Hey Everyone!!! Happy Holidays!!! I wanted to write and let you know what I have been up to this last month until now because I know I am going to have way too much to write about Christamas and New years. The last Friday in November, I was in a concert at a church. I had been singing in the choir at school and so the choir sang in the concert. It was a lot of fun. There were so many people watching and I felt a little stupid singing German songs because I knew that I couldn't pronounce all the words right. oh well. After the Concert there was a little reception at the school and there was lots of food and all my friends were there. I walked around town with one of my friends for awhile and just enjoyed the cute Christmas atmosphere. They have decorated the town so cutely. There are lights and wreaths everywhere. I love it. Now, there is a light layer of snow covering everythign as well. It isn't much snow, but it is the perfect amount to make the feeling of Christmas complete. I have never had a white Christmas and I am sooo excited. There is nothing like snowball fights in December to let you know that the holidays are here.        We have had a few family events including my host sister, Magda's, birthday and my host grandma's 80th birthday. Family celebrations are so awesome in this family. For Magda's birthday we all gathered at the house and ate my grandma's amazing cake and drank tea and coffee and just laughed a lot. For Oma's 80th, there was a surprise party. All of the family, like 30 people, went to a restaurant for lunch and we surprised her. She is so cute and loved it. We stayed there until after 5 just talking and eating. I got some good German practice in, so that was good. Everyone wanted to know how I liked it here and how I am doing. Oma and I even talked for awhile and it was like the first time we ever were able to have a conversation. It was short, but I was proud of myself. Oma speaks mostly dialect so I have problems understanding her and she has problems understanding my German. Oh well. Hopefully soon we will be chatting away.       The last few weeks we had a visitor in the Bottig home. My host family has hosted 7 exchange students before me and the 1st one they hosted was a girl, Samantha, from Cape Cod, MA. It was awesome having her here. We got a long realy well and she helped me a lot with my German. She left this morning, which is sad, but I am sure I will see her again. Maybe here next time I come to visit.       Last weekend was the Rotary weekend in Salzburg. It was tons of fun. We didn't do too many touristy things, but we had a lot of free time to shop. Around Christmas in Austria, little huts are everywhere selling food, drinks, and lots of little gifts. I walked through the Christmas Markets for hours looking at all the little crafts that people were selling. I, of course, had to buy a few things that I know I will treasure the rest of my life. The weekend was great but it had a sad ending. Here in Austria, there are 2 groups of exchange students that come every year; one group in January and one group in August. The January group are all starting to leave. The last day there were tears everywhere as we said goodbye for the last time to many of our friends and compainions. One girls from Brazil left the next day, so a bunch of us went to the Vienna airport and stayed up all night with her and said goodbye in the Morning. That was awful! I cannot tell you how much it killed me to say goodbye to her. I know that I will probably never see her again and yet I love her so much. The rest of the group is leaving form the Vienna airport on January 9th and I am going ot see them off. I think we will flod the airport with our tears. It is amazing how quickly you come to love the other exchange students. They are family and always will be. I can't believe that in a short 6 months, I will be the one saying goodbye. I can't believe how fast that time has flown and even though I miss my family and friends, I wish I could stay another year.         I have seen a few movies including Harry Potter in German and the 2nd Lord of the Rings in English. I saw Harry Potter with my host sister, Clauida, and didn't understand much. I almost fell asleep in the end because my brain was sooo tired from thinking so much and trying to translate everything. It is exhausting. Lord of the Rings was much better. I met some other exchnage students in Vienna and we went to an english theater and wathced the 1st one from 8-11 and then the 2nd one from 1-4. It was awesome. We brought blankets and snacks and just cuddled up and watched it together. After, I slept at a friends house who lives in Vienna. We slept most of the next day, of course, and then I came home and went to my Christmas Rotary meeting. I had to give a speach in German about how I celebrate Christmas in America. I didn't think I did so well, but a lot of the Rotarians congratulated me on my improved German and said I have gotten much better. I hope I have gotten at least a little better after being here 4 and a half months. I had hoped to be fluent by now, but, um, NO! German is ridiculously comlicated but I am managing. I understand most of what people say and I can speak broken German, but my grammar is not yet perfected. Oh well, hopefully soon!      Well, today is Christmas Eve and I am sooo excited. We start celebrating at 3:30 with Chruch and then a huge dinner and lots of family fun. It might snow later today and I hope it does. That would make everything jusz magical. Man, I am such a dork about snow, but it is so cool! My first white Christmas...YEAH!!!!!! Anyways, I wish you all the best and hope you have very happy holidays! I will write more later and let you know how everything goes with Christmas and New Years! Frohliche Weihnachten!!!! Bussi, Avary