one more handbag

Since

2012-02-14T08:58:00.003+01:00

As I don't have to say much on the topic of today's Valentine's Day (I do have a date tonight: with Prefab Babe) other than that new boss obviously listened to my pointed remark yesterday that old boss (currently visiting) always got the ladies flowers and potted plants with a heart-shaped decoration duly waited on every desk.

Last night in the news the weather presenter mentioned that this was the coldest winter in Austria since 1958 and went on to talk about some of the crazy things the cold has caused so far.

When I was in Sydney, I could not help notice all the "liquid sunshine". If there was one item I wish I had packed it was a pair of wellies. Oh, and perhaps a rain coat. While my colleagues assured me that it actually rained a lot in Sydney, it gradually transpired that this was not quite what an Australian summer was supposed to look like and the media agreed that it was the coldest summer since 1960.

I'm all poised for the next metereological superlative. I just hope this "coldest-summer-since-1960" trend stays in the Southern Hemisphere.

Variation of a Theme

2012-02-12T18:33:00.002+01:00

I've had a really lovely weekend and as usual on Sunday evening wish it would last longer. In fact, I'd love nothing more but being able to find a well-paid job that allows me to reverse the work-days/weekend ration, i.e. work only 2 days and get 5 days off...wishful thinking!

I got some housewifey things ticked off my list, took Flocki for a little spin around the block (the fierce cold hasn't affected him and he started right away) met up with friends, did some exercise in crisp winter air and did what I often do when I want a "productivity kick": baked several trays of cookies. They are a variation of the DCCO cookies I baked some weekends ago and as those were quite a hit with the office peeps, I finetuned the recipe, adding chunks of white, milk and dark chocolate as well as chunks of dried mango for a bit of colour pop. I also substituted half of the oats for the more finely ground type of oatmeal (Hafermark in German, which resulted in an overall "smoother" appearance and added about 1/3 of a teaspon of cardamom in addition to the cinnamon to spice things up, literally:

Let's see what the office jury thinks of them tomorrow.

Hibernating Culture: MQ in Winter

2012-02-11T09:03:00.003+01:00

These photos were taken last Sunday, before Vienna was covered by a layer of snow. I like the MQ in any season.

It IS Cold, But...

2012-02-10T08:47:00.003+01:00

...a messenger-bag with mink flap might be carrying it a step to far, don't you think?

Rehearsal Dinner

2012-02-09T08:59:00.002+01:00

I have been trying to keep a low profile in view of last year's aborted project, but, yes, I have booked flights and hotels again and recruited the same travel companion for "Project Cherry-Blossom V.2". Departure: April 8.

On Tuesday night, MM, said travel companion, treated me to a dinner at EN, one of the few authentically Japanese eateries in Vienna. As it was (and is) freezing cold, we both settled for gyoza followed by noodle soup rather than sushi. Yum, yum!

Squeaky Clean Pastries

2012-02-08T08:38:00.002+01:00

Random English shop names always crack me up such as "Nero's Bake-Laundry" at Lugner City. My guess: they just did it for the cool (but hardly original) pictograms. Lame.

Random Shopping or the Story of the Lady Who Wanted to Buy a Ring and Came Home with a Floor Lamp

2012-02-07T10:19:00.005+01:00

Last night after work, I popped into Tiffany's (more or less next door from the office) to check out their bow ring. It looked gorgeous on the website, but nothing to write home about in real life, or rather nothing I was willing to pay about € 550 for. No addition to my collection of blue boxes, then.
Instead, I ended up braving the snowstorm with a white box that was taller than me:
You see, I went to Interio in order to buy a second metal line with magnets for my many birthday cards that I like to display in my living room. Speaking of cards: Mr. TD got my postcard from Australia, postmarked October 31 yesterday. Speedy delivery, eh?
Right at the entrance, there was a lamp on sale that I needed to pick up there and then for its cool retro chic. Meet "Dexter":
Isn't he cool?

Party!

2012-02-05T19:35:00.004+01:00

Last night, I had my big birthday bash. I'd been looking forward to it for weeks and it lived up to my expectations - the perfect night with my favourite people. They braved the Siberian cold that currently has Vienna in its grip and turned up in their glamorous party gear, laden with gifts. If I had a bigger flat and fewer friends I would have entertained them at home, but as I have less square metres than I would like to in order to comfortably seat all my invitees I booked a really nice venue (tried and tested with work functions) and just added some personal touches. Such as "party favours" in the shape of biscuits...and matching nails:

It was not easy to get what part of the standard repertoire of French patisseries, a macaron tower - yay! It turned out really well and was quite a hit with most guests:

Peeking into the crime scene from outside...

Ironing might not be their big forte, but service was impeccable as usual and I was happy with my choice of venue:

Even though I only got home after 2 a.m. (I was so grateful for the Empress to give me a lift - I would not have managed in a taxi with 4 huge bags filled with presents, flowers and various party paraphernalia), I was so hyper that I unpacked all my gifts and read all my cards, being very touched at all the sweet words. I got so many great and thoughful things on top of a very impressive booty in my joint-pressie-kitty. Frida stitched a portrait of my godchild and me AND together with the Prototype bought an enamel artwork by Slovak artist Martin Melichercik:

I also got the coolest "envelope" and card EVER from Prefab Babe, who is a super-talented knitter. Don't you agree that this would be a bestseller on Etsy or DaWanda?

I will probably buy a piece of jewellery with my cash-gift or use it towards a grown-up watch, but even so, I got many gorgeous items of jewellery:

Mr TD (who also got me the pandora charm pictured above and the beautiful bunch of flowers) found a super-cool USB drive in the shape of a handbag: so me!

I would almost recommend turning 40 just for the sake of experiencing such an amazing weekend!

Cold vs. Cool

2012-02-03T10:52:00.003+01:00

image from wetter.orf.at

Temperatures in Austria are rather...fresh at the moment. I'm not complaining, however, as I a) like the winter (just like the other 3 seasons) and b) I totally agree to the statement that there is no such thing like bad weather, just unsuitable clothes.

These days I am wrapped up in my UGG boots, down coat, woollen beret, cashmere scarf and gloves and so the only parts of me that feel cold are the tip of my nose and my cheeks.

Perhaps on the occasion of my recent geriatric birthday I thought back to my teenage self that survived the harsh Austrian winter without boots (so uncool in the 1980s!), never wore a hat and preferred to leave her winter jacket or wool coat open. Buttoned up or zipped up garments were even uncooler than boots. I vividly remember only zipping up my denim jacket with faux sheepskin lining when I turned into our street and could expect my Mum looking from the kitchen window and shaking her head at the sight of her only child "half naked" in the winter frost. Cashmere jumpers or scarves were only worn by old grannies and too expensive for mere mortals anyway back then so I wore what was en vogue: baggy jeans and sweatshirts that would be considered XXL today.

I did not wear boots until this millennium and down coats were not mainstream fashion until about 6 years ago. I literally shudder in retrospect...

Wishlist

2012-02-02T11:07:00.002+01:00

I'm celebrating my 40th birthday with friends this Saturday. In the unlikely event that one or two among them haven't sorted out my glamorous present(s) at this stage - I saw these two fellows in a shop window at Reumannplatz in Vienna's 10th district last night:

How on earth did I (and my toilet) survive without one of these in the past 40 years, I wonder??? Penguins and tigers were also on offer...

