Monday’s Austria Scoop ~ @oddlynn3 #LynnCrain #AWriterInVienna #PCers #BYNR

Hi Everyone!

Yeah…I’m late…but when the weather has been enjoyable and there’s not much going on, what can I say? LOL!

Really, it has been nice with no rain even though the days are humid and humidity does not get along with me. I tend to have headache, sweat constantly and generally want to hole up in my office watching something on my computer, writing or even reading. Imagine that.

And there were quite a few days where the sun was bright but I stayed inside with the air on. Then I discovered Penny Dreadful on Netflix. That and the fact that it’s not available in the States. I even had a chat with them because I thought something was horribly wrong.

See, many times I log in remotely to a computer at home so that I can see a handful of TV shows I like. I will also watch Netflix then as well. I can’t do it very often as it really bogs down my internet, so I try to pick one day a week for using the State side computing power. I have to get in everything possible in a few hours then I’m back to being here in Austria.

Where we watch hardly any TV. MOF, I’ve been wondering just why we even have cable. When I’m at home, I load up on purchases at Amazon of movies, shows and more then I watch them at my leisure in my flat. So, imagine my surprise when I discovered Netflix is here in Austria and in English.

What is absolutely amazing is that the shows are so different. I mean, I have a lot of the BBC shows that aren’t available at home except on cable or by purchase. That means, I get to watch Penny Dreadful for free over here on Netflix. That and a whole lot more. I’ll let you know the amazing things I find when I catch up with this wonderful Victorian paranormal. It’s just right up my alley.

This week I have three lovely pictures for you. The first, at the top, is of Pup Harry in my living room on an oriental rug I purchased at the local flea market. It was deeply discounted and had all the tags on it so we can track the provenance. It will need some cleaning when we get home but it was an excellent purchase.

The next is one of Pup Harry in his travel bag. We couldn’t find him one day last month and when we did, we were amazed. He’d crawled in the bag and it’s a wonder he didn’t pull it off the chair. We’re figuring that he’s telling us we need to go on a trip sometime soon. I know that I’ll be going on one next month without the boys. Yeah, me.

The last one is of a statue in front of Karlskirche or Karl’s Church. Sometime this last winter, we rounded the corner and noticed that the front of the church got tagged with yellow graffiti. It took them a while to get all back in order.

Hope you enjoyed this little look into Austria and beyond. See you all next week!

Lynn 

Monday's Austria Scoop ~ #AWriterInVienna #LynnCrain #BYNR #MSSAuthors

Hi Everyone!

WooHoo! Today I’m relatively on time. At least the column's up before 6 am PST and this is a very, very good thing. This past week has been pretty great with a lot of spring weather. In Austria, that means a lot of clouds, a lot of humidity and a lot of rain. And this isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Trees in Stadtpark

Unfortunately, with the overall good weather, came the winds and the flowers got pummeled. Many petals have been floating around and it makes for a very unkempt look to the many parks with huge flower displays. I’m a little saddened by all the tulip petals around on the ground as you normally don’t see those. When you do, you know the winds were strong.

Because the weather had been so great, I pushed my dear husband to take some time off to recoup from all the company travel he’d been doing recently. It took a bit of talking to get him to do something like this. Normally, the only time he takes vacation days is when someone else is here so he can show them around Austria. We’ve taken a lot of trips that way but normally, when it’s just the two of us, we both work. Me writing and him going to the UN City daily to work his job.

Of course, the weather has not cooperated since. It’s been cold and rainy here since late last Thursday. Though I can honestly say that it hasn’t been in the downpour mode and I’m thankful. It reminds me a lot of the first spring we were here and there was severe flooding throughout the regions of the Danube. This year, not much snow, not much run-off and most of the rain has been light. In Scotland, it’s called a wee mist even when it’s a downpour.

So, there’s not been a lot of traveling with this vacation but more of a ‘let’s read’ or ‘let’s nap’ or ‘let’s walk Pup Harry’ mode for the past few days. Again, this isn’t a bad thing. It takes time when one travels internationally to different sides of the world for that person to get back into their time zone. And my husband needs that even though he doesn’t think so.

