Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship

Elizabeth in Vienna

Finally Back in the USA!

I miss Wien (Vienna)!

Since I’ve been back in the U.S., I’ve kept in contact with many people I spent time with in Wien. Readjusting to the time difference has been the most difficult factor because I feel exhausted while everyone here thinks the day is still young, and then I am wide awake while everyone is sleeping. I would say I am in the stage of reverse culture shock that involves frustration and loneliness because my friends and family here don’t understand what I’ve experienced and how I’ve changed. It is astonishing yet frustrating how a student can leave their home for several months and build a new life elsewhere but without everyone they’ve always known. It is also frustrating because the closest friend I made in Vienna, Akilah, is about a 10-hour car ride away now, instead of a 40-ish minute train ride. It is easy to talk about Vienna with people here, but the more I talk about it, the more I wish I had spent the rest of my summer in Wien!

I absolutely miss Vienna’s reliable public transportation system. I miss the feeling of knowing I could get from point A to point B with little to no effort and with peace of mind.

 

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Nighttime view of the Danube River and the mountain-scape from the U2 U-bahn (subway).

 

I also miss the scenery and beautiful gardens. I miss the vibrant colors and the variations in each garden I visited while in Vienna. I firmly believe that a reliable public transportation system and well-kept recreational areas are great assets to a person’s quality of life.

 

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Akilah and I in Volksgarten!

 

Here in America, there seems to be an urgent need to be going to one place or the other, or to be completing a certain task. In Austria, people actually took their time to breathe and never seemed to be overwhelmed with any daunting tasks. That is something I brought back with me: I don’t necessarily feel it is important to be everywhere and doing everything.

The American food culture is also very different from Austria’s. I never felt the need to cook in bulk while I was there because I had a mini-refrigerator. My options were to either stop by the market and buy the ingredients to cook my meals or spend quality time with friends at a restaurant. The food was always fresh and the memories are unforgettable!

 

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Our final dinner together!

 

This fall concludes the final semester of my undergraduate studies at Purdue. I will be sharing my experiences abroad during the study abroad fairs in September, and I am super excited about that! I think my insights will influence students who are on the fence with their decision to study abroad. I am also looking forward to graduating in December. Some people say it seems like I have breezed through college, but I can say I have made the most of my undergraduate studies. I will be seeking employment opportunities within the field of agriculture, but I am open to any career that requires travel and the use of my global awareness and adaptability skills!

Bis bald, Wien.

 

Auer-Welsbach-Park

The entrance itself isn’t magnificent, but it has a way of making you feel larger than life. You aren’t quite sure which path to take or where they may take you. There’s the trail in the right corner, hidden by rows of trees. In your view is a small shack, but you can’t make out the graffiti painting on it.

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How mysterious, maybe I’ll take that way some other time, you think to yourself.

You gaze at the trail in the left corner where picnics are taking place. There’s even a swinging hammock tied between two large trees. Wow, some friends and I could definitely chill here for the day, you think to yourself. Then there’s the middle trail, and it appears to be the road that’s taken most frequently. It reveals every angle of the park. It leads directly to the children’s laughter, the quiet whispers of happy couples, and the quick pants of a restless dog. There’s a lot of temptation to follow that path. It almost draws you in and gives you no choice. I wonder where it leads to, you think to yourself. So you proceed.

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This is Auer-Welsbach-Park. There hasn’t been a time where I skipped running through this park during a run. I remember my first and last run through this park. The first time, I remember wondering where the path I was running on would lead to the entire time. Who would’ve known that it would wrap around and bring you in close proximity of Schönbrunn Palace? I was in for a pleasant surprise that day and actually ran past the palace gates to stop for a quick glance. It’s always beautiful and always busy.

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There’s also a daycare right in the middle of the park. There’s something about hearing children laughing and playing early in the morning that gives me life. It was the kick I needed to get back to the pace I started my run at. Although everything is vague after entering the park due to the tree leaves overshadowing many areas and the sky, there isn’t a time when you feel unsafe. From time to time, a police car drives along the middle path. It’s great to know that people put great effort into spending their leisure time at a park and to also know that their leisure time is being protected. It just makes the place more special. The last time I ran through the park, it started sprinkling but I could barely feel the raindrops because of the leaves. I didn’t get soaked until I ran out of the park, and I was tempted to turn around and take another lap.

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I think I appreciate this park just as much, if not more, than the locals that live in the area. It’s special because it doesn’t get as much tourist traffic as other places in Vienna. It’s only those who enter that understand its uniqueness.

 

Feeling Off Balance

“Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things – air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky – all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it.” – Cesare Pavese

I can definitely identify with the statement above in different ways. I think Cesare Pavese was trying to say that traveling can be a brutality when you’re unwilling to adapt to your new environment. My host university, BOKU (University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences) recently had an Easter break, and in a matter of three weeks I traveled to 12 cities in 6 countries. No, of course not alone! I traveled with two other girlfriends, and in order we traveled to: Bratislava, Slovakia; London, England; Paris, France (my favorite city in the world), Bergamo, Milan, Verona, Venice, Florence, Pisa in Italy, to the Vatican City and Rome in Italy, and finally Chania on the Crete Islands of Greece.

