Dead People, School, and a Ball at the Hofburg Palace

So here I am - writing another blog post in the same day! I just didn't have enough time this morning to write in detail about everything that's been happening this past week! A really interesting place that I visited on Thursday afternoon was the Imperial Burial Vault. It holds the remains of many past monarchs and their family members - the most famous of whom was Maria Theresa. Unfortunately, what would have been a quiet, contemplative visit was disturbed by the construction work going on right by her casket. Too bad, but it was still a worthwhile trip - only two blocks away from school. Here are some pictures to give you an idea of what some of the fancier caskets looked like.

Maria Theresa's Casket next to construction :(

The Church under which the Vault resides

One other place I visited recently was the Leopold Museum. I went on Saturday with a group of students from IES and once we got there we were pretty much let loose to look at all of the exhibits. The top three floors were pretty cool - there were some weird exhibits; for example, there was a completely padded room with artistically piled garbage and foam boards with microphones set up all over the place to make it sound like people were whispering to you and talking inside your head to emulate what it might be like to have schizophrenia. As an American, there seemed to be a lot of nude paintings and drawings, but there was also some cool abstract art. Unfortunately, though, I had such a creepy experience on the bottom floor that I may not go back to the museum for a long time. There were really gruesome videos of blood and gore and people's insides and crazy twisted rituals that left me gagging. I was really surprised, even in Vienna, that they would show an exhibit as morbid as what was shown there. I don't want to go into too much detail, but it was not a pleasant experience.

On a happier note, however, the next order of business is something that I've been wanting to talk about for a LONG time, but haven't been able to remember to get pictures to share it! Now, finally, I get to talk about where I go to school! For those of you who don't know, I go to school, legitimately, in a palace. It's an old residence that has now been split into many sections and serves as part apartment building, part IES Abroad, or "the institute" as we call it. The first floor is open and light with windows out to the central courtyard. When you enter, this is what you see:

 If you turn to the left from this point, you see the front office, and if you turn to the right to head up the stairs you see this:

This place is absolutely beautiful! (And a little chilly, but I can get over that. We're just requested to keep the doors closed so the heat stays in the upper rooms.) Below is the staircase:

 There are three floors to the Institute. The first floor in Europe is called the Ground Floor, and then the American 2nd floor is called the 1st in Europe. So, we'll visit the 1st floor next:

 The picture above and below are of the same room - Room 10. This is where my auditions for the music workshop class were held, and where performances will be held throughout the semester. It's a room with great acoustics, and when you step in, it's like palace meets ballet studio. There are mirrors on every wall, and everything is ornately carved and/or painted. It's absolutely amazing! I love this room!

 Next on the 1st floor is the study lounge. This room is supposed to be quiet at all times, and is a place to do homework, etc. in a quiet environment. Note the awesome chandelier!

 There's also a computer lab on this floor, but it's just part of a hallway that's partitioned off - not too decorative or ornate, but nice to have just the same. Next is the library. The picture below is one of the children molded onto the ceiling in the library:

 It's a tiny library compared with universities back home, but it's mostly full of music (yay!). This picture is it - one tiny room full of books, but I love it!

 I had to take a picture to show my favorite statue in the Institute - the napping lady. My friends and I have started taking "napping pictures" everywhere - starting a new trend (if you're familiar with "planking" it's the same concept, but we're just "napping" instead of lying on our faces.)

 This last picture is of the student lounge. The 2nd floor is the only place we're allowed to eat in the building except for the main office. It's the hang-out for many of the students, and people are always hanging out on the couches, studying, skyping, or chatting over a sandwich from the Wolfbauer, a cheap, authentic cafe down the street. Down the hallway are some classrooms, offices, and a bathroom, but nothing really out of the ordinary for a typical school. There does seem to be a piano in almost every room, however, and that's pretty cool.

And now for the last order of business, the ball! This ball was called the TU Ball and was hosted by the Technical Institute of Vienna. It was a traditional ball and had a grand opening with a procession and a choreographed dance to kick the whole thing off at 9:30pm. There was live music in four separate rooms ranging from small jazz ensembles to a full orchestra in the main ballroom. Below is a poster (one of which I now have hanging in my room in my apartment) and a picture from the opening:

It's hard to explain the excellence of a ball. Everyone is either in a tux or a floor-length dress, and the formal party atmosphere is magical. The place is packed, but you can still find a place to sit and make conversation. There were three separate bars and four dancing areas. One was the main ballroom dedicated mostly to waltzing, another where they were playing slower music, a salsa room, and one room with swing and other upbeat music. I ventured from room to room dancing with friends and having an excellent time, occasionally going to the section by the bar with tables reserved specifically for IES students so we could sit and socialize. I wasn't feeling too well earlier that day, but I ended up staying at the ball until 4 in the morning! (And let me tell you, I was outlasted by men and women in their 50's who were still waltzing the night away until the ball ended at 5am.) Balls are a huge event in Vienna and there's a specific season (the spring) in which most of the balls are held. I'm sure this won't be my last ball, but it was an excellent introduction! And I'm never going to look at American "clubbing" or other parties the same way again. It's just impossible to feel like a princess anywhere else than at a ball in a palace! It was a wonderful, wonderful experience. *sigh*

