academic adventurer

Neues blog / New blog

2008-10-06T13:53:00.001+03:00

Dies ist ein mittlerweile nicht mehr genutztes blog, weiter geschrieben wird hier...
This blog is not in use anymore, the "adventure" continues here...

http://www.positive-ecology.org/blog2/

just a quick check

2008-10-02T12:25:00.000+03:00

I think I need to update something - so this is just for checking

Update

2008-09-30T17:01:00.003+03:00

Time for a post in English, but first, a note in German:

Meine Website erhält (was die Technik angeht) ein Upgrade, dadurch könnten kleinere Probleme auftreten. Ausserdem will ich deutschsprachig video-bloggen, das dauert aber seine Zeit... Jetzt ist allerdings den Rest der Woche frei, die Zeit also hoffentlich zu finden.

Okay, then. My website is being upgraded (technology-wise), so there might be some delays. There are some delays anyways, since I've been here in China for almost a month already, but have only been with an internet connection for a few days.

In the meantime, I've found places I like to go, routes for my running/training, met nice people, come to know my students a bit better, finished the formalities that were necessary, not only been connected to the web, but also outfitted with gas for cooking (which I haven't been doing, going out for food is a lot of fun and cheaper than cooking yourself) and for the warm water-heater for the shower.
I even went out documenting some of the chile peppers that can be found here. (And I found that my chile pepper-related website cannot be reached in ordinary ways, it's blocked... that may be one more reason to get its English-language version up and running, though: Maybe then it would be even more obvious that it's innocuous...).

Lots to write about, and lots will follow. The plan is to video-blog in German, and write in English. Now, the rest of the week is free time, so I hope to get some things done.

Peace, Out. G.

Intro-Video, und Erste Eindrücke von Tag 1

2008-09-25T03:35:00.007+03:00

Video: 25.9.2008, zur Einleitung

[Update: Habe zwei Versuche gemacht, das Video gleich hier eingebettet zu haben, beides wollte nicht funktionieren. Jetzt ist es über diesen Link - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1157136073537806510&hl=en - auf Google Video zu erreichen. Hoffe ich zumindest!]

[Update 2: Ich versuche es jetzt auch mal mit YouTube:]

In China - Erste Eindrücke

(geschrieben 6.9.2008, "Tag 1")

Flug - eigentlich deren drei - mit viel Warterei,
aber es klappt alles.
Erinnerung an den China-Trip 2004: Chinesische Flugzeuge starten mit ausgefahrenen Landeklappen.
Mehr das klappt.
Interessante Ausblicke aufs Land am Weg nach Beijing, aber auch schon Fabrik-Rauchfahnen die sich entlang des Bodens in die nächsten Täler erstrecken. Am Flug nach Changsha, kaum mehr Ausblick. Der erste chinesische Sonnenuntergang ist eindrucksvoll, mit dichter, diesiger Luft darunter.

Landeanflug in der Nacht, durch die Wolkendecke. Immer wieder bemerkenswert wie finster die chinesische Nacht ist. Man sieht so viel über die Glitzerwelt Shanghais, hört so viel über dieses und jenes. Welch' ein Unterschied im Energieverbrauch aber schon zwischen den europäischen Strassenlaternen entlang jedes grösseren Wegerls und dem Mangel an Beleuchtung allerorts ausser an grössten Strassen.

Abholen vom Flughafen klappt auch, Herr Huang und gleich noch eine Kollegin vom Büro für internationalen Austausch und noch ein weiterer Lehrer aus dem Ausland (für Englisch).

Chinesische Autobahn bei Nacht. Moderne Mautstationen, ewige Verkehrsregeln: im Zweifelsfall hat der stärkere Recht, der kleinere und schnellere kann aber rechts vorbei und in der Lücke durch.

Im Quartier: wirklich ganz neu gebaut. So neu dass noch einiges zu tun ist: Noch kein Gas, damit kein Warmwasser, auch noch kein Internet. Dafür neuer Computer, Mikrowelle, Waschmaschine, TV, westliches Klo...

