In case anyone stumbles across this, find me at my new blog at www.umbrellainuse.com. Lots of excitement and drama. :)
Monday 24 February 2014
Wednesday 5 December 2012
Where to begin??
Vienna is perfectly gorgeous. The old city, where I have been poking about for the last couple of days is as magical as the pictures you see. Old, incredibly clean, and just plain old picturesque There is history around every corner. Yesterday, I happened down a side street and came upon a plaque on house announcing the composer, Robert Schumann, lived there for several years.
I've been to several churches, with the exception of the big cathedral, which I am saving for later in the week to go with H. My favourite is St. Peters. It's not very big, but the frescoes are stunning and the gold work is so intricate. It also has one of the oldest organs in Europe, and on Monday, I went to a free concert there in the afternoon to hear it. One can't help but be immersed in classical music here, whether you like it or not. It is everywhere. I stumbled across the men's choir practicing in another church and stayed to listen to them.
My absolute favourite thing that I've seen, and thanks to my mom for recommending (insisting) that I go, is the crypt where the Kaisers are buried. The coffins are just lined up in these dim, underground rooms. How elaborate they are is a true sign of how austere the particular time or Kaiser happened to be. Some are so detailed and so over-the-top and are covered with guards with skulls as faces or veiled mourners. There are some tiny coffins that belong to children and babies, but for the most part, most of these people lived to their old age. The pictures show very plump people who looked rather pleased with themselves, so it's no wonder they got old.
Of course, this visit wouldn't be complete without a visit to the the Christmas markets. There are five, and I've been to three so far, and there is one that is just so touristy I am not going to bother. Last night, I went to one of the larger ones, in front of the Rathaus (city hall). A lot of pretty decorations, a LOT of food and drink, and a lot of junk, too. You certainly need to be selective when purchasing anything, as it is both expensive and not necessarily made in Austria. Tonight, we will go to the best one. It's small but is known to have the true, hand-made decorations.
If I lived here, I would slowly become an alcoholic, at least in December. I find I am addicted to the punsch stands that are everywhere. Punsch is a mulled wine that is so very, very delicious The local Lion's club has stands set up and the proceeds go to charity. A cup is three Euros and few things are as pleasant as standing in a square, and feeling the warmth spread through my body. It's quite chilly here and after spending the day outdoors, it is very welcome. At the Christmas markets, there are different varieties, and I had a particularly yummy one made of eggnog with whipping cream on top.
Unfortunately, I can't post any pictures, as H's Mac isn't recognizing my camera (For the record, I wouldn't have these sorts of problems with a PC :P), but will add a bunch when I get home.
H and I are about to start our day here, very late today. We both had long days yesterday, and I'm battling a bit of a cold, so we opted to have an easy morning and sleep in. I'm not sure what we'll see. I am hoping to get to the Albertina. Which is a museum that was a private palace, and they have kept much of the residential feel of it.
In lieu of pictures, here is a recipe for Punsch. It makes 24 cups--probably what I will drink in the course of the week. :)
3 litres of red wine
I've been to several churches, with the exception of the big cathedral, which I am saving for later in the week to go with H. My favourite is St. Peters. It's not very big, but the frescoes are stunning and the gold work is so intricate. It also has one of the oldest organs in Europe, and on Monday, I went to a free concert there in the afternoon to hear it. One can't help but be immersed in classical music here, whether you like it or not. It is everywhere. I stumbled across the men's choir practicing in another church and stayed to listen to them.
My absolute favourite thing that I've seen, and thanks to my mom for recommending (insisting) that I go, is the crypt where the Kaisers are buried. The coffins are just lined up in these dim, underground rooms. How elaborate they are is a true sign of how austere the particular time or Kaiser happened to be. Some are so detailed and so over-the-top and are covered with guards with skulls as faces or veiled mourners. There are some tiny coffins that belong to children and babies, but for the most part, most of these people lived to their old age. The pictures show very plump people who looked rather pleased with themselves, so it's no wonder they got old.
