One Final Week in Vienna, Austria

My semester abroad studying in Vienna, Austria was truly unforgettable—and suddenly very short. While I was studying for my finals, taking care of things around my apartment, and taking leisurely strolls around the wonderful city I had spent the last four months coming to know and love, my last week came upon me without notice, and I realized there was a lot I still wanted to do, eat, and see. I'm not one for a checklist of goals, but it was time to make sure I wouldn't leave Vienna with any regrets (though, I wouldn't have anyways). Together with my dear friends—new and old—we conquered our last week with unforgettable memories, love and laughter-filled moments, and satisfaction even in heartbreaking departure. Here's what we did in our last few days, including some Viennese and Austrian experiences I highly recommend!

Samstag, 02.05

To begin my final week, I wanted to have one special final outing with my apartment, as they were vital to my enjoyment and success this semester, and were truly wonderful to live with. We made a reservation to have a farewell brunch at Vollpension, a very special bakery where Omas (grandmas) bake the cakes fresh every day! Vollpension is a truly wonderful establishment that helps connect generations over delicious baked goods and support older bakers!

After a delicious brunch surrounded by wonderful Omas and housemates, my roommate and I went wandering to some local thrift stores (a favorite activity of ours) before meeting with our other friends from our home school (who we were lucky enough to study abroad with this semester!) to take a walk around the beautiful gardens at the Belvedere palace. Since it was a Saturday, we realized we did not plan very well by not buying tickets to see the Belvedere Museum ahead of time...so we missed out on seeing Klimt's famous The Kiss and other wonderful works...oops! But, the afternoon was not spoiled—the weather was lovely, and the gardens were truly beautiful.

From here, we departed to pack and study...but that wasn't it for the night! Vienna's Gartenbaukino was showing Before Sunrise (1995), an American film that was shot in Vienna! My dear friends, my Language Buddy, and one new friend we made this semester all went to go see it! It was so fun (and heartbreaking), and we recognized so many of the film's shots! Afterwards, we went to get gelato and döner—a classic pairing for us. Our new friend had yet to see the the gorgeous Votivkirche light up at night, so obviously we had to go resolve this. It was a beautiful sight on a beautiful night to close a beautiful day!

Sonntag, 03.05

While I absolutely love exploring the city with my dear friends (new and old), I wanted a day to myself to explore and catch up on creative hobbies before my time in Vienna came to a close. In scouring for what to do in and around the city, I came across the Klosterneuberg Mittelalterfest—a short train ride from the city to indulge in what is essentially a Renaissance festival with live music, historic demonstrations and entertainment, handmade goods, and delicious food! Klosterneuberg was beautiful with a fantastic view, even without the presence of the whimsical Mittelalterfest, so I do recommend a short trip sometime! 

When I got back to sweet Vienna, I spent the rest of my evening painting, junk journaling, and finishing up making some gifts for some of the dear friends I was so lucky to meet and make over the semester!

Montag, 04.05

Despite my creative efforts over the course of Sunday evening, I was still far from done with my creative endeavors. Since I had no finals today, I took the day to junk journal some more, finish more paintings and gifts, and of course make some time to finish up some music editing for my Music Research Internship! Junk journaling is a new hobby I picked up this semester, as recommended by my lovely housemate. It consists of taking "junk", usually paper waste like receipts, informational pamphlets, (clean) food wrappers, etc. and arranging them in, you guessed it, a journal, as a way to organize and reflect on the places you've been! I love this practice—it's a fun, non-demanding way to get creative and to create a sort of scrapbook of your expeditions and outings!

Dienstag, 05.05

On Tuesday, my dear roommate and I started our day getting delicious döner from the first place we ate at in Vienna, just before heading to their tattoo appointment! They got a tattoo based on the musical conducting pattern for 4/4 that I designed! (Don't worry, we've been close friends for many years now, and they spent a long time deliberating what to get and where—not a recipe for disaster!)

After this exciting excursion, we met up with our other friends from school back home to go see...a production of Carmen at Vienna's Volksoper! I cannot recommend the Volksoper enough—they're creative, fantastic, and the student upper gallery seats are cheap, with an amazing view! If you're unsure about going to see an opera, they have small screens above the stage with lyrics in German and English! It was a fantastic production and a fresh take on a classic opera—a truly wonderful night in Vienna!