The Opera

As I lie here sick in bed on a Saturday morning I'm cursing my cold, but am determined to enjoy myself, regardless. I've been sick for just over three days now and have been able to get out and do things, but this morning I feel terrible. Luckily, I have nothing planned until 12 when I'll be going out to lunch to finish making plans for the 10-day break coming up. (I'll be going to Ireland and England! Eek!)

So, to pick up where I left off last time, I had just finished the bus tour of the city. As an American, it feels almost surreal to be constantly surrounded by such ornate architecture. It really is a constant barrage of beauty. If I were to take a picture of every ornate building, I'd have to tackle one street at a time, and I wouldn't be done with half the city by the time I had to leave in the spring!
Now, what you've all been waiting for - the answers to the Name That Viennese Monument Quiz! (And if you saw the answers on Facebook already, it doesn't count!)

1. Austrian Parlament Building
2. The Rathaus
3. Vienna Medical School (I believe this is part of it, but I may be mistaken. Whoops! I'll make this one the extra credit question.)
4. The Votivkirche
5. Franz von Assissi
6. Prater Park Ferris Wheel
7. Hundertwasser
8. Statue of the Prince of Schwarzenberg
9. The Upper Belvedere Palace


The evening after I went on the bus tour was also my first chance to go to the Staatsoper (or State Opera). I had packed a dress with me on the tour as we would have to grab a quick dinner and go immediately to start standing in line for the standing room tickets. The opera playing that night was The Barber of Seville, and though I was semi-familiar with the plot, it was not one I had studied in class before. We got to the opera at 4:30 to begin our 3-hour wait for some of the best seats in the house, and we were not disappointed.
To explain how the system works, if you want decent standing room tickets you must plan your day accordingly. You will be spending around 6 hours at the opera. Those well-practiced in this art of waiting bring stools to sit on while they wait in line. Those of us who are less experienced sit on the floor and try not to get our dresses too dirty. (That would be me.) To keep yourself occupied, you bring something to do while you wait, like sudoku, a good book, or a roommate to talk to. You'll be sitting on the floor for a good hour or so, and then when the first waiting room fills up, you'll move the line into another room to sit on the floor and wait for another hour. When the people in front of you begin standing up, you know it's time to start mentally preparing yourself for the battle ahead. Once you move through the line and get your ticket (a standing room ticket costs either 3 or 4 Euro, depending on whether you want to be in the balcony or on the main floor) you move as quickly as you can to go stand in another line outside of your standing area. There will be uniformed people standing there and officiating the lines to make sure no one cuts ahead of anyone else. Then, when there's an hour left before the performance, they let the lines loose into the standing room "seating." This means pandemonium. You run (as best you can in heels, or if you're smart, flats) down the steps as far forward as you can and file sideways in between the bars marking off the standing area rows. I was lucky enough to land myself a second row spot! If you want to reserve your standing room area, you must mark it with a personal item - preferably a scarf tied around the bar behind which you will be standing. Then you are free to go roam about the opera house for the last 45 minutes before the show begins, and when you come back, your spot will still be reserved for you.
Standing through the opera was not as difficult as I thought it would be. Thankfully, there was a bar to lean on, and a translation pad that flipped up so I knew what was going on, but I couldn't decide where I wanted to look most! The conductor was fabulous, the actors were incredible, and it was such a rewarding experience, I couldn't believe I got away with seeing an opera for 4 Euro! So - I went to the matinee the next day to see Otello. Standing room for 4 Euro again! And it was just as rewarding as the first night, if not more so because I had studied the opera in Music History and knew all the musical themes and plot details.
I can tell you now that the opera is a place I will be frequenting during my stay in Vienna! To finish this post, here are some pictures that I got when I went to see Otello.

Waiting in line with friends

The chandelier in the opera house  

The box seats 

The ground level 

The opera playing today! 

Inside the opera house 

Die Staatsoper

The First Week

I can't believe I've been in Vienna for over a week already! I've done so much, but it feels like time should be going more slowly. My 3-week German intensive class has started, so I take German in the morning from 9-11:45, and then I have most afternoons to explore with the occasional meeting or audition scheduled by IES. We've started our academic advising sessions already, so I'm pretty sure I know which classes I'll be taking, but registration isn't for another week and a half.

