Wow!! Our first day of touring in Austria is over. So many stories, so little time.
It was wonderful to finally meet up with everyone in Detroit. (Derek Zwier really exists! Who'd a thunk it?!) The flight to Paris went as to be expected. That is, it was very long. Very, very long. Between us, Alysha and I barely got an hour of sleep. Big bummer, to be sure. And, it turns out that airplane food is universally nasty. The French's penchant for gastronomics does not apply to airlines, I assure you. At the airport in Paris, Dr. Kavanaugh refered to everyone as "mon ami." This includes the customs agent. Needless to say, we were all chuckling throughout the airport which drew plenty of glances. In the end, we arrived to Vienna a little worse for wear, but safe and sound.
Our new friends, the Dünzers, picked us up at the airport and transported us to their lovely home in the Viennese suburbs. The Vienna Woods, as this area is called, is situated in the woods (imagine that!) and in proximity to the mountains. It is, in a word, gorgeous. And the Dünzers are lovely people themselves, so warm and charming. To listen to them chatter away in German is both hilarious and delightful. They keep assuring us that they are not like other Austrians and that they LOVE America. (I say LOVE because they tell us this practically five times a day!!) Their three daughters Hannah, Dina, and Lina are beautiful people inside and out. They are passionate, gorgeous, and talented. I really want to bring one back for my brother! They served a delicious and wholesome meal, which after the terrible airplane food, tasted wonderful.
Jill and I are sleeping at the Dünzers. Sleeping is probably too generous a word as we mostly lie awake and pray for rest. But, we "awoke" this morning to a lovely Austrian breakfast. The yogurt Mr. and Mrs. Dünzer served us was so creamy and tasty. HOWEVER... the packaging of the yogurt was rather confusing and in my sleepless haze I dumped the whole thing into my bowl. When I realized that I probably wasn't supposed to consume the entire carton of yogurt, I was mortified and resolved myself to eat the whole bowl. No small feat. I felt like such a stupid American...which became a continuing theme for the day. (Notice the title of the blog? Connections!)
Also at breakfast, I had my first cup of Austrian coffee. Yowza! That stuff will put hair on your chest. I swear, I am now addicted. What nonsense have I been drinking my whole life? Starbucks has nothing on the Austrians. After a dose of Austrian coffee, I feel no pain.
We met up with the rest of the group at the bus stop. It took a bus, a train, and a subway to get us into downtown Vienna, but we managed to navigate adequately. Our first stop was St. Stephen's Cathedral. It was completed in 1100-something, so it has been the center of Vienna from the very beginning. Honestly, there are not words to describe the absolute grandeur and majesty of such a building. Everywhere one looks, there are more details to be found. It is breathtaking, but not gaudy, and very refined, much like the Austrian people.
Dr. Kavanaugh tricked us students into climbing the inside of St. Stephen's steeple. Let's just say that I now possess buns of steel. But, the view was spectacular. The experience was definitely worth the pain and exhaustion.
On our way to the Musikhaus in Vienna, we were abducted by a band of angry apfelstrüdel. They forcibly dragged us into a near-by pastry shop. Kidding aside, the Austrians know how to do dessert. Holy cow, is it legal for food to taste that good? I had the Philharmoniker Eclair which pretty much tasted like angels wings and baby's breath. It was stuffed with a mound of the lightest and most delicious whipped cream that you can possibly imagine. It was that good. I kid you not. (I also had yet another cup of Viennese coffee. I couldn't resist. The strüsel made me do it.)
The Musikhaus is a large museum basically dedicated to what makes up music and the people who do it best. It's rather sci-fi. Two highlights include: Dr. Kavanaugh's reaction at seeing the ink pen with which Johannes Brahms composed and virtually conducting the Vienna Philharmonic. Dr. Kavanaugh, Derek, and I all took a shot a conducting this legendary group of musicians. Needless to say, conducting is not my calling. But, I'm still considering adding "conducted the Vienna Philharmonic" to my grad school applications.
We also visited the last surviving house where Mozart live in Vienna. (He took up residence in 13 houses in Vienna all together.) The Mozarthaus is also referred to as Figarohaus, because Mozart penned his famous opera
Le nozze di Figaro while he was living there. Jill and I stood for about two minutes with our palms pressed against his front door, soaking in the aura of such a genius.
And now, for the biggest "stupid American" moment of the day. Get excited.
We got on and off the subway (or U-bahn) with no problem. After we borded our train to Liezing, we started to relax and rest our tired legs. Dr. Kavanaugh began chatting about what to do once we reached Liezing at which point the woman across the aisle turns around and says, "This train not to Liezing." WHAT?! In panic, we jumped off the train at the next stop with Austrian passengers peering out their windows at us. We could almost read their minds...stupid Americans. Not to worry, we finally reached Liezing where another wonderful dinner awaited us at the Dünzers.
All in all, it was a lovely day.
German word of the day: Örtstarif. Definition: the toll you pay to ride the bus; Dr. Kavanaugh can't pronounce it for the life of him; if you say it wrong, the bus driver looks at you like you are a stupid American; you had better not say it wrong.