Abendessen ausgeschlagen. Vielleicht nicht gut für das soziale Leben, aber der Schlafmangel war schon stärker. Mitten in der Nacht aufgewacht mit dem Gedanken, wahrscheinlich nicht gut schlafen zu können. Erst gegen sieben aufgewacht.
Etwas geputzt, eingerichtet, dann eine erste Runde durch die Stadt. Nun gut, durch die nähere Umgebung. Das meiste hier scheint der Universitätscampus zu sein, was davon aber Stadt und was Uni ist, lässt sich - noch - nicht so ganz leicht sagen. Aber wieder einmal dieses Gefühl: Man sammelt "Hellos!" und diesmal sogar schon "Good Mornings!", ist offensichtlich kein Einheimischer, aber kann sich leicht weniger fremd vorkommen als anderswo. Man ist einfach Mensch unter vielen.
Wobei, es hat auch einen Park in der Nähe, einen grösseren Lotusteich und zumindest einen kleineren, und da hat es einige Stellen an denen man sich plötzlich allein mit dem Kreischein und Zirpen von Insekten vorkommt. Meine Laufstrecke wüsste ich so jedenfalls schon, muss aber noch sehen, ob ich mich tatsächlich mit den Lauftights in die Öffentlichkeit wage.
Die ersten Marktbesucher im Nachtgewand waren aber auch schon zu sehen. Überhaupt die üblichen kleinen Stände - was heisst Stände: ein Fleck Boden tut's vielen auch schon. Etwas Fleisch, viel Gemüse. Die mindestens fünf ersten Chilli- und Paprikasorten für meine Sammlung. Frosch im Sack. Fisch. Einer davon - Aal? nicht ganz, aber irgendwie doch... Biologie ist doch lang her, das ohnehin nicht mein Thema - macht sich auf den Weg. Aber nicht lange. Dann ist er wieder im Korb.

Oft genug, für mich, die Frage nach der Biologie: Kürbis rankt sich durch die Gegend. Kein Problem. Etwas anderes rankt sich, dass man Angst bekommt davor stehen zu bleiben ("Ruins" hatte mir zwar nicht sehr gefallen, aber ein solches Bild behält man dann ja doch im Kopf). Ich glaube, ich sollte/könnte wissen was es ist. Wenn's mir jemand sgen würde - aber bitte mit lateinischem Namen, hätte ich es mir wohl gedacht. Asiatische Kermesbeere und Bambus wenigstens sind alte Bekannte; vieles ist aber auch nur "bekannt", weil es wenigstens erkennbar eine Pflanze, eine Baumart ist. Maulbeere in der Ritze? Schon besser. Eine Paulownie die sich mit ihren typisch monströs grossen Blättern aus dem Unterholz entlanggearbeitet hat? Scheint ganz so. Dann wieder Blätter die bekannt aussehen - und ganz typisch - für die ich aber dennoch keinen Namen habe.

Nun gut, eigentlich war ich ja inzwischen am Markt:
Frösche im Sack. Ob mein Chinesisch reichen würde um zu fragen wie man denn die zubereitet? Zum Glück habe ich ja ohnehin noch kein Gas für die Kochstelle ;-)
Aber wie gehabt: Genug Gemüse. Darunter auch genug erkennbares. Eben Chili und Paprika, Süsskartoffeln, zwei Sorten Ingwer, viel an Kürbis, ein paar Tomaten.

Mittagsruhe. Es ist hier noch kuschelig warm, diesig und mit höherer Luftfeuchtigkeit wie üblich. Aber das kenne ich ja doch schon. Objektiv gesehen kannte ich es gar nicht so sehr, sicher nicht so sehr wie ich es wollte. Das wird sich jetzt wohl ändern.
Es ist hier in der Provinz, gleichzeitig - mit den drei Städten Changsha, Xiangtan und Zhangzhou als eine Industrieentwicklungszone, aber nicht hintennach. Mir wichtig am "in der Provinz sein" ist ja auch, dass ich hier schon in den weniger als 24 Stunden die ich jetzt da bin, mehr Chinesisch gehört habe als in den Jahren in denen ich es lernen wollte zuvor. Zumindest in der Praxis, nicht aus dem Lehrbuch.
Dem sollte ich mich wohl gleich noch widmen. Scheint so als würden so manche aus dem Ausland kaum Chinesisch lernen; scheint mir seltsam. Wie dem auch sei...

Finally! - Endlich!

2008-09-24T14:13:00.002+03:00

Endlich online, nach fast drei Wochen ohne Internetanschluss, ein Monat nach dem letzten blog-Eintrag... Updates kommen bald, schliesslich sind dies auch fast drei Wochen die ich jetzt schon wieder in China bin!

