Week 5- PANIC

After our 8 hour overnight bus from Zurich, Deniz and I arrived back in Bonn. From our bus stop, we had to rush to the train station, so we could meet our class for our early train to Vienna. We thankfully made it in time, and I made the smart *cough**cough* decision to skip out on coffee so I could sleep on the train. And I slept!! It was time for another 8 hour ride to a new city, and I was out like a light. I was woken up when we were getting close to Vienna and was very groggy to say the least. We arrived, grabbed our things, and got off. A meeting spot was established at the train station, where I sat while everyone got food and walked around. I heard Sydney talking to Alexa about how she left her purse on the tram that morning and thought, "Wow, that sucks." Then it hit me that I left my purse on the train. Heart attack. I kicked my Birks off and rannnn to the train, which was luckily still there. I jumped on and ran down my car and began crawling on the floor. People looked at me like I was crazy and tried to help me find my little pink purse. Nobody saw it or knew where it was, so I spoke with one of the train attendants. I was passed on to several attendants until I finally met a lady who said, "Oh! The pink purse! It was sent to the lost and found!" I was so so relieved and ran over to the lost and found. I told the man there that I was ready to take my pink purse, in which he replied that no purse had been brought there. I was panicking again. My purse HAD to have been brought there. The attendant said so! He found it very odd that the attendant would say that it was sent to the lost and found when it wasn't. He took my information and let me know that there was a good chance I wouldn't get my purse back.... he then questioned why I wasn't wearing shoes. I left close to tears. I had my wallet, Sony camera, and passport in there. Would I be able to leave Vienna in 3 days??? My day was ruined, and I felt like such an idiot. The class headed to the hotel then went into the city to get a tour by the plague doctor, Dr. Schnabel. Throughout our tour, we took different medicines to protect us from the plague, including the urine of a young boy, cloves, and some weird vinegar. That night, the class went to the "Goulashmuseum", which was really just a goulash restaurant. I had horse goulash and an amazing chocolate goulash dessert. The next morning, 5 minutes after my alarm went off, I got a call saying that my purse was found WITH my stuff in it. Best day every. I was so giddy and astonished by the news. I can't stress how huge this news was. I was going to get it in our free time after our trip to the Josephinum. The Josephinum is an old medical school which houses the wax figures of numerous anatomical structures that are a couple hundred years old. The detail was incredible. It was mind-boggling to think that a few hundred years ago, they had so much knowledge on the human body (the lymphatic system was slightly off though). The class then went to the crypt at St. Michael's. Being a girl who loves scary movies and murder mystery shows, I loved being able to see the crypt. There were a few bodies out which were naturally mummified, and you could still see the details in some of their clothes, jewelry, and shoes! Honestly, I kept thinking about the scene from The Haunted Mansion where Eddie Murphy goes down into the crypt and the dead began crawling out of their caskets. After the crypt I went to get my purse. Just like the guy said, everything was in there. I was amazed that nobody took my camera or wallet, but 20 euros was missing. I didn't even care. He did mention that it was nice seeing that I had found some shoes. That night, everybody got dressed up for the classical music concert. A few of us had a very nice dinner at a place called Graben30. Best. Dinner. Ever. The classical concert was beautiful, but I was dying from needing to cough during the first movement. The concert ended, a group of us went out for a glass of wine, and it was the end of a very good day. The next morning we headed back over towards the Josephinum to have a tour of the Fools Tower. The Fools Tower was the first psychiatric center in the world. It now holds numerous pathological specimen. This was honestly my favorite tour that we've had so far. Looking at the organs, skulls, and deformities of many people from the past was fascinating. The murder stories made things even more intriguing. We parted for lunch, and while walking through the city, Mary-Cate and I ran into a group of elderly women all wearing dirndl. We couldn't pass them up without asking for a picture with them. They were very sweet and took us down the street to the "perfect picture spot." They told us that they were just going to lunch. Three of the women were close friends, and one of them brought her mother who is 92 years old. They looked beautiful, honestly. Made my day. The class got back together to tour the Historical Natural Museum, which was also very neat. The building itself was gorgeous; I almost felt like I was in a palace. Afterwards, I went back to the hotel for a quick nap, because it started raining hard (did I mention its been pretty chilly also?). That night, all of the students went out with Alexa and Henning to celebrate at a bar. Henning told us that he wouldn't be able to go to Berlin with us, so went and had a fun night with him (I got a free drink from some guy from Transylvania... vampire? Still not sure). Our last day in Vienna, we toured the Freud House, and Dr. Wasser gave us a lecture there... Freud was an interesting man to say the least. His home does not have a lot of stuff to look at, but it is still worth visiting. We had a really good all-you-can-eat lunch at a hole-in-the-wall Indian restaurant then all separated for a long weekend trip.