Temptation

2012-02-01T14:59:00.002+01:00

As I've mentioned, the Empress is currently in town. With her, her sexy new(ish) LV "Speedy" with shoulder straps. Drool! I used to always think that the monogram print is not for me and too "Russian nouveau riche", but I love this style and have tried it on for size:

The only question that remains now is how to successfully distract the Empress in order to snatch this baby away from her...

Just Like Old Times

2012-01-31T14:24:00.002+01:00

This week, my frustration level is so much lower as the Empress is back in town for the week. Yay to lunch-hours spent eating overpriced food in paper boxes and plastic containers...

...and trying on every single hat on sale before settling for one each:
Mine's the red sheepskin one. Mühlbauer rocks!

Weekend Kaleidoscope III

2012-01-30T08:49:00.004+01:00

1. Mirrored in my Mum's glasses on the slopes of Bad Kleinkirchheim
2. Wörther See, semifreddo
3. Parental birthday pressies, unopened
4. Some of the pressies, including a print (that I had seen in the window of a gallery in KLU months ago when walking past with my Mum, writing down the artist's name and then completely forgotten about it. Thankfully, Mum hadn't...), a linen scarf hand-dyed and painted by my Mum, a voucher for a vacation in Mallorca (not the clubbing, but the sightseeing kind) with my Mum, a stone necklace with 40 stones and white coral by my Dad, jewellery (a necklace and bracelet) by my Mum, hidden by the joke-necklace of 40 gummy beans and a patchwork-cushion also made by my Mum.
5. The main course of my b-day dinner at a restaurant in KLU: suckling pig and parsley mash
6. Dessert: creme brulée - yum, yum!

Senior Citizen...

2012-01-29T10:37:00.002+01:00

As of today, I am a member of the exclusive (?) circle of quadragenarians. This latinate synonym makes it sound even more ugly and geriatric than the literal "40-year-olds". Ah, well.

In honour of my officially turning ancient, my Mum (never one to pass up a bargain opportunity), with whom I went skiing yesterday spontaneously decided to buy two instead of one senior citizens concession ski passes yesterday, reasoning that nobody asked for an ID anyway...

What better symbol for waving goodbye to my youth than being a Seniorenkarte-holding member of society...

Vienna Landmark by Night

2012-01-28T08:37:00.001+01:00

Interesting light projections onto Stephansdom - I like it!

Wishful Thinking...

2012-01-27T08:07:00.003+01:00

Needless to say, my memory is selective. Rain? What rain? I'm of the "it's may brain and I dream all I want to" school...

(Faux) Diamonds are a Lunchbreak's Best Friend

2012-01-25T08:17:00.002+01:00

When I was in town on Saturday afternoon with the PP's Sis, we walked past MAX, a nice and rather inexpensive jewellery store in Plankengasse and looked at its window display. The shop was closed, but I was determined to go back to try one of their super-dainty rings. Well, I couldn't resist. For lack of a knight in shining armour who forces diamonds upon me by the kilo, I have to a) buy it myself and b) go for faux. The ring (silver plated with rose gold and studded with zirkonia stones) cost all of €39. I'm wearing it on my right hand as usual and only put it on my left middle finger for photo purposes - I am right handed:

Once again without flash:
Perspective om the pics makes my finges look rather fat and stubby, where in actual fact I have trouble finding rings that don't slide off. I usually like big "statement" rings or wearing more slim rings together, but I like the look of this thin one on its own.

(DCCO) Double-Choc Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

2012-01-24T08:20:00.004+01:00

I recently stumbled over an interesting sounding recipe via a new favourite blog of mine. I slightly modified the recipe (e.g. used less sugar), replaced the raisins with dried cranberries and added chocolate chips. As I had a guest who loves white chocolate, I used both dark and white, but personally, I don't like white chocolate much and only appreciate it for the nice touch of white colour it adds. I'm pretty certain that I'll make these again, but I'll probably replace the white for milk chocolate next time or only use dark chocolate.

This recipe is super-easy and quick to make. Depending on the size of your cookies, you will get 30-40.

Ingredients

150 g softened butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 seaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon (or less) salt
3 cups oats
1 cup cranberries
50 g chopped dark chocolate* or store-bought chips
50 g chopped white chocolate* or store-bought chips

* If I make the chocolate chips myself, I give them a bounce in a big sieve before adding them to the dough as fine particles might have a cocoa-powder like effect and "dye" the dough too brown, making it look a bit burnt.

Preparation

Heat oven to 180° (with your fan on. If you don't have a convection oven, you might want to set it to 200°).

In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla, then flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add oatmeal, cranberries and chocolate chips last.

On a lined baking sheet, drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls. Gently press down each ball of dough with your hand or a spatula. The cookies turn out quite big - think "Starbucks-size". If you want smaller ones make sure to take them out of the oven a little sooner.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. When you take them out of the oven, the cookies are still very soft and appear undercooked. They will become firm (but remain nicely chewy) once they have cooled off, so don't worry.

Weekend Kaleidoscope II

2012-01-22T16:25:00.004+01:00

1. After-shopping treat at Konditorei Oberlaa: "Pannacotta Dessert". Very rich, in case you can't tell from the picture alone...

2. The main shopping exploits: Tory Birch Reva flats in a very subdued style (not). I got them for 50% off! Every time I buy a pair of flats, I think of my ex-boss, an ardent ballerina-hater. The jeans are by Mavi, an old favourite of mine back from the days when I was in Istanbul every summer. I stumbled over the perfect pair of super-elastic skinny jeans at Peek & Cloppenburg in KLU over Christmas and got them in a different shade of blue yesterday. I'm serious: these are the most comfortable and best-fitting pair of skinny jeans I have ever worn.

3. On Sunday morning, I baked very yummy oatmeal cookies with cranberries and dark and white chocolate chips: recipe to follow.

4. Trying to take a step in the right direction to put my main New Year's resolution into practice.

5. Ice-skating in the afternoon sun at Eislaufverein. It's so good to do some exercise in fresh air.

6. Laying out my collection of clutches and elegant purses for the PP's Sis who borrowed a selection of them to see which looks best with her ballgown. I own remarkably many of these "occasional bags" considering I never go to balls or gala events. Not that I wouldn't want to, mind!

Perspective

2012-01-18T08:17:00.002+01:00

2012 hasn't quite got off to a brilliant start for me in certain ways, not that I am surprised. After three carefree months in Australia, reality was bound to bite...and call more loudly than before to change what I don't like about it. For the record, I'm officially not in the throes of some brutal 40th birthday crisis (yet anyway). Well, more about what has been bugging me at some other time, perhaps.

Last night I called my cleaning lady to ask when she would pick up my spare keys - that I had given to a neighbour to look after my flat and water my plants while I was in Sydney - to resume our biweekly routine. When I asked her how she was she told me that her husband died last Thursday at the age of 51. He was diagnosed with cancer about a year ago and when I left in September I knew that things weren't looking too bright, but I was still deeply shocked. She was really composed and seemed to be coping impressively well as his death basically was a relief for everyone after months of incredible suffering and her husband loosing one vital function after another. When I called, she had been preparing dinner, which in itself is comforting to know.

It was humbling to be reminded that basically all the things we moan about and consider tragedies of sorts are really insignificant in the face of losing someone you love (to death, not to somebody else...).