 

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Lots of colorful buildings in Venice!

 

Essentially, nothing was ours. We had the luxury of hostels and everything that was provided to us, but since we weren’t staying in each place for a long period of time, the only thing we could call our own were the adventures we had, the laughs we shared, and the foods we ate. Not necessarily the material things, but the essential things. Nothing actually felt like our own until we were compelled to visit a McDonald’s during our stay in Verona. We called it a safe haven. We didn’t know the hostel we chose to stay at didn’t have WiFi, and we still had assignments to complete for online classes and the need to communicate with our families which required internet access. Situations like this definitely threw me off balance and required that I become resilient, and recognize that life isn’t going to fall apart because I don’t have something I’ve had all of my life. I know I was a bit melodramatic when we were told that were going to be without WiFi for three days. Veritably, I got to know my two friends better than I expected during that time. Side note: don’t take internet access for granted!

 

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Holding the tower up.

 

I have more stories to share about my life experiences than I’ve ever had before. Each story is shocking, funny, and some, unbelievable. Our adventures include: eating a traditional English breakfast, visiting Kensington Palace, home of Prince William and Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton, riding a train underwater from London to Paris, going to the very top of the Eiffel Tower, eating a crepe every day in Paris because it felt like the Parisian thing to do, dancing in front of Le Louvre museum, seeing the Mona Lisa herself, spending Easter in Milan, rubbing the statue of Juliet from Shakepeare’s Romeo and Juliet for good luck (an Italian tradition), exploring different parts of the beautiful city of Venice, discovering my love for spaghetti with clams, holding the leaning Tower of Pisa upright, eating pasta and gelato every day because it felt like the Italian thing to do, visiting the smallest country in the world (Vatican City) and sitting through the hottest communion service just to see Pope Francis, having a beach for a backyard in Chania, and experiencing European humility like none other from the locals there.

 

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Gelato fever.

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After traveling to ten different cities and getting a feel of their different cultures, I can definitely say that Paris is my favorite city in the entire world. I’m not sure if it’s because my three years of high school French was finally useful, but I felt right at home from the second we arrived. I’m appreciative to have shared this unforgettable experience with now two lifelong friends.

 

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Beautiful views of Chania, Greece.

 

 

First Impressions of Vienna

“When are you going to start packing for studying abroad? You know you’re going to be there for 6 months. You need to start now.” That’s what my mom said about a month before my date of departure to Vienna, Austria. I laughed and told her my plans for the next couple of weeks, then went on about my business. Boy, was she right! Funny pre-departure story: I cried from the moment I arrived at the airport until I boarded the plane. Serious tears, not crocodile tears. I wasn’t crying because I was going to miss my parents or home, or for any of the usual leaving-home-for-a-long-time reasons. I cried because I forgot to grab my winter coat. Yes, my winter coat, of all things. I think the stress and sleep deprivation from packing was the cause. I mean, after unpacking and repacking three times in a matter of five days, all while juggling an online class, I learned my lesson the hard way.  The good news is that the journey to Austria was a memorable one, and I survived without my winter coat.

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Representing the Gilman Scholarship Program while waiting for my flight to depart.

 

Since the first day I arrived in Austria, I keep thinking Vienna is massive! (Compared to my hometown of Indianapolis, Indiana.) When I tell the people who live here how big I think the city is, we always end up agreeing to disagree. My initial thought about Vienna is that the number of people on the streets do not amount to the number of apartment buildings in the city. There are so many buildings, and no two buildings look alike.

 

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Nearby apartment buildings.

 

I’d say the size of Vienna is comparable to New York City or Chicago, but the discomfort of walking through those cities just isn’t here. I say discomfort because if you’ve ever visited New York City or Chicago, you just can’t escape bumping into a couple of people or getting lost in a huge crowd. I believe the fact that Vienna is separated into 22 districts is the reason it feels less populated. Every district I’ve been in also varies in the vibe it gives off. One may feel urban while another feels more suburban. I live in District 22 near the Schonbrunn Palace, and I’d describe it as a busy but relatively quiet district. It’s lined with cafes, local markets, restaurants, and art galleries (recent discovery)!

 

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Art from the gallery that is a 5 minute walk away from me.

 

The way Vienna is set up makes it unique and breathtaking, and excites me more than any city I’ve ever visited. There’s a thrill in knowing that I won’t ever be bored because on top of my classes, there will always a new place to visit, or a different restaurant to try out. I love the city life!

 

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Traditional Austrian schnitzel with fries. Yum!

 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE BUREAU OF EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL AFFAIRS

The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program is a program of the U.S. Department of State with funding provided by the U.S. Government and supported in its implementation by the Institute of International Education (IIE).

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