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What's this all about?

We took off for a year (which turned into 15 months) to travel the world. This blog was started as a place to keep family and friends updated on our plans and where we were. Now, we are moving to Europe, so the blog will be about our new experiences, travels, and life as expats for the first time!

Der 4. Juli

July 4th, 2011

We are once again spending Independence Day outside of the US, but wanted to take a minute to wish all our friends and family back home a Happy 4th of July!

While this is just like any other day here, they are starting to gear up for the summer season in the shops.  We found these in our local supermarket  and couldn’t resist taking a photo.  It’s America’s contribution to the culinary world.  Hope you all have a great holdiay!

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The Neighbors

June 27th, 2011

Hosting guests gave us a good excuse to explore our neighborhood in Europe a little.  Just down road (actually through a tunnel under a mountain) is Slovenia.  The capital Ljubljana is about an hour drive and has enough sights to spend at least an afternoon.  It’s interesting that as soon as you cross the border there is a lot more English being spoken.  People in the shops and cafes realize that Austrian and Italian visitors don’t speak more than a few words of Slovenian, so everyone switches to English.  For us, it’s a nice little break from practicing German.

We took a detour on the way and stopped off at one of the more famous places in Slovenia.   Lake Bled is surrounded by mountains and has a little island in the middle with a quaint church on it.  It all adds up to a perfectly picturesque spot on a sunny day.   Here’s the proof:

Posted in Austria, Living Abroad, Slovenia, Travel | 2 Comments »

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Munchin’ in München

June 22nd, 2011

My parents recently visited us and we got to do quite a few touristy things in the area.  The next few posts will be some short descriptions and reviews of them.

While we have a local airport about 30 minutes drive away, the closest big, international airport is Munich, about 3 hours away.  We met my parents there and spent the next few days visiting some sights in the area.  This was our 3rd trip to Munich in the last three months and it’s quickly becoming one of my favorite cities.

The U-bahn, S-bahn, and trams are pretty easy to navigate and everything you probably want to see is accessible from them.  The central area packs a lot of interesting sites into a small walkable area, and there quite a few day trips outside the city that are also easy to do.  We still haven’t seen everything, so I’m sure we’ll be back.

While we visited all the famous sites like the Frauenkirche and the Glockenspiel, this time around we also went to the BMW Welt, which is the center where you can pick up your car if you buy it there.  It has some great exhibitions and it’s free. We also drove out to Neuschwanstein to see the castle and then visited another at Nymphenburg within the city.

All the sightseeing worked up quite a thirst in us, so we made another stop at the Hofbräu Haus.  We bypassed the crowded tables downstairs and went up to the top floor.  I think this room is usually used for big groups, and there were a few obvious tour groups and some ‘company party’ tables as well. However, if there are just a few of you, you might be able to find a spot.  There is a different band that plays upstairs and the atmosphere is pretty nice.  We also tried out the Augustiner beer garden, which is near the main train station.  It’s huge, but if you can get a table in the Keller, you are in for a treat.  It’s worthwhile mentioning that everyone shares tables at these beer halls.  Don’t be surprised if the waiter seats other people at your table, and don’t be afraid to ask to sit at a table where there are a few open seats as well.  It’s actually an interesting way to meet people, or at least an entertaining way to eavesdrop on their conversations.

Here’s the fuel that kept us going:


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Mountain Stage

June 1st, 2011

Now that we have a car, it’s time to explore the area beyond our little town.  After talking to both expats and locals, we made a long list of potential things to do here in the summer.  Item #23 is the Giro d’Italia (kind of like Italy’s version of the Tour de France).  We went to a time trial stage two years ago, but have always really wanted to see a mountain stage.  The race organizers obliged us and picked a route this year that actually went through Austria and finished in the Alps in Italy just an hour south of our place.

The stage ended on the Monte Zoncolan, which is somewhat famous in the cycling world for being a hellish climb of 10km with an average grade of about 12%.  However, some spots are as steep as 22%.    It seemed like the perfect place to watch the pros suffer up the switchbacks.   The one important thing that I forgot was that in order to see them on the mountain top finish you have to actually get there, which in this case meant walking up.

Needless to say the hike was brutal and it gave me even more respect for the cyclists.  I still can’t believe how fast they are able to push up that mountain. While the race is exciting, half the fun is watching the other spectators.  They arrive long before (sometimes days) the race starts and camp out, alternately partying and sleeping.  When the racers come by they shout at them, push them up hill, or run along side “encouraging” them. Some riders shouted back,but most just laughed and kept pedaling.  It’s amazing that were no accidents caused by the rabid fans. In the end though, they are true fans – they know all the riders names and shout out in different languages (Vai, Venga, Allez, Go!).  They boo the ones who are suspected of doping, and cheer their favorites.  It’s a unique sport and I think we’re already scoping a stage of Le Tour to attend.

Here I am with the most famous of the fans:

Here’s Alberto in the pink:

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Das Auto – Part III

May 18th, 2011

I spent a lot of time writing about the car, but then again I spent a lot time dealing with it.  While the last two posts were all about the process, they didn’t give me quite enough space to really talk about the experience.    If you’ll indulge me, I thought I would take one more post to reflect a little.

One thing I learned during our move is how much I took for granted in the US.  Back there, I know exactly where to go, how do things, and who to call and ask if I don’t.  Here I’m never quite sure if I’m buying the right thing, asking the right question, or even understanding the answers I get.  It’s not that things are actually that much more difficult to do.  The few local people I’ve talked to seem a little surprised that we think things are complicated, but then again they are as comfortable here as I am in California.

This point was driven home to me when I was back in the US last month.  I talked with two people from the UK and Europe who moved to the US.  They both had similar stories to mine…  didn’t know how to go about getting utilities turned on, couldn’t get a cell phone contract because they didn’t have a local bank account, or had to find out which forms to fill out to get a new driver’s license.  All things that I wouldn’t think twice about in the US, but struggled with here (still working on the driver’s license!).

Anyway, I’ll wrap up with a few quirky things we’ve learned about Austria that relate to the car:

-I mentioned before that from November to April you need snow tires.  However, the dealer or garage where you buy them will store them for you.  They call you up in October and make an appointment to swap them and then store the regular tires during the Winter.  All that for a *small* fee.

-Living on the pedestrian zone of the Hauptplatz has its advantages – no traffic noise for one thing.  However, the downside is that you can’t drive up to our apartment building except for “illegal” quick dropoffs of groceries, skis, or suitcases.  The other downside is that there is no where to park.  We checked a bunch of garages and parking lots that supposedly rented out spaces, but they turned out to be “voll” (full) or only charge by the hour/day.  Finally a rental space opened up in a basement garage and we snagged it.  It’s a bit expensive (but everything here is) and it’s tight fit (but the car has a button that automatically folds in the mirrors).  The bimmer now has a home, even if it is just as far to walk to the garage as it is to the grocery store.

-The autobahn/autopiste/autostrada/autoroute or big highways in many European countries have lots of tolls.  Aside from being an annoyance when you have to keep stopping, they can also get pretty expensive.  Austria has a different system.  Instead of paying tolls every time you use the roads, you just buy a one time pass called a vignette.  It’s a little sticker that you put on you windshield and you can drive anywhere you want without having to pay. They sell them everywhere and you can get a year, a month, or a week.  They can be a little pricey, but the fines for getting caught without one are much worse.

Here’s one of the incredible mountain roads that makes having a car here so much fun:

Posted in Austria, Living Abroad | 1 Comment »

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