OUR CROATIAN ADVENTURE BEGINS

Our 10-day Croatian adventure began in Zagreb. 

Jim, Jenny, Bruce, Barbara, Greg, and I getting off train in Zagreb (being led by our tour guide, Steve.)

On Thursday, 9/15 we began our 10-day Croatian adventure by boarding an early morning train in Vienna. Since our train had no dining car and our trip was six hours, it was fortunate that we brought food along.  Trains in this part of the European Union are a little more quirky so there are always surprises.  At one point officials (not so friendly) boarded the train to check passports and we were then informed that we would depart the train at the next stop, ride a bus for a while, then re-board a train to Zagreb. 

One of the "friendly" border patrols

Croatia borders the Adriatic Sea and was one of the most picturesque countries I've seen.  Influences of the Austro-Hungarian empire and Italy are evident (the back side of Italy is just across the Sea.)

How blessed we are to have friends in Zagreb who offered for us to spend the night.  Tom is the director of a Bible Institute there.  He and Sandra even provided us with Steve (one of their employees) as a tour guide.  We felt quite special to be able to get picked up in a vehicle instead of having to use public transportation.  Since we had all afternoon, Steve gave us an excellent walking tour of the city.   He then took us about 15 km to Tom and Sandra's home where she had prepared a very tasty meal for us.

The beautiful home of Tom and Sandra.   They are Americans, but have been living in Croatia 12 years and plan to retire there.  They built their home 10 years ago.

The City Hall

The store where we bought our Naive Art.

The Market goes on everyday from 7 am until 2 pm.  The entire area is swept and washed afterwards only to have to do it all over again the following day.

Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, originally two medieval cities that battled frequently, was separated by a stream called Krave Most (Bridge of Blood.)  Interesting fact: the necktie and the fountain pen were invented by Croatians. Greg likes to dream about the idea of the necktie having never been invented!   



On Friday morning we went with Tom and Sandra to Samobor (a neighboring village) to have breakfast of some of the best french toast I have ever eaten. Sandra introduced me to White Coffee (very good!)  We then drove into Zagreb to buy a store that sold Naive Art (called so because the artists have no formal training.)  This technique of painting on the back side of the glass began in the 1800's. The artist paints the foreground first, painting each subsequent layer and allowing to dry before finishing with the background.  We bought a picture of a large red pot filled with tiny blue flowers and sunflowers with a field in the background.  Much of it is folk art depicting Croatian village life. 

Sweet little cafe courtyard where we had breakfast.

 Later in the day we re-joined rest of our group in Samobor for dinner before Steve drove us to the airport to catch our evening flight to Split (where the real adventure began!)

Our excellent tour guide and chauffeur, Steve.

Stay tuned for the next leg of our journey...........

2011 AUGUST TRIP TO TEXAS (continued)

I have to say that it is not easy flying with four children.  How quickly we forget!  Amanda and the kids flew with me to San Antonio to spend the 3 weeks there.  Jimmy was supposed to be in China during this time, but his trip got canceled so it was difficult for Amanda to be gone for so long.  She was quite a trooper, though.  The kids missed their Daddy so, but we all made the best of it.   This picture was taken on our 2 hour layover.  What a bunch of little monkies!

After we scattered Brian's ashes at his place in Comfort we all met at The Hungry Horse Cafe in Boerne.  In the foreground are my cousin, Cindy's husband (Kevin) and their kids.  We got to meet Chuck (my Mom's new husband.)  Ken, Marca, John, and Norma (my uncle and aunt) were also present.  We have such a great family!

Cooling off in the 100 deg. + heat at Kuhl's Yogurt with Nonnie & Poppie.  This is the new craze in TX: create your own yogurt concoction!

The trampoline once again provided hours of entertainment, even in the extreme heat.  Well, it helped to have a pool to cool off in.

Since 10 of the 11 cousins were together at once we decided that it qualified as a Cousin's Camp.  Amanda had the brilliant idea to make the tye dyed shirts.  They were awfully cute in them!

They all signed each other's shirts.

It was just too hot to take the kids to the zoo and amusement parks so we went to Target and found a pool (it was even already on clearance.)  It was the best decision ever!  The kids loved it and we just sat on the back porch and sipped ice tea while they had a blast!

NEW FLOORS AND PAINT FOR THE TEXAS HOUSE

August took me to Texas to do a little work on the house in preparation for moving back in December.  It was really difficult to leave after being there three weeks and beginning to feel settled in.

BEFORE

DURING

AFTER

My father-in-law removing several layers of border in the kitchen.  He painted the kitchen a beautiful creamy yellow (not the color you see.)  My friend, Lori, here in Vienna, helped me choose the color.  She even painted a poster board with the paint left over from her dining room so I could look at it in different lights in my kitchen.  The paint was from England so Home Depot had quite a time matching it, but finally had success.

The creamy yellow was quite a contrast to the orangey drab yellow.

 

My mother-in-law admiring the finished wall in the media room.  I should have gotten a picture of the ugly green before it was painted.

MORE BIKING IN AUSTRIA

Our little group minus Jenny and Jim.  The six of us rode the train with our bikes for 1 1/2 hrs. to reach Payerbach-Richeneau, Austria.  We rode bikes out of the city toward the gondola. 

View from the top after riding the gondola up.

The streams that we rode along were so refreshing with little waterfalls here and there.

Can you imagine having the mountains in your backyard?

This was a private residence so we couldn't go further than the gate.

This little church was just breathtaking with the mountains and valleys in the background.  I love these old churches and they are everywhere in Europe.