Finally online, after three weeks without internet connection, a month after last writing on this blog... updates will follow soon. After all, it's also been nearly three weeks that I've been in China already. Of course, quite a bit has been happening!

Ein Anfang mit Deutsch

2008-08-21T07:35:00.001+03:00

Will ich doch gleich auch einmal einen Eintrag auf Deutsch verfassen. Es ist ja auch der Anfang eines wieder neuen Kapitels...

"Ab nach China"

So könnte man das wohl nennen. Der Monat Juli begann mit Absagen, einer für ein weiteres Studium in Japan, einer für eine Lektorenstelle im Bereich Germanistik in China.
Aus der zweiten Absage erwuchs allerdings eine Möglichkeit - die ich zuerst gar nicht für wahrscheinlich hielt - aus der nach einer Bewerbung und etwas Hin-und-Her tatsächlich Realität wurde: Das Germanistik-Institut der Universität Xiangtan in Hunan suchte Lektoren und ich bekam (m)eine Chance. (Die dritte Bewerbung dieses Jahres, im Rahmen des Chinese Government Scholarship Programme, EU window, wäre auch erfolgreich gewesen und hätte mich auch nach Hunan geführt. In die Provinzhaupt- und Nachbarstadt...)

Der August ist jetzt natürlich vollgepackt mit Vorbereitungen, sowohl an Formalitäten als auch an Notwendigkeiten - inklusive der Kleinigkeit, zu überlegen ob ich nun weiterhin auf Englisch (als lingua franca) oder doch auf Deutsch (als Sprache der wahrscheinlich meisten meiner Leser und meiner zukünftigen Studenten) bloggen sollte...
Mal sehen ob ich es irgendwann während des Jahres schaffe, auch Chinesisch zu nutzen.

Heute jedenfalls - nicht mehr rechtzeitig um nicht meinen Flug ändern zu müssen, aber immerhin endlich - habe ich erfahren, dass die Dokumente die für den Visumsantrag notwendig sind nun endgültig zu mir auf dem Weg sind.

The road ahead...

2008-08-21T07:30:00.000+03:00

... leads East again.
Far East, in fact: Since I last wrote, what was a possibility then, has now become reality.

Mid-July, I was told that I could still apply for a position at the German studies department of Xiangtan University, Hunan. At the end of July, there was further inquiry about my qualifications (since I hadn't done German studies). Soon after, I got the job.

The same day that I went to the doctor's to get the health certificate necessary to apply for the visa, I received word that I would also have received a scholarship under the Chinese Government Scholarship Programme's EU Window (and also for Hunan). Through August, I was busy getting everything necessary in order and preparing lectures.

Today, after a pretty long wait (bureaucracy, especially with the Olympic Games... you know how it is), I learnt that the documents I need to apply for my visa/work permit are finally on their way. By now, I need to change my flight date to make sure it all works out time-wise, but at least I'm getting there. (The reason I had not written in a while is because I don't like writing about that sort of waiting game.)

I'll be teaching German, this blog started out in English mainly because English is the lingua franca for Campus Europae (and anyways)... so now I'm wondering if I should switch to German, go bi-lingual, or just mix it... I'm really more curious to see if I'll manage to mix in some Chinese by the end of the year, though.

A Day to Remember

2008-08-19T19:27:00.000+03:00

Went to Vienna, running some errands.

In the light rail car: two women, chatting in Russian.

Went past St. Stephen's. Tons of tourists. One group I passed by: Latvians. By now, I recognize the language by the second word I hear.

Later, had a look into the Meinl am Graben, Vienna's luxury supermarket - heard more Russian and had a little chat. In German...

Wrapping Up, and Looking Ahead

2008-07-16T19:07:00.000+03:00

Been writing up a little reflection on my experiences with the Campus Europae exchange studies in Latvia: http://www.positive-ecology.org/cv/CampusEuropae-Latvia.html

Also, inquired about accreditation of courses for English. Went better than expected; with a little luck, it will go pretty well.

Out of the one China application that was futile, another opportunity has opened up. I'm trying not to get my hopes up, but at least it is one more chance.