Rain at Lower Belvedere

For me, the week is going to be filled with writing and plotting and doing more on the many classes I’m taking this year. It’s always good to hone one’s skills and to try to learn new things. Even writers need to do that. Sure, we all have the basics down but it never hurts to learn to world-build or write flash fiction or create a language for a fantasy book you might be thinking about. One should be a lifelong learner because there is no way that you’ll know everything.

This week’s photos are just some taken when we were out and about over the years. They were all taken during the springtime and as you can see, most of the time it’s very, very beautiful around here. To see more about my time here in Vienna, check out A Writer In Vienna where there’s even more. I don’t post as much there as I do here but the posts tend to be longer and more about the special places around here. There are some writing related ones there but again, not as much as here.

Again, before I end this week’s column, I wanted to remind everyone of my monthly giveaway. I give away a $25 gift certificate of your choice. The rules are all listed in the right column of the blog and here’s the recap: You must comment to enter. There’s a few other technical things but really, all you need to do is read the post and make a comment on what you’ve read. It’s that easy. I even occasionally throw in an item or two from Vienna. The winner is chosen randomly via random.com for those who wonder.

Hope you enjoyed this little look into Austria and beyond. See you all next week!

Lynn 

Monday’s Austria Scoop ~ @oddlynn3 #LynnCrain #AWriterInVienna #MSSAuthors

Hi Everyone!

Sorry that this week's Austria Scoop is late. I don't know just why I'm late in posting this weekly but maybe it's because I think the past week will have changed in some ways since it happened. I guess I’m always looking for the best in the place.

I know I’ve said this before but I truly understand why the Allies of WWII said that European weather is practically schizophrenic in some ways. This week we went back to the rain and cold with the temperature dipping down into the thirties once again. Then there is the constant wet. All I can say is…really…again? You’d think they’d be playing a different tune by now.

For many years, I had told my husband I wanted a place with four seasons. And I do, matter-of-fact still do, but the amount of rain that happens here can rival Seattle in its worst year, I swear. The week ended with rain and it’s in the forecast for this one as well. As I sit at my desk, typing away, I see gray sky and the glistening wet rooftops out the window. It’s another reminder that I’m not in my desert.

Last week had its moments though as we decided to go to another Eastermarkt here in Vienna. This one was at the Schönbrunn Palace this time and it touted as the city’s best. Unfortunately, the set up left something to be desired. Whereas the Christkindlemarkt took up the whole inner court of the Palace, this one only took up one corner.

And that’s reasonable for most things but either the planners grossly underestimated the number of people who would attend or they didn’t care. Either way, the trail through the booths was crowded beyond all belief. My husband had it right when he stated that you could have the seating in the middle or you could have an easy thoroughfare but you couldn’t have both. They needed to make the thoroughfare wider or lose the seating. Still, it had some great items to behold and I found a glass egg that had never been seen before at the other places.

After perusing the markt, we decided to do some more walking around the grounds, which even in their current state of no greenery, are still beautiful. We went to the Gloriette again in hopes of getting a beer. Once there, we noted the number of people as even though the day was wet, it was very warm. Meaning lots of people all having the same idea of having a beer at the top so you could see an amazing view.

Instead, we took a little side trail, found a bench and drank some cool water and talked. It’s times like those I really appreciate having a guy who likes to listen to me gab. We talked for almost 30 minutes before deciding to find our way down. As we left, we promised each other we’d be back before it became too hot for long walks.

This week’s pictures come from Schönbrunn. The one at the top is from the fake ruins that are on the ground. Apparently, sometime in the 1700s it became fashionable to have Roman ruins on your estate. If you had them, it was wonderful, if you didn’t you made them yourself via the designer of the day. The second picture is of the Neptune fountain, that is still dry at this time of year, and the Gloriette in the background.

Hope you enjoyed this little look into Austria. See you all next week!

Lynn