Living The Fairy Tale

            When I was a young girl, I wanted to live in a castle in some far away land. Now that I’m older I find myself living across the street from a castle in a one-hundred and fifty year old building complete with ghosts and so very, very far away from home. To be honest, I never thought I’d say I miss the desert but I do: I miss my children even if they are dependent upon me far past the time they should be, I miss my animals who couldn’t come to live with us in our far away adventure, and I miss seeing my grandchildren grow up.

            In May of this year as you all know, we said goodbye to our house and family and everything I have ever known to run away from home, moving to Vienna, Austria. Needless to say, I wasn’t happy about what was happening but I understood it. I understood that it was a fantastic opportunity to live somewhere and visit all those places I only thought about when I was a kid. I knew it would be great for my husband’s career. But knowing and understanding didn’t matter to my heart in the beginning and now with my first Christmas in my new foreign home fast approaching I can say this is still the case.

            First I would say to those who envy me, be careful what you wish for but that would be a lie because it’s all a matter of perspective. When we are young, everything looks cool because it’s different than what we have or where we are. When we’re older, we look at things differently like what’s the economic impact it might have on our lives. My thought process was ‘how can this make my writing better’ and a million other things concerned with writing. Then as in now, I am trying to focus on the positive though some days it is very, very hard. So let’s look at some of the basic reasons a move like this could make a writer better:

            1) A look at different cultures – Living in a place that isn’t where you grew up may be uncomfortable at first but it will also make you realize that the world is a big, big place. Here people watching takes on a whole new meaning as one can see things here they will never see at home...like a big bike race on the main street with over three hundred bikes...or a political rally on the very street you live on. In any given day, I will see people from Indian, the US, Turkey, Greece, Ireland, Paraguay, and the Dominican Republic to name a few...those are just the ones who live in the same building as I do...imagine what’s outside those doors.

            2) Broaden one’s horizons – Living in a foreign country means I have to learn a different language to communicate to those around me. It means I have to understand a socialist system because that’s where I’m at right now. I also have to realize the way things are done where I come from aren’t the way things are done here. I also have to learn a public transit system, why Vienna is divided into districts and why people here don’t seem to change very much. This can be translated into some very interesting things for my stories.

            3) Teach my native language – I have been asked by several people if I would be interested in teaching English to upper level students. Boy, if this won’t make you hone your skills in writing, I don’t know what will. I really find it interesting that they want me to teach American slang as opposed to learning the Queen’s English. In order to teach here, I need to get permission to work and that will be a whole other adventure to address on another day.

            4) Make new friends – Now this has been the most difficult for me as writers are pretty reclusive and I tend to be that way myself. Matter of fact, as you all know I was so lonely I got me a puppy and in the process gained a whole new group of friends who own the same type of dog. People over here can relate to those with dogs better than those without or even those with kids. This is making me put myself out there and in some ways I cringe and in others I excel.

            5) The place oozes history – This place has an incredible history. Like I’ve said many times before, I live across the street from the Palace Belvedere and the Palace Schwartenberg. Belevedere was once a summer home for the Habsburgs and in particular Prince Eugene. I’m still trying to understand where Palace Schwartzenberg figures into all of this but I do know there’s a house on the grounds for rent. We’re actually thinking about checking it out. Now the street I live on is named after after Prince Eugene and called Prince Eugen Strasse. That’s just the start of everything: there’s the Hofburg, Schonnbrunn, Carnuntum which is a Roman ruin, Stephensplatz, Karlsplatz and churches like you wouldn’t believe. Early man lived here as did the Celts. Just reading Wikipedia to get the overview can be overwhelming...but...think of the opportunity for historicals, for contemporaries or for anything a writer can think up. Here’s a few more pictures to show you what I mean.

            While this is the view out my office window, I should make note that not only do  I see the guard quarters for Belvedere as well as part of the grounds, but history. If I look a little harder, I’m sure I can see the Emperors and Empresses of a day gone by, of kings and queens and their children.



