So on December 20th, 2021 I went to Ramsau after all. After I had some troubles organizing a new train in Nürnberg because my actual train to Munich was 40 minutes late and I would have missed my connecting trains, I arrived safely in Radstadt in the evening and was picked up by my grandparents.

I was staying on the Irxner mountain farm, a hotel run by friends, and I have to say that I had a great time there. I lived in a small room without a bathroom door next to the table tennis room. It was a really great feeling to finally have a room for yourself again after almost 3 months! I was allowed to eat with my family in the dining room. I can’t complain about work either. It started on Tuesday, December 21, 2021, 10 a.m. My way to work was about 15 minutes up the mountain, to the Sonnenalm. There I helped Gerhard as best I could until December 31st, 2021. On average, I worked about 2-3 hours a day, as there wasn’t much to do, especially at the beginning. There was simply a lack of guests. During this time I was able to practice my Czech a little by speaking to the Czech guests, halved and squeezed lots of mandarins and lemons, peeled and cut a lot of apples, put dishes in the dishwasher and tidied them up again, peeled a large pot of potatoes, cut pumpkins, laid the tables at the terrace, polished the plates and from time to time I served a guest. In my free time I was mostly walking or cross-country skiing and enjoyed the beautiful view.

As usual at Irxner’s, we all spent Christmas together with Christmas carols, Stollen and Christmas cookies. Although I had my grandparents and my uncle around me, I cried a little bit that evening, because I missed my parents a lot – after all, it was my first Christmas without them. Still, I had a very nice evening.

I also received visitors during my time in Austria. From December 27th to 30th Maria and her boyfriend Kevin stayed in my room with me.

It was a bit tight, but we all fit in my bed together and it was very funny! On their first day I got time off from Gerhard so that we could go downhill skiing together. In retrospect, Gerhard would have needed me on that day because, for once, there were a lot of guests, but I really enjoyed the day with my friends. I also had the following day free because they expected only a few guests to come, because of the fog and rain. So I got the chance to do a longer round of cross-country skiing with my uncle.

I spent New Year’s Eve with my uncle and my cousins. In the afternoon I had already said goodbye to Gerhard and his employees, as it was my last day of work at the Sonnenalm. After dinner we poured wax. That means we melted wax and then we poured it in cold water. Then we tried to interpret the emerged figures. According to my uncle, I will protect someone from disaster for the next year. I have to admit it took a lot of imagination to interpret the figures.

That evening I also thought a lot about the past year. It’s unbelievable what happened that year. I passed my A-levels, spent the whole summer without my parents and then of course the beginning of our trip. I have noticed how grateful I am for all the people who are close to us and of course those who we were able to get to know and the incredible experiences I have made. I am especially grateful for my parents, grandparents and my closest friends Maria and Lina, whom I love incredibly and who support me in everything.

Adventure and philosophical thoughts in Salzburg

On January 1st, 2022 I had to pack my bags again. Actually, I wanted to stay until January 5th, 2022, but then my desire to travel caught me again and so my uncle dropped me off in a town near Salzburg. The rest of the way I took the bus. When I arrived in Salzburg around noon, I first stowed my backpack in the train station and walked around the city for about 4 hours, mainly looking for an open grocery store. The 01.01. it’s a public holiday – I didn’t expect that.

Fortunately, there was an open Billa in the touristic old town and I was able to move into my hostel room around 4 p.m. That same evening, I met Yannik through the Couchsurfing hangout function. I wanted to (and in the end I also did) spend the last two nights at his place in Salzburg and since we both had time we went out to eat together. So I worried about my supper in the morning for nothing ;). After dinner he showed me a really unbelievably beautiful view over Salzburg from the Kapuzinerberg. That was incredible!

On the way to the restaurant he told me that he wanted to start going to the gym again, and since I hadn’t planned anything else anyways, we agreed to go there together on January 2nd, 2022 at 8 o’clock in the morning. On the way there, I regretted my decision the next morning. It was kind of funny anyways, even if my arms hated me for the next two days. And because it was so beautiful: despite my vow never to go there again, I was there again on Monday morning. That was really the last time in Salzburg, because my body had to recover from the exertion for the next three days ;). Otherwise, I spent the days walking through the city, reading a good book on a bench by the river and just enjoying life and doing what I felt like doing – e.g. going to the cinema by myself. Through the long time I had to think about life, I noticed once again how lucky and how happy I am to be healthy and just be able to do what I want. This freedom is an incredible gift!

On Thursday, January 6th, 2022, it was time to pack my backpack again. After three nights in the hostel and two nights at Yanniks place, my time in Salzburg was over. I almost got to the train too late, but everything worked out wonderfully and I arrived safely at Lucy’s in Mannheim. The last few days we just relaxed, went for a lot of walks, chatted and watched films. Wednesday, January 12th, 2022, I will finally meet Lina again and we will make our way together via Brussels to France. I hope you are all doing well and have started the new year well! Until next time!