Last Tuesday we had a course fair in the evening where we could go and talk with our teachers about their subjects and what was to be expected for each class we were interested in. (Since I know which classes I'd like to take, and though I did talk to a few teachers, I honestly just went for the free food. It was wonderful.)
On Wednesday I went on an Art History tour at the Kunsthistorisches Museum led by one of my professors who I hope to be taking a class from this semester. She explained the differences in paintings by eras and styles and showed how one could be "invited into a painting" by the angle, light, and use of space. Also she explained things about color representation that I had never noticed before. It was very educational, and I really enjoyed it!

Here I am inside the museum!

Wednesday evening I went out to a club with some friends, as I had never done that sort of thing before, and socialized with the "young people" of Vienna. Some spoke English, but it was hard to hold a conversation over the noisy karaoke. Most of the pop songs were in English, so lots of the IES students were singing along, and a good time was had by all!

Thursday evening there was supposed to be ice skating, but since I had been told it was canceled, some of my friends and I decided to have a night in and played card games for hours. I haven't been ice skating yet, but apparently there's an ice skating path instead of a traditional ice rink that you skate along, so I'll be sure to explain it in more detail once I get the chance to go!

Wednesday and Thursday nights there were also Performance Workshop auditions for those of us who would be taking that class for an "ensemble" during the semester. This included vocalists and all sorts of instrumentalists, and everyone who was auditioning was required to attend. It was great to hear everyone audition, and I'm looking forward to seeing who I will be placed with in a small chamber ensemble this semester!

On Friday afternoon my roommate and I bought "combination tickets" to tour both the Mozart Haus (the apartment where he wrote the Marriage of Figaro) and the Haus der Musik (similar to the Experience Music Project in Seattle - a hands-on look at music of all sorts). The Mozart Haus was incredibly educational, and it was done completely by audio guides. No pictures were allowed, but here's one of the outside.

Mozart Haus

The Haus der Musik had all sorts of interactive activities. On the upper floors there were rooms dedicated to each major European composer and a station where you could conduct the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. On lower floors there were activities like creating your own waltz by rolling two dice or by spelling out your name with musical phrases or even making your own CD mix to buy at the front desk. There were exhibits on sound waves and vocal techniques, and they even had a room where you could experience what it sounded like when you were in the womb. I went with three other girls in the music program and we ran around like 5-year-olds trying everything out. It was some of the most fun I've had in my first week here!

Experimenting with the create-your-own waltz with my roommate!

Re-defining the meaning of "conducting class."

I got to conduct the Vienna Phil - and they went at MY tempo! SO COOL!!!

On Saturday there was a scheduled IES Bus Tour of Vienna that you had to sign up for in advance, along with a lecture that began before the tour at 10:30 in the morning. I attended both and got a great deal of history on Austria and the surrounding area - AND the weather was beautiful! We got a great overlook of the city from a nearby "mountain" (though, to a Colorado girl it looked more like a substantial hill) and we also toured the outer ring of the city. The following pictures are some of the things we got to see. Can you name the monuments? (Answers will come in the next blog post.) Enjoy!

This last one is a panoramic view of the city.

Orientation in the Alps, a Birthday, and Move-In Day

And finally, after a four-day orientation at Mariazell (an incredible small town if you want to tour Austria someday), I'm moved into my apartment in Vienna!

The morning after I flew in, I re-packed my bags and headed over to the IES office two blocks away from my hotel. There, I got to speak to several members of the staff and meet some new students - three of whom gave me a ride back to the airport in their taxi so that we could meet the rest of the students before heading off to orientation. After buying a tasty sandwich, and enjoying a two-hour bus ride talking to people and making new friends, we arrived!

Throughout the weekend we had several meetings and activities. The meetings were pretty much about what to do and not to do while studying abroad, a crash-course in German, and what/whom we could turn to if we had any questions. We also had housing meetings to learn about where we would be living and who we would be living with.
On the first full day we had some meetings, and then I took a trip into Mariazell and toured a small museum and the Basilica. The museum was alright, but the Basilica was absolutely amazing! The organ itself left me staring open-mouthed for several minutes. The small wooden statue of Mother Mary and Jesus which makes the town so famous were also intriguing to look at. We had a member of the staff for IES give us a tour, and she explained how the church had been renovated several times and had all sorts of gothic and baroque elements mixed together. (Really cool!) If you'd like to read up on the legend of Mariazell, use this link. It's a worthwhile, short read:

http://webspace.webring.com/people/em/marianshrines/mariazell.html

Yesterday was not only my 21st birthday, but it was also the 20th birthday of another guy in the program. We kicked off our birthday at 12:00am by each ordering a shot of schnapps from the bar in the hostel - a very "Austrian" thing to do, and it was the first alcohol I had ever purchased! (Yikes!) In the morning, I had breakfast and some free time, and at 1:30 many of the students, including myself, decided to go cross-country skiing. It was a blast - of wind, that is! After the first go around the mile-long track, several people headed back to the lodge, but myself and two other boys decided to give it another go. The wind was much calmer the second time around, and we all thought it was definitely worth the effort to do it again. (Though I'm still a little sore...)

