Brrrrrr.......

The most amazing thing happened this week--Jacob ironed!  Since we arrived in September there has been a pile of shirts and pants at the bottom of Jacob's closet.  Yesterday, Jacob asked me, in a rhetorical fashion, "did I bring any corduroy pants?" and thus, the excavation and ironing began.  This is good, since Jacob wore the same orange sweater (featured in a picture below) every single day last week.

Our week began by visiting the Belvedere Castle, which is where Prince Eugene, a French prince who was invited to live in Austria by the Hapsburgs lived.  It is a beautiful castle with lovely grounds.  The afternoon we were there was very chilly, which made for a beautiful sky.

On Thanksgiving day, we went out to a delicious lunch at a great vegetarian restaurant, Wrenkh.  Hersh sat at the table and enjoyed lunching.  He of course captured the attention of the ladies at the table next to us. We proceeded to chat with them and learned that they were Italian Jews, some of whom live here in Austria and others who live in Israel.  We chatted about Hersh's name, where our families are from, and the fact that quinoa is kosher for Passover.  The elderly lady at the table, who did not speak English, only Hebrew, German, and Italian, made her daughter ask me if my hair was natural or a wig because it looked so perfect!  I often have people ask me if my hair is natural, but the way she asked was a quintesential combination of Jewish grandmother and pushy Israeli--both amazing and endearing. We then visited the Albertina museum and saw the Picasso exhibit, which all three of us really enjoyed.  There was also a Michelangelo exhibit, which was all sketches, and was not as interesting to Hersh.

Hersh officially has two teeth and is moving more and more each day.  He is actually quite frustrated with himself, as it seems that he would really like to crawl.  We are pretty sure that it'll happen any day now.  We have also had snow over the past few days.  Nothing too crazy--just a couple of inches each night, and it melts pretty quickly.

Happy Hanukah!

ready for an outing--Hersh and the orange sweater.

 Belvedere Castle:

Checking out the Picasso exhibit.

winter coat!

on the U-bahn

bear cub hat!

Yup, it's winter now.

Here we are, late November, and the winter is here.  Each day is chillier and chillier and I am sure that it will snow one day soon. To be honest, I'm totally bummed that it's winter.  I prefer a mild winter where I never really have to wear a winter jacket.  Puffy vest is about as "bundled" as I want to get.

Jacob attended a conference this past weekend here at the University, and Hersh is busy teething!  That's right, he is getting his front bottom two teeth, which is very exciting, but also very painful.  The teething caused Hersh to run his very first fever, which was not fun for him or for us.  Fortunately he is feeling better and Jacob is convinced that Hersh is a much more proficient chewer now, due to the fact that a millimeter of one tooth is visible.

Christmas markets have sprung up all over the city and they are beautiful.  Lights, crafts, and amazing treats!  Hot wine, baked goods, candy, really anything one could imagine.  There is no need to plan to go to a Christmas market, since they are everywhere, one simply stumbles upon them.  Last week Hersh and I visited the Museum of Natural History--it was truly incredible.  So vast and old.  The corridors seemed to go on forever. 

We will be having an expat Thanksgiving this weekend, but hope that all of our loved ones in the States have a wonderful holiday!

Rathaus

Enjoying warm punsch.

"You are the woman of my dreams."

Chillaxin.

Having fun, thinking about maybe crawling...one day.

After the bath--squeaky clean!

Swingin' around town!

After a long week at work for Jacob and a busy week for Hersh and I, we were all happy to enjoy Shabbat.  Saturday was a beautiful day--low 60's.  We began the day by heading to the grocery store, where I engaged the produce man (who I know speaks English) in a hunt for maple syrup.  I couldn't find it anywhere in the store, although I knew they had it because I recalled seeing it previously.  We all searched and searched, but couldn't find it, and then, as we were in the check out line, he ran up to us and triumphantly presented us with not one, but two kinds of organic maple syrup.  We then went home and had delicious challah french toast, which Hersh tried a taste of and loved!

Following Hersh's morning nap we hopped on the U-bahn and headed down towards Der Prater, which is the big park in the city, similar to Central Park or Golden Gate Park.  We were hungry though, since we had been up since 6am (thanks Hersh!) and challah french toast seemed like it had happened days ago.  So, we got off the train a stop early and decided that we would find a place for lunch.  We then proceeded to have one of the most amazing cafe brunches ever. Freshly baked bread; yogurt with fruit, honey, and muesli; cheeses; butter; jam; kuerbis creme soup; caffe latte, black tea, and orange juice; and chive cream cheese with veggies.  Everything was so fresh, made right in the cafe.  The honey came from the forest.  Jacob and I enjoyed every bite while Hersh hung out and made some lady friends, and then when he was ready, enjoyed gnawing on a pear and carrot stick.

