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Awkward Tourist (Still Salzburg)
During spring break 1988, I went with other students and parents and my German teacher to four German-speaking countries: Austria, West Germany, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. The following is part of a series of travel journal excerpts. Keep in mind: a teenager wrote this.
This money business is such a bother. Not only does it take me a while to dig out the (more or less) correct amount. Probably it would help ein bischen if I had more experience with carrying a purse. But also, I forgot to list what I used my traveler’s checks for; indeed, I didn’t use those little bits of paper at all, so I’d better do it tonight, though it is past ten. It must be two pm at home.
Before we left, I was thinking that my being finicky would be quite a downfall in traveling to these foreign countries, and my deductions were correct. I don’t like half the things we eat, such as the sausage we had for lunch yesterday, the onion soup we had for supper today and the red cabbage we had with supper. The only things I’ve been drinking are apple juice, cola, and water; it’s no use asking for lemonade or cranberry juice.
I haven’t had the courage to speak much German to Germans, though I did say hier [here — same pronunciation] as I handed over some money, and I’ve ordered apfelsaft [apple juice] twice. Perhaps I’ll do better spaeter [later].