Infection

I received word a few days prior to Winter Break that I've been accepted into a senior synthesis class, offered through the Robert E. Cook Honors College, that will take me back to Vienna this May.

I am ecstatic.

See you on 5/18/10, Liebe Wien.

My Camera Threw Up...On This Blog

Friday classes are always antsy. I was expecially tired, and it showed. But we had a "substitute" instructor because Antonia could not make it in. She was very outgoing and helpful. She was also more experienced with explaining German to students (she would dramatize certain verbs to give us a better understanding of what they mean.)

After class, the lovely ladies in my DeutschAkademie Klasse were asking me about my stay here in Vienna and when I would return to America. When I explained that I will leave in 7 days, they were all in shock...and so was I. I have been in this city for 21 days, and I am only now beginning to appreciate it, appreciate the culture and the language and the people. Shoot, I thought a month would be excessive. Really, I know I need to return to Europe. I intend to study here for an entire semester junior year. I have to. This has been the greatest, single most important thing that has happened to me. And the cultural immersion and experience has surpassed my expectations. I could rave for hours...

Eunsuk (I just checked the spelling, and I am proud to say that I got it on the first try), from South Korea, told me about Pizza Bizi, an incredibly delicious joint near Stephansdom that I needed to test out. Sure enough, I did- she decided that she, Rita, Helga and I would go there for lunch because everyone- except me- was hungry. So we went and I ordered a slice (which is actually the size of 2 American slices put together...hello, Folger! [IUP]) with pepperoni, ham, onion and cheese. YUM. But I was terribly full.
I had decided prior to class that if rain was nowhere in sight I would visit the permanent art exhibit in Oberes Belvedere. Lucky for me and my sanity, it was sunny for the majority of the afternoon. So I walked to the lovely landmark, purchased a student ticket, and stepped into the overwhelmingly beautiful exhibit.

Three floors of paintings, busts, large-windowed rooms and historical flavor. I could taste and feel the luxury of Oberes Belvedere and every room hit me with a new wave of appreciation. My favorite portions of the collections: Franz Xaver Messerschmidt's "Character Heads" and, of course (not to sound like the typical tourist) Gustav Klimt's various works. I had never been interested in Klimt...and then I got a good look at his works in the Gallery Guide to Belvedere. I was in awe at first glimpse. And "The Kiss" was not my only favored piece (though it ranks at the top-I bought a deck of playing cards displaying this masterpiece.) I also enjoyed his nature-oriented paintings as well. Messerschmidt's "Character Heads" was unlike anything I have ever seen. This collection is so well-known because it was the first to exhibit human facial expressions in an honest, accurate and exaggerated (wow, that was almost a contradiction) way. They appear "exaggerated" because they display every wrinkle and line that the muscles and skin produce when creating a certain expression (e.g. "A Hanged Man") Brilliant and striking, most definitely.

I didn't buy a ticket to the exhibit in the lower half of Belvedere, but I wish I would have because this collection focuses on more contemporary art of the 20th and 21st centuries. I was supposed to go to Donauinselfest with Rita that evening, but we decided against it because Helga backed out and we were somewhat tired and unenthusiastic.

Saturday I took Eunsuk's advice and decided to visit the MAK (Museum fuer Angewandte Kunst/Museum for Applied Art.) On Saturdays the entrance is free, which appealed to me very mush. I was amazed at the variety of art this museum contained. There was porcelain, glass, metal, textile, paint from the Baroque and Renaissance to the 20th and 21st centuries. This was my first real, adult experience with a massive art exhibit, and I know I made the right decision to visit. I thought of my roommate, Alison Terndrup, because I was able to recall endless nights when she would be sitting in the middle of our dorm room floor finishing art projects, many of which accidentally sought to imitate the works house in the MAK.

I'd like this set in my house, mostly because it is vibrant.

Aluminum sofa!

My twin...

Lips. To sit upon. Some call this a sofa.

Need to take a load off?

Cardboard on top. Potential face on bottom.

I like this, a lot.

I would not want to have to blow from those nostrils.

