Innsbruck, Winnsbruck

Being the queens of spontaneity, Molly and I made a last minute decision to join some of our friends (Becca, Cheney, Ben, Serena, Alex, Taylor and Emily) on a hiking adventure in the Alps in west Austrian town of Innsbruck. We headed to the train station at 6 am, and were off for the day!

After 7 hours on the train due to a little scheduling mishap, we ended up in Innsbruck, and man is that place amazing. The streets are beautiful, and you’re surrounded by the Austrian alps everywhere you turn. We dropped off our stuff, got some food, and headed up a mountain. We’re not quite sure what mountain, or if it was actually a hiking trail, but we made the most of it and carved our own path. It was pretty incredible, considering we got views like:

It was starting to get dark, so a few kept hiking, and some of us stayed back and hung out at a Heuriger we happened upon. It was the opening day of the restaurant, which meant free beer and lots of smiles. It got cold so we went inside and somehow got roped into sitting with a group of about 20 old Austrians singing American oldies. Saying they were plastered would be a bit of an understatement, and I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed something so entertaining in my entire life. I was also hit on by the 70 something year old mayor of Innsbruck, so that’s one for the record books. After we bid the gang farewell, we trekked down the mountain with nothing but moonlight (and okay, maybe iPhone flashlights) guiding us.

We got back into town, ate some dinner, and then unfortunately Molly and I had to head back to Vienna. I wish we had gotten to stay a bit longer. Once again, Austria proves itself to be stunningly beautiful, beyond anything I could have ever possibly imagined.

Small World –- Wouldn’t Want to Paint It: Tales from Istanbul, Mykonos, and Athens

In the middle of September, I set out with my two good friends – Patrick and Derrek – for a 10-day adventure to Turkey and Greece. A few days prior, our program coordinator had sent us an email saying to avoid places with protests, namely Turkey and Greece. Off to a great start already! I guess we were better off than our original plans to go to Syria and Egypt.

We landed on the Asian side of Istanbul and trekked to the European side. We walked down a slightly sketchy street to get to our apartment, but once we were there it was really nice!

The next morning, we experienced our first Turkish breakfast, and headed into the old city.

In the first morning, we saw everything from the New Mosque to the Grand Bazaar and Spice Market. It was most certainly an overwhelming experience, but it was mind-boggling. After accidentally happening upon a South Korean hip hop performance, we went to the Aya Sofya, which to this day I cannot wrap my mind around. When everyone talks about Istanbul they talk about the fusion of East-West, old and new, and various religions, and being inside the Aya Sofya really brought that juxtaposition to life.

I had posted a picture to facebook from Istanbul, and turns out my cousin Hannah was there as well! She’s crazy cool – lived and studied all over, and just full of life. She took us to a tea garden, to a hip rooftop bar, and then to try kokores – also known as lamb intestines. Surprisingly delicious!

On the second day, we say Topkapi palace and a beautiful view of the entire city. Afterwards we met up with Kate Cyr, one of my closest friends from high school and Emory. She’s studying abroad in Istanbul for the semester, so was able to give us a local’s perspective on the Blue Mosque, and the city in general. That evening, I had one of the strangest experiences of my life: the Turkish bath. We were picked up at our apartment in an unmarked car, brought to the bath, stripped down, and long story short: was washed by a VERY large basically naked Turkish woman. I think I’m still in shock – but hey, once in a lifetime experience! That night, we walked past a decently sized protest. Our avoidance mechanism? Go get baklava and try again later. Not complaining.

For our last full day in Istanbul, we went to the Basilica Cistern, and explored some of the cities obscure museums. Naturally, we finished the day with baklava and kebab. That night, we stayed with my cousins – Rafael and Deborah who live in a beautiful house overlooking the entire city.

After a few wonderful days in Istanbul, we headed out to Mykonos – one of the Greek islands. When we got there, we walked into town and got dinner and enjoyed some wine by the ocean. I really could get used to this life.

The next day, we took our scooters around the island. We saw some incredibly beautiful beaches, and spent the day reading and relaxing in the sun. There’s really nothing more to report, and I’ve got no qualms with that. That evening when we went out, we met some other college kids from the US and Israel, and spent the evening with them!

