Graduation cake

Graduation cake
My graduation cake: a suitcase and two books. Very fitting....

30.8.10

Fine, I'll Make a New Post, Jeez!

Life hasn't been terribly exciting here in Vienna lately.  Probably because the daily lives of my cohort members and I have resembled something like the following montage:
Reading....

Taking notes on the reading.....

Passing out on the reading.

And then repeat.  So excuuuuse me if I haven't felt like updating my blog recently, sheesh!  =P

There were a few noteworthy events over the past couple of days, however.  Sadly, as I still don't have a working camera, I can't show you pictures of everything.  So, you'll just have to take my word for it.  

On Thursday, after we had our first professional seminar (which basically entailed sitting around a table learning about the history of international relations from our professor who, like all our other professors is highly qualified and AWESOME), we took a bus tour of Vienna, compliments of Webster University.  Thanks to my roommate, who does have a working camera, I can show you a few things we saw around Vienna (the rest I'll put on Facebook).

Fountain in front of the Opera House.


Me posing by the Opera House.

One of the many fabulous museums in Vienna (I think that one is the Natural History Museum).

The National Library at Hofburg.

Hofburg again.

I can't remember.... The Rathaus, maybe?

Stephansdom (Cathedral of St. Stephan).

One day, hopefully about a week from now, I will re-visit these places with a working camera and take lots of glorious pictures.   I especially can't wait to visit Hofburg and the Schönbrunn Palace.  In the meantime, you'll have to be entertained by the beauty and imagery of my witticisms.  Bear with me.

On Saturday, the ladies of cohort 2 headed out for a day of bonding.  We made our way to Naschmarkt (the biggest flea market in the city, and a must-do in Vienna), and were in awe of all the amazing food, clothing, and knick-knacks (but mostly food).  We plan on going back next Saturday and stocking up on the inexpensive, amazing food items the vendors offer, such as fresh stuffed peppers with goat cheese, fresh and local fruits and vegetables, bins of candy, fresh pastries, cheeses, meats, dried beans, exotic spices - you get the picture.  It's a festival for the senses.

After battling the crowds and making our way down the street (warning: it gets VERY crowded there), our next destination was a mall.  Somewhere.  We had heard there were a few shopping centers in Vienna, but we had no idea where they were located or how to get there.  Luckily, someone in the group speaks German (*cough* me *cough*), and went into a nearby wine shop to ask for directions.  Success was then inevitable.

After locating Mariahilferstraße, which is basically one very long street filled with every store you can imagine, we continued with the theme of the day: shopping.  Little boutiques, H&M, New Yorker, etc.  I was victorious in that I obtained what I set out to find: a scarf and a notebook.  You'd think notebooks wouldn't be hard to find, but this was the first time I've found a notebook since I've been in Europe.  They're like a freaking enigma over here, like some sort of illegal drug: everyone has one, but only the locals know where to find them.  In any case, after about five hours of perusing, we were very tired and very lost.  Luckily, it's easy to spot a U-Bahn stop in this city: it's the giant "U" sign sticking way up in the air.  

I should mention at this point that, after our shopping mission had been fulfilled, we were on a new quest: to find a place with coffees/pastries/ice cream.  This is usually the easiest thing to do in Vienna.  Unless you're actually looking for one.  After making our way to Stephansplatz via the U-Bahn, we eventually (and by eventually I mean about a half-hour later) came upon a place that did indeed have all three.  They even had Glühwein (mulled wine), which is rare to find, especially when it's not wintertime.  We filled our bellies with pastries and joy, and set out to return home (after Jenny bartered with the men dressed as Mozart sitting next to us, who were selling opera tickets.  She got a very good deal!).  I should also mention that it was around this time in the journey that I discovered the Manner candy store, wherein they sell Manner wafers (which were recommended by a friend via Facebook).  New. Favorite. Candy. 


I even found a picture on Google so I could show you.  Wafers filled with hazelnut cream.  Simple, yet brilliant.
Basically, that's pretty much all I've done lately that's worth mentioning.  Mostly I've just been catching up on reading.  The nearby park next to the Danube offers a nice change of scenery; I can bring my books and spend the afternoon reading in the lovely Vienna sun, watching speedy rollerskaters and cyclists, frolicking dogs, and the glistening blue Danube pass by.  *dreamy sigh*  

I'll leave you with that lovely image as I prance off to do more reading.  Tschüss!