Saturday evening was the big night: Donauinselfest 2009! I woke John from his much-needed (NOT!) afternoon nap. We picked up some treats for Rita and too the U-Bahn to Nussdorfer Strasse to meet her and Helga and Andreas, Helga's brother. We jumped on the jam-packed metro and took it to the station on the insel. What. A. Crowd. It took us at least 10 minutes to get out of the station and into the flow headed into the festival. And then we had to gradually squeeze our way toward the main stage where Snow Patrol would be playing. There were adolescents and adults, couples and rowdy gangs of friends, beer, beer and more beer. Everywhere. But we got ourselves situated before the stage, though we could barely see it. Snow Patrol came on and played "Chasing Cars," "Chocolate," and a few others- the titles have escaped me. They performed rather well, though John did not find them too pleasing. Of course we all needed to go to the bathroom, so the men found simple places to do their business, while Helga, Rita and I had to walk in circles to find Port-a-Pottys. And the two of them didn't even wait in line for one. I decided to wait until we returned to the hostel because I already felt filthy. A pair of young boys attempted to jip an entire line of ladies to go to the bathroom. John and Andreas almost had to get mean with them, and the women at the front of the line cursed at them in both German and English, telling them to "piss on a tree." Amusing, indeed.The group stayed to watch Scooter, a middle-aged man with urine-blonde hair who reached his peak of popularity in the 1990s. I did not care much for his performance, but I did enjoy watching drunken young men dance on top of food trailers, followed by the two Swiss men who hit on Rita and Helga. John and I bailed around midnight so that we would not get caught in the crowd post-Scooter. It took an hour to get to Westbahnhof (30 to actually reach the U-Bahn station!) We went to McDonalds for dinner...er...late night snack. And I stayed awake until 4:00 to watch Breakfast at Tiffany's (I was in need of some comfort, classic and Audrey-style)

Donauinselfest 2009

From upper left: E.T., John, Rita, Andreas and Helga

Rita! She is gorgeous.

This morning, yet another Sunday morning, I woke up after only 6 hours of sleep. So I bought coffee and went outside to read an Austrian newspaper/tabloid. The cover feature was Michael Jackson's death, and I read the article in German (not thoroughly, but I understood enough of it to get a good feel for what happened to him!) That was when I met Jacob, an Austrian only 9 years younger than my parents, who was in the city for the Donauinselfest. He spoke fluent German, and I did my best to keep up. Somehow I ended up telling him that I had yet to visit Schoenbrunn, and that was when he suggested we go. It was drizzling off and on at this point, but I was eager to find something to do with my day. So I agreed and put on a jacket.

Jacob offered to act as my photographer...

View from the front steps of Schoenbrunn. The entire city awaits beyond the gates.

Front steps. Blink!


View over the center of the garden toward Gloriette.

Stunning. To put it simply.

More detail. And look at the hills and clouds.

Massive Fountain No. 2

This made me laugh to myself. Kids in rainboots in a rather large puddle. Oh, and yet another fountain...

Proper German spelling. I don't have an umlaut key.

Random tidbits:

>I was browsing the shoe empire in Humanic. Sara Bareilles came over the radio- "Morning Sicle." It was a profound moment because I had been thinking earlier about how in Vienna the only American music played is the cliche, nauseating pop junk that Americans overplayed three months ago. Way to go, Sara. You do not fit a single one of those negative descriptions. You are true talent, and it's excellent to know that Europeans know and appreciate you.

>Viennese (and I assume European) shoe stores know what's good in fashion. I would prefer to shop in Austria over America ANY day. Everyone here cares about what's on their feet. I have yet to see filthy shoes.

>Michael Jackson passed away on Thursday. On Friday, I passed a bar and guess what was playing on the flat-screen TV? "Beat It." God certainly has an interesting method...Farrah, Ed, Michael. We actually discussed his passing in class. Everyone was in disbelief. I am so proud of my mother for owning his vinyls...and a turn-table on which to play them. I am more proud of my parent's tastes in music. (This blog is turning into Xanga...sorry for deviating from my educational Austrian experiences...)

