Em's Week 6: Berlin and Bye!

 I remember making my schedule digitized on Google calendar prior to this trip and thinking, 'Oh wow, by the time I get to Berlin, this trip will have almost ended.' So, when we rolled into the city, I was so eager to see it, the history, the people, the place, but I was also sad that I knew the trip would be coming to an end. 

Berlin lived up to all of my expectations. The food was delicious. The tour I had of the city with Ryan really had the history of Berlin unfold before my eyes. Seeing the book burning memorial made me feel as though I was walking through my history classes. Seeing checkpoint Charlie with my own eyes made me feel as though I entered any cold war movie I grew up watching. Walking through the disorienting Holocaust memorial made me realize how easily these people watched their loved ones disappear. I also learned about the oppression of the gypsies and political opponents of the time, which was new to me! 

Also, the museums we visited were incredible too. Seeing the natural history taxonomic collection was awesome. I've never seen such a collection. The musical history museum was so cool. I grew up playing piano and violin, but to see a man be able to pick up and play any instrument in the museum for us that he would like to play, blew me away. You could tell he put in his 10,000 hours! Lastly, visiting Sachsenhausen will be something I will always remember. It was truly an experience that humbled to my core and made me understand the precious gift of life and our call to protect humanity.

When we had a break, Jenna's mom had asked her why she hadn't seen the Berlin wall covered in art. So, we set out to find the gallery, and walking through the art was amazing. To see something that once stood for oppression now stand for justice and peace was beautiful. Also, I loved getting to see one of the first veterinary anatomical dissection classrooms!

Lastly, spending our last night eating dinner together, passing stories and jokes, and just celebrating was the sweetest way to spend the night. Also, the karaoke bar we went to afterwards was fun too :)

The end of the beginning

 I am writing this last part of the blog about 4 days after I have come back to the United States. I have gotten over the euphoria of just being back home, and I simply miss a lot of the aspects of Germany and Europe. The train rides along the Rhine every day, the Solo Qui gelato, the meals with my host family, and the weekend trips. Life here in the United States seems a little lackluster, but I am really trying to just look for those small little moments to hold on to just as I did in Germany. That is the perspective that I have gathered from this trip to Germany. Also, I have learned that I need to strive for new experiences. Do with my life what I want to instead of being so cautious.

Now I will get into detailing my last week in Germany. The river cruise of the Rhine was a very nice and peaceful moment. The tour of the Marksburg castle offered some great views of the valley and the whole of the area surrounding the castle. I really enjoyed the tour of the castle, and the rushing down the hill to get to the train on time was quite funny yet exhilarating. The trip to Trier involved one of my last complications involving the DB, a service I have grown to love yet also violently criticize at times. the trip to Trier was an interesting one as I began to see a different perspective than I usually get from my similar BIMS colleagues. Either way, the project was a good exercise in interdisciplinary cooperation that I hope will guide me in my academic pursuits later in my life. The last day in Bonn was a bit anticlimactic as the Rhine walk was enjoyable yet not out of this world. That night is when the interesting started. I was all packed up and about ready to get to sleep and awake early for the train ride when I felt a sudden nausea develop. I felt a need to rush to the restroom which I satisfied, and you can probably guess what happened next. Anyways, I didn't get much sleep that night, but I was determined to get to Berlin, so I woke up and dragged myself to the train station in Bonn with the help of my host mom. The next 10 hours or so of travel and waiting were agonizing, but I eventually made it to the hotel room in Berlin where I subsequently slept for around 15 of the next 17 hours. This refreshed me and I was able to do most of the activities on the second day. I was sad to miss the walking tour of Berlin on the first day, but I simply had to. I'm gonna be honest, Berlin was not my favorite place to be partly because of the whole stomach situation. It felt like a very anticlimactic ending to an amazing trip, but it made me more willing to come home and see my family.

I had to take an overnight train from Berlin to Frankfurt  with 3 other people because of a cancelled flight, but we made it to the Frankfurt airport at 2 AM. We had to wait many hours for our flights, but it ended up working out. I arrived in Houston, saw my parents and they took me back to San Antonio where at about 10 PM I promptly passed out on the couch and woke up early in the morning. Just like that I was back in my element, and the trip was over. I am sad it is over, but I am so glad I was able to take part in this amazing opportunity.

Here are 3 pictures without context. Try and find out what they mean.

Berlin

Being back home is bittersweet. I am glad to be surrounded by family, but am missing Germany and the program. Berlin was a great excursion. It was very insightful to the history of medicine, World War II, and Germany, as a whole. I think the walking tour was my favorite part of the excursion. Going to the concentration camp was a unique experience. Our final group meal was a blast. I wish I could have stayed the whole time, but I had to catch my train to Frankfurt Airport. 

Finally, Finally Home

Yesterday Luke showed me a news article titled " Americans hoping for European vacations this summer should prepare for one thing: Chaos". At the time this was hilarious as I could not sum up my experience trying to get home in better words. After passing through security at the Berlin airport seamlessly, our flight from Berlin to Frankfurt was unfortunately delayed 25 minutes. This led to both of us sprinting down terminal Z of the Frankfurt airport to barely make it to our connecting flight in time. There was just one problem: we made it to the plane in time, but our checked baggage did not. We were told we could not board the plane and were instead directed to the Lufthansa service center. Now the fun begins.

