So, it’s been a little over three years that we’ve been living in Vienna. Don’t even bother with how long Jessica’s been in Fribourg. And, to date, we had not been able to convince the parents (Dad and Judy) to make the long trip over. Oh sure, they had been interested, but never enough to actually get their passports in order. Recently, something turned. We had a second baby, Liam, and Jessica’s long-awaited adoption finally came through (Chloe – completely adorable in the photos, something of a handful according to legend – can’t wait to finally meet her!) – and suddenly there were more reasons than ever to make the trip. They got their passports. Then, on our latest visit to the US, this spring, their objections withered, one by one. The timing was finally right. They would come visit!
We prepared as best we could, helping to coordinate dates with Jessica and Alex and to figure out what all we would do with them while they were with us. It became clear, early on, that a nice long stay was in order. In addition to whatever time they spent in Switzerland, we would need three, maybe four weeks to get them around to all the places we wanted to show them in Austria (and possibly Germany and/or Italy as well!). They wanted to see Salzburg and Berchtesgaden. I was interested in getting them to either Nuremberg or Venice. Much time would be needed to meet all of the relatives in Upper Austria. Anita had a list of local attractions and possible day-trips that grew larger with each passing week… Finally, they settled on a course of action which put them in Switzerland for three weeks (the first in a Swiss mountain chalet, the rest in Fribourg), followed by four weeks or so with us – ended up being about 25 days).
August arrived, and they landed in Geneva. Still, we were quite unsure as to our plans. There were hurried phone calls to various sisters and friends, trying to determine who could put us all up for a few nights, and when. Travel options were discussed and discarded with frightening speed. We wanted to do a lot, but not kill ourselves (or them, preferably) in the process. Finally, we had a rough plan. We would meet them in Salzburg, stay for a few days, then return together to Vienna. A few days here, then our first trip to Upper Austria. Another week or so in Vienna, followed by a second trip to Upper Austria and a swing by Nuremberg, then finally a couple of days here in the apartment to finish it off. Sounds exhausting just writing it…
First up – Salzburg. We would again be enjoying the hospitality of our friends Rudi and Marianne, who had opened up their home to us twice before (yet, oddly enough, invited us back? Strange.). This time we would really be pushing our luck, with two kids and a set of grandparents in tow! But we were again welcomed with all of the good natured hospitality that I’ve come to appreciate from Anita’s friends and relatives. The parents were due to arrive Thursday afternoon, so we arrived on Wednesday night to settle in. We had decided against spending a boatload of money renting a big car, as we had originally planned. Instead, we would do the one car and train thing, counting on others to help chauffer us around whenever possible (relax, we did run this plan by people before putting it into action.) The house, in a little town on the outskirts of Salzburg, was even more perfect than the last time we had visited, as they had remodeled many facets of the downstairs. The boys fit right in, taking over their dining area with knights and baby toys and we enjoyed an evening with our friends.
The next day we whiled away a few hours (during which time, Lukas somehow managed to get stung by a bee – on the eye!!! – but he was okay). He did, however, ask constantly, “When are Oma and Opa getting here?” until it was time to meet them at the train station, where Anita and Marianne waited in the loading zone while the boys and I went to retrieve our American guests. I navigated a genuine maze of construction to reach the tracks, then had a moment of worry when most of the crowd dispersed and the boys and I still saw no signs of them, but then relaxed as my “hold Liam up over my head until Judy recognizes him” plan paid off, and soon it was all hugs and kisses and pass the baby!
We met back up with the ladies, then did a little touring through the city (and by little touring, I mean a long-ass hike to view a couple of buildings and have a coffee.) But it was nice to see everyone and start showing off this great land that I now call home. We took it easy in the evening. Well, at least until dinner time, when we stuffed ourselves on homemade Wiener schnitzel and then let Rudi bully us into a schnapps and beer drinking contest (I kept thinking of Grandma Betty drinking the Nuss schnapps. “Smooth…”). It was great.