Of course, this visit wouldn't be complete without a visit to the the Christmas markets. There are five, and I've been to three so far, and there is one that is just so touristy I am not going to bother. Last night, I went to one of the larger ones, in front of the Rathaus (city hall). A lot of pretty decorations, a LOT of food and drink, and a lot of junk, too. You certainly need to be selective when purchasing anything, as it is both expensive and not necessarily made in Austria. Tonight, we will go to the best one. It's small but is known to have the true, hand-made decorations.
If I lived here, I would slowly become an alcoholic, at least in December. I find I am addicted to the punsch stands that are everywhere. Punsch is a mulled wine that is so very, very delicious The local Lion's club has stands set up and the proceeds go to charity. A cup is three Euros and few things are as pleasant as standing in a square, and feeling the warmth spread through my body. It's quite chilly here and after spending the day outdoors, it is very welcome. At the Christmas markets, there are different varieties, and I had a particularly yummy one made of eggnog with whipping cream on top.
Unfortunately, I can't post any pictures, as H's Mac isn't recognizing my camera (For the record, I wouldn't have these sorts of problems with a PC :P), but will add a bunch when I get home.
H and I are about to start our day here, very late today. We both had long days yesterday, and I'm battling a bit of a cold, so we opted to have an easy morning and sleep in. I'm not sure what we'll see. I am hoping to get to the Albertina. Which is a museum that was a private palace, and they have kept much of the residential feel of it.
In lieu of pictures, here is a recipe for Punsch. It makes 24 cups--probably what I will drink in the course of the week. :)
3 litres of red wine
1 litre of water
0,12 litre of Austrian rum (80vol% alcohol), if you have to use carribean rum, take 0,25 litre
0,75 litre fresh orange juice
250 g sugar
2 sticks of cinnamon, a few cloves
some orange peel
0,12 litre of Austrian rum (80vol% alcohol), if you have to use carribean rum, take 0,25 litre
0,75 litre fresh orange juice
250 g sugar
2 sticks of cinnamon, a few cloves
some orange peel
Put everything into a big pot, just heat, do not boil.
Sunday 2 December 2012
Bread, it's that good here
This actually deserves mention. We had picked up some rye bread that smelled so delicious, it was irresistible.
We just had that bread, butter and cheese. It's not just delicious because of where we are enjoying it, it is really that good. Why does bread that you have to cut yourself always taste better? And back to the price--90 cents!!!
V is for Wien!
H and I arrived safe and sound in this lovely city. The trip was uneventful. Luckily for us, our connection in Frankfurt was delayed by a half hour, so we did not have to do the two kilometre run from one end of the airport to the other.
It was great to see snow falling in Frankfurt. Sadly, no snow in the forecast here, but I remain hopeful.
Our tiny little flat is right by the Prater, which is a very old amusement park here in the city. The ferris wheel is the oldest operating ferris wheel in Europe, if not the world. It's an ancient, rather rickety structure that looks totally unsafe. I can't wait to go on it. It's huge and the view must be spectacular. In anticipation of being here, I had a wonderful evening watching "The Third Man" Friday evening. There is a great scene in that movie that takes place on this ferris wheel.The woman who greeted us at the flat was kind enough to show us where the local grocery store is and recommended a great little restaurant, where we polished off meat and gravy and spaeztle, oh, and a bottle of wine. We were starving and so everything was especially tasty.
Pleasantly full, we wandered over to the grocery store. Both H and I love visiting grocery stores in foreign places and this was no exception. We stocked up on the basics, but also threw in cheese, some lunchmeat, chocolate pudding from the dairy case and a bottle of prosecco. Some things are so ridiculously inexpensive. Our litre of milk was just shy of one Euro, the aforementioned chocolate pudding (which was delicious and tasted like I had made it at home--crappy Jell-o pudding take note) was about 75 cents each. The prosecco was less than four Euros. I can't wait to go back again. It was extremely busy this afternoon. Shops here are closed on Sundays and I think that's why this place was so crazy. Walking around our neighbourhood was great. It was so very quiet, it was almost eerie. Apparently everyone was at the grocery store. :)
Lots of building photographs to come. The building this flat is in is very old, with the kind of crumbling walls and wrought iron bannisters that would be condemned in North America, but here just hide very cool, very modern apartments.