The next morning, we headed to the Old Port of Mykonos. Instead of taking a cab, we somehow ended up on the back of a small truck. Once again, all for the experience, right? We arrived in Athens a few hours later, checked into our hostel, and explored a bit. For our full day in Athens we went to the Parthenon, saw ruins on ruins on ruins, and met up with one of Patrick’s friends from Tufts. We ate gyros, and they were the most delicious things I’ve ever experienced.

Unfortunately, the trip had to come to an end – but everything had gone too smoothly. Naturally, when we got to the airport, the airline had lost my flight. I was thankfully able to get a ticket back, but not without a headache and some unkind words exchanged. But once again – all part of the experience!

Thanks so much to Patrick and Derrek for making Turkey and Greece such an awesome experience. And by that I mean, the places were awesome, the company could have been better.

As always, “I wouldn’t say no….”

Cheers!

Buda buda buda buda rockin’… in Hungary.

The last weekend of September I went to visit my good friend Harlan in Budapest, Hungary! I am Hungarian and had never been, so I was beyond thrilled when I got the chance to visit.

(Harlan and I overlooking Budapest!)

The visit was too short, but absolutely amazing. Harlan is the best tour guide I could ever ask for. In just one and a half days, we managed to go to Heroes Square, Andrasay, the Great Synagogue, St. Stephens, the Castle Distrcit, Bastian, Chain Bridge, the Holocaust Memorial, and Szimpla Kert.

I could go on and on about how great Budapest was, but there are a few experiences that really stood out:

• The Holocaust Memorial. It is a line of shoes overlooking the Danube to show where Jews had been shot into the water. If you didn’t know it was a memorial, you would have had no idea what you were seeing. To me, it was simple and profound. It showed how we conduct our everyday lives but there will always be an element of history that has been changed by such a travesty. This also made going to the Great Synagogue so transformative as well.
• Szimpla Kert. Szimpla (also known as my new favorite place in the world) is a communist ruin bar in the middle of Budapest, and is consistently ranked one of the best bars on the planet – and for good reason. It was ridiculous. The bartenders walked around selling carrots. There were lights and switchboards. There were so many people speaking so many different languages and just having a grand ol’ time, I couldn’t help but love it. I also happen to randomly meet someone who knew a good friend of mine from school back in the states.

(Photo: inside Szimpla Kert)

And of course, most importantly – THE FOOD. A duck, gnocchi soup for less than $4? Yes please.

Thanks so much to Harlan and all of his awesome friends (Sasha, Andrew, Jesse, Marissa, and anyone else I may have forgotten!) for welcoming me into your awesome city for the weekend.

All the best!

Hvala, Croatia!

The weekend of November 15, I headed down to Croatia to visit one of my best friends, Alyssa Baron. Alyssa is a fantastic gal, and we’ve been friends ever since 9^th grade. She’s studying abroad in Dubrovnik for the year, so I figure I’d hit two birds with one stone: visit one of the most beautiful places in the world, and see one my good friends. Not a bad deal, right?

Once I landed in Croatia, I exchanged currencies (since they just became a member of the EU, they still use the Kuna, not the euro!) and headed out into Dubrovnik. After I met Alyssa at Pile gate, the night was a blur of introductions and French fries. So not a bad start.

The next morning, Alyssa made it her mission to blow my mind with Croatia’s beauty, and damn did she do a good job. We went to Buza, which was a beautiful cliff type thing that you have to walk through a hole in the city wall to get to. Side note: Dubrovnik’s Old City is entirely surrounded by a wall, and it makes it feel like you’re walking in a castle. Game of Thrones was even shot there! Also, the cobblestone of the city is really slick, which is excellent for sliding in socks – fun fact. We spent time in the sun, jumped off a cliff into the freezing water – you know, the usual.

After Buza, we spent the day looking for sea glass on the beach. It was one of the most relaxing experiences I’ve had in a long time. Not only was it incredible that it was warm enough to swim in the middle of November, but it was so different than any of the other places in Europe I’ve gotten to experience. Whenever I’ve visited any other cities, it’s expected that you see the entire city, and do all the tourist activities. In Dubrovnik, the name of the game was to relax and enjoy life, which was so refreshing.

That evening, we went to a Croatian water polo game, where we saw Dubrovnik destroy Zagreb. Not that any of us knew what was happening, but it was awesome nonetheless. After the game, we went back to Alyssa’s apartment and met the two couch-surfers she was hosting – Jordon and Lachlan. They singlehandedly confirm every stereotype of Australians being bat-shit-crazy, but absolutely awesome.Eventually, after running around like crazy, we ended up swimming in the sea at 2 in the morning, and that was easily the most fun thing I’ve done in Europe.