BICYCLING THROUGH THE WACHAU VALLEY - AUGUST 2011

Bicycling through the Wachau Valley of Austria on the weekend prior to our US trip.  We took our bikes on the train to Melk, then began pedaling back toward Krems.  We decided to hop on a boat in Durnstein for a little different view.  It was a beautiful weekend!  We would love to do this trip one more time before leaving Austria (maybe in the Fall!)

Old church in Krems

We rode our bikes along the river and through quaint little villages.  The green was so amazing.  I loved seeing all of the gardens and vineyards.  I can still smell the freshly plowed dirt!

The remains of an old castle in Durnstein.

Taken from the boat as we meandered down the river.

Music written by Bach or Mozart (can't remember which.)

4TH OF JULY IN VIENNA 2011

HAPPY BIRTHDAY,  AMERICA!

 A great time was had by all as we celebrated in our "American Way" the 4th of July with two different groups of friends.  Our first party was on Saturday, July 2 at the Bettingfield's apartment.  Lori and I were together a few days prior to this and I just said (half jokingly,) "Lori, you and Dave should have a 4th of July party so we can see your new apartment." Well, she looked at me and said, "That's a great idea!"  So, the plans began.  You need to understand that throwing a large party in Vienna is no small feat.  We have no cars, only our little wheeled shopping carts to haul everything great distances on foot.  Then there's the little problem of where do you keep refrigerated items that need to be made ahead of time?  You would understand this if you could see our tiny refrigerators.  Lori was a real trooper, though, and suddenly the creative juices began to flow!  She wheeled several containers of food to store in our fridge.  She decided to take our card table (large and bulky) back, so we rigged up a handle so she could slip it over her shoulder.  It was quite a sight to watch this tiny little person walk away with a monster card table dangling on one shoulder and her bag on the other.

The party was a mixture of Americans and guests from other countries.  Everyone enjoyed visiting.  Below are a few pictures.  (Sorry, some of the pics I got from a friend on FB didn't upload so well and are blurry.)

Quite a selection of desserts (including the all-American apple pie.)

Crazy Elisa shows her patriotism with red, blue, and white M&Ms

Lori is in front left.

View off Lori and Dave's balcony.

CELEBRATION #2

On the evening of the 4th (after Greg had worked all day-no 4th holiday in Austria!) we rode public transportation to the Hensals house for a 4th of July celebration.  It had been raining and very windy for the better part of the day and then just as everyone arrived, the sun peeked through, the rain and wind ceased.  (God is so good!)   It was such a fun evening filled with good food, fellowship, and music.  The Haskews, the Elledges (a missionary family from the US that we met in a bakery one morning on our way to church,) and Valerie (a young woman who just graduated from high school in VA) were there.  About half way through the evening a man and his two daughters who live in the adjoining house to the Hensal's popped in.  That's one of the things I love about Vienna-you never know who might just stop by.  Addison Elledge, who attends high school at the Christian school here, brought her guitar.  When Greg found out she was bringing hers, he had to bring his (toted it all the way to work since he was coming from there.)  We sang Worship songs in four part harmony, also allowing time for a few patriotic songs.  The kids were so excited that there were sparklers.  As they waved their sparklers in the air they broke into the Pledge of Allegiance.  Then we all toasted America with our sparkling white grape juice.  I do believe that it was a much more meaningful 4th being in a foreign country than when we are in the USA.  It just felt good!

It's a Grand Old Flag!

 

Jammin' Session.  Katy got in on the action strumming her shovel. 



 

The Hensal Family
Josh, Kim, Carli, Caleb, Cotter, Carson

A very patriotic table!  Kim's Mom sent their shirts and all the decorations from the States.
Thanks, Linda!  And Thanks, Hensals, for a great party!

DONAUTURM (Danube Tower)

 A FUN EVENING AT THE DONAUTURM



We enjoyed a very relaxing and wonderful time with friends at the restaurant at the top of the Danube Tower (170 meters or 776 steps.)  We made the wise decision to make our way up by taking the 40 second ride in the lift (the glass roof of the lift allowed an unobstructed view of the top.)   The tower opened in 1964 and weighs 17,600 tons.

We were escorted to our table that overlooked the city of Vienna through massive windows.  All of the tables are placed near the windows which form a round circle around the stationery center.  Yes, that's right, we were spinning for three hours around the center of the restaurant as we ate.  It took about 30 minutes for a complete revolution so the movement was hardly felt.  We were able to take in the entire city in one revolution.  The evening was perfect with clear visibility to the mountains that surround the city.  The food and fellowship was excellent and we really enjoyed getting to know our friends from church more intimately in such a beautiful setting.  Chuck is from the States and Corrine is Austrian.  Chuck has been here many years, but still prefers to speak English.   Corrine mostly speaks German to him and he answers in English, so he understands everything she says.  Corrine spared us and spoke English on this evening. 

On our ride home we got to observe our first "ubahn fight."  A few guys (obviously drunk) got on near where we were standing.  One sat down and socked a man in the face.  A woman pulled the emergency lever to speak to the conductor, but before the police had time to arrive the two drunk guys exited the train and walked away.  I don't really like riding the public transportation after 10:00 pm as this seems to be when the crazy people emerge.   Sorry, I got no pictures of this since I was a little un-nerved.

 VIEWS FROM THE TOP

 

This is the Vienna International where Greg works.

This is the tower from the bottom.  You see that little thing sticking out at the top that resembles a diving board?  Actually, it is where people stand to bungee jump off the tower.  Yikes!  No sirree, you won't find me up there and we're definitely not telling Erin about it!