Vienna and New Years 2010
Vienna from the Belvedere view
A Church in Downtown Vienna.
Parliament building
The Spanish Riding School where we saw the Lippizer Horse Show
Beautiful church.
We left for Vienna on Frida, the first and got there in about 5 and a half hour car drive. So, not too bad. I didn’t realize just how close to Budapest and Prague I was. I will definitely have to head back that way to visit before I leave. Had a great time, drank too much as Molly Darcy’s Irish Pub, and saw an amazing horse show. Mission Accomplished in 24 hours.
Life happens
I just put in my resignation at ITT. I am very happy about it. It has been a long time coming. I have gone though many ups and downs there. I have worked with some great people, and some not so great people. I got a job working as a full time GS-5 Recreation Asst at the Dragon Fitness Center on base. I am super happy about this. I am sad to leave the librar, but I only want one job. I don’t want to juggle schedules anymore. I have 6 more days at ITT..that makes me very happy. I also just got back from Berchtesgaden last weekend. Jake and I hiked halfway to the Eagles Nest. We spent time in the Hinterbrand Lodge, which was orignally a summer home for Hitler’s sister. There are pictures of Hitler in and outside the building. When the Americans took over Berchtesgaden, they turned it into an outdoor school for DOD’s students. It is not a recreational lodge for the military. We stayed up there we 30 people from all over Germany, who at one time taught at the lodge. I have put some pictures below. I have also decided to start training for an Outward Bound trip that I will be doing in October of 2010. I am pretty stoked about this. I will post more information as I get it.
Tired…plain tired…
I will miss this view on my drive into work everyday. But I am just plain tired of living here in Italy. I honestly can’t wait till I get my PSC destination and start planning my move from here. I have met some people that I will stay friends with forever. But, I am just ready to move on from here. I am ready to settle back into life with my family around me. I am ready for cable tv again. I am tired of being forced to watch AFN every freaking day to get my news and AFN deciding that I must watch CNN/MSNBC until 10 pm. I miss Walmart. I will miss the ability to travel. Jake and I are heading to Berchtesgaden again next weekend with a bunch of teachers from the school. Then, we are heading back to Garmisch for Martin Luther King Holiday for a spa/snowboarding weekend. Rightnow, I am working on booking our trip for Paris in March. I just need to hit Scotland and Spain, and I will be okay with leaving here…seeing all the things I did.
15 months to go…..
Views of Piancavallo from this morning…
Views from up Piancavallo Ski Run today…….
I am currently reading, “Last Chance of Victory” by Scott Bowden and Bill Ward. It is a book about Robert E. Lee and the battle of Gettysburg, The book is a really easy read which I like. It gives me an indepth look into what happened before the battle and what lead up to the South’s loss. I am learning alot of things that I didn’t know and a lot of rumors being addressed and dismantled. Above, are pictures from Gettysburg National Battlefield. It is probably one of my favorite places to visit. I love the battle and reading about it. It just reminds me of my interest and love for the Civil War. I honestly can’t wait to get back to the states so that I can start visiting historical sites again. I really miss that. I want to introduce my children, when I have them, to this. I would love to get back into volunteering and using my time towards things I am actually remotely interested in. 15 months to go!!!!
In other news, a went to the memorial yesterday for Airman Lagudi. It was your typical military funeral. Lots of crying, speeches, roll call and taps. I cried and felt very badly for the family members. She was a bright and intelligent girl who didn’t deserve to die the way that she did. I am finding it very hard to not resent Italians for what has been going on. I know that it is not all Italians, but on the postings on the local Italian papers that have very anti American sentiment over this whole thing, or should I say homicide. Some of the papers have said that Americans shouldn’t be here and we are ruining the area and the land. I want to post on there, would you rather be speaking German then? Italians resent us and Americans are starting to resent the Italians and their attitudes towards us. We get blamed for everything and no one wants to take responsibility for anything. If I had a choice right now, I would prefer to be home. Trust me.
I have worked at ITT for two and a half years now….. the oldest employee in the office by a year and half. If you worked as a spouse in the military, you know that you do not hold a job very long. So, to have worked at a job this long, I have some seniority. But, because I do not speak Italian, I can not move up. I have done the asst. manager’s job for about 6 months, when we did not have one. So, now, we have a brand new asst. manager who is 21 years old. She is not married and is a bubbly blond. If anyone knows me, they know that I have never gotten along with people like that. I am not necessarily an easy person to get to know or get along with. First impressions are what they are and I usually tend to stick with that. It is hard for me to take criticism or work from someone who hasn’t earned my respect. I refuse to teach the new manager, who will get paid way more than me and has no experience, my job. It is something that she should know. I have a feeling, that my job with turn into high school drama here. I will just try and stay out of it 
Next, I am just trying to get through the holidays away from home. This weekend, the weather is supposed to be beautiful. I think that we will pack Mongo in the Jeep and head into the mountains with some wine and cheese…hike and have a picnic. We will first go to the Bella Bafana Bazaar to pick up some last minute Christmas gifts.
We’ll see how the week ends huh?
