I've been so busy!
Hey people, it's Geneve again. I'm a little bit late with my blog but that's because I have been busy travelling around and doing things:)
One week on and my budget has already gone out the window (sorry mum if you're reading this...) I don't know how much I have spent but I can assure you the stuff I have bought is pretty cool:) I have another two weeks of spending and one of those days will be in the German riding shop for horse riders, I might go a little bit mental in there too.

Yesterday I travelled with my family to Neuschwanstein. It was amazing, and it was also entertaining listening to the robotic English audio tourguide in my ear because he had a little bit of lisp. Later there was a party for the Aussies and hosts. It was nice to see us all at the same time out of school :)

Today (Sunday) was an awesome day! I got to see my favourite breed of horse, training for an upcoming show. I'm not going to go into details because it would probably bore you to death so... I will just show you a picture:) In about an hour I leave to go to an ice hockey match, it is the Star Bulls (a Rosenheim team) Vs another team which I don't know the name of yet. It's going to be fun!

Well that's all from me this week.

Bye:)

Olympiaturm tower, BMW factory and Mount Wendelstein :)

Heeey its Jazz again :)

This time I'll tell you about my trip to Munich on the 11.10.2012 and then how the Huber family and I visited Mount Wendelstein today on the 14.10.2012.

In Munich we went to many different places and saw many different sites. The main places we went were the Olympiaturm and the BMW factory. The Olympiaturm was really high but had the best view, it was such a fast ride in the elevator considering its soo high. We stayed up there for about 20-30 minutes and then decided to come down.

After that we headed straight for the BMW factory. All of the cars they had on display were soo nice and looked so cool. We went on a tour through the factory which took about 2 .5 hours , but it was really interesting to see how the cars were made and all the different processes they go through to get their final product. My favourite part of the tour was seeing all the robots they use and how they just know what to do and they do it so perfectly. :)

Now, my visit to Mount Wendelstein which is roughly 1,838 meters high. Firstly the Huber family and I travelled by train up the mountain, this took us 25 minutes :) When we got to the train stop we went into a little church and listened to part of a religious service, it was very nice. After this we walked to the top of Mount Wendelstein, but it only took us 20 minutes. At the top of it there is a weather station, it was pretty big and the view from up there was soooo huge and amazing, you could see the tops of the mountains in Italy and they were covered in so much snow! I took so many photos of all of this (:

To get down the mountain we chose to walk halfway down and then we caught the train the rest of the way. To walk down as far as we did it took us about 1.5 hours and then we had hot chocolate drinks at a Bavarian restaurant while we waited for the train.

It was a really lovely day and I enjoyed the fresh mountain air and scenery. :)

Stay tuned for next weeks update!! (:

It's been almost 2 weeks already, and time is going fast.

On Tuesday we went to Amerang farm mueseum and we went to Herrenchiemsee and Frauenchiemsee. We saw King Ludwig II's palace/castle and we walked around Frauenchiemsee.

On Wednesday we went to Munich. Once we got there we went around the area Marienplatz and the gate into the main square. At 12:00 we saw the  Glockenspiel, which is wooden figures that dance and make music. We took a train out to the Olympia Park, we went up the tower and we could see all of Munich and surroundings. When we had finished at the Olympia we went to the BMW factory, which was really cool. We looked around the Showroom and met some other exchange students from America, Vietnam, India, Australia and Japan. We had our tour of the complex, which took about 3 hours and we walked about 3km. We took the train out and went back to Bad Aibling to be picke up by our host families.

Tomorrow I am going to Schloss(castle) Neuschwanstein, another castle of King Ludwig II's.

Goodbye, I will write another blog on Friday next week.

Hello everyone, it's Sam here. Sorry that this has taken so long to post.  I have had a number of technical, (and human) difficulties, but here it is.

On the first day we were all tired but excited.  When we went through customs our host families were waiting for us.  We left the airport and went home.

On the first Sunday I went to a castle named Kufstein. It has a very good view and the town of Kufstein itself is very pretty.  Both Austria and Bavaria fought over the area of Kufstein over many years and it is now Austrian. 

