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Wednesday, April 30, 2014
Rainy, dreary day
Almost May, tomorrow is May 1st, and the weather is just not acting the way it's supposed to at all. Today it's raining and miserable outside, barely around 40F (=5C). I am really ready for some nice weather. I had some decent spring weather while in Austria and we have had some sort of nice days here but every time you think it is finally truly going to get nice we get a day like today. Tomorrow it's supposed to rain all day too but at least be warmer which would make more sense for the season.
Last weekend we had talked about going into NYC but ended up doing something more local since the weather was ok but still kind of iffy. Went for a 5 mile walk followed by a nice lunch. We will see what the weather brings this coming weekend. I am hoping it's nice the weekend after that since that will already be when we go to New Jersey.
The weather in Austria seems more like late June weather with thunderstorms where ours is more like early March with cool rain. Ugh. My mom only has a week at her rehab place now before she gets to go home next week Wednesday, May 7th. She is still doing a lot of therapy and will probably end up doing some more out patient speech therapy even when she is home.
Not too much else new. Need to start preparing for Memorial Day at work which is at the end of May. Usually Memorial Day is the unofficial start to the summer season (opening of pools, BBQs, picnics, beach parties etc) here in the US. I wonder if we will actually have nice weather then or if it will still be weird like this.
Mail Update: Received a letter/owe a reply to: Tiffany/OK and Laura/Spain.
Posted by Hanna at 09:56 AM in Weather | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Friday, April 25, 2014
Back to the daily grind
Back to the US and every day life. The first week back is always hard, partially because of jetlag and also just to get used to being at work and back in a regular routine again. I was obviously happy to see Mike and the cats but other than that it always sucks coming back from a trip. Oh well, what can you do?
I flew back on Monday. Had a crazy early flight but all worked out ok, connected in Frankfurt ok and made it back to JFK with all my luggage without any incidents. Now it's Friday and this week just seems to be dragging like crazy. Doesn't help that I woke up with a sore throat yesterday and been kind of fighting with that since. I hope it doesn't turn into a full blown cold. Fingers crossed.
Other than that, not too much new. The rest of my stay in Austria was nice. Met up with some friends in Vienna and also locally around my parent's house. My mom was able to come home for a night around Easter (Saturday/Sunday) so that was nice. I think she enjoyed being home, even if it was just for a little while. We went for a short walk with our neighbor friend as the weather was pretty nice that day. Also sat outside in the garden for a bit drinking coffee afterwards.
In other happy news we booked a short 2-night stay/getaway on the Jersey Shore in Spring Lake, NJ. Going Sunday, May 11 to Tuesday, May 13. The bed & breakfast/inn we are staying at has a great midweek special where all their rooms are half price so that's pretty cool. If you click here you can see the room we booked. We also used some of the money my aunt was so nice to give me when I was in Austria so that will help. :)
Mail Update: Letters went out on Tuesday to: Charles/TN, Jessica/DE, Celia/MA, Lotte/Denmark. A letter also went out on Wednesday to: Katie/Germany. Received a letter/owe a reply to: Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 09:43 AM in Austria , Beach, Travel | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Vienna Update
Time is just flying by it seems. Now it is already Thursday again. I leave on Monday so I do have a few days left at least. Been here for an entire week already but it really doesn't even feel like it. Time just flies by so fast. But it's like that pretty much every single time I come for a visit because I always end up with so many different places to go and people to see.
Monday I went into Vienna and met up with my friend Lydia. The weather fairly cooperated too. We strolled around Naschmarkt and even sat outside to have lunch. As we were sitting there it was getting more windy and cooler though so we eventually decided to walk towards downtown to sit down inside a cafe somewhere. Went up to the Sky Bar which has super awesome views of St. Stephen's Cathedral. After some cappuchino for Lydia and tea for me we went back downstairs and Lydia went to pick up her daughter at daycare while I headed back to the train station. Managed to get to the train no problem but once at the train station it started down pouring like crazy. Also cooled down quite a bit. But in a way it worked out since it at least didn't rain while we were out and about.
Tuesday a teacher friend of my dad's who works at the same school my dad used to teach before he retired, came for a visit. Went to two different Heurigens that day and had some yummy food and wine. Always nice to catch up with people you don't see that often either.
Yesterday, Wednesday, I took the train back into Vienna and met up with my friend Andrea in Schoenbrunn. They had an Easter Market there which I had never been to so it was nice to walk around a bit and check out the different stalls. Afterwards we walked into the castle park and made our way up to the Gloriette where they have a nice cafe. Sat there for a bit and eventually made our way back.
After my visit with Andrea I headed into downtown Vienna and spent some time at Cafe Mozart and near the Albertina enjoying their free wi-fi. And around 4:30 I headed over to the 1516 Brewing Company to meet up with my old classmates from High School for a small class reunion. We had a fun time. Was only five of us but still fun to hang out and talk about different topics. Stayed overnight at my friend Barbara's place and then took the train back out to St. Poelten in the morning.
