Meine Woche in Wien

You know how sometimes you remember something as being so amazing and wonderful, only to go back and be disappointed that it's not really as good as your memories?

Well, Vienna was not one of those cases. I felt like a kid in a candy store the entire time I was there, walking around with a silly grin on my face. The smallest things- from recognizing German words, to sitting on the U-bahn, to browsing the coffee aisles in Zielpunkt and Merkur- made me so overwhelmingly happy. I spent all week visiting my favorite places, usually spending most of my time alone, but yet surrouded by warm memories to keep me company.

Pastor Laura (whom I stayed with and she was so wonderful!) talked my first night there about how some people's native language is different than their heart language. I think the same can be true for places. I think that although my home is Tennessee, Vienna is my heart city...

(Read on if you have any interest in what I did in Vienna, although much of it only will make sense to people who have been there!)

So, here is what I managed to see/do/eat while I was in Vienna for the week:
FRIDAY: Woke up to fresh brewed Julius Meinl coffee prepared by Laura; walked to IES; strolled down Kartner Strasse; had a delicious Dark Chocochino and muffin at Coffee-to-go (Coffee Zum Mitnehmen) and had a kaiserkrainer for lunch; went to Stephansdom and shopped in the Graben; walked all the way down Mariahilferstrasse; went to ClubSchiffe, which is a club on a boat on the Danube
SATURDAY: Naschmarkt in the morning, where I bought some pumpkin seeds from Styria; I visited the Prater and took pictures of rides I had been on the first time I was in Vienna 8 years ago; I ate my favorite dessert EVER in the Palmenhaus; went to the opera to see Barber of Seville, which was fantastic; went and had a drink with 2 Americans and 2 Polish students I met at the opera
SUNDAY: Went to church at ESUMC :), went out to lunch with Selena, Christian, and their kids, along with some other church members; wandered around Stadtpark in the afternoon; had dinner over at Missy's apartment that night
MONDAY: Revisted my old stomping grounds of the Meiselmarkt, Johnstrasse, and then finally Selzergasse 12; I actually followed someone into the apartment building and wandered up to where we used to live, only to have a guy ask me if I needed help...he was kind of attractive, and actually looked like he could have been Frau Sardar's son...; visited Schonbrunn gardens with the gorgeous fall colors; met Eleonore (the teacher I worked with in Vienna) at Cafe Diglas for cake and coffee; walked around for a long time
TUESDAY: Cafe Dommayer, as suggested by Missy and Kai, which was delicious; went to the chocolate museum for lots of free samples :); went to Merkur; wandered around some more; met Laura for dinner and had a great Viennese meal~ Weiner Schnitzel, potatoes, and sturm!

Some observations of things that have changed:
*The U2 is now twice as long! I was really freaked out by this...
*An opera is now 3 euros for standing room, instead of 2 (Esther, be glad we studied there last year!)
*Plus is no more :( It has been replaced by Zielpunkt
*Kauf & Spar has been totally rearranged...I only know this because I frequented the grocery stores/cheap discount stores way too often in my 4 months there
*Frau Sardar's name has been removed from Selzergasse 12
*The Westbahnhof is under MAJOR reconstruction...Katy, I was going to take a picture of the escalator for you, and you can't even go in right now....sehr traurig!

PICTURES OF VIENNA
Click the link for pictures....for my roommates, I will be sending you a few videos soon ;)

"When will you realize, Vienna waits for you"

In less than 48 hours I will be in the wonderful land of pastries, classical music, schnitzel, Deutsch, and of course, the best coffee in the world :) As requested by the lovely Katy Cordle, I want to write as much as I can about the experience, and so it starts now.

So much has changed in the past 2 months. When I booked my flight to Vienna, it seemed like the one thing I had to look forward to in the near future. Now I am adjusted to Barcelona; I am starting to remember less the things I miss so much about home and instead realize all of the wonderful things that I will be leaving behind come December. Even still, I am so excited to get on that plane to Austria and revisit the city that still has a piece of my heart.

Leaving Vienna last December was one of the hardest transitions I had to make. As strange as it sounds, I was so homesick for the place I only lived in for four months. I can't wait to go back and be able to fully take it all in. I know that it will be much different; I am a different person, and the circumstances are definitely not the same. Part of what I loved about my semester in Vienna were the people I shared it with. It will be strange to go back to a place that is missing such an essential piece of what I think about when my mind drifts back to those 4 months. Even still, I know it will be a fabulous week!

So look for posts of randomness...I plan to spend a lot of time just wandering around back to the places where I went everyday and took for granted. Expect pictures of Selzergasse 12, Johnstrasse Ubahn, and maybe even a little video of the famous Karlsplatz metro station announcement :) Until then, auf Wiedersehen!