VIENNA NASCHMARKT

This morning we walked to the famous Naschmarkt. There were people, people everywhere.

It was almost impossible to stop and look at anything. There was a lot of pushing and shoving- still having a difficult time adjusting to the lack of manners in this city. The Naschmarkt is open Monday through Friday with mostly produce and foods, but on Saturday add a giant flea market and you have the makings for a wild time.

The produce is amazing!

Last week I went to the welcoming tea for the UN Women's Guild which was hosted by the Polish Embassy.

The room where we met. The ceilings and walls were very ornate.

The ambassador's office

There were women from many countries. At one point I was sitting between the wives of the Syrian and Jordanian ambassadors. Many were wearing the dress of their country and their massive jewelry made my NM necklace look pretty piddling.

Women from Poland had pottery from their country for sale

I catch a train tomorrow for Filzmoos for a German women's retreat so will be gone for the week. Hope to have some pictures to post when I return.

RANDOM PICTURES

The Women's Guild quilting class working on a quilt to be sold in the upcoming bazaar. Women in this group represent at least ten countries.

A wall inside the Vienna International Center

The post office near our apartment

SICK DAY

Greg and I both took a sick day yesterday (Saturday.) It was very sad since it was a beautiful day with lots of sunshine and we didn't feel like getting out of bed. On Friday evening we attended a "Get Connected" dinner sponsored by a church in Vienna. It was a nice evening (except I wasn't feeling that great which turned out to be a blessing since I wasn't really hungry.) Greg, who did eat, woke up in the night with what he thinks was a case of food poisoning. So, on Saturday, he with stomach stuff and me with fever, aches, and pains made for quite a pathetic pair.

I won one of the three door prizes-a basket filled with all sorts of imported "American food" donated by a store called Bobby's. The fun part was getting it home on the public transportation.

The Friday evening dinner was a lot of fun. We especially enjoyed the skits on life in Vienna. One was about the "uber friendly American" and the effect we have on Austrians. It was quite hilarious. Another had to do with going to the grocery store (which is usually not too pleasant an experience.) It was a relief to know we weren't alone in all this new culture initiation. We were reminded that we will all experience the culture shock to some degree or another. The attitude we display will determine whether our time here will be a pleasant experience or a very bad one.

I think I shall choose to have a positive attitude (at least for today :) !

NEW MEXICO WEEKEND

We enjoyed gathering on the Danube River for a great time of fun and food on Sunday afternoon. I think we were rather surprised at how many there are that work here from NM.

There was a big fire going with pots of green chile stew, carne adovada, green and red chile enchilada, pinto beans (which you can't get here.) Many sacrificed some of their precious green chile that was painstakingly smuggled into this country. :) Then there was bischochitos, guacamole, and salsa. We decided next fall we will attempt to get some green chile and roast it right there on the Danube.

It was quite an eye-opener for some of us who had never been to that area. We discovered that there were a few naked sun bathers (although, interestingly enough, there seemed to be no sun!) Hmmm............

A great time was had by all, especially the kids who were mesmerized by the baby jelly fish they were catching in the river.

OUR APARTMENT BEFORE & AFTER

LIVING ROOM

DINING ROOM



BATHROOMS

OUR BEDROOM

Weekends In Vienna

A Wild Beginning To Our Weekend

About 2:30 AM Saturday morning we were awakened by blinking lights outside our window and a man screaming, "Ich machen nicht!"(I didn't do anything) over and over. Looking out the window I observed a man face down on the sidewalk being frisked by police. After a few minutes they hauled him away (kicking and screaming) in their wagon.

Vienna American School Fun Day

Saturday morning we were invited by friends to visit their daughter's school (Vienna American School) which is a large school in a beautiful setting located in the Vienna Woods. It took a total of about an hour (walking, ubahn, bus, walking) to finally arrive at the school. There was food, entertainment, and booths with valuable information about the school and community. Among the items we picked up: a book (in English!) describing the trash recycling system, an English Austrian newspaper with an entire story on the Duggar Family (the American family with 18 kids and #19 on the way), a small English/German dictionary (newer than the 1975 edition that I found at Casa Mesita.)

Vienna American School (over 1/2 the kids from countries other than US)

Sunday Activities

Sunday morning we made our trek across Vienna to worship with three missionary families from Oklahoma and an elderly woman from Vienna. We love attending this house church since there is a mixture of English and German spoken. The singing is primarily in German. We are beginning to recognize more words and the singing has helped us with our pronunciation.

We rode home on the ubahn, stopping at a Chinese restaurant near our apartment. The food was excellent and served piping hot (as usual.) We have yet to get a lukewarm dish here. Heading home, we took a tiny detour to our little ice cream shop for some of the wonderful Italian Gelato.

Home for a few hours, then a ride on the bus to locate a building where a group of Austrian Christians meet every other Sunday evening. They meet in house churches in different areas of town on alternate Sundays. This was our first time to attend and we were welcomed by some very friendly people (quite different from the Austrians we had encountered in the city and our apartment complex.) A woman who runs a refugee camp was there with her assistant,
Thompson, a young man from Nigeria who was decked out in traditional gold pants and shirt topped off with a cowboy hat!) They brought some of the teens from the camp. The entire service was in German and thanks to a nice man (Alexander) who sat by us and interpreted, we were able to get the gist of the sermon.

Rathaus in Vienna

After church, an 18 yr. old young man asked if we wanted to go get ice cream. We assumed we were going with his family, but we soon found ourselves walking down the road with him and the youth group. On our long trek (walking all the way, of course) to Zanoni & Zanoni we passed a large circus set up directly in front of the Rathaus. There was a truck playing loud circus music with a billboard advertising the circus driving up and down the streets.

The yummy eisschokolade (good thing it was a long walk!) made for a perfect ending to a good day.

Random Acts Of Rudeness

OK, I guess Vienna is not the perfect city. I have been dumbfounded by the constant rudeness observed when I'm out and about. They tell me that it's just the culture so get used to it. I don't think I will ever get used to it. Yesterday on the bus a woman lost her balance and fell into a man sitting in the seat in front her. He never put his hands up to help her and never changed the sullen expression on his face. She was so apologetic, but he did not even acknowledge her. Then a young woman got on the bus with an elderly woman who was moving very slow. Just as the younger woman was about to sit near the elderly woman another woman grabbed the seat. The younger woman asked her if she could move over one seat, but the woman said very brusquely, "No!"

As I was coming out of the ubahn station yesterday I decided at the last minute to ride the bus the five blocks to our apartment. As I exited the bus a woman was hurriedly pulling (literally) an older woman with a cane onto the bus. The older woman lost her balance and was going down just as I was able to catch her from the back under her arms and keep her from falling. After she gained her balance she continued up the steps and neither of them ever looked back to say a word to me.

A friend from the US who has been here three years told me that the first year she was here she finally had her fill. A man cut in front of her and slammed her with his grocery cart. She just lost it and reached into his cart, picked up an item and threw it on the floor. I think she even surprised herself!

Greg told me today that he had a conversation with a Canadian at work who was saying this was the rudest city he had ever experienced. He said that the mentality here is that if you need help you'll ask and if you give help unasked then don't expect it to be appreciated or acknowledged. I guess all of this is just beyond my comprehension!

I think Jesus expects us to show kindness and that is what I will attempt to do while living here. Just don't you dare cut in front of me at the grocery store! :)