Post written by Madi Wentela
Hello friends and family!
As of last Thursday, our group has made it back from Dresden and returned home! We had a wonderful time in Europe, so as we wrap up this blog, I wanted to highlight some of my favorite moments from our time in our four cities.
This trip was such an amazing opportunity to take in the history, art, and culture of different places and times; and one of my favorite aspects of this trip was getting the chance to see how several different cities experience both their histories and daily lives differently and similarly in various ways.
Below I've shared some of my favorite places and small moments from the past three weeks.
One of our very first stops after we landed in Vienna: Belvedere Palace, which is home to a beautiful garden and collection of iconic Gustav Klimt artworks!
A side tunnel of Melk Abbey, about an hour outside of Vienna. This walkway is where the door to enter the historic catherdral is; this was an especially impactful experience for me because the door isn't marked, so I was lucky enough to discover the inside of the catherdral before our time was over. No photographs are allowed inside, so I wanted to share my experience of exploring the abbey before I went inside.
A side street in Dürnstein, Austria. We stopped in this small town for a few hours after visiting the abbey and touring the Danube River via boat. This might be one of my favorite experiences from the entire trip, as the entire town was quiet and tranquil, allowing us time to explore independently and take in some of the peacefulness that can be found in small moments with friends.
A view of Česky Krumlov through the wall of Krumlov Castle. Similar to my experience in Dürnstein, our night in Česky Krumlov is near the top of my favorite experiences from the trip because of the relaxing atmosphere of the town and the serenity found while exploring the twisting side streets. Truly a hidden gem, I would love to return here someday and continue to learn more.
A view of Prague from the Charles Bridge. This iconic view of the city before entering into the bustling downtown streets was a great opportunity to stop and take in the vastness of the place we were in and appreciate the long-standing history of the buildings and architecture we were surrounded by.
Something that stuck out to me as we toured Dresden on our first day was learning that a significant amount of the historical buildings are reconstructions of what existed at earlier times in history. It was fascinating to see how these facades are incorporated into the city, and learning about it sparked some fun conversations between students about the relationship of contemporary city designers and honoring historical importance.
Thank you to everyone for following along with this blog and the Instagram as we documented our different experiences in Vienna, Česky Krumlov, Prague, and Dresden! Everyone had a great time these past few weeks, and I know I've found some places I'll want to revisit to continue exploring.