After taking our place in line at 1:35 PM, we slowly crept closer and closer to the service desk over the course of 4.5 hours. This was when two men wearing Lufthansa suits began consulting other people in line behind us about what was in "the passenger's best interest". We were informed at 6:30 PM that the service desk would close abruptly at 8:00 PM, and that those left waiting in line would be just out of luck. They then told us that since we were American citizens, we could receive a voucher for a hotel room and could comfortably rebook our flight using Lufthansa's phone help number. The only condition: we would need to give up our place in line. This information sounded unreliable, so we proceeded to call the help desk while still in line. The call was dropped and all other "resources" the men provided turned out to also be unresorceful. They then tried to convince us to leave using an emotional argument. Supposedly, if we received a new plane ticket from the help desk, we would be preventing someone else from receiving help who would not be legally allowed to leave the airport due to visa restrictions. That person would therefore have to sleep on the floor of the airport with their luggage, as all overnight beds were full. In spite of this, we remained in line, and at 7:30 PM finally received help rebooking our flight for the next day.

The next morning I ran into a couple from El Paso that had stood behind us in line. They informed me that the help desk did not close at 8:00 PM, but remained open until all people who did not give up their spot in line were served. The men had apparently been lying to reduce the number of people who had to be helped. I am so happy that I was able to board the plane yesterday and will not be flying again as long as I can help it. 

 

Ich bin ein Berliner

Contrary to the title of this blog, I am actually not a Berliner (or a jelly donut). Instead, I am just passing through. I had a great time in Berlin, and it might have been one of my favorite excursions. The walking tour the group went on with Ryan was amazing, and I really got to learn a lot about the history of Berlin. Even though I had background knowledge on Berlin, there was a lot I didn't know, and this walking tour helped me get my bearings and learn more about Berlin's history. Walking through the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe was insane. Even though it was more abstract than most memorials, I feel like I interpreted it in a way the artist wanted: the gradual rise of the blocks represented the gradual oppression of the Jews. Furthermore, it was easy to get lost in the blocks, showing how it was easy to get separated from your loved ones. Even though this was a very serious memorial, I appreciated it and felt like I learned a lot. I also appreciated the empty library monument in Bebel Platz. That was very sad to see and learn about. The last somber moment I'll talk about was the tour at Sachsenhausen. I learned a lot about concentration camps and the Holocaust in elementary school and high school, and getting to see a camp like this in real life was difficult. There is obviously so much sadness surrounding these places in Berlin, but it's important to remember these moments so that it doesn't happen again. I'm really grateful I got to see these parts of history in real life. 

Despite these sad parts of Berlin, there were places I greatly enjoyed. I loved the last group dinner we had together, and the belly dancer was so fun! The food was great, and the company was even better. I also enjoyed going to the karaoke bar afterwards with some people from the group. I also had a great time at the museum for musical instruments. At first, I was skeptical about it because I didn't know anything about musical instruments or music in general, but the tour guide we had was awesome. He did a great job teaching us history and demonstrating how the instruments work. The organs was the best part. 

Overall, Berlin was great. I learned a lot and made some great memories. It was a perfect end to our amazing time abroad, and I'll miss being in Europe with everyone. 

Microplastics in MY food?!

When I first joined a history of medicine program, I never expected to learn about the environment. However, I'm so glad I was pushed outside of my comfort zone to learn about microplastics. I realized that even though this might not directly relate to what I set out to study, it still ties back to medicine and to the health of our bodies and our earth. Getting to collaborate with art students helped me learn about microplastics in our reproductive system. I learned that microplastics can easily lower sperm count and sneak into the placenta. Plastics in the placenta ultimately damage fetal development. What's worse is that microplastics can be transgenerational, meaning that the microplastics in my body can be passed down into the microplastics of my grandchildren. This means they will accumulate in the future generations, creating more health risks and more damage to DNA and hormones. Learning this was insane to me! Then getting to collaborate with art students only made me learn about it more. I got pushed outside of my comfort zone trying to create artwork for this, which was really exciting. I love being challenged, and brainstorming abstract art pieces caused me to use a part of my brain I haven't used in a long time. This was a great exercise and project, and I hope I get to see the final product the art students come up with.

Getting to learn about this stuff was really interesting to me. We further learned about microplastics by walking on the Rhine. I got to learn even more about the damage that plastics cause and how they escape into rivers and pollute our water systems. I have loved learning about the body and medicine, but this was a nice break from the scientific and historical side of the program. It's always great to learn something new! It made me critically think and analyze how we are hurting our earth. I realized I need to be more careful with what I purchase, and that I should warn my friends and family about the damage we are causing. This was a great addition to our program, and I'm so glad I got to participate. 

Vienna

 Of all the excursions, Vienna was definitely my favorite. Beautiful sights, good food, fascinating history, and incredible music: Vienna has it all. 

The museums that we went to were some of my favorites of the entire trip. The tour of the Fool's Tower was both incredibly interesting and very disconcerting. As we walked around and around, viewing the grotesque exhibitions, it was easy to imagine how a person could be driven to madness by wandering the halls. 

My other favorite was definitely the Museum of Natural History. First off, I love dinosaurs, so seeing dino fossils always makes me happy. Secondly, I was mind blown by the sheer size and quality of their collection. The wonder it inspired reminded me of being a little kid discovering science for the first time. 

Lastly, the group dinner and musical performance were awesome. The food was delicious and the restaurant was really cool. Also, seeing Bailee play the violin was an added bonus. 

Overall, Vienna is a city to which I definitely intend to return. 

 

Norderney

 I truly loved Norderney. I have never been one for the beach, but the cold water and the beautiful sunsets made this one worth it. Learning about Thalasso therapy was very interesting. I had always been one to scoff at alternative medicine, but the data that was presented to us painted a compelling argument. 

