united we tour
August 28: Monday
Well, this is the last official class day. After this, two more free-ish days, and it's up in the air I go, far, far away. And what do do on the last class day? Why, tour the United Nations, of course! See, this kind of makes sense. Our previous classes took us all the way through VIinna's history from the late medieval period to the end of World War II. And what happened at the end of that war? The United Nations was founded, with one of its four headquarters being a city-within-a-city right over in northern Vienna!
My roommate Jared and I were stylishly early. Ever since Cameron and I nearly missed the Opera on the first weekend, I've pretty compulsively wanted to be the first one at all of our tours. I didn't want to end up late, shuffle my way alone through security, and end up getting yelled at in six languages.
City Within a City
Left: That's right, I actually flew in a helicopter above UN headquarters to take this picture! It's not just a model on display from during the guest tour.
The offices are one of four from around the world - the others being in Nairobi, New York City, and Geneva. I couldn't tell from the outside, but the place is enormous - each of those buildings you see int hat picture is around thirty stories, with thousands of employees. There's a tennis court, a food court.. and apparently even a kindergarten. Plus a big fence. If they have a good zombie defense protocol, it would be a great place to hide from the horrors of the apocaylpse.
Something that surprised me pretty quickly about the UN, despite some apprehensions, was just how un-intimidating it was, despite its size. The bag-check was swift and uncomplicated, and there were no security guards following us around on the inside. Sure, we were in a group, and sure, it was a slow day, but for an international organization where people meet daily to talk about terrorism and nukes, it seemed pretty... chill.
I guess I was expecting more guys in black suits and sun-glasses putting their hand up to their ears and watching us.
Or maybe they were just really good at hiding...
Don't touch anything...
"We will bury you!"
Well, the UN turned out to be one of my favorite parts of this entire trip, partly due to the sheer mystique and seeming exclusivity of it. The fact that everything is tax-free and super cheap is a big plus too...
The next two days will be spent relaxing with newfound friends and finishing up schoolwork, and thus, this button will finally take ut to the last day. *Sob*