Some pictures I stole from Helga:

Daniela, our cultural guide! And Rita. Lovely women. Oh, and one element of the Jugendstil tour in the background (Otto Wagner.)

This is the Melange I got at Mocca Cafe next to Naschmarkt. Decor!

I returned to my room after Schoenbrunn to discover a new addition to the 02 club. A young girl was asleepon top of her blankets. I then took a nap as well, waking to the sound of her voice asking John about restaurants. She greeted me with a friendly "hello" and I proceeded to ask her name. "Franka." Lovely! Turns out she is 19, from Berlin, here in Vienna to audition for a role in something Shakespeare. We hunted for dinner together, settling for sushi at Red Bean. Within minutes we were already talking about travel and her life in Berlin as well as her hopes for the future. She is into fashion design and showed me her friend's fashion blog, an incredibly professional site. She loves film, Audrey Hepburn, the idea of the Asian exotic and having a good time. The American Civil War interests her and she wants to travel to see the southern states. Wow, she was endlessly interesting and we had more than a lot in common. Unfortunately, tonight will probably be her only night in the hostel, unless she gets a callback at the theater.

It's always reassuring to meet people so fresh and full of life. It reminds you that you are not alone, that the city is not dead. Franka and I share the same blood- vivacious, eager and passionate.

I only got to know her for 6 hours. But those 6 hours changed my mood.

I have 4 days to savor Wien. I am aching already.

Rain On Me, Baby

The past three days have been relatively...wet. Rain rain rain all over Vienna. My Monday walk to class was dry- cloudy, but free of precipitation. I had planned to return to Belvedere, but when class let out the sky was already puking. So I took the U-Bahn with Rita to return to Westbahnhof. Basically, I melted into the sofa in the lounge; there was nothing to do. I hung around the Hostel, mostly with John, waiting for something to happen...and it didn't. So I took and hour and a half off from vegitating and walked to the end of Mariahilfer and back, browsing stores. Traffic on this street is even more ridiculous when the weather is unkind- umbrellas poking everywhere, hobos huddling under overhangs, teenagers zig-zagging around the elderly...

I chose to buy nothing, and rather donated time to reflecting and contemplating in Pfarre Mariahilf, a Roman Catholic church resting a few feet to the side of the largest shopping strip of Vienna.

It is always amazingly calm inside. The dark hues of the aged walls, wooden pews and religious art quell my inner demons. There are also half a dozen old-fashioned chandelier-style lights dangling from the ceiling, remaining 10 feet above the heads of visitors by means of measley, emaciated cords. They are probably as old as the pews.

Maybe not the best photo, but certainly accurate.

Tuesday evening Rita, Helga and I went for beverages at a bar lounge near Stephansdom before heading to a small movie theater down a side street. We saw "What Just Happened" (or "Into Hollywood," as it is titled in Vienna.) It was an amusing bit of satire, and Robert de Niro impressed me quite a bit. Kristen Stewart, way to make an appearance. I appreciated your effort to deviate from the "Twilight" path.

Afterwards, I walked to the U-Bahn alone. But my guardian watched over me as I took to the streets:

Stephansdom and street cafes by night.

So at ease, always lovely.

Yesterday was the most wonderful of Wednesdays. The AMA kids invaded Vienna. Erika Firestone and Hayley Amerman are part of that troupe. Yes, I was reunited with my sisters in EUROPE. It was marvelous. Erika phoned me via Hayley's cell and I went to meet them behind the Oper. We had lunch in Cafe Rosenburg (I believe...) which offered a pay-as-you-go buffet. So I loaded my plated with a scoop of every different kind of salad (e.g. bean salad, asparagus with cheese, etc.) I got to know some of their new friends and we went for Eis- a mandatory staple for any European visit- near Stephansdom. Nutella was rather delicious...I don't think it tops Hazelnut. After a lovely hour and a half with Pennsylvanian teens, we parted ways and I made my way back to Westend, got rained on...puring rain...and slept for two hours. It was such a nasty day. But I woke up, drank an excessive amount of Coke Zero (CAFFINATION!) and put on my sneakers...
I thought I was in awe of Vienna- I thought I'd had my fill.