The Badehaus was interesting for sure. It was extremely relaxing and fun, but also forced me to come to terms with my own hang ups on nudity. Seeing a bunch of people just leaving it all out there without any embarrassment or fear made me rethink my own perspectives. The sauna was very hot and the mud bath was weird but I would recommend it all 100%. 

Em's Week 5 (Weekend Edition): ITALY

 We did it.

We conquered the Vienna airport and touched down in Pisa, Italy and right away we realized it wasn't the US. Instead of running up to taxis or flagging them down at 2 am like you would in the States, here in Italy you make a line. You don't cut the line, taxis know of the line and only pick up the group in the front of the line, and as we watched over and over, even when people would run up to bribe a taxi, the answer was always "wait in line". While in Italy we had the awesome opportunity to visit both Florence & Pisa.

Within a two-day weekend we:

•Flew into Pisa and took a train to Florence the next morning
Had a cute stuffed focaccia sandwich
•Went to a bookshop/bikeshop/bar/coffeshop combo
•Went to the Academia Gallery and saw the statue of David
•Had great gelato
•Saw the Florence cathedral from the outside, but went into the Baptistry
•Climbed 414 steps up the cathedral bell tower
•Went into the cathedral museum
•Got the cutest dress
•Took golden hour photos at ponte de vecchio
•Had the best gnocchi of my life
•Went back to Pisa
•Had pizza in Pisa for lunch the next day
•Checked out the plaza of miracles
•Saw the Pisa Cathedral, Baptistry, tower, the Camposanto, and museums.
•Climbed 214 steps to the top of the tower (slightly disorienting haha)
•Had a great canoli and mint granita
•Didn't have to run to catch a plane or train which is always a plus!
•It was another great weekend!

Italy was beautiful. We were used to seeing the Gothic architecture of Germany and Vienna, but the Renessance art and cathedral in Italy were breathtaking!

Also, I did not know that the statue of David was 17 feet tall! I also did not know he was a Biblical figure. It turns out all the art in the gallery where he is kept is limited to Florence artists of the Renaissance time, so most of the art is religious. It was beautiful and truly represented David beating Goliath with the help of God with the sling and stone being carved so small compared to the rest of him.

Dress shopping in Florence was crazy. I walked in, explained that I had a formal wedding to go to and the lady started walking. I told her it was a summer wedding and she turned and started walking another way. I followed and soon she was handing me dresses to try after confirming my favorite colors. I then tried to tell her my size but soon enough she held up the dress tags to show me she already knew. When I found the dress I loved, of course she pulled out a matching belt!

The view at Ponte de Vecchio was insane and the gnocchi I had afterward that was homemade was delicious.

Lastly, the Plaza of Miracles in Pisa was even more beautiful than I had imagined. Climbing and descending the tower was hilarious, because your weight kept shifting on the stairs as the incline on the tower changed.

All in all we had a great time! It will be hard to find architecture or a canoli that looks and tastes the same in the US! As we embarked on the long walk back to the airport, I passed this sticker on a pole on the side of the road. I thought it truly embodied how I feel about this trip, so I had to take a picture!

Em's Week 5: Vienna

Billy Joel was right, Vienna was waiting for me. I just didn't even know it. Just arriving in the city I was blown away by the architecture. It was beautiful! My dad was so excited for me to go to Vienna; before I left the states he kept telling me that Vienna was where all the best spy movies are filmed. 

We definitely had a busy schedule. In the short amount of time we were there, we:

• Had a tour if St. Andrew's crypt and saw 18th-century mummies
• Saw the palace
• Had a traditional, amazing, fun Viennese dinner
• Had a history of medicine tour of the city
• Went to a old pharmacology museum
• Went to the Freud museum
• Went to a chocolate-making class
• Climbed the Vienna cathedral tower
• Had a great pizza dinner
• Took a ride on the city skyline ferris wheel
• Went through the shopping district
• Went to the Natural History museum
• Went to a string quartet concert in an old beautiful cathedral
• Took pictures on top of a museum with an opera house
• Got a free glass of wine by singing happy birthday on the street for someone in an outdoor cafe restaurant
• Went to a hilarious Australian bar, a German electric dance bar, and a really fun Latin bar!

My favorite part of the program was the dinner. It was so beautiful to be sitting in an old, old building with an accordion and violin coming by and singing and clapping with the rest of my class. I felt like such a great part of the community and I'm honestly going to miss every single person when we leave.

My favorite part of solo time included the chocolate-making class that I went to with Alyssa and Danielle. There's nothing sweeter than tasting all kinds of chocolate and pouring our own bars (except the 100% cacao... yuck!)

I also had the best glimpse of humanity yet again, as all of my blog posts seem to revolve around the idea that though we are separated across the globe, we are all the same. After taking pictures on the top of a museum after our string quartet concert, I was walking back to meet the group where they were eating dinner. Along the way, me and Danie and Rika, and a student worker from AIB saw a restaurant server bringing a single slice of cake with a candle to an outdoor table slowly singing happy birthday. Since it was 10pm, there was no one to join and it looked a little sad. So I looked at Dani and we jumped in clapping and yelling happy birthday the American way. Rika and the student worker soon joined! The table of adults in their 50s all thought it was hilarious. They were biking across Europe and were from CA and CO and wanted to hear all about our study abroad. Then the waiter gave us all free wine and lollipops. When we declined more wine he explained that after COVID it is hard to grasp humanity connecting. That nobody wants anything to do with each other with religion and gender and what not. He said us singing happy birthday was the first time in 4 years he felt a human connection at work between strangers, and that that feeling was worth all the wine in the world! My favorite part of the night had to be our last night. We went trying to find the best place to dance. The German disco bar looked promising, but alas we did not know any of the songs in English. What was SO much fun, was when a group of maybe 10 of us found a Latin bar. Immediately Danielle, Alyssa, and I started teaching everyone how to salsa and step to the music. Before long they started a choreography dance floor, and we were all dancing along with the experts. It was a wholesome moment to again experience some of our culture in a different country, and have our friends there for it too!

