Clary's Travel Digression

Here am I in Vienna, or rather Modling (can't find out how to do its umlaut) which is a small town to the south, just at the beginning of the Wienerwald, so surrounded by wooded hills. Austria astonishes me every time, it is without doubt the prettiest country in the world, but why do so many of the people, especially the old ones, look so utterly fed up and miserable? Everywhere there are happy smiling trees and dandelion-strewn pastures and noble snow-covered peaks, a veritable feast for the eyes, and of course in the most remote country areas the people do occasionally smile too, but otherwise - you'd think their faces were about to crack. I'm aware that's a huge overgeneralization but… I've just sampled the cultural stereotypes of Italy, France and Spain and they all live up to their images too! Hadn't realized that Italians, especially the middle class Milanese, are SO conservative, people half my age continuing to holiday in the family flat/house by the sea, go to the family flat/house at the lake for weekends - and can you buy any food that isn't Italian? I hunted high and indeed low for curry ingredients, and despite going to the nearest thing to an international supermarket, found practically none. But twenty-seven types of pasta, fifteen varieties of passata, etc.
I am temporarily at rest, and connected to the Internet, so this is why I have resumed the travel digression. I left home on Feb 16th and was in a tiny cottage in a 250-person village in the Spanish mountains for 2 months, NOT writing anything of moment, and happily entertaining my 3 boys at different times and also 3 friends who decided life in England was too cold in March. I did a lot of driving about, so now know all the villages in the area a bit; and when I try to speak another language it keeps coming out as Spanish (the garageman here looked most bemused when I did that, since he speaks some English!)
Then I went on a writing course in Spain, writing for radio, which was fun and hard work and convinced me even more that I am not cut out for sitting being creative unless someone has commissioned me to do it. Lazy is my middle, last and first names. I was distinguished among the other participants for doing Reiki and was busy holding people's legs and shoulders a lot of the time.
Then I took to the road, and the first 2 nights actually camped, with a tent, but it was so bloody cold by 4 a m on the Costa Brava that I decided I'd only do it on hot nights. Mercifully there were none, all the way through France, and then I was in Milan and Varazze with fellow-Sagittarian, fellow-Englishlanguagist and her baby, then drove to Vienna via the beautiful motorway up from Verona, and dawdled through the happy smiling countryside (see above) of the Tyrol and Steiermark to arrive here with my old friends and middle son last night. The trusty VW which I travel in looks a complete wreck, having been scraped and dented in Spain, and still bearing the dust of travel all over it, but the very clean garageman is going to service it before it gets a bath - the brakes felt rather dodgy on the way down some of those Alps. I have done about 3500 miles since leaving Totnes.

Glad to hear more of your trip, Clary!

I'm so glad I found this thread. Now I know what adventurous Clary has been doing the past few months. It's certainly a lot more interesting than my humdrum daily routine. I'm looking forward to hearing more.

Some people really get around, but you know what they say about rolling stones - how's the moss (= money I guess) situation?

Catching up with Clary is always such a scramble.

I keep missing entire countries!

I sometimes feel like that too.... !

Good on you, Clary, you are a tonic.

I agree the Austrians seem a very gloomy lot, although living in a beautiful and prosperous country. Very right-wing and xenophobic they seem to me, which ill suits the country as a tourist destination. I'm sure there must be some nice Austrians, somewhere....

I have just been up to Scotland to a big family reunion, organised by me, which to my great relief went very well and a great time was had by all; two nights in the hotel, so we had plenty opportunity to eat and drink a lot.

We had 46 people including three small children, which was quite a roomful...some of them I had never met (my cousins' children) and some I had not seen for 30 years. Very enjoyable.

Sounds terrific, I love those big family parties, usually only occasioned by funerals which is rather sad.
Young Austrians appear to be less gloomy than their elders; and there are some very nice things to eat and drink, so it isn't all bad!
I am staying in Badstrasse so I'm going to investigate the Schwimmbad later - remembering with pleasure staying at Walter's manicured little spa town.

Hey I think Walter has some Austrian relatives, on his wife's side. These must be the good ones.

I'm going out now to PC World to buy some replacement colour cartridges for our printer so I can print some of the group photographs.

Avanti. Have a nice schwimm.

The relative's on my wife"s side are two of my sister-in-laws at their families, living in Steiermark.

On my side, it's my aunt/uncle and the cousins with their falilies, living in Vienna, just outsite (ten feet) of Vienna and Vienna New Town (Wiener Neustadt). :wink:

Hi Walter - no disrespect to your relatives, but I do find the Viennese look gloomy - don't you? The Steiermark countryside is wonderful and I can't think why everyone doesn't come to live here! And how is your lovely little town today?

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I think it might be quite useful for our quest to introduce two terms from the German/Austrian language that anybody who visits the city of Vienna should at least have heard about of: Grant and Gemuetlichkeit.

The first of the contradictive pair is dazzlingly negative and spartes with poisonous green and greedy yellow, Grant . Pronounced grunt ; ("pleased to meet you..."). Remember it if you want to, but better forget it, because it will come back to you anyhow, the moment you fly into Vienna airport. You´ll realize that you have just embarked into the realm of Grant by the strange feeling sneeking upon you, that the weather seems to be bad, even if the sun is doing it's best and all the clouds have gone on holiday as far as India and all the people in the arrival hall seem to blame you ! The weather is never good enough for people contaminated with Grant. And if it´s a sunny day, you´re better out of town anyway. Grant means that when it´s spring, you want it to be autumn and vice versa. On the other hand, Vienna, like Paris, is one of the cities where bad weather looks better than anywhere else. A summer storm with a sky full of ink over a strip of brimstone yellow is one of the nicest things that can happen to you in Vienna. The place to be then is one of the countless "Cafes" in town. By the way, Vienna`s most famous "Kaffees" are places where Grant is cultivated as much as the art of brewing really good coffee.

Source

I've been to Vienna only once, 20 years ago, and found the people very pleasant - and extremely well dressed! Even in my very best travel gear I looked like a dag!

My current experience of Vienna, I'm afraid, comes from watching Kommissar (Inspector) Rex! Lots of murders!

I'd love to get back there, though.....one of these days. When I dress better!

My snap impression has been somewhat tempered by a superb day walking around the city (can't believe I can do so many kilometres when it's interesting compared to having to walk in a dull place). And out of the people I encountred, 75% were friendly as soon as they realised I was English and not just another grumpy Viennese . However, there are some stunningly unhelpful people selling tickets etc, who do NOT want to help the general public. Paris probably has even more of them. One wonders why some people go into the tourism business!

Loved Ul's contribution and hope to meet for lunch tomorrow!

This crazy building shows that Viennese have a deep-rooted sense of joy and the absurd! I loved it.

Well, since Hundertwasser startet his career in Vienna ... :wink:

margo-
funny, that you can watch "Rex". I hardly can remember when this was on TV here.
To show off a bit: right now I am working with the leading character-not the dog.

Clary,
Lunch tomorrow. I will try hard to be gloomy and grumpy- although it might be difficult. :wink:

Walter,

You lucky, lucky people.

Can't you come south of Dementia for a while, just east of Mad Point and north of the Outer Limits of the Mind?

Clary, I can't vouch for the "sense of joy," but absurd describes that building to a "t."