24.8.10

Memories of the Big Blue Bus

Before I dive into this post, I first want to wish my Mutti alles Gute zum Geburtstag (in other words, happy birthday, Mom)!  I wish I could be there with you to do some celebratory birthday yoga, but I'm sending you hugs, kisses, and virtual flowers from Austria.  Maybe later I'll break out into song ala "The Sound of Music" and dedicate it to you 8-)


Maria and the von Trapp children performing a rousing rendition of the birthday song for Mutti.


Seventeen years ago, I embarked on a very long, epic journey into academia.  Jealous of the awesome things my older brother got to do in school, I wanted to skip right past kindergarten and first grade and instead begin my studies with my brother's very idolized second grade teacher.  Much to my chagrin, I was forced to complete these first two steps in order to reach my ultimate goal of second grade (thankfully, I've since developed higher aspirations).  Nevertheless, my very first day of school was wrought with excitement as I nervously waited at the bus stop, anxious to see the big yellow bus come rumbling around the corner.  I waited. And waited.  Sadly, it never came that first day.  What did arrive, however, was Mom's big blue "bus," cheerful and familiar as it whisked me away to school.  I don't remember what I learned that first day of kindergarten, but I'll never forget the optimism and encouragement of my family as plans were altered and what should have been a perfect day instead took a different turn.  Sure there was no yellow bus that day, but there were Mom's perfect, homemade chocolate chip cookies to welcome my brother and me home - a tradition my Mom kept every year on the first day of school, even when I went away to college.

Yesterday evening I continued along my journey of scholarship as I formally began my graduate courses.  There was no yellow or blue bus to take me, but there was that same encouragement from my family, albeit from halfway around the world.  Because of them I made it to kindergarten the first day, and because of their support I made it all the way to graduate school. Years have passed since that excited little girl first stood at the bus stop, but each new first day of school is still a day of excitement and hope.  Only this year, there were no chocolate chip cookies to welcome me home.

Sara and Friedrich on the first day of school.

Still, despite the lack of cookies, my first day of grad school went very well.  Nervous as I was about delving into an area of study previously unfamiliar to me, the class was not as terrifying as I imagined.  The professor, a native Austrian, is actually quite friendly and took the initiative to learn our names and ask about our backgrounds (which, as I hear, is very uncommon for European professors to do).  The class includes all the members of my cohort as well as regular students at the university.  Although the class is four hours long, we do get a small break in the middle, and I found myself enthralled by the professor's teaching the entire time as well.  He encourages class participation (it's a percentage of our overall grade, in fact) and is fond of discussion, often asking questions and urging us to ask questions, too.  In spite of my meager background in I.R., I had no difficulties following along, and actually found the subject matter to be very, very interesting.

Who knows - maybe I'm cut out for this I.R. thing after all. 8-)


22.8.10

Willkommen in Österreich!



Allow me to introduce my travel buddy,  Friedrich the Bavarian Duck.  He's very happy to once again be in the land of Wienerschnitzel, Bier, and Lederhosen.



Welcome to beautiful Vienna, Austria!  After a long day, my cohort and I were ready to finally be settled in one place (at least for a whole two months).  We all collected our baggage without any problems and made our way to the arrival area, where some employees of a transport service were waiting to take us to our apartment building.

We had two cars to transport us - one a smaller station wagon, the other a large van.  You'd think that with only ten people there wouldn't be any problems loading luggage into two spacious vehicles, right?  No.  There was apparently more luggage than there was room in the van, but we were able to fit it in the front and stick some extra luggage in the station wagon as well.  That took a good 10-15 minutes, while my cohort stood in a very hot, sticky parking garage just praying we wouldn't have to make two trips.  But, it all worked out and we were on our way!

We didn't see anything of particular beauty along the drive there.  When we got to our apartment building, unloaded our luggage, and watched the transport service people drive off, we realized that no one was there to meet us yet.  There we were, a group of American tourists, stranded on some random sidewalk in Vienna with very few means of contact.  It was a little unnerving.... Luckily, the R.A., Frederick, hadn't heard us as we waited outside and came out to check about 5-10 minutes later.  We happily lugged our baggage into the building (which I do not yet have a picture of because my camera battery is dead and I'm trying various creative ways of trying to recharge it).  Inside, it looked rather, er.....ghetto, for lack of a better word.  Paint was peeling off the walls, there were holes in some places, wires sticking out, etc.  And then we transported all our luggage upstairs via the elevator.

PSYCH.  No elevator, only this monster:

I really think it should count as my workout for the week....

Luckily, Jenny's and my apartment was only up one flight of stairs; everyone else had to go one or two flights higher.  Sorry guys!  In any case, the apartments are really, really nice!  I already like it here a lot.

My bedroom.

View from the far wall of my room.

It's so nice to have everything unpacked!

