Lose Money and Gain Weight

Let's just be realistic about this ....

Be patient - I swear this has a point.

We're at the point of the trip where the girls are staring to complain their jeans are a little tight and everyone is groaning when they check their bank accounts.

Learn some life tricks. If you're like me, you live your life under the philosophy of "1 Euro is always = to 1 US dollar and calories don't count in Europe." If you're not like me you've probably already seen the glaring holes in my logic.

Ok, apparently vacation time is over, and I, as well as the other IGErs have to come out of dreamland and realize that a 1 Euro Cheeseburger at McDonalds is not equivlant in price or calories to the Dollar Cheerburger. The exchange rate is close to 1.5 and the calorie rate is, well...

Anyway, the point of this entry is, in order to study abroad, you have to learn some tricks that make living in a foreign city possible. Let's tackle the money issue first. If you were to study somewhere like Paris or Rome, this might be a more problem because these two cities are really expensive without the exchange rate problem. Vienna, however, is actually fairly cheap if done right. Don't get me wrong, you can (I have) spent a fortune in this city. But, you can live here for cheap...

For example, instead of paying to enter every single museum, wait until you see what excursions IGE has set up. Chances are, IGE is already taking you to the museum. Want to see a concert? Ask for a student rate - you can sometimes get the best seat in the house for under 25 Euros. Drink Viennese coffee instead of Starbucks (I went an entire month without the stuff). Stop eating out every night. Grocery stores here in Vienna are 30-40% cheaper than they are in the US, and the food is usually fresher.

This also helps with the calorie dilemma. Buying fresh fruit and vegetables at the store helps a lot. Cooking in general helps a lot. And the last, and probably hardest one, limiting the chocolate consumption. (I know, "Calories don't count in Europe" is more fun.)

Also, everything in Vienna is walking distance apart, so instead of riding the subway or steet car, you can walk. Not only do you help burn off some of that schnitzel, but you also see some really cool buildings. Score.

Anyway, the point of this entry is Vienna is a very livable European city, making it a great place to study abroad.