Newspaper Article in WOCHE

"Highlanders Win in Kitzbühel"

WOCHE Newspaper

1. November 2012

"The Highlanders had played three minutes in Kitzbühel until Evelyn Hochegger had a jubilant goal after a pass from Julia Willenshofer.  It went in vein, as Chelsea Illchuk presented a hammer to make it 2-0 and in the 14th minute, Jennifer Pesendorfer increased the score to 3-0.  Just before the break, the Highlanders suffered a goal.  In the final two periods, Kitzbühel capitalized from mistakes in the back line of defense and led, 4-3.  With 80 seconds left in the game, Kelley Davies could still achieve the balance to tie the game.  After a scoreless overtime period, it was again Davies, who recovered in the shootout to give the Highlanders a 5-4 away victory."

Read more...

Mauthausen Concentration Camp

On Nov. 6, my roommates and I visited Mauthausen Concentration Camp, located in Upper Austria about 20 km from Linz.  The concentration camp initially was established as a single camp in 1938, but it expanded over time into the only category III concentration camp, the classification with the most brutal detention conditions.  Mauthausen had become one of the largest labor camp complexes in German-controlled Europe with approximately 85,000 inmates in 1945 and a death toll roughly between 122,766 and 320,000.  The inmates were put to labor as they worked in the quarries and on the construction of the camp.  The camp fulfilled two functions for the SS:  "to restrain political and ideological opponents of Nazism by interning, torturing and killing them and to act as a deterrent; and also to exploit their labour to the utmost" (en.mauthausen-memorial.at).

I watched movies and read books about German-controlled concentration camps, but it was a different experience actually seeing a camp.  I walked through the camp touring the different buildings.  I observed the sleeping quarters, the kitchen and laundry facilities, but worst of all, I was able to walk through the camp prison which also had the crematory located in the basement of the building.  Suddenly, the camp came alive for me as I set my eyes on the machine used to burn inmates' bodies.  I walked through the same path where the SS tortured and killed hundreds of thousands of people.  The SS used various methods to kill its victims.  Some inmates were beaten to death, hanged, or shot while sick inmates were frozen to death, starved, or killed by lethal injection or gas.  I toured the gas chamber then walked into the room where inmates were butchered.  The SS would cut out inked markings, or tattoos, on the skin of inmates and rip out gold teeth from their mouths.  It's unbelievably how people could be so cruel to other human beings!

As I kept strolling through the camp, I noticed several plaques, photos, and letters in memory of the people who suffered during this time.  I walked slowly down the "Wailing Wall," which was like a memorial with engraved, stone plagues indicating specific names of people who died.

At the end of the tour, I walked through the final building which detailed the history of the camp and the horrifying event.  Although the history was displayed in German writing on the poster boards, I was able to understand most of the event through the photographs.  It's amazing how these photographs even survived the event, but it was definitely sad to finally see these photos after touring the camp.  There were mostly men in the photos, who were stripped down to nothing.  It almost seemed like this was part of their ill-treatment, forced to pose nude for a photograph.  The photos left me disgusted at the people who treated these men with such disrespect.  The inmates looked as skinny as a toothpick, with every bone in their body popping out of their skin.  These photographs saddened both me and my roommates.

I left the concentration camp feeling depressed, but I learned a great deal after seeing the camp in person.  Although the experience was sad, it was also eye-opening.  I developed a greater appreciation for life, and simply all the things and people I have in my life.  An experience like this really makes a person feel grateful for all and everything.

Read more...

Halloween and a Hockey Weekend

Photo Courtesy of Axel Riegler

On Oct. 31, my roommates and I celebrated Halloween with some of our Austrian friends.  Although no one particularly celebrates Halloween in Austria and it is not considered a popular holiday, my roommates and I still dressed up.  My roommates wore togas as my fiancé (Michi Schmieder) and I were soldiers.  We all dressed up and headed to our friend's apartment for a little Halloween party before we went out to the bar.  Axel Riegler had decorated his apartment in Halloween ornaments and accessories.  This made my roommates and I feel as if we were all back home celebrating Halloween.  There were cobwebs, spiders, and candied eyeballs scattered everywhere.  Riegler made a fruit punch that consisted of freshly-cut watermelon pieces and some Austrian liquor (which was quite strong).  Riegler placed a frozen hand, made from a rubber glove containing strawberry fruit juice, into the punch and it was time to celebrate!  We all ate a giant pretzel sandwich and drank the blood-red drink.  We definitely enjoyed our time on Halloween night!