Snowing at Last

2012-01-17T08:12:00.003+01:00

When your house is on a busy street like mine is, you can always tell it has snowed overnight when you wake up and there's an almost eerie silence outside. Nothing swallows up traffic noise like fresh snow does. It's still snowing and looking very peaceful outside. Unlike the snow on the ground that is trampled and driven over within seconds after falling, turning into ugly slush, the snow on my windowsills and the rooftops stays pristine for a while, making you long for ski trips and invigorating walks in the countryside.

Night Panorama

2012-01-16T09:01:00.002+01:00

Walking past Volksgarten on Sunday night, I quietly said "hi" to an old friend, the recently restored Theseus Temple in all its dazzling handsomeness.

Just One of Life's Many Mysteries...

2012-01-15T11:41:00.004+01:00

Yesterday morning, when I was about to close my bedroom window, I took a double take. Two huge fire-engines and two police cars with their blue lights on were parked right in front of my house and one of the fire-engines had its ladder rolled out past my window. I still have no clue what this was all about (loose bricks or mortar in danger of falling on someone's head? Suicidal neighbour threatening to jump from the roof?), but whatever it was the crisis must have already been averted as the fireman was sitting there rather casually and all the cars left less than 10 minutes after I took this photo:

Quite an unexpected sight, though, to have a fireman sitting outside your window on a Saturday morning...

PS: I know that my windows are crying out to be cleaned.

Greetings on my Pillow

2012-01-11T22:10:00.004+01:00

When I returned to my hotel room tonight, I found a sweet gift left by the maid that came with an interesting message:
Somehow, it sounded more Japanese than Swiss to me...

Just as Well We Don't Know the Secret Formula

2012-01-11T08:43:00.004+01:00

the "living-room corner" in my hotel room*

Yesterday, about 80% of my team were on the same flight to Zurich (where we are for internal meetings until tomorrow), which reminded me of the fact that this is explicitly forbidden in some companies. I even know someone whose parents always take separate planes - or at least did when the children were younger - in order to decrease the chance of making their offspring orphans. When I was a kid, I once read that the two men who know the secret formula for Coca-Cola are never allowed to take the same plane, a random fact (or possibly, urban legend) that deeply impressed me.

* Rooms at the Four Point by Sheraton hotel in Sihlcity (which the Gazelle dubbed "Sin City") are more spacious than your average Manhattan apartment and nightly rates - even corporate - are higher than the average GDP of an African country...

My Little Aussie Art Gallery...

2012-01-10T08:14:00.003+01:00

Apart from the many Australian purchases you've already seen here, I also bought 4 works of art by Aboriginal artists. These two paintings (by the same artist) work really well as a pair, which is why I hung them up side by side:

The painting below (by a different artist, but bought in the same gallery, on another visit when the Mermaid also bought a painting for her boyfriend) looks interesting juxtaposed with the enamel painting by a Slovak (or Czech...I'm not entirely sure) artist on top of my bookshelf:

The first purchase - sorry for the crappy photo with the reflection - was made in Melbourne in the shop of the Koorie Heritage Trust and is a print (2/2). It actually cost twice as much as one of the paintings above:

I'm really glad all my artworks made it to Austria without damage.

Weekend Kaleidoscope I

2012-01-09T08:38:00.004+01:00

I plan to make this a regular feature, hence the "I" in the title. Here are some impressions of my weekend:

Creative gifts handmade for me by my goddaughter (4)
New woollen cardie-hoodie bought on Saturday.
Printing out and cutting the photos for my 2012 "calendar edition"
Rainy weekend in Vienna, but I was well-prepared (should have had these with me in Sydney)
Unexpected Christmas pressies from my cousins
Yummy salad prepared by Bella (she who used to update her blog more often than once in 6 months...)
Stocking up on glittery nailpolish
Matcha latte from Cha No Ma
Getting a headstart on the decorations for my birthday party

Christmassy PS

2012-01-08T09:17:00.004+01:00

When I recently browsed through my bulging SD cards, I remembered that I also filmed some short videos, such as of the light projections n Sydney's Town Hall. Somebody was playing music nearby, so the soundtrack is live...

High-Speed Carolling

2012-01-07T09:27:00.007+01:00

In Austria January 6 (Epiphany) is a public holiday. It comes with the tradition of Sternsinger (clumsily translated as "star boys' singing procession" in this Wikipedia article that tells you all about it). Basically, it is children dressed up as the Three Wise Men, accompanied by an adult from their parish, who go from door to door in their neighbourhood to collect money for charitable projects with a religious background/funding. One of the Wise Men is supposed to be black so usually one child has the dubious pleasure of having their face painted with dark shoe-polish or theatre make-up, depeding on the degree of professionalism in its parish.

To my knowledge the Sternsinger may call upon you any time between Dec. 27 and Jan. 6, but where I live in Vienna, they seem to exclusively do their rounds on Epiphany Day. I suppose I might know more about their "strategy" if I occasionally attended mass in my parish, but I happen to never have set foot into that church , ahem.

Yesterday, I got to see them for the first time. You see, when I still worked at Coma HQ we usually had to work on January 6 to make up for the long Japanese New Year's holiday which would typically last until January 3 or 4. It was always an excrutiatingly dull day at work with no incoming post and all shops or restaurants closed. We usually ended up having lunch at McDonald's... Back when Mr. TD lived with me, I would instruct him to let them in and prepare money and sweets to give to them.

Ever since I have lived on my own again and not had to work on the 6th I always seemed to be out and about when they called. Yesterday, I was actually waiting for them to come, do their job and also leave their "20 C+M+B 12" blessing written on the door in chalk. Contrary to popular belief, the letters don't stand for the names of the magi (Caspar, Melchior, Balthasar), but the Latin Christus mansionem benedicat, which of course means "May Christ bless your house". I digress...

When they still hadn't turned up by 2 p.m. I left home.

The doorbell rang at 5:30 or so when it was already dark outside. I could hear children's voices echoing in the staircase and opened the door to see that they were already halfway round the corner. Realising that someone had opened their door, they virtually jumped back to my doormat, belting out their song without any introduction. I had expected the adult to ask if they could come in or say something by means of greeting, but they just hovered outside my door, singing as if on "fast-forward", then extended their cash-box towards me and pressid a leaflet into my hands. Knowing that it is the custom to give the children sweets for their efforts, I handed them a little sachet of sugar-coated chocolates (see above) each, which the three girls (!) immediately ripped open and devoured. The lady who accompanied them didn't seem programmed to small-talk along the lines of "Oh, I didn't expect you to still be around so late on this cold day" (it was freezing yesterday with gale-force winds blowing) and so the whole spectacle was over in less than 2 minutes or so.

I was quite bewildered by this assault and wondered if there was a) a policy (in Vienna at least) to never cross the thresholds of houses and b) if they had drummed into the kids that time was money and they had to be as quick as possible.

Pimp My Kindle

2012-01-06T10:00:00.003+01:00

It was only a matter of time until I would get some "periphery" for my Kindle. While I want to make a case for it myself *one of these days*, I ordered a skin online and couldn't resist going for Hokusai's Great Wave. Cheesy? Yep, but I like it:

This is what it looks like before application:

The front is less cool because there is obviously less surface for the image to shine, but it's o.k., too:

"Back to the Roots" Soup

2012-01-04T19:41:00.004+01:00

Last night, I cooked for 3 wonderful ladies (the Australian, Mademoiselle and Amica) and even though it was a work night (well, for me at least, not for my guests) I wanted to make a proper meal. This meant that I needed to go for something I could at least partly prepare the night before. I chose a cream soup for starter, something I really like in winter and apple crumble with vanilla ice cream - one of my favourite soulfood dishes for the cold months - for dessert.