Between Times

2008-07-13T20:29:00.000+03:00

So, two of my three applications for going to East Asia have amounted to nothing; the decision on the last one will only become known mid-August. I'm not really hopeful anymore, but still waiting.

Meanwhile, this week I have started organizing accreditation of the courses I took in Latvia, and also of former lectures in biology for a potential teacher training in biology at University of Salzburg. I've been finding that I need to have biology, not only (but along with) languages and associated cultural issues be part of my work even in teacher training/teaching.
Should I really not make it to East Asia, the application for the second year abroad with Campus Europae will be handed in this summer... and I should have the money necessary for a little research trip in Europe.

Work is progressing with writing, both where publications and where my (planned, started, and immediately "resting") professional blogs are concerned. Planned timeframe: Finishing the first of these things this month. Let's see if I really manage that. Sure would be good to finally get a sense of progress... I've recently not felt like a researcher, even though I did some research and have been working on writing it up. It would be a lot better if I had a job (i.e., earned money) with that, but getting something published would be a step to breaking through my impasse, too.

Where training is concerned... that's another post today.

Recovery Week

2008-07-13T20:20:00.002+03:00

The (lower) legs were pretty sore from the mountain marathon / Bergmarathon on July 5, and that for quite a while. Still, time to continue training - and blogging it.

July 8: on the bike - 00:53:34 - 13.82 km - avg. HR 106 - TE 1.5
Cross-training like that was very nice, I'm doing something this way, getting a low training effect for once, and still not abusing my legs.

7/11: running again - 00:50:30 - 8.44 km - avg. HR 138 - TE 2.5
Running early in the morning to stay out of the heat (and to get in training before almost everything else), and it seems to have been very nice and easy. The legs are still a little heavy, but almost back to normal; I do wonder, though, if the heart rate is low because I'm doing better or because of some effect of overtraining...

7/12: biking - 01:09:05 - 20.78 km - avg. HR 109 - TE 1.4another nice and easy ride, not least, to keep doing something
7/13: and back to running yet again - 01:22:57 - 13.89 km - avg. HR 148 - TE 3.3Looking, and feeling, good.

I am starting to think I really ought to find another event to train towards, and soon ;-)

Bergmarathon 2008 Report

2008-07-08T23:05:00.001+03:00

By the organizers' description, Europe's most beautiful mountain run,
according to many participants, the hardest event...

70 km, 4300 meters of ascent are quite something, after all.
My GPS-POD actually recorded a distance of 85 km, but it jumped around like crazy...also, according to my Suunto t6c's analysis, I burnt nearly 10500 kcal.
A normal day's worth is 2000-3000 kilocalories.

It took me 14 hours and 10 minutes.
And yes, indeed, it is beautiful. And hard. - Just check out the altitude profile:

... read on and see more here.

Bergmarathon

2008-07-08T13:35:00.001+03:00

Report is coming soon; posts while on the move (which were never finished) have been deleted

blog rename

2008-07-04T10:28:00.001+03:00

An old friend of my father's came by for a visit. His comment to my life so far - studies, sojourns abroad, plans and proposals: "an academic adventurer."

I've realized something.
Talking about the things I'm doing as manyfold - as "me, myself, and I" (the old title of my blog) - fits with the outside view. The view of those same kinds of people who were amazed when I started studying and was an adventurous student - dedicated, but to the connection between some fields rather than to single-field specialization. And who now see my success with that, but either choose to complain that I did not yet finish more, or denigrate it by arguing that a person would only follow so many interests if he did not really know what he wanted.
The one is nothing I can change right now; the latter, simply wrong.

I know what I want, and I am following that with all dedication.
If detours such as into school teaching are necessary, then so be it. (I'll still be a more interesting and interested teacher than those who only want it as an easy job.)
It may look as if I were interested in too many unrelated things, but they all come from the same source and feed the same purpose: understanding the human condition as a part of this world, and influencing our move towards sustainability.

In honor of an awareness of this, to fit my own view, and in honor of Eddie, my dad's long-time friend, former colleague, and an adventurous person himself, I've decided to rename my blog.

Always being right...

2008-07-02T13:31:00.002+03:00

It's a real curse to always be right.
As expected, I got a letter informing me that I would not be receiving the Monbukagakusho scholarship.

I'm still a bit mad about the committee and what it focused on (such as, my not focusing only and exclusively on Japan), and my own failure to explain my plans and motivations better.