Vienna Trip

Vienna. A wonderful city in a beautiful country. One of my favorite things we did was go underground to the catacombs. I never knew that people actually believed in vampires. The story about how Van Helsing could be named after the queen's doctor, Van Sweden (or whatever his name was) was so interesting! Getting a deeper insight into what life was like back then was fascinating. Famous people were kept open in their coffins for multiple days so that people could travel from far away to say goodbye. Knowing that being buried alive was an option was frightening to hear though... Regardless, I liked the catacombs and loved getting to go underground. 

Another part of Vienna I really enjoyed was the Fool's Tower. The circle structure really messed me up, and if I were locked up there, I would go crazy trying to escape. The information in there was dense, but interesting. Filling up tuberculosis lungs with wax and mercury shows how far medicine has come because we obviously now know better. I thought it was crazy how you were supposed to perform surgery in 2-3 minutes; any longer and you were a bad doctor. That doesn't even make any sense. I wonder what the reaction was like to the first doctor who took over 3 minutes to perform a surgery that actually saved a life. I'm glad this has changed now. I hated learning that people would climb the tower and mess with people through the open windows. It was smart of them to plaster the first two floors. I wish I had learned a bit more about the bad experiments that happened by the guy who created the hospital in the first place, but the stuff we did learn was fascinating. 

I loved the string quartet performance! I felt really connected to the city and its history by listening to classical music performed by strings. It reminded me of our tour seeing where Beethoven and Mozart lived and died. The people who created classical music were once in Vienna, and we got to follow their footsteps through the city and listen to their music performed live in a beautiful church. Nothing felt more right than that concert. 

The natural history museum was wonderful. The information I learned, like how the word "dinosaur" was created to mean frightened reptile, will probably be stored away in the folder of my mind titled "random information you'll remember when you're trying to take an exam". I have always loved natural history, and this museum was probably one of the best I've been to. I even touched a meteorite as old as our solar system! Stuff like this reminds me how important it is to stay curious about the world and to keep learning. The world is huge, and I have so much left to learn.

All in all, Vienna was a wonderful experience. This was my favorite excursion so far, and I hope to go back one day. I found the history to be enriching and the culture to be lovely. The tours we went on were fantastic, and I was fully engaged the whole time. I hope I can remember everything I learned so I can tell my friends and family back home.

Vienna/Italy

 Vienna and Florence, so far, take the cake for my favorite cities. Vienna was beautiful and I never thought anyone had an attitude towards us while we were there. The tours we did on this trip were also some of my favorites that we've ever done, such as the catacombs and the Natural History Museum. One of my absolute favorite parts is that the public transportation was the easiest system I have used since I've been here. Other than the actual things we did, it was easy to tell the difference in our attitudes from week 1 or 2 to now. We are a much closer group now and I hope that doesn't go away when the semester starts. 

Italy was fun and beautiful, but this was also probably where I found people to be the most rude. Employees at a museum were unhelpful and just asking for bad reviews. We ended up buying sketchy tickets on the side of the street, but it worked and we saw the statue of David so, oh well. The rest of the day in Florence was gorgeous. Looking at the sunset along the river at Ponte Vecchio felt like what I call a "movie moment". Then we had the best Italian home-made pasta ever. Pisa, aside from the tower and cathedral, was not as impressive as Florence. It wasn't the prettiest city, but the tower is still a once in a lifetime opportunity, so it was definitely worth it. 

I walked through Vienna about 50 times

 This past week involved going on the excursion to Vienna and then staying in Vienna for the weekend. To address the title of the blog post, it did simply feel like I walked through Vienna an insane amount of times. During the days of the excursion, it seemed that we somehow always ended up in front of St. Stephan's Cathedral or the Hofburg Palace. I am certainty not complaining, but this speaks to a larger theme on the trip. I have been awestruck by the amount of history and beauty that I see so frequently. From the rolling hills along the Rhine River to the canals of Amsterdam and the ornate luxury of Vienna, it has all been simply astounding and truly remarkable all the time

While I could detail all the events that took place in Vienna, I don't think I will. I could detail highlights and share cool pictures of places or things that were simply amazing, but I will simply share how I felt and what was most important to me. It may be a very stream-of-consciousness type of blog, but frankly I don't care at all what people think of Vienna experience.

The trip is split into two parts: the actual excursion run by the program and the weekend I spent in Vienna. The first part of the trip was highlighted by a visit to the Fool's Tower with several anatomical models that were quite interesting to say the least, a walking tour of the city by the seriously cool Dr. Schnabel, the group dinner at the traditional Vienna restaurant, and a trip to the Belvedere palace. The Belvedere palace was quite unique because it was really an art museum. The palace was quite beautiful, but I was surprisingly moved by the masterpiece by Gustav Klimt entitled "The Kiss". This piece of art was amazing and really got me to think in a way that I didn't think it would.