The soup turned out really well if I may say so myself and I want to share the recipe with you. I actually also want to write it down to be able to recreate it soon. It was inspired by Jamie Oliver's "potato, celeriac and truffle oil soup" (out of Jamie's Kitchen), but the only thing I kept is the celeriac, thyme and truffle oil. He uses chicken stock, for example, but I don't like using meaty stock for vegetable soups and always go for (organic) vegetarian stock cubes. The thyme gives an incredibly deep flavour to the soup, even more so than the truffle oil. So here goes:

Ingredients:

1 small (white) onion - I always use shallots - diced
1 knob of butter
a bit of olive oil
1 bunch of fresh thyme, tied together with a string
500g* celeriac, peeled and roughly diced
250g* parsnips, peeled and roughly diced
250g* sweet potato, peeled and roughly diced
a little bit of white wine
1.2 l boiled water (use your kettle)
2 cubes of vegetable stock (feel free to make fresh vegetable stock if you want)
salt and freshly ground black pepper
truffle oil
125ml cream

* You can play around with the quantities of the 3 veggies according to your preferences, but try to use approx. 1 kg (unpeeled) in total.

Preparation:
In a biggish pot slowly fry the onion in the butter and olive oil until translucent and soft. Add your bunch of thyme (if you work with a gas stove be careful that the string doesn't catch fire on the open flame...) and all the diced vegetables. Turn up the heat and deglaze with the white wine. Add the boiled water and vegetable cubes, put on the lid and let simmer on a low temperature until the vegetables are soft. I usually turn off the heat after 15 minutes or so and just let the pot sit and cool down a bit for half an hour or so. Remove the bunch of thypme and purée the soup in a liquidizer or food processor until it is nice and smooth. This is what mine looked like before mixing:
Season with salt and pepper to taste and add half of the cream before reheating it for your guests. Whip the other half of the cream until it is just slightly firm, but not stiff, and gently fold under the soup just before serving. Let your guests add the truffle oil (it pays off to use a good one and make sure it is fresh - they go off quite easily) themselves. Serve with fresh bread (I used wholegrain baguette) and lick your lips.

I had the tiny leftover bowl for dinner today so am happy to report that it tastes good the day after, too.

One Thing Why My Friends Rock

2012-01-03T14:11:00.002+01:00

...other than being intelligent and beautiful, is that they are just as "old skool" as I am when it comes to snail-mail hard copy Christmas cards:
I love my annual long string of cards (forgive the crappy photo).

3 Months

2012-01-02T15:44:00.003+01:00

The last time I was out of the country for a longer period of time was back in 1993/94 when I studied in Dublin for 9 months. Upon my return, I was "brainwashed" and believed Ireland was the promised land for months, but other than that don't remember having noticed many things that had changed while I was gone.

This time, it is a strange mix of "wow, it feels I've only just left" (especially with regards to people who also said it felt I had just said goodbye) and "wow, when did all that happen?".

While I was away, several people became local celebrities that I've never heard of, but who are now on TV or on the radio all the time.

I've also missed all the little political scandals and other things that "moved the nation".

Austria now has a private railway!

Across the street from my house there's an "event agency" now.

An interesting-looking project seems to be going on outside the Museum of Natural History, transforming the lawn into a mini-Versailles.

Many ugly scaffolds have disappeared, including the big construction site at Westbahnhof, which now has some decent shops (most of which are closed on Sundays, this being Austria)

The cube is a shopping mall and food court and there is a new hotel at the other side of the station building as well:

Other than that, it's very much a case of same, same but different and whereas I re-adapted back into winter pretty easily (without catching a cold, even!) I have to say that returning to work was a bit of a reverse culture shock and my first instinct was "when and how can I apply for the next project abroad." I actually received an (informal) offer for a permanent post overseas, but I'd rather get started on my new year's resolution to make 2012 the year when I find a job that I'm really interested in. Fingers crossed.

Budding Capitalism

2011-12-28T20:10:00.002+01:00

Today, on December 28, the day that is commemorated as the Day of the Massacre of the Innocents, children go schappen in Carinthia. You can read about this custom in this Wikipedia article here (German only), but basically it is children going from door to door to wish good luck and get money and/or sweets in return. A bit like trick-or-treating.

My mum and I were getting ready to go skiing when the doorbell rang. Dad and I rummaged for coins and opened the door to a little boy who asked if he could schapp us. When he had finished his short routine and pocketed his money, Dad was about to close the door when he noticed another boy who had lurked nearby and overheard the short but efficient exchange between them. "How much?" second boy simply asked the successful returnee schapper. The answer must have been satisfactory as he rang our doorbell about 3 seconds after that...

Best of the Rest

2011-12-26T10:20:00.002+01:00

Wooo, I found this post in my "drafts" folder with photos already uploaded so I can share my last Sydney purchases with you despite the fact that I left my camera (with the last pics on its SD card) in Vienna.

On my last Saturday, I walked across the Harbour Bridge (and back) and discovered the Kirribilli art & design market under its Milsons Point pylon. There, I came across a stall where a Chinese (looking) lady sold laser-cut reversible leather jewellery that was spray-painted either gold or silver. I loved the silver necklace she wore herself, but it turned out that whereas it complemented her grey hair gorgeously, it washed me out and we decided my complexion was better suited to gold. I settled for this pretty piece that cost AUD 31:

I decided I couldn't possibly leave the country without buying a Mimco clutch and therefore seized the opportunity that David Jones had a -25% off sale. The small print revealed that this only applied to purchases over $ 150 and the clutch was 149. I thought that this wouldn't be a problem for easy-going Australians, but apparently the cash-register wasn't as flexible and so I "needed" to grab something else. I settled for a little purse, sister of the black one I bought weeks before and will now probably give away as a present even though I find it even sexier with its gold name-button on the front. I already have somebody in mind...

December issues of magazines contained some interesting freebies, such as this Butter of London nail polish. I really like the shimmery beige colour and the smooth application.

Marie Claire came with a Seafolly beach dress that impresses with good quality and a decent fit despite being one-size-fits-all. I have my doubts at the "valued at $ 69.95" as the material is acrylic, but I will definitely wear it next summer as I love stripes.

Remember the blue skinny jeans I bought? The Mermaid loved them so much she tried to hunt down a pair for herself, but alas they had disappeared from the shops. I found a long (i.e. bum-covering) asymmetrical top by Australian designer Wayne Cooper at Myer. To me, it looks very Australian by virtue of a) its bright colours and b) its photo print: two characteristics that can be found in most brands summer collections.

The dusty pink of the top is the exact shade of my $10 gladiator sandals: bonus!

Needless to say, this top, the beach dress and the sandals are destined for hibernation now that I'm back in the Northern Hemisphere. The clutch, however, might get an outing soon and I'm wearing the necklace today.

Vegetating 2.0

2011-12-25T11:33:00.003+01:00

The Christmas holidays are all about vegetating on the couch, reading, eating, watching TV. And repeat. Personally, I'm more into the reading, than into the TV part, although I won't say no to a rerun of Love Actually. Ever.

This year, I gave myself a Kindle for Christmas. I know I am very late jumping onto this bandwagon, but I had to overcome my prejudices first. I turned up my nose at the idea of reading books in any other than offline form when electronic readers first came out, considering the mere idea sacrilegious. After holding one in my hands some months ago and being bombarded by Amazon's friendly newsletters and seeing it prominently placed on their homepage, I gave in and I'm loving it! Best thing EVER. I decided to go for the more expensive and heavier 3G version and hope to get into the situation where I run out of literature on a deserted beach (with internet coverage, ahem) soon to justify it.