I realized I had overlooked Schloß Schönbrunn. So I took an evening run to find it.

And I discovered a whole new nuance of love.

Wien, how I underestimated you.

My usual route on Mariahilfer takes me to inner city Vienna (Oper, Stephansdom, Donaukanal, etc.) I turned my back on that part of town and set off in the wet evening stick, determined to find this marvel. I took Mariahilfer southwest First, I literally ran into the Auer-Welsbach Park- lush, large and possessing a marvelous rope and obstacle course that could serve as a playground for adolescents. Then I began to notice a different atmosphere to my left- the sort of calm that can only be enforced by the natural instinct to venerate an aged, revered landmark.

And there it sat. Schloß Schönbrunn in as much humility as a palace can possess. The stormy clouds hung low overhead and shifted quickly from right to left; the canal to my left raged muddy rain water toward the center of the city; but the beautiful structure before me just sat, meditating, staring upon the grace of this part of Wien.

I immediately set forth, firm in my step, suddenly revived from the three day drench. I had to pause to take in the view from the bridge over the water. Down the stretch on my right I saw a fairytale-esque tower standing tall over what I assumed to be a church...of course it had to be a church. Perhaps this was nothing extraordinary to behold, but in the enchanting mist of the evening, with the regal hills decorating the background, I felt as thought I had been taken back to a less severe, more simplistic time...where perhaps the sylvan creatures would gather at your feet and the forests would be rich with life and you may or may not be dressed like Little Red or Sleeping Beauty (pick a cliche.) How could this be hiding beyond the allure of the shopping district? I took in the feel of the cold concrete rail, moss and all upon my lazy fingertips. The sides of the waterway were alive with more moss and habitation. I think most of all I was in awe of this city's ability to breathe...seeing as my only comparisons have been NYC, Philadelphia, Pittsburg. America, America, I miss you so, but your lack of age and experience makes you inferior in some ways.

Enough with the exclamations of the profound and monumental natures...needless to say a view from the gates was all that I took because they gates were closed. And dusk was setting in rapidly. So I returned to the hostel and sat around with John, 3 German 18-year-olds, a Swede and another Austrian. They all smoked, and they smoked a lot, so I had to shower at 1 in the morning so as not to gag myself with the smell.

I woke up early today (I average 5 hours of sleep every night...I stay up and socialize/write) and got breakfast before the hoard of 13-year-old school boys and girls invaded the room. Walked to class in the clear morning air- no hint of rain. AMEN. Class today was nothing special. I would say the Thursday itch for the weekend set in. After class, though, I went with Rita to Humanic, a well-known shoe store. She needed to purchase comfortable "around-town" kicks. And it was a great success. We bought sandwiches at Anker and sat in the grass in front of Museum Quartier for an hour, walked to my hostel so that I could drop off my German books and change, and then returned to the Deutsch Akademie for the cultural program.

This week we took an extended walk around town to get a glimpse of the Jugendstil...a somewhat complex pespective and style of architecture, particularly known in relation to the name Otto Wagner. We saw an Apotheke (pharmacy), bank, and the station at Karlsplatz. Really, so much was seen and said that I cannot find the motivation to write all about it in this already-too-lengthy post. But it was a lovely, warm evening spent sight-seeing in Vienna with my lovely ladies Rita and Helga, Fardin and another man from Iran who tried to get me to go to a Disko with him...haha. We went for drinks at Mocca Lounge next to Naschmarkt where we spend a good hour discussing diversity amongst cultures and traditions, specifically the acceptable relationships between young men and women, and the ridiculous drinking age in America. I am so proud...I spoke almost entirely in German!

For my daddy, the Feuer Man!

"Alyson Hannigan," Rita, Helga, Iranian man before the Anker Urh, a massive clock built by Franz von matsch in 1911. Every hour represents a famous or revered individual who played a crucial role in the making of the history of Vienna. We all look ridiculous and unprepared, but the clock looks better with humans standing beneath it.