Someone got me a Happy Birthday chocolate bar when they went into town!

What to do during free time? Play a game of hearts - the world's best card game!

When we came back from skiing, I took a few pictures, and we all had dinner. At the end of the last meeting after dinner, the lights all suddenly went out, and in walked two people carrying pieces of cake with a lit candle in each one. Everyone sang happy birthday to the two of us, and at the end, we had to both stand up so that everyone could see who we were. *Embarrassing...* But the cake was delicious.
The evening's activities included learning how to waltz, Austrian bowling, and later on, an "American-style" dance party. Some of us also went up to the church above the hostel to look at the night lights of the town and to see if we could see any stars. Over all, it was a wonderful birthday.

Picture out of the window of our hostel. 

 And another... So. Much. Snow! It snowed literally the entire time

we were there! Probably over a foot and a half.

This morning, everyone packed up their belongings, we had our last meetings, and then after lunch we took the busses back to Vienna. After collecting our dinner bags, and the luggage we had left behind in a moving van, everyone took a taxi to their new apartments! Mine is on the 5th floor of our building, and I'm already all moved in. The girls and I from our apartment took a walk around the neighborhood we live in with our RA and the other apartments she is in charge of so we knew where the bank, the grocery store, the U-bahn, and the practice rooms were. To sign off, here's a quick video tour of my new home!

Travel Day

This morning I woke up at 7am. Now, it's about 1 in the afternoon Colorado time - 32 hours later. I've slept for a total of about five hours, and been lost for three. I had one plane transfer, two bus rides, three pieces of luggage, and have made four new friends. I'm just happy my bags didn't get lost!

Only 3 bags for a full semester. Be impressed. ;)

To start out my day, I double and triple-checked that I had absolutely everything I needed on the packing list while my family started to take down our Christmas decorations. We all drove out to the airport at 1:30 after driving by my grandparent's apartment so that I could say goodbye. I got to my gate in Concourse A (Not C, where I usually fly with Southwest), and there I sat for about two hours as I was so early for my flight.

Plane before boarding at DIA

We boarded the plane a little late, but ended up making it right on time to London. I sat next to a couple who were going on a two week vacation to visit such excellent destinations as Prague and Vienna! Also, during the boarding process, I noticed someone who I thought looked familiar. Sitting one row ahead of me on the aisle across from where I sat in my window seat was a friend of mine who I had seen only occasionally since 5th grade - it had been at least three or four years. After our dinner was served, I decided, like half the plane, that it was time to use the restroom. Since the line was several people long in the back, I discretely slipped over to the other aisle to see if I was right about the familiar face, and I was! We chatted a little, and decided that while we were abroad (him for his second semester at Oxford University), that we would try to make plans to travel to see one another.

Good morning, Ireland - around hour 7 of flight

After the plane landed, I took a train, then another bus to get to my next flight. While I was sitting and waiting to board, I heard three guys behind me talking in English about living in apartments and speaking shaky German, and that sounded just like what IES students would be talking about! When I asked, not only were they from my program, but also another girl who was sitting next to me! None of us sat together on the plane, but after we disembarked in Vienna, we traveled together through customs to baggage claim where we exchanged what money we had, and got the items we checked - all except one suitcase that one of the guys was missing.
I then took another bus to the Schwedenplatz U-bahn (underground) station where I proceeded to walk to St. Stephen's Cathedral.

 First view of St. Stephen's

Horse-drawn carriages!

I don't know how or why I got so flustered and turned around, but I couldn't find any of the names of the streets that I was looking for! I spent three hours trying to read my map and ask people for directions. I finally ended up going to a currency exchange booth and asking one of the employees how to get to where I was going - Pension Aviano Hotel. Keep in mind, this walk was supposed to take me just under a half an hour. I finally found the right street, but then had to lug my bags up four flights of stairs to find the hotel check-in.

I have never been more grateful to finally be in a hotel room. I was exhausted! I called my parents to let them know I was fine, and then called one of the directors of my program, to plan a time to meet tomorrow morning. Then, I crashed.
Currently I'm waiting for pictures to load with getting ready for bed, and enjoying the beauty of my room and the views outside. I can't see the street, but for the past two or three hours, there has been a clarinetist and a saxophone player playing classical and jazz music - maybe two blocks away. Now that it's 10:00, though, everything's quiet, and I'm ready for a good night's sleep.

Comfy, cozy bed 

Look, guys! It's a miniature toilet! Or a sink for little kids! (kidding...) 

View of room from the door 

Goodnight, Vienna - I can't wait to get to know you!