And I'm really mad at those rejection letters: You are supposed to learn from your mistakes, but you are never told what motivates a rejection.
Then again, I met a former classmate recently. She is now also studying (or rather, soon finishing) teacher training in one of the subjects in which she had earlier received her master's. Why the switch to a different kind of career? She had been working unsatisfactory jobs, applying for a research project, only to be told that she were a woman, and the persons responsible thought they shouldn't pick a woman for that project since it were in Sicily. - Wow, a case in which you know what was the fault. Very helpful knowledge, that.

I still haven't learnt about the China application I should already know something about. In the meantime, I'm getting older, soon I won't be in a position to apply for another post-doc scholarship because too much time will have passed between then and when I received my doctorate, and if I applied, I guess they would tell me that I didn't have enough research experience. Still, I'll be trying.

Now - well, tomorrow, actually - off to Altmünster for the Bergmarathon. As I said before: Something that (also) takes stamina and perseverance, but at least is not contingent on what other people think of you, but on yourself. Let's see how far I get there...

Bergmarathon - 1 Week To Go

2008-06-28T08:24:00.002+03:00

That time's upon us... just one more week.

Like before Stockholm Marathon, I'm vacillating between feeling quite confident, and thinking it's quite too much I want to do there.

At least, I much prefer being nervous about this to being nervous about the decision on the Monbukagakusho application (which, as I forgot to mention yesterday, we will learn about already next week). After all, it's my own physical and psychological capabilities which are decisive here, not what a committee thinks of what I wrote and said and seemed like.

Still, when I remember that one or another of my posts announcing that I'll participate in that event comes among the first results when looking for info on the Bergmarathon... OMG... Well, as with so many things, I'll just have to see how it goes. And first of all, to hope that the weather will be all right.

Bad Vibe about Monbu Application

2008-06-27T20:07:00.004+03:00

Yesterday, I had language test(s) for the Monbukagakusho scholarship application.

My English test results, as I learned today, were very good.
Not a surprise... it included texts like I always deal with, and tests like these I wrote myself. You get 60 minutes to take the test, I was finished after 30.
Japanese was a different matter. Or would have been, if it counted as part of the application (it's only for seeing how much the applicant already knows).

Funny thing happened after that: I walked past a group of Spanish, and one commented: "Que guapo." A little later, I went past some people sitting outdoors, and one said basically the same thing, in English: "Now, there's a good looking guy."
First off, I don't see myself as particularly good-looking. And secondly, why was it guys who said that? There, I prefer the Latvian girl who wolf-whistled after me ;-)

Today's talk with the commission deciding who'll actually get the scholarship feels like it didn't go too well.

I never thought I'd say that in any context involving Japanese, but I felt that it, and I, was all too cool and rational. I could have explained some things, like for how long I have wanted to get to Japan, a lot better, I fear.

Then again, things have to - and can only - be as good as they can be "now," at the moment they are happening. Afterwards, it's over. Draw a lesson, but more importantly, remember to go on.
Maybe my feeling is wrong and they'll still pick me. If so, I would be surprised, but pleasantly so. If not, I can't change it.

Honestly, I just don't feel like projecting youthful enthusiasm anymore. I do that naturally when I can give a talk about something that fascinates me, but in a situation like applications, it's become a survival skill to be able to remain cool and have a Plan B (and C, and D, preferably).
Maybe that's not the best thing, but it's not the best world, either.

It's nice in hell...

2008-06-24T10:01:00.003+03:00

… and there was snow there, in the Höllengebirge ("Hell Mountains").
I let my dad drive me to the place where I wanted to start, went over the first (small) mountain, and then up onto the Feuerkogel. The Traunsee-Bergmarathon (mountain marathon) will take the same route down from the Feuerkogel and towards Grasberg and Gmundnerberg (where I had been running the day before).

Rather unexpectedly, it took me only a bit more than three hours to make my way up. Encountered some runners (many more than hikers) on the way, probably some I'll meet again at the Bergmarathon.
Nice, sometimes adventurous, paths up the mountain, through the forest, over rocks, oftentimes having to climb fallen trees or make the way through underbrush that's rather close together.
Doesn't look like a path to run, but that's not the plan for the Bergmarathon, anyways.

