packed into one armpit. Not good.
• They rarely drink their beverages straight out of a bottle. It is almost always poured into a cup first. One of my teammates even told me one time that she had NEVER drank a Cola straight from the bottle. 
• The only thing they sell at airports is alcohol. Like they have a ton of stores there, but probably 75% of the things in the stores are alcohol. The rest is perfume and cologne.
• Walk on the right side of the sidewalk? No. Austrians will walk straight at you until you move for them. One of the most annoying things I've encountered here.
• Naked friendly. VERY naked friendly. As in coed sauna sessions. Oh, and they sauna naked here. So yeah, you can picture that for yourself.
• Soup. Every day. Every meal. I've had more soup in the past three months than I have in my entire lifetime. No joke. 
• Everything is overpriced. 
• Sometimes after a plane has landed on the runway, the passengers will clap for the pilot. 
• During a traffic jam, the traffic lanes become invisible and people drive wherever the hell they want, often hovering over the lines for several meters.
• They don't put their napkins in their laps while eating. 
• No ice in your drink. Anywhere.
• Escalators: stand on the right, climb on the left. If you stand on the left you will get pushed aside.
• They don't give you bags at the grocery store. They sell them to you, but they won't give them to you free. And they don't bag your groceries for you. So you better bring your own bags, and you better be prepared to bag your groceries yourself at lightning speed because they want you to get out of the way of the next person ASAP. Basically, epitomizing the phrase "Get your shit and get out."
• Europeans have tiny feet. How do I know this? I was told that I wouldn't be able to find shoes over a size 9 probably anywhere in Europe, but I could shop in the men's section. Awesome.
• European volleyball players are expert screeners (illegally blocking the opponents' passers' view of the server). And apparently the refs don't see the need to call them on it.
• Europeans use the knife during the meal so much more than Americans do. We normally only use the knife to cut something or butter something. They use it do that, and to help neatly navigate their food onto their fork. So, they always have their knife in one hand and the fork in the other.

So, those are just a few of my observations as I've reached my halfway mark. I'm sure many more observations are yet to come. I miss home dearly and I am counting the days til I'm back in the States! 77.

Kayla

P.S. Of course you get your "The Office" clip of the day :) Enjoy!

Krasnodar, Russia!

Since I’ve been in Vienna, our team has had to travel to a bunch of different countries to play our opponents. So far, these countries include: Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Hungary, Slovakia, and Romania, which is super cool because I get to go to these places that I would never pay myself to go visit. But, it’s cool to say that I’ve been there. And I get to go for free! Anyways, for our latest match I found myself in a place called Krasnodar, Russia.

Our flight took off from Vienna on Tuesday, January 31^st at approximately 12:10 AM. Yeah, we flew overnight, and it completely sucked. I don’t know why our club decides to put us in these ridiculous travel situations (another example would be a 20 hour bus drive to Romania), but whatever. We connected in Moscow, and I was passed out on both flights. I woke up as we were landing in Krasnodar. We collected our bags and headed to the bus. I’ve heard people call Russia “The Frozen Tundra”, and frozen it was. When we got off the plane it was about -17°C, which is about 1°F. IT WAS HORRIBLE! I had on my big winter jacket, a furry hat, and my scarf wrapped almost entirely around my face and I was still freezing.

My glasses tended to fog up a bit. Haha!

We went straight to our hotel to check in, and wow, the place we were staying was a class A dump. It was one of those places that you pull up and you are like, “Is this a joke?” Literally, we all asked our coaches if they were kidding. Sadly, they weren’t kidding. I don’t even know how to describe it besides it looked just completely run down. Britney Cooper and I got into our room and our jaws literally dropped. The beds were singles and the mattress was horrific. The beds were covered with the sketchiest bedding ever. It was just all around disgusting. It made some of the places I stayed at in China looked like five-star hotels.

We had lunch, which consisted of “mystery meat” that I think was supposed be pork, and potatoes.