A few snaps from earlier in the day. We are very, very tired and will be having an early night. We both adored the restaurant dog. He wandered out, checked out the people who were eating, barked at the table who decided to leave and then flopped down and snoozed in the middle of the restaurant. Everyone just smiled and stepped around him. I wish we were more relaxed about these sort of things where we are.
Wednesday 29 February 2012
The end of my visual feast--for now
My trip here is over. Where did the time go? This truly was a work trip and I had very little time to get around. I only had tea at the Taj the one time, and didn't even do the full tea. No caves, no Crawford Market; I guess I will have to come again. This time I will try to tack on some personal travel days. It is truly a country worth seeing.
I think one of the things I enjoy the most is that it really is a feast for the eyes, both good and bad. There is an interesting picture around every corner. It's very common that if a man has to pee, he pulls over and goes for a pee. It used to shock me, but then became a bit of a game that on the way to and from work, how many men would be peeing? Six was the most and that's a pretty impressive number considering the drive to work is perhaps five kilometres at best. (And to be clear, that is part of the "bad")
The good is all over the place. The little markets with carts of neatly arranged fruits and vegetables, the moldering buildings, my constant amazement of what can be delivered on a bike, or the two guys last night on a motorcycle, one driving and his passengers holding two enormous branches of bananas. I particularly love the women in their brightly coloured saris and never get tired of looking at them. Even the everyday ones that I see are gorgeous and they are very flattering on all sorts of body shapes. The women just look graceful and dressed up, even though it's just daily wear clothing.
In the mornings seeing the kids in their uniforms on their wait to school also made me smile. The girls tended to wear these rather shapeless sort of dresses, but almost all of them wear their very long hair in long braids and then looped up and tied with huge, brightly coloured ribbons. They are so cute looking and already true Mumbaikars as they somehow navigate themselves and their small siblings through the crazy traffic.
On the weekend, I often see flower bedecked cars that are bringing either a bride or groom to their wedding. This past Sunday, on the way to lunch at the home of one of my colleagues (which was delicious and a lot of fun), my cab got stuck in a traffic jam. As we made it past the blockage, I saw a young groom getting out of the car and everyone crowding around him. It was colourful, loud, and a total pleasure to see.
As much as I'm looking forward to home, bed, family and friends, I will miss this place. Because this was the second time around, it was much less "scary" and that much more easy to navigate. It doesn't take long to establish a routine and with the odd exception, pretty much ate Indian food for a lot of the trip. My one "treat" for western food was, strangely enough, McDonalds. I think that was because I discovered their spicy paneer sandwich and that they have my beloved Thums Up cola as one of their fountain drinks. Their paneer sandwich was basically a square of deep fried paneer, lettuce and a spicy, creamy sauce. Seriously good and so cheap. The meal deal with fries and a drink is about $2.50.
I play this silly game with myself when I travel of "Could I live here?" and for some strange reason, Mumbai gets a yes. Perhaps not forever, but if I had to for an extended period of time, it would be do-able. I've even picked out my neighbourhood. :)
Of course, that everyone I've met here is so gracious and helpful makes that question easier to answer. I have never met a group of people more generous. I am in everyone's debt and even though they won't hear of it, I am eternally grateful.