Having gotten up so quickly, I decided to go on and hiked to the Grosser Höllkogel ("Big Hell Mountain/Summit," sort of). Another three-and-a-half hours to and back, much of the way across left-over snow fields. Well, it's only mid-June, and this is a high alpine area already…

View Larger Map

Anyways, I'm happy to have made it up there, finally hiking in the mountains, with my trusty old backpack (which I've had for a long time, always use in my travels, and never yet used for real backpacking!).

Today is the third day after that little adventure, and my soreness is passing. Since yesterday, it's been extremely hot and humid here, back in the East of Austria. Seeking to advance with writing that's to be done lest I never publish anything, anymore.
The day after tomorrow, the tests and then the talks that are part of the Monbukagakusho application will be taking place.
I don't usually dream, but with some nervosity about both this application (and I should learn about the application as lecturer for China soon) and the Bergmarathon mounting, I've had some pretty weird dreams. The heat did its part. And last night, some beeping kept on waking me - took me until this morning to realize it was my mobile phone's "low battery"-warning...

Back in Austria, In the Alps

2008-06-21T07:34:00.001+03:00

Last Thursday, went to Altmünster (in Upper Austria, quite close to Salzburg) to our apartment there, with my dad. A change of scenery to something more like what people would think of when thinking of Austria, and a chance to get in some mountain training…

With all that was and is to be done to get organized again and ready for the next escapade, having just come back from Latvia, and not knowing what will be next, there's lots of errands to run.
Just before leaving, I checked the plant pots in the greenhouse, for example, to see which of last year's chile peppers did, after all, survive over-wintering. (Actually, quite a few did, and quite a few for which I would not have expected it.)

Training has been rather less consistent, with days passing in a rush and me not noticing some times when two days pass without any sports (except for re-arranging my book cases or the like, which actually does have some likeness to weight lifting…).

Still, there where some nice runs.

June 14, for example. To the north of Parndorf:

View Larger Map

Time: 03:13:25; 30.39 km; avg. speed 6.4 min/km; avg. HR 154 bpm; TE 4.2
Ascent/descent: 112 / 105 m

Or yesterday, at the Traunsee/Altmünster:

View Larger Map

Time: 02:09:20; 16.93 km (?; I think the leaf cover on forested passages disturbed the GPS-POD quite a bit at times); avg. speed 7.6 min/km; avg. HR 152 bpm; TE 4.5
Ascent/descent: 522 / 514 m. Yep, I'm in the mountains now.

Today, it's 14 days to the Bergmarathon.
And I'm going to hell… the Höllengebirge ("Hell Mountains").

I am so back home...

2008-06-13T22:05:00.000+03:00

Temperatures have gone down, wind is up. I'm definitely back home.

Vienna felt absolutely grand. Not only is it - or certainly seems, not least
as my favorite haunts are spread out a bit - quite a bit bigger than Riga, I
also noticed how much more international it is. Stockholm already was a lot
more international, but Vienna, now more than ever, feels truly
cosmopolitan. I heard more different tongues, both of varieties of German
and of truly other languages here in a few hours, than ever in Latvia.

Being recognized and welcomed back by some many people in Parndorf (which is
40 km from Vienna, but the way many people from here work in Vienna, as I
studied and study in Vienna, to me it's like a suburb), I once again feel
more at home here than I did before.
Already, it had a great side-effect: The local branch of the Raiffeisen-Bank
will be getting my bank account, for they actually have something that is
customer service, whereas the Bank Austria where I had my account for all of
12 years now proved to be totally inflexible, as if I couldn't be trusted to
pay up. Well, fortunately I can still change without having too many set
payments. My luck, and the local bank's.

Currently, I'm watching a TV program (on German station 3Sat, which is quite
like the American PBS) about the Viennese Ringstrasse, the grand street
encircling the inner city, built on the area where the city walls used to
be. As always after being abroad for a while, I notice how many places I
have actually never been (inside the Opera, for example), and how much
history we have here.
Riga got me to realize how much I am used to places having Roman roots (Riga
was only founded after 1200). In the USA, I don't have problems with it
being different, I don't think that it's "all so new, without history" as
some always say - but to have that in Europe...

Well, I'd still love to go abroad again after this summer, finally make it
to East Asia.
Still, if I knew this would be the case, I think I should try to do some
Vienna tourism.
Then again, I also haven't yet managed to make it to Paris, for example...