The view from my window.


The area with the red doors is Wienerschnitz'l Land =)
Our bathroom.  It's really nice to have our own washer!

The view into the apartment from my door.

Our fully stocked kitchen.  It has an oven/stove, coffeemaker, fridge/freezer, microwave,  dishwasher, and dishes and pans.  I love it!


View from the entryway: the WC and the dining area.

The entryway from the inside.

Our door from the hallway.  I love the old-fashioned look.

Once Frederick gave us our keys and went over some information with us, we decided to take some time to unpack and get settled and then meet up later for dinner.  By the time we met up, I had everything unpacked, and it felt soooo good.  We were all really hungry, and we thought Frederick was going to take us someplace close for food.  Apparently, we were mistaken.  We walked a few blocks down Schüttaustraße to the International Center, where a lot of world headquarters of companies/organizations are located, including the UN center and UNIDO.  We caught a tram further into the city, where we were on a mission to find the Australian pub recommended by Frederick.  We were in the very heart of Vienna, right next to the Opera House and in the midst of a very swanky shopping district.  After walking around a while, we finally found the Australian pub.  And boy, was it Australian: kangaroo burgers, grilled crickets, crocodile steak, etc.  I decided on a plain ol' hamburger and a Paulaner.  After a very stressful day, it was mm mm good!  The conversation at dinner revolved a lot around careers after the MAIR program.  I'm still pretty new at this field, so it was very interesting to hear the sorts of things one can do with an I.R. degree that I hadn't ever thought of.

After dinner, we managed to find our own way back to our building without Frederick's assistance (I think there's hope for us yet).  We called it a night and retired joyfully to our own chambers.  

I did not sleep so joyfully, however.  After a night of tossing and turning, I ended up with a mere four hours of sleep (later on in the day I was able to take a lovely, rejuvenating two hour nap, though).  Around 11, Carly and I decided to go for a stroll and get to know our area a little better.  After purchasing some rather overpriced coffee (welcome to Europe), we walked a block away and were greeted by the beautiful Danube River.  I would have loved to take a picture, but sadly my camera battery was completely dead at that point =/  

We followed the walk/run/bike trail that led along the river.  It goes on for miles and miles, and there's a ton of open green space, playgrounds, even beaches along the river where people swim and play volleyball.  Basically, it's AWESOME, and it's only a block away!!  I will be doing a lot of running there (but I'll get more to that later).

We found a footbridge that led across the Danube.  On the other side was another walk/run/bike path, more beaches, a small waterpark for children, ice cream stands, and other glorious things.  After walking more along that trail, we came to the Reichsbrücke, which stretches across the main part of the Danube (the part we had previously crossed was more akin to a channel of the Danube; technically, parts of Vienna are on islands, similar to New York City).   One thing that makes Europe so distinct from America is this simple fact:  there is an entire lower section of this major bridge solely for pedestrians/cyclists to cross the river; the upper part of the bridge is for cars.  It's incredible how much more pedestrian friendly it is here.  After a breathtaking trip across the Danube, we walked around a gorgeous cathedral (which I still can't figure out the name of) and found a Turkish grocery store which, unlike every other European grocery store, is open on Sunday.  I didn't purchase any groceries since we had such a long walk back, but Carly purchased a few fruits and vegetables.  We retraced our steps and made it back, walking a good 2 hours altogether.  It was really an amazing experience.

I then met up with my roommate, Jenny, and her fiance, Matt W.  We headed to a local corner pub for some lunch.  After that, I decided to try my hand at taking a nap, which I eventually succeeded in.  When I woke up, I felt extremely rejuvenated and ready to take on the world.  Matt G. (the other Matt in the group) wanted to go for a jog, so we set out for the path by the river.  It really is an amazing running path; I'm actually thinking about waking up to run again tomorrow!

A bit later a few of us met up and went over to Wienerschnitz'l Land (finally!) where my German-speaking skills were put into use trying to explain to people what things on the menu were.  The waiter figured out that we were American, though, and spoke English to us after that.  I still spoke only German to him, however, and later on a different worker came over to our table with lots of coupons for us, which I imagine we will all put to very good use.  Despite the wonderfully tasty Huhnschnitzelsemmel I had for dinner, I was craving some good ol' European ice cream, the kind my old Holzkirchen pals and I always ate.  There's an ice cream shop right around the corner, so I figured it was a sign that I just had to stop in and try my old favorites ("Zwei Kugeln, Nutella und Joghurt, bitte!").  From there, it was time to call it a night.  Tomorrow will be a very busy day: grocery shopping, getting my textbooks, registering with the Viennese police (if you're visiting, you have 72 hours to do so, or else), buying a SIM card, and then starting class in the evening!  Bis Morgen!

