18/01 - 18/02: or January & February 2018 (In Austria)

March 23, 2018

18/01 - 18/02: or January & February 2018 (In Austria)

January was a bit of blur, well heck, February was too. You know, since we kicked off our new year in a new country! Yes, that’s right. We landed in Vienna on New Years Eve, four of our six people and ten pieces of luggage between us all. Well at least seven that night, three had been left behind in Istanbul and would be finding their way to us the following day. After close to thirty hours of travel we arrived at our temporary apartment only to discover it was not ready for us. The sheets were dirty, the space hadn’t been cleaned after the last tenants left and all we wanted to do was find a bite to eat and then find our pillows. The relocation agent for the accommodations was a young man who attempted to make light of the situation, a gesture which was not received well by four exhausted and weary travelers. Not to mention we had left behind two of our six on opposite ends of the country. For any Mama that has ever had to leave her children adult or otherwise I get it. There are too many emotions to even mention here. Our apartment dilemma was remedied and we made a transfer to a different building. At the new building we were gifted with a box of Mon Cheri chocolates. The Things knew I was done for at chocolate, despite the fact of not being a fan of fruit and chocolate together. They took the first taste and their reactions were priceless. None of us were aware that the filling inside was alcohol. Surprise! Definitely a welcome to Austria moment for us all!

Travel day.

We kicked off our NYE celebration at Hoffbrau Haus, a traditional spread of weiswurst, pretzels and schnitzel. Along with some beer of course. 2018 was toasted to and it was at this point that I do believe the weight of our travels started to kick in. The four of us were actually in Vienna. We made it. And then we collapsed in bed, only to wake early the next morning in just enough time to wish Nani a happy birthday! The morning was spent wandering the streets looking for an open cafe. Most places are closed Sundays and nearly everything was shut down due to the holiday. Lucky for us we found the most quaint cafe. At least Husband Jared and I did. The two Things were snoozing away while all this was happening. We were seated at the cutest little table, with a birds eye view of all the passers by. What a treat. Being the good parents that we are we did manage to order some take away pastries for the sleepy heads. Seems by the afternoon we were all going a bit stir crazy so Husband Jared, Thing 4 and I headed out for some exploring. Thing 3 had unfortunately succumbed to a travel bug and she was in bed for the New Year celebration. And by New Year celebration I mean we went to a restaurant at 8pm, ate pasta and came home and went directly to bed. We did manage a walk to the Rathaus just in time for the annual Philharmonic televised performance. It was breathtaking. The Christmas market stalls were still up and we roamed through the maze and took in all the sights. Gluhwein, pretzels, ornately decorated gingerbread cookies, wurstelstands and trinkets every which way. What a sight. Our hearts were a bit raw and we did our best at celebrating the new and making the most of the situation. The apartment we were moved to was beautiful, other than being across from the jail. It was an altbau, which means an old style apartment, that had been renovated. The kitchen was large, by European standards, the dining table called to me and the brown velvet couches in the sitting room were icing on the cake. The space was so large it felt as if we all had our own wings. Thing 4 promptly informed us he could get used to this life style. Yeah, me too brother, me too. Alas, it wasn't meant to be. Reality came calling and after our luggage was delivered and the New Year had come and gone we were transferred back to the original accommodations. Nothing to complain about at all, mind you. Except for the fact that Thing 4's bedroom was also the dining room and living room. Changes all the way around! Here's to our first two months of living abroad.

NYE dinner!

New Years breakfast.

The Rathaus. New Years Day.

Our temporary living situation was supposed to be just that, temporary. As in maybe 4 weeks, at the most. The goal was to have found a place and be moved in prior to the store opening so that could have Husband Jared's full attention. Once again not so. I say that with humor that maybe isn't quite conveyed with the written word. No sarcasm, OK, maybe a hint. But what I do know is that even the simplest tasks are never quite so simple when living as a foreigner in an unknown land. Vienna is no different. The paperwork here is enough to swallow one entirely and if you can manage to not get buried underneath it all there are lines to wait in and numbers to take and appointments to be scheduled, don't forget the documents that need official stamps. (they do love their stamps here!) Through this entire process I will say that I am thankful we had advocates and mediators to assist us in navigating the system. And even then details were missed. Visas were delayed and payments not accounted for. I'll spare you all the specifics but just know that Husband Jared was responsible for more than just his day job during this. I have often made light of the "expat" experience. At least the initial go of it all. The settling in, organizing and caring for a family in flux. Those are not for the faint hearted. Still we weathered the rollercoaster of an International move and will continue to do so, all while smiling and reassuring the children that yes, yes this was the next best and right thing for our family.

Early morning registration appointments.

Squeezed into a teeny, tiny OLD lift while apartment hunting.

I won't forget that experience anytime soon.

Once the apartment hunt commenced and was then finalized we were more than relieved. The real estate business is quite different than what we experienced back home, to be expected. After viewing umpteen apartments in districts all over Vienna we settled on a new building in the third district with a terrace and views of church steeples and a canal. My heart was happy. Our place is small, unlike anything we've lived in before and we are city dwellers now. Complete with our rolling cart for market visits and walking shoes that take us everywhere. The home search was consuming and exhausting, leaving us with little energy for much else. I honestly don't know where Husband Jared found the stamina for it all. Things 3 and 4 were involved with the looking, measuring, weighing out pros and cons and all the tireless debates that ensued, along with the worrying and praying and trusting that just the right place was waiting for us. We all believe without a doubt that we are exactly where we are supposed to be. Despite the fact that this small space is contrary to anything we've lived in before I am confident in our abilities to make it our home. Because after all, home is wherever we are.

The unexpected nature of our living situation, prior to finding our own place, did not deter us completely from exploring or adventuring. We managed to book train tickets to Bratislava and spend a day there, we used our annual passes at the Belvedere, had dinner with one of Thing 2's friends who was visiting Vienna while on a study abroad trip, went bowling after using all means of transportation to find said bowling alley, Thing 3, Husband Jared and myself attended the Vienna Coffee Festival at Ottakringer Brewery and experienced a highly caffeinated afternoon together, we found a craft brewery owned by a man from Michigan, and learned the ins and outs of the S-bahn, underground, above ground and bus system. We celebrated Thing 4's birthday at the derby match between FK Wien and SK Rapid. That was nothing short of an experience. The match was actually delayed twice due to fans throwing flares and other oddities at the players on the pitch. First time was a warning, second time was a ten minute delay ushering the players into their respective locker rooms and if it had happened a third time the match would have been called. The four of us had not witnessed anything like that before. Thing 4 also had two trials with local football clubs, has been snowboarding twice in Stuhleck, we've visited two churches, Thing 3 has made friends and we even celebrated my birthday, iceskating at the Rathaus, as well as the grand opening of the first Apple store in Austria. It has been a full seven weeks. While Husband Jared had busy days filled with trainings and meetings and the like the Things and I would go out on mini adventures, both in our district and elsewhere, chasing after the best cup of coffee or pastry, finding a park and a pitch or a new market and shortcut to our "known" places. Thing 4 was fearless and ventured out giving his German a go and playing in pick up games or kick arounds. Thing 3 has traveled over an hour by all manners of public transport to visit friends and help Husband Jared out while I was away in the States. We are settling in. Finding a new rhythm and learning all about the Viennese way of living. Here's to our new chapter unfolding and all the unexpected and ordinary.
*(way too many photos posted below of ALL of our activities mentioned above, consider yourself warned)