10 million things to do and see in one city

Life in Vienna has been pretty crazy since I last wrote on here. I started classes on September 20th and they've all gone pretty smoothly so far. So what have I been doing over the past 3 weeks? Well, I have definitely been to a lot of museums...let's make a list: Leopold Museum (fo' FREE) Kaffee-Erlebnismuseum "Coffee Experience Museum" (got free coffee, wine, and bread) Haus der Musik (saw live music and had fun with the interactive exhibits) Kunst Haus Wien (oh my goodness, I love Hundertwasser's artwork and architecture! He has definitely become one of my favorite artists. Everything he does is so colorful and creative and wonderful. I just can't get over it.)

Albertina (They had a "From Monet to Picasso" exhibit going on) Wien Museum Mozarthaus (We only saw one floor of this one because we didn't realize that it wasn't part of the free Sunday thing for the Wien Museums until a woman told us that we needed to buy tickets....so, we just left after that happened...) Römermuseum Neidhart Fresken (the oldest secular mural paintings in Vienna) Beethoven Pasqualatihaus (Where he wrote his 4th, 5th, 7th, and 8th symphonies, along with his opera "Fidelio") I think that list covers all of the ones I've seen over the past few weeks. I went to most of them for free, except for the Coffee, Music, Hundertwasser, ad Albertina ones. But, those were all part of Lange Nacht der Museen "Long Night of Museums," and we just had to pay for one 11-Euro ticket to get into all of them! That event went on from 6pm to 1am on the first Saturday of October and it was a lot of fun and completely worth it. If I had paid for each of those museums individually, it would have cost over 30 Euro! And then the next day was the free day for the Wien Museums. On September 30th, I went to the Zentralfriedhof, which is a beautiful cemetery in Vienna that has a huge church in the center of it. The grounds are gorgeous and it's the cemetery where several famous composers are buried, including Beethoven, Strauss, Brahms, and Schubert. There is also a Mozart memorial there. Mozart was buried in a mass grave, so no one knows exactly where he is buried, but he definitely wasn't buried in Zentralfriedhof, they just made a memorial for him there because the cemetery has become famous because of all the composers (and other famous people) who have been buried there.

I also finally had the chance to ride the Riesenrad (Ferris Wheel)!! It was fun and we had an amazing view of the city. It's not a super thrilling thing to do, but I think it's something that everyone needs to do at some point while in Vienna. The Riesenrad is just so iconic and everyone knows what it is, you have to go on it eventually.

Over the course of 3 days (the 25th to the 27th), I saw 2 operas! Don Giovanni and Alcina. Surprisingly enough, I liked Alcina more than Don Giovanni. I think a lot of it had to do with the set for Alcina. Alcina's staging was much more elaborate than Don Giovanni's and just looked a lot fancier. Also, I realized that I actually sang one of the arias from Alcina for my jury last year - I felt kind of dumb for not remembering it before it was being performed in the opera, but oh well. Both of the operas were amazing and I can't believe that each of them only cost me 4 Euro - that's the price of a kebab box, guys! What else have I seen...Oh! I explored more of Schönbrunn and fell in love with it. Schönbrunn has beautiful gardens that go on forever, I feel like I haven't even seen half of the grounds. I can't wait to actually go inside one day soon!

I think one of the best things I've done in Vienna happened this past Thursday. It was the last warm and sunny day that we had in Vienna before the rain kicked in on Friday. A friend invited me and Rachael to hang out at the Danube, so we went. After laying out and walking around for a couple of hours, we walked over to the U-Bahn station on this bridge. Then, we all decided to jump into the river. I had said earlier that if they did it (again), I'd do it, too. But, all of a sudden, when the time actually came, I got nervous and was unsure. I knew I had to do it, though. When else was I going to get the chance to jump into the Danube from a bridge?! We climbed over the railing and I held onto the bar for my life. My friends counted down...they jump. I'm the last one to jump and it's one of the most invigorating feelings ever. I just can't imagine ever feeling that alive again, it was such a rush and I loved it. I did end up landing kind of funny and I now have a pretty gnarly bruise on my leg from it, but it was completely worth it and I'm really glad I jumped. The evening ended with us all hanging out, talking, and having fun in a bar across the street from my friend's apartment. It was the kind of afternoon/evening I really needed. I have to say, I've met some pretty cool people since I've been here. I'm glad I've been able to meet students from all over the United States (and some from other parts of the world, too) and I'm looking forward to getting to know them even better. That's one of the main reasons for studying abroad: meeting new, different people who have had different experiences than I have had and I really just love meeting new people. Although I've done quite a bit in Vienna, I still feel like there is so much that I need to see. But, at the same time, there is a lot of traveling I still need to do! I'm off to Salzburg in the morning, for the second time! I didn't get to do and see everything I wanted to the first time I went, so it's time for round two and this time I'm going on The Sound of Music Tour. I don't know if you guys know this, but I LOVE The Sound of Music. Like...a LOT. I literally grew up on the movie and music and have been obsessed with it since I was about 3 years old. My father told me that my sister and I used to watch it basically everyday after getting home from preschool/kindergarten. So, I knew that it was something that I needed to do while studying abroad in Austria; there was no way I was about to let that opportunity pass me by and if I had, I would have regretted it. So, I guess I shold get some sleep before the busy day ahead of me! Goodnight :]