Another branch heading toward the Donau, this time flowing through Stadtpark.

This park is gorgeous. And I adore the architecure displayed in these photographs. This was another stop on the Jugendstil tour. (Josef Hackhofer und Friedrich Ohnmann, 1903-1906)

After I polished off my Melange, the ladies went back to Humanic so Helga could buy her coveted shoes in her size. We then sat outside at Bar Italia Lounge on Mariahilfer to do our homework together and enjoy some more drinks. We were there for over two hours. I truly appreciate these women. They have such diverse experiences that I am constantly learning when around them. Rita told us all about the unique customs of the Japanese culture while Helga explained her brother's superior handiwork skills.

It was a tiring day, considering we covered half of Vienna in 2 hours' time.

I needed to polish off this entry (I began it 2 days ago...)

So here you have it. Enjoy. And I appologize for any spelling/grammatical errors. I just type and don't take a second look at what I've written.

This week's playlist (as of Mittwoch, a.k.a. "Wednesday"- my iPod is my most faithful companion on my morning excursions to class, and throughout any other exploration adventure I take by myself):

BILLY JOEL & MUSE (The hostel played one of their CDs overhead on Saturday. I was in heaven.) And perhaps "Fidelity" by Regina Spektor. In case my taste in music is of interest. Vienna looks and feels even more whimsical (yes, whimsical) and inspiring when there is music playing somewhere in the background.

A Deuce of a Post.

My "evening stroll through Vienna" turned into "an hour in the park." It began to drizzle ever so lightly as I headed northeast on Mariahilfer. I was also mentally drained, for no reason in particular, so I deviated 30 degrees onto a side street that took me to the playground neighboring the Aqua Terra Zoo. I was also itching to find a pull-up bar of sorts, so I figured a playground would have some options. It was rather busy for 6:30 P.M. I took a seat on a bench from which I could see a gang of young teenagers pulling some shenanigans on the only set of pull-up bars on the grounds. Slightly crushed, I decided to attempt to wait it out. So I scrolled through old text messages (they keep my ever so loosely connected to my loved ones) and made headway on my dear friend Jack Kerouac. An passed and the adolescents were still hovering like buzzards around the "big kid" swings and all the "cool" equiptment.

Wednesday evening I wanted to run. And I wanted to run badly. The thing about Vienna is that every day, at any given hour, I pass countless runners. And I become envious that they are exercising and I am not. It's an indirect way of putting myself down- it makes me want to work harder. So I set out in the evening heat, took the Wienzeile past the Oper to the Donaukanal. There I ran alongside the water, taking in the heavy activity: restaurants and bars were open, Spielplaetze (where one can go to play basketball or fussball on an outdoor court) were crowded, bikers flooded the trails as did walkers and runners and young couples. I discovered an alternative route to the Augarten via bridge. It excited me to see this nightlife- a new dimension to the personality of the city that I was not accustomed to. Westbahnhof is prone to rambunctious youngsters, beggars, window-shoppers-who-cannot-dress-fashinably, the Hostel, etc. I wished I was staying closer to the Kanal so I could visit more frequently. Sometimes I just do not have the drive to get up and go here, because I walk everywhere throughout the day.
Upon returning from my run, I cleaned up and hung out with John the rest of the evening. We were sitting outside drinking- coffee for me, beer with the side dish of a cigarette for him- when one of the handful of young German men, who had been around for a couple of days and knew my last name thanks to my Leb Cath soccer tee, joined us for a smoke. He had in his hands a Doenner Kebap, which are renound in Europe, apparently. They are delicious and I made sure to let the German, whose name was Tobi or Tommi, that his dinner appealed to my stomach. I was just making a statement because when I find I have something in common with a complete stranger, I become excited and make sure to let them know of our shared...whatever. His English was just about as polished as my German, but he went on to ask me if he could treat me to one of the heavenly, by digestively brutal, sandwiches. I told him no repeatedly, but he practically talked me into walking to the Kebap shop with him (lucky for those of us here at the Westend, this sits at the end of our small street.) Once we were in the shop, I had no chance of escaping the food, so I ordered it spicy and gratefully accepted the treat. Tobi/Tommi then invited me to join him and his German friends on a pilgrimage to a bar by the Donaukanal for cocktails. I was pretty amused at this point, but I refused his offer. It was 9:00 PM and I was not about to spend the weeknight at a bar. I wanted to do my homework and hang low. But this persistent Deutschlander even said I could keep the key to his BMW until he brought me back safely. Haha. And this BMW, which he parked directly in front of the Hostel, was a fancy little princess. Really, what a ridiculous offer.

