Another Gorgeous Day

The weather was absolutely perfect today. Too bad it wasn't on Friday, when we went to Augsburg. None of us really enjoyed that trip. Friday was a holiday, which was why we went then instead of Wednesday. That way we wouldn't have two free days last week. None of us were that pleased about that considering all the other students had the day off. Eh.
This weekend Renate was gone... I THINK to a Yoga retreat, but you know, I never can tell. That is I never can tell if I really understand. There's a good chance that's what she was doing though. So Werner cooked. One night neither Fabian nor Isabella ate, so it was just he and I, and he told me he hates to cook, it makes him nervous (or something), and everyone complains about his cooking and doesn't eat it. Considering we were the only ones eating that night..well..yeah. I thought it was fine! It was grilled fish, rice, and steamed broccoli. I mean, it wasn't gourmet or anything, but I'm not complaining!! I don't have to cook!
The family seems to like to go out for lunch on Sunday, we have every Sunday so far. Fabian didn't come with us though, because I guess he put off his homework until today. Isabella, Werner, and I went to a restaurant out in the country. It was a really gorgeous drive, and I believe we went on the AutoBahn. It took us maybe 15 minutes to get there. I had this ridiculously huge piece of pork leg. It's called Schweinshaxe. Actually, I just looked that up in my German dictionary, and it says that that means pork knuckle. I guess maybe I just don't know what a pork knuckle looks like. Either way, it was quite tasty, and it came with Reiderknödle (Potato dumplings) and was smothered in gravy. It was funny though, because Werner and I ordered the same thing, except his came with soup and desert and my pork knuckle thing was about twice as big as his. I should have traded, but then again, I don't think he finished his either. Isabella and I decided we should get some ice cream. However, the kind I wanted came with egg liqueur on top...which is not so appetizing. I successfully ordered my ice cream sans egg liqueur in German..and I got a standing ovation from Werner. Well, I think that has been the first time anyone has told me that my German is "getting always better" which is the direct translation. So to me, that was as good as an applause.
After we ate, the three of us went to this woodland preserve thing and took a short hike. I'm telling you what, Germans are into outdoor recreation. I know that I would have not been particularly excited about going hiking on a Sunday afternoon when I was 16, but Isabella was really perky. Maybe she's just really good natured and I was a horrid teenager. Well, I already know the answer to the later... :) There was an interesting little kiddie play ground, with a bunch of musical instruments made out of wood. Isabella and I got really into them. I think we could have formed a band..
We came home from that around 3 or 4 pm, and at first I thought about laying down for a bit. I still had a headache from the night before. I really think German beer must be quite a bit stronger. I only had three beers, and it was over the course of several hours. Speaking of which, Allison, Bo, Kevin, and I met up with some Erasmus students. Erasmus is the typical study abroad program for Europe. Bo had met one of them on campus a few days ago when she was asking for directions. The girl of course knew at once he wasn't from here, and asked him where he was from and they struck up a conversation. There were about 20 or so of them. As far as I can tell, they've only been here a few days. I talked to a Hungarian girl that as really cool, and either she's only going to be here for a few days, or she's only been here for a few days. I hope she's staying for the full semester, because she was pretty cool. I also talked to a Czechoslovakian girl, and I'm pretty glad I struck up a conversation with her because it turns out, she didn't really know anyone in the group she was with either. At first I was intimidated by all those people, but a little beer will do you wonders!! So, you know, it has it's pros and cons.. We ended up going to a disco afterwards, which was surprisingly fun. I stayed out later than I should have though.
Luckily, I didn't stay up too late so that I couldn't enjoy Sunday. I went for another bike ride along the Donau, and you should be jealous. Fall is absolutely gorgeous here. I think it's fast becoming my favorite season. Next time I go, I'll have to remember to bring my camera with me. I can't explain how happy this evening made me though. It was beyond gorgeous. I sat by the river for a bit as well, contemplating the people that passed me, and thinking about how lucky I am to be here. I honestly wonder if maybe I enjoy these type of moments more than anything else..