Academy Excursions

Each Summer, the entire Academy takes a few excursions to some of the more interesting areas in and around Salzburg. The excursions are booked on Fridays, so after four long work days, we all can take a day and explore a bit.

Last summer the students visited 2 places, and we also organized one hike up the Untersberg, which is the Alp just behind the Schloss Leopoldskron. It’s one you’ll be looking at most while in Salzburg.

The first place we went last year was the Hohenwerfen Castle, a 900-year-old Fortress towering high above the Salzach Valley, between the Tennen and Hagen mountain ranges. You can read more about this amazing fortress, and the falconry show that accompanies a visit, by clicking HERE

Another place visited was the Dachau Memorial site where a concentration camp once stood. It was a somber yet powerful trip. The memorial rests just outside Munich. We frame this visit by having a discussion with a few resident experts on the memorial site, and a screening that may help grasp the importance of our visit. Read more about the Dachau Memorial HERE

Lastly, we took one weekend to hike the Untersberg, the Alp closest to the Schloss Leopoldskron. We definitely want to do this again! You can either hike up the mountain, or take a Gondola ride up. There are spectacular views, and a small restaurant at the top. Here’s a few photos:

We’re still deciding on what excursions we’ll take this summer, and when, but wanted to give you an idea of some of the extracurricular activities you’ll be partaking in at Salzburg.

If you like to swim or run…

If you like swimming and anticipate going either to the 5 pools next door (from slide pools to an Olympic sized one with a 10m diving platform) or to going to the rope swing over the canal, you might want to pack a beach towel–the white towels in the room are rather small–in addition to a bathing suit.

Also fun is that also right next door to us (actually inside the pool property) is a mini-golf course, newly renovated for this summer. Those of you coming this year might want to take Paul on for the session championship. For some reason he thinks he’s actually GOOD at hitting a little ball into a cup!?

ALL THESE PHOTOS (including the red and yellow slide), ARE OF THE POOLS NEXT DOOR TO THE SCHLOSS AND MEIERHOF.

And for those of you who would prefer to check out the natural landscape, below are a couple of photos of the canal–perfect for running or biking alongside, and as you can see, if the weather’s hot enough, just right for a dip!

The two on the rope swing are my kids–and the photo up the canal was just a picture where I pressed the button too late–all you can see is the spash! (What you can’t see are the goose bumps…the canal is COLD!!)

Susan

Calling Home

Dear All:

As you start your planning (and later your packing!) for the Academy session this summer, we want to mention that you might well want to bring your laptop with you. Although it is not a requirement that you bring one, there are 2 reasons you might want to do so.

First, much of the in-class work will have you online for research, evaluation of global media outlets, and for the creation of the class’s own web pages. There are not enough computer terminals at the Schloss to allow everyone individual access, so you might prefer to bring your own, so you are not waiting in line to use one.

Second, you may well want to bring your own laptop to keep in touch with family and friends. The Meierhof and the Schloss have public spaces with wireless Internet access available. Having your own laptop will be an advantage if you are used to emailing and IMing friends at all hours, but having your own laptop may well be an advantage if you want to make international calls.

There are numerous ways to call back home (wherever that may be) and you may want to check with your cell phone provider before you go to add international roaming onto your plan. If you have a tri or quad-band phone, you may be able to use your own cellphone and number while you are in Austria. But we don’t recommend that you do so for other than short or emergency calls as the toll charges will be very high. If you have an unlocked phone you can purchase an international SIM card and swap out your US SIM card for the duration of your visit, or you can get pay-as-you-go phones. But unless you are planning on doing additional travel in Europe this summer, any of those options may be more hassle than they are worth.

What we HIGHLY recommend is that you sign up with SKYPE. SKYPE is a free internet telephone platform. To sign up for SKYPE, simply go to: http://www.skype.com. Download SKYPE (absolutely free) and signal your friends and family to do the same. You will pick a call name, similar to how you choose an email address. With your “name” you can search for your friends and family and talk via your computers at no cost. SKYPE is used by the employees of the Salzburg Seminar for their global communications. It’s both reliable and clear. Skyping from computer to computer is free–but there are options for skyping from a computer to a mobile or land line. Those calls do cost something, but are typically far cheaper calls than a mobile to a mobile (or landline) call.