Back in Austria

2008-06-09T20:27:00.000+03:00

I came back last Friday. Since then, I've been busy trying to get organized. It's pretty strange not knowing whether I'll be in Austria after this summer, or gone yet again.

Crazy how some things can go:

On the flight back, I met one girl who I had not managed to say Goodbye to. Turned out the reason she had been to Vienna before was that she has a boyfriend here. The day before, she had decided to go to Vienna again, on the same flight I was on... Chatting, that was a two-hour flight that seemed more like 15 minutes.

Blogging may be less useful now, since I don't know if anybody's reading, but I do want to continue putting up some things.

It's a little more difficult right now, not just because I seem to be trying to catch up with all the sleep I didn't get in Latvia, but also because my notebook doesn't talk to the modem anymore. My mobile phone, however, decided to let me connect the PC to it, and go online this way... So, I'm back to feeding the blog by way of e-mails, hoping it works.

Austria, actually, is not as much further along (vegetation-wise) as I had expected.

Rather, Latvia's early summer seems more compressed: Lilac and chestnuts were still flowering, and berries already flowering. Here, lilac and chestnuts flowered a longish time ago, but berries are only starting to flower.

I guess it's the difference in length of daylight: Sunrise and sunset times are pretty different, making for quite a bit shorter days here and now. Also, I think I still haven't quite realized that it's only June.

As I had mentioned, I had gone for a last run in Riga on Thursday:

6/5/2008: 01:20:27.9, ~13km, 5.9 min/km, HR avg 151, TE 3.8

Saturday, I found the road running shoes I had left here and went on a usual course to the north of Parndorf (the village/small town where I usually live):

6/7/2008: 00:54:01,3, ~8 km, 6.1 min/km, HR avg 147, TE 3.3

Also went out in the evening, and although it was quite cloudy, rain and thunderstorm clouds moving around, the sun was stinging. It seems stronger, and to be hotter, than it was in Latvia.

Today, another run, mainly through the military training grounds to the Southwest of Parndorf (I got lucky and it was allowed to get onto it today - not that I always mind if it's not allowed, but I do mind when training with live munition is on ;-) :

6/9/2008: 02:02:17,2, ~20 km, 6 min/km, HR avg. 157, TE 4.7

I have never before seen the - forested - training grounds as wet, humid, and muddy, and even with a lot more erosion on the paths than ever before.

(It has been raining a lot. A while ago in Latvia, we said that you just had to wait for a little while if you didn't like the weather, it will change in a few minutes. For the last months, however, I have noticed that the weather in Austria, with many influences coming together and the Alps adding another element of disturbance, is highly changeable. Some of the rain I have already seen since I came back has been very strong - but fortunately almost only occurred during the night.)

Even many of the fields and paths in the open were still muddy. I was trying out the Cooper's Hill shoes again, and they worked well. This time, with the soil high in clay (rather than Latvia's sand) the mud did accumulate, but it also dropped off rather nicely. And those shoes, although not quite made for stability, felt great. (In contrast to the old road running shoes which, after coming back from the run two days ago, I had thrown away immediately because they proved to be awful.)

Tomorrow, trying to run a lot of errands in Vienna.

Will be fun to be around there again. Or so I hope, as there is a lot of trouble (traffic disturbances, tons of people) because of the Euro 2008.

Already, I have to say that - going running, moving around in it - I have come to like the local landscape a lot: Pretty flat, but not totally - at least some places; wide open... I'll put up a picture.

The two last notes that seem necessary:

Around the time of my return, I received the invitation for the language test and talk which are a part of the application process for the Monbukagakusho scholarship I applied for. One more (and final, actually) step before there is a decision about that...
And, the Bergmarathon 2008 is barely a month away.

Let's call it a stay

2008-06-05T19:27:00.000+03:00

Last day.

In the morning, I went to Agenskalna gimnazija one last time, finishing off some duties, getting a nice book on Latvia as a parting present, and saying good-bye to some of the colleagues. Then, went for a little walk and took some last pictures.

In the evening, I almost had myself convinced that I should just go the airport already today and wait there. Then, I called the taxi for tomorrow morning, went for one last run in Riga, and got some pastries for dinner and maybe breakfast.

Now, for finishing off my packing. I'm pretty sure it's going to be in excess of the 20 kg allowance, even having taken out the books and trying to sneak those in as part of my carry-on.

