Yearlong study abroad in Vienna!

Isabella Foster Start Date: Sep 25, 2022 - End Date: Jun 24, 2023
  • Vienna, Austria

My Travel Story

by: Isabella Foster Start Date: Sep 25, 2022 - End Date: Jun 24, 2023
I grew up learning about being Polish for as long as I can remember, and it was always about food at the beginning. My family is a 65 plus member family that is crazy about Polish food during Christmas time and the pierogies were what always brought us together. Food was what originally sparked my interest for seeing the world. However, it morphed from perogies to gelato and pizza from Italy. I had the opportunity to travel to Italy for an art appreciation trip while I was in high school as a sophomore. Most of the other students that were traveling with the group were actually middle schoolers in 7th or 8th grade. But it was a really nice experience to be able to bond with three other high schoolers and to travel with them because of our similar interests. This art trip was really eye opening because it helped me to learn about the Italian culture, see some wonderful art, and enjoy the most delicious gelato.

Being so lucky to go to another country as a young impressionable person helped me to discover that I want to travel more. I've always enjoyed history as a kid and it stemmed from Greek mythology books, World War II movies, and various documentaries that were based on European history. This new travel abroad experience that I hope to go on is really important to me because it helps me to experience the places I sought refuge in as a kid. BOKU really is the perfect location for me because it is at arm’s length of other locations that I've since wanted to visit. I want to be able to see where the Warsaw ghetto was, remnants of the Berlin Wall, Bergen-Belsen or Auschwitz camp, various castles and historic homes, museums that hold art that were sought after the Nazis, places where food and drink originate from, the beautiful mountains and lakes that are housed in the Austrian topography. Vienna is a city of its own history that I cannot wait to explore and learn more about especially because I haven't really learned anything in particular about Vienna. But the location of Vienna is especially prominent because of the German, Polish, and Czech cultures that are a weekend trips away.

I am most excited about being able to visit other cities in other countries as well during my abroad trip. However, I am certainly just as excited to focus on my academic dreams while attending BOKU. I am ecstatic to see the different types of forest, lakes, and watershed dimensions that Austria has. I don't have a lot of experience with different types of watersheds, my experience mainly extends from the Great Lakes. I've never been to the ocean either. I am seeking the opportunity to do so while I'm in Europe though. This study abroad experience really is opening all the future career path that can stem from different parts of the earth that contain water. I hope that this experience will give me a clearer idea of where I want to focus my career because as of right now, I really want to work in the Great Lakes. I hope this experience guides me to a different place or confirms that the Great Lakes is the place for me. I will be able to use the daily lessons learned in Austria to spread new ideas here that are different from our normal western approach. I cannot wait to foster more potential growth in teamwork, projects, and meetings by helping to spread different approaches that are less conventional.

Thank you for reading this far and for hopefully donating to my once in a lifetime experience. I really appreciate the chance I've been given and the opportunity to explore another culture. I know I will pay it forward in the future just like you who donate today.
  • Vienna, Austria