School is great

Posted on November 8, 2011 by admin

For the first 6 weeks or so, when I would arrive at school to pick B up, he’d look at me (rather forlornly) and say, “I want to go home”. For the past few weeks, I’ve suspected that this has been more of a habit than an expression of actual sadness — if I sneak up to the window in the classroom, I can get a peek of him playing happily with the other kids, and the teachers have been reporting that he’s been joining in the group activities and playing enthusiastically with the other kids. Lately, on the way home, when I ask him how his day was, he invariably says “It was great!” He’s been adding to his list of friends almost daily — he recently told me that he has the same number of friends as he does fingers.

Today, when I got to school and peeked in, he was playing with a little girl, building a Lego train. When the other kids alerted him to my presence (they always do, which is why I have to be sneaky if I want to see what he’s up to) he turned around and said, “Mommy! Come see!” It was the first time he’d ever beckoned me into the classroom, rather than running to meet me at the door. I went to check out his Lego train, and got to meet his new friend, Felicity, and then I told him it was time to go. At which point he asked if he could add just one more car to the train . . . and then just one more . . . and then just one more . . . at which point, the effort of fighting to keep Liam in my arms (he wanted to play, too) caused me to pull the plug on his fun.

On the way home, he told me all about his great day and how he wants to go back tomorrow. Later, over lunch, he told me he was a little sad. I asked why, and he told me, “I didn’t have a much time at school. I wanted to stay a bit longer.”

I’m so glad he feels this way. This is what I’d been hoping would happen — that he wouldn’t just tolerate school, but would actually look forward to it. That he wouldn’t count the minutes until I came to pick him up, but he would want to stay a little longer. I want him to have fun, make friends, a learn a little. I feel like we’re starting to get there.

Mommy takes a break

Posted on November 7, 2011 by admin

This weekend was a long weekend for us — Dan had today off of work. So, naturally, by about 10:00 this morning, we still had a ton of things on our “to do” list, and I was already exhausted. When we have long weekends, I have a bad habit of trying to cram too much stuff in — that extra day seems to stretch on eternally in my mind’s eye when I’m planning, but I find it usually just leaves me more exhausted than I am in a regular weekend, and frustrated, too, because I had this fanciful idea of what would be accomplished that didn’t come to pass.

First thing this morning, we had a doctor’s appointment for a heart screening for Liam . . . which was a bit of a fiasco because the hospital had lost our appointment, which no one actually told us, so we had to wait in the emergency room for 45 minutes while they figured things out, only to be sent to the cardiology department to be lectured on the fact that we needed an appointment (which is when we figured out what must have happened). This is one of those things that is infinitely more challenging about living in a country where you don’t speak the language: these missed connections happen much more often, and when they do, they’re less likely to be resolved easily. Chances our, the incorrect appointment might well have been our misunderstanding in the first place, but we find that rather than explain the problem to us (that they have no record of our appointment) everyone passes the problem of explaining along to the next person, leaving us irritated (why are we waiting in the ER for 45 minutes when we had an appointment?) and confused (why is everyone being so weird?). We did finally get to see the cardiologist, and Liam’s heart is just fine (good to know) but after starting and our day, bright and early, with a heaping dose of confusion and frustration, I just did not have it in me to go forward with our plans for the day.

So, I gave up. We were supposed to take the kids to the zoo to meet a friend, but I just could not get excited about it. I was feeling really tired, and already daunted by the big week we have ahead of us. All I wanted to do was sit, read and have a cup of tea. So, that’s what I did. Benjamin was already excited about going to the zoo, so Dan took the boys. It seemed like a crazy idea when we first thought of it, and I felt preemptively guilty (could I *really* bring myself to skip a fun day at the zoo with my kids?) but it was GREAT. I got to relax and take a little time for myself, and the boys had a great time at the zoo with Dan. They don’t seem scarred by it, and, surprisingly, neither am I.

