I have lots of photos from Vienna, and hope students from Webster St. Louis in Vienna will share their perspective lens on Vienna during the Spring Semester 2009! Your names are on the list for postings, so enjoy posting your views
Paula
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January in Vienna
ReplyDeleteAs I reflect on all that has happened this month, I am realizing just how much this experience is transforming who I am, how I think, and ultimately the course of my life. This change is barely evident in my day-to-day experiences, but instead can only be seen and felt in those brief quiet moments that I have to think without pause. In this blog, I'm going to attempt to capture some of my time here in Vienna and in Europe - in words, photos, poems, and whatever else my mind decides to do!
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The first few days ...
We had a layover with our flight, so we arrived to the dorm at Studentenzentrum Donaufeld a day later. The Austrian Airlines were wonderful!! Each of the flight attendants wore trendy red suits, red socks, red shoes, red EVERYTHING! They were friendly and the flight was a magnificant wrap-up to the previous days of delayed flights, bad weather, and little sleep.
Because this is my fourth time in Europe, I am very aware of the anti-American sentiment, and therefore sometimes overly conscience of what I do, how I act, my German accent, and the way I dress when going out. I used the first few days before school started to try and acquaint myself with the new city around me, but was still nervous to go out, walk around, and explore (fear of getting lost) and even more nervous to go into a place and have to speak to people! My desparate desire to be a part of this culture was also a hindrance in me doing so. Slowly, slowly, day by day, this fear subsided, and I became (and am becoming) much more confident.
There was a New Student Orientation on January 9 for Webster University Vienna - which I really enjoyed. Naturally we did a few icebreakers, went over important procedures and paperwork, took a tour of the surrounding area and the building. The coolest part of the Orientation was a presentation by one of the WUV professors on cultural awareness. We had lunch at an American-style restaurant near Webster, where I ended up meeting some great people, and later that day we had a bus tour of the city - absolutely gorgeous!
I was so excited to finally be in Vienna - it had seemed like I had waited a billion years for this! I was anxious to start school but, at the same time, enjoyed the luxury of boredom. I'm usually always so busy doing, doing, going, going, that even time for food is limited!
I was excited to find out that this dorm was not only for Webster students, but also for students at the local universities, such as Universitaet Wien, Technische Universitaet, the University for Veterinary Medicine, and so on. We have a communal kitchen in each wing, and that continues to be a sort of "hang out" spot for our hallway. There's a few Turkish guys who cook in there every evening, or play backgammon, or just talk, and me, my roommate, and her boyfriend love hanging out in there and discussing music, food, language, and especially culture. Some of them speak pretty good English, but there's still an abundance of times when German comes in handy.
WEEK 1
The experience that I anticipated most, even before leaving the US, was this: to be an international student at an international campus discussing international things. I've got my wish, and it's the most fascinating learning opportunity I've ever had. Classes at WUV started on January 12 - this was a Monday so I didn't have class. (My classes are Tuesday and Thursdays) This semester I'm taking 18 cr. (again) but this time mostly gen eds: Intro to Critical Thinking, Intro to Political Theory, GRMN 4250 (Austrian Literature) are semester classes. In March, the SP2 term classes start: Intro to Philosophy and perhaps Intro to International Law. I learned so much in my first week of classes it is just unbelievable! Even though these courses are gen. eds, they are still tough and require a good deal of work and concenatration. But as they say, "no pain, no gain."
A typical day for me goes generally in this order:
- After I wake up and get dressed, I start running my errands. Businesses and shops close earlier than in the US, and so far I've not seen anything that is open 24 hours (except the ATM!) so I try and get to the grocery store, the post office, the bank, etc. before heading to class.
- On Tuesdays, I have class from 1.30 until 9pm in the evening ... yes, yes, a long day! And on Thurdays, from 4 until 5.30pm. So on the days I don't have class, I try and get some homework or reading done in the morning or afternoon.
- After classes, I either hang out with some friends, cook up something to eat, study, or something along those lines.
- The weather is pretty cold and it snows or rains often. Some days, if the weather's not too bad, we'll go check out some museums, walk around the city, and other "cultural things."
I went to a bar (for the very first time) with some friends who also came from St. Louis. I've never done more than merely tasted beer or wine, but this time I "forced" myself to experiece Austrian culture and have one glass of home-brewed beer. And so I did, and we had a great time!
A friend of mine (who is from Austria and came to the St. Louis campus in SP 2008) took me all over Vienna one day during my first week here. We went inside a few churches and stopped at other historical landmarks, and she explained some of the histories that are tied to the city, from an underground chapel of Stephansdom to a momument built to honor God because He spared the city from the plague. We then went and had a late lunch at an Chinese restarant that was also a buffet... for Euro 6, 90!!
Here's the link to my own blog http://travel-reisen.blogspot.com/
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