             Here’s some pictures of Carnuntum, the Roman ruins.







            And finally, one of my favorite places to see, Schonnbrunn.





            There’s the museums.






            These pictures don’t even begin to do the place justice. I’m going to be putting in things from my travels to other places as well. Like Italy. If we can get it all together, we’ll be trying to go to Italy between Christmas and New Year’s. We’ve already visited Bad Ischl and Salzburg, some of which you’ve already seen in the birthday weekend post. And I promise to bring you more and more of the historical perspective on living in Vienna, Austria.

            Yes, this place has plenty for a writer to learn, plenty for me to figure out and understand. Even though the perspective has changed a lot from when I was younger, living the fairy tale can and does have its own perks.

            See you all next time!

     Lynn

The Colors of Fall

            Just last week, I noticed the color around here was bursting at the seams. Coming from Nevada, we’re lucky to get any fall color as one day the leaves are on the trees and the next they are just gone. So I’ve been pleasantly surprised with each sojourn outside the amount of color I’ve seen. From greens to yellows to reds, the colors are fantastic and brilliant.

            I was pleasantly surprised when I looked at the pictures from the weekly walk in Hauptallee that I had managed to capture some of those wonderful colors. Another thing captured in the photos were the diversity of leaves and how they all color differently. Again, being from a desert and even though I live in an Arbor community, I am really not used to this type of diversity.

            I knew there were days in early fall, when all the leaves were still green, that I would just gaze out the window at the greenery across the street from our apartment. I’d not lived anywhere with seasons in so long, I find the whole process completely fascinating and new.

            I know many of you are saying that you think I’m crazy for wanting all the seasons but I’ve always loved the changes and the snow. There is just something beautiful about the glistening white substance that can never be replaced. We’ll see if I’m singing this song when it actually happens. LOL! But right now, it’s wonderful to fantasize about how it might be.

            Today, I have a series of pictures taken the last weekend showing the colors of fall. Many trees have already lost their leaves, so their bounty was spread on the ground everywhere. Pup Harry decided it was time to play in the leaves, tossing them up in the air he raced round and round, playing with them as we watched. It was a wonderful sight to see that he was taking so much joy from such a simple thing. I sincerely hope you agree.

            See you next time!

            Lynn

The Sunday Stroll

Life has changed a bit since we got our puppy but those changes are fantastic overall. One of the benefits that I have noticed is the fact that we’re more active on the weekends. Previous to puppydom, we’d stick pretty close to home or go shopping or do pretty much nothing. We’d read, we’d rest, we’d slounge. Since Harry, we are out and about more on the weekends.

For the past few Sundays, and probably at least until it gets really cold, we’ve started to go on Sunday walks. Make that Sunday strolls. It seems that everyone in Vienna is out doing the same thing. We even found that when there are holidays, like National Day which was mid-week, the strolling attitude still applies. People are out in droves and it’s a very interesting time to be had.

So far, our favorite stroll site is a place called Hauptallee in Wiener Prater. This place reminds me of grand European style and I can’t walk it without things about all the ladies and men moving about with parasols, long dresses and suits of the day. I can picture myself back in time and it has my creative juices flowing to say the least. The place is beautiful and seems never ending as we start on the end where we get off the train and walk to a little bit more than half way.

It is made especially more real when you hear the clip-clop of a horse’s shoe on the pavement. Turning, I find myself surprised as I see a horse-drawn carriage just feet from us. I can imagine many such hackneys, delivering the rich and famous or even the not-so-much-but-want-to-be-seen people of a bygone era. Here I can actually feel the pull of the city whereas in other places it seems no different to me than any crowded cityscape. Here I can feel the time of the Kaisers of the Hapsburg family, the wealth of a nation and the gentleness of the people.

The land was originally purchased by Emperor Maximillian II to be a hunting ground. There was the problem of poaching on royal land and Emperor Rudolf II forbade entry to the Prater. In April of 1766, Emperor Joseph II declared that the Prater was free of royal constraints and therefore for public enjoyment, allowing for the establishment of coffee-houses and cafes. Hunting didn’t cease in the park until 1920.