The second part of the trip involved an easier and much more relaxed weekend trip. While I loved the week in Vienna, the weekend was so relaxing because we played things by ear and just went with the flow. I didn't feel the pressure to do everything in the time that we had and actually give my body the rest it deserved. One highlight I will mention is the Albertina Art Museum, and the Hans Weigand exhibit which had a unique style that really appealed to me. The theme of the over encompassing power of the wave in conjunction with Weigand's unique style on the wood medium were just breathtaking. The countless walks through the Naschmarket allowed us to explore a different side of Vienna that we didn't get to see during the week.

The first picture is me on the steps outside the Albertina Museum. The steps actually show a famous Monet painting that is in the museum. The second picture is of the Church that we went to during the string quartet. The last picture is a picture of the restaurant that we went to as a group on the first night, which offered a great opportunity to grow in relationships with a lot of the group.

Busy Week

 In all honesty, I was not expecting high 80’s to mid 90’s temperatures and a lack of AC as a combo. But luckily, the tours and sightseeing in Vienna provided a great distraction from the heat. The Fools Tower was probably the most memorable portion of this visit because of its amazingly realistic wax sculptures and grotesque preserved specimens. The pharmacology museum was also quite interesting as I had a chance to chat with the director one on one for a fair time. As Dr. Wasser has mentioned the debatable effectiveness of eye brought throughout the trip, I has curiously asked the director about it as well. Unsurprisingly, he very strongly vouched for its effectiveness: “Of course it works!”

Prague had a very rough beginning and end, but I would never say it wasn’t worth the trip. We walked a mile in a thunderstorm carrying all our luggage and, even as I’m writing, am making a 16 hour journey back to Bornheim due to delays. But I’ve never seen such gorgeous buildings as in Prague. My group and I decided not to take any tours nor museums; rather, we wandered for hours and hours just taking in the wonderful sights. Prague was worth the trouble getting to and from there.

Prague: Transportation is Scarier Than the Ghost Tour

 Whew. I am writing this blog post from a train heading back to Bonn from Prague. The past three days have really tested my abilities to be flexible with transportation plans. On the train from Vienna to Prague, we were delayed an hour and a half due to an accident on the tracks. Fortunately, I had great company in my compartment and spent the time getting to know a group of 4 Germans and 1 Ukrainian. Due to the delay, I went to sleep immediately after arriving at the hostel. The next night, however, Jenna, Caitlin, and I went on a guided ghost tour that more closely resembled a medical history tour. We got to see the first hospital in central Europe to use anesthesia during surgery. Also, we were able to hear a few of the local legends centering around the plague in Prague. 

Unfortunately, the trip wrapped up with the notification Sunday morning that our flight back to Cologne was cancelled. We were able to book train tickets back to Cologne and hurry to the train station with time to spare. We have 3 minutes to make our next connecting train, so the next adventure is a sprint through the Schwandorf train station.

Vienna Waits For You

 It was tough to leave Vienna today. I really enjoyed this excursion and the experiences that came with it. Kind of crazy that I can now say I have seen human remains in a crypt and preserved in an old psych ward. I also learned about Freud and walked through his home/clinic. We toured a pharmacy museum, natural history museum, and the city of Vienna. I ate many great meals, my favorite being the group dinner on night one. Vienna proved my love for chocolate cake - I will be thinking about Sacher torte for the next few weeks for sure. The Imperial Palace was incredible, including the Imperial Jewels museum and Austrian National Library. To add to the list of sights, a group of us also visited the Belvedere Palace. I wish this study abroad would slow down!

Days in Vienna

 

Vienna was probably the most beautiful city I’ve been to on this trip. It was crazy to see and put into perspective the differences between different European cities. I could tell by the stores and even the way people dressed that Vienna is one of the expensive cities. After visiting Vienna, I need a major wardrobe change. I also was finally able to get spicy nuggets and sauce from McDonald’s. It seems like Europe is not big on spice and I love a good spice. I actually took a chili shot at this bar we went to and that was probably too much spice. I had a lot of fun sight seeing and even went shopping and left with a nice purchase. We went to a few museums while we were in Vienna and my two favorite ones were the fools tower and the natural history museum.  I learned about the older psychiatrist ward and different disabilities and abnormalities which was super cool. At the National history museum, I felt like in was in the movie Night at the Museum. Sometimes I thought the fossils and fake animals would come to life (added some creativity). It was really cool to see the largest meteor and ancient rock collection. One of my favorite fossils was the largest turtle ever. 

Never wanna forget

 Right now I’m on a train to Prague and am amazed by the scenery outside. The hills are lined with orange cobblestone houses and tall narrow pine trees. It’s a world so far from anything else I’ve imagined. The elderly ladies sitting next to me are speaking some Slavic language. I don’t think they are Czech because they are also intrigued by landscape and did not speak the same language as the train vendor. Their attitude toward him makes me assume they are Russian but I’ll admit this is a stereotype. I wonder what they think of me. Maybe my stained sweatshirt tells them I’m an American. Our trip to Vienna made the style difference between America and Europe very clear. More people recognized me as a foreigner than in Bonn or Paris. Even though I’d like to blend in, my differences helped me make a friend while I was standing in line at Zara. She saw me fanning myself and pointed her own hand held fan at me and we started a conversation. She said she was from the northern caucus region and later explained that she was from Chechnya. Because some terrorists were from her region she has been reluctant to tell me because she assumed I would have a bad impression. I was amused that she assumed most Americans would even know it existed. But I was fascinated to have met someone from a place I had once thought of as so remote and oppressed. Being in europe makes so many global issues seem so much closer and complicated. I hope I can learn about the rest of the world as much as possible before I leave. I never want to forget. 

Vienna waits for you…

 So far I think Vienna has had some of my favorite memories from this trip. So much happened in such a few days and I think I really made the most of my time there. 

