April 2013 Photo Essay: Austrian Ball

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In our April 2013 issue, Nimisha Jaiswal shared a glimpse of the annual Austrian Ball in Bologna:

Every year during the Austrian Ball season, students from SAIS Bologna are invited to Vienna to attend the International Atomic Energy Agency Ball at the Hofberg Imperial Palace. Keeping up the tradition, the largest known group of Bolognesi left for Vienna on 15 February, 2013.

The festivities started immediately, with a day-long bus ride through the gorgeous Italian and Austrian countrysides. The long trip failed to deter the group from turning out in their evening best for kick-off drinks at the Palmenhaus, where we were welcomed officially by Prof. Neudeck of the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna. While some decided to set off to explore the Viennese nightlife, others headed back to get some much-needed rest before the big day.

After a morning of squeezing in quick sightseeing tours (along with hair and makeup appointments), we were received at the Rathaus (City Hall) by Dr. Andreas Mailhath-Pokorny, a Bologna Center alumnus and Vienna City Council member. Resplendent in tuxedos and evening gowns, the group then proceeded to the Heldenplatz Plaza and the Hofberg Palace, where we could use our newly-acquired quadrille and waltz skills in the Main Hall, or visit the many different rooms in the palace to dance to music ranging from salsa to hip hop.

After dancing until 4 a.m., most of us still managed to defeat our exhaustion to explore the city’s many attractions on Sunday before inevitably collapsing on the bus for the long overnight journey back to Bologna. While it probably took the better part of the week to get back to study-mode, I could safely assume this whirlwind weekend was amongst our most fantastic experiences.

Tendai Madenyika and Marwa Abdou shared photos from the event: