First and foremost I finally got my White Vienna! I woke up to two inches of snow last Tuesday morning and the fluffy whiteness continued to come down for the rest of the day, resulting in about three inches total.
The kinder were especially excited about this so after finishing homework we all went outside to play in the snow (despite my lack of playing-in-snow-appropriate clothing). I suppose I shouldn't have been, but I was surprised to see about ten other kids frolicking in the 'square' (of sorts) between a bunch of the houses in Bisamberg. We threw snowballs, we had a snowman making competition, we went sledding; it was great! It's maybe a little sad, but I can't actually recall the last time I was out just having fun in fresh snow (i.e. not skiing or walking to class). There was one giant hill that the kids particularly liked sledding down. If they weren't on a large more traditional sled with rails and a platform to sit on (though still a plastic one, not a really old school wooden one), they were on these thin plastic things that all of the kids seemed to have, alternating between going down one by one, attaching them together and going down in a chain of kiddos (the sleds were obviously made with this in mind as an option), and trying to stand on them sort of like skateboards and see how far they could get. I was pretty certain that, weighing more than any of them, I was going to gather a lot more momentum, not be able to stop, and come bursting out of the trees and right into the street just as a car was coming and meet an untimely end, but (very) thankfully that possibility never came to fruition. Eventually the kids got tuckered out so we all went in and warmed up with some hot chocolate before bed.
Unfortunately the snow had stopped the next day, but I was really impressed with the efficiency of the snow clearing crew of Vienna. On Tuesday almost all of the roads were clear even as early as when I was driving the kinder to school, though I deviated from the usual route in one or two places. By Wednesday all of the roads were completely cleared though snow still covered everything else. Very well done, Vienna.
Wednesday was also Anna's birthday, so I took her out to lunch at Café Imperial so she could try Imperial Torte (in my opinion much better than the famed Sacher Torte). I also had a delicious Mohr im Hemd, a delicious (if rather un-PC) dessert of chocolate cake, typically with a molten chocolate center, surrounded by whipped cream. This was, uh, supposed to signify the Turks being surrounded in their second defeat while trying to lay siege to Vienna. Nonetheless, delicious!
All of the new students also went out to dinner at Zwölf-Apostelkeller to celebrate her birthday. I had to come late, but I was pleased to see that I had arrived just in time for dessert! We went to lounge at Waxy Murphey's after, but I didn't stay too long since I still had to wake up early for work the next morning. However it was fun getting to know the new students a little better; I can already tell that I really like this group!
I also joined them for a showing of Before Sunset on Friday night, a movie that follows two blossoming lovers as they wander all around Vienna for a day. It was okay, although I really didn't like either of the main characters, but neat seeing (and recognizing) almost everywhere they filmed in the city. We then had a friendly debate over wine, and a few of us stayed up for a very serious game of Apples to Apples. Again, I am really liking this group!
Saturday I was supposed to get lunch with Anna, but we missed each other (and were unable to call because her phone is borked), so I contended myself with a glass of hot chocolate at Café Demel before getting an invite from David to join him and two students for lunch. I hung out for a little bit at the house after, then met up with Christian in Krems for dinner. We went back to the second heurigen he took me to the last time, then he drove me up for a quick view of Krems from Göttweig, a monastery across the Danube on a hill overlooking the valley. It was a little cold and wet, but a really neat view. I'd like to see it during the spring sometime.
A little hard to see, but Christian is also in the second picture
Then I went back for a German-English exchange with one of the neighbors of the family I work for; she suggested last semester that we meet and just chat so that she can practice her English and I can work on my German. It never really came to be last semester, but we finally made it happen this time. I got to Palette, the local Bisamberg heurigen (literally called "das lokale" - "the local") a little before she did, and although I was slightly uncomfortable drinking my beer alone at the bar, one of the bartenders started talking to me, and another guy came over to chat, so that was great. I've been meaning to go there for a really long time, actually, I've just been uncertain about my German skills, but now I think I'll try and make a point of going down once a week or so and just chatting with folks. It can't hurt, right?
Then, as if I hadn't done enough that day, I went back into Vienna to catch most of the Ravens vs. Patriots game at Champions with Will and Mel, the ones who invited me to their Thanksgiving dinner. We talked more than watched the game, but it was great just getting to know them a little better; they're really nice people. I was also a bit surprised how many people were there to watch the game. Will had had to reserve a table, and the whole place was packed! I suppose I just didn't think there were that many Americans/football fans based on the turnout for the Red River Shootout.
I got home pretty late and may not have gotten a full six hours of sleep in that night, but it was a good Sunday and I went to sleep early last night to catch up again, so all is good.
Bis bald!
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