The next day, we did a lot of the same: relaxing on the beach. I’m not complaining. We found a new hangout spot on the other side of town down a huge set of stairs. The four of us jumped off the 10-meter cliff a few times, we went swimming, and attempted to watch the sunset (that was eventually blocked by clouds). It was one of my favorite days in Europe: we listened to hipster music, and were relaxing in one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. We went back to Alyssa’s apartment, and I cooked dinner for everyone, and helped Alyssa complete her unexpected apartment move.

Shout-out to Alyssa’s friends – Shantel, Tiffany, Sophia, Caitlin, Monica, Makenzie (and any others I may have forgotten) – for making Dubrovnik such an incredible experience. Can’t wait to see where our paths cross in the future!

Cheers!

An Austrian Thanksgiving, and “Skiing” in the Alps

This year was the first time that I wasn’t with my family back in the States for Thanksgiving, which I thought was going to make me feel a bit homesick. However, I made sure to make the most of it by seeing this as another opportunity to make Vienna my own.

Wednesday – the evening before Thanksgiving, happen to be the first night of Hannukah. What’s a girl to do besides invite 15 people over to have latkes? Besides the fact that my apartment smelled like an oil factory for the next week and a half, it was a blast. The whole crew came over (Eddye, Maya, Becca, Rabia, Steph, Meghan, Sweeney, Grant, Andrew, and Eric) to light the candles, listen to music, and of course, discuss colorblindness. All in a night’s work. Some of our Israeli friends joined us, too, which really added to the festiveness! After cleaning up, Anna, Steph and I went to a bar in Schwedenplatz called “Look Bar” with our Israeli friends, got some drinks, and had great conversation. One of my favorite parts about Europe are the incredible people you meet – I randomly started talking to the guys at the table next to us, turned out they were from all over (Italy, Russia, Indonesia) and were just living and working in Vienna. That kind of stuff always makes me happy.

On Thursday, everyone was flat out silly and really excited for Thanksgiving. My good friend, Harlan, who is studying abroad in Budapest and his beautiful mom and sister (hey Jen and Charlotte!), came into Vienna for the weekend. Since I was going on the ski trip the next day, I wanted to show them as much of Vienna as possible while I was there with them. I met them at their hotel, took them to Palmenhaus (my favorite café in Vienna – beautiful window ceiling and the whole place is engulfed in plants), Schönbrunn Palace, Rathaus Christmas Market, and more. Naturally, we ate a lot. It was a freezing day, but I’m still so glad they got a chance to see the city.

That evening, IES put on a beautiful Thanksgiving to make all us Americans feel right at home, even though we were thousands of miles away. We boarded a bus and headed to Baden (a town right outside of Vienna) to a Heuriger which is a traditional Austrian wine-tavern. There was turkey, mashed potatoes, and pie galore! I sat with Molly, Ben, Anna, Rabia, Maya and Becca. We had a really incredible deep conversation about who we are as people, and what makes us happy. It was one of those moments that just made me truly thankful (not to sound cliché) to be exactly where I was at that very moment in time. It’s friends like these that really make this world an incredible place.

Since it was the second night of Hanukah, I lit the candles for everyone, and gave a speech. It started off with me doing the classic “hey, for those of you who I haven’t met, I’m Orli. I’m the one who looks like she’s sitting down but is actually standing.” Always a crowd pleaser. I then started talking with a brief history of Hanukah, and how it’s a holiday that celebrates the unknown, uncertain, and going farther than we ever thought we could — which pertains directly to our experiences abroad. And the shamash is used to ignite the flame and the spark, so thanks to my new family for doing that for me. Aaaaand prayer. Then, I got out of the way for the real talent to perform. Maya sang a few songs; including one that she wrote for her adorable nephew, and damn is that girl amazing. What an honor to be friends with someone that talented. As the night wound down, we boarded the busses and went back to Rupps and to sleep shortly after – thanks food coma!

 

Happy happy happy! With the best: Andrew, Maya, Ben and Becca! 

Skiing – let the adventure begin:

 The day after thanksgiving we embarked for our ski trip to Kaprun, about 5 hours west of Vienna. Even on the drive over you could tell it was going to be gorgeous. So we rented our ski stuff, got to the hotel, ate dinner, played some games, and then went to bed.