We still didn’t get a lot of stuff on our list done this weekend, and I’m still pretty worn out. But tomorrow, when I’m exhausted and trying to get my week back on track, I’ll feel a little better knowing I at least took a stab at being rested for the week. And the flamingos will be there next time.

Heurigen, again

Posted on November 6, 2011 by admin

We’ve tried out a heurigen (a Viennese wine tavern) before. We’ve been intrigued by the idea since we first saw the concept recommended on the Rick Steves episode about Vienna — in theory, they’re small restaurants (often buffet style) attached to micro-vineyards located within the city of Vienna. They are only allowed to sell the wine that is produced by the vineyard associated with the heurigen (again, in theory — I’ve read that this is usually, but not always, the case, although that is part of the historical context for them). The originally developed as a way for the vintners to showcase their wines, the young wines in particular (which is a Viennese thing), without paying tax on the sales. Generally, the wines are good, and the food is ok, but the setting can be beautiful — a cozy outdoor courtyard with live music, a set of picnic benches with a great view, a warm dining room with candles and a lot of ambiance. (There’s a lot of variation, of course, but this is the general idea.) They’re very popular with both tourists and locals — last time we went to a more touristy one, this time we wanted to try one that catered to locals.

We met our friend, Krishana, for lunch today at Heuriger Wieninger, a heurigen I had read good things about, in the 21st district. It was a long Strassenbahn ride for us (nearly an hour) but we found success. It definitely catered more to locals than tourists — no one spoke English to us the entire time we were there (I don’t doubt that they could have, but it’s a sign of how far outside of the tourist track we were that they didn’t snap into English, even when we struggled a little). The food was quite good. The wine was amazing (I had an Orange Cinnamon Prosecco). Benjamin and Liam both enjoyed the food (no wine for them) and running around in the pretty courtyard.

I love the idea of the heurigen, and so far, we’ve enjoyed all of our visits. I really had fun being a bit further off of the beaten path this time. Every time I explore a piece of Vienna that I wouldn’t have seen if I’d just been here for vacation, I feel more at home here, more connected to this place. My next project — a heurigen with a great view. I’ve heard there are some which are really remarkable, so that’ll be next.

Austrian clothes

Posted on November 5, 2011 by admin

I’ve been meaning to do some clothes shopping here in Vienna. I don’t really have a lot of warm winter clothes that I love (and a few of the things I intended to bring got put into storage by mistake). And, it can be really hard, as a mom, to not feel frumpy most of the time — I make sure I get a shower and brush my hair every day, but some days, that’s it. There isn’t always a lot of time or opportunity for putting together a fantastic outfit, and I don’t really have the clothes to do it now, even when I am so inclined. The people here are generally really well put together in terms of fashion and personal appearance, and it’s inspiring — I don’t need to look like I walked off the pages of a fashion magazine every time I leave the house (which is good, because that isn’t going to happen) but I’ve been wanting to make some changes. It would just be nice to have a few good outfits to go to — at least a few that I know look good on me and that look good togther.

So, I went shopping today. I went to a place that I walk by all the time. They have beautiful sweaters, scarves, jackets and hats in the windows, and the window displays are always beautiful — everything is very classically Austrian (without being “traditional” Austrian clothing, which is something else entirely). It was a little daunting — not only am I not the size I’d like to be right now (making it harder to find things that don’t contribute to the frumpiness) but, in what seems to be very typical of shops here, they only have one of each thing in each color in each size. So, if the one you like in your size has been sold, that’s it — they don’t have it. There isn’t a big store room in the back with dozens of the same thing. With a little perseverance, though, and a lot of help from my sweet and English speaking salesperson, I was able to find quite a few things that I’m very excited about.