The only purchase you will have to make to make the SKYPE calls clear (and easy) is to buy an inexpensive headset with microphone–you can buy one at Staples for less than $20. If you have a new-ish Mac you may already have a microphone installed in your computer and therefore you would not need to purchase a headset with one, but doing so will likely give your calls better clarity and more privacy. Please let us know if you have any questions about SKYPE. You may want to sign up now to “test” the service–it works just as well across town (or across the country) as it does around the world.

We look forward to seeing you in Salzburg in a little over 2 months–with or without your laptop!

Dirty clothes & laundry at the Schloss…

The good news is that the Schloss will allow students (and faculty) to use the conference center’s washer and dryer in the evening for free after the housekeeping staff is done with its loads. Once everyone is over there, there will be a form to sign up on–a few hours will be available every night.

Sports in Salzburg

In addition to our coursework and travels, the Salzburg Academy offers many different leisurely activities, including:

Ping Pong

Scenic Running Routes

Mini-Golf

Foosball

Swimming

If we’re interested, I think one of us should take the lead on organizing some weeknight tournaments, group game activities, or just challenge one of the faculty, to see if you are truly a better table tennis player…

pm

This is the Meierhof–where you will be living…

I thought you’d want to see where you’d be actually “living”–i.e. where the “dorm” rooms are. Everyone will eat in the Schloss and some of the classrooms are over there, but 50 feet away is the Meierhoff, the pink building below, which is actually 100 years or so older than the Schloss (which dates from 1736).

The Meierhoff was originally a carriage house and stables, apparently for a LOT of horses, since it now has 60 single and double rooms (all with their own bathrooms), offices for the Salzburg Seminar, a large library, a bunch of classrooms, and 4 apartments for staff members. As you can see, there’s a courtyard in the center. All the dorm rooms are on the second and third floors (or first and second floors in European terms). Some look toward the courtyard, some toward the lake and the mountains, some towards the fort and town.

I want to share some information about the rooms and what to bring. You will effectively be living in a hotel room–clean linens (duvets) and clean pillows, fresh towels, etc. The maids who come every day will NOT pick up after you (i.e. pick your own clothes off the floor), but they will clean your bathroom sink and shower and empty your trash, and give you clean towels, etc. One warning, however. If you don’t keep your room reasonably clean (especially if you throw clothes on the floor and leave soda cans and other food debris around the room (rather then putting it all in the trash) the maids will stop coming to your room to vacuum and give you fresh linens. (That happened to a couple of messy students last summer.) So be aware that it will be in your best interest to try and keep your room in a reasonable state.

All rooms (singles and doubles) have bathrooms (shower and toilet) inside the room. If you’re a woman you might want to bring a hair dryer–there are some but not enough for every room. Its the same with irons. If you do need a hair dryer or iron you can ask for one at the Meierhof reception desk. There is a safe in every room or you can leave valuables with the reception if you want. The staff has been at the Schloss for years and years and there is no danger from them, but it is always a bad habit to leave small pocketable valuables around. LOOK AFTER ANY MP3 PLAYER OR DIGITAL CAMERA YOU BRING.

AND DO NOT FORGET TO BRING AN ADAPTER PLUG (two pin, Europe) FOR YOUR LAPTOP.

Where you’ll have breakfast…

and lunch and dinner–most days at least.

And after the first few meals, you’ll almost forget that you’re eating in what looks like a cathedral (at least in the style of decoration). The “Marble Hall,” as it’s called, has a ceiling a gadzillion feet high (with a huge painting on it of a scene out of Greek mythology, natch–the story about the 3 Golden Apples…). The large painting that you see here is of the 18th century Archbishop who built the palace.

Oh, and the food is really good. For breakfast there will be hot things (eggs and sausage or something similar) as well as all kinds of fruit and yoghurts and cereals, and breads and jams and honey and cheeses and sliced meats, and your choice of juices and teas (black tea and green tea and herbal tea) and coffee, of course, etc. etc.

For those of you who are vegetarian or who have other dietary restrictions, you should find something at every meal that will work for you (for example there is a large salad bar every lunch and dinner). But if you have any particular concerns (such as an allergy), please let us know and the kitchen will do its best to accommodate you. It is used to catering for people from all over the world.

Oh, and one last comment about the food! Don’t plan on losing weight. In fact I often go running before breakfast. You can run in almost any direction, but my favorite is to run down the canal towards the mountains and then back around the lake. If I go running, I can come back and eat a big breakfast and feel less guilty about it…

Susan