The semester in Vienna was amazing. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity. I've traveled so much and learned so much about myself and the people who I am living with. As the semester went on I learned to love Vienna more and more. Everything from the language to the rooms and cafeteria. With only 8 days until my return to the United States I am going to miss Vienna and all of Europe so much.

This opportunity has giving me the ability to travel to so many places. I've been to Rome, Prague, Paris, Athens, Salzburg, Munich, Innsbruck, and even an all day layover in Serbia. Having been able to travel to all these places has made me become a more confident traveler. I can't reflect on one trip because each one had its own ups and downs and exciting new things to do. Some trips were down on a personal level and others on a class level. Though each were different they were all amazing.

I think that coming here has shown me that I can do things that I never thought I could do. It also taught me to not take things for granted. When i first arrived I only thought wow 3 months is a long time to be here, but its really not. It flies by and I feel i made the best of ever opportunity given to me. Getting over the fear of getting lost and just exploring was something that I enjoyed doing.

Something that I thought would never happen was when traveling in other non German speaking countries I started to miss German and Vienna a lot. Now that I will be returning home in a week I wonder if I'll still miss the German language and Vienna.

If someone asked me today would I recommend this for them I would say yes. No matter who you are or what is going on going abroad was the best decision I have ever made. Yes it gets stressful and things can get a little crazy but I wouldn't trade any of it. I had the time of my life here and I hope one day that I can return. I can't seem to say it enough one of the BEST decisions I have ever made was going abroad to Vienna!

A lot of Talk!

Many people would think that living in Vienna at a school there would be more of the students that become the people I meet but its the people outside the school that surprise me. Meeting random people in a hostel, a bar or even in a McDonald's.

For me I think Ive learned the most from the students that are in Martins class since I am forced to talk about the differences as well as the similarities of our cultures. I am very interested to find out what people have to say about me being American but also how it is similar in their culture. Our discussions were mostly based on the what really happens in American culture. Then I had to opportunity to ask questions to them such as what they plan to do after school. Many of them said University but the boys all said military, because they all have to do something for the country. The students are still young but they are all interested in the same music I am into and also doing the same past times that i do.

The most random conversation I had would be at McDonald's. Sitting with the rest of my group talking about Harry Potter and one of the girls working there had the courage to start talking with us. It made the world a lot smaller in the way that we all had something in common. She wasn't discussing her ideas but she was telling us about how the German translator did not do a good job translating the Harry Potter books from English into German. this was something I thought was very funny. I think random conversations surprise me and I like that more because its amazing to see how different things connect everyone in some way.

Salzburg, Innsbruck and Munich ... OH MY

Me in front of the Pegasus Statue the von Trapp Children danced and sang Do Re Mi.
I also sang that song while there.

This week was the first trip that was traveled as a group. Salzburg, Innsbruck, Venice and Munich all in 8 days. It was exhausting and fun.

In Salzburg I got the chance to really see a beautiful Austrian town, not that Vienna isn't beautiful but it felt great to get out of a huge city. I went up to the fortress that at one time was Salzburg protection and then went on The Sound of Music Tour. This was something I had been looking forward to since I watched the movie in class. It was pretty interesting but a little disappointing since the weather wasn't that great. After that tour the following day I got to go to a Salt Mine in Dumsburg. Traveling under the mountain by train and then by slides was a lot of fun and learned a lot about the salt industry. I think Salzburg was probably my favorite place to visit.

After a 2 hour train ride I arrived at the next destination of Innsbruck. Surrounded by mountains it was another amazing sight to see. At the time of this trip FPU was also on spring break there. It was great to see familiar faces and catch up on news going on back at Franklin Pierce. I only spent about a day and 2 nights there since the day after I arrived I took a day trip with the rest of the FPU students to Venice. It was 5 hr. bus trip with a hilarious tour guide Angelica ( i don't think she was trying to be funny but she was.) This was probably the longest day ever getting up at 4am and then not returning until around 10:30pm and having to hike back to the hostel but I am so happy I got to see Venice. And it was a great day filled with warmth and sun.

After this small excursion I left and ventured to Munich Germany. Once I got there I hit the ground running and didn't stop until I was in my bed back in Vienna on Saturday night. I started right away going straight to the Museum of Modern Art and presenting about Fritz Winter. This Museum was interesting but neat to go to. But what I was really looking forward to was going to the beer garden called Hofbrau Haus. This is something of a tradition to experience German culture. In Germany they don;'t mess around with beer its 1 liter beers for all. Drinking out of beer mugs the size of my head was pretty neat. Learned that the dark beer is better then the light beer and that the pork knuckle might sound a little gruesome but is very delicious. After an unforgettable night of having a German time we traveled the next day to the Castles. The one that i was looking forward to seeing was Neuschwanstein Castle. This was built by King Ludwig II he was a king who loved building castles. This castle was based on Richard Wagner's operas. It was extravagant and I loved it. The mountains that surrounded the castles were so beautiful and snow covered with snow falling it reminded me of something out of a book like the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. After this long day outside seeing the castles I got to go to the Bavarian Film Studio. This was something I didn't think I would really care about and just do it to do it. It turned out to be AWESOME. The Never Ending Story was filmed there and I was able to ride Falcore the Luck Dragon and I also bought slippers. Even the rest of the sight was amazing. I really enjoyed myself and this is something that surprised me and I am happy it did. After the morning film studio I ventured outside of Munich to Dachau Concentration Camp. This was eye opening. I know that people have moments that change their lives forever and I thought this would effect me more but I went to the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. and that seemed to have more of an effect. But this was still an extremely important piece of history to visit. I was surprised to know how big a camp was as well as that there weren't just Jewish people there but also others like gypsies, mentally challenged, gay and even other religious people were sent to camps. I learned a lot and it was still a moving experience but just not what I expected. After this day I RAN to the train to catch the one that would arrive in Vienna at 9:30pm. It was fun like training for the Amazing Race.