That weekend, Mary-Cate, Emily, and I ventured up to Poland. We arrived very late and stayed in Katowice, then got up the next morning for Krakow. I found out that morning that pierogis are a Polish dish, and I really couldn't have been happier. Most of my family is from Pennsylvania, where pierogis are a popular dish. I grew up eating many homemade pierogis, which is still my favorite dinner. They are actually impossible to find down in Texas (and I am not talking about those frozen ones at HEB). We stayed in Katowice for breakfast and were surprised by how charming Poland was. In Krakow, the receptionist at our hostel hit on us and let us know that we could go talk to him at any time since we were pretty. For dinner, we went and had pierogis (or as Emily would say, pi-gnocchi). When the sun began to set, we walked to town center and were in actual awe by how beautiful it was. Who would've known you would find such a charming town in Poland? As we walked there I made the comment, "I have never been to Boston before, but this town sure reminds me of Boston." Emily was excited to tell me that apparently Rick Steve's calls Krakow, "the Boston of Europe." We walked around town almost in tears by how amazing it was. We came across a market area that had a stand which sold any fruit possible covered in chocolate. We love Krakow. Never leaving. The next day, a shuttle picked us up and took us to Auschwitz. We had a guided tour at the original camp and at Birkenau. I knew that I would probably cry during the tour, but I really wasn't prepared for what I saw. At the original camp, everything was so well preserved. It felt eerie walking down the streets, easily being able to picture the prisoners there. We went throughout several barracks which had different "responsibilities." When we went into the first one, I was surprised to find that my reaction was severe nausea. I knew tears would come, but I did not expect that I would want to vomit. The things I saw were horrifying and humbling. I felt so guilty complaining about the slightest inconveniences in life. We walking through the chambers where they first used gas as a use of murder, and it was truly awful standing where so many people struggled their last few moments of life. We headed over to Birkenau where you could see the Gate to Hell. In the distance it was very odd... You could see the horrid entrance to the camp, but surrounding it was fields of beautiful flowers, almost making the area look nice. I had a hard time with myself for admiring the view. Not much was left of this camp, but it was still haunting. Inside the camp, there was just dirt and grass. Right outside the fencing was where the lovely fields began. Leaving, I mentioned to Mary-Cate that it was odd seeing so much beauty here. It was like God's personal memorial for his people surrounding the awful camp. She nodded and agreed with her eyes filled with tears. She said that she thought the exact same thing when we were approaching Birkenau. It was a very different experience than any others I had in Europe, but one worth having. We finished the rest of our day enjoying the town center. I got a beautiful fluffy sheepskin rug very very cheap. We had a nice dinner outside, where I snuggled up by the outdoor heaters and a big blanket provided by the restaurant. We had pierogis once again and dessert pierogis for dessert. It was perfect sitting there. I could have sat there all night. We met a bunch of other girls who came in that day at a piano bar across the street. It was very funky and kind of fancy, but a lot of fun. We chatted as a lady sang songs by Frank Sinatra. We needed more than just one more day in Krakow. The next day, we woke up and went to Schindler's Factory. The museum was very well done, and mainly contained information on Krakow during the war. Schindler and his workers were woven in and out through the exhibit. It was fascinating and horrifying going through the history of Krakow. Images of the beautiful town center showed a demolished, Nazi-filled hell. After the tour, we took a walk through the old Jewish ghetto. Before we left for the airport, we had one last meal of pierogis (I ordered two meals, actually). The weekend was filled with such beauty, treachery, fun, and despair. It was truly a weekend I will never forget.

(I am over 21 years old. It's okay.)