This is one of the meals they served us. We were told it was sea tongue. Yeah, whatever that is.

After lunch we had some down time. I took a nap. We had practice that night. That only lasted about an hour and a half. After our practice, the Krasnodar men’s team was practicing! JACKPOT! I LOVE MEN’S VOLLEYBALL! And our team administrator just happened to have to go to some kind of meeting. So, we were forced to wait for him to finish. Well, shucks. I guess I’ll just sit down and watch these seemingly unattractive men become instantly hot in a matter of minutes. Oh it was beautiful. The level of volleyball that men can play at makes me so jealous! I’m jealous because I know that women will never be able to play at their level. They do things that women just can’t do. Men’s volleyball is a beautiful thing to watch.

After watching the guys it was back to the hotel, a quick dinner, and straight to bed. The next morning at breakfast we got our information about when and where our pre-game practice would be. Since we were staying at a “fitness hotel”, there happened to be a gym right there on the first floor! Convenient! It even had a volleyball net and everything! Perfect! So we had practice at 11. Upon entering the gym, we saw that the net wasn’t set up, and we only had one volleyball to work with. Ugh, alright, that’s okay. We could stilll find something productive to do with this space. All I needed to do was to get moving and stretch and loosen up a bit. Well, we ran a bit and did a dynamic warm up and stretched out. And what did we do next? Thanks to the brilliant wisdom and resourcefulness of our coach, we played SOCCER. Literally, we played monkey in the middle. ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?! Soccer!? Of all the things we could’ve done…you choose soccer? I mean we had a volleyball court, we could’ve done shadow defense, or at least gone over our scouting report (not that we even had one). Oh and I should add that the last time we played soccer in practice (yes we’ve done this before) someone got hurt. So on the day leading up to the biggest match so far in the season, we are playing soccer. Needless to say, I was pissed. I spent the next couple hours in my hotel room having a good old fashion bitch session with my American teammate, Britney Cooper. So, just from this last paragraph I think you can get an idea of how volleyball is going for me…

The team we were playing that night happened to have one of my USA teammates on it. Some of you may remember Foluke Akinradewo? She went to Stanford and is pretty much a shoe in for the 2012 Olympics. Yeah, she’s a beast in the middle. Her and her team (which I’m pretty sure consisted of four members of the Russian National Team from what I’ve heard) swept us. However, it was THE MOST FUN I’ve had in a match all season! Why? Because it was high level volleyball. All the teams we’ve played so far we’ve (for the most part) been able to beat them pretty easily. I’ve been waiting for some to absolutely kick our ass, which is why I was looking forward to playing Foluke’s team so much. I got to play at the level of volleyball I need to be, and want to be playing at. And it was refreshing to know that I could still keep up and perform at that level (I’ve been plagued with the paranoia that I’ve been getting worse here). So, even though we got swept, it was a great match to play in. And all the Americans (Jenna, Britney, Foluke, and myself) all played very well. And we got to chat with Foluke for awhile afterwards. Always so awesome to see Americans and hear the English language J Another bonus, the men’s team was playing a match right after ours! YES!

It was straight Vegas style in here, with girls dancing on platforms in the corners of the gym. No joke.

The next morning we headed to the Krasnodar airport to start our journey home. We had our layover in Moscow again. The Moscow airport was pretty big and there were a ton of shops (mostly selling alcohol, which I’m discovering is typical for European airports). I saw one of those Russian fur hats that was actually kinda cute, and I completely regret not buying it. And to my complete surprise, this airport had…a BASKIN ROBBINS! Woulda thunk it? Too bad the person working the counter was on break otherwise I would’ve been pigging out on ice cream.

We had a slight adventure figuring out what gate we were at, but once we did, we boarded right away and were heading for Vienna. I got home around 6:00 PM; just in time for dinner and it was early to bed for me! All in all, a pretty cool trip to Russia for me! And there is another country I can add to my rapidly growing list of places I’ve been too J

Best Friends Forever!

