Before coming to Granada, I researched the heck out of Spain, places to visit, how the culture would be, and compiled a huge list of things to expect before I even arrived. Throughout my dedicated googling, something that came up several times was a diagram outlining the highs and lows of homesickness and other emotions during a typical study abroad semester. I found it fascinating and tried to drill it into my head so that I would be well prepared when each of the listed phases happened to me during my time in Spain. The thing is, that’s not how it happened at all. 

For the intro and day 1 of my tramp, check out part 1 of this post! For those of you who have stuck around for part 2, here it is…

Day 2: (14.6 km, 9 miles)

I grew up in a mountainous area called the Black Hills, at an elevation a little over 5,300 ft. Those mountains are a granite-y, pine tree-d gem in the rolling Midwest prairie, and I have them to thank for inspiring my first tramps and my interest in the outdoors. I will always consider them my beautiful home, but after seeing the mountains in New Zealand, I’m not sure I can still call the Black Hills “mountains”.

I had heard of Cotopaxi and all its fame before even realizing it was in Ecuador. Maybe the brand with the same name is partly at fault for that, but it has long been on my bucket list nevertheless. I was bummed when I arrived in Ecuador and learned that the national park surrounding the volcano has been closed due to the volcano blowing ash, and crossed my fingers that eventually in the semester I’d have the chance to go. That chance came during the first day of our mid-semester break, when three other friends and I decided to stop by Cotopaxi on our way south. 

One of the reasons I wanted to study in Europe so badly is that as a kid, I lived for a couple years outside of Munich, Germany. I was young enough that I don’t remember most of my time there, but sometimes I will have random feelings of nostalgia…. usually in grocery stores. This post will explore nostalgia through the lense of popular Central European snacks. 

Vienna is such a great place to be a musician. The city lives and breathes music, with many major concert and opera houses. One of my favorite things to do is to grab standing room tickets to the opera and go after class. I see whatever show happens to be playing that night. With the Bundestheater card, I can get standing tickets for only 4 euro. Everyone who has a residency in Vienna is eligible for this card, and the discounts apply to all sorts of performances around the city. I highly recommend it if you find yourself living in Vienna.