Upon exiting the Vienna airport for the first time, I found myself having to navigate a city where everything—from street signs to menus—was in a language that I did not speak. At the time, I could barely say hello in German (it’s just "hallo"), let alone communicate directions to my Uber driver. What had I expected? I had consciously decided to study abroad in a German-speaking country. If, like me, you’ve had no exposure to German, I'm here to remind you that you shouldn't let this deter you from studying abroad in Austria.

One great part of my experience so far is the cultural events that are set up for by IES Abroad, which I think have been largely underrated by my peers (though this is quickly changing). I’m not sponsored to say this, but these trips have been really awesome. For example, a few weekends ago, I was fortunate enough to go on the planned overnight excursion in Normandy. There was a solid waitlist for this trip, so I’m happy I was able to be there. 

While there are endless marvels to discover in Rome, my peers and I have made frequent journeys outside the city. In such a well-connected urban center with reliable regional trains, it's easy to explore the surrounding areas of Italy, if even just for the day. In this blog post, I'll detail some easy trips that I highly recommend.