Ich liebe Wien!

I love Vienna!

Today was perhaps the most perfect day I have had in Vienna so far. I woke up around 9:00 and realized it was actually 8:00 because of Daylight Savings. So I got an extra hour of sleep! I met up with Emily and Karly at the festival going on by the Hofburg in celebration of Austrian Nuetrality/Independence day or something like that. We got tickets for the massive zipline erected in the park, then we went to the Prater (Vienna's amusement park, home of the famous ferris wheel) and walked around. We randomly ran into Mark and Erin, two other IES students, in the grass outside the Prater and sat there for over an hour, enjoying the incredible weather.

At 3:50, we went back to the zipline, and signed a form that was all in German (I assume it was for liability reasons, agreeing to not press charges if the zipline malfunctions, etc.). We were dressed up in our ziplining gear, taken up the tower in an elevator, and stood on a small metal ramp until it was our turn. On the elevator to the top, I started shaking, and exclaimed, "What am I doing? I'm afraid of heights!" It was very scary stepping off the edge of the ramp at the top, but ended up being an amazing rush.

After braving the zipline, we went to the opera house and got in line for "Le Nozze di Figaro" ("The Marriage of Figaro"). It was great, and especially fun because I'll be playing the role of the Count at DePauw in March, so seeing a professional production was very exciting.

It's late now, and I have yet to study for my midterms, two of which are tomorrow. But I'm not worried, because I had an amazing day, and a test is just a test.

Here are my week's highlights:

Tuesday, October 20th: After choir, I went to Mark and Dil's for "Wine and Whine." It was a very relaxing evening.

Wednesday, October 21st: After Music Performance Workshop, I went to a heurigen in Grinzing. I ate some chicken, potatoes, and drank some Sturm (this year's wine - it goes out of season very soon). For dessert, I had my first full piece of Sachertorte, the dessert that was invented in Vienna - it's a chocolaty cake.

Thursday, October 22nd: We had our first Music Performance Workshop concert. I sang a duet with my roommate Mark - "Sound the Trumpet" by Purcell. It went very well, and I enjoyed seeing all of my peers perform.

Friday, October 23rd: I walked around the city for a while, doing homework for my Art & Architecture class. I went to the Roman Museum and saw some Roman ruins from the 1st Century, then went to Vienna's oldest church. For dinner, I met up with Karly and we went to the festival. I had a gigantic plate of Indian food.

Saturday, October 24th: My history class went on a field trip to Klosterneuberg, a monastery/church/palace on the outskirts of Vienna. The palace was only a fourth of the way completed, and was intended to be the grandest palace in all of Europe. When Emperor Charles died, though, work was ceased because his daughter, Maria Theresia, decided she would rather live at Schoenbrunn Palace (which is also incredible).

Sunday, October 25th: See above.

Midterms this week, then a friend from DePauw is visiting all weekend. I'm so excited to show her around the city!

I love you all.