Day 18: May 31st, The Beginning of The End

All great things must come to an end, and the end must always begin somewhere. The end of my time of Vienna been when I opened my suitcase and started packing. For me that symbolizes the end of an amazing trip that I will remember for the rest of my life. Even though this day is the beginning of the end for me, I am not going out without a fight. So on this peaceful Thursday  decided to do two things: go to a going away party for some students I had meet, and attend the Summer Concert for the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. After all before I left for Vienna I was told by my music majors that it wouldn't be a trip to Vienna without seeing a classical concert (so a free concert in the park seemed like an obvious idea). Before that though I went to the going away party for the girls I share my host house with. They had been really sweet to me while we stayed together so I really wanted to go and support them. It was interesting for me to go and see some cult differences in person with the idea of swimming and different foods that are traditional. With swimming it was seen more as a way to relax and cool off than exercise (which is really the same for many Americans it just seemed different with them). The food was first off incredible and second really kind of interesting. IT was amid of things we had and things I would never expect at a pool party. For instance in Austria some people eat radishes whole, a bit like an apple. They also included many foods I would consider fancy dinner foods like a cheese board, bread, and sausages. I really had a good time talking to the adults about different topics, including making a great game plan for the concert. I enjoyed all the food and learning more about Austrian culture. Sadly I had a concert to catch so I hurried off to catch a train (which ended up being a bus) to get a good spot for the concert.

I really would like to put in words how amazing the concert was, but I don't think I can do it justice. To start there were a large number of people there I honestly felt like I was a t a football game in America with all the excitement and competing for the best spot. The wait for the concert was also really exhausting since i had to stand for two plus hours just to have a good spot. Luckily I made some friends with some girls from Quebec in Canada who had just started working as doctors there. They were very nice and we talked a lot about traveling, cultures, and the excitement for the concert. Once the concert began all the pain of standing and waiting was immediately worth it. I could have stayed for just one song and have been satisfied, the music was that beyond amazing. The lights that lit up Schonbrunn Palace beautifully and expertly set the mood for the different songs. In a way this concert was a lot like how the Super Bowl is to us. I even saw a bar playing the concert on TV (the concert was broadcasted live to city). I could feel the love for music all around, every bit of pain of standing was worth the beauty of that evening. It will definitely be a stand out in my memories of Vienna. Even now as I look back I start to pick out special moments. There are so many great experiences I have had here, and I don't regret a minute of this trip. Some stand outs are really the whole week in the Alps, exploring museums in Vienna, and really just learning Vienna as a city. Learning how to get places fast, where good food it, how to find cheap bathrooms, even the not as glamorous moments of walking through the city to get from one place to the next. With each moment I could just admire and wonder about the city and its stories. I get quite sad with the thought of leaving, I have really fallen in love with the city. I hope someday I can return, still there are a free days left, and I tend to make the most of them. Until next time!