Now hanging out at the house for a bit before lunch. And later I have a follow up hair appointment at 4 to freshen up the blue streaks in my hair and then a visit with my friend Anneliese. So busy, busy as always. If you are interested here is a link to my pictures I have taken so far. :)
Mail Update: So far wrote a letter to: Charles/TN. Received a letter/owe a reply to: Jessica/DE, Celia/MA, Lotte/Denmark, Katie/Germany and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 06:11 AM in Austria , Food and Drink, Travel, Weather | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Austria Update
Already Sunday night again. Where does the time go? It's been a nice stay so far. The weather has been very April like. Thursday it was rainy, windy and cool. Friday it was really nice and sunny on the other hand. Was able to go for an hour long walk around the neighborhood/area and sat outside in the garden for a few hours afterwards.
Saturday I went to visit my mom with my aunt. Had pretty nice weather then too and were able to sit outside on my mom's balcony for a while after lunch. The rehab place is nice and there is a great restaurant only a few minutes away so we were able to pick up my mom and have lunch there. Yummy.
Did the same thing with my dad today when we went to visit. Unfortunately the weather wasn't nearly as nice today. It was pouring for most of our ride there but on the way back it finally stopped and towards home even the sun came out. Definitely April weather.
My mom is doing relatively well and is able to move around on her own unaided, albeit slowly but still. Stairs are still a challenge for her but she is able to manage them slowly. Her speech is getting better. It takes time but we just have to be patient.
Tomorrow I am heading into Vienna to meet up with my friend Lydia and on Tuesday some friends are coming out to the house and we are heading to a local Heurigen restaurant. Should be fun.
Mail Update: So far wrote a letter to: Charles/TN. Received a letter/owe a reply to: Jessica/DE, Celia/MA, Lotte/Denmark, Katie/Germany and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 12:39 PM in Austria , Family | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Friday, April 11, 2014
Hello from Austria
And here is my first Austria update. :) I arrived yesterday and already managed to do a bunch of stuff. Arrived a little over a half hour early so just a tad before 8am. My dad picked me up and we drove out to the house which is about an hour away.
Unpacked and went to lunch at a local Heurigen. (see picture) Had yummy Frittatensoup and Schnitzel. Hung out for a while and had a couple glasses of wine. After we were done there we went back and stopped at my great uncle's place for a bit. Chatted with him and then it was already time for my hair appointment. I ended up being there for almost 3 hours but the end result was worth it. (see here) Had fun picking out what colors I wanted to go with and chatting about things. I have been going to the same hairdresser there forever so she knows me and my family very well.
After the hairdresser I headed back home. I almost fell asleep at the hairdresser a couple of times but when I got home I was fairly awake so made myself some tea and a couple of slices of bread with pate for dinner. Ended up managing to stay up till almost 10pm.
Dragged myself out of bed around 9am this morning. Just been checking my emails and browsing around the web. It is sunny outside which is a big improvement over yesterday when it was cool, windy and rainy the whole day.
Tomorrow I am going to see my mom at the rehab place with my aunt. Will be nice to visit with her. And Sunday I will be going back and seeing her with my dad as well. And we will repeat that same thing on the next weekend. During the week it is just too difficult to visit with all the various therapies she has during the day. But already talked to her a few times over the phone to keep her updated on what we are doing which is also nice.
Mail Update: Received a letter/owe a reply to: Jessica/DE, Celia/MA, Charles/TN, Lotte/Denmark, Katie/Germany and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 05:29 AM in Austria , Food and Drink, Wine | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Saturday, April 05, 2014
Busy Week, day trip, packing and more
Here is a quick upate for this past week. :) Worked 6 days but at least it's time to get out of here soon. Yay. :) It was a pretty long week filled with a bunch of prep work for my upcoming trip. Lots to set up and take care of at work before I can go.
Had a dentist appointment for some deep cleaning this morning before work. Ugh. The novocane is starting to wear off now which is good because the numbness is going away but also means that the dull pain is returning. Ugh.
Once we leave here we are going to Two Steps for a bit to hang out. After that we will head home and I'll do some laundry and start my packing. I want to get that done today so I don't have to worry about it tomorrow. Monday night I am heading into NYC for a book reading of a friend of mine. And Tuesday night I just want to relax and take care of some last minute stuff before leaving Wednesday.
Tomorrow we are going to take a day trip to Massachusetts. Going to Springfield to check out the zoo there. After that planning on a late lunch in Amherst at the Amherst Brewing Company. Looking forward to a day trip especially since the weather is supposed to be sunny and nice. Supposed to be almost 60F (=15C) which for us is really warm since we haven't had any nice weather in ages.
Then Monday I have my friend's book reading in SoHo to go to after work. Tuesday I'll have to take care of any last minute stuff and Wednesday I am on a plane to Austria already. Going to be a few busy days.
Mail Update: A letter went out on Thursday to: Laura/Spain. Received a letter/owe a reply to: Celia/MA, Charles/TN, Lotte/Denmark, Katie/Germany and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 03:48 PM in Austria , Food and Drink, Outdoors, Weather | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack