Grüß Gott!

This is my last vlog. I decided to share my tips and advice for packing for Vienna. Hope you enjoy!

Cape Malay cuisine is extremely unique to Cape Town, as it was brought to the area in the 17th century when slaves were being imported from SOutheast Asian (particularly Malaysia.) The cuisine isn’t completely Malaysian, as the Dutch colonizers added their own culinary preferences to the cuisine as well, creating a fusion known today as Cape Malay cuisine.

Every October, Cloof Wine Estate, located about and hour outside of Cape Town’s city center, hosts an annual music festival called Rocking The Daisies. Mostly South African bands headline the festival, with a few international guests as well. This year, one of my favorite bands, a British group titled Alt-J headlined the festival, and put on an incredible performance. Lots of local food vendors and artists also attend the festival to sell their products, and you can find some really funky souvenirs there to take home.

During my time in New Zealand I was fortunate enough to take a forestry class called “Trees in the Landscape” which talked about, you guessed it, trees and the roles they play in New Zealand.  Various types of trees were studied (with a huge emphasis to Radiata Pine – New Zealand’s go-to tree for lumber use), what soil they worked best in, types of areas where we see trees, objectives when planting trees, and everything in between.

I listened to a lot of Simon & Garfunkel in my last few weeks in Granada.  As I sat in coffee shops working on final projects and studying for final exams, I played their Greatest Hits over and over again.  I know their song “Homeward Bound” now by heart.

Homeward bound /I wish I was /Homeward bound /Home, where my thought’s escaping /Home, where my music’s playing /Home, where my love lies waiting/Silently for me 

On November 10th I was able to go to wwoof with two of my friends.  For those unaware, when you wwoof (Willing Workers On Organic Farms) you basically work for 4-6 hours a day in exchange for meals and a place to stay.  The three of us ventured up towards the most northern part of the south island, to a tiny town called Spring Creek.  Close to the Marlborough Sound, the ocean, wine country, and a river.

This side of the Atlantic greeted me with heaping piles of snow, Christmas wreaths on every door, public and private, and a very excited family. I must acknowledge what I’ve missed the most about the US: the food, free bathrooms, ice cubes, magical places called drugstores that allow you to get toothpaste, aspirin, and candy bars all under the same roof, and of course all the people I’ve only been able to skype with for the past four months.

I can already tell that leaving Nantes is going to be one of the hardest things I’ll have to do in my life. While I’ve never been away from my parents for this long before, I’ve also never felt closer to them than I do now and that makes it so much harder for me to return home.

So my homestay was technically located in the barrio of Recoleta, but right on the border of Palermo. I think this was probably my favorite barrio because of all the fun restaurants and boutiques, and the general sense of being able to meander around cobblestone streets and enjoy the neighborhood. Palermo also has several sub-barrios including Palermo Hollywood, Palermo Soho, Palermo Chico, and others.