Later, I took Benjamin to another shop buy a hat and a new set of gloves. (We want a set to leave for him at school so he has them to wear when he goes to play in the garden even if we forget them for his trip to school.) Finding a hat for a 3 year old is not easy, made more challenging by the fact that he’d really rather the shopping trip not be successful at all — Benjamin would probably be happiest if he never had to wear a hat or gloves, ever again. We were looking through the hats, trying to find one that fit. I picked one out (with reindeer on it!) for him to try. The saleswoman thought it would probably be too big, but I wanted him to try it anyway, just to see how cute it was. Well, it was too big, but he loved it. As soon as it went on, he decided it was the one he wanted, and he refused to take it off. He actually turned around and tried to walk out of the store — not just without paying for it, but without me. He got a little distressed when the saleswoman took it back to remove the tags, but was mollified when she let him stand behind the counter for the transaction (at this point he was wearing his new hat again, too, which helped).

He wore his hat around for most of the rest of the day (even though it was warm in Vienna today). He couldn’t wait to show it to his Grandma on our Skype — he’s very excited about it. I understand. Both Benjamin and I have exciting new Austrian things to wear, which is good. It’s always nice to have new things to wear that you feel good about.

The modern day pocket watch

Posted on November 4, 2011 by admin

I see it all the time — people hurrying down the street, riding on the train, sitting in a cafe, having a meal, having a conversation, playing with their kids. They sneak a quick peek at their cell phone — too fast to be checking a message: they’re checking the time.

Once I noticed it, I see it all the time, and it’s really pretty funny. We’ve replaced pocket watches with wrist watches and replaced wrist watches with cell phones as timepieces. When we need to know the time, or when we’re asked, we reach into our pocket, pull out our fancy digital pocket watch, click the button on the side to turn it on and peer down. (All that’s missing, really, is the chain attaching it to our pocket — which actually would be a useful feature.)

Dan and I often laugh between ourselves at how much we take the computing power in our pocket for granted. When one of us is grumbling about how “slow” or “frustrating” our phone is, the other will remark, “Oh, yes, the supercomputer/phone/camera/internet access in my pocket is just not fast enough for me!” The ease and seamless integration of this kind of technology into our lives is something that would have been astounding (to the point of seeming magical) to us only 15 years ago or so, and now we carry these devices around with us everywhere we go. I sure do like my fancy pocket watch.

I want to be a firefighter

Posted on November 3, 2011 by admin

Actually, I have no desire to be a firefighter — I’m nearly pyrophobic. As a child, I used to lie awake at night worrying about the possibility of my house burning down while I slept, was petrified of any open flame (including birthday candles) and actually had to be personally escorted out of the classroom, by the teacher, every time we had a fire drill.

I’ve gotten over it to some extent. I can handle birthday candles and fires in fireplaces pretty well, at least.

But tonight, at dinner, Benjamin announced the inevitable: that he wants to be a firefighter when he grows up. And Liam can be his baby firefighter and help him and ride in the back of the truck. And he might get a Dalmatian to ride on his red firetruck. And his friends can be firefighters, too, but they’ll be firefighters at the airport and use the green fire truck.

I know we’ll most likely go through many life ambitions over the course of his lifetime (I’m still coming up with new ones for myself) but there’s something very sweet about this one. As his protective mother, I hope he chooses something else. But, when he told me, I responded (sincerely) that I will be happy with him being whatever he wants to be when he grows up. Right now, I’m just happy with him being Benjamin, and I’m so glad he’s still little.

A free cookie

Posted on November 2, 2011 by admin

Yesterday evening, I took Benjamin out for some “B & Mommy” time. I usually go out, twice a week, on my own, for an hour, to get a cup of coffee. Lately, when I go, he’s been asking to go with me. I’ve been planning to do more things, just he & I — now that he’s in school, it’s rare for us to spend some time together when I’m not also wrestling Liam. So, yesterday, we went together.

