So I survived the first week of classes at Wester last week. One of the classes is called Professional Seminars where we visit different government organizations, NGO's, non-profits and others in each city we are studying in. (This was part of the reason why I was so interested in this program.) On the agenda for this term is OPEC, UNODC, IAEA to name a few. I had heard mixed reviews from our first professor Karin. Austrian women are notoriously known for being very serious and less than warm. Must be an Eastern European thing... After sweating through three hours of lecture, I have missed air conditioning greatly, she invited the entire class to a celebration at the United Nations the next morning, which we all obviously enthusiastically agreed to.
(V.I.C. building in the background)
The next morning we all showed up to the UN, about 5 blocks from my apartment building, dressed in the appropriate business attire. I still wasn't sure what we were invited to but assumed something important when I saw the red carpet entrance and news cameras positioned by the entrance. Our Austrian professor, a former diplomat at the UN who knew half the people there, didn't seem to concerned with helping us find our way. However, we ran into the president of Webster Vienna and another professor who kindly showed us around and where to take our seats.
(Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General)
It was the 30th anniversary of the V.I.C., the Vienna International Centre. There were four speakers, the mayor of Vienna, the Austrian Foreign Minister, Ban Ki-Moon UN Secretary General and finally the Austrian President. Ban Ki-moon is in his first year at Sec. General and was once a diplomat here in Vienna. He told us he had left half of his heart in Vienna, where the president kindly told him he was taking good care of. Such cute government officials :) The program ended with a performance by a group called Voices of Peace. All were from different countries and religions.
(Curtsy with the Austrian Secret Service in the background... )
The morning ended with a reception in the UN rotunda for drinks. There is wine everywhere in Europe no matter the time or occasion. :)
The experience was amazing. Afterward, one of the Webster professors told us she lives in Austria and has never seen the president in person before. I feel very lucky to have gotten to see something like this!
xoxo,
Amy
(V.I.C. building in the background)The next morning we all showed up to the UN, about 5 blocks from my apartment building, dressed in the appropriate business attire. I still wasn't sure what we were invited to but assumed something important when I saw the red carpet entrance and news cameras positioned by the entrance. Our Austrian professor, a former diplomat at the UN who knew half the people there, didn't seem to concerned with helping us find our way. However, we ran into the president of Webster Vienna and another professor who kindly showed us around and where to take our seats.
(Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary General)It was the 30th anniversary of the V.I.C., the Vienna International Centre. There were four speakers, the mayor of Vienna, the Austrian Foreign Minister, Ban Ki-Moon UN Secretary General and finally the Austrian President. Ban Ki-moon is in his first year at Sec. General and was once a diplomat here in Vienna. He told us he had left half of his heart in Vienna, where the president kindly told him he was taking good care of. Such cute government officials :) The program ended with a performance by a group called Voices of Peace. All were from different countries and religions.
(Curtsy with the Austrian Secret Service in the background... )The morning ended with a reception in the UN rotunda for drinks. There is wine everywhere in Europe no matter the time or occasion. :)
The experience was amazing. Afterward, one of the Webster professors told us she lives in Austria and has never seen the president in person before. I feel very lucky to have gotten to see something like this!
xoxo,
Amy
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