...and so it begins...

I finally got my housing assignment for Austria! I'll be living in one of the dorms on a street called Ghegagasse, which, after referring to my map, appears to be quite a distance away from the university. It's on the opposite side of the Mur River, which cuts Graz in half. On the plus side, at least i'll have some pretty butch legs after the daily bike rides to and from classes. I poked around on the www and found some info about the dorm. It was all auf deutsch, so I don't know how accurately I translated it, but here goes:

The Ghegagasse dorms were constructed using "the most modern standard" in architectural designs. They are also located in close proximity to the railway station. They have a suite-style layout, with six students per suite (or "generous housing area" as they call it) and two separate "sanitary areas" (bathrooms, I guess). Each suite has a balcony and/or terrace. The amenities include a kitchen, washer/dryer, fitness room, sauna, two music sampling rooms (?), social room, party room, two seminar rooms, children's playground, cable TV, internet connection, elevator, underground garage, and parking places for bikes and cars.

I'm not yet sure whether I got a single or a double. Most people got singles. I just hope the dorm is as good as it sounds. Here are some pictures:




In related news, I had my first dream auf Deutsch the other night. It probably lasted all of about three minutes, but that is still highly exciting. I've been teaching German to two Conway girls who are my age, which has actually helped me a lot more than I expected. It's amazing how much easier it is to converse with someone who has a somewhat inferior grasp of the German language instead of one of my fluent peers or professors. I guess I'm a little hesitant about challenging myself. : )