Today I smiled because I got a letter in the mail from one Jess Yanz! It was her birthday card to me! With a very long note inside :)

 It pretty much made my year! And yes, Jess, I laughed very hard :) And seriously don't worry about sending me anything. I know it's outrageously expensive. I LOVE YOU!

Kayla

Christmas in January!

So after waiting over two weeks to receive my package from Dad and brother (that was just sitting in Vienna somewhere), I FINALLY got it tonight! But, not only did I get my Dad and brother's package, I got another package and two letters! You can't even imagine how happy I was. Well, I bet you wanna see what was in them?

Well, it's gonna have to wait :) I'm gonna tell you about the presents I received from my mom first :) I got these on Christmas Eve if I do recall and I got to Skype with her while I opened them. She got me....

The Kindle Fire! Yay! Now I don't have to worry about carrying books around with me everywhere I go! Perfect! And she got me a gift card to get started (and I definitely have already gotten started reading). 

Yummy smelling body wash, lotion, and perfume! MMM!!! 

A sweet fossil watch! Awesome! I've already worn this out for a night and I've fallen in love. And I kept saying that I wasn't a watch girl. Once again, Momma knows best :)

And last but not least...

A super cute key chain! "Home is where your mom is". Ain't that the truth :) So, mommy, THANK YOU for this. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH and you mean EVERYTHING to me. I'm glad I got to spend my Christmas with you (even if it was through a computer screen). I can't wait to be "home" again :) 

Okay, NOW I can tell you about the packages I got today...

The first package I opened was a "mystery package". It was a mystery because the return address said that it was from "Your Friends". Who could that be? Ah the excitement! Well, upon opening it I learned it was from my best friend, Alicia Sieverding and her family! Also, there was a card in there from another good friend of mine, Kali Blocklinger! Alicia, a.k.a. "Goose", sent me: 1) A really cute wintery red headband 2) the book "Water For Elephants, which I'm sorry Goose, I've already read it but I can't wait to read it again :) and I would highly recommend it 3) taco bell taco seasoning (if you love Mexican food and you live in Europe, you'll understand) and lastly 4) Dove chocolate! Ah, she knows me too well :)

EDIT: The adorable red headband is actually from Kali, as well! Thanks Block! :)

Also in this package, I got the Sieverding family Christmas card, which I LOVED! So to Goose, Kali, and the Sieverdings, THANK YOU SO MUCH! These gifts are absolutely amazing and I am truly truly blessed to have such wonderful people in my life. I LOVE YOU all very much and I can't wait to see you again! 

I opened the letters second! One was from Donna Mueller (my Husker teammate, Tara Mueller's mom) and enclosed was their family Christmas letter. How amazing that she sent it all the way to me in Vienna! Awesome! The second letter was from my aunt Becky wishing me a Merry Christmas! She also sent me a few photos she had taken of me and some of my family members. Needless to say, the pictures and the cards are hanging in my kitchen for me to look at every day :)

Last, but certainly not least, I opened the package from my Dad and my brother! First thing I saw upon opening it was this...

Now, for those of you who can't quite see what the bottom present says (partly because it's upside down) here's a close up...

Oh my brother always knows how to make me smile. Also, he knows the way straight to my heart! He sent me three things. The first two being: 

Like I said, he knows the way straight to my heart :) Yeah we have a weird obsession with animated movies, I ain't ashamed to admit it. The last thing he sent me was....exactly what I asked Santa for! Good work brother! 

I've been doing my very best lately to become addicted to working out...so far, it's going pretty well. Anyways...BROTHER! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I honestly don't have enough words to describe how much I love you and how much you mean to me! You are seriously the best brother I could've ever asked for! Can't wait to see you again! I LOVE YOU! :)

Next up was the gifts from my Dad.

I opened the biggest present first (I'm still a kid at heart) and inside I find a sweet Under Armour sweatshirt! 

