7 Countries in 7 Weeks

I'm very thankful that today was a chill day considering I'll be traveling tomorrow. After classes, I returned to my apartment, decompressed for awhile, cooked dinner, and chilled on the roof with some friends. This picture was taken while enjoying the sunset. I just finished packing for my weekend trip and I can't wait to experience Prague!

Today at a glance: 7:30 - woke up 9:00-10:30 - German 10:30-1:00 - ate lunch & organized my schedule 1:00-2:30 - Health psychology 2:45-3:30 - rode the tram home  4:00-5:30 - napped (essential)  6:00-8:00 - homework, cleaned, cooked dinner 8:00-10:30 - drank wine & talked with friends  I should mention that I switched out of 4:35-6:05 (Psychology and Society in Vienna) to 1:00-2:30 (Health psychology) so that I was able to be in the same class as all of my friends. Although I would have enjoyed the content of psychology and society more so than health psychology, I was smart enough to download all of the readings from the society course so that I can still learn about it! Yes, I know, I am quite resourceful. All in all, everything worked out and I am one happy girl!

Today marked the first day of classes, which surprisingly weren't too bad. Between my two classes I grabbed a quick sandwich, booked my upcoming weekend trip to Prague, and ordered an Austrian iced coffee. This version of iced coffee ironically doesn't include ice, but instead consists of vanilla ice cream, coffee, and whipped cream. It was a delicious way to kill time between my classes. My last class ended around 6:05 and I was home by 7, changed by 7:10, and at dinner by 7:45 to celebrate a friend's 20th birthday. I've only been here for four days, but it feels like four weeks with how busy I've been. I've been making the most of my time here, but I'm very excited to have a chill day tomorrow. Thursday is a national holiday in Vienna so luckily we have a four day weekend coming up, which I'll be spending in Prague with a group of friends. Needless to say, I can't wait for the adventure. Stay tuned to see how it goes!

Something I've noticed from today is that I've already taken on a much more relaxed mindset. I allowed myself to sleep in to catch up on some much needed rest and then I took a walk by myself. Granted, I only walked down the street to purchase a bottle of wine, it was still nice to explore a little independently. When I returned to my apartment, I joined a group of friends and we visited a lavish summer palace to watch the sunset on a hill while enjoying some wine (pictured above). The palace included a beautiful garden and it made me wonder what living there would be like. I'm not even sure how one would fill 1,441 rooms, but hey, if there's a will there's a way. It was a very peaceful day and I'm glad I was able to appreciate such wonderful scenery.

Today I went on a walking/bus tour of the city and was able to see some pretty neat sights. They were all very scenic and I was amazed by the view from overlooking the city. Also, I learned that Vienna has been voted the best city in the world to live in nine years in a row which doesn't surprise me at all! After the tours, I enjoyed a lovely meal and wine with good company. Overall, it was a day well spent!

Hello it's me, coming to you live from the beautiful city of Vienna! After a nine hour flight, I arrived this morning at 8:45 am. Upon arrival, two new friends and I exited the airport and rode a bus to our next stop of taking an underground subway into the heart of the city. Leading up to my departure, I was told that I would experience an overwhelming feeling of culture shock; however, I adjusted quickly and only felt a sense of calmness. I think this is due to the fact that I have experienced a few other cultures prior to this trip, so I was able to anticipate and understand cultural differences and seamlessly adapt to them. So far, I have been observing the scenery, lifestyle, and interpersonal interactions within Vienna and I have noticed that the city is a very clean, leisurely, and friendly environment. I think I will thoroughly enjoy my time spent here and everything I have yet to learn and experience. As for the rest of the day, I dropped my luggage off at the IES Cent