Starting out with the activities for class, I genuinely enjoyed all the places we were taken. My favorite was probably the mental institution that was transformed into a medical collection. They had so many cool skeletons, models, and countless other specimens that were so fascinating. I wanted the tour to keep going when it ended. I also really enjoyed the Catacombs and the group dinner we had on the very first day. That was such and amazing day. 

I think one of my absolute favorite days of this trip was the second

day of Vienna. The tour started out with a city tour from the Plague doctor, Dr Shnovel and we also went to the drug museum. Then I went with a few other people to Demel to get coffee and hot chocolate and then we went to see the Crown Jewels which were absolutely amazing. We then went to look at the national library and walk around to a few shops. After dinner and gelato we went to the Ferris wheel which we didn’t actually ride but instead we did the little amusement park rides next to it. Six of us went down a big group water ride where we laughed the entire way down the slide. 

Overall I loved Vienna and hope I can go back one day!

Blog Episode 6: Day at the Museum, battle of the Smithsonian, kinda

 Throughout our trip, we have had the absolute pleasure to attend many a museum. Making the acquaintance of many which most people would never have the honor of interacting with in their lifetime. I have recognized this privilege, and have since relished in my gratitude for my experiences. For the sake of paying proper homage to each, here is a comprehensive list along with my favorite artifact or exhibit:

House of History- (Bonn, Germany) The artifacts displaying the work and efforts of the "rubble women" following the war. The dresses that they carefully embroidered with flowers showed resourcefulness without sacrificing their ode to style. 

Cologne Dom- (Koln, Germany) While yes this is a cathedral, we saw many an artifact and by definition a museum is a facility in which a collection of articles can be visited so in my opinion this qualifies. My favorite exhibit would be the bells, functioning and not. Its mind boggling to consider the number of ears who have heard them ring, looked forward to their chime, and contributed to their craft, maintenance, and preservation. 

Bademuseum- (Norderney, Germany) I loved the advertisements for swimwear that they displayed throughout the years. While they showed beautiful women in their photos, photoshop was not yet applicable, so it was very comforting to see REAL women in advertisements, something we don't see a lot of these days. 

Rijksmuseum- (Amsterdam, Netherlands) This one is very difficult but I must go with the displays of religious art from the 1100-1600. Some of the stories from the bible that I hold near and dear to my heart were portrayed in ways that made me experience emotions that I'd never felt from hearing the stories from the mouth of my preacher. I learned a lot about the manner in which Christ is depicted from birth to death, which will help me appreciate religious art for the rest of my life. 

Van Gough Museum (Amsterdam, Netherlands)- Getting to walk through the special exhibit of the Olive Trees was a once in a lifetime opportunity. It was incredible to not only see his work, but read the words in which he explain why it was that he painted them, the goals he was aiming to accomplish in his pieces, and the influence of which nature had on his life. It personified Van Gough to me. 

Anne Frank Museum - (Amsterdam, Netherlands) This may be my favorite, or most moving museum experience of my trip. The most influential moment was witnessing the marks on the wall in the secret chamber of where the Frank family measured the girl's growth. Then further, into the bedroom that Anne celled her own where, just like any other girl her age, Anne plastered her passions, hobbies, admirations, and dreams, in the form of pictures and clippings onto her wall. 

Museum am Strom-(Bingen, Germany) Hildegard is one of my favorite individuals that we have learned about this far. I could go on for pages appreciating her strong will and assertive passions. My favorite exhibit in this museum would be the art of her visions shown upstairs. The light cascaded in through the windows and caught the brilliant colors of the paintings bringing somehow even more vibrance to the already striking images. 

Johann Winter Museum- (Andernach, Germany) Easily my favorite part of this museum was simply the photo that our lovely tour guide showed of his grandmother. Not only does he have the passion for the artifacts that he has in his museum, but he has the pride of honoring his family and their contribution to the field that he so dearly loves. 

Michaelerkirche Catacombs- (Vienna, Austria) The catacombs presented a challenging experience with me because of the time framed proximity to a close family death, but I am sincerely glad that I stayed for the duration of the tour. I was stricken with learning that one of the women that was buried there was buried in a dress likely purchased for her funeral. I am fascinated by learning how humans have faced preparing their dead throughout the years, and it was surreal to me to recognize that some things never change.

Droggistenmuseum- (Vienna, Austria) Occurring early in our tour, we had the honor to meet Alexander, who's smiling face was also seen pictured behind the preserved original pharmacy counter in the first room we were shown. I cherished the chance to meet this sweet little man who proudly shows up to share his profession with those who come to learn. 

Narrenturm- (Vienna, Austria) This museum was a most incredible experience from the architectural features to the countless astonishing pieces inside. My favorite component of this exhibit was noticing the names of the patients depicted on many of the wax models, then hearing of the personification in the preservation of the little girl's body displayed to show ichthyosis. It is integral to remember that each relic was a human being, and every patient has a story that should be honored and respected for the life they lived and the ways in which they help us learn. 

Freud Museum- (Vienna, Austria) My eye for interior design definitely comes into play in deciding my favorite part of this museum. I had a serene, out of reality experience while standing in the waiting room. The restored decoration allowed me to travel back to the days where Freud sat amongst his others and had conversations that likely shaped his world-changing theories. I felt like I was in the presence of history happening, and I wish there was a way to bottle that feeling- or at least properly describe it. 

