So... this post ended up longer than I planned. I hope you still enjoy it!
Wow—what an amazing meeting of
different parts of my life.
For those of you who don't know, my mom
and sister were able to visit me in Austria over Christmas and New
Years. They landed on the 22nd of December and left
January 3rd. On that interval we got to do so much—it
was absolutely wonderful.
December 22-23: Exploring Vienna
(not-yet) bright and early on the 22nd
I took a 5:30am train to meet my mom and sister in Vienna. Villach is
a good 4 hours by train away from Vienna, so visiting the city was
not something I easily do often. I got there with plenty of time to
meet them at the airport and show them around.
It was so great seeing them both
again, since the last time we saw each other was in September, and
(if my current summer plans work out) I may not see them again until
Late July. Vienna is not “my city” and possibly never will be. I
have some acquaintances there and have visited a few times. Given our
short time there (and jetlag on their parts), we mostly stuck to a
few touristy sights—which we all enjoyed.
December 24-26: Christmas in Villach
We got in late the night of the 23rd
to my current town of Villach. It was great for me to show them where
I lived and what I did here. We saw “my” river and “my” cafe,
not to mention the Christmas markets still in full swing those last
days.
For Christmas Eve we all went to a
beautiful midnight mass in one of the churches just a few minute walk
from my house.
Christmas Day was quite wonderful—the
other American teaching assistant Karen joined us! We cooked enough
delicious food for the four of us, and Karen brought some dishes to
complete the meal. We also bonded, conversed, and laughed over a
rousing game of Cards Against Humanity, one of my Christmas presents.
Definitely a Christmas I will remember.
On the 26th, we had time for
a lovely lunch at my mentor teacher's house. It was great that my
family and her family could meet each other. Of course the food was
also quite delicious
December 26-28: Back to where it all
began.
Shortly after lunch we hopped on our
train(s) to.... Altmuenster!
For those of you who don't know, I
spent August-January of my exchange year in/around the beautiful town
of Gmunden. Our language camp was also in the next town over,
Altmuenster, where I met Maggi for the first time almost 5 1/2 years
ago.
We saw lots of sites that I have known
for years. We watched the swans glide across the Traunsee, their
aggression kept well-hidden beneath an air of noble grace. We visited
a park and the See Schloss Ort, free of any hotels, despite what
Austrian soap operas will have you believe. We saw the inside of the
Altmuenster church—where memories of teenaged choirs, “Silent
Nights”, and old and new people alike melded together for me.
Ceramic objects were also somehow a
theme of the visit: from a visit to the, Gmunder Keramik factory to a
stunning toilet museum (yes) to the plates we ate off—whether at
the grocery store cafeteria I spent my time between classes or at
cozy, locally-run restaurants in Altmuenster.
To me, however, the place that stood
out the most was still our first evening and last morning in Maggi's
apartment. In addition to my own saga of gross misunderstandings,
nativity, and growing up in all ways imaginable, that space as seen
many amazing stories. Just talking to Maggi, those walls (complete
with original art from her daughter) have seen the beginnings of love
stories and development of unbreakable friendships. The rooms have
served as a sanctuary, a gathering place, and a space to share
secrets. It is a space loaded with meaning and significance for so
many people. The fact that my mom and sister got to meet Maggi and
spend time here was one of the highlights of the trip
December 29th and 30th:
To Hallein and Salzburg
Though my journey from Altmuenster to
Hallein (well, Oberalm) was first by car, we took the train along a
similar enough path. Like nearly five years ago, Elisabeth picked me
up and welcomed me so warmly into her home.
After lunch and visiting, my mom, Jill,
and I explored Hallein. Elisabeth
dropped us off at my old school and we followed my beautiful walk
back to the train station passing flowing brooks (the weather was
unseasonably warm), centuries-old buildings, cobblestones, and narrow
passages and alleys (the graffiti, “sex” written in large blue
letters in one tunnel, was just as unfaded as five years ago). We
made a pit stop at the main church, and the house where the composer
of the music for “Silent Night” lived.
The walk was such
a flash of memories—the restaurant where I ran into my history
teacher who adored me; the little sign for picture frames, a new word
at the time; The book store where I window shopped waiting for my
train; the ice cream store I ran to the moment it opened in spring.
Even if mundane they still meant something. Those walks always felt
very solitary in the past. Experiencing them with family was
something new, exciting, and still surreal.
After our walk
Elisabeth drove my family up one of the nearby mountains—somewhere
high enough so one could see snow on the ground. It was the most snow
my mom and sister have ever seen—even if it was old and gross by my
standards. The evening was filled with socializing. I always thought
that my mom and host mom's easygoingness and independence reminded me
of the other. I often pictured them meeting, and it was finally
happening.
The
30th
began bright and early with a train ride to Salzburg—where we would
go all out and be the ultimate American tourists: we had book three
places on the 9:30am Sound of Music tour.
[look at all the]
That internet meme
is probably more famous in Austria than the movie itself. Most people
I knew who heard of the movie disliked it on principle. I never would
have done the tour on my own because of this. However I'm secretly
glad I could use my family as an “excuse” to hum along to the
songs and revisit some interesting sites. It was also a great way to
see Mondsee, another lake in the Salzkammergut (that also has some
cool much older archaeology going on).
For part of the
afternoon I let my mom and sister do some touristy things while I
wandered a bit and spent time with a friend who worked at a youth
hostel.
Our evening was
spent doing the other stereotypical spending-time-abroad-in-Europe
activities. My host brother joined us for a late night of Kebap
eating, “Irish Pub” frequenting, and a race to catch the last
train back home.
What a day!
31 December
When we got back to
Villach that afternoon, Jill and I were exhausted. We napped while my
mom got to explore more of Villach. Then we switched places.
Jill and my New
Year was spent at a gorgeous and delicious mountain top restaurant
just outside of Villach. We joined some of my international friends
and acquaintances here for a very cozy and fun New Years
celebration—complete with seeing all the fireworks shows in the
valley and dancing. We didn't get too crazy, though, because we had
some big plans for the next day.
1 January—a
whirlwind trip to Venice
Fun
fact: Villach is just 3.5 hours from Venice by train. A few days
before we decided to take advantage of this. I had already seen
Venice, but of course my mom and sister didn't. We were only there
for a few hours, but had some time to wander through the windings
streets, gaze at the canals and gondolas, and make it to San Marco's
square. We even caught a view of the Grand Canal just as the sun was
setting. Our journey back
to Villach was an adventure in itself. From the bus that didn't
exist, to the inability to buy tickets to Villach in the train
station, to very rapid Italian rants on the train at midnight, we
definitely got a full experience.
Early
on the 2nd
my mom and sister hastily packed and took an early train back to
Vienna—making it just in time. It was such a wonderful visit.
Finally, a few weeks later, I am just beginning to process how these
worlds collided. For sure it was an unforgettable visit =)
