When I made the decision to remain, for an unspecified amount of time, in Austria, I broke a promise.
I broke a promise to my parents, and along with that I broke a promise to my best friend in the world – my dog.
Breaking a promise
Year: 2016
Monkey Memes – the result of a drunken afternoon sorting out Sri Lanka photos
The weekend after we arrived back in Austria from our Sri Lanka/Australia trip earlier this year, Thomas turned up with a giant hunk of lamb and we decided to celebrate our return with a Sunday Roast. I was, naturally, head cook, and as I babysat the baking meat, I started sorting through the photos from our trip.
But the further into the afternoon I got, the more wine I drank, and after a while I was unable to do anything useful. And so, facing an excess of random monkey pictures from Sri Lanka, I decided that it was high time I learnt how to make memes. Here are the results, and I think they’re funny, even if no one else does!
Short Trips – Zagreb – a wedding, ćevapčići and more ćevapčići
I’ve visited Zagreb a couple of times before, but the most recent trip was to celebrate my cousin’s wedding. Not only was it great to have a few days away, it was a privilege to witness the cementing of another successful multi-country relationship! My cousin was born in New Zealand, but having a Swiss father meant he relocated there in his 20s, meeting his now-wife, and eventually moving to Croatia. It’s complicated but awesome that I have a relative that lives so close (only 2.5 hours away).
Another brilliant thing was that my Dad and two of my aunties also joined in the celebratory-travel-party from Australia. It made for a great time to catch up, speak English (and occasionally try to understand Swiss-German, courtesy of the Swiss side of the family) and relax.
Funny things Austrians say in English
German is not an easy language, but then neither is English. And kudos for everyone who didn’t grow up in an English-speaking country, because that means they probably handle multiple languages on a daily basis.
Read on for some of my favourite, commonly used mis-translations that Austrians often say in English.
Please oh please can we go to Schnitzelwelt? I just want to try it once!
You can probably figure out the translation of Schnitzelwelt… that’s right – Schnitzel World.
Sounds like heaven, right?
Running without technology – how liberating
I went for a run recently… sans-technology… and it was magnificent.
It’s all about me – adapting to a new member of the family
I’m going to be perfectly honest here and say it… babies freak me out.
Small people, with their wide curious eyes… staring right into your soul… picking apart your secrets with a glee smile…
How lucky am I? I can practice German with my husband – well there’s a double-edged sword!
Living in Austria with an Austrian husband leads to people often asking me: “So do you speak German at home?” And if I said no, they say: “You should, it’s the best way to learn.”
And they would be right. We should. And speaking the language to a native is the best way to learn. But it is also a double-edged sword, especially when it involves a loved-one.
Stadtfest (Town Festival)
Summer in Austria equals festival time! On any given weekend there’s usually something going on, be it a small, local event or a bigger, region-wide festival that completely takes over.
I have visited a number of town festivals over the last few years and although some of the bigger ones are a lot of fun, there’s nothing better than simply walking the 10 minutes to the Wolfsberg city centre when it’s our turn. Everyone in town turns out to crowd the streets, catch up with one another and party the night away. But no matter the size or the occasion, there’s definitely common elements to all.
Birthdays in Austria – coming to terms with the tears
This year I was convinced that I wouldn’t get sad on my birthday.
an aussie in austria 