Day 3

So this morning I wanted to go to BIPA, a cosmetics and toiletry store for women, to get some things I forgot at home. As I was walking down the street I realized that all the stores were closed and decided to to exploring instead! To my delight though, Starbucks was open so I got a drink and a scone to go. I took this time to walk down the street as far as I could go and just take in as much as I possibly could. One thing that stood out to me the most is how much people here will stare at you, and the guys are not subtle AT ALL when checking me out! I was really uncomfortable with it in the beginning but now I just find it funny and flattering. One thing I learned was just to embrace the awkwardness :)

I finally made it back after an hour and 30mins of walking and my friend Andreas called me to get together with him and a few other girls from the program in Stephansplatz. This is a very busy area of the city and very tourist-y but it was nice to sit out in the middle of the square with my first frankfurter (hot dogs with a slice of bread and dijon honey mustard) and bottle of beer! It is so weird to be allowed to drink alcohol here, and in public, too! I do not plan on abusing this privelage but it is another way of experiencing the Viennese culture. Besides, people here don't use alcohol as a way to get wasted (in most cases), but see it as a social thing to do. I actually agree more with the European policy on alcohol than I do the United States'. The drinking age starts at 16 and the driving age starts at 18. The reasoning behind this is that by the time drinkers reach driving age, they will be over the "getting wasted" stage and driving drunk becomes a lot less common here than it is in America. In addition, if someone here gets caught driving intoxicated, their drivers lisence is revoked for life. I say that would solve a lot of problems with deaths due to drunk driving in the United States.

Back on track here. As we were walking around Stephansplatz, there were a good handful of musicians on the street including a cellist!!This was quite the treat as he was playing some Vivaldi Sonatas with a recorded accompinament. I must say this guy was amazing! Its not very often (specially in the US) that you find street musicians at this level, his sound just made my heart melt! I think I was more consumed by the fact that I wanted to play his cello really REALLY badly! On top of it just having a gorgeous sound I haven't been able to practice the past couple days (due to not having my cello yet of course!) and it's been driving me nuts! I hope I don't suck by the time I have my lesson on Tuesday :)

Anyways, after having some authentic tirimisu from an Italian cafe on an outdoor patio, I headed back home and had a few good laughs with my host parents. They are a hoot! It's so nice to come back from an area with people who won't even so much as smile at you, to people you can just have a good time with :)

That was my day today, pretty laid back but I am super excited to start classes tomorrow!

<3 Brooke