The previous mentioned Hauptalle is the main avenue of the park and is lined with horse chestnut trees that are just beautiful. It is closed to motorists and people can ride their bikes, take casuals strolls, jog or any number of things to propel one’s self through the pleasant scenery. It is home to the Liliputhahn, a narrow gauge railway now used for the entertainment of children. The main park has roller coasters and a variety of adult rides. Also there is a planetarium and the Prater Museum.

The most interesting thing that I saw was Republic of Kugelmugel,  a spherical micronation started by artist Edward Lipburger in a dispute over building permits with the Austrian government. It’s become a tourist attraction and sits behind a barb-wired fence. I found it utterly fascinating that it supposedly has 389 citizens.

Personally, I don’t care about the particulars of a lot of the history but it does certainly contributes to the overall vibe of the place. As long as I can stroll here on any given afternoon of my choosing, I’ll certainly be happy.

Lynn

The Foggy Morning

It’s been a while since I’ve updated this blog and I must apologize. It’s not that nothing has happened here...it has...I’ve just been working on other things. Like writing and editing, after all, it is what I’m supposed to be doing with all my free time. <Snort> If you believe that...then I have a bridge for you...LOL!

First, puppy Harry has been occupying a lot of my time. By a lot I’m talking about daily walks on the order of one to three a day. The dear husband gets morning duty because he can jog him and tire him out. This is very, very good. The pup is just like a kid or the energizer bunny, he goes and goes and keeps on going until he drops. Naps can be anywhere from one to three hours.

There are many benefits to this. One, I feel energized myself and the walks are getting easier and easier. Two, I am losing weight slow but steady on average of about one pound per week. This was happening before we got the puppy but is now on the fast track it seems as I’ve lost one to three pounds each week, depending upon the week, the walks and the food. I see this as a win-win situation for me.

Today, though, when the DH woke up I hear an ‘oh dear’ from the bedroom. I’m thinking something is wrong and get up. By the time I get to the living room he’s already in the bathroom with Harry in tow, so I’m left to figure out just what was wrong. It didn’t take long as I turned to look out the window. The world is blanketed in fog and I can’t even see across the park as is the normal thing. The only things I can see are the building immediately in front, the wall next to that and the few trees behind it.

DH comes back and we compare how this is so much like San Francisco and or the central valley of California. Now, I’ve seen gray days here and was told that it’s not really gray but a fog hanging high in the sky. Right. It looked like clouds to me and I begin to wonder just how many days like this we will be having.

Add on to the weirdness of the day, but there is no traffic. You know you’re in a religious country when All Saints Day is a national holiday. People are in slow mode as they enjoy their time off. However, the DH does not have the day off and we don’t get to enjoy this quite day together. The holiday schedule is so odd here that we’re not sure just what he’ll have off until it happens. I’ve been making note of them as some are national holidays, international holidays and religious days. We won’t be having any US holidays off, that’s for sure.

I wait a couple of hours to see if any of this is going to change. The outside is getting better and the traffic is finally flowing. Still, it’s strange to have moments of silence in a town where I haven’t noticed much silence at all. It’s even more strange to not be able to see across the park and watch the people coming to see the sights.

Until next time!

Lynn

The New Addition

Yeah, there are a few more blogs to post from the old ones but I wanted to get this one up so you’d understand just why I haven’t posted for a whole week.

A few weeks ago, my dear husband had made a comment that he would be traveling off and on for his job in the upcoming months. The days without him stretched ahead of me and he wasn’t even gone! Getting into the society here is not easy because most of the people I met have nothing in common with me nor do many of us live in the same district, so visiting can be hard.

