Today was another national holiday--All Saint's Day--so Jacob did not have to go into the office. This in combination with the beautiful Fall weather (it was in the low 60's) afforded us the opportunity to take our first trip out to the Vienna Woods, which are the foothills of the Alps, and just on the edge of the city. For all you Seattleites out there, where we went today is comparable to Cougar Mountain.
We just hopped on the Schnell-Bahn, took it three stops, and arrived at the Lainzer Tiergarten, which used to be the private hunting grounds for the Kaiser (emperor). The colors of the trees were breathtaking. It felt wonderful to be out in the woods. We even saw a few wild boar, as they live in the Tiergarten. This was especially exciting for Jacob as the wild boar or hog is the U of Arkansas mascot--wooo pig sooie! Hersh also enjoyed the hike. He schnoozed for a bit, listened to the wind in the trees, and found the leaves fascinating. At the end of the hike Jacob and I shared a slice of pizza and got a Fanta at the train station, where we learned from the Pizza Guy that Austrian Fanta is different than American Fanta. Austrian Fanta is "colder" or more bitter than American Fanta--who knew!
Jacob has some wonderful colleagues (who have really great spouses!) in his research group. Yesterday, we had a them over for a delicious Fall meal. We made chili, spinach artichoke dip, and blondies for dessert. It was really nice to cook a big meal and host everyone. We went up on the roof for an amazing sunset!
Tomorrow morning we will go pick up our visas. This is exciting as we can now begin the process of figuring out whether or not we can get cell phones--ahh the adventures of living abroad!
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| There are no chocolate chips or vanilla extract in Vienna. Thus, we smashed our own chocolate and used vanilla zucker instead, but the blondies were still delish! |
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| Beautiful sunset from our roof |
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| Our friend, Jess, made Hersh this super-cute owl shirt for Halloween--so sweet! |
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| Foliage |
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| That's the back of Hersh's hat. He schnoozed while we hiked. |
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| I'm awake! |
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| Doesn't everyone bump into wild boars when they go hiking? |
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| Hersh is slightly skeptical of the Family Self-Portrait. |
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| Discovering the leaves. |
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| I love the woods! |
1) The blondies look delicious. Please send Addie the recipe so I can enjoy them :)
ReplyDelete2) The sunset and the trees look gorgeous. How lucky you guys are!
3) Hersh playing with the leaves is way too cute. He has his parents love of nature, that's for sure!
love this post, as I do all the others. But today, I listened to Rufus Wainsright's Tiergarten while reading it. (one of my favorite songs)
ReplyDeleteLove, Sara (I guess using Aliza's account)
Glad you both enjoyed the post! Craig, I always look forward to your comments after I post (and I will send Addie the recipe!) Sara, the story that goes with Ella's mobile is "The Star Child." Much love to you both and your counterparts!
ReplyDeleteI've left this post open at my desk all day today, so I can keep flipping back to look at that picture with the "I'm awake!" caption. Melt!
ReplyDeleteI need to know more about this boar situation. It looks like you were really close. Are they pretty chill if you don't mess with them? Are their boars all over the woods in Vienna, like there are dear all over our woods, or is it really rare to see them?
I miss you!
Love,
Addie
Addie,
ReplyDeleteThe boars were very close. We probably got within two yards of them, but later we saw some babies (piglets?) and a sow within a foot of some kids. It actually made me a bit nervous, since they are wild animals, but I guess they must be pretty used to people. I don't think there are boar everywhere in the woods. My guess is that these are descendants of boar stocked for hunting. The Tiergarten is actually walled to keep game in and peasants out.
is this it?http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/images/0863153038/ref=dp_image_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books
ReplyDeleteSara-Yes! That's the story! Is Ella noticing the mobile?
ReplyDeleteYes, Ella loves the mobile. and so do I. We miss you guys a lot. When are you coming back? I saw Jacob's note about plane tickets etc.
ReplyDelete