From Day 1 : Vienna and Venice

St. Stephen's Basilica

Vienna Austria and Venice Italy were quite an adventure! We started off as on our class field trip to Vienna. We were only there for two days but got to see St. Stephens, Schoenbrunn castle, and the natural history museum (history of the earth). St. Stephen's was really beautiful. It has a really neat design on the outside and lots of stain glass. However, the stain glass was a little different. It had been replaced with colored squares because there was not enough funding to reconstruct all of the original stain glass. Inside, there was a also a portable alter. I didn't know that there are alters that could at one point been taken from place to place, or moved throughout the church. Granted, this particular one was not transported on the streets or other public places due to its large size. I really enjoy learning about the different histories of each church, such as the stain glass windows, it helps me keep them all straight and remember them better.

We also went to the Schoenbrunn castle. This castle was initially a hunting lodge and has 1,441 rooms. We did't go inside, but walked around the gardens and hiked up a giant hill to see all of Vienna. The view was beautiful, and we got to lay on the grass and just enjoy the view. I was able to call my sister and mom and show them the amazing view. I felt really connected, being able to share one of my experiences with them. Everyone was hanging out on the grass, for probably about 45 minutes, and then we were shooed off the grass because technically no one is supposed to step on the grass. However, when you see everyone else enjoying the grass, you also follow along. Yes, I know if your friends jump off a bridge you shouldn't follow, but it was just grass I promise. It was really nice to get out of the city and just enjoy the view and the sunshine. The sunshine allowed for great food and lots of gelato. :)

Being carried after I fell down the stairs....

We also had to make the choice between going to the natural history museum or the national art gallery. I choose the natural history museum, as it was all about the different animals and how the earth has evolved and with only twi science majors in our group, it was nice to reconnect with the science part of my brain. There were a lot of birds, and I learned that pelicans are the heaviest flying birds which I think is really interesting. They also had a super cool marine room with the lights dimmed and you could press a button to illuminate each species. I really enjoyed this museum! We were then free the rest of the day, and so I headed back to the hostel to pack and do some of my online homework for my history class. The next morning we were set to head to Venice, it was about a 7 hour drive on the bus, however, nothing can ever be easy.
That morning (Thursday). I decided to take the stairs instead of the elevator because I knew we would be sitting on the bus for a while and I wanted to get some steps in on my fitbit. Silly me thought this would be a good idea. The staircase consisted of concrete spiral stairs and we were on the fourth floor. I was carrying my backpack and another bag, and I rolled my ankle on the last stair and fell down the stairs. I started crying and everyone came running to see what had happened. I hate being the center of attention but my ankle hurt so bad. I fell right infant of a room and the lady inside must have heard me and came out and asked if I needed a doctor. She did't speak much english but she brought out gauze to wrap my foot, cream, and even an ice pack. I am so thankful for her. Needless to say because I wanted to get some exercise, I got to experience an ER in Austria. This just happened to be the largest hospital in Europe. It was about a 2 hour visit and I kept thinking that I am making everyone wait for me so we could proceed to Venice. After about two hours of going in and out of rooms, I was told that I most likely have torn ligaments and would get to wear an air cast for 6 weeks. But, how many people can say they've experienced an ER while abroad, I feel kind of special in a weird way now that I think about it.
Any who, after being pushed around in a wheel chair I was supposedly able to walk normally, I beg to differ. I had to walk really slow and my stance was rather wide, but at least I got to sit on the bus for 7 hours and just relax. The bus ride wasn't too bad and I was excited to get to see Venice. The original plan was for everyone to walk to our hostel, but because of the rain and me not being able to walk very fast or far, we all took a water shuttle. It was about 20 minutes and I had multiple people tell me that they were grateful they didn't have to walk, so at least someone was benefiting from me falling down the stairs.

Men women children masses for the gas chambers advancing toward

horror beneath the whip of the executioner. Your sad Holocaust is engraved

in history and nothing shall purge your death from our

memories for our memories are your only grave

I'm not sure if you know anything about Venice, but the best part is all of the stairs and bridges. P.S. still not a fan of stairs. I was always at the back of the group and felt bad for making people wait on me to catch up, and I hate making people wait on me. However, I got to meet some people that are part of our group that I hadn't really gotten to talk to very much. We went on a gondola ride, had amazing Italian food, and of course gelato. As a class we went into St Mark's basilica and Saint Giovanni's basilica. I found out that walking on marble floor was very helpful because it was smooth and not uneven like cobblestone is. We then had the rest of the day to explore and one of the other girls and I found ourselves in the Jewish Ghetto. It was surreal to see the artwork depicting executions and a a wood call with the carvings of the names and ages of those who were deported. We always learn about the holocaust and Poland and Germany, but nothing is ever really mentioned about Jewish people being deported from Italy. We will later go see Auschwitz and I cannot imagine the felling I will have there, after the feeling I had in Italy simply being in the ghetto.

On a lighter note, Bailee and I ended the night with dinner right by the water, with amazing calzones, wine, tiramisu, and a beautiful view. We were even given blankets because it was a little chilly right by the water. Venice is beautiful and breathtaking, and if you love the water, it is definitely a must see place, even if you are injured ;)