- Making European Friends! -

          I have met quite a few people since coming to Vienna and traveling around and through these conversations I have found out some very interesting things about teens here and life in Austria. One person who I learned from was an 18 year old boy named Jeremy. I met him at the Roo bar and we got to talking. He told me that he is serving the military because it is required. He is enrolled in a 9 month civil military program. If I understood right, when boys turn 18 they are required to either serve in the civil military for 9 months or in the army for 6 months. All of the boys who I met that were this age really disliked the fact that they had to do this.

          I also learned that it is the norm for kids in Vienna to learn English. Jeremy had grown up in Vienna and gone to school here for his whole life and spoke English very well. Another interesting thing I learned is that many kids our age are interested in traveling to the United States of America, and many have already traveled there including Jeremy. What I thought was even more interesting was the fact that Jeremy and others have not traveled throughout Europe as much as I would have expected. Overall I really have not discovered too many differences between life in America and life in Europe. Kids have similar interests, although soccer is much more prominent here, and kids dress similarly and like to just have fun!