As the weekend approached, my roommates and I decided to go to Klagenfurt to see a professional ice hockey game.  Kate Wheeler's boyfriend, Chris D'Alvise, plays for HDD TELEMACH Olimpija Ljubljana, which is in the first league, Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL).  His team was playing KAC Klagenfurt on Sunday evening.  Schmieder actually had an ice hockey game with his team (ECE Bulls Kapfenberg) in Klagenfurt on Saturday night, so my roommates and I attended that game.  After the game, we all stayed the night at Schmieder's mother's apartment in Klagenfurt for we planned on attending D'Alvise's game the next day.  

Photo Courtesy of Chelsea Illchuk

The next morning, we woke up and drove to a nearby town, Velden.  Schmieder and I wanted to show my roommates the big lake in Carinthia (or Kärnten), called the Wörthersee.  We walked around the town and enjoyed the scenery of the lake before we had to go to the eishalle for the game.  We enjoyed watching D'Alvise's game but unfortunately, his team came up short as they lost 5-2.  Because of the National Hockey League (NHL) lockout, some NHL players were playing in the game we watched.  Klagenfurt defensemen, Tyler Myers, usually plays for the Buffalo Sabres while Klagenfurt forward, Sam Gagner, plays for the Edmonton Oilers.

It was a nice weekend watching hockey, but I think my roommates would agree with me when I say we are definitely looking forward to playing some of our own hockey.  Ten days until our next match against Vienna Sabres!

Read more...

Neuberg Highlanders Grab First Victory in Shootout

Photo Courtesy of neuberg-highlanders.at

After traveling four hours on the bus, the Neuberg Highlanders won their first regular season game, 5-4, in a shootout against EC "Die Adler" Kitzbühel on Saturday.  The Highlanders took a 3-0 lead in the first 14 minutes of the game, with goals from Evelyn Hochegger, Chelsea Illchuk, and Jennifer Pesendorfer.  Neuberg seemed sure of the victory, but Kitzbühel kept fighting back as they put a tally on the scoreboard before the end of the first period.

The Eagles remained consistent in the second period as they added yet another tally.  The Highlanders entered the third period with a 3-2 lead and knew defense was the first priority.  Unfortunately, the Eagles tied the game 3-3 and later took their first lead of the game in the 49th minute.  Under pressure to regain control of the game, the Highlanders attempted to tie the game before the sound of the buzzer.  With just over one minute remaining in the game, Anna Johann gave me the puck at the far blue line and I skated alone toward the net.  I sailed the puck right, top corner to tie the game 4-4 and found myself celebrating with my fellow teammates.  From that moment, I knew we were not going to let Kitzbühel take the victory.

The game remained tied at the end of regulation forcing both teams into sudden-death overtime.  It was four-on-four in the overtime period, which allowed a lot of skating room for both teams.  Eventually, the referee called a penalty on each team, making it three-on-three and giving even more room on the ice.  Neither team scored in overtime, thus a shootout must determine one, ultimate winner.  Each team received one point for playing in an overtime period, but the team to win the shootout will receive an additional point for the game.

The Eagles took the first shot but did not score.  The Highlanders were next and sent Pesendorfer to shoot first.  She went unsuccessful.  The Eagles sent their next shooter but Highlanders' Bianca Feeberger kept them scoreless.  I was the next shooter for the Highlanders and scored right, top corner.  Feeling relieved, I hoped that Feeberger would stop the Eagles' next shot giving us the victory...and that, she did!  The Eagles' three shooters went scoreless, while the Highlanders' one shootout goal was enough to end the game!

The Highlanders earned two points from the match while they were also awarded an additional three points on Sunday.  The Highlanders were scheduled to play DEC Dragons Klagenfurt on Oct. 20, but Klagenfurt cancelled the game due to ill players.  The game failed to be rescheduled and will not be played; however, the Highlanders were given a victory and three points.

The Highlanders have a total of five points on the season after completing three matches.  The team is currently in fifth place out of eight teams.  We have scored 13 goals total while allowing 10 goals against.  To view a full list of the Damen Eishockey Bundesliga (DEBL) standings, click here.

The Neuberg Highlanders return to action as they are scheduled to play their first home game against EHV Sabres Wien II on Nov. 18 at 4:30 p.m. at Kapfenberg Eishalle. 