You can see it in the picture below, sitting on a photo book on a (bicycle) road trip through Australia that I actually won while in Australia and had sent to my parents. I like to enter competitions, me...

Since I didn't do any Christmas baking myself this year, Mum took over the task and asked me for my recipes collection. She was almost nervous that I would give her positive feedback and took it personally when I didn't tuck in straight away after getting home. It took me a while to switch into winter/Christmas mode, but I've tried them all now and definitely approve. She baked various biscuits, made chocolates and truffles (which she always does anyways) and tried gingerbread for the first time, using my paternal granny's family recipe. This is a picture of the gingerbread:

The couch and 3 months worth of magazine subscriptions are beckoning now...

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays

2011-12-24T15:35:00.003+01:00

A very Merry Christmas (or whatever it is you are celebrating these days) to you, yes, I mean YOU out there.

Despite the fact that I enjoyed my 3 months in Sydney so so much and they went by in a flash, it feels good to be home for Christmas and its traditions, such as meeting friends in town on the morning of the 24th and decorating the Christmas tree, which I finished about half an hour ago. In honour of the return of the prodigal daughter, the tree is as big as it hasn't been since I was a child. I love the smell of real fir trees and our eclectic collection of - deliberately - mismatched ornaments:

It still hasn't snowed in KLU, but temperatures are sub-zero and frost gives leaves a pretty icing:
I only popped into town quickly yesterday...long enough to pick up a (GEOX) down coat that was on sale at Peek & Cloppenburg. My new Ugg boots are practically glued to my feet these days as I feel the cold more intensely as I otherwise would. I've missed my winter clothes, though and don't mind huddling up.

Speed Dating with Presents, Why I Feel Naked and Other Observations

2011-12-22T14:26:00.004+01:00

I arrived back in winter wonderland on Tuesday. My two flights (9 and 11 hours respectively) were a torturous collection of superlatives. Flight 1 included the fattest neighbour - guess who "won" the armrest - and clumsiest flight attendant (who dropped a tray three times and bumped into my elbow twice with her trolley), flight 2 boasted the baby and toddler with the most piercing squeals imaginable...

I fought against jetlag by staying up late every day and slotting in 3 to 4 dates with friends every day (Mr. TD called it speed dating, not entirely untrue). Although I had agreed on a Christmas present "non-agression pact" with my friends this year, I was surprised by several cool gifts: Mademoiselle made me another lovely advent calendar, the bonus of receiving it on the 21st being that I could rip open most of the parcels in one greedy go: hah! Amica spoilt the Vienna "chapter" of our book club with cool t-shirts with a Union Jack and "proud member of the Book of the Month club" and Frida gave me a bottle of wine the label of which she designed.

When I popped into the office on Tuesday, I was almost stifled by the hug MC gave me. I might not exactly be looking forward to work in Vienna as such, but it feels good to be reunited with the "Schatzis".

I could have inserted one or two photos here, but in my multi-tasking flurry of activities this morning I left my camera in the flat in Vienna...which I only realised on the train to KLU. Duh! As you know, I never go ANYwhere without my camera...I feel utterly naked without it and will either have to borrow one from my parents to keep up with the usual point-and-shooting or will resort to my new phone's inbuilt camera...we'll see.

Even though there is no snow in Vienna yet, it was of course considerably colder than Sydney (by about 25°) and my skin felt parched the minute I landed. I have been slapping on hand cream like mad, but it doesn't seem to make a difference. Thanks to an Australian miracle drug called "Frequent Flier" that I had already forced on my Mum and the Mermaid, who didn't get sick either, I did not catch the usual nasty plane cold. I thought I would find it difficult to adjust to the short winter days, but interestingly, that is no big deal. I find it more difficult to readjust to cars driving on the right (in both senses) side of the road and ran into one yesterday after I looked right, rather than left before crossing the street.

Despite the fact that I love buying and making presents, I really enjoyed this stress-free Christmas and actually would like to continue this new tradition of not exchanging Christmas presents with friends. I have yet to find out whether I didn't miss baking in the least just because I was away in warmer climates or - gasp - because I've grown tired of it, but I don't even have cravings for Christmas cookies, either. Well, ask me again in a few days when I might have eaten my weight in Vanillekipferln and Lebkuchen...

What I'm Looking Forward To

2011-12-17T08:31:00.004+01:00

...likewise not necessarily in that order.

1. Christmas lights and in fact all things to do with Christmas

There are some pretty nice Christmas decorations in Sydney, too, but to this Northern Hemisphere person it just doesn't look christmassy when there's summer outside and the trees are plastic as opposed to real. Plus we don't get gifts by Santa, but Christkind...I'm looking forward to the smell of real fir trees, ginger bread cookies and above all the beautiful chandeliers on Graben and the "fairylights rain" on Kohlmarkt. That's assuming they haven't changed the decorations this year.

2. A washing machine that doesn't turn my whites yellow

The Mermaid came up with the theory that the water is softer here than ours back home (this could explain why my hair always looked shit too with the only exception of the 4 days post visit to the hairdresser). Despite several washing powders and liquids and stain removers I tried all my white tops came out of the machine with yellow stains under the armpits and round the collar. A change of deodorant didn't help and it wasn't just my "aggressive" sweat either - the same occurred to the Mermaid's shirts when she washed them in my machine. Not an attractive look and not an issue I've ever had at home.

3. Friends and the social life associated with it

My colleagues here have been incredibly nice to me and I was always included in group activities, but ultimately everyone leads their own lives. It always takes some weeks to make friends, but then it's time to leave again. I vividly remember the annoyance at my old boss who always insisted at least someone in the team entertained visitors. You're not always in the mood to change your plans to play tourist guide or go out with random strangers so I didn't have any expectations and actually quite liked all the me-time. In all fairness, I didn't take the initiative and organise anything either, but when I didn't have any visitors here I sometimes wished I had company to hang out with, explore nice places with together. Not that I'm a wild party animal at home, but it still makes a difference when your friends live in the same city, or even in the same time-zone.

4. Swimming in lakes

I loved the fact that Sydney is surrounded by the sea and always envy people who live in countries that are not landlocked like Austria. When it comes to swimming, though, which you know I love, Bondi or Manly are not the place to go to. They're great for surfing and other adrenaline-fuelled water sports, but not so much for actual swimming. Nothing beats good old Wörther See!

5. Reasonable prices...for everything

It didn't take me long to get over the shock that everything is so incredibly expensive here. I still remember landing at SYD airport and going into the WHSmith branch in the arrivals hall to buy a bottle of water. Briefly taking in the prices of bottled drinks, crisps, chocolate bars and the like I thought these must be inflated tourist prices because it was the airport. When I went grocery shopping the same night I realised that this was in fact the regular price level. Ouch! As we all know it's only "monopoly money" when you're abroad anyway so I just whipped out my credit card and forgot about it.

It did act as a good deterrent for impulse purchases. E.g. I would have loved to buy a COACH handbag, but was simply not willing to pay twice as much as in the U.S. To give you another handbag example - the large Longchamp Le Pliage bag (quite popular here, I noticed) is about € 80 back home, but a whopping AU$ 205 here.

Prices for meals are most shocking of all even if food is excellent quality in most places. You could take out a whole family in Vienna on what you pay for one person in Sydney in restaurants of comparable level.

