Small update and a city with V

Greetings loyal readers (it's starting to get fancy),

As promised, I wanted to write a small update blog post (which might end up being longer) to tell you how my midterms went, and this is the said entry. But before I get to that, let me first tell you about a little day trip to the city of Varaždin.

Varaždin is a small town with around 46,000 inhabitants located north of Zagreb. I didn't know much about the town beforehand because I didn't do much research and there's not much to know about the town. It's a small, quiet town where you can find a few faculties of the University of Zagreb. Varaždin has a 'castle' (although I wouldn't call it that) and that's about it. Nevertheless, it was a very nice, relaxing day with three other friends. We had coffee, ate food, explored the small town, just a relaxing Saturday amidst the exam period. I also had my first mulled wine of the season. The smell triggered a key memory in me and I was in the Christmas spirit...even though the mulled wine itself was gross, it officially marked the start of mulled wine season for me. In addition, the Christmas market in Zagreb has opened its doors, which I will talk about in more detail in a later section.

But first, let's talk about what you're eagerly waiting for: my midterms. For all the people who are only here for the results, I miraculously passed all of them. I have no idea how. I'll explain what I mean in more detail in the next parts. So, let's take a closer look at each exam and its circumstances.
The first exam was Probability Theory on Monday. This exam was doomed to fail from the start because it was immediately after my trip to Budapest on Monday. That means little sleep and little time to study. So, in total, I studied for about half a day for this exam, and we weren't allowed to use a formula collection, so it was all freestyle. I think my luck was that I had already covered the topic in Germany and passed it very well. So, I managed to earn a charming 26 out of 50 points. Exam 1 out of 5 mastered confidently.
The second exam was Digital Video on Wednesday, which dealt with the processing and transmission of video signals, so it was relatively technical. I had more time to study for this exam, the entire Tuesday and Wednesday morning, which is still generally a short time to prepare for an exam. The studying itself was...weird. I wasn't sure what I needed to study and what the exam would be like. But when the time came, everything went as well as it could. I was able to answer all but one question with relatively high certainty. So, I received an incredible 28 out of 35 points. It was my best exam. Four more exams were ahead of me, and this time I had more time to study because the next exam was a week later on Thursday.
The third exam was Digital Logic. It involved a lot of digital circuits and how a computer works. Interesting in itself, but also quite complicated. It takes some getting used to, which I apparently did quite well. I started studying on Monday and studied a lot with a classmate, which I think helped me a lot. In the end, I still wasn't sure about most of the test questions, but it was enough. Everything somehow worked out in the exam. I didn't answer everything, but it was enough for 16.25 out of 30 points (the average score was apparently 9 points). I finished the 'hardest' exam. Two more exams to go, well, one more, as I found out on Thursday.
I already took the exam in one subject, basic principles of renewable energy technology, with a brief conversation with the professor a few weeks ago. Pretty simple, 3 'questions' and then a discussion about everything and nothing, and stamps. Cool guy. It's nice to pass a midterm without even knowing it.
The last exam was Environmental Protection and Climate Change Mitigation (that sounds so silly when translated from English). Strange subject. The professor apparently spent 4 years in the EU Parliament, but he's as interesting as a sack of potatoes. I respect him, but he can't teach in an engaging way. Anyway, much of what we learned was 'What is the EU doing about climate change', 'What is the EU doing about environmental damage', and so on, very dry stuff. So, my studying consisted of skimming through his slides and hoping something would stick. The fact that I got 19 out of 30 points proves that something did stick...or I just got lucky with guessing. So, as I said, I miraculously passed everything. To celebrate, I drank some Club Mate, which is available for delivery here (my savior).

Okay, that was a lot, but let me briefly talk about the Christmas market. I had high expectations because the Christmas market in Zagreb is considered one of the most beautiful in the world...and I actually agree. Sometimes it's a bit over the top, but overall, it's really incredibly beautiful. Just take a look at the pictures, even though there aren't many. I'll take more for next time. And €3 for a mulled wine, what more could you ask for.

That was probably my longest entry. Thank you to everyone who read all the way to the end, and of course, to all the others who read this strange blog in the first place.

Until next time, and stay healthy,

William the absolutely awesome guy