Friday we decided on Berchtesgaden, as the forecast was cold but clear, whereas it was threatening rain over the weekend. We borrowed Marianne’s car and split the group in two (Oma Judy was generally given “Liam duty” during these excursions, sitting in the backseat and trying to keep the little guy happy whenever he was awake). It was a short drive over the German border and on into town, then a little further to the “Eagles Nest,” a mountaintop retreat famous for having been built for Hitler as a birthday present (though there’s much dispute about how many times he actually visited it, preferring instead to take his “vacations” at a nearby hotel). Nevertheless, I suited up in my Captain America T-shirt and was suitably running through all of the best scenes from Clint Eastwood’s Where Eagles Dare as we ascended the peak. The “clear skies” thing didn’t work out so hot, though we did get some great photos in the atmospheric fog that descended. We all took turns carrying Liam as we hiked up the trail to the various scenic views, which all looked about the same in the mist, then returned to the building, which is basically just a restaurant at this point. A bit underwhelming, but I did enjoy the goulash… And it was on our way out, at the gift center, that Anita and I finally purchased ourselves a pair of Austrian “National Costumes”, which had been on our “to do” list for quite some time (for myself, a Salzburg style gray jacket and a striped shirt; Anita got a dirndl.
Afterwards, we spent some time in Berchtesgaden, where I passed a great little hat store and immediately wanted to complete my outfit. After some hemming and hawing, it was agreed that I could look. I finally settled on a classic style, dark green with a feather (one can see the overall results in my various photo albums). The shopkeeper, an older German woman, the type who often seems to disapprove of me from the get-go, seemed quite impressed by my recently improved Deutsch (classes finally paying off), and even more impressed when she learned that I now resided in Austria with my mixed family (of course, it didn’t hurt when Anita showed up with Liam, who instantly went into his uber-cute mode. None of this led to any significant discount or anything. She was just a nice lady who deserves mention (I like to give credit to nice shopkeepers, waiters, etc, that I run into here in middle Europe, as it’s such a rare sighting)…
We had another fun evening at Rudi and Marianne’s home, played some Yahtzee (a game in which I was throroughly robbed – my first ever “second Yahtzee”, ruined by my go-for-broke son, who eschewed all logic and an easy chance at second place when he passed up the opportunity to fill in his final missing line item, a straight, in order to go for his own second Yahtzee. Naturally, the little booger actually rolled it and beat me by a lousy half dozen points. Revenge will be mine. Oh yes, revenge will be mine. Dish served cold. Kahn. KAHN!!!) – whoops, got a little sidetracked there. Okay, so, Yahtzee, then more wine and beer and schnapps, then off to bed again…
Saturday we did the town. I personally loved this day as much as any during our trip, which is going to sound bad when I admit that I spent most of it on my own, by my lonesome, in Salzburg. After parking, we decided that most of the group would go visit the castle, which is a nice castle, admittedly, but one which I have toured myself a couple of times. Thus, I was allowed the rare opportunity to strike out on my own in a new(ish) city. This I love. The freedom to just wander and stare, not trying to juggle an entire group’s wants and needs. I shopped. Mostly window shopping, but also looking for a new watch, and at some clothes. It was great.
And when our meet-up time rolled around and I was given the option of continuing my solo sojourn, I leapt at the chance. As the afternoon progressed I ate a pizza, drank some sturm and some coffee (though not at the same time) and made my way back to the hand-crafted wooden “souvenir” store where Judy had purchased her gift music box a few days prior. You see, I had cast my eyes over some very nice, hand carved wooden chess sets, the sort of thing that has been on my want list for about a decade at least. Of course, once there I felt it wise to call and okay the purchase. Anita agreed to overlook the expense provided that it a: counted as my birthday present and b: that I was able to work them down on price. Nothing that woman loves more than a deal. Despite the sales woman’s complete indifference to my purchasing power, I did eventually work her down from two hundred Euros to one hundred and sixty, though by that point I had spent over ninety minutes in the shop and might well have paid a flat fifty just to be able to leave… (point of interest – the parental units did the “Sound of Music” tour while I was doing my afternoon shopping, and they loved it. To each his or her own, I say!)
We said our goodbyes to our wonderful hosts several times over that evening and the next morning. Everyone was too exhausted to cram much more into our visit. Lukas, Dad and I then drove back, with either a stop for lunch at Burger King or a “stop to help our fellow man in the form of a stranded roadside traveler, who then bestowed upon us Burger King paraphernalia by way of reward”, depending on which of us was asked. So ended the Salzburg portion of their visit, and thus ends the first of my blogs on the same. Up next – Meeting of the in-laws! Dum dum dum!
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