Friday 24 October 2008

"The Hills are alive with the Sound of Music"

At this exact moment, I can look out the window in front of me and enjoy a full view of the Austrian Alps. The mountains closest to me are fir covered, mostly green but interspersed with fall colors. At the base of the nearby mountains lies a small town, spread through the valley. Farther in the distance, but still very near to me, are snow capped mountains. Rising above the rest and covered in jagged rocks and cliffs, today these peaks are hidden by clouds which seem to slowly creep farther down the mountains and nearer to my retreat.

My retreat is a thing of beauty itself. Perched on the top of a mountain, it has looked down over the valley since 1150. Named Schloss Mittersill, it is indeed a castle, and it is my home for almost a week. This castle has seen quite a bit in its lifetime. Like many castles, it has burned (more than once) and been rebuilt. Its past is not entirely a pleasant one: during the witch trials in the area, the dungeon held those suspected of witchcraft--probably upwards of 200 people. Then, during World War II, the castle was used as Nazi headquarters and is thought to have been used for human experimentation, although not the experimentation itself but the paperwork end of it. After the war the castle became a hunting lodge (it had been this prior to the war as well), and in 1968 was sold and become a vital conference center. Because of the Iron Curtain, there were few places where Christians could meet from both the east and west. After the curtain came up, the castle was not as essential, but has continued to be a Christian conference center for people from all over the world. (Like me!!)

We're here until Sunday morning, and it's the one point in the trip where we are forced to relax and take a step backward, simply because there is absolutely nothing to do in the area except enjoy the amazing views. Well.... I should rephrase that last sentence... It's the one point in the trip where we are supposed to be able to relax. In actuality, we have something called a "creative project" (i know, the creativeness of the title really inspires....), an accompanying short paper, a newspaper article, preparation for an 8 page paper, narrative journal entries, 3 days of classes, and preparation for another 7 page paper. Delightful, isn't it?

As you've all been so patient reading through this... I'll finally show pictures. ...Although, knowing most of you the way I do, you probably skipped right through everything I said and looked only at the pictures. :-)
Also, I'm not entirely sure what happened since I haven't had this problem up until now, but the pictures don't seem to be showing up completely. The entire right side may be cut off, but if you click on the picture, you'll be able to see the entire thing.


This first picture is the deck outside my room..... about half the girls are on the top floor of this particular wing, and we all share the deck. Despite it's location in the Alps, the weather has been rather warm and a good number of us sun-bathed yesterday. (Supposedly the forecast predicts snow tomorrow)



This next picture is kind of low quality because it's taken from a coach window on our way to the castle. Still, gives you an idea of the views we have from here.


A shot from the garden directly below the castle. Hopefully I'll remember to post a view pics of the castle itself.... but don't hold your breath--I still never finished that other post.



And this is the view from the deck in the first picture. Well, at least one angle.

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