Vienna was a city that I really did not know much about going into this field trip. I did not know what to expect. I was underwhelmed when we first arrived, as the part of the city where our hostel was looked like almost any other city. It was not until we walked down to the Museum Quarter that I saw the beauty and history that Vienna has.  On Wednesday we got to go to the Austrian Imperial Treasury. There were jewels, robes, holy items, and many more things that covered over 1,000 years of Austrian history.  Most of the things there are from the Habsburg family, who occupied the throne of the Holy Roman Empire from 1438 to 1740. It was amazing to see so much of a country’s history in one place, and it did not hurt that they had some of the most beautiful jewels I have ever seen.

                After the treasury we went to the Museum Quarter. The museums are housed in absolutely beautiful buildings. We were able to choose from three museums: The History of Art, the History of Nature, and a modern art museum. Being the science geek that I am, I of course went to the History of Nature. The museum had many displays, including plants, parasites, large animals, dinosaurs and fossils, rocks, a planetarium, and early human history. The dinosaurs were my favorite. It never ceases to astound me how big they all are. It makes me very glad that they do not live here anymore, or I would be afraid to go outside. After we were finished in the museum we got to lay in the grassy area by the museums and enjoy the beautiful weather.

                After Vienna we took a 7 hour bus ride through the Alps to Venice. The Alps were even better than I expected. I have always loved the mountains, and being able to experience the famous Alps was great. Venice was also amazing. It is the first city we have visited that fully lived up to the expectations I had built up in my head. It looked almost exactly as I had imagined it. The winding streets and alleys are extremely easy to get lost in, but that is half the fun of wandering Venice (providing you can actually get back to your hostel at the end of the day). I do not know what people did before Google maps, because it was a life saver for me in Venice. Thank God for international data plans. Venice is very much a tourist city. In fact, very few local people actually live in the part of Venice that has the waterways. Because of this, around 11 o’clock at night, the city becomes like a ghost town, and you can wander the alleys without seeing hardly anyone. We also visited some museums in Venice, and they were nice, but they just did not live up to the actual experience of walking around Venice and experiencing the city and its waterways. We, of course, took a gondola ride and found some great Italian food, so I can say that our trip to Venice can be considered a success.

The Museum Quarter in Vienna

Statue of Maria Theresa in the Museum Quarter in Venice

Next to the leg of a dinosaur in the History of Nature Museum in Vienna

The Alps

Canal in Venice

Decorated bridge in Venice

Canal in Venice

In Venice

This last Saturday we went to Auschwitz and Birkenau concentration camps in Poland. It is very difficult to put the experience into words. It is one thing to hear the stories and see pictures of the camps, but it is another thing entirely to actually be there. Needless to say, it was very intense, and very depressing. The weather while we were there was cold and rainy, which enhanced the sad mood very well. We actually saw the places where so many people were killed during the Holocaust (1,100,000 people to be exact). We stood in the gas chamber of Crematorium I, saw the Death Wall where many people were executed, and were able to see the site of the hanging of Polish prisoners who resisted. We also saw rooms full of things that the Nazis had taken from the people that they murdered, including hair, glasses, shoes, clothes, suitcases, brushes, and other things. Seeing the hair was a tipping point for some people, and a few started to cry.

                When we went to Birkenau we were able to see the living conditions in the women’s camp. There were 6,000 women in the camp, with 1,000 in each block. The blocks were not equipped to hold 1,000 women, and so there was serious overcrowding. They also did not even build bathrooms for the women until about a year after the camp was opened, and even then they only built 5 bathrooms/washrooms for 6,000 women to share. The examples our tour guide gave us as a result of these living conditions were extremely disturbing. It makes me very thankful for the living conditions that I have.

                The Jews that were brought to Auschwitz had been told that they were being taken to Poland to work, and so many were hopeful of a new and better life. They had no idea the horrors they would encounter when they arrived. This makes the story all the sadder. The suitcases that we saw all had names written on them, so that the owners would be able to find them again after they had settled in. We also had learned earlier in the trip that the Jews believed that if their bodies were moved from their graves after they died, they would not go to heaven. This makes the Nazis even more cruel, as they cremated the bodies, therefore ensuring that they Jews would not go to heaven, as far as their beliefs went.

