Perhaps time for a SUPER DUPER LONG UPDATE???
I think yes J
Getting back from the Alps just kept my week on a super high! The next evening I went to a REAL MASQUERADE BALL!!! It was quite possibly one of the coolest things that I have ever seen! This ball had more people my age, probably because it was put on by one of the organizations at the University. People were dressed to the nines once again, but this time with masks! It was like a strange scene right out of a movie! We got to see opening ceremonies this time, which was so awesome! The room was filled with debutants once again! Each of them carried a balloon that they had to dance with! And then they had ballerinas from the opera house come and dance! Which was really super cool! After the opening ceremonies we walked around the Palace…haha yes, it was in the palace again! The rooms were the same for the most part again, jazz, swing, current music, and then there was what I called the “frat party room” because I felt like I was in a frat party only filled with people in dresses and tuxes! My friends and I danced away and had a blast! One of the coolest things was they did this HUGE line dance type thing in the main ballroom at midnight, when the women took their masks off! The room was sooo full! It reminded me of contra or line dancing! There was a woman on the mic calling out steps to do with the music, and every once and a while, people would sing along because they all somehow knew the chant? It was like a pre-choreographed dance scene from a movie! People here sure do know how to dance! The ball was a huge success and it was especially fun because it was the last big ball of the season! The ball season ends on fat Tuesday night at midnight, so that everything stops on ash Wednesday!
Side note: Fat Tuesday is called Fashings here! I think that is how to spell it, but I’m not exactly sure…anyways, it is the equivalent of fat Tuesday! They sell Kraphens!!! NOM!!! Kraphens are apricot filled doughnuts! They love apricots here! Normally, I am not a fan of mixing any sort of fruit with dessert, but I have to say, these are super delicious! They also have them in chocolate and vanilla flavors! YUMMY!!! Have I said how much I love the food here? Because I seriously do! Mostly the dessert, but isn’t that the only food that matters? According to the fine way that I was raised the answer is yes!
GIANT Ice skating rink!!!!!!!!
In the winter, they set up a HUGE ice skating rink in front of the Rathaus, which is the city hall. I mean, this thing is seriously gigantic!! It has paths going along the side and everything and then 3 big rinks in the front! And not only are people here serious dancers, but you better not get in their way when they are skating either! They WILL take you out! The skating was so much fun! They played fun music and my friends and I all skated around and had a blast!! Afterwards we got nutella crepes NOM and I tried a Viennese dessert, dough noodle shaped things with poppy seeds! Strange it sounds, and stranger it looks! It kinda looks like chocolate, but also kinda like a weird bug that Darwin forgot to write about. Poppy seeds, like fruits, randomly show up in desserts and especially bread based pastries here! So you have to be careful! This was a strange dessert, but now I know what noodly covered poppy seeds taste like! Open eyes!
In that same week, MY PARENTS CAME!!!!!!!!! It was sooooo amazingly wonderful to see them!!! I was just so soo SOOO excited!!!! I brought them Kraphens when they got here, since they came on fat Tuesday! I met them in their hotel and it was just so great! We hung out there for a while and sat, and then left to walk around and go get dinner at my favorite Italian restaurant! It was so weird seeing them in my current “hometown!” The next day they walked around Vienna some while I was in class! We did so many great touristy things while they were here and ate some super great food!! We walked allll around Vienna! And even went to Shonbrunn at sunset, which was beautiful!!! Shonbrunn is this beautiful palace home with HUGE gardens!! It is so crazy how right now it is in the middle of the city, when before when it was built it was completely open area since it was away from the main city ring! It was soo great to see them! I know that I keep saying that, but it was really so much fun! My parents left on Friday morning and then I went to BUDAPEST!!!!
I went to Budapest with my two friends Kristen and Kaitlin! We went via train on Friday and got all checked in and everything and went to bed early so that we could really hit the sightseeing hard the next day! The next day we covered EVERYTHING! We went to the Buda side, or the older side, and saw everything over there! We saw the castle, the parks, and even went in an underground maze old wine cellar! It was all super fun! It was soooo freaking beautiful! Just so stunning! And we could not have wished for better weather either! It just added to the wonderfulness of it all!! We also went to the House of Terror on Saturday, which gave me a new perspective on war and post war life in Hungry. If it is one thing that I have realized while being in Europe, is that the way things were after the war here were so different. I mean, I know I should have realized that in my head before because obviously the American soldiers came home. But for the people here, they went home to more destruction, political feuds, dictators, protests, more war. It was just a completely different environment here that we never realize or learn about since we were on the other side of things. So that was something that challenged me while I was in Budapest. All in all, the weekend was perfect and wonderful in every way! We had a great time, ate some great food, and saw some amazing sights! Success I would say!!!
Other happens:
IT’S GELATO SEASON!!!!!! Ok, so maybe I’m not in Italy, but the gelato here is seriously AMAZING!!! I had had some in the winter from a popular place, but boy when this new place opened up for season (they are closed in the winter) it was HAPPY HAPPY DAYS!!!! I went on opening day, of course, do you know me? And it seriously changed my perception of frozen treats! Even my friends who have been to Italy say that it is seriously amazing and comparable to the Italian gelato they had! NOM NOM NOMMM!!!
It is also WARMING UP HERE!!!! Sort of…I mean, nothing really comparable to the southern spring like I am used to right about now, but it’s getting there! I’ve started to wear my chacos outside J J happy day! Even though it is still kinda in the 40s, but hey, it’s sunny! If the sun is out, I am going to wear chacos!
Last Monday I went to Shonbrunn and walked all the way up to the pavilion on top of the hill and had a picnic with myself and admired the beautiful view while basking in the sun! I even fell asleep for a little bit! I can’t wait to go back when everything has bloomed! That is also the place where they host the Easter markets!! Which are going to be wonderful I know!
Last Wednesday was a fun night! I was going to go to a jazz club with some friends, but we ended up riding the citybikes, which are bikes you can check out for an hour for free! Awesome!!, around the Prater amusement park! The Prater, which is also host the most intense club place I have been to in Vienna thus far, also houses the oldest fairest wheel in Europe!! The amusement park was everything that I expected a strange park to be! There were oddly themed rides, fun houses, and creepy statues of circus people! Fun times indeed! J I had not ridden a bike in so long that it was just so much fun to ride one!!
Well, I could go on and write more, but I think it might bed time! Today has been a super long day! I had 2 midterms! YUCK! Other happenings to write on:
-soccer game
-Aida
-St. Patrick’s Day
-Previously listed things I didn’t talk about…opps…
In other news: I GET TO SEE PEOPLE THIS WEEK!!!!!!!!!!! My friend Kayla from camp is coming ON WEDNESDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have not seen her in 5 years!!! Should be awesome!! And my GRANDPARENTS are coming ON THURSDAY!!!! So much fun times!!! J
In other other news: I am so completely obsessed with Wien and living here and everything!! I just love love LOVE being here!! Still!!!
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