Austrian Gallery Belverde- (Vienna, Austria) This visit was a bit spontaneous of a visit, for I had dreamed of seeing this palace one day for some reason it slipped my mind that I was here with the opportunity to visit. The art was spectacular, but my favorite experience was walking into the ballroom on the second floor of the palace. I'm in constant fear of being desensitized to the grandeur of the beautiful buildings we visit because of their abundance. With that said, I somehow still find myself breathless when I walked into this room. My friends and I stood without words as we spun around craning our necks to take in the painted ceilings and absorb all of the light reflected by the massive chandeliers. While no red ropes marked any exhibits in this room, the room was the showcase. We waltzed, we photographed, we looked out the windows, we didn't want to leave.

Natural History Museum- (Vienna, Austria) Bones!!! It sounds cheesy or too simple but seeing the skeletons of living creatures foreign to our experience, to reconstructed fossils unearthed in all of their glory is invigorating! I feel just as excited and awestruck as the kinder tour pupils that wander around with their jaws slack and fingers pointing their exclamations. I looked at a triceratops head nose-to-nose, and felt my heart jump when I registered the massive scale of the whale ribs that framed the doorways.  

Having my parents raise me on visiting parks and museums rather than arcades and theme parks helped shape me into the person that I am today in that I labeled learning as "fun" at a very early age. I believe that's what I truly love the most about museums, and why I adore learning so much. It makes me feel like a kid again. I believe we humans should never stop learning, exploring, and appreciating. Going to museums allows me to devote myself to that mission in the most unapologetic and carelessly-joyful manner possible. 

Trip to Vienna!!

 This week of the HOM trip, we got to go to Vienna!! Ahh cue the Billy Joel song! As soon as we got here, I was taken away by how beautiful the architecture here-it might be the prettiest city I have been to so far! And everything is really clean too even though it smells a little funky! I love the train system here too, most trains come every few minutes which is very convenient! On the first day, we visited the catacombs and I thought it was insanely cool-we saw skeletons that were older than the United States and they were people that most likely interacted with people like Mozart which is insane!! And even though it was eerie to see all the bones, it was kind of a humbling experience for me because it was a good reminder that life is very ‘vain’ in the sense that it goes by so quickly and so many of the things we worry about it are not going to matter at the end of the day. That might sound depressing but it was actually a really inspiring, comforting thought to me. That night, we went to a very authentic Viennese restaurant that basically looked like a cellar and I had the most delicious goulash. I always love the group dinners because we all just feel like a family and I am so grateful for how wonderful, kind, and selfless everyone on the trip has been! I can already tell it will be hard to leave everyone so soon, which I don’t want to think about! The next day, we went on a plague tour with “Professor Schnabel” which was equally hilarious and intriguing. We even had a few plague curses ourselves-some of which were very yummy. Afterwards, we went to the drug museum which was very cool to see how personal and quaint the pharmacies used to be not even that long ago! The next day, we went to the fool’s tower which is the old psychiatric hospital essentially that holds several specimens. Some things were difficult to look at for very long but it was still cool to see the variety of different ailments shown there. Next, we visited the Freud museum and the lecture we heard over him was probably one of my favorites-he was just such an interesting character and, though some of his ideas were quite outrageous, I think trying to understand the mind is an extremely interesting topic and I am sure that the next time someone acts out rashly, the id, superego, and ego are going to come to mind. That night, we all went to a string quartet concert in St. Anna’s church which was so beautiful and relaxing, despite the uncomfortable pews. I am not even a music buff but I was kind of amazed by how crazy beautiful music really is when you think about it for long enough-it is like a gift from God that our ears work the way the do. And it was fun to imagine myself living in another time going to a classical concert for entertainment instead of just turning on Netflix. Today was our last day here as a group and we went to the natural history museum which honestly might have been my favorite part of this excursion! It was so much fun seeing all the jewels and the fossils and the taxidermy models and fake dinosaurs-like I was in awe basically the whole time! It felt like I was in a series of movies-Jurassic Park, Ice Age, Finding Nemo, the Lion King!! So....basically this excursion was a blast and I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to come here. Luckily, I am staying over the weekend so I am excited to see even more!

P.S. Had the best hot chocolate of my life at Cafe De Mel-definitely going to dream about that when I am back home!

I get my hair cut by 2 girls that only speak German…

 Vienna is FANCY!! Like majorly fancy!! All the buildings have this old world elegance and the women walk around in monochrome outfit and big sunglasses. The first day we got here we ate a traditional dinner and got to hear a band play the sound of music sound track live. It was so sweet to spend some time as a group. I have gotten so much closer to everyone else on the trip. I know we will be heartbroken when we don’t get to spend every moment with each other. The next day we did a walking tour lead by “ dr Wasser” or his alter ego the plague doctor. Then we got to go to the pharmacy museum where they have a mock up of an old pharmacy that used to be in Vienna. We also went to the Crown Jewels. I want them all. I think I was born to wear a crown!!!!! Then we Went to the fools tower and saw the wax models or hundreds of diseases. And finally ended the night with dressing to the 9s and seeing a string ensemble preform in a beautiful cathedral. WOW!! Magical!!! Today

we went to the natural history museum. Wow! So cool. It felt like you were a great explorer about to embark on your expedition to discover the undiscovered. Think cool fossil, beautiful gems, hundreds of rare animal models, all in a beautiful white marble building. As for right now, I am currently sitting in the hair salon getting my hair colored and cut by an 18 year old girl from veinna that speaks no English. I am kinda terrified but at least it will be a memory!!! Here is to hoping my hair isn’t green!!!! 

Little late, but week 4

 Yes, I know this post is a little late but here we go. It was nice to see Bonn and Bornheim once again after the trip to both Nordeney and Amsterdam, but I could definitely go without the heat and allergies.

