That Monday before Vienna, we took our first test in BMEN 211, and I felt pretty confident about it. Circuits are not my strong suit, but I believe that we were well prepared for the test, and I was just happy to get it out of the way. That night, I was invited by Reagan's brother to play quidditch, which I have missed back at home. Although quidditch is just beginning in Europe, it was nice to be able to play again, and I was thankful for the opportunity to play and make new friends. Everyone was super friendly, and I even got to play with a couple of Syrian refugees, which was a very cool experience. The team immediately welcomed me as a part of their family, and they even invited me to come play in the European Cup with them in Italy in April, which would be an amazing experience.
The next day, we had to get up very early to get to the airport. Our taxi driver was in such a rush that he drove off when I was only half way in the car, and the sensation of basically being dragged by a car definitely woke me up for a while. The ride to the airport was smooth, but unfortunately our plane was delayed for three hours, which really put a damper on the mood. When we arrived to Vienna, I was amazed by the size of the city, and I was very impressed with the wide streets and beautiful architecture, although it was a little creepy that there were graveyards everywhere. After dropping off our stuff at our hostel, we went to the city center and visited the catacombs under St. Michael's church, which was an amazing experience. The mummies were pretty well preserved, and I was amazed by the number of bones that they just cast aside into a large pile rather than keeping them in their tombs. That night, we had a huge group dinner at a Viennese restaurant, and I had an amazing schnitzel. I would have hated to see the bill, however, because in total, I think we all spent over 30 euro each.
The next day, we were up early in order to watch the Spanish Horse Riding School morning practices, and it was amazing to see how well the horses were trained. The most exciting part, however, was whenever Ryan ended up having an allergic reaction to the horses, and I felt so bad for him. We were then taken around the city by Dr Wasser's alter ego, Dr Schnabel, and were introduced around the city while learning about different cures for medieval plagues and diseases. The rest of the day, we got to relax, and I went ice skating in a beautiful outdoor skating rink just outside of the Parliament building, which had numerous little trials and three large skating rinks. Later, Kyle, Rahil, Blake, Elaine, Gunnar, and I got to meet a couple Austrians who were very nice and taught us a little bit more about Austria.
The following day, we got a lecture on Sigmund Freud and got to see the Freud House, although we did not get to see the couch that he analyzed people on. Having taken psychology already, it was an awesome experience to be in the same place where Freud analyzed so many different patients. After a group lunch, we took a guided tour at the Josephinum, which housed some of the most elaborate wax sculptures of human anatomy in the world. The accuracy and detail through which these sculptures were made were insane, and I believe it was one of the most informative parts of our trip. That night, we dressed up and watched a string quartet play at St Anne's Church, which I really enjoyed. It was awesome getting to dress up and attend such a lovely concert with all of my friends, and we even added a very fancy dinner afterwards. The night was spent walking down the river and enjoying the fresh air and wonderful views.
Our last day, we woke up to visit the Narrentum, where we saw and learned about all different kinds of diseases and birth defects, and I was amazed at the detail of records, models, and drawings that it housed of each patient's conditions. We then took a tour of the Natural History Museum and had to go back home. Upon arriving home, Gunnar and my host brother, Andre, picked us up and treated us to a welcome home drink at an Irish pub. This weekend was truly amazing, and while Vienna was not as cool as Berlin, I really enjoyed it. I am very thankful for the experience, and I really enjoyed getting to travel with everyone. I can't wait to do it again!
Here are some of my favorite pictures from the weekend:
No comments:
Post a Comment