It's fine when you live in an expensive city as a spoilt expat like me, but not so much fun when you are a resident.

6. TV programmes that inform me of REAL news

I won't make the generalization that all Australian TV is crap, but the channels I had in the subscription in my apartment certainly were. I now know more about Kim Kardashian and her extended family than I ever wanted to, but very little of what went on in Australian or World politics. Even if I don't watch much TV at home I'm looking forward to the ZIB.

7. Not having to worry about baggage limits when buying stuff

Again, it was quite a good "contraceptive" at times to look at something really tempting (such as that cool so-called "occasional table" in orange metal at Freedom, sigh!) and realise you won't be able to pack it for size or weight reasons. Still, I'm an instant gratification type of person and am looking forward to just having to worry about carrying it home from the shop.

8. Having all my clothes and accessories at my disposal

Not least because of the weather that was considerably wetter than I had bargained for and the fact that it was always freezing cold in the office I ended up wearing either a) rather casual stuff and b) had to constantly pair it with a hoody to ward off the cold. I am looking forward to being dressed fashionably rather than functionally again and to having all my beloved bags at my disposal.

9. Being the norm, rather than a freak because I don't go to the gym

Shortly before coming to Sydney, I read an article in the UK Marie Claire on why a growing number of Brits chose to return home after years in Sydney. One interviewee that said her decisive moment was when at a party everyone just talked about how one guest had just broken the record in stairs-climbing or some such and it made her realise how much she missed "profound" conversations. Now I'm not saying that people are more shallow here in any way, nor that I indulge in oh-so deep & meaningful conversations all the time (unless bitching and talking about shopping sprees counts), but I did wish I had a coin for every time the words "gym", "personal trainer" or "workout" were mentioned at breakfast or lunch at work. Once I had overcome the shock of people outside of L.A. actually having a personal trainer, the novelty soon wore off. I can't help it but and for a sports-phobe like me it just holds the same fascination (not) as toddler-related subjects, such as the choice of kindergarten, the pros and cons of certain vaccinations, etc.

10. Vienna tap water

I don't know any local or visitor who doesn't consider our water the best to be had. It comes out of the tap ice-cold and in unrivalled quality. Sydney tap water isn't that great, even though a filter helped a lot. It's not bad in any way, but I'm looking forward to the Viennese one.

What I'll Miss (Not Neccessarily in That Order)

2011-12-16T00:08:00.003+01:00

1. Fresh passionfruit grown locally

I had never tasted fresh passionfruit (or maracuja, as we call it) before coming to Sydney. It is not sold in regular supermarkets in Austria at all and just one of those fruits that I wouldn't buy anyway, suspicious that the long journey they were on had robbed them of any taste and vitamins, plus the brutal carbon footprint they would have left on the way.

2. The breathtaking views at Circular Quay

You know that I was rather underwhelmed by the Opera House upon arrival when rainy weather made it look beige and not too glamorous. In sunlight, however, the view of both the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House, preferably with a huge cruiseliner docked at the Overseas Passenger Terminal takes your breath away and wants you take the 100th picture of it...which I did.

3. Jacaranda trees

They have shed their pretty lilac/purple blossoms now, but I could not get enough of them when they were in full bloom in spring. I had not seen them anywhere before and was totally wowed by their gorgeous colour.

4. "Coffee art"

Australian baristas make seriously good coffee and decorate the foam with either a leaf or a heart. Once a guy even decorated my take-out flat white that was hidden under a plastic lid anyway. Coffee is not only good, but one of the few things that are actually cheaper than in Vienna, the city that considers itself the capital of coffee.

5. Friendly and easy-going people

Whoever I told that I was going to spend 3 months in Sydney and who had ever met Australians told me "You'll see, they are SO chilled." This is so true and regarding work-life balance I can't imagine any office I'd rather work than the Sydney branch of the Firm. It is so So different from Europe where you would rarely have a client lunch that involves alcohol (frowned upon in a work context in the middle of the day) in the first place and not have lunches that stretch out to casual afternoon drinks and result in everybody going straight home afterwards. I don't doubt the relationship-building benefits of that in the least, but I never ceased to be amazed that this didn't get the person who initiated it into trouble, but was in fact expected behaviour.

It took me a while to adapt/reply to conversations with shop assistants asking me either what I had done so far that particular day or whether I had anything in particular planned for the rest of the day (more innovative than American shop staff, no doubt!), but it is ultimately very friendly and makes a nice change from the grumpy Viennese who in fact see their grumpiness as a charming USP.

6. Long daylight hours

I have forgotten that when I'll be back home, it will be pitch dark by 4:30 p.m. due to the fact that it is of course the darkest time of winter. Not something I look forward to at all.

7. Actually Looking Forward to Going to Work

In Vienna, I often get that familiar (or is it?) Sunday night blues along the lines of "Bleurgh, tomorrow's Monday and I need to get back to work...". Here, the work environment was just so much more relaxed that I actually dread going back to my old routine. I realise that this is partly due to the fact that I was a "guest-worker" and didn't have to shift the same workload I would have had to regularly, but it's not so much about work than the work environment.

8. Less is More

Despite the fact that - predictably enough - I shopped quite a bit here and therefore amassed heaps of clothes and other stuff, I actually really liked the "reduced lifestyle" in my little apartment. It makes you realised how much clutter you have back home that you don't actually miss in the least.

9. Asian shops and restaurants

Due to the large amount of people of Asian origin who live in Sydney, there is a great choice of Asian shops and restaurants and while the majority of those are Chinese there are quite a few Japanese (and Korean, etc.) ones as well and I'll miss Books Kinokunya, where I loved to browse, above all. There's not much in the way of authentic Asian lifestyle in Vienna and I'll miss that.

10. Discovering new things every day

When you live abroad temporarily, you discover so many new and interesting things all the time. You may not necessarily like every single one of them, but you always notice them and it makes your life more interesting and "colourful" than the same old routine.

***
10 things I am looking forward to coming up next...stay tuned!

Bridge Spotting for Beginners

2011-12-15T08:58:00.001+01:00

You've heard of train spotters, but did you know that there were bridge nerds as well? Actually, I am making an assumption here, but my unexpected look behind the scenes of Pyrmont Bridge, apparently "the world's oldest electric swingspan bridge" leads me to believe that there are probably people (of the male persuasion) around who do this all the time. I digress.

When the Mermaid and I went for a drink at Darling Harbour, I mentioned that according to the Australian (my friend, not the newspaper) Pyrmont bridge opened in the middle, but I had my doubts as a) I had never seen it in all of my 11 weeks in Sydney and b) hello? Monorail track right on top of it? Obviously I had a typical vertical kind of opening in mind, not having heard of "swingspan bridges" before.

The day after our conversation we crossed said bridge on the way to the monthly Growers' Market in Pyrmont and halfway across the bridge saw an old man in "uniform" fiddle with a lock near the bridge's railing. "Let's ask him if the bridge opens", the Mermaid said and walked off into his direction. "Nah, let's not," I said, feeling slightly embarrassed. In the end he turned out to be happy and flattered that those two tourists displayed such an interest in the bridge's mechanisms and invited us up onto the little hut in the middle of the bridge and into his realm of interesting machinery:

I was actually reminded of the old trams we had in Vienna:

He also invited us to watch the opening at 10:30 from up there but we passed and just watched it from outside the Maritime Museum. This is what a swingspan bridge looks like when it opens...tadah:

aaaand: opened completely!