P.S.  My wonderful roommate let me borrow her camera battery charger!  It's not the same type, but the battery appears to fit in it and the charge light is blinking, so cross your fingers that it works!  Can't wait to show you guys lots more wonderful pictures 8-)

Maybe It Was the Tulips?

After an uneventful flight to Amsterdam (one which, I might add, included zero hours of sleep), I made my way through customs, bought a train ticket, and headed to Leiden.  Simple enough.  While at first I wasn't terribly impressed by the Netherlands upon arrival (mostly unimpressed by the rather brusque attitude of passersby), I am pleased to say that I immediately found Leiden to be a delightful, beautiful town.  

The Golden Tulip Hotel, our accommodations for orientation, was a mere block away from Leiden Centraal Station, and even though I was tired after a long night/day, I found the journey there to be very easy and stress-free.

I arrived about two hours too early to check-in, but I was able to store my suitcases and used that time to walk around the city.  

                                                                                     
    

I stopped and had a Diet Pepsi Light (no Coke Light, sadly) at an English pub called the Cider House.

Here's a picture, in case you didn't believe me.


After that, it was time to head back and check in.  I arrived before my roommate, so I was a little unsure about where to put my stuff. I decided to put it on the far side of the room so it wouldn't be in her way.  I also used the opportunity to take lots of pictures, which I knew my mom would appreciate at least....
I was pretty shocked when I walked in and it looked like there was only one big bed.  There are two separate beds under the quilt.  Odd.
    
Pretty good size for a European hotel room.


The view from our window.  I believe the interesting new building will be a new train station.

Had to show off my "Dutch Tulips" nail polish in the Netherlands!
There was no free wi-fi at the hotel and I was not about to pay €17 for a mere 24 hour connection.  I discovered later, however, that the computer labs at the Webster campus were available for use, and I was able to inform my family and the rest of the world that I did, indeed, make it safely to my destination.  After settling in and taking pictures of the room, I tried my very best to stay awake, but I was beyond tired at that point and decided to take a quick nap in the hopes of waking up before my roommate arrived.

So what's the first thing my roommate sees when she walks into the room?  Some random stranger sleeping in what looks to be a single bed, covers drawn up to her nose so she can't even tell if it's her roommate or not.  She told me later that she first thought she was in someone else's room and was trying to come up with the least embarrassing apology.  Luckily, I woke up in time to exclaim, "Oh! Tabitha!" and apologize myself for my extreme fatigue.  After that rather awkward episode, we quickly bonded and spent the evening hanging out.

The next few days passed by in a whirlwind of information, packets, handouts, discussions, etc.  To summarize, I'd say the highlights of those days of orientation included: free breakfast at the hotel (including European yogurt, which is seriously my favorite yogurt in the world), meeting and bonding with members of my cohort and other cohorts (but mostly mine 'cause we're the best =P), and going for a morning run with Tabitha and Thuy on Friday.  Also, there was this:

The world's biggest stroepwaffel.
Thuy told us all about this amazing Dutch sweet called "stroepwaffel," which is basically two thin waffles with caramel in the middle.  We found a place where they make them fresh right in front of you, and they only cost €1 each!  It was so big and so sweet, I couldn't even finish the whole thing (but just you wait, stroepwaffel: I'll be back in May and I will take you down!).

Sadly, I can't say the orientation went exactly swimmingly for me.  In reference to the title, I became a bit ill on Thursday, and got worse on Friday.  My whole body was itchy, my throat felt sore, and my muscles ached all over.  Not good, right?  I felt so bad by Friday evening that I even had to miss out on the beach BBQ that was planned (and if you know me, you know I'm not one to miss a BBQ!!).  But I rested up a bit, and, while I still felt pretty bad the next day, I was a little bit better.

On Saturday, the cohorts that were leaving met in the hotel lobby at 7:30 am to walk to the train station together.  We all made it safely to the airport where, after much frustration and difficulties with obtaining our boarding passes, the two cohorts went our separate ways and headed to our first destinations.

My cohort had a layover in London, and by that time I was feeling very ill again.  There's not much you can do when you're stuck in an airport, though, so I had some soup (after much complaining to members of my cohort about feeling crappy - thanks for understanding guys!) and I felt a bit better.  The plane ride to Vienna wasn't too bad.  Unlike the flight from Amsterdam to London, where none of us were sitting together, a few of us had seats next to each other.  Chatting definitely made the time fly by (no pun intended) much quicker.