The Finish

2008-06-03T17:31:00.004+03:00

The high note on which I had hoped to finish my stay in Latvia did come through:

Last weekend, I went to Stockholm to participate in the 30th edition of the Stockholm Marathon - in my 30th year - and I did it.
Okay, it did take me very nearly five hours to finish, but I was able to run the whole time, without any cramps or any such problems, even though it was pretty hot. In fact, I still had the stamina to increase my pace on the last kilometers.

Beautiful. Finishing successfully, seeing the city while running, being able to get through it so nicely... the way things are looking, I'll be out for a slow, light run again today.

Next up: the Bergmarathon (mountain marathon) around the Traunsee. Quite something else, actually (a lot of climbing, a certain need for water and energy to be carried along, and definitely no other intent than to see how far I really get on that course).

Last Days

Yesterday, I came back from Stockholm, and my roommate was packing - he left this morning.

Today, I've just cleaned up, started to pack - checking what should come with me, what might not fit, and trying not to think too much about the excess weight it might entail. Also went and closed my local bank account.

Tomorrow, off to get the confirmation of my stay (necessary for the ERASMUS scholarship) and having Spanish (oral) test. (I wonder how I did on the written one - Russian was hardly glorious, but quite all right, especially considering how intensely I had been studying, not! Spanish should be better, but I don't really know.)

Thursday, a last visit to Agenskalna gimnazija for work feedback and confirmation, and early on Friday, I'm on the flight back home.

Now, I'm wondering if I should go to the beach once more; probably going to try and take some more pictures here and there, but otherwise, I'm trying just to relax. I'm almost at the point of wanting to get into a work routine for the summer, anyways. So much I wanted to get on with didn't really progress a lot...

The e-mail server on which my main mail accounts run is down, just now that a fellow ecology student had written and suggested meeting... (dr.gerald.schmidt[at]gmail.com would also work, if you happened to read this - though it's probably too late for a meeting by now) . Computers...

School's Out

2008-05-27T15:35:00.002+03:00

Yes, that's it with my teaching in Latvia - final grades are given, normal lessons are over.

Next weekend: Stockholm.

In 10 days I'll already be back home. It was originally planned that I'd also be in Latvia in June, but as it turned out, that exam time is really summer break already, most exams are earlier (my last will be on June 4 - oral Spanish exam).

Strange as always:
On the one hand, I am more than happy to get back to Austria. On the other hand, I feel as if I had only just come here recently, and could happily return soon. Should the applications for going to East Asia work out, I'll be more than happy to leave Austria again, too.

Still, except for the Bergmarathon (and the things I'm working on, as usual), I don't yet know what I'll be doing this summer, let alone after that - it depends on the lecturer/scholarship applications, first of all...

Getting back there

2008-05-23T08:12:00.002+03:00

My sojourn in Latvia is, slowly but steadily, drawing to a close...

Health and Running

The cold that prevented me from running in the Riga Marathon is still with me, but losing its grip on me ever more. So, I'm getting back into running - and actually, except for its effect, feeling better than I had before the forced time-out. I'd certainly like to be in top shape for Stockholm...

University and "my work"

Yesterday, I had the written Spanish test (oral will be early in June). No idea how it went ;-) Still, shouldn't I get to East Asia, I'll enjoy going on with that.
Russian test will be on Monday, and it will certainly not go all that well... and I don't care quite that much; I want to learn more of the language, but now it just didn't work out well enough.

Considering how things are going in the world - oil hitting $135 a barrel, food becoming ever more expensive - I feel that I really need to get back into and on with my sustainability/positive ecology work. This had recently been in a time-out too, as school in Latvia also winds down, and lots of work have had to be done.

Work - Teaching and Jobs

In that context:
Yesterday I also signed the paper that the school needs to make the end of my teaching there official. Sounds like I could easily go on, but "No, thank you..."

The Latvian phrase used in that amused me a lot, though: atbriivot mani no darba - translating it literally, it would be "free me from that work"... I certainly did not hate the teaching, but I do feel like I'm being set free. At least until it gets essential that I find my next job...

Recently, I saw a sort-of prediction that the present generation will have 10-14 different jobs during their lifetime. It depends on how I count, but I think I'm at job number 5 or 6 already (and that's counting them so as to get a lower number).