12/12/13 – 12/13/13! Vienna with Julia!

December 13, 2013

Sometimes you just can’t predict what will go well and what will not! however, I knew that when Julia offered to show us around Vienna, that it would be a wonderful thing…and oh boy was I right! She and her boyfriend Mani met us at 8pm in our hotel. She brought me a tin of cookies all baked by her! I shared them with the ladies at the desk of our hotel. Our hotel is like a step back in history; like an old old old fashioned hotel! It’s beautiful and did I mention old fashioned?! You have to return your key to the desk every time you leave! Anyhow, I showed Julia and Mani my room when I put my stuff back. And they then took Pat and I via the underground to our restaurant for dinner….on St. Stephens Square which is filled with old gothic buildings and churches and shopping and holiday lights and well just anything and everything that picture-taking tourists love! I took pics of the beautiful square and of our food; a HUGE piece of Schnitzel which Pat, Julia and I all shared…Mani had his own…but it was so huge, even he was willing to share if we’d had any more room to try it…which we did not!

After dinner we walked around a bit and Julia showed us where she worked and we of course took pics! And we got to know her boyfriend Mani who is just as charming as she is! I am so grateful my sister Linda and brother in law Mike hosted 3 lovely AFS students, Ida, Dani and Julia. And grateful for Facebook as because of it, we’ve all been able to keep in touch with our international world of nieces. Sister Nina and brother in law Ed also hosted AFS students as well. I’m proudest of the fact that our family…all of us, welcomed these wonderful students into our lives as if they were our own…and we all still feel that way today! Sometimes we take each other for granted in our families. Especially brothers and sisters. We quickly dismiss what is truly special about us and nitpick away at our faults, etc. But there’s something really special in our family of “Schwartz Kids” that I never want to forget about…we are bonded…and when it really matters, or when it should matter…it DOES! And we are very fortunate for that!!!! I’m sure each of us can tell you very clearly what is wrong with each of us! But even that says we’ve taken the time to know each other, doesn’t it?!!! ha ha ha!

We got back to our hotel at around 11pm with plans to meet Julia at 10am in our lobby to do our day around Vienna. And what a day it was. She took us all around; we went via the underground and walking to see all the lovely architecture and historical sights Vienna beholds. She made a special effort to get me to Judenplatz to see the memorial dedicated to the Jews of Vienna who perished in the Holocaust and also to the memory of those great Austrians who aided the Jews to the best of their ability. We went for lunch and chose to eat a traditional soup containing beef broth and a liver dumpling! It was delicious. We also had a SALT STICK! Yummy too! And then we ordered 3 deserts and shared them all! Apple Strudel; Cheese Strudel and a Chocolate cake. We went more sight seeing and the temperature dropped. We went to 3 or 4 Christmas Markets. We have nothing at all like them in the US. And they’re all over Europe! I can’t believe it, but I’m shopped out!!! But every time I swore I didn’t want to shop any more, another stand had goods that were hand made and gorgeous!

Julia had helped us buy our Underground 24 hour ticket Thursday evening but commented how they almost never check to see if you had them; they did check us today and so we were Good!!!!

We caught a couple trains and had dinner around 7 eight next door to our hotel; We had more traditional dishes; I had bratwurst and a white bread dumpling, Pat had white bread dumpling and eggs! We chose against dessert. Pat and Julia had some hot wine at one of the Christmas Markets and I had a hot chocolate. We split off to head to our rooms; but not before Pat and I bought a cup of tea down in the lobby to bring up to our rooms! I’m nearly finished with mine now! It’s 9:05pm here…3:06pm at home. It will take me some time to upload the pictures here. It was a great day. We’re meeting Julia at 8:15am in the train station tomorrow morning to head to Salzburg for the day to do a hop on hop off Sound of Music Tour and especially to buys some Salzburg invented treat that translates to: MOZART BALLS!!!!!! Should be fun and interesting!

I’m feeling pretty homesick; I think this is actually significant. I think I’ve done an intensive amount of travel since my separation and divorce; I’m sure it wasn’t that I was running from my life/existence…I think it was more of me experiencing the relief and the opportunity to be free and happy and unencumbered by well, just let’s say…oh so much. I have NO REGRETS for all the travel and travails. This has been the most fun these past 2-1/2 years or so! But the significance of being homesick means my home is finally “home”! I believe it’s my home; I love that it is a place of happiness and peace and where my sons and doggies and family and friend can come ANY TIME and I can enjoy everything there! It’s nice to miss it! OX

phone boxes in our hotel lobby!

our Vienna hotel lobby

Mani and Julia; Julia is our most lovely and gracious hostess and tour guide!

St Stephens Church square; Christmas lights just don’t photograph as beautifully as they look in person!

Isn’t that Schnitzel HUGE! 3 of us shared the one on the left! The one on the right is Mani’s!

Lila and Pat at St. Stephens Square

Mani, Lila and Julia at St. Stephens Square!

Julia standing outside of her work office window!

Julia works at the OSCE and we tried several times to get a pic of her and Mani under the sign, but the lights kept washing out; so I took a pic of the sign separate!