Not quite at post-surrealism yet...

Getting off the plane in Vienna was so surreal (that's my word of choice for most of this trip.) I couldn't believe I finally made it to Europe. Growing up, I thumbed through the pages of National Geographic and knew that I wanted to spend my life traveling. The little girl I was would point and say "I want to go there, and there, and there...and there." Now, I'm here. And it's...incredible and sad and wonderful and painful and....everything else that is contradictory but also true.

Tyler, my cousin, met me at the subway stop near his place and even carried my uber heavy bag for me. I'm still amazed at his and his girlfriend's generosity towards me, considering I haven't seen him in a couple of years-at least. They took me in, fed me, let me use their computers, and gave me a key to come and go as I please (Tyler even came and rescued me when I got lost trying to find my way to meet up with him!) I am overwhelmed by the incredible people I have in my life right now. It's the best birthday gift I could have. Truly.

Wandering around Vienna yesterday and today, I try to take the city in. I'm kinda in a haze, like I was when I first got to Jerusalem. It's a bit of a culture shock, things here are newer and well, more European (duh, I know) than in the Old City. It's the architecture that I'm most familiar with and what I considered most beautiful when I was growing up. But being here, after being in a city thousands of years old, I feel...strange. Like there is some sort of dissonance between being here and where I just came. I think it's a mild, mild form of culture shock. Don't get me wrong, I love it here. The people all look super put-together, and many girls have short hair- like me! And there are cafes/pubs/bars EVERYWHERE. I'm still processing through so much and I think I'll continue to do so until I get back to the States.

Yesterday, I stumbled upon the Naschtmarkt, a large outdoor market. Walking past the stalls, I caught the smell of spices, (not sure what mixture) and it reminded me of the smells inside the Old City. It was really comforting. I felt so grateful to have found a place that felt safe and familiar. Aaaand, I found out that there's chocolate muesli, "schoko-müsli." It's DELICIOUS (Kate, I finally found you a legit breakfast cereal.) They're no squares (more on this later) but definitely up there.



Clearly, I love schoko-müsli.


Lastly, a poem. (y'all will have to bear with my ee cummings-ness for awhile):

east to west

I am here
(now).
and everything that was, that used to mean some(thing)
has changed.
not to say that it isn't meaningful,
oh no, but somehow the emotions
are lost in translation.
no BABELfish here.
still,
that is to be expected
when one cannot communicate emotions
in a universal language,
no one word, one thought
for love, fear, hate, joy.
only a shifting perception
and the heart
trying to read the lips
of others'
hearts.