We went to my usual Starbucks for “coffee” (I told him he could either have hot chocolate or warm milk). I walked, he rode his bike. He was so excited to go out in the dark on his bike, and to go with me to get coffee. We had a really nice trip over, and when we were in line, and B was debating his options, he caught sight of the cookies in the case. He decided that rather than warm milk or hot chocolate, he’d really rather have a cookie. When it was our turn to order, I asked for his cookie, and the manager, who was standing beside us, leaned over the counter and whispered something to our order taker. Then he turned to us, “I think, since yesterday was Halloween, we’re going to give you that cookie for free.” Benjamin was pretty excited (even though he has no real financial stake in his cookie supply). I thanked the manager, and so did Benjamin. He replied, “No problem. Besides, you’re in here almost every day.”

In my defence, I’m really not in there every day. I go in twice a week, that’s it. (I swear.) But, to a Starbucks crew in the center of the tourist section of Vienna, I imagine that an English speaker (trying to be a German speaker) who comes in regularly over the course of six months is pretty memorable. (Everyone there already knows my orders — extra impressive because I don’t get the same thing all the time, but they know the choices I select from.)

My first thought was, “Wow, in Vienna, of all places, I’m a regular at Starbucks. Yikes.” It’s a little predictable, and a lot American. But, in thinking about it, I’ve decided I don’t mind. I like my Starbucks. It’s isn’t about the coffee — I don’t require my normal American drinks or anything (the things that I get I could get anywhere in Vienna, anyway). I do love the location — it is the only place at Michaelerplatz where you can sit outside, drink a coffee, and watch Vienna. But even more, the people there are really great. They’re friendly, they’re helpful, they let me practice my German on them, and they’re never impatient or irritable when I resort to English. They’re good at what they do, too — tour buses literally unload in front of the shop, and I’ve been impressed, on several occasions, with the skill and ease with which they deal with the orders (and the myriad languages they’re faced with).

So, I’m ok with being a predictable American who’s a regular at Starbucks in Vienna. I like it there.

Christmas comes early

Posted on November 1, 2011 by admin

Halloween is barely celebrated here, and Thanksgiving doesn’t exist. There have been beautiful advent calendars and Christmas sweaters in the shop windows for weeks, and preparations are well underway for the extensive Christmas markets that will soon be open. Unlike at home, no one is embarrassed or exasperated about it — without Halloween and Thanksgiving, there’s really no reason NOT to start the celebration of Christmas.

As if on cue, the weather here today felt like something out of Dickens (minus the snow). This evening in Vienna was cold, foggy and damp. Walking through Michaelerplatz, watching the horse drawn carriages go by, I could easily imagine the opening scenes to “A Christmas Carol”.

Our Halloween pumpkins are still in good form, but soon, it’ll be time to deck our halls, too. I’m very excited about Christmas — it’s the time of year I’m most looking forward to experiencing in Vienna. Culturally, Christmas is bound to be very different here — I suspect Austria will celebrate more religiously than I’m used to at home. And the secular icons are different, as well — they have Saint Nicholas here, rather than Santa Claus, and the Christmas tree tradition is executed differently.

I’d better find out the salient differences, because with Benjamin being in school, he’s going to hear about them. He’s has already started his mental Christmas list for Santa — and one for Liam, too — and he told me this evening that he’s concerned that Santa will be able to get in to our house, but maybe not out again. He’s planning ahead. Me too.

Halloween, Austria style

Posted on October 31, 2011 by admin

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I love Halloween. I have so many memories of it from my childhood — picking and carving pumpkins, dressing up and going trick-or-treating, going to creepy houses, on spooky hayrides, or through haunted forests, or just staying home and giving out candy. I like it all. Benjamin has experiencesd enough of Halloweens at this point to remember it, and to look forward to it this year. So, although we really didn’t know how Austriants celebrated Hallloween, it was important to me that we do something to make the occassion.

Benjamin really wanted to go trick-or-treating, but after our first investigations, the prospects looked pretty dim. This time of year in Austria is much more about celebating fall than it is about celebrating Halloween. But, we persisted, and finally found out (through an American coworker of Dan’s) about a little bit of trick-or-treating done in Vienna. It took a while to get the details, but we finally found out exactly where to go.

