Week 3: Understanding Austria

This last week in January brought my intensive German class to a close, along with the Austrian students' winter semester.  These circumstances created a quiet week for my roommates and myself, filled with school work and my preparations for the Technical University of Vienna's ball at the Hofburg (a palace in Vienna).  The end of the week brought the start of a week-long break, which forced me to begin planning my travels and to start finding a balance of seeking friendships and simultaneously absorbing the history around me.

25 January

Cevapcici - a tasty Bosnian lunch!

I visited a couple different churches and went out for lunch with Nate and Bethany, along with a friend from their church.  In the evening, I finally met the sister of a friend who helped connect me with a student ministry here.  The German practice during the morning and evening definitely pushed me outside of my comfort zone, while I enjoyed the peace of re-focusing on God for the week.

26 January

On Monday, I experienced immersion into Vienna's art culture at the Leopold Museum during an excursion with my German class.  The museum contains the art collection of a man who loved to collect art, but eventually could not afford it anymore...so he decided to start a museum. 
What better way to support your addiction to art than start a museum?
Brilliant, thoroughly brilliant.

As I passed through the galleries of the art museum, distinctions between German and Austrian cultural history began to take shape in my mind.  I internalized more about Austria's well-known artists, such as Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, or the Wiener Werkstätte, a furniture making company.  In the past, I lumped culture from German-speaking countries together.  Learning about Austria´s history and legacy separate from Germany helps me respect and see the differences between the two countries, so I can more fully view Austria as its own entity.  Growing up as half Canadian and half American sheds light on this difference in my mind.  Although Canada and America bear many similarities, Canada stands distinct from its southern neighbor in areas ranging from the French influence in its history and official language to fantastic foods like poutine and Canadian Smarties (and don't forget Tim Horton's!).  Whether history, art, or modern food, these aspects of culture form the background and everyday experience of a nation's inhabitants.  I will thus continue aiming to further my understanding of national identities, using it to absorb more fully the lives of people I meet around the world.

27 January

Tuesday was filled with school work, particularly catching up on homework assignments and reading a book for an oral final in my German class.  I realized on Monday that I needed to buy a dress for the upcoming ball at the Hofburg on Thursday night.  With limited time, my friend Megan and I scoured a few shops on Kärtnerstraße, the main shopping street in the center of Vienna.  Megan and I both found dresses at Peek & Cloppenburg, but mine needed shortening.  The short time period before the ball made this nearly impossible, but I decided to try to find a place on Wednesday.

28 January

Black dress for the ball

On Wednesday morning, I woke up early to attend a prayer breakfast with ÖSM, my student ministry.  The event gave focus to my day, but I found it quite hard to truly express myself through prayer in German.  I heard in the past that a person may learn a language for years and years, but expressing oneself spiritually in that language can remain difficult.  I definitely experienced that today!

After German class in the morning, I immediately headed back to the 18th district (where I live) to take care of the ball gown situation.  I scoured a few stores close to my apartment and found some rather interesting gowns at an old second hand shop!  Fortunately, I found a long, black gown at a store with new dresses and it fit my budget and taste perfectly.  I ate pizza in the evening with my roommate and his girlfriend, which provided a nice study break for them and opportunity to catch up before they headed back home for their break.

29 January

My friend Lisa and I at the ball

Thursday meant scrambling to finish studying for my German final and to prepare for the Hofburg ball!  I planned to get ready for the ball with a group of friends, but rather unfortunate circumstances prevented this from happening.  I stayed longer at the IES Center due to dealing with several urgent e-mails and texts from back home.  After arriving at my apartment and scrambling around to gather my things, I made it about halfway to my friend´s apartment with the U-Bahn only to realize that I left my ball ticket back at my apartment!

A glimpse of the Hofburg

I hurried back home and got ready for the ball far more quickly than a person should, then headed to the Hofburg for a grand night of dancing and spending time with friends.  What a breathtaking night!  I think my former romantic ideas of Austria probably contained scenes like this night at the Hofburg.  My friend Lisa and I explored room after room filled with beautiful parquet floors, crystal chandeliers, and tables for guests.  I had the chance to dance with a couple guys from my program and even a graduate student from El Salvador, who studies at a university in Vienna!  I think my favorite dance happened when one of the IES German teachers invited Lisa and I to join her group for a traditional polka!  I learned the dance quite easily, especially since it reminded me of Irish barn dancing or American square dancing.  I truly could not have asked for a more magical night!

30 January

My program decided to create the most wonderful schedule in which our intensive German finals followed the night of the ball at the Hofburg.  Not fun.  The final went well...definitely better than my frightening Operations Management tests last semester.  I unfortunately arrived slightly late to the final and was appalled to find that one of the fill-in-the-blank questions on the test contained the sentence, "Weiß Elizabeth, wann der Deutschunterricht beginnt?" (Does Elizabeth know, when German class begins?).  My teacher likes to make homework and test questions personalized to the class.  This question was slightly too personalized and a sharp reminder to begin improving in an area where I struggle.

After my German final, my friend from IU, Katie, and I caught up about our experiences in Vienna so far.  We both have enjoyed our time here so far, but find that the program can seem overprotective at times.  Nonetheless, the German we are learning, the new friends, and the culture are absolutely fantastic!

31 January

Saturday begin 9 glorious days of travel and sightseeing around Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest, Innsbruck, and Prague!  The break refreshed me and gave me a new perspective, since I focused significantly during the past few weeks on settling into Vienna and getting to know more Austrians.  As a result, I think I missed taking time to truly absorb the beautiful historical sites in and around Vienna.  This break helped me absorb the reality that I am in Austria for only four and a half months, which will place limitations on the relationships I can form.  I will strive my utmost to take advantage of opportunities for friendship and language practice, but I shouldn´t waste time waiting for them when a sea of history and culture (which includes many language-learning opportunities!) sits in my backyard.  Balance - that is the end goal.

Hundertwasserhaus

I planned a day of visiting historical locations around Vienna, but my plans dramatically shifted due to protests occurring in the city center.  Thus, I took the opportunity to explore sights on the outside of the city rather than in the old city center.  I first traveled over to the Hundertwasserhaus, a modern style apartment building which contains hardly any 90 degree angles and many nature-friendly features.  These include architecture that blends well into nature, green roofs, and tree gardens on patios at different levels.

Beethoven's grave

After the Hundertwasserhaus, I visited Vienna's Zentralfriedhof, one of the largest graveyards in Europe.  It would take days to explore all the different
cultural and historical

Brahms' grave

sections of the graveyard, so I chose to focus on the graveyard's central church, aristocratic graves, and a cultural section.  The most overwhelming moment occurred in the graveyard as I stood quietly among the graves of Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert, and several members of the Strauss family.  Standing among these master musicians brought back many memories of hours spent at the piano learning their works, particularly the three movements of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata.  The beauty and grandeur these men captured in their art astounds people to this day.  To stand among these musicians at one time created an unforgettable moment of reflection.

I wrapped up the day with a visit to the Naschmarkt, a large and well-known international market in Vienna.  I scored an awesome cashmere scarf for 5 Euro and absorbed the sights and smells of different nations as I wandered past booth after booth, creating a peaceful close to an incredible day.