It's really over. I leave Vienna tomorrow.
I arrived in Vienna with high expectations. I had heard so many great things about the city, study abroad, etc. that I figured I would be in Austrian heaven...
When you travel alone there is a definite fear that you'll be lonely. With just your thoughts as company in a strange, new city it's hard to imagine having a good time without someone to share it with....
Before I studied abroad I never realized how much I like - and take for granted - the outdoors. I would never describe myself as an "outdoorsman," but parks, yards, hikes and just general "being outside"...
Growing up I have always been identified - and truthfully, often have identified myself - as Cuban. I am one half Cuban from my dad's side, and from that half I inherited my outward appearance: olive skin, almond-shaped eyes, thick eyebrows, "Latina curves," loads of leg hair. I am also one half Western European. Start in Germany and move west and I've got a drop of blood from practically all of those countries, the largest from Denmark. My "Latina look," however, put me in an Hispanic corner that I was not ashamed of but was also not 100 percent comfortable with.
People who know me, know I love trash TV. There is nothing like sitting down and watching an episode or two (or three) of "The Mindy Project," "The Bachelor/ette," or - my guiltiest obsession - "Dance Moms." Watching trash TV is my way of winding down after a long day. I can completely tune out everything for 30 minutes and let the story take me away. Before I went abroad, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to keep up with all my television and I'll admit that I wasn't sure I was ready for a four-month hiatus. How would I know if Mindy and the lawyer finally got together? Would Juan Pablo be able to break through the language barrier to ask the ladies to "accept this rose?" Will Abby Lee Miller replace her team for the umpteenth time? I was sure the withdrawal would be too much to handle.
Today I looked at the Twenty Most Expensive Cities in the World. Two of the cities on the list I will be traveling to for Spring Break: London, the number one most expensive city, and Stockholm, Sweden,...
My week-long trip to Italy started out as a disaster. Not only was our train to Florence canceled two times due to snow, but our first encounter with staff from the Austrian train company, ÖBB, left...
It's ball season in Vienna. During January and February many Viennese - and tourists - don their best evening attire and dance the night away at a beautiful location until the wee hours of the morning....
Culture shock (n). the personal disorientation a person may feel when experiencing an unfamiliar way of life due to immigration or a visit to a new country, a move between social environments, or simply...
