So far, the best part of my study abroad experience has been the emphasis my program places on international students going out together and exploring the areas surrounding Linz. In the last two weeks I’ve been on two different excursions planned by the international office at Johannes Kepler University.

At the end of my first week here I had the opportunity to go with about 60 other students to Mauthausen Memorial, which is the site of the former Mauthausen concentration camp. Part of our experience was a short history lesson on the political tensions that caused both WWI and WWII. It was interesting to get an Austrian perspective on history that had previously only been taught to me by Americans. After the crash course we toured the grounds. I learned on our tour that Mauthausen was primarily a work camp and its primary function was to produce granite from the quarry below the barracks. I knew that this was a dark part of history but being there made me appreciate just how horrible WWII was. Learning about concentration camps in a classroom does not even come close to standing in the middle of one. It was an intense experience, but I am grateful that I now understand this part of history better than I did before.

The next excursion was much lighter than the first. Last Saturday we went to Steyr, an old town just 30 minutes south of Linz. We were given a tour of the city center by a local and learned from her its history with industry. The town itself is located at the meeting point of two rivers: Steyr and Enns. It seemed as though there was a perfect photo spot around every corner! The rivers and buildings were gorgeous. We finished our excursion to Steyr with ice cream in the 50°F weather because the locals all seemed to be doing it. It turned out to be the perfect end to the day.