Sad to say the 21st International Summer University has come to a close. I just had the best three weeks of my life. Making friends from all over the globe in Vienna has been an experience I'll never forget.
The school aspect of the program ended up being somewhat of a joke. I realized that the intention isn't to learn new material in the classroom but to have interesting discussions with a group of multinational people. Needless to say, I passed...but I have no clue what grade I got.
The last week has been a blast. I'll just give some highlights:
-Sachertorte: Vienna's most famous dessert can be found at the Sacher Hotel, where we stopped one day. It's a rich chocolate cake, and it was delicious.
-running home from the bar in the pouring rain, thunder, and lightening. Sooooaked:
-Ride Club: I finally managed to stay out til 4 am one night (very impressive for me). At what cost? Showing up for class 30 minutes late. Luckily for me, about 10 people were late and some didn't even show. Teacher was happy we were there :) Fun on the U-bahn...
-Picture Day: On Tuesday everyone gets a T-shirt and we take a group picture. It was a good time to take pictures with everyone! Here's one:
-We went and toured the Ottakringer Brewery, one of Austrian's biggest beer companies. It was really interesting, but the best part? 30 minutes of an all-you-can-drink tasting! My personal favorite? The "Schnit", a mix of dark and light.
-We went to Prater on Wednesday after class. It's this amusement-type park. We went to one of "Austria's Institutions" called Schweizerhaus. This is the biggest beer garden I've ever seen, seating 1,300 people. It was so much fun and had some amazing beer.
-Thursday was the final day of class. After taking the final exam and giving a presentation, we were done! It was bittersweet. Going to class M-F everyday at 8 am was annoying, but being with everyone each day and night was so much fun. That evening, we had our official closing ceremony. Heard some speeches, listening to live music, and got our certificates. Here's me receiving mine!
After the ceremony, I ran over to the Westbahnhof station to meet my brother Andrew. Luckily for him, he arrived on a night where EVERYONE was ready to celebrate the last evening together.
We headed over to a swanky little restaurant/bar named Aux Gisele to meet back up with everyone. Expensive drinks were consumed. Champagne was as well. Next stop? Praterdome, AKA the craziest club you'd ever see. When you enter, they take your picture and you receive a card that you use to pay for drinks with. There are multiple themed areas in the place. One part is old school Austrian pub, then there's a modern room with shirtless male dancers, then theres a "rave" room....an outdoor terrace bar. When I upload my pictures, you can get a better idea. It was insanity.
Now Andrew and I are staying in a hostel in Vienna until tomorrow's flight to Italy. Can't wait to explore Rome. I'll update photos later.
So long, wish us a safe flight :)
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