Mittwoch, 06.05

Wednesday morning marked my final for Film Music, which was a great class that I was almost sad to finish! After this, my dear friends from school back home met up once again to finally go to...Prater! This whimsical, old-fashioned theme park in Vienna did not disappoint. We only went on 3 rides, but the atmosphere was amazing and like stepping into another time. One absolutely unmissable attraction is the Vienna Giant Ferris Wheel—the world's oldest ferris wheel! The price is a bit more than the other rides, but the time on the wheel is appropriately long and slow, and you get to see over the city. I also loved riding the Lililputbahn—a cutesy mini open-air train that can take you across the whole park! Yes, maybe it's aimed at kids, but as a train-lover, this was honestly so so fun.

Prater was great, but the day didn't end there. One of my friends wasn't feeling so well and offered me his ticket to see Salome at the historic Staatsoper! If you're hoping for a more traditional opera-going experience, Staatsoper is the place to be. But don't worry, they also have captioning available! The show was amazing, and I finally felt as though I was reaching a fulfilling point of show-going and music-listening in the City of Music!

Donnerstag, 07.05

On Thursday, I spent the day with my Language Buddy as one of our last meetings :( We started the day meeting with my friend for a brunch at Café Propeller, a sweet and delicious place to start our expedition! From here, we did one of our classic outings: exploring thrift stores and stopping at a café for a sweet treat. This time, we went shopping at 48er-Tandler, which was huge! We then went to a great all-vegan café in the 18th district: Das Lazy! Why might we have traveled so far, you might ask? Well, when you think of Vienna, you might not think of bowling...and yet, there was a great bowling alley just around the corner: Plus Bowling Alley! It was classic American bowling, complete with a bar, pool tables, and food ready to order. I had a backup plan ready to go simply because I wasn't sure my Language Buddy would've been all that interested in bowling, but we played four games, and they smoked me every time...so ist das Leben!

To end the day, I met my parents as they landed in Vienna! They stayed with me for the last few days and the weekend after my program ended. I took them to the best döner place in Vienna: Ugis! They have unbeatable vegetarian and vegan options, and some of the best sauces I've ever tasted. Protip: Ugis also sells 100 blumen, a delightful beer brewed locally in Vienna!

Freitag, 08.05

Friday marked my final final...German! It went great, and right after, I headed off to the IES Vienna Farewell Bash at... the Vienna City Beach Club, right on the beautiful New Danube! The food, drinks, and ice cream were great, and IES Vienna even set up a little photobooth for everyone! While I didn't opt in for swimming, it was great to say goodbye to my dear friends, and even some of my professors. The weather and the view was absolutely lovely!

From here on, it was a lot of packing, sorting, and cleaning...until a lovely dinner that I orchestrated for my dear friends, my Language Buddy, and my parents! One of my all-time favorite memories about Vienna is actually seeing above the city, so I had to put something together for everyone else to experience it too. For dinner, we took a sweet little hike up Kahlenberg to a delightful heuriger, Mayer am Nussberg! The view was lovely, the wine was great, and the food was a nice treat to close off the day (and the week). The best part of the night, however, and undoubtedly one of my new favorite memories, was the hike down with my friends as the sun set over the city. The laughter was loud, the view was incredible, and our hearts (and stomachs) were delightfully full.

Samstag, 09.05

And so, my time with IES Vienna had ended... on Friday, I said my goodbyes to my dear friends who would be leaving on tim e, while I stayed with my parents for just a few days more. And so, I spent one of my last full days in Vienna showing my parents around the city I came to know and love before I went solo-venturing in my host city one last time. I gave them a tour of the historic first district after we had breakfast and the delicious Café Mozart! We shared some traditional Viennese breakfasts (and I introduced them to Holundersaft; soda with elderflower syrup!) and some delectable cakes.

After I tired my parents out with a tour, I solo ventured to one of the last parks I had wanted to see: the beautiful Türkenschanzpark in the 18th district. The greenery and waterfalls were lovely and the atmosphere was a perfectly quiet way to wrap up my time in busy Vienna. To truly wrap up the night, though, I took my parents back to the first district for a live-music-filled dinner at Zwölf Apostelkeller, a truly lively and warm restaurant and heuriger in a historic cellar! The night was lovely, and I could not think of a better way or a better day to wrap up my time in this lovely city.

The End...

While I was absolutely heartbroken to realize my time in Vienna was coming to an end, I truly could not have asked for better people and better experiences to wrap up my time with. The last week can feel scary, daunting, and stressful, but I highly recommend making time for some new, familiarly loved, and relaxing experiences to finish your time abroad with. In the midst of packing, studying, and preparing to go back home, there's nothing better than good food, good friends, and lovely parks, cafés, bowling alleys, or what have you.

Dear Vienna, thank you for a perfect final week. You have my whole heart. Until we meet again,

Riley <3