Day Trip to the "Bodensee"

So yesterday I woke up really eary, as I had to be ready by the bus stop by 8 am. We were going to the "Bodensee" for the day with our course. The ride took about two hours, and I sat with Helina and we talked the whole way there. We finally arrived, all got off the bus, and got to take a few pictures by the church right above the lake.

Overview of the lake and the vineyard on the hill.

People picking the grapes on the hill.

Very gaudy church where we got off to rest.

Me by the Bodensee.

Hannah was taking pictures of everyone, so I snapped one of her!

I was creepin' on the workers.

It was so pretty with the different shades of blue!

 Inside the church, the decorations were very excessive and flambouyant. After a few minutes of streching out from the long bus ride, we set off for a "short walk". Now Germans' idea of a "short walk" is very different than an American's. We thought that it was going to be somewhere around a ten to twenty minute walk, but it ended up being a forty-five minute walk, and the entire walk was spent with me trying not to die from the overly strong smelling flowers that surrounded the pavement the whole way. They smelled just awful.

Pretty house next to the vineyard on our "short walk".

When we finally got there, we were lead into a Museum that showed how people lived on the lake from different time periods, starting with the oldest to the most recent. We got to walk into different houses on the water and had a guided tour "back six hundred years into the past" (or something equally dramatic that the lady said like twenty times).

The houses on the lake.

View from the houses.

I kept seeing sailboats, and thought they were so pretty!

The "short walk" from the church took us from there to here.

Boardwalk between the houses.

How would you like to cook in this baby?

Fountain on the walk to the bus.

After our tour, we walked another "short walk" to the bus, which then took us to the next town where we had a picnic at the castle. After our picnic, we were split into two groups and were given a tour of the castle.

Some of the sights as we were walking to the castle.

View from our picnic.

The ferry that we would be later taking to Constance.

Here is the castle. Complete with little bridge!

People were dressed up and were taking cards for admission. And I had to take a picture of the little butt.

Pretty gate leading up to where we had a picnic.

Some of the original decor in the castle. They were from around the year 900. It was older than America, and is the oldest castle, without renovations, in Germany.

The knights would sit and eat in this room with very thick walls!

Looked a little uncomfortable to be hanging from a chandelier.

Some of the typical fashions.

This was an original closet from the period of the castle, which was quite unique, because there isn't much furniture from this time period still in existence.

Some amour.

During the time of this room, portraits were very popular.

This is the well, which we dropped coins down to hear how deep it was.

Sort of thought of Bed Nobs and Broomsticks when I saw all the amour up on the wall.

And Christina I thought of you when I saw all of the knives and weapons. You should feel honored.

Small courtyard within the castle.

View from that courtyard.

Hannah posing in the courtyard.

I thought that this sign was a little direct. It hangs in front of the room where this famous woman died.

Quite a tongue.

The bathrooms in the castle are quite accommodating.

Rachel: "Ah, child labor."

They would fill this vast space with wine, and the people would just walk down and fill up their cups.

Doug, I'm going to get you a mug like this. Nothing says manly like drinking out of a leg.

This is where all the bad little children went when they didn't brush their teeth.. Watch out Matt and Jenna!

The main entrance to the castle.

We then had a bit of free time, which we spent walking through shops and just walking through the town a bit. 

Froschgasse! I had to take a picture!

The side of the castle from the street's view.

There were a lot of people who had painted themselves metallic and were sitting out asking for money, but they weren't doing anything. They would just sit there.

Even in Germany they have Evil Witches.

  This really freaked me out as I was walking past.

More sailboats out on the lake.

Apparently they have palm trees in Germany too.

I was trying to take a picture, when this happened.

Take two. This really caught my attention, and I guess that's the point. I could totally see Jenna sitting here eating ice cream.

Then it was time to meet back up with the bus to take the ferry into Constance across the Bodensee.

The ferry next to us was pulling in as we were pulling out.

Helina sitting on the ferry, with a creepy guy in a red shirt behind her.

Hannah and Helina.

I couldn't get over how pretty all the sailboats were!

A little depressing, but Helina pointed out this sign, so I had to take a picture of it. It says that a life without drugs is possible, then it gives his story.

 Once into Constance, we got a bit of free time before meeting back up at a Turkish restaurant for dinner.

The main church in town.

It is a building sandwich.

The main altar inside the church.

Zach making a crazy face while I was taking a serious picture of the church organ. Thanks Zach.

More shots of the town. Here is a smaller church in the area.

This disturbed me a little. It is like these little furry woodland creatures are vomiting into this little pool of water that all of the children and animals play in and drink out of. Special.

The port into Constace.

We sat down for a while before heading back to dinner.

Very picturesque shot of a bird, boat, and the the statue lighthouse.

At the restaurant I did not eat, for fear of my life from the Turkish food. Hannah had something with cheese, and she offered me some at first, but towards the end of the meal, realized just how much cheese was in it. I also did not have any Lactaid with on this day, so eating was even more limited. After dinner, we made our way once again back to the bus, where we then made our long two hour ride back to Tübingen. Helina and I talked about what movies we liked to watch, including Pride and Prejudice, as I am currently reading the book. I also got the chance to retell the entire plot of House of Wax, as we both did not like scary movies, and it is probably the only one I have really seen, and I felt the need to relate its scariness. After freaking ourselves out talking about scary movies, we talked more about classes, movies, books, and about home. I got to tell stories of Matt, Jenna, and all my crazy cousins, which made me definitely miss home a little bit. When we finally got back to Tübingen, I went right back to my room and read a little before going to bed while some of the others went out for the night. I was just too exhausted. My blisters are still massively huge, and my legs were just aching. I went to bed, and then got to sleep in a little this morning, as our lecture was pushed back an hour, because of our strenuous day trip. During my lunch break today, I ran back home to make some food, and then sat in the park and read. Now I am sitting in the library, which smells REALLY bad today, and I am trying to type semi-quickly, as I am going to head to Hannah's in a little bit where the atmosphere is a little less smelly. The rest of the night is still ahead, and I think this weekend we may be going to Stuttgart, as we are going to buy our student bus passes that start working in October! I have been here officially 36 days, and they continue to be filled with surprises. I am hoping that my computer will soon be fixed, so that I can set up dates and times to Skype with people. Until then...

Hello smelly library. I will be using you to check my email.

Until then,
Emilz 

(I may start signing my name like this, because I am so used to the US keyboards where the y and z are flipped.)