Paris with My Head in the Clouds

I got off the plane at Charles de Gaulle feeling like a rock star. I had just hopped a jet to Paris for the weekend! After buying a metro pass, I took the train into town. Rock stars might not usually take the metro, but my pass was indispensible during the weekend. Feeling hungry, I stopped at a boulangerie for an apple tart and a baguette. French Food was a major agenda item for this trip. 

I met my friends from USC, Jessica and Michael, at our hotel, and we set off in search of dinner. Eventually we found a nice prix fixe dinner that was in our budget. I got lamb in a delicious sauce, a roasted tomato, and the only lima beans I’ve ever liked. Plus dessert was included, so we all got chocolate mousse. We ate for several hours and stayed quite late. It all felt very French.

Although my usual homebody-self was kind of feeling like it was bedtime after our huge meal, we had other plans. Jessica had found a place offering free salsa dancing on Friday nights. Turns out that the Café de Cuba was right next to the Moulin Rouge. That was a bonus for me.

Inside the atmosphere was good, the only cover was the 2 Euros for the coatroom, and there were good dancers. We had a great time until the place cleared out around 2 AM. That’s about when the metros stop running, but we were close enough to our hotel to walk back. 

The next morning we got up bright and early like proper tourists. It was time to pay homage to the Eiffel Tower. Pre-sale tickets were sold out, so we got there just before they opened at 9:30 and didn’t have to wait in line for too long. We bought our tickets and started our ascent. The views from the top were spectacular! Paris just stretches on as far as the eye can see. 

Once the wind on the tower got too cold, we made our way down. We had spent quite awhile admiring the views, and we were hungry again. Nearby was a small café were I got a croquet monsieur, which is like a grilled ham and cheese, but with cheese on top too.

Our next major attraction was Notre Dame. There was a security line to get in, but it moved quickly. The cathedral is beautiful on the inside. I especially had to stop to admire the famous stained glass windows.

 

You can climb to the top of the bell tower at Notre Dame as well. Since we were all about fabulous views, we got in line. This one moved much more slowly, since they can only let groups in every ten minutes. But we made it before I froze in the shady line. Admission to the top was free with our visas, since we were long term residents of the EU and under the age of 25. (Otherwise it costs a few Euros.)

Then began the 400 steps to the top. Halfway up is the Chimera gallery, where all of the gargoyles are. Some of my favorite pictures from the trip are with the gargoyles. They just have so much personality, and the view below is wonderful.

One last set of stairs led us to the tippy top, with another panorama of the city. You just don’t get tired of looking at it.

 

To be honest, the stair climb wasn’t all that bad. But I did need a snack afterwards. We stopped back at our hotel for a little break on our way to Basilique du Sacré-Cœur, also known as the sacred heart of Paris, or the big white church on the hill. We timed our visit almost perfectly, so we got a peak of the sun setting below us before we went inside. The structure inside and out was impressive, but no photographs were allowed inside.

After we admired the basilica’s interior, we were treated to a view of the city at night. With all of the lights, including a bit of the Eiffel Tower, it was easy to see how the city got the moniker, “The City of Lights.” Definitely a place to see at night.

Since the hill up to Sacre-Coeur is not insignificant (200 steps) the metro system operates a funicular to the top. It was awesome! The street between the metro and the funicular was lined with crepe stands and cute souvenir shops. I had to have a quick crepe.

Our next stop was Shakespeare and Company, a bookstore across the Seine from Notre Dame. I’d seen pictures of it all over the internet, so I was excited. It was the coziest little bookstore with books crammed up to the ceiling and rolling ladders. Upstairs were two reading rooms with a piano, that someone was playing, and a cat. It was a reader’s paradise. Although, they respectfully asked for no pictures inside.

After that cozy detour, we were hungry again. We were right next to the Latin Quarter, a series of streets full of restaurants, food stands, and gift shops. We wandered around for a while before finding a gyro/kebab place with very reasonable prices and open tables. There were lots of budget-friendly places to eat in the Latin Quarter.

Sunday our group spit up since we all had different getting home plans. I decided to check out some of Paris’ free museums. MuséeCarnavalet was first. Housed in an old hotel, or town house, it was basically a museum about Paris. There was lots of lovely artwork featuring the city’s landmarks and glamorous population. Plus several different historic exhibitions with artifacts that talked about famous citizens, the Revolution, and Napoléon. Also, some of the rooms were restored to their original splendor. I enjoyed the museum a lot and spent almost two hours there.

For lunch I took the advice of the lady who worked in the gift shop and went a few blocks down to a Yiddish bakery. Their quiche was very yummy. Then I headed to the former home of the Bastille to see the Victor Hugo house. It is just a few blocks away. 