Our day adventure to the Hildegard and History of Medicine museum was absolutely amazing. Hildegard has been hyped up this whole trip, and she absolutely lives up to it. The history museum’s director was extremely kind and was really fun to listen to.

Another really interesting part of the trip was seeing ruins of ancient watchtowers every couple of miles along the river. But the frequency in which we saw them is a fair indication of the excessive tolls for traders during the medieval ages.

Blog Episode 5: I lost my phone :(

     Sadly, as compared to my last few posts, this one will include far fewer photos, as in none. With that said, that doesn't mean there aren't tales to tell so let me hop right in. Within this past week returning from my trip to Amsterdam, I realized that Bonn feel comfortable, safe, feelings associated with home. In just a few weeks I somehow found myself navigating the streets and train systems with ease, the German words I'm learning flowing much easier off of my tongue, and this growing dread in my chest for when I cross the Rhine once more in departure. 

        Yesterday after class I headed to a strip of cafes and shops in the neighborhood behind the botanical gardens, chatting the whole way there. We went to a series of thrift and coffee shops before realizing that our energy levels were far too low with the promise of the effort pacing for Vienna would ensue that night, so we headed back to hbf. Once safely back in my home, I flopped onto my bed as one does after a long day, and reached for my bag to retrieve my phone so that I could catch my dad up on my day. The only problem with this was, my phone wasn't in my bag. I frantically searched every pocket over 5 times before shuffling downstairs to let my host parents in on my dilemma. Long story short, after 4 hours of missing item reports, contacting the shops I visited, and retracing steps in town, I retreated to my home to have my last dinner with my family. 

    Their departure to Vietnam to visit family coincides with my third day on our Vienna excursion, and therefore I had to say goodbye to my sweet family a bit earlier than I anticipated. I will be sure to write a whole entry on my family to give them the post they deserve, but for now I wil say that it was a lovely evening that I will appreciate for a long time to come. Losing my phone is very upsetting but I'm doing my best to keep things in perspective. I'm here, in Europe, having one of the most incredible experiences in my life, and I simply refuse to let my learning be dampened by a handheld computer. or lack thereof. Within the first day, I hope to purchase a film camera to record my memories, keep my journal handy, and simply live in the moment. I'm looking at the bright side, and I've heard that Vienna has got a lot for me to see! 

Week 3; Norderney, the worst airport experience ever, and eventually Scotland!

 After receiving a lecture from Dr. Wasser about saunas, I was shocked at how heavily related it was to religion, particularly the Jewish culture of bathing for purity. While I was incredibly excited to try out the sauna for myself I was a bit nervous about the cultural aspect of nudity when it came to the Bathhouse. Luckily this turned out to be a non-issue; more on that later. The train ride while very long, went by fast enough with plenty of reading and talking about upcoming plans and aspirations with other students in the program. It was really nice to talk to people who were more aligned with healthcare as many of my friends in chemical engineering are not (which makes total sense). We arrived at Norderney via ferry (and a lot of singing by European moms to 'Norderney'), and I was a bit worried  I had packed wrong as it was quite cold! Nevertheless, we grabbed our bikes and set out for the bike tour on the island (despite a few wrong turns and insane wind) we made it to the lookout and learned about how the dunes are formed and how the island is structured to maintain the city borders. The seagulls are quite funny creatures and while I did not see any seals I saw plenty of rabbits (absolutely adorable). Despite me not being able to feel half of my body by the time we returned to the hostel, I was incredibly glad to take a warm shower and settle in with Emily and Alyssa. The next day was interesting as we received a lecture from Dr. Raschke discussing the holistic medical approach taken on the island of Norderney to help people with asthma, burnout, sleep apnea, depression, and diabetes. I think that it is quite interesting (and beneficial) that the healthcare system in Germany seems more preventative in comparison to American Medicine (hygiogenetically oriented) as this is something that I feel the US could be a lot better at. While mental health is becoming a more central part of conversations in recent years, I think that the US seems to lean more towards medication rather than holistic healing. After attending the sauna, having a bonding experience with women in the mud treatment, and a peaceful moment to think over life in the salt pool, I felt quite rejuvenated and at peace with life. I think I will try to incorporate some aspects of cold therapy going forward. The next day, we went to the salt flats to hike and learned about a lot of different creatures like algae, snails, pelicans, crabs, jellyfish, clams, oysters, etc., and how they contribute to the ecosystem. Walking into the North Sea was probably the best part! I was really happy to hang out with everyone the last night there at the BBQ where I felt we really bonded as a group with many happy stories and adventures to tell (as well as a cool TikTok flash mod style). I couldn't have imagined a better night than watching the sunset on the beach!

We woke the next morning to a disaster of public transportation and ended up very VERY late to the airport (we were supposed to arrive 4 hours prior to our flight because of strikes and airline issues but arrived with 30 minutes to get from the train to the gate) and it was at this point that I realized how resilient and stubborn I am as a person (as well as the strength of our little trio) that we all had a part in making sure we made the flight to Scotland. Upon arrival in Scotland, we learned plenty about the role of the Catholic and Protestant churches at the Cathedral as well as the parade that went through town to celebrate Palestine's victory of an early religious FU against the catholic faith. We then went to visit the Edinburgh castle as well as walked around the Royal Mile and to a lookout where we could see both the sea and downtown Edinburgh (absolutely gorgeous). The next day we tried fish and chips and smoked fish prior to going to 2 beautiful hiking spots (I felt like I was in Jurassic Park). I never wanted to leave!