Expectations vs. Reality
I’ve been in Vienna for a week now and it’s like a dream. Some aspects fit my expectations exactly, some surpassed them, and yet others surprised me. I expected Vienna to have a much more homogenous community. So far I have seen and met people from Egypt, India, Sweden, Germany, Spain, Brazil, Algeria, Australia, Japan, back home in the US, Austria (obviously), and many others. This was a nice surprise and actually made Vienna feel more like home. Since Vienna is pretty far north it gets and stays pretty chilly here so I expected the people to be more adjusted to the cold. This whole past week though the daytime temperature has been right around 75 but I’ve seen people wrapped up in scarves and jackets! Another pleasant surprise is how many people speak English and on top of that how many speak it so well. I’ve only had to interact with 2 people so far who spoke zero English and we made do with a crude version of charades. I’ve done a lot of exploring on my own since many of my fellow exchange students are participating in either the cultural program or German language course or both and I am doing neither. It’s during these solitary adventures when Vienna surpassed my expectations. I visited Schönburnn Palace* and the surrounding gardens where you can look over all of Vienna. I walked through the bustling, cobblestone city center Stephansplatz where ancient gothic churches rise up across from high fashion stores and I strolled through the relaxed and inviting Stadtpark** full of flowers and statues. I spent close to 6 hours admiring paintings, sculptures, and other artifacts in the Kunsthistorisches (Art History) Museum and I’ve wandered the streets trying coffee shops by day and bars by night. I had the best hot dog I have ever had in my entire life. I expected to have an incredible time while here and Vienna is living up to that.
Also, I have been, and will continue to post pictures (like the one below) from my trip on Instagram so feel free to follow me at WherethemusicIs or on Twitter at WherethemusicAt
Me in front of Schonbrunn Palace*
The Wienfluss running along Stadtpark**
Notes from Abroad 