Read more...

Minimundus and Burg Hochosterwitz

On Thursday, my fiancé, Michi Schmieder, and I went to visit his mother, who lives in Klagenfurt.  After we arrived at his mother's apartment, we decided to spend the evening at Minimundus (miniature world in English).  The park has approximately 150 models of famous structures, trains, and ships.  We were able to travel around the world in a single day!  We strolled around the park visiting different countries and observing many miniature structures, such as the Sydney Opera House, Eiffel Tower, and Taj Mahal.  I was even able to travel back to America as I stood in front of the Statue of Liberty, the Hollywood sign, and the White House.  Below is a full list of the monuments displayed throughout the park:

The models have been constructed with close attention to the smallest details on a scale of 1:25.  In most cases, the models have been created from their original materials, like sandstone, basalt lava, and marble.  The models were made with precision, in attempts to resemble as much of the original structures as possible.  Even the smallest details from shutters to street lamps are accurate.  

The next morning, Michi and I drove about 30 minutes from Klagenfurt to visit a castle situated on a 150-meter limestone rock near Sankt Georgen am Längsee.  Burg Hochosterwitz (Hochosterwitz Castle) is considered to be one of Austria's most impressive medieval castles.   The castle was first mentioned in a 860 deed and has been possessed by the Khevenhüller family since the 15th century, according to Carinthia.at.  The castle consists of thick walls and high towers with 14 fortified gates, each equipped with different treacherous methods of protection.  Tourists can walk the 620-meter long pathway through the gates up to castle or take a lift straight up to the castle.  It was an eye-opening experience being in such an old structure and observing the architecture of that century.  On a clear day, the castle can be seen from 30 km (19 mi) away, but unfortunately, the weather did not permit this when we visited.  It was a foggy day and we could not see much, but luckily, we were able to view the entire landmark on a miniature scale at Minimundus the day before! 

Burg Hochosterwitz at Minimundus

Read more...

A Week of Games, Castles, Kegeln and Kirtags

The Neuberg Highlanders had their first match against Devils Graz on Oct. 7.  Although it was an exhibition game, we still played to an 8-1 victory, with goals from seven different Highlander players (Illchuk, Janzen, Wheeler, Davies, Hochegger, Weiss, and Schneeberger).  We tried to bring home another win on Saturday but came up unfortunate.  The Highlanders lost their first regular season game, 6-3, against HDK Maribor.  The Highlanders struck first as I put in a short-handed goal in the first period.  Maribor evened the score at the 12-minute mark, 1-1.  Kate Wheeler scored the go-ahead goal, making the score 2-1, but Maribor managed to tie the game before the period ended.  With a 2-2 tie game, Maribor scored three consecutive goals and by that time, the Highlanders lost all hope.  With frustrated minds, it was difficult for the Highlanders to bounce back.  We did not backcheck and lacked defensively allowing many odd-man rushes, which cost us our first game.  Hopefully after a hard week of training, we will be able to respond to this loss with a victory in our next regular season game.  We host our first home game against Klagenfurt on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. in Kapfenberg. 

Photo Courtesy of Chelsea Illchuk

In addition to our matches, my roommates and I also engaged in several activities last week.  On Monday, we hosted a "Canadian Thanksgiving" at our apartment.  We invited my fiancé, Michi Schmieder, and our team trainer, Axel Riegler.   As we drank wine, beer, and Sturm, we celebrated Thanksgiving in Austria.  Although we couldn't find a turkey in the grocery stores here, we cooked a whole chicken and a ham instead.  It turned out to be a great Thanksgiving with lots of leftovers.

Photo Courtesy of Chelsea Illchuk

On Wednesday, we went to a castle in Kapfenberg, Burg OberKapfenberg, which overlooked our ice hockey rink and the rest of the town.  I have been here several times before, but it was nice to finally take two of my roommates up the mountain to see the view from the castle.  Later that night, I took my roommates Austrian bowling, or kegeln, for the first time.  The difference between Austrian bowling and American bowling is that in kegeln, you bowl with a smaller ball with two finger holes and try to knock down the nine pens, which hang from strings.  The pins sit in a diamond shape before you bowl, and if you hit the first pin at the top of the diamond, your score doubles.  My roommates found it difficult at first, but I think they got the hang of it by the end.