I witnessed the officialy installation of Westend City Hostel's first Fussballtisch. Yes, Table Soccer has arrive. This is a big deal, primarily because at Westend there is little to do unless you have a laptop or a bunch of spare Euro.

[It's in the box.]

Thursdays at the Deutsch Akademie mean Freizeit; every Thursday a different social activity is organized and students from any level are invited to attend. I was not particularly interested in doing stuctured activities, but Rita (Hungary) asked if I was going to attend. Her friendly, outgoing approach was the deciding factor for me, so I signed up to visit the Alte Donau with 4 others. We met back at the Deutsch Akademie at 3 PM- myself, Rita, Helga (the Italian wine tester who lived in Michigan for 5 years), Fardin and the organizer woman whose name escapes me at the moment. Fearless Leader woman took us into a classroom and pulled out three different maps- one of Vienna in the Middle Ages, one from a few decades ago, and one of the maps they give to all the tourists. She explained- entirely in German- the history of the Donau river and its importance for the economy and culture of Vienna. I understood a decent amount of what she said, but of course my vocabulary is rather limited.

The 5 of us took the U-Bahn to Alte Donau.

This was by far the most amazing evening thus far in Vienna (those spent with Sarah and Malcolm rank in a different way.)An entirely different city- if you can even refer to this as "urban"- lies beyond the Donau Insel, which divides the ship-heavy Donau and the Neue Donau.

For mom- the divider on this highway was so vibrant it was almost blinding.

Looks like the beach, doesn't it?

This is where we swam. It was a marvelous place-almost like a vacation park. We arrived around 4:00 P.M. and it was packed with Austrians of every age. There were at least a dozen Kabinets where visitors had "lockers" to store their things. There was a large pool, volleyball and basketball courts, picnic areas, large chess games (as in the chess pieces were the size of toddlers), paddleboats, a dock for jumping, and endless Donau water. This place was also rather liberal...meaning clothes are not a requirement. So there were quite a few naked children AND adults running around. But it was also very serene in the late afternoon sun. The water was not cold, either. I played sand volleyball with Fardin and then our group headed to the Museums Quartier to meet Helga's brother, his girlfriend, and a group of their friends. I had never actually been in the Quartier, so I was shocked to find a mass of young people piled on top of oddly shaped yellow benches, a few outdoor cafes, various museums...

This is Helga's photo. It captures the liveliness of this place so well.
After this, around 9 PM, we all walked 5 minutes down the street to the Rathaus where there was going to be a candlelighting chain against racism. We arrived to the sound of beating drums and an anxious crowd, people of all ages. Most of the gatherers held lit torches, but we just walked with the undulating mass. It felt invigorating to be a part of this cultural pehnomenon- me, an American student studying the German language in Vienna. I chose thee best month to visit. I am sure of that.

After Friday's class, I decided that it was time for me to make a pilgrimage to the famed Belvedere. It was about a 20 minute walk from Opernring, and the heat that day was suffocating, but I pushed forward, longing to encounter something that would reignite my appreciation for the historical, untarnished side of Vienna. Sure enough, I found what I was looking for. And then some.

The magnificence of the vast, open-air plot of land occupied within the walls of Belvedere is probably the first think one notices.

View down toward lower Belvedere.

Stark!

Endearing row of houses beyond the walls.

Hello, heavenly clouds.