Pretty impressive, huh? I asked what happened when the electricity failed and Mr. Bridge man actually said that you could open it manually as well, but it took 4 (? if I remember correctly) men or so and their combined forces.

Last (?) Sydney Haul

2011-12-13T06:54:00.002+01:00

So. I'm flying back next Monday [insert sigh here] and have started bringing the stuff I don't intend to bring back to Vienna (e.g. mugs and bowls and misc. household stuff I bought) to the office to give to a Swiss colleague who recently moved here and is moving into her apartment later this week. Thankfully, the Mermaid took quite a few of my clothes and purchases with her, but I should still do some "test-packing" later this week to try and figure out if I'll fit everything into my two suitcases. Here are some things I bought in the last two weeks:

The Mermaid and I bought each other "friendship jewellery", i.e. bought a pair of things we liked. First, she bought two necklaces with a wooden heart in Leura in the Blue Mountains, then I bought a matching pair of eelskin (!) bracelets at Paddington Market last Saturday. I love both:

At the Finders Keepers Market which we attended the Saturday before I finally bought a wooden brooch. I have to admit that I don't usually wear brooches, but after seeing them in so many shops in several cities here, I realised I "needed" one. I love this "origami" cat:

Yesterday on my way home from work I bought the inevitable pair of uggs that no tourist can leave without. Nobody seems to wear them here (no wonder since it isn't that cold and rains a lot), but I definitely intend to get a lot of wear out of them in the Austrian winter. I found a pair in a really nice purple and made sure to check for a sturdy(ish) sole that won't wear off diagonally and make me look like a teenager who can't lift her feet off the ground when walking after the first outing:

I don't know if I have mentioned it here, but unlike elsewhere, "ugg" is a generic name for sheepskin products and not ONE (expensive) brand of shoes/gloves/earmuffs. Hence dozens, if not hundreds, of different UGG brands exist side by side in Australia and the discerning tourist can choose from different colours of labels on the heel and original bynames, such as UGG Sydney, UGG Bondi, Shearers UGG, etc. Uggs are also almost exclusively sold in souvenir shops, some of which seem to target mainly Chinese tourists, so I initially thought these were all fakes. In fact, one brand is just as "genuine" as the next and you just have to shop around to find a pair (the price of which) you like and which seems suitable for the European climate. Most shops permanently pretend to have a "sale" with before and now prices, but the allure wears off when you pass the alleged once-in-a-lifetime-and-today-only! opportunity every day.

I am, however, really happy with mine and hope they last. I intend to wear them on the flight home to have nice warm feet on a plane for once...

The Mermaid Has Taken a Dive

2011-12-11T11:55:00.004+01:00

...or rather, she is swimming back to Austria as I write. It was lovely to have her here and I really appreciate her undertaking a 24-hours-journey to be with me a mere 10 days. I wish the weather had been better, but at least she left in summer...ish weather and we got to spend a half day at the beach yesterday. We walked from Bronte to Bondi beach and it was near the Bondi Icebergs club that she spotted this banner which just begged for a photo (I should add a disclaimer, too: the "interesting" shorts with the Coca-Cola print on the bum are a donation of an ex-colleague of hers who bought them a size too small for herself and not something the Mermaid would buy for herself, nor wear back home where people know her):

The Mermaid, she loves flip-flops and when she arrived, she had her beloved pair of red Havaianas (purchased on a trip to Thailand) with her. Another 4 pairs of flip-flops in different materials and various degrees of elegance made it into her suitcase. The one she wears in the photo and the pair next to it are by Ipanema and were 25% off at Myer's:

I also gave her my own pair of glittery navy Ipanemas (from the Giselle Bündchen collection) which I had intended to dump here even though they are barely worn, just because I don't find the particularly comfortable. I wish I could just buy any old pair of flip-flops (or thongs, as they are called here), but unfortunately, most really hurt on my feet and it is basically only the actual Flip-Flop brand and Crocs flip-flops that I can comfortably wear.

This might be a blessing in disguise in order to prevent me from amassing a collection to rival the Mermaid's...

Me in Pictures

2011-12-06T06:16:00.000+01:00

Apart from their lovely company per se and the entertainment they provide, visitors have the added benefit of taking many pictures of you so that you don't have to accost strangers and ask if they could take a picture of you posing next to a landmark.

When I recently went through my photos and found quite a few that were "anonymous" enough for this blog among those taken by my Mum, the Australian and the Mermaid. Here's a selection:

Manly

Canberra

Manly again

Melbourne

Sydney (Darling Harbour)

Sydney (Ampersand Café & Bookstore)

Brisbane (Queensland Gallery of Modern Art)

Willing Disciple

2011-12-05T10:09:00.003+01:00

Last Thursday, the Mermaid arrived (yaaaay!). She's only here for 9 days and deliberately chose to come towards the end of my time here "when it will be warmer". So much for the theory. Unfortunately, she hasn't been blessed with great weather and apart from sightseeing has kept herself busy with...shopping. This is the exploit from Day One, very much approved by me:

Speaking of shopping...ahem. I added yet another (6th or 7th, must count my "Sydney collection" pair of shoes the day of her arrival. Once more, Wittner (luring me in with a 40% sale) delivered:

How You Know You've Been in Sydney for Quite Some Time

2011-11-29T05:30:00.005+01:00

I've posted this photo here before and told you I've actually seen bananas at $ 13.99 a kilo:
Recently, banana prices have reached a level that doesn't you require you to take out a personal loan before purchasing a kilo:

I don't know if this is just a pre-Christmas marketing strategy or prices will actually stay as low as this for some time (or go further down even?), but I've definitely enjoyed my first banana in two months when the office restocked them this morning. Hello, calcium!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

2011-11-27T11:58:00.006+01:00

...as the song goes. The only difference in the Southern Hemisphere is that you get all the usual "nordic" props and decorations, in addition to Christmas pudding, mince pies and other seasonal food intended for much colder climates. Some families seem to favour those traditional Anglo-Saxon favourites and go for the traditional turkey menu over the holidays, others acknowledge the summer and opt for the Aussie favourite: a barbecue by the beach and for dessert a pavlova with fresh cherries (in season around Christmas time).

I pity the santas sweating under their polyester costumes and beards in the summer heat. Here's some photographic evidence of Sydney and Melbourne gearing up to Christmas.

Big Christmas tree on Martin Place (in the rain - of which we had plenty earlier this week. It more or less rained incessantly from Tuesday morning to Saturday morning), Sydney's answer to Rockefeller Plaza in New York:

Christmas decoration in the Rocks, Sydney's oldest quarter:
One of many huge inflatable santas as part of Darling Harbour's Santa Fest (Nov. 26):
Melbourne's banners are almost the same green as the trees in their lush spring foliage:

Myer and David Jones are the two big department store chains that can be found in all major cities all over Australia. The are competing over who has got the better Christmas window display (and louder X-Mas muzak to accompany it). Myer's on Melbourne's Bourke Street:

David Jones on Sydney's Market Street:

I was curious to see what "Santa's Cave" on the 6th floor looked like, expecting this to be more or less DJ's Christmas department, but it turned out to be an attraction hidden away in a separate room (or cave) you had to queue up for that was obviously aimed towards children and hence aptly placed next to the toys department. Needless to say, I did not join the line, lacking the obvious "accessory" to gain entry to Santa's cave: a child.