So, we set about making things happen. We made treat bags for the kids (as our treat pumpkins are apparently in storage at home) and dug out costumes. Dan came home a bit early from work, and we got everyone dressed and ready and headed out. We took the tram, then took the same tram again (got a little lost), hopped on a bus, rode it out to the end, and trekked up a really big hill.

We’d been told that the houses participating in trick-or-treating would be decorated and easy to find. The first house we tried — no one home. But, we continued up the hill and came upon an entire neighborhood of homes decorated in pumpkin lights or jack-o-lanterns. By the second house, Benjamin was bounding up to the door shouting, “Trick or treat!” before the door was even opened. By the time we were through the one neighborhood, we had successfully visited about a half dozen houses. Benjamin had a fantastic time, and Liam, who was enjoying his first trick-or-treat (he slept through last year) had a great time and kept his costume on the entire time. We walked back down the hill, got on the bus, walked for a bit, got on the same bus again (not lost this time), got on the tram and came home. Then, we lit the pumpkins and had the boys try out their trick-or-treat skills here at home. It was a successful evening.

Trick-or-treating defintely seems to be an American thing: every house we went to was inhabited by Americans, and most of the trick-or-treaters we came across were English speaking. But it’s catching on here — we saw a few groups of German-speaking kids going from house to house, and a few of the houses we went to this evening had run out of candy (before 8:00), so I’m guessing that they had more people come by their houses than they did last year. We saw a few costumed kids on the way back, as well (including one little girl with quite a bucket full of treats). The Austrian kids seem to be as in to the “tricks” as the “treats” — we encountered “silly string” and shaving cream all along our route.

We didn’t really experience an Austrian Halloween — we experienced an American Halloween transplanted here. Mostly, we want to try to experience local culture while we’re here, but for today, my kids got to have their Halloween, and so did I. I’m happy we did it, even if it was a little American. We all had a good time, but Halloween is definitely something I miss about home.

Standard Time

Posted on October 30, 2011 by admin

We have Daylight Saving Time here in Austria, just like in the US, but it ends a week earlier, so we’re now 5 hours off from Eastern Time, instead of 6 . . . until next week, when we’ll be back at 6 again. (I apologize, in advance, for anyone I call or text at an inappropriate time back in the States this week.)

Theoretically, this means that we got an extra hour of sleep last night, but since Liam is simultaneously teething and congested with a cold, there was very little sleep to be had around our house last night. We will, however, be appreciating the shift in hours that the cessation of Daylight Saving Time provides — at least temporarily. The kids have been sleeping in later and later in the mornings as the sunrise gets later. This is great — it is a fantastic change from what we were experiencing in June and July: morning waking times around 5 a.m. — however, since I have a hard time making myself wake a sleeping child, we’ve ended up with some rushed (and late) mornings recently. Hopefully this will help get the kids up, and Dan to work, on time, more easily. (For a while, at least.)

I can tell, though, after just one day of this schedule, that the evenings are going to take some getting used to. By 4:30 today, dusk was starting to settle and it was truly dark by about 5:15. For trick or treating tomorrow, it’ll be perfect — nice and dark before we even go out. But dusk at 4:30 in October feels a little ominous — we have nearly 2 months of decreasing sunlight ahead of us. It’s already noticeably different than what I’m used to. The light here is beautiful — it’s like having morning or afternoon sun all day long. The sun is never quite overhead — “high” noon really isn’t.

Soon, we’ll be getting up and leaving the house in the dark; often coming home in the dark, as well. As we move further into winter at this latitude, I know that each moment of sunlight will become increasingly precious to us. We’ll be looking forward to the days of 5 a.m. sunrises very soon.

A Mommy Abroad

Our big adventure, as a family of three.

Category Archives: Adventure in Vienna