Awesome! AND it fits perfectly! Yay! Okay, so the next present was small...under the wrapping was a little box. I knew this was going to be awesome because I fell in love with the box before I even knew what was inside! 

Ahh! What's inside? Only the best present a girl could ever ask for from her dad...

I immediately felt tears running down my cheeks. Tears of joy because this made me feel so happy and special and because I love my dad so much. And, tears of sadness because I miss him every day. So Dad, obviously you're reading this, I love you so much. You are so special to me and I'm very lucky to have the best dad a girl could ever want. I miss you every day, and I can't wait to come home and see you again. 

What else did Dad and Eric send me? You guessed it....chocolate :) 

Yeah, it says "party bag" on it...oh boy...funny but, just today at practice, my teammate, Jenna Hagglund, and I agreed to stop eating so much chocolate. So much for that idea :)

To sum up...I have the best friends and the most amazing family I could ever dream of. I wish there were enough words in the English language to describe how much you mean to me and how much I love you. You are keeping the fire in my heart going strong. Sending all my love to you from Vienna. I am counting the days til I get to be with you again. I LOVE YOU!

Kayla

P.S. In the spirit of Christmas (in January) here is your "The Office" clip!

Yummy Yummy In My Tummy!

Hello friends! Today's Written Paper Ring (see last post) simply said "BLOG!". So, here I am! And seeing as how I just finished my lunch, I thought it would be a good time to tell you about the food here. So, pretty much everything I've eaten at a team meal has been some sort of meat and potatoes dish. Which, for those of you who know me, you must be thinking that the food is perfect for me. However, every kind of meat that they serve has some kind of weird sauce on it. So, it kinda looks like the mystery meat from the cafeteria. That being said, it actually tastes alright. And, yes! I have had schnitzel a few times. It's basically fried chicken! Yummmm!

I haven't really been out to eat that much. Where I live, there aren't really any restaurants around me. I'd have to get on the U-Bahn and go into town. But, I do have a favorite place to eat here (maybe because it's pretty much the only place I've been). It's called Vapiano's. It's a very delicious Italian place in the city. I first went there with Jenna, Svenja, and a girl from our 2nd team, Sophie.

Okay, so the way it works is as soon as you walk in you get a card. You can go up to whatever station you want (Pasta, Salad, Pizza, Dessert) and place your order. They prepare it for you and then you scan you card right there on this strange register, and the machine will put the charges on your card. You pay on the way out. The first time I went there, Jenna and I split a Caesar salad and the I had my own personal pepperoni (which I learned that they call "hot salami") pizza. It was so good! I go back often just for the salad! 

Now, I know it may still be strange to hear me talk about how much I love salad. So, this might just blow your mind. For those of you know me really well, brace yourself...at this point in my life it is safe to say that I eat more broccoli than I do chocolate! WOAH! I know! It has become my latest obsession. I brought two giant bottles of ranch with me to Austria, and broccoli dipped in ranch has become my new favorite snack! 

Okay, I'm about to drop another bomb on you. Ready? Alright, for those of you who really REALLY know me, hold on to your hats. My New Years Resolution is to stop drinking caffeinated pop. So, today will be my fourth day without a Coke or Pepsi. I've gotten a few headaches, but I've been drinking some Cappuccino to kind of gradually weed myself off caffeine. Phew! Those are the only surprises for today I swear :)

I know you are totally mind blown right now so we'll go back to the old Kayla for a bit. THANK GOD Europe has these: 

and...

Haha you didn't think I would cut these out of my diet did you? ;) Now don't go thinking I'm eating half my meals here. These are a very rare occurrence when I need some happy food or I really deserve it. Also, I brought 12 boxes of Macaroni and Cheese with me. I'm afraid that this supply won't last me much longer :)

Basically, I cook a lot at home. Whatever I can cook on a stove top, that is. 

On the menu tonight: chicken, golden potatoes, peaches, and of course...broccoli :) 

Kayla 

P.S. I'm pretty sure I've never posted this one, so here is your "The Office" clip. Enjoy!