The next day, we bundled up, and set off early for the slopes. A bunch of us had never skied before, so Mikey gave a beginner lesson. I was REALLY good at going fast, not so much at any other part of it. We went up to the blue slope, and I started zooming down, and didn’t know hit stop, so just collapsed. Then some guy comes up to me and the conversation goes as follows:

“Do you speak English?”
“A little bit”
“You are a CRAZY person”

After that, I kept falling, getting frustrated, but it was actually just awesome. After making it down that hill we went in for lunch, then went up to the “top of Salzburg” at 3029 meters, and had the most gorgeous view imaginable. We then skied down the bunny slope, but the fog was so terrible that we had to stop and head down. Climbing back up the hill to get to the lift down was a whole other situation. We loaded up, and headed back to the busses. That evening was the birth of Bennett’s infamous “I’m a baller on a budget” line, which he will never be able to live down.

The next day skiing was much better! Maddi, Anna and I started off on the bunny slope up top and went down a few times and that was smooth sailing. We then went all the way down to the alpine lodge from the top — we took a red & I only fell once. Thanks so much to Amalia and Jenna for helping us out! It was painful, terrifying, frightening, but I felt on top of the freaking world after it. We headed into the lodge, hung out, and went back down to the busses.

I’ve never felt so exhausted – but man had it been a good few days. 

When in Wien.

When people ask why I chose to come to Vienna, I usually give some sort of fluffy answer about arts, exploration, and all that jazz. Honestly, it was the last day to decide if I was going abroad, and this one looked good. Then I realized, years of Billy Joel obsession was to blame. “Vienna waits for you” was probably running through my mind as I was making the decision.

Life in Vienna has been daunting, to say the least – but not for the reasons I had originally anticipated. When I began to settle into the city, I started thinking “this little old town has been a metropolis of culture, arts, economics, and general wonderfulness for hundreds of years – holy moly – how can I ever keep up?” Then I began to realize: the objective of being abroad is not to experience the Vienna, but experience my Vienna. Instead of forcing experiences upon myself, I am trying to let them happen organically, and that has created some pretty wonderful memories so far. 

Some of my highlights thus far include:

Finding some awesome swing dancing (and if you didn’t expect that from me, then I don’t think we’ve ever met. I’m Orli, hi).

Attending Rosh Hashanah services at the only temple in Vienna to survive WWII. At first, I thought it was going to be a very traditional orthodox service, but when an opera style a cappella group started singing, those previous expectations were clearly disregarded.

These experiences have been inspiring in so many ways, but mostly because it reinforces my thoughts on universality. I genuinely believe that no matter where you go, you will be able to find a community, a niche, and find something that makes that place connect beyond the superficial level. Throughout my life, swing dance and Judaism have been two essential links, and I was overjoyed that they came into play here as well.

Some other amazing experiences that I’ve had so far:

• Schönbrunn Palace – my new favorite place in the world. Beautiful gardens, you can see the entire city of Vienna, and random jazz concerts. Not too shabby, if you ask me.

• Traveling to Bratislava, Slovakia for the day – the concept of hopping on a train for less that $20 round trip and being able to go to another country is absolutely mind-boggling.

• Stadtpark – literally translating to “City Park” is the equivalent of New York’s central park. It is beautiful, wonderful, and where I like to bum around with a book, some friends, and a deck of cards.
• Der Wiener Deewan – the definition of happiness. It’s a pay what you want, eat what you want Pakistani food place (very similar to Indian food), and has board games. So allow me to repeat – board games and Pakistani buffet. THIS IS ME IN A NUTSHELL. And they have stickers that they give out, so that’s another important component of Orli.
• Learning German. We haven’t started classes yet, because our days have been filled with 3 hours of intensive German. While this can be extremely exhausting and simultaneously frustrating, I’m amazed as to how much we’ve learned, and the passion that my instructor has for making sure we understand the language so that we can experience Austria to the fullest.
• Zanoni & Zanoni. Gelato heaven.

• Couches. It’s a bar with millions of couches. Couches fo’ dayz. Need I say more?
• Prater. This is an amusement park in the city, and we rode a swing ride that you go up 400 feet, and can get a 360 degree view of Vienna. Pretty remarkable.
• Mafiosi Pizza. This joint has it all — skeletons, no electricity, the mafia, and a whole pizza for less than 4 Euro. Can’t go wrong.

