It's unbelievable how fast time flies. Strange to say, but our year in Salzburg is sadly coming to an end. But what a great year it was! We've made new friends, improved our German, traveled to countries we've never seen before, and simply enjoyed getting to know the city of Salzburg. With the 1000 year old Festung, the beautiful mountains, and the river dividing the city, I think its safe to say that we have all fallen a little bit in love with our home for the past year. We were lucky enough to have the opportunity to do many fun things in Salzburg this year, including going to the salt mines, having picnics on the banks of the Salzach River, hiking up Gaisberg and Untersberg, seeing historical sights such as Mauthausen and Eagles Nest, and attending a variety of plays and operas. We also had the opportunity to travel together to Vienna in October, and, just recently, to Berlin in May. I think the most important thing, however, was getting to experience a completely different culture than what we are used to at home. Although there were definitely some challenges, such as getting used to the Austrian dialect and having stores closed on Sundays, we all acclimated to the changes and are getting very sad to leave Salzburg. All in all, it was a great year--one we will never forget!
