Hello again from Wien!
This past Friday my IES crew took a day trip out to the Austrian Alps in nearby town of Semmering to do a little hiking. After about a half mile of climbing directly up the side of the mountain, we finally found the trail we were supposed to be on (I blame Professor Stipsits, one of the Psychology professors here, but don't tell him I said that).
A week has passed since a very hectic arrival to Chile, complete with many delayed flights. Everyone is beginning to become more comfortable with the busy schedule we have planned for the next six weeks in Santiago.
What better way to jump back into life in America than going to a Cardinals Baseball game three hours after you landed from an overnight flight? As crazy as I may have been to come home and go straight to the ballpark I decided it was a better alternative than sleeping all day and moping around over the fact that I am no longer in South America and will not be gallivanting off on amazing adventures every weekend. I have also had the chance to do a lot of thinking over the past two weeks as I ended my South American journey backpacking in Peru.
Hello everyone and welcome to my blog! My name is Jennifer Fendt and I will be a senior at the George Washington University this fall. I am originally from a small town in South Jersey right outside of Philadelphia. I am so excited to be spending my summer in London this summer with IES!
Another few days have passed here in Vienna, full of adventures and visits to beautiful places!
Stephansdom (St. Stepehens) located in the heart of the city captured my attention first with its massive stature and strength. The cathedral towers over the city (literally! By Viennese law no building can be taller).
Time has been absolutely flying by - I can't believe it's already been a week since I landed here in Barcelona! Although the transition has not been easy, everyday it seems to get a lot better.
Barcelona is home to 1.6 million people whereas Chicago is home to 2.7 million people. However, I am strucken with awe at how big Barcelona is. Maybe it's because I don't know my way around yet, but being surrounded by the sea on one side and mountains on the other, Barcelona feels like a huge place and I am constantly getting lost.
Today's assignment has consisted mostly of packing enough clothes, books, and other miscellaneous items to keep me comfortable for the upcoming six weeks. I took some photos of the process, from moving everything into my sister's room to folding it all up and packing it into two suitcases. I'm already positive that I've overdone it, though, so I'll have to go through my things once more tonight and see what I can move around.
Okay, imagine you live in a city with around 30,000 residents that’s under siege. After several months, the enemy forces break through, rape every woman they can get their hands on, loot and break all valuables, and get drunk with the alcohol they find, and set the city on fire. At the end of the day, over 25,000 people have died in the inferno and at the hands of the invaders. For context, that’s all of Oklahoma State’s undergrad population dying in one day. Now imagine that happened 400 years ago and your city has since been rebuilt.