• My friends here. Some of the most interesting, genuine, compassionate and wonderful people I’ve ever met. I’m so excited to be here with each and everyone of them, and am so grateful to have such an incredible crew around me.

Let ’em Eat Cake

After arriving in Austria on August 20^th, life became a wonderful blur. The sights, sounds, and smells all blended together into a haze of excitement. I spent the day wandering around the city with a good friend and her family, ate a delicious dinner, and then had birthday cake the next morning for breakfast. Then, we headed to the airport to head to Mariazell, Austria for orientation.

My kneejerk reaction to any question was to state my name, school, major, and why I chose Vienna. This quickly became awkward when I was asked anything deviating from that standard set. Jetlag and conversation – a combination that goes together as well as peanut butter and fish sticks. The first day of orientation was my birthday, so I got a traditional Austrian cake called a “Sachertorte” – a cake so good that there have been legal battles over the recipe (think I’m lying? Verify with the ever so trustworthy Wikipedia, or as we say in Austria, Vikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sachertorte). There was too much for me to eat on my own (okay, that’s a lie), so I used it as a bargaining chip for making friends. I know, I couldn’t have planned it better myself.

Naturally, instead of sleeping, most of the nights were spent looking at beautiful scenery and drinking… water. Travel tip: It’s important to stay hydrated. The last night of the orientation we got to see a traditional Austrian folk dance performance – lederhosen, accordion, honey schnapps, and all. The days were filled with information sessions, attempting to remember people’s names, exploring the town, swimming in a lake in the alps, and card games. It was a wonderful way to get to know the awesome people on the program before heading off to the big city.

We arrived in Vienna on Sunday afternoon, and were told to not look like tourists or stand out in any way. The 400 suitcases and confused faces did not help our cause. Eventually, we all made it to our respective apartments. I’m living in the 5^th district with 3 wonderful roommates, and we unpacked, cooked some great pasta, and headed out for the evening. The next day, I wandered around the city for 12 or so hours (it was raining and I didn’t have an umbrella, which was a clutch move on my part). We went to a festival called “Kirtag” – think lederhosen, and then think more lederhosen. Most importantly, I have found my go-to gelato place – cheap, delicious, and extremely close to my classes. We walk a lot more here than in the US, so it would be irresponsible of me to not eat more ice cream to compensate.

Today, we started German classes, and walked around the city center. It’s been one helluva week so far, and I can’t even begin to describe how excited I am for the months to come.

 Auf Wiedersehen!

Frequent Diner Miles

Anyone who has ever met me knows that I love food, but know oh so little about it. I consider ice cream to be its own food group, and Oreos are brown therefore vegetables. I figured the best time to prove them wrong is right here, right now. On a Russian airline.

I should preface this with saying that, 1) I speak absolutely no Russian, besides hello and a few curse words here and there. I’ve already had woman scream at me in Russian for not knowing Russian. Or, that’s what I have to assume. She could have been very vividly describing her love of cheese and hot air balloons, which I wouldn’t blame her for. Who am I to judge? 2) I took an Ambien before the flight, and the world and I understand each other on a whole new level. Except that goes opposite for other humans, and the English language. Whatever.

Here’s how it all went down. I’m just sitting here, minding my own business, switching off between playing Settlers of Catan and Cribbage on my iPad, while simultaneously wondering if you actually have to be over 60 to get discounts at the movies, or if my exciting life story could save me a buck. then, I’m tapped on the shoulder and the man asks “josefinfsdiofse” or “jilfeojeefhsejieef” which is my understanding for the Russian pronunciations for chicken and fish. I think I got chicken.

The meal:
Chicken: pretty good, actually! I ate vegetables, so that was weird.
Salad…?: piece of lettuce, beans, and a one singular cold cut of an animal still in question. Russians are not known for their refined palates.
Dessert: I hold it in the same regard as the apple from the garden of Eden. You’ll soon see why.

The presentation:
No hair in my food warrants an A+

About 20 minutes after the meal, no one had opened their desserts. I didn’t want to look like the stupid American (they could smell the lack of vodka on my breath and could already tell I wasn’t of their kind), but I really wanted something sweet. Then the flight attendant comes down the isle with the bathroom blocker of doom. As in, you see it coming, and realize you better get ready to hold it in or do some fantastic parkour moves. He offers tea and coffee — russians rejoice. It’s time for your desserts.