Cities as Albums
BY Shreya Polkampally
For my study abroad semester, I set a goal to listen to a new album for every new city that I visited, so I would forever associate those songs with each trip! Here are the cities I’ve visited so far, how well I thought the album suited the city, and a few new things I learned on each trip.
Milan, Italy → Wasteland, Baby! by Hozier
Wasteland, Baby! was the first album for my semester, and it was very fitting for Milan, my home base. My favorite song is Almost, and now when I listen to it it feels like home.
Things I learned about Milan:
The city feels like a very nice part of NYC, and is definitely one of the most modern parts of Italy.
Most people know English, but it helps to know basic phrases for ordering food and interacting with others!
Everything starts a little late! (besides trains). Get used to Italian-time zone.
Brussels & Brugge, Belgium → Led Zeppelin IV
Belgium was my first trip and I wanted to listen to a classic album that I never got around to before. While I understand why the album is rated as one of their best, except for Going to California, none of the songs really matched the chocolate-making, waffle fries warm ambiance of Brussels.
Things I learned about Brussels:
Brussels LOVES comics and a lot of their buildings are decorated with super intricate drawings. They even have a comic museum.
A lot of different languages are spoken here (French, Dutch, English)
Brugge feels like a witch town, it was super beautiful to visit but it dies down by sundown! The best fries are here.
Lisbon, Portugal → Lover by Taylor Swift
This was my birthday trip, and I was reunited with my friends from elementary, high school, and college! I was so excited to see them and Lover perfectly fit the happy, lucky vibes that I felt throughout the weekend.
Things I learned about Lisbon and Sintra:
It feels like a beach town, and is so sunny and colorful.
The city is similar to San Francisco with sprawling hills - if Google Maps says it’s gonna take 15 minutes to walk there expect it to take 25 because of the elevation. Also, their bridge is directly modeled off of the Golden Gate Bridge!
The egg tarts are amazing. All of the food there was super yummy and I didn't have a bad meal the entire trip :)
Venice, Italy → Wet Lag by Wet Lag
I’m not going to lie, I listened to Wet Lag for Venice because it was previously recommended by a friend and I thought Venice, rivers, wet. A clear line of logic. Either way, I thought the album was fitting for the trip because I went to Venice during carnival! I was able to meet a lot of different people from my exchange program who were also exploring the event, and the eccentric aspect of the album suited all of the extravagant costumes.
Things I learned about Venice:
The city has the most beautiful trinket shops that I’ve seen so far, and it’s a great time to just walk around and see all of the different artwork and products. They literally have thousands of mini glass sculptures everywhere.
Venice is home to the oldest coffee shop in Italy. Also Pasta-in-a-box is less than 5 euros, fast, and better than most of the restaurants in the city, since a lot of them are tourist traps.
Prague, Czech Republic → Channel Orange by Frank Ocean
I listened to Channel Orange because it was my best friend’s birthday and she wanted me to give this a listen, especially considering that I should have heard it before simply based on its popularity. I heard the album be described as a collection of lullabies, and I couldn’t agree more. I would say that the album did suit the mellow, strolling nature of Prague but wouldn’t be one to say that it’s a perfect fit for the city.
Things I learned about Prague:
The buildings of Prague give it a medieval vibe, and coupled with the yellow lights make Prague a super cute city to visit.
While the city is amazing, if I was there for longer than a four days, I could have definitely spent one day doing a day trip to Vienna.
The food in the market in the old town square is a must see.
Paris, France → Fake It Flowers by beabadoobee
When going to Paris, I wanted to find a soft album that gave lovely vibes, in order to suit the “city of love”. I remembered the Glue Song by beabadoobee, and decided to listen to one of her albums on my way to France. While the album definitely had the soft-spoken elements that I was looking for, I wouldn’t necessarily say that it suited the elegant vibes of the city!
Things I learned about Paris:
This might be an obvious one, but the Louvre is amazing and any trip to Paris is worth seeing. It used to be a palace, meaning the architecture of the buildings themselves are worth a visit.
Taxis overcharge and Ubers take a long time to confirm! Try to leave for places earlier than you need to.
The Eiffel Tower sparkles for the first five minutes of every hour after sundown, so make sure to time your pictures if you want to get the sparkles.
Budapest, Hungary → Love Sick by Don Toliver
This album was another recommendation, this time given by a friend I made at Bocconi University. The album was a fun listen, but I wouldn’t say that it suited the vibes of Budapest. While Budapest has a festive culture, Love Sick felt a bit too American for the Eastern European city.
Things I learned about Budapest:
Buda and pest are two sections of the town, separated by a river. Buda is the more sightseeing part of the town, while Pest is more known for nightlife.
In the Basilica of St. Stephen, Saint Stephen’s 1000 year old hand is mummified and on display.
Dublin, Ireland/London, England → Exile on Main Street by The Rolling Stones
“Exile on Main Street was such a fun listen, and I think it perfectly suited my weekend trip to Dublin for Saint Patrick’s Day, and then London the day after!”
Things I learned about Dublin:
Dublin is filled with the nicest people ever, who aren’t just polite but genuinely want you to be happy and will go out of their way to tell you about the culture and places to visit.
There’s an awesome viking museum in Dublin where you can dress up as different members of the village and take fun photos.
There are a lot of fun live music places in Dublin, and a lot of times they’ll take requests for popular songs if you ask them nicely.
Things I learned about London:
While London is similar to New York, you need to use public transportation more often because of how big the roads are and how far apart neighborhoods are. I would argue that it’s not as walkable as NYC.
The center of London isn’t skyscrapers but instead smaller buildings that would make you think it was the outside of the city.
I knew this before, but Indian food in London is awesome.
Crete, Greece → 1989 Taylor Swift
I listened to 1989 because it was requested by the friend who’s birthday I was celebrating in Greece. While it was fun to revisit classics such as Blank Space and Style, I think Greece’s culture was deserving of a more laid-back, beachy album.
Things I learned about Crete:
When I visited Crete, there was a huge culture of giving free dessert at the end of every meal.
Greek people will go out of their way to help you, be kind, and remember facts about yourself! Everyone we met in Crete was genuinely interested in where we were from, and loved to share details about their culture and places to visit.
The island is filled with friendly, awesome cats.
The experience of listening to new albums has both exposed me to new types of music, but has also changed my traveling experience! I hope that more people integrate this practice when they visit new cities in the future, because it pushes you to create new experiences and form lasting connections to the music to new music they can get exposed to in the future. I’m excited to listen to more albums before the semester is over and continue to discover unique quirks of each city that I’m lucky enough to see!