I made it safely back to Vienna tired and ready to relax for a week until my next adventure to Paris. There was a lot of new experiences and it felt like a lot longer then only 8 days! Everything was worth it and I am happy to be here and experiencing everything I can.

When in Rome

This past weekend I ventured to Rome, Italy with Natalie, Brooke and Matt! We stayed at Gulliver's House. It was a short walk from the train station which was very nice. After a 14hr train ride I go to Rome at around 10am and didn't waste any of the day. I headed straight to the Vatican to see the Museum and it was pretty cool. Later that evening I was able to meet up with an old friend from high school. After dinner there was an opportunity for a Pub Crawl. We took it! Had a great evening going bar to bar! Also shops offer free samples. Take them, Lemonchello is amazing!

The following day i venture to the Colosseum and Palintino Hill. It was a gorgeous day! It was fun and took all day because there was soo much to see. After a long day in the sun looking at ancient ruins I had dinner and went to bed after some Gelatto by the Trevi Fountain.

After I saw the main things i was able to relax. Some of the other sights I saw was the Roman Baths, the building were HUGE! This was surrounded by a great grass area where we were able to just lay in the sun and really take in the weekend. It was so nice there was no rushing to be anywhere. Had cappuccino on a cobble street cafe. It was exactly what you would expect Rome to be like. Everyone was so friendly and they all spoke English. Also thanks to living in Vienna its given me more confidence in using public transportation. I am a master of the Metro!

All in all the trip was amazing. Everyone should go to Rome at least once in their life. Since this Rome trip went so well I am looking forward to traveling even more.

First week in Vienna

Its been a whole week since I arrived in Vienna, Austria. This first week has been a lot of new things. The language is one of the first things that was hard to get used and is still taking some time to get used to.

In just the past week i feel like I've seen a lot. The first night here the group and I went out to desert and that was the first glimpse of St. Stephens which was amazing. Everything here seems to be even more amazing then the United States. It's a weird thought to think that most of the buildings here are older then the U.S. itself.

Had the first experience with Prof. Kroll. He is very knowledgeable and funny too. He took everyone to the Museum of Wien to learn more about the city and Austria. The museum is a short 10 minute walk from the Theresiam and is past another amazing church, St. Charles.

The group took a trip to The Belvedere which is a museum with amazing paintings and sculptures as well. The building itself is an artwork in itself. Nicole, Pie, and I went back to the Belvedere to explore the grounds and it was amazing.

Basically it's only been seven days and I already feel like theres so much to talk about but can't get it all in at once. I could probably write for days just about the first week. But there is too much.

10 Words that Describe Me!

Outgoing- Its important because being outgoing never held me back. Meeting new people has always been fun to me and I enjoy that. Also I know that being outgoing helps me when in a new and different environment.

Optimistic – I am always looking on the bright side. I want other people around me to also be that way. I always want the best of things and wanting optimism from people who aren’t optimistic can get me down.

Daughter – My parents are the most important thing to me. They brought into this world and have shown me all the love and support anyone could ask for. Having their support for everything I do is great; they want all the things for me that they never experienced.

Student – I’m not the best student, but I enjoy learning and school has been apart of my life for the past 15 years.

Sister- I have an older sister and a younger brother. I find myself being the one who’s different from my siblings. I look at being a sister and it means never being alone and always having some one to turn too.

Funny- I have the ability to make people laugh. I am a big goof and its just something that I am good at.

Leader – I like to be involved, well more in control, it’s my way or it’s the wrong way. I am the president of the Women’s Rugby Team and I am going insane to think how they will get along with out me and what if the team falls apart because I am not there.

Non confrontational – I have a hard time saying how I feel and when I have a problem I let it build just to avoid confronting someone with a problem. If I do have a problem I find it easier to write things down so I remember to get all my points across.

Indecisive- Making decisions is something that I have always struggled with. I always think there’s something better. This does get tough when I have to make decisions for the team but I have a Vice President and we are able to make the right decisions.

Embarrassing – I say stupid things all the time. Just getting words mixed up and not really filtering what I say. This is how I embarrass myself but I always find a way to laugh it off. I think laughing whatever I say off is better then letting it get to me and feeling bad, but I do feel silly sometimes.

Invitation to Insight

My best friends from home <3

The two people i interviewed were Jen and my Mom. Jen is the daughter of my parents friends. I've known her my whole life and she is also my brother's tutor. I interviewed my mom and she has known me my whole life plus some.

The strength that they said I had in communicating was being able to adapt well in a situation. Being in a new environment never stopped me from having a problem communicating. Also they said I am always interested in talking to people and am involved in the conversation itself.

A weakness was that I usually talk a lot. I can also say too much at once. They mentioned that I sometimes just want to talk about myself and get carried away with not listening. They said that I could improve on not saying too much and also just thinking a little bit before I start saying something I could regret.

I knew that I tend to say too much. It's a little weird to hear that talking so much can be a bad thing but I understood where they were coming from when they said it. I already knew that I am an open minded person. It was good to hear that I adapt well in situations, it gives me confidence when going to a new place.

I plan on thinking more before I speak. Trying not to say to much and just listening more and even being more involved in conversations.