While we were coming home on the tram one day, I happened to see lots of people staring in the direction of a young woman. On her lap, she had the sweetest little puppy I had ever seen. I knew it was some sort of Jack Russell Terrier. I made the comment to Gordon on how cute the dog was and that I missed mine. Our dog, Jasper, can’t be crate trained as it terrifies him and according to the vet, it probably will be detrimental to his health therefore he won’t be joining us as planned. This left me in a quandary as I was planning on him being my companion when my DH was gone. So seeing the puppy had really, really tugged on my heartstrings.

When we go home, I started to do some research to see what type of small dogs I might like to get because I didn’t want to get a dog so large that I couldn’t have it as carryon luggage. This caused quite a few days of me and the DH going back and forth because he felt a dog would limit us. Then I wondered why he even agreed to bring the dog in the first place. The more I thought about it, the angrier I got as he’d told me when I first discovered we were truly going to move, he wanted to bring all the animals.

But I did what I always do when he’s being unreasonable: I ignored him and continued my research. After many days, I found a group in Vienna that not only told me about Jack Russell Terriers but another breed called Parson Russell Terriers. The dogs were fairly small and could actually be carried on a plane. This made me leap for joy and I went to my husband with my findings. It took me a couple of days to convince him just how lonely I was here without family and friends. He finally came to grips with the fact that the people he knows here, he’s known for almost fifteen years or at least some of him he has. He’s got a good support base here for himself but because I had never come here with him, I am far, far behind the curve.

Now that doesn’t mean I won’t catch up, I probably will but until then I’ll be a pretty miserable person and alone every time he travels. It finally dawned on him just what I was talking about and he got it.

Last Sunday, we went to a town near Salzburg to look at a puppy. Not just any puppy but one named Harry Potter. After spending an hour with the pup, my husband was as enthralled as I was. Yes, this is a puppy and it will take six months to a year to get him to be everything we want but I’m betting it will be much sooner than that. The pup is box trained, similar to a cat but not quite, which makes it very nice on rainy days and the fact we’re in a flat. No mad dash to the grass for us while he’s little. Just point him in the direction of my office and the majority of the time, he’s perfect.

But the best thing about this little dog is the fact that he brightens our day and makes it a little easier to be so far away from home and everyone and everything I love. I’d like to present you all with the newest family member, Harry Potter. You’ll be hearing lots about him in the coming months as he’ll be teaching me all about Vienna and how they handle hounds. To give you a little overview of how things are first, dogs are allowed on all forms of public transportation though a muzzle is required. They are allowed in all restaurants, most parks and hotels. We don’t know about the licensing yet but have already found a vet. Another cool thing is that I’ve made more new friends in the last few weeks than I’ve made in all the time I’ve been here. This is one special dog!

Lynn

The Wild Ride

First, let me apologize for the quality of the pictures. They were taken from the car window during our ride. I’m only sorry I didn’t get any when we were on the freeway. Second, last weekend was fabulous and I think I’ve recovered. LOL! But the weather has changed here in Vienna and winter is definitely on the way. I’m only happy that we got to see fall in the countryside.

Written September 26, 2011

The DH and I decided to rent a car this past weekend so that we could purchase some book cases from IKEA. I don’t know if any of you are familiar with IKEA but overall they have good furniture that you put together yourself. We had purchased our new beds from there and were very pleased with the quality but not with the cost of delivery. At $89 euros the delivery fee weighs in at over $125 US and the DH wasn’t please with the service nor the cost. 

So, to appease the Scotsman, we rented a car. Now this isn’t a bad thing. Quite the opposite as it will let us know if we’re suited to driving in this city. This time we were prepared as last we had a credit card snafu the first time we tried the weekend before. The whole thing went very smooth until the moment we started driving. Or rather I should say, the DH started driving. Need I say more? 

Those of you who know me understand I have control issues and love to drive. Here, there’s not a chance in hell I’ll do it first. This means I have to relinquish all control to the man who has let me drive for years. That combined with the fact the car’s a stick and I’ll let him have it as long as I’m the navigator. But a navigator must have their bearings and needless to say, he got me off on the wrong foot from the moment he pulled out on the street. He went a different way than what we’d planned, so I was immediately off kilter. 