                It is difficult to let yourself believe that mankind could possibly be responsible for something so horrible. As much as the trip was very saddening, I am glad I was able to have the experience. It really puts other things into perspective. My own problems seem so insignificant after visiting the concentration camps. A quote they had in the camp was “Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it”. Hopefully the presence of museums and concentration camps with ensure that the Holocaust is never forgotten, and I pray that mankind will never again be responsible for such a tragedy.

Auschwitz

The sign when you enter Auschwitz: "Work sets you free".

The suitcases taken from the people brought into Auschwitz.

Shoes taken from people brought into Auschwitz.

The gas chamber.

The crematorium.

The Death Wall used for executions.

Birkenau/the railway prisoners were brought in on.

Now that we have been here for a month, I have gathered quite a few examples of cultural differences between the United States and the Czech Republic. The first difference I noticed was in restaurants. First of all, water here is not free. You cannot just order a glass of tap water with your meal. They do not even serve tap water. If you want water, you have to get a glass bottle of water. More often than not, the water is carbonated, which is not that pleasant for those of us who have lived our whole lives drinking still water. Like I said, the water is not free; most of the time it is actually cheaper to order a beer than water. I am not sure why they do not serve tap water, as the water here is perfectly safe to drink. Most of us carry water bottles around with us that we just fill up at sinks.

Also, the waiters/waitresses here are not nearly as quick or attentive as the ones back in the U.S. The only times we see our servers is when they bring us a menu, take our order, and bring us our food. Once you get your food, they never stop by to see if you need anything else. If you do want something else, you have to flag them down. You also have to ask for your check. They will not simply bring it to you when you are done eating, because they do not want you to feel like they are rushing you out. Everything is much more leisurely paced. They do not expect you to leave immediately after eating; you can just sit around and chat afterwards. This took a bit of adjustment, since in the United States we are used to being served quickly, and then getting our bill and leaving quickly.

                Another difference is just in the general attitude/atmosphere of the country. I never really noticed it much before we came here, but Americans are very loud, optimistic people. The Czech people however, are not. They are self-described pessimists, and are not interested in idle chatter. When we see acquaintances, we often ask them how they are doing, even though we do not really care. This is not the case here. They do not ask you how you are doing unless they actually want to know the answer. When Czechs do answer, the common answer is that everything is awful, even if they are actually having a pretty decent day. Their movies do not have the happy endings that we are used to in America. They are much more realistic. As a result, they think the happy endings to some of our movies are hilarious.

                They also speak much more quietly than I am used to. It makes it difficult to hear/understand them at times. I never realized how loud Americans were, but now when we are out in public, I see people giving us looks because we are being loud, even though by our standards we are speaking at a normal level. The Czech people also have much bigger personal bubbles. When talking to someone they do not know, they stand rather far away from each other. We did not realize this until recently, so we have problem freaked some native Czechs out with our close proximity to them when we talk. Eye contact is also not much of a thing here, as well as smiling. People do not smile at you often.  When I go to the grocery store, the cashiers do not even look at me. I was a checker at a grocery store in the U.S., and we are required to be friendly and talk to every customer. That is definitely not the case here. They are just there to scan your groceries. They also do not have bags for groceries here. You have to bring your own. I often have to stuff my backpack with my groceries and hope nothing gets too squished.

                These are just a few of the cultural differences I have noticed here. There are probably many more that I am so used to at this point that I cannot even call them to mind as differences. It makes me both appreciate how things are in America, and also notice some things we do that are rather unnecessary, and probably make other countries look at us weirdly for. Overall it has been an interesting experience finding the differences between the two cultures.

Above a beautiful Czech town, with a smile that most Czech people will not show often :)

A street in Prague. People do A LOT of walking here. It's definitely helped us keep off the weight from all the food we have been eating!

Some artwork in Olomouc. It's a little darker, which is typical of the mood of the Czech people and culture.