On Thursday, we put those dirndls back on for another beer festival.  Riegler and Schmieder also came with us to the festival; however, they were dressed in lederhosen.  The festival, called Gösser Kirtag, is a celebration in Leoben, where the Gösser brewery is located.  I attended the same festival last year with Riegler and Schmieder.  To read about my previous experience, click here.  This year, we walked the streets of Leoben while stopping at a festive tent and several bars.  We listened to Austrian music and danced the night away as we drank Gösser beer and Sturm.  After an eventful week, my roommates and I are excited to see what else Austria has in store for us. 

Read more...

Oktoberfest

My three roommates and I, along with my fiancé, went to Oktobertfest in Munich, Germany (or München in German) on Wednesday, which actually turned out to be National German Day.  We drove about four hours and arrived in a town, known as Taufkirchen, located just outside of the actual city.  We decided to park and leave our car there because there would most likely be a lot of traffic inside the city.  In addition, we could park there free-of-charge.  From Taufkirchen, we took the train (S-Bahn) to the city.  Once we arrived in the city, we took the underground subway (U-Bahn) to a stop closest to our hotel.  We checked into our hotel in the late afternoon and proceeded to get ready for Oktoberfest!

The manager of our ice hockey team gave my roommates dirndls, which is the traditional dress worn in Germany and Austria, while I still had my dirndl from last year.  We put on our dirndls and we were finally ready to go to Oktoberfest...of course, after we consumed some bottled beverages to avoid the cost of beer at the festival.  We took the underground from our hotel to Oktoberfest.  From the underground, we didn't know which direction to go so we followed all the people dressed in dirndls and lederhosen (leather breeches) because we figured they were going to the same place we were...Oktoberfest!

Photo Courtesy of Chelsea Illchuk

Photo Courtesy of Dayna Janzen

The smell of beer and freshly-roasted nuts lingered in the air as we approached the entrance of Oktoberfest.  Hundreds of thousands of people dressed in dirndls and lederhosen filled the area.  Oktoberfest almost seemed like a giant amusement park where people could wear German costumes and consume as much beer as they wanted in a leisurely manner.  None of us have ever attended Oktoberfest or any event that could compare to it.  We were more than excited to start the festivities!  We made our way to the tents.  The tents weren't actually covered with a tapestry like we expected a tent to look, but they were actual buildings.  The music from German bands exploded in our ears as we walked into the first tent, or festhaus in German.  It was like a huge party as people ate German delicacies, drank liters of beer, and danced on nearly every hard surface of the tent.  After observing the first tent, we made our way to a second tent, where nearly every person danced on the benches of tables.  We were able to find a seat at a table with some nice people from Brazil.  We bought our first mugs of beer once we sat at the table while also consuming two, enormous pretzels (or Brezeln in German).  One beer mug could probably hold four cans of American beer.  It definitely took a while to drink.

Photo Courtesy of Chelsea Illchuk

After we left the beer tent, we walked around the festival and tried some more German food, such as wursts (sausages), corn-on-a-stick, and crêpes with Nutella and banana.  We also decided to try some of the rides in the park.  We went on the bumper cars and rode another ride that spun you around in a circle, which I'm very surprised I did not get sick!  My fiancé and I went into a tent that was almost like a stadium, with people gathered around a gigantic turntable.  As we walked in, there were a bunch of girls gathered in the center of the turntable trying to hold themselves from spinning off as the table moved clockwise, faster and faster.  Men in lederhosen were the next group to try and hold on for dear life.  It definitely looked fun and I finally got my turn.  The announcer asked that all couples come to the center of the turntable and try to keep themselves on, so my fiancé and I stepped into the ring.  We sat down and the turntable took off spinning in a circle.  It gradually got faster and faster.  We eventually couldn't hold on much longer and fell off to the sidelines.  Next, the announcer asked for two men to participate in a boxing match on the turntable.  As an ice hockey player, my fiancé of course wanted to take a chance at this opportunity.  He and his opponent put boxing gloves on, as they made their way to the center of the turntable.  The referee blew the whistle, the turntable started moving, and both men started to fight.  This definitely seemed dangerous from the sidelines, but I am relieved that neither person got seriously injured!
After spending several hours drinking some mugs of beer and eating lots of German food, we all were finally exhausted from Oktoberfest and proceeded to the hotel at the end of the night.  It was an eventful day and I'm glad to say I finally made it to the world-renowned Oktoberfest!

Read more...