This week was enjoyable, despite the fact that it started with a BMEN 211 exam. I was worried about being on a train for so long to Vienna and having to get up so early but it worked out ok. My host mom packed a lunch for me to take, some of which ended up getting donated to the boys that had not brought any food (and yes, they agreed that my mom makes absolutely fire sandwiches). I don't think the trip was the same without Dr Wasser and Rike out with covid, but we still managed to make it work. Here's some highlights from the week:
- Crypt in Vienna: Actual mummies?? and a whole pile of bones just sitting against the wall? I feel like I was not at all qualified to be seeing that kind of thing but alas I had a good time. I think the most interesting part of that was getting to see someone's bone that had broken and healed itself up. You could tell where it tried to heal, but it still didn't look very comfortable to live with.
- The special chocolate cake: Listen, I love chocolate so much I don't even know how to put it in words. Naturally, I was absolutely stoked to hear that Vienna is famous for chocolate cake. Unfortunately, the cake I tried had some sort of orange flavor which damped the pure chocolate goodness flavor. Due to that, I give it a 5/10. I expect better than that, Vienna.
- National library: Absolutely stunning. That is the largest library I have ever seen and it was EXTREMELY beautiful. There were so many old books lining the dozens have ceiling-height bookshelves. On top of this, the paintings were very extravagant. I'm still not sure how the artists used to paint the ceilings.
- Mozarts grave (ok that sounds terrible): I am a band nerd, ok, I admit it. How could I have gone to Vienna without seeing some famous composer's grave? I really wish we had time to go to the central cemetery where Beethoven, Straus, and Wagner are but there was just no way to make it work (unless you count getting there 15 minutes before the place closes and is already getting dark). We made a compromise with the darkness and went to the closer cemetery where Mozart was buried (even though no one is actually sure *where* he was buried). Anyways, we got to see the new/not original headstone for Mozart which was pretty sick in my opinion.
- Insane asylum museum: The number of specimens this place had was absolutely crazy. It's really hard to think about how some of these people were treated, especially when lots of the cases were not the fault of the patient. I think the most disheartening thing to see at this place was the skeleton of 25-year-old women that looked the size of a 3-year-old. This was due to a Vitamin D deficiency from working in mines. The coolest thing I saw was the preserved guts of someone that had an inverted abdomen. I forget what the condition is called but it's basically where everything inside of you is flipped vertically (your heart is on the right instead of the left).
- Viena tour: I really wish Dr. Wasser could be in person for this, but I think it worked pretty well over zoom. He guided us through the city, telling us all about the plague and just things about the city. We also did some of the things the plague doctors did to keep themselves healthy. I'm just glad we drank soda instead of a young boy's piss. Unfortunately, the main thing I really distinctly remember about the tour was the freezing cold. The wind chill was terrible and I don't think putting more layers on could have even helped.
There's a lot more I could say about Vienna but I would go on forever, so let's just say that Vienna has been my favorite place to go so far.
Prague:
Ok Prague was good but it was after Vienna and we had already had a long week so I don't think we got as much out of it as we could have. We got some really good Mexican food, took a quick boat tour on the river, saw the last astronomical clock in the world ( I think), and got some really cool dessert thing. The trdlo was basically a large, wide churro shoved with ice cream, strawberries, and chocolate (or whatever you wanted). Naturally, with there being a hole in the bottom and melty ice cream, we all made a giant mess but its ok, it was part of the whole experience.
I'm back home now, which I was really looking forward to. I wouldn't say I was getting homesick, I think I just need some rest. Now that I am home though, I wish I could be back in Vienna because it was so darn beautiful. At dinner with my host family, we discussed that there will be a public transportation strike on Tuesday. This will make getting to class very interesting so we'll see what happens. My mom said she can drive me to the AiB and even offered to pick up some friends if they are on the way.
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