We arrived safe and sound in Vienna, and I will leave it at that for now.  Vienna deserves it's own post.  It is with much joy that I can finally say, "bis später"!


17.8.10

Sara in Real Life

My life is not like a movie.  In movies, cute, tiny suitcases are magically all packed and in pristine order the very morning of departure.  In movies, people are tearful, yes, yet calm and collected before they enter through to their gate (where the entrance is naturally never crowded).  In movies, no one suddenly thinks, “Oh! I forgot this and that and this...” during their emotional farewells and must rush home to retrieve their wayward items, therefore interrupting what should be a perfectly good Hollywood moment.  Basically, in movies, things happen as they should.

In my life, various trips to Walgreens must be made the morning of my flight for small things that apparently were forgotten for the past three months during which I was planning.  In my life, farewell lunches at St. Louis Bread Co. are interrupted by the terrifying discovery that I forgot my camera battery charger, and a beautiful, satisfying meal of black bean soup and whole grain baguette is discarded like a stale peanut butter sandwich as I make a mad dash home.  In my life, said charger is not discovered in time, and I must make my way to the airport, head hung in shame, as images of my grandma’s disappointed face echo in my mind.
In my life, as you see, things don’t always run smoothly.
However, I did make it to the airport in time, checked my bag through to Amsterdam, and found my gate with no difficulty.  My flight to Detroit, while wrought with turbulence, was actually quite excellent: I had the entire row to myself, and no one was in front of or behind me.  I pretty much had the back left corner of the plane all to myself, which was, believe it or not, very much satisfactory.  The diligent little plane landed safely, and early, on the ground.  Thus, as of yet, I’m still in one piece.
As I post this entry, I’m sitting in the Online Cafe Bar and Grill, drinking a Bells Oberon and stealthily observing the various people around me (and whatever the heck is happening with the Rod Blagojevich trial on CNN).  In less than two hours, I will be headed to the Netherlands, and hopefully will be reporting back with tales of tulips, windmills, and wooden clogs. Tot ziens!

Prologue: The Path Less Travelled

If someone had told me a year ago that after college I would be headed on a global adventure around the world to earn an M.A. in International Relations, I probably would have asked what kind of pills they were on and how many they had taken.  Indeed, a year ago I was nervously anticipating the various obstacles faced during one’s senior year in college: the GRE, graduate school applications, etc.  I didn’t know where I would end up in grad school, but I knew I was going to get my PhD in English from one of the various accredited universities to which I was applying.
Nervous as I was, I figured I pretty much had it in the bag: sky-high GPA, membership in two separate honors fraternities, a position as a consultant at the Writing Center.  I had presented a paper at Oxford University in England (yes, THE Oxford), had stellar recommendations, and basically was your all-around, hard-working whiz kid.  I was preparing to set out on the path to great and wonderful things via a well-earned doctorate in English.

As the months passed and I received rejection after rejection from most of my English grad programs, I began to see a roadblock transpire in front of me.  After four years of toil, sweat, and tears, the path to my dreams had been closed to me.  I was crushed.  Nowhere among the visions of my future had I, or anyone else I knew, pictured this happening.  My situation seemed hopeless.

At this point in the story, I recall an old quote: "If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans."  Indeed, my plans, as it turned out, were not the ones intended for me.  But my situation was far from hopeless.  Luck had it that my mother's coworker made an offhand remark about a Master's program where people travel to five different countries for 11 months while earning their degree.  We looked into it and discovered that they had such a program through Webster University where you earn your Master's in International Relations.  Having always been a fan of travel, new cultures, and international politics and law, I decided to apply, although I had very little hope of actually being accepted.  I couldn't even get accepted into an English program, who would accept me for I.R.?

Webster, apparently.  One day, as I was preparing to head back to Truman after visiting my family back home, I received a call from Thuy, one of the coordinators of the program.  She called in person to congratulate me on being accepted into the Global I.R. program.  I was beyond shocked.  'Is this really happening?? Do I really get to travel the world and earn a Master's??' (a Master's which, by the way, is probably a bit more useful than one in English given our current economy).  Well, the answer is 'yes' to both of those questions.  I am currently sitting at an airport in Detroit, Michigan awaiting a flight to the Netherlands, whereupon I will embark on the biggest adventure I have yet dared to undertake.  I hope you continue to follow along with me as I learn, make mistakes, and experience some of the most amazing things I could only ever dream of.

P.S.  I would like to thank and dedicate this blog to my Mutti, without whom I would never even had known about this program.  Because of her, I am a strong, independent traveller, ready to take on the world and follow my dreams.  Thanks, MOM (and be careful)!!