I arrived to Vienna on 4th of May after driving here for three days all the way from Helsinki with my partner and our friend. Some might wonder why on earth would I choose driving instead of flying, but for me this was a perfect opportunity for a roadtrip and to share the journey with my partner. I also had my dog with me, who I would never put in a cargo to travel. So we ended up driving instead!

The first days in Vienna were exciting, nerve wracking and all about learning new routines here. For example, I had to adapt having only one room for myself, sharing the bathroom with a stranger and sharing the kitchen with over 20 strangers after living with my partner in our apartment for a year. Also travelling to work took me longer than it had been in Finland. But all of those things I learned to manage fairly quick.

One thing that I learned really quickly about myself, is that I hadn´t realized how little I do things or go to places all alone. I´m so used to going to some places with a friend or my partner, that I hadn´t even realized how nice it can be to visit a museum just on your own! There was nobody rushing me or looking bored after waiting for me, I had all the time in the world just for me! I will definitely go to museums alone in the future as well. Also going to cafés alone was something I didn´t do at all in Finland but now this city has taught me the fun of it. (In fact, I´m writing this in a café just now!)

At the office I´ve learned a lot about multi tasking and mastering the Excel. Although I am nowhere near an expert in neither of those yet, I would still say I´ve improved a lot in those areas for the past, almost 6 months. One of my highest points in my work was a week in Tulln where I got to be one oft he trainers in a Civil courage training. That week was full of meeting amazing people, working in a dream team (such a cliché! But it´s true!), learning a lot what civil courage can mean to different individuals in different realities and most of all, learning more about myself as a professional and as a person.