On the Monday, it was the first day of school.  The German students do not wear a school uniform. After school we went to the Oktoberfest.  Even though it was a work day, there were so many people but not as busy as it would have been on a weekend.

On the Tuesday, we went to see the Mayor of Bad Aibling who told us about himself and the plans for Bad Aibling.

On Thursday we climbed a mountain to the Rotwandhaus where we stayed the night.

On Saturday my host family went to the Schloss Neuschwanstein and Linderhof.  Although it is a castle it looks like more like a mansion. It is very beautiful.

On the Wednesday we had the welcome brunch with host families and afterwars Matt, Bene, Michael and I went to the Oktoberfest. 

UPDATE as of October 23

On Tuesday October 9, we went on a Wandertag where the students go on an excursion that they choose.  We went to the Munich Zoo and we saw lots of animals. 

On Thursday we went to Munich to Rathaus or Town Hall, we toured the town to the markets and splendid churches.

On Tuesday, October 16, we went to Amerang to an old farm museum which houses various buildings dating back to 400 years ago. We then went to the Chiemsee which is a huge lake of 42km circumference. We first visited the Herrreninsel which houses a palace built by King Ludwig modelled on the Palace of Versailles. It was never completed because of a lack of finances.  We then visited the Fraueninsel, the woman's island which has a nunnery.

On Thursday October 18 we left by the I.C.E. fast train for Berlin. It took 6 hours and despite the train travelling at up to 230kmph, it took a long time and I was happy to get there.

On the Friday we went to the Story of Berlin museum which catalogues the entire history of Berlin. A highlight at the start was the tour of the nuclear bunker which was contained in a car park.

On the Saturday, we went to the Altes Museum which housed Egyptian, Roman, Celtic and Viking historical items with the Bust of Neferitit as a magnificent highlight. We also visited the Berliner Dom (Cathedral).

On Sunday we went to the Bundestag, Reichstag and Checkpoint Charlie, The Berlin Wall and the Brandenburger Tor.  All of these are significant cultural and historical icons.

We also visited the Holocaust Memorial and saw the place above Hitlers Bunker which is now a car park.

Hello all, Maddy here

Im having an awesome time in Germany! On Saturday (6/10/12) we went to the Oktoberfest!! It was sensational, first we went on the ferris wheel and then this ride called Top Spin!! That was a cool ride, then me and Miranda went on the Olympic ride, that was scary!
And lastly Julia and me went on the Tower Power! its like the Giant Drop.... it was so much fun!
Then Tuesday the whole group went to Herrenchimesee, which is a Palace, it was really pretty but we weren't allowed to take photos inside but most of it was gold!! It was amazing.  I want to live there.











Today we went to Munich and we were walking around Mnich for a couple of hours then we went to Olymic Park and the group went up the tower and I stayed at the bottom with Mr.  Kusch. Then we went to the BMW factory. We weren't allowed to take photos in there either, but it was interesting to see how they make the cars.

I'm having a great time, missing everyone a  lot, but its still good!! :)


From Maddy :)

Hello again everyone, Miranda here!
I have had a lot happening in the last few days.
On Friday night I went night shopping in Rosenheim. It only happens once a year, and there were so many people there. There was a light show in the park, which was really cool. There were all these big sculptures that were lit up in really bright colours. There was a laser show, so that the trees glittered.
There was also a catwalk show, all lit up and dazzling with music and lights.
It was really fun, and I got home at about 11.30!

On Saturday I was at the Oktoberfest. On the train, half the people were wearing their Leder Hosen.
Just walking in was amazing. It wasn't even ten in the morning, and already it was packed to the rafters! I have never seen more people in my entire life!
It was a beautiful day; it was really warm and sunny. First, we went on the giant Ferris Wheel. You can see everything from up there, the entive festival and the whole of Munich, too!
I went on a ride called the Top Spin, which was very crazy. But really fun too! We all got so wet, but especially Jazz :)
I also went on a looping roller coaster with five loops (fun!) and the Giant Drop. You could see the whole park from up there, too!
It was a great day, and I am very glad to have had the chance to go to the Oktoberfest.

