I am seriously considering skipping someone's birthday party tonight that might be a lot of fun and have a lot of good drinks because I feel as if I'm about to collapse into hibernation right here in the internet cafe. Because I climbed a MOUNTAIN today. Not just like, went hiking on clear-cut or paved paths up a really big hill that is called a mountain because it has some size to it. A freakkin' MOUNTAIN, somewhere between 3,000 and 4,000 feet high. ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP. It took about 2 and a half hours just to get to the top for me, and that's just an estimate. And it was really really really hard climbing, almost completely verticle the entire time, and then a little less than half-way up the rocky almost-paths became SNOW. Deep, deep snow that the only path available was the snow hikers had over time packed down and had become a weird hard ice-slush. I always thought hiking-sticks were kinda weird adn not all that helpful, but boy was I glad I had decided to pick up a nice make-shift walking stick once I got to the snow, because it was the onlz thing helping me keep my footing and helping me pull myself higher and higher. It was the most beautiful thing I think I've ever seen, to be so high up above the rest of the world, surround by huge, gigantic mountains once you come to a clearing.And because I have tiny short legs and asthma (I had to use my inhaler once, but I was okay afterwards, it was just hard hard work for my lungs) I kinda got left far behind (I did tell the people in my group not to keep waiting on me). And actually the alone time was just as amazing as the climb. For quite awhile I didn't have any other hikers around me within seeing or hearing distance, and I was completely and utterly alone. There was no civilization once you got farther up, though at first at the beginning of our hike we passed quite a few of the mysterious mountain farmers taht still exist in Austria. Everything was silent and beautiful. I stopped a couple of times to just listen, and you know what? Maybe its cliched, the whole 'getting back to nature' crap, but I could HEAR things. Like the sound my stick made when I punched it into the ice for footing purposes, the way I was breathign, the sound of my jeans that were too long and annoying on the snow. I could even hear ICICLES melting into the snow, it was that quiet. It was almost creepy, because you just never stop to listen usually. The paths were so isolated and the mountain was so HUGE. When I finally got to the top, I couldn't believe it. I've enver been so high up in my life. And strange thing was taht my asthma got BETTER as I got higher! Maybe 4,000 feet isn't enough to worry about altitude, or maybe it was the inhaler stayign at work, but I felt like the air was clean adn crisp and I could breath, even if I was exhausted adn out of breath. We sat around and watched the hang-gliders take off from teh top of the mountain and I devoured the three banannas I'd taken with me from my host-family. I climbed back down and got left behind AGAIN because I was terrified of slipping and killing myself on the ice, which seemed even scarier coming down an almost verticle incline. So it was even MORE alone-time, just peaceful thinking time. I actaully saw a mountain stream, clean and clear and cold. I mean, come ON, who hears of 'brooks' and 'streams' these days, its like fairy tale land. But even though I got slightly lost (I was always on a path and everything, mind you, but just not the one I thought I had taken up at times), I enjoyed just walking at my own pace. I can't even remember waht I thought about, but I know it was just nice to let my mind wander, rest my voice and enjoz the scenery. It was so warm out too, though everyone else on teh paths must have thoguht I was crazy treading through snow-infested peaks of mountains in my t-shirt, because I had gotten so warm. Anyhow, babbling doesn't explain much, and I just can't explain what an experience it was. Climbing a real mountain was not something I thougbht I could reallz ever do. I always figured I'm too out of shape, that my asthma is just too bad, but I DID it, I made it to the very top, and it was a feelnig of accomplishment I don't think I've ever felt before. Maybe that's sad, but I really did feel proud, you know? Either way, it was amaying and wonderful, but now I think my bodz is paying for it. I'm beyond sore, and figure I have pulled a groin muscle, possibly among others, and feel like I could sleep for weeks. But its a GOOD sore adn a GOOD tired that I've never felt before.

I can't believe I leave in 4 weeks. I can't believe I'll be 21 in 7 days and I don't even think about it. I can't believe that today I conquered my very first mountain. Maybe a small one, maybe an easy one to other climbers, but a mountain all the same. And I did it by myself because I said I would and because I said I could, even when some of my other friends went to take the road up the rest of the way instead of continuing on the 'path,' because I said I would! So WHOOT for that, that's something crossed off of my 'do before I die' list. Maybe after Easter Break, I'll try it again. If only I had hiking books and good clothes to wear, I reallz felt that made it all the harder. I can see, between teh exercise, the beauty of the scenery, and the quiet introspective time, why someone would take up hiking. Also, I now know why people in Europe (or at least Austria) are all skinny and healthy. There were people as old as mz GRANDPARENTS (I'm not exaggerating, there was a woman who said she was in her early 80's) passing me up as I huffed and puffed up the mountain. Hot damn, crazy world.