Signs of Spring

So yesterday afternoon I had to walk to Praterstern (our local train station) for information about our trip to Prague. It is about a 15 minute walk through the Prater, which is a huge park practically right outside our door. It used to be the king’s hunting grounds, before he donated it to the people of Vienna. Now it houses lots of things- parks, playgrounds, a skateboarding area, a swan lake, numerous playing fields, (many for soccer but not all) a swimming pool, restaurants and cafes, and most importantly- a large amusement park that houses the large ferris wheel that appears in many films about Vienna. There are many, many paths for runners, bikers and Nordic walkers (a very popular pastime here) and many dogs, both on leash and off. It is a very busy area all year, but now even more so. Last week there were many men with rakes, cleaning up all the winter debris and yesterday I saw beds of daffodils coming up! And most exciting of all- the “Lilliputbahn” was working! It is a cute little train for kids that goes around a part of the amusement area. And also, throughout the city, the restaurants are putting out their outside tables, and the ice cream stores and stands that have been closed since we arrived are starting to open. So I am starting to believe spring will come. Clearly the Viennese believe that!

(OK- I know I talk a lot about the weather- but it really affects me!)

Now that is out of my system, I will get back to relating events. Monday was pretty quiet. Rich went to work and I was at home, and many museums are closed, so I hung around doing yoga and studying German, etc. In the afternoon I decided to explore the area across the canal from our apartment. So I walked along the canal for a way – nice paths and numerous dog runs (each with a stand for plastic bags- the important things). The Danube canal was created long ago to channel the wild waters of the Danube river and to drain swampy area. It has created a large island between the river and the canal, that holds the Prater and is where our apartment is located. People use the parkland along the canal for running and lounging and lots of dog walking. (Vienna seems to have a huge amount of green space- parks everywhere, both large and small.) Meanwhile, while walking I found the Hundertwasser apartments and museum. I decided not to go in because I know Rich is going to want to see it too, but I did some initial exploring around the area. It is a large apartment block and a museum down the street that were both created by a very crazy guy about 20 years ago- Hundertwasser. (They call him “100H20” --get it?) His work is sort of a cross between Gaudi and the Watts Towers in LA, with statements about environmentalism and human behavior thrown in for good measure. Again, too cold for pictures, but I will post some when we go back. In the meantime, you will have to take my word for it!

Monday night we tried to go to see “Alice in Wonderland” but the information about the theater said it was in English and when we got there we found out it was in German. So we decided not to go in, and found a huge bookstore to hang out in instead. Then we went to a café nearby and has some kind of really yummy bread pudding thing with a thick vanilla sauce- a lovely late night snack if ever there was one!
Tuesday was another quiet day. I met Rich at his school for lunch in a really nice little restaurant in the park just outside the door of the TU. We are getting into the habit, when possible, of eating our large meal at lunch rather than dinner. It is quite a nice way of living, and feels healthier not to have such a big meal at night. It is definitely the tradition here, although many folks can no longer maintain it. After that, as he went back to work, I went over to the art museum for a bit. I had bought the yearly entrance card at our first visit, so I can stop by whenever I have a little time. It is a really amazingly luxurious ability to do that! I just went for about 1 ¼ hours and immersed myself in Rubens and Van Eyck- not bad stuff!

Then I went to a late yoga flow class at the same place I have been going. It started at 5:30 and was mobbed with almost 30 people jammed in --just a couple of inches apart! The class was fine, but the crowds made the room extremely hot and less than totally pleasant. I am now done with the introductory offer at this place and think it is time to try some other spots before I commit to one of them. (Now at least I understand when the teacher says breathe in and breathe out and move the left or right foot!)

So Wednesday was a really interesting day. Started early when we went to meet Carl and Michele and their kids for a field trip to the Klosterneuburg Monastery and Castle outside the city limits. It is so nice of them to invite us along to these things they plan. I am not sure we would have found this on our own and it was quite neat! Had to go to the end of one of the subway lines and then to a suburban line to get to the cute little town where it is located.

The area was first home to a Roman military outpost, and then housed a monastery from the early 12th century. The church has Romanesque elements but was not finished until the 18th century when the interior was thoroughly baroque-ized. They also added a large gothic spire sometime along the way, and put on the decorative tile roof in the 19th century. And King Margrave Leopold III had a royal residence here, followed by Duke Leopold VI and Emperor Charles VI, father of Maria Theresa. The latter one started a huge Baroque castle ensemble, but died before it was finished. Today there is an Augustinian Canon’s Monastery here, and the oldest wine-growing estate in Austria. We had a good tour of the interior and many of the treasures, including the Verdun Altarpiece (which I think I remember from art history classes). This is a huge bronze, enamel and gilt altar created by Nicholas of Verdun in the 12th century.
So this was a real highlight and a place I want to go back to so I can do the winery tour and show it others- notably certain daughters who I think would really like it!

I am going to try to create a picassa album of our pictures from here, with fuller captions for those who are interested. In the meantime, above are three pictures from the ensemble.

And now it is Thursday and Rich and I are on the train to Prague. Going thru beautiful, flat farmland outside of Vienna that is already showing signs of green and then into Czech Republic. It is very strange to be in a place where the language is so completely out of our ken. The train stopped at Brno and I don’t even know how to begin to pronounce it. Seems like they need a few more vowels to me! Very interesting old towns along the way however- but the train goes too fast to get any good pictures! Oh well.

Guess I will sign off for now and the next installment will recount our adventures in Prague. Why doesn’t anyone comment on the blog? Are you reading?