The dome is not part of Belvedere. I was just in love with the look of the backside of the buildings.

I could not and still cannot get over how dramatic the sky was on Friday. It was absolutely perfect for photographing this masterpiece. I did not visit any of the art exhibits while I was there because I was unsure of whether I would find them interesting. And then I went to the gifts show and stumbled upon endless prints of Klimt's "The Kiss" and many others. I was in such awe of the artwork that I knew I would be coming back for the exhibits- I knew it within the first 30 seconds of entering the shop.

It began to drizzle as I made my way back to Karlsplatz. I stopped by Billa, the freshest grocery store in Vienna, for some Marillen (apricots) and a Thunfisch und Ei Salat (Tuna and Egg.) That's when it began to pour. But I didn't mind it. Because I had plans for the evening.Helga invited the same group out on Friday night to visit a popular Irish pub near Schottentur, about 15 minutes away by U-Bahn. I learned how to cheat the U-Bahn system. Here in Vienna, you do not need to put a card through a machine in order to board the metro system. You can just hop on and no one would know that you haven't paid for a pass. Once in a while, a ticket-stamper comes around, and if you're caught you become a heck of a lot poorer. Basically, I travelled across the city without having purchased a ticket.

Clockwise from the bottom: Helga's brother, Helga, Helga's ex-classmate's husband, the Spanish-speaking ex-classmate, Rita, "Alyson Hannigan" and Fardin.

After spending a good two hours around a table, followed by 30 minutes of dancing in the club below, Rita, Fardin, Helga's bro and I went to an underground club near Stephansplatz. There was a DJ, a live bongo player and saxophone player. It was packed with young adults and some awkward, older men in suits. The smoke factor was not bad, and the water was cold and free. We took over one corner of the room and danced until 4 in the morning. Talk about crazy- we had not realized so much time had gone by. We decided to hang around by the Donaukanal until the U-Bahn and trams began to run again. We ended up listening to a man play cuban music on his guitar until the sun came up. The waters were so serenene in the calm, breathing morning winds. Fardin bought 3 slices of pizza around 6 AM- yes, Kebap, pizza, etc. is ready to be served at the crack of dawn- and then we headed off in our respective directions. I napped for an hour back at the hostel, rose for the free daily breakfast and slept until 4:30 in the afternoon.

Saturday was spent with John. We hung around the empty hostel while rain dampened the cheer of Vienna. I played table soccer with him as well as Jacob and Miki, workers at the hostel.

And then I chose, yet again, to refrain from sleeping during sensible hours. Instead, I talked to Robbin for 3 hours via Skype chat. Much needed, truly appreciated. Heart-to-hearts with her always lift my spirits.

Needless to say that I slept through breakfast this morning, rising only at noon after the cleaning ladies came scuffling and banging and making racket in my room. I dressed and left to meet Rita around 2 to study for tomorrow's Deutsch exam. We took the U-Bahn to Donau Insel, the strip of land separating the Alte and Neue Donau. Neither of us had eaten, so we went to a cute restaurant near the water. This place was beachy, with a straw-roofed hut housing the kitchen and dampened sand serving as the floor of the outdoor eating area. We both ordered pasta dishes, and I had a Melange, as usual. She told me all about Hungaryher studies at the university there and her multi-lingual experiences (Hungarian, English, Japanese, Deutsch!)

Then we sat by the calm waters to review our German. We were there for a good 3 hours. I had never thought I would get along with this beauty. She is so down to earth, and I learned today how similar we really are: she grew up Roman Catholic, we both hold similar perspectives about the meaning of life and what we want to do with our time and energy, we are both into sports and outdoor activities, etc. The list could go on. It was windy and chilly, and both of us were wearing summer clothing, so we went for hot drinks near Stephansdom (giving in to Starbucks, seeing as everything European closes extremely early on Sundays.)

I believe we are going to become good friends during the next 2 weeks.

This post is massive. Sorry for allowing my Viennese experiences to accumulate in such an unfavorable way.

Hope you are all getting a fair taste of the lovely Wien!