We then strolled to the beautiful Prater.  The leaves were changing, the sun was shining, and Hersh went on the swings for the first time--and he loved it!  The only thing that is strange about Der Prater is that it has an amusement park, similar to Coney Island, as a part of it.  And let me tell you, it is the strangest, creepiest, amusement park we have ever been to.

Yesterday Hersh and I did an amazing baby/mama yoga class.  It was a great workout for me, and Hersh loved watching the other mamas and babies.  He also loved the end of the class where we did yoga together.  After yoga we met up with Jacob for lunch since the studio is next to the University.  We had Mexican food, which we decided was amazing for Mexican food in Vienna, and would be rated as "mediocre" back in the States.  Next week we think we will try a "pay what you wish" Indian food joint.

Finally, Hersh has started to smack his lips, shake his head back and forth, bop or jump up and down, and has become very interested in animal noises when we read to him.  What a baby!

If you look closely, you'll notice it's Grade C maple syrup--only the best!

mmmm...french toast

Fresh oj, bread, jam, butter, honey

Black tea and a cafe latte

cheese with chives

beautiful yogurt with fruit and muesli

kuerbis creme soup

veggies

Abba and Hershel

the amazing cafe

The Swinging Series:

swinging can be tiring...

but is very fun!

  The amusement park series:

they use real horses for the merry-go-round

sculpture #1

close-up

sculpture #2

but of course, a beautiful sunset

From sunshine to rain

We were fortunate to have a week of AMAZING weather last week--it was sunny and in the 60's all week long.  This allowed for many outdoor outings and the shedding of a few layers of clothing.  But, alas, the sun has disappeared, and I fear that we have now entered the rainy season of November.  We are well prepared and well seasoned for the rain being that we lived through 6 wonderful winters in Seattle.  The rumors of the approaching winter continue, with everyone warning us that it is going to be freezing.  I am prepared and vow to spend time outside each day regardless of the weather.

On Saturday we went back out to the vineyards, this time to Kahlenberg.  We took the bus all the way up the hill and then enjoyed a nice downhill hike.  The hike down was paved so it made for easy transit with Hersh.  The weather and the view were amazing.  In the middle of the hike, as we were walking through the vineyeards, we came upon a large barn.  They had wonderful outdoor seating, delicious artisan cheese, bread, homemade mustard, and we drank Gruner Veltliner--local white wine.  As we enjoyed, we basked in the late afternoon sun and were reminded of what a charmed time in our life this truly is. 

With each outing comes the question, "Where do we change Hersh's diaper?"  Although it would seem that this question has a simple answer--a changing table--there are not very many public changing tables in Austria.  Thus, we improvise.  We have come to prefer the grass (with our changing pad down) over a nasty bathroom floor.  So, when we got to the wine barn, after Jacob had purchased our wine and delicious cheese plate, we turned to each other and asked--"Where do we change Hersh?"  You will see below a picture of a Pipibox (which Jacob decided is the only name better than a Honeybucket), this is not where I changed Hersh.  Instead we found a nice, sunny piece of grass and I gave Hersh a "freshie."  As Hersh and I were enjoying the moment and the fresh air on his cute, little, tushie, I let him know, "Well, you got us, and this is the life you will have...." He gave me a smile and a laugh, letting me know that he doesn't mind our somewhat unconventional, yet resourceful style way of life.

Yesterday, we went to the Stephenplatz, which is in the center of the city and walked from the big cathedral to the Museum Quartier and through the Hofburg Palace, which was the winter home for the Hapsburg Dynasty.  The architecture was beautiful and the grounds quite grand.  I also enjoyed a history lesson from Jacob about Austria, the Hapsburg, and WWI as we strolled.

One final note:  we have cell phones now.  If you would like to reach me or Jacob and you are calling from the States, please let me know if you would like the phone numbers. 

Der Stephensdom built in 1365

The view from the top of Kahlenberg hill.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pipibox..hehehe

Warm, afternoon sun.

Delicious wine and cheese.

Hello!

The next series of photos is Jacob modeling the poses of the statues at the Hofburg Palace.  I hope you enjoy these photos, because we really enjoyed taking them!

What a weekend!