Wien for Valentine's Day

Plague Doctor

Vienna was lovely. I especially enjoyed the beautiful buildings and amazing weather we had while on our first real extended excursion with AIB! It was nice getting to know my classmates in a new atmosphere and learn more about them. We did a lot of fun activities in the program and went to a lot of medically inclined museums and exhibits.

I especially enjoyed the free time we had on Wednesday, February 12, 2014, since I had the opportunity to go to two different art museums. I have always had a soft spot for art, especially the old masters, so going to the Kunsthistorisches Museum was an incredible experience for me. I could have happily spent the whole day there. The Rubens they had displayed showed an incredible example of his talent, and having a strong affinity for the artist, they definitely increased my enjoyment of the museum exponentially. I also went to the Albertina, a modern art museum in Vienna. I did not enjoy this museum as much, but the art they had displayed was also interesting. I have never really been intrigued by modern art, I prefer the vast paintings done long ago to those recently painted in a more interpretive style. I am glad I got to see both museums, but I would recommend the historical art museum above the modern.

Castle in Vienna

Plague Monument

School is getting to the struggle bus point again; unfortunately, the phenomenon cannot be avoided even in Germany. We have a quiz and exam this week in Biochemistry and Physiology and two exams next week in Biochemistry and Physiology lab. I am not looking forward to these events and know that my week will be spent studying and working on learning the material. I truly thought that coming to Germany would refresh me for the semester and help me to enjoy learning again. So far, I am still disenchanted with my major and the classes I am taking. I really enjoy the history of medicine class, because I have always enjoyed history and historical science. I think this is my favorite class and I feel that the information I am learning is very interesting and something I enjoy. My other classes are not fun and seem like a dreadful chore. Thankfully after this semester I will only have two semesters left: summer (if I decided to take a summer school class again this summer) and Fall. I cannot wait to graduate and although I thought this experience would breathe fresh air into my studies, it so far has not been an inspiring experience academic wise.