Good morning everyone!
Yes, it is already morning for me here in Vienna, Austria.
The sun is streaming through my window and it looks as if it is going to be a
mighty fine day though a bit warm.
First, let me apologize for my dust. I’m in the middle of a
renovation on this blog so the header’s kinda ugly and the colors are an
experiment to see what I really want while making it a pleasant experience for you. But one thing that will definitely happen
is that the background image will change monthly to a new picture of Vienna I’ve
taken over the past couple years. The plan is to keep the colors the same. We’ll
just have to experiment with how that works.
I also plan to post on Saturdays, Tuesdays and Thursdays
here from todayon. I realize I’ve been lax and do have so much to share on what’s going on
in Austria. I tweet most days at least one thought about being here. Hopefully,
your Viennese fix will be fulfilled with all these new additions.
Today, I’m doing a round robin with a group of talented
writers that I met when I was with Night Writers. We’ve decided to do this
since the blog is no more because we love that we can still connect and help
one another out. So...please click through all of us and enjoy the posts...I’ll
be giving you the link for A.J. Maquire at the end of this post.
I’d like to talk about how I relax and rejuvenate here in Vienna.
There are many ways one can do that. In the spring, summer and fall, there are
a variety of festivals one can go to throughout the city. Here’s a picture of a
concert we went to at Schonbrunn Palace in June. It was put on by the Vienna
Orchestra and it was wonderful. Just lots of people.
In the spring, right before Easter, I love going to the many
Easter egg pavilions and seeing the wares there. The eggs are so elaborate and
beautiful and expensive. But I have a few I sent home and a few here with me so
I can remember this wonderful time.
Also, in the spring there are more flowers in this city than
I’d ever seen anywhere. They are in every park and people have them in flower
boxes out the windows. It even grows down the walls from some apartments. It’s
an amazing sight to see.
Some weekends, we’ll go outside of the city to see the
various different areas close to home. One of my favorites is a place I’ve
talked about before...Carnuntum...it’s a Roman ruin that I just can’t get
enough of and I visit as often as I can. It’s fantastic.
Another way that I relax is I do a spa day. There are tons
of local spas and one has their pick of many. Normally, I’ll go have a facial,
a manicure/pedicure and a massage. Nothing beats a good girl day even if I have
to do it alone.
Fall is another time I really enjoy here. The trees out my
office window are wonderful and I so enjoy walking in Prater park. The weather
is cooler and the whole vibe of the city has changed from summer to the slowing
down the season brings.
Now, one of the best times I have is in the winter. We have
the various Christkindlemarkts that are absolutely fantastic. I love the snow
and the season. I love taking walks even when it is cold though I might
complain about the temperature occasionally. The first snow is beautiful and I
love watching Pup Harry as he has great fun.
As indicated, we mainly walk everywhere or take trains to
nearly all destinations. It seems no matter where we go, walking has become the
great relaxer and that’s good since we don’t have a car. This was a personal
choice as we could have brought one but decided to see the wonders of Vienna
without one. This choice has been a blessing in surprise as both of the husband
and myself have gained many health benefits from all the walking.
By this moment, I’m sure you’re wondering what all this has
to do with writing. Well...suffice it to say...everything. It has great impact
with my A Taste of Vienna series as it all takes place in or near the city. How
I relax here, how I travel here or how I live life can be great inspirations on
what to put into the novels. The first one, A Viennese Christmas, is talked
about in the post immediately before this one.
The most important thing I’ve discovered is that I love
writing about Vienna in either a fiction or a nonfiction way. There is always
something going on here as well as new additions every day.
Don’t forget to go to the next great author in this round
robin. A.J. Maguire can be found here and her post will be just as wonderful as
learning about Vienna. http://ajmaguire.wordpress.com/
Thanks and we’ll see you all on Tuesday...have a great
weekend!