Today we went to Chiemsee, to see 'Crazy King Ludwig's' palace on the Herreninsel. It is modelled exactly on the palace of Versaille, which is in Paris. Everything is so intricate and it has such an amazing history. The palace is only a third finished. King Ludwig ran out of money (I'm not surprised with all the gold he used!) and he died too young, after he was discoeverd dead in the lake at Starrnbergersee along with his Psychíatrist.

After having a tour of the palace, we took the boat over to the 'Womans Island' (Fraueninsel), where there is a nunnery. The island is really pretty, and the church is lovely. It is beautifully made, and not too big.
The step at the front is worn down so there is a big gap in it due to how many people have walked on it over hundreds of years.

Well, thats all from me for now,

Miranda

Miranda

So it has been a big couple of days for the Aussies and also the Germans!

It feels a bit strange typing on this keyboard... it's very different to the Australian ones- yesterday I somehow turned on caps lock and I have no idea how and I couldn't fix it, so I had to hold down the shift button the whole time so that everything was not in capital letters!

We all said goodbye to our families at the airport after putting on our very trendy new exchange t- shirts! It was sad to say goodbye but I know that it is going to be a big adventure!

The first flight was the longest- 14 hours. It is really quite boring het but the movies are good and you can (try to!) sleep.

We had a stop over in Doha. It was 5 oclock in the morning, but the heat was so stifling that it felt like you couldn't breathe! It was lucky that we only had to stay there an hour but at least inside it was air conditioned...

Our next step was the final leg of the flight! I think we were all pretty excited by then! This leg was 6 hours.  I was sitting next to two men from Austria- they were very interested in my 'Frankie' magazine...! They told me that the weather in Germany will be cold and raining.

Soon we landed and walked off the plane through the airport like zombies- we probably looked like we were part of the 'Thriller' video clip!
Our host families met us at the airport and I was so excited to see everyone! Lukas had a giant Bretzel that everyone shared. 

I set off on the Autobahn with my host family- crazy town! At one point, I think we were sitting on 140 km- I just got my L's so it was very different (and a little bit scary!) to see how they drive in Germany!

I slept like a rock until 4 am then I was wide awake- that has happened every morning since then. Grrr... I think my sleeping pattern will even out soon.

My first full day in Germany was a lot of fun. I went to this really big, beautiful lake. You have to do a bit of a hike to get there past a waterfall. It is so amazing- it's naturally warm, and we might go swimming there next weekend. All of the trees are also changing. I had a bit of fun teaching Julia's familiy the difference between 'Pieces' and 'Peaches', which they were saying the exact same way!

Back home in the backyard was a squirrel! It was very cute!

For school I have to wake up at 6 in the morning. At first, this is not easy for someone who is not that much of a morning person... but you get used to it. When I come back to Australia, I  will be the first one awake instead of the last!   
For breakfast my family had Vegemite- Julia brought it back with her from Australia but no one has touched it!
We have to ride bikes to the train station. Here in Germany, everyone rides bikes! And the cars just stop in their tracks whenever bike riders go past. It's very different to Australia! 
We catch 2 trains- the trains are so crowded because so many students need to take the train.
The school is so modern and big! It has 500 students in one section, 1,200 in another and then another 1,200 or so! That is the population of Bright, all in one place!
School here starts at 8 o clock and finishes at 1. They have one break for half an hour.
After school, Julia and I take a walk through the forest to the farm, because she is getting chickens! We just got them today, and she bulit a little pen for them to play in. All of her friends wanted to come and see them but unfortunately they were asleep!

Today we went into the town in Bad Aibling and met the Mayor. We asked him some questions and he gave us all a Bad Aibling T-shirt. Afterwards we had the best ice cream in Germany!

Bad Aibling is a very pretty, old town. It is a lovely part of Europe to live in!

By Miranda Williams