He got very upset when I made him pull to the side of the road so I could get my bearings. Yet I patiently explained to him why I was feeling that way. Soon, he understood my dilemma and we were back on the road very quickly. It seemed as if the cars here in Vienna were just whooshing by but in reality, they were probably going at slower speeds than what is normally seen in the states. While it’s true that they have things like the autobahn in Europe, people overall tend to drive at a much slower pace. It’s almost like each of them is a Sunday driver or something. Matter of fact, in all the time I’ve been here I’ve only seen the police stop cars for speeding only once and that was in a speed trap they set right in front of my own home. 

Eventually, we ended up on the right road and had a laugh as IKEA had signs everywhere on how to get to their store once we found the freeway in its direction. Off ramps were the same but getting into the parking lot was a convoluted series of turns. We were thankful that we had known about the entrance as the first time we’d come here by bus, we ended up walking totally the wrong way then having to back track.

Finally, we’re in the parking lot and my DH is practically tittering with excitement. No, IKEA didn’t do that for him but the store next door did. It’s called OBI and it is equivalent to a Home Depot in the States. I’ve never seen the man so beside himself as he does woodwork at home to relax. Now he couldn’t bring any of that with him to Europe but he certainly could purchase an electric screwdriver...but first...the reason we’d come, bookshelves at IKEA.

We wander through the store for a few more items that we discovered we needed and find the bookshelves we want. We go searching through the warehouse portion of the store for them only to discover that it won’t matter that we have a car as we needed a van! LOL! The boxes are too long and too heavy. The DH decides that maybe delivery is worth the charge because we can’t fit them into our small station wagon nor does he want me to lift them either. I am grateful that he’s worried about my back but I’m just as worried about his as we don’t have a chiropractor here to adjust us when needed. 

Soon, we were in the OBI store and the man was oh-ing and ah-ing about all the power tools. What is it with guys? Sigh. I told him to get whatever he wanted as he can afford it. After an hour or so of deliberating, I informed him is wasn’t rocket science and went to see if I could find anything I needed. After another thirty minutes, he finally came to find me, proudly bearing a new power tool. Needless to say, he’s used it quite a few times since he brought it home. 

Now, it’s time for the ride home. Oh, boy, I’m not sure if I’m ready for this as he wants to go out a different exit. Frankly, I should have deferred it all to him as he seems to have the system down just by driving here. The exit from the parking lot goes directly to the onramp of the freeway. As he goes whizzing out of the parking lot, the discussion immediately begins about where to get off. We tussle a little bit because again, I’ve lost my bearings but the DH seems to have found his and knows where he needs to go. I decide I’m just along for the ride and close my eyes when someone gets too close or they think he’s an idiot. Not that he got too many honks or anything, but drivers seem to get more irate here on occasion. 

The exit he picks is fantastic as it is only two blocks from our flat. We manage to get through the construction and go to the grocery store around the corner. Finally, we’re parking in front of our flat and our adventure of the wild ride has ended. I’m sure there will be another one around the corner, sooner than I can imagine!

Lynn

The Birthday Weekend

Yes, this one is written today but I’ve still got a few more to catch up. And this might be the last for a few days as it is the husband’s birthday weekend and we’ve already started celebrating. 

I’ll be post more on the whole trip later but wanted to leave these impression for you. First, we decided to go to Salzburg on Saturday, October 1 as we’d not taken a train trip nor been away from the city. So, off we go. When we get there, we realize the error of our ways as it is in no way like Vienna. There isn’t a hop-on-hop-off version of a tour bus, so we felt out of place immediately.

What we ended up doing was our own walking tour. Here you’ll see a few of our photos that we took and believe me there are a lot more. You’ll see the castle high on the hill, the inside of a church and a monastery  that is built right into the hill. I’ll give all the details later when I do the research but right now, I’m off to catch another train to a place called Bad Ischl. Bad means bath and this is somewhere the Romans were.

This is going to be fun! Hope everyone had a great weekend like I did!

Lynn