Week 5!!

 This past week was so much fun and Vienna and Prague are my favorite places I've visited.

On Monday, we had regular classes and a pre-departure meeting. On Tuesday, we left for Vienna very early in the morning. The train ride was very long, but I watched all the Hunger Games movies during that time, which made it go by faster. The hotel we stayed at was very nice and the complimentary breakfast was a bonus. We all went to dinner the night we arrived at this very excellent restaurant that was in an old cellar. The atmosphere made the experience and the schnitzel was delicious. The next day we did a field study where Dr. Wasser was dressed up as a plague doctor. It was very entertaining, but I know he was sweating in that outfit. We visited some very interesting sights and we partook in some fun "medicines" that would've been used back in the day. The candy was tasty, but the alcohol and vinegar were not. Then we attended the drug museum which was very interesting as well. We looked at what an old pharmacy would look like, we saw how herbs and medicine were incorporated in perfume, and at the herbal medicine that was a part of the drugs we use. Then we headed to a crypt underneath a cathedral. The cathedral was beautiful. The crypt was really cool. We learned about the traditions of death in Austria and we got to observe some bodies in the coffins. It was very interesting and so was our tour guy. He was very funny, but I was taken a bit off guard when he grabbed one of the bones down there. The next day I went to a surgical museum that had anatomical wax models. These were very cool to see. Everything was so detailed and meticulous. There were models for each system and portion of the body. There were even very old ones of the entire body that can be taken apart and used in medical school and are made with real hair. Then from there, we moved on to the Freud house. We had a lecture there and then got a tour of the house. We then moved on to the next museum which used to be an old hospital. Within the hospital, there were models and real artifacts of diseases and interesting body parts. This was one of my favorite museums, I thought the entire collection was very interesting and educational to look at. Later that night, we went to an orchestra which was something I was looking forward to. The music was beautiful, I wish I was a little closer to the front, but it was still really cool to be a part of. On Friday, we went to the national history museum. We got to see some dinosaurs, minerals, and some zoology. 

Vienna had some really good schnitzel and hot chocolate, but I would say the famous chocolate cake was not that great. From Vienna, I went to Prague. Prague, like Vienna, was beautiful. The architecture is amazing and all the famous sights are gorgeous. I did all the basic tourist things like seeing the clock, going to the palace, and going to the monastery. All of it was really cool, but was quite a hike. It was worth it. The train ride back was a gamble. A 20-dollar euro ticket to Frankfurt at 5 am with a 4-minute change. We missed our second train, but we hoped on an ICE that took us all the way to Cologne, which made it worth it. 

That week was so much fun and by far my favorite locations. I am looking forward to going home, but I am going to miss Bonn and my new friends. One week left!