"Squeezing the Juice"

It's been a while since my last blog post, but that shows how November is already such a busy month! I won't go too in-depth about my time in Vienna because I'm definitely still "squeezing the juice" (an IES motto that has been instilled into our brains) of the city and getting everything I possibly can out of it.

Some recent highlights from the past week include:

1. Returning back to my 9am business class on Monday morning post-exams and taking a tour of the lovely Schönbrunn Palace. Despite having been 847250371 times so far this semester, I've only ever experienced the beautiful exterior and enchanting gardens. This time, I actually got to go inside and take a look at the lavish, gold-paneled rooms. I learned more about Empress Sisi and the royal family, as well as some interesting information: people can rent apartments out at Schönbrunn! As amazing as that would be to say you lived in a Viennese palace, can you imagine trying to bring in groceries while avoiding the throngs of people or trying to get some peace and quiet with all the tourists snapping photos? I think I'll pass on a palace residency...

Perks of being the only ones at Schönbrunn at 8:30am

It's so lovely without all the tourists in the way 

Sneakily took this photo inside the Grand Ballroom in the Palace

2. Having a visitor from Ireland (or two!)! Austin came to stay with me in Vienna on Tuesday until Thursday, and Gigi came to stay with Anna for the week. Both of them are studying in Dublin at Trinity College. It was great to see them, and I was able to tour Austin around to all the favorite Viennese sites: Schönbrunn (twice in one week, not bad!), Naschmarkt, Stephansdom, Staatsoper, Cafe Sacher, and the Belvedere. I quite enjoy being a tour guide for this beautiful city!

Emily joined us as I took Austin and Gigi around the Naschmarkt and they tried Vienna's famous Stürm (half-fermented grape juice)

On Tuesday night, when Austin arrived, Anna, Gigi, Austin, and I embarked on an adventure to the far-flung Heurigers in the 19th district of Vienna. Heurigen (plural) are basically Viennese wine-taverns that serve amazing drinks (so I've heard...) and delicious traditional Viennese food. None of us had ever been, but our friends who had experienced this tradition were smitten. The heuriger we went to was lovely, and very quiet on a Tuesday night. Nobody spoke English there...we were in a proper Austrian spot where the locals visited! I got a Hühnerschnitzel (Chicken Schnitzel) and potato salad and sweet pickled cucumbers. The meal was phenomenal! It was such a huge portion as well, so when I had finally had enough, I had more than enough chicken left over to bring back to Elise for her to enjoy! I'm definitely taking my mom and aunt there when they visit! I've now changed my views on Austrian food (though it still isn't my absolute favorite)...

THIS WAS MY PLATE OF HÜHNERSCHNITZEL. It was immense (yet so delicious)

Luckily, my 3 hour class on Wednesday night was cancelled, so I got to meet up with friends and introduce Austin to them at Der Wiener Deewan for dinner (an IES favorite) before heading to Charlie P's bar and Aneyn's apartment for her traditional Wine and Cheese night. It was so great seeing Austin again!

The Belvedere is stunning at night

3. Thursday night was the opening night for the Christmas Stalls! All over Vienna, giant trees are being put up, lights are strung everywhere down Kartnerstraße and the Rathaus, and wooden Christmas stalls are being set up in different areas around the city. Christmas is already in the air and it's just November 7th! Elise and I made our way after our gym workout to the Museumsquartier where there was an enormous gathering in the early evening (and it was pitch black out anyway. It gets dark around 5pm here now!). There were lots of people our age, drinking the traditional Glühwein, or hot wine, that only appears at the holiday season. Elise and I met up with a bunch of our friends and listened to an Austrian techno band, called Electro Goodsy or something, perform in the evening. It was a fun, sociable way to spend our Thursday night!

The crew (and Gigi!) with Glühwein at Museumsquartier!

Meghan and I at the Museumsquartier

Electro Goodsy (?) playing their repetitive techno music

After enjoying all Vienna has to offer in the relatively warm week, I can't even imagine studying abroad in a different place. Vienna is the perfect mix of everything I love: culture, history, architecture, art, nightlife, events, food, etc, etc, etc (I could probably go on forever). I don't want to think about how it's already November and I leave so soon...so we won't get to that yet!