And just to close, some pictures that I like. The dog is "my" dog. She's the one that was pregnant when I was here last August and actually remembered me the first time our paths crossed again. I was so pleased, I bought some dog treats for her at the grocery store, which she happily gobbled up. Sorry, no peeing men pictures. :)
I think one of the things I enjoy the most is that it really is a feast for the eyes, both good and bad. There is an interesting picture around every corner. It's very common that if a man has to pee, he pulls over and goes for a pee. It used to shock me, but then became a bit of a game that on the way to and from work, how many men would be peeing? Six was the most and that's a pretty impressive number considering the drive to work is perhaps five kilometres at best. (And to be clear, that is part of the "bad")
The good is all over the place. The little markets with carts of neatly arranged fruits and vegetables, the moldering buildings, my constant amazement of what can be delivered on a bike, or the two guys last night on a motorcycle, one driving and his passengers holding two enormous branches of bananas. I particularly love the women in their brightly coloured saris and never get tired of looking at them. Even the everyday ones that I see are gorgeous and they are very flattering on all sorts of body shapes. The women just look graceful and dressed up, even though it's just daily wear clothing.
In the mornings seeing the kids in their uniforms on their wait to school also made me smile. The girls tended to wear these rather shapeless sort of dresses, but almost all of them wear their very long hair in long braids and then looped up and tied with huge, brightly coloured ribbons. They are so cute looking and already true Mumbaikars as they somehow navigate themselves and their small siblings through the crazy traffic.
On the weekend, I often see flower bedecked cars that are bringing either a bride or groom to their wedding. This past Sunday, on the way to lunch at the home of one of my colleagues (which was delicious and a lot of fun), my cab got stuck in a traffic jam. As we made it past the blockage, I saw a young groom getting out of the car and everyone crowding around him. It was colourful, loud, and a total pleasure to see.
As much as I'm looking forward to home, bed, family and friends, I will miss this place. Because this was the second time around, it was much less "scary" and that much more easy to navigate. It doesn't take long to establish a routine and with the odd exception, pretty much ate Indian food for a lot of the trip. My one "treat" for western food was, strangely enough, McDonalds. I think that was because I discovered their spicy paneer sandwich and that they have my beloved Thums Up cola as one of their fountain drinks. Their paneer sandwich was basically a square of deep fried paneer, lettuce and a spicy, creamy sauce. Seriously good and so cheap. The meal deal with fries and a drink is about $2.50.
I play this silly game with myself when I travel of "Could I live here?" and for some strange reason, Mumbai gets a yes. Perhaps not forever, but if I had to for an extended period of time, it would be do-able. I've even picked out my neighbourhood. :)
Of course, that everyone I've met here is so gracious and helpful makes that question easier to answer. I have never met a group of people more generous. I am in everyone's debt and even though they won't hear of it, I am eternally grateful.
And just to close, some pictures that I like. The dog is "my" dog. She's the one that was pregnant when I was here last August and actually remembered me the first time our paths crossed again. I was so pleased, I bought some dog treats for her at the grocery store, which she happily gobbled up. Sorry, no peeing men pictures. :)
Monday 27 February 2012
Baby Falak update
Good news on the Baby Falak story. I was just browsing and found an article that she's off a ventilator and more responsive.
http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/battered-baby-falak-responding-to-treatment_760946.html
http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/battered-baby-falak-responding-to-treatment_760946.html
Sunday 26 February 2012
Ants in my pants
Not literally, but actually ants in my bed. I had a very bad night where something kept biting me. I thought bedbugs, but no, it is tiny little red ants. I've got about a dozen or so bites on my shoulders and back. I don't know where they came from, but I itch like crazy.
So off to Google to learn more. I found this story from last year. It's really not related at all to this post beyond the ants, but it just blew me away. Even if you don't read the whole link, read the last paragraph. WTF?
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-01/kolkata/29953331_1_ants-baby-girl-exhumed
So off to Google to learn more. I found this story from last year. It's really not related at all to this post beyond the ants, but it just blew me away. Even if you don't read the whole link, read the last paragraph. WTF?
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-01/kolkata/29953331_1_ants-baby-girl-exhumed
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