Also housed in a former hotel, the museum is one of the apartments were Victor Hugo lived. You go through a few restored and recreated rooms to experience the full life of the poet, in Paris and in exile. It is a very small, but nice museum, and the hotel surrounds a lovely park.

After that, I only had time for a quick pain au chocolat before I had to head back to the airport. It was a whirlwind weekend, but I loved it. Not only did I spend most of the time with my head literally in the clouds, but I got to see some old friends in a brand-new place. I guess Audrey Hepburn was right when she said “Paris is always a good idea.” 

Postcards from Paris

Wilkommen to Wien

I made it! I’m in Vienna! My flights went well, and I made it into my apartment without breaking into tears. My apartment is amazing! It is much roomier than I imagined it would be. I have a bedroom and bathroom all to myself. There is a coat area in my room and a closet with way more space than it looks. That, or I really didn’t bring that many outfits. The room also came with a TV, which has a few German channels.

One of the best features is the dish box, though. It is a box with all of the dishes you might need when starting to cook for yourself. There are plates, and silverware, and pots and pans, even a bread knife! I’m really glad I don’t have to worry about buying a bunch of dishes now. 

The kitchen is pretty standard, although there is no oven. There is, however, an electric kettle, which warms my tea-loving heart.

Our building is right next to the Westbahnhof, a big train station for this side of town. That’s good news for me, because it means I only have to walk a few yards and I can get pretty much anywhere I want to go. The station is big enough that it also has a bunch of shops in it, which is incredibly convenient. 

My first few days have mostly been filled with running errands. There were lots of papers to sign and ID cards to get. Not to mention all of the groceries and essentials I needed to buy. But I did get to spend a good deal of time getting acquainted with my new campus. Opened just last year, the new campus is beautiful. It covers an area of about two city blocks and has six unique buildings. Each one was designed by a different architect. You can find out more about the architecture here. The overall feel is very modern, but a little whimsical. I am enjoying the campus a lot, and can’t wait to study there. I’ve heard the Mensa (cafeteria) is great too.

This weekend I’m jet setting off to Paris, just like my life is a movie or something. When I get back I will have a week to explore the city before classes start. So look for more exciting updates soon! 

Shouldn’t You Be in School? Preparing to Go Abroad

Being back in my hometown after all of the other college students have left is an interesting experience. I’m definitely mastering the “why aren’t you in school?” conversation.  

Like when a neighbor caught me walking my dog in the middle of the day. “Why aren’t you at school?” they asked.

“I’m in college now,” was my somewhat-glib reply. It didn’t clear up their confusion. I then explained that I was studying abroad, and they start school later in Austria.

I’ve had similar encounters at Starbucks, and when my parents’ friends come to visit. It’s tempting to start making up elaborate stories about how I dropped out of school to join the circus. In the end though, that’s not as cool as spending a semester in Vienna, so I stick with the truth.

Every country, even every university, has its own start date. Some spring semesters start in January. That is when classes started at USC. In Vienna, on the other hand, classes don’t start until March. The way my new university schedules its classes is unlike anything I have ever seen before. Classes only meet five to ten times. Sometimes that is for one week, sometimes it’s every Wednesday for a month plus one random Tuesday. It was a confusing system to learn, but now I almost have put a complete schedule together.

Here’s a one-month preview. Every month looks different.

 

I can’t wait to start my new classes. All of them will be in English. There are classes offered in German too, but those aren’t designed for international students. Even on my most confident days, my German isn’t that good. I’m registered for five awesome classes to earn credit towards my two majors.

This is my only chance to take a few of these classes, since some of them, like social media marketing, aren’t offered at USC. So, I’m extra excited. Isn’t that what college is about? Geeking out about what classes you get to take?

In the meantime, I wait. I’m ironing out the final details of my time abroad: like my teeny-weeny rent problem. The housing office required rent to be paid in cash by the 5^th of the month. Only problem was, on the 5^th of February, I would still be in Texas. After getting no response to my first email, I started to panic a little. It wasn’t like I could pick up the phone and call. To make matters worse, the offices closed at noon. That is 5 am central time. So, I set two alarms, one for 2:30 am and one for 4:30 am.

When your alarm goes off at 2:30 am, it takes a moment to remember that it is not a fire alarm. Once that panic-inducing moment was over, I checked my email. The housing office had answered some of my questions. After another moment of sheer panic at 4:30 am, I learned that the housing office in Austria only employs the nicest people. They said they made a note of when I was arriving and would waive my late fee. My early morning email conversations had paid off!  

There’s only ten days until I leave. I can hardly believe it! I should probably start packing. I’ll check in with an update soon.