osterreichhhh.
i'm in this tiny little town... stadtschlaining. on sunday night our planes got in to vienna and we were driven through the countryside for an hour and a half to get here. we walked around a bit, testing the waters, exploring in the dark... saw two restaurants, a castle with a moat, and a few houses, surrounded by forests.
there's a massive old church across the road from Haus International, where we are staying, and every 15 minutes the bells ring, beginning at 6am. on monday i woke up to bells and ate breakfast, then took off on foot around the town. i found a path that took me to a wall of the castle, a field to lay in, and scores of pastel coloured houses dotting the streets.
in the afternoon my mom and i went on another walk, following a path down a hillside and back up - dropping us in the middle of the dried up moat that surrounds the castle. the only way out was to climb up the steep hill, covered in shrubs and small trees and no places for footholds.. we may have missed an arrow.
yesterday i caught a ride with veronika to oberwart, the closest "big" town (2,000 people), where i caught the train to vienna. it took about 2 hours, but it was one of the most beautiful train rides i'd taken.. passing little castles on the hillsides, tiny houses with solar panelled roofs, and fields and forests.
in vienna i walked around for a few hours, laid in the shade in a park, and sat on a patio and drank hefeweizen and ate pizza (the only vegetarian food you can find here). it was hot, i got a bit of a sunburn... fell asleep in a cafe, and got on the wrong train home... but i realized my error quickly and within an hour was in the right direction.
today i'm going to take the bike around the town for a bit, go to the postoffice and mail some postcards, shower, and tonight we will be visiting a vineyard. the wine here is really, really good... especially the white. i should try and bring some back....
tomorrow it's more of the same, then tomorrow evening i'm off to vienna for a couple days, then off to london alone, then home.
there's a massive old church across the road from Haus International, where we are staying, and every 15 minutes the bells ring, beginning at 6am. on monday i woke up to bells and ate breakfast, then took off on foot around the town. i found a path that took me to a wall of the castle, a field to lay in, and scores of pastel coloured houses dotting the streets.
in the afternoon my mom and i went on another walk, following a path down a hillside and back up - dropping us in the middle of the dried up moat that surrounds the castle. the only way out was to climb up the steep hill, covered in shrubs and small trees and no places for footholds.. we may have missed an arrow.
yesterday i caught a ride with veronika to oberwart, the closest "big" town (2,000 people), where i caught the train to vienna. it took about 2 hours, but it was one of the most beautiful train rides i'd taken.. passing little castles on the hillsides, tiny houses with solar panelled roofs, and fields and forests.
in vienna i walked around for a few hours, laid in the shade in a park, and sat on a patio and drank hefeweizen and ate pizza (the only vegetarian food you can find here). it was hot, i got a bit of a sunburn... fell asleep in a cafe, and got on the wrong train home... but i realized my error quickly and within an hour was in the right direction.
today i'm going to take the bike around the town for a bit, go to the postoffice and mail some postcards, shower, and tonight we will be visiting a vineyard. the wine here is really, really good... especially the white. i should try and bring some back....
tomorrow it's more of the same, then tomorrow evening i'm off to vienna for a couple days, then off to london alone, then home.