PS: I ticked off another Australian "must" off my shopping list at DJ's yesterday: a pretty underwear set by Elle Macpherson intimates. As the name implies, it is a rather intimate purchase, hence no photo...

Predictably Enough

2011-11-24T05:09:00.003+01:00

...I did not return empty-handed from last night's Christmas shopping event. I actually heard about it on the radio, so I should blame them for my little spree. Westfield is a chain of upmarket shopping malls that have apparently hit London as well (I saw an ad in last month's UK Marie Claire) The mall in Bondi Junction has several floors. Here's a little peek:

I didn't queue up for the free champagne, nor avail of the free gift advisory service (as if I needed shopping advice...), but headed straight for the shops I was interested in. Similar to good (?) old Lugner City at home, which also regularly runs days with discounts in all shops, most stores offered a one-day-only discount of 10-30%. This was particularly cool in the case of covetable brands that I've ever only seen full-price and exempt from offers in department stores so far, such as Australian swimwear brand Seafolly. I was determined to buy a bikini here as Australian brands are said to be the best in terms of longevity and UV-protection in addition to really cool styles. On my first excursion to the beach I saw a girl wearing this bikini and decided to track it down:

It is a really good cut and fits me well (unless the mirror was seriously rigged). The shop also had it in a sort of demure navy ("denim") as well, which was beautiful, too, but I decided the loud purple was more "me". Demure I am not, after all. It was -15%, which might not sound like a lot, but amounted to $ 18.

Another Australian brand I really like is Marcs. I could easily buy the whole summer collection, but bought only one top (20% off) which looks rather boring in the photo, but actually looks really nice in real life, with the tan colour matching the ballet flats I got (see two posts down). I intend to pair it both with the blue skinny jeans and my off-white linen trousers. Obviously, this will be confined to the back of the wardrobe once I'm back home. It's a very soft viscose and I deliberately got it in "large" as it looked better slouchy than tight.

Last, but not least, I got my Mimco-craving out of the system. I had been drooling over this patent leather/rose gold tote for weeks and thought 30% off might give me the incentive to grab it. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that the metal closure was really scratched on most bags and even if the new ones come with a protective plastic sticker I wasn't too keen anymore as they'd probably be scratched the day after I take it off at home. In the end, I just wanted to get something and settled for a small pouch I find quite classy:

I promise the next photos I'll upload here won't be shopping related. Unless another shopping event crosses my path, that is...

Guess Where I'll be Tonight...

2011-11-23T02:01:00.001+01:00

It has been raining all day, so what better place to spend the evening than in a shopping mall...

Thursdays Are Dangerous

2011-11-20T08:45:00.001+01:00

Thursday is the day of the week when shops are open longer in Sydney and last Thursday I definitely needed some retail therapy. Off I went to Myer department store and with my bargain radar discovered some interesting items on the "reduced" rails. Such as this layered silk skirt that reminds me a bit of an Hermès scarf and which comes with a "Chinese" belt:

It is by Australian brand Howard Showers.I had never heard of them, but some of their stuff is really great - good tailoring and quality at the same time. I also like their motto, "from office to cocktail".

There actually are dozens of brands which are really big here but that wouldn't be known to people in Europe at all. Some of them are quite good and I wouldn't mind if they opened a branch in Vienna. Such as Decjuba, where I got this belt from:

As I've remarked before, summer fashion gets here after Europeans and Norther Americans have already rocked the same trend, such as brightly coloured jeans and colour blocking. I've long resisted the coloured jeans fad as I already wore bright jeans in the 1990s. Back then I had a pair in canary yellow, carrot orange, frog green - you name it. The Irish boy I briefly went out with when on an Erasmus year in Dublin famously dumped me with the line "You're just too cool for me: you wear orange jeans..." Aaaaanyway - I decided I had to have an electric blue pair of skinny jeans, having passed the pile of jeans at the entrance of the Cotton On branch in Harbourside shopping mall several times on my way home from work. They are really comfortable and not too low cut at the waist and I've already worn them to work.

The shoes are new as well - bought inexpensively from a store at Bondi Junction when my Mum was here.

The top below is the second purchase from my little Myer/Howard Showers spree last Thursday:

I wore it out and about on Saturday and the Australian, who was visiting, kindly took a picture of me on m balcony:

I also bought some t-shirts with "funny" prints and a striped long-sleeved one, also from Cotton On, for an incredible $5. It's super soft and long: love!

On Saturday, the Australian and I browsed shops in the Paddington suburb/district and I bought two sale items (amounting to $ 75 instead of $250 for the two) at Seed, which had really nice stuff and reminded me of Comptoir des Cotonniers and the Petit Bateau collection for grown-ups a bit. I bought this grey silk top/tunic:

...and a white linen top/dress that I might cut at the length or try wearing with a belt as it looks a bit boring just like this:

We also happened upon a shoe store where every pair was a mere $10 and I snatched up these gladiator sandals in a dusty pink (trousers only rolled up for photo purposes, by the way):

Even though I have a second "sherpa" for excess baggage lined up with the Mermaid coming next week (yay!) I'll remind myself not to overdo it, bargains or not.

3 Things I Find Fascinating

2011-11-18T01:13:00.005+01:00

Now that I've been here almost 10(!) weeks, I find myself taking pictures over and over again of certain things that continue to fascinate me - boring the people I share my Picasa albums with to death, no doubt - such as Jacaranda trees:

These trees, natives to Brazil and other Southern American countries, were a revelation to me. I had never seen them anywhere else before and was struck by this unique colour. Photos don't really do it justice. I'm surprised there are no "jacaranda blossom festivals" similar to cherry blossom ones.

Another thing that always wows me is when I turn around a corner and suddenly see a huge cruiseliner. Here's an example, the "Amsterdam" moored at the Overseas Passenger Terminal with Sydney Harbour Bridge in the background:

I can also see cruise ships from the office windows almost every day and even though I don't actually fancy going on a cruise any time soon, I can imagine what a cool feeling it must be to arrive in Sydney on one of these Titanic-sized ships.

The last one is an obvious choice - koalas. They really are so incredibly cute and cuddly (I will forever remember my close-and-personal encounter with Guppy in Brisbane!) and the fellow in below in particular (seen at Taronga Zoo) was so cute I wanted to pack him in my bag and snatch him away:

Other things include the going-out look of Australian girls which uniformly consists of a tight-fitting garment that barely covers your bum and 30-cm heels and the super-clean public toilets, always well-stocked with paper and often equipped with state-of-the art Dyson hand-driers. The example below is one of the several facilities at Darling Harbour:

Coming up next: shopping update. Stay tuned...

Christmas Present

2011-11-16T04:20:00.003+01:00

...for the discerning shopper who already has everything: the GUCCI bike with logo-ed saddle and saddlebags.

Mum Was Here

2011-11-14T10:29:00.003+01:00

Very early this morning my Mum left for Sydney International Airport to embark on her long journey home. We really had a great time together and I'm guessing she was as pleasantly surprised as I was that we hardly got on each other's nerves. Don't get me wrong - we love one another dearly, but you probably know how it is - after a week or so of quality time with your parents you (and they) feel like embroidering "absence makes the heart grow fonder" onto a cushion in cross-stitch.

In true Mum-fashion, she set about to beautify my rather bare apartment, see above. Even though I told her that I wasn't going to take any of such stuff home to Vienna, I am now the (temporary) owner of a vase, 3 plastic gerberas (she got me real ones first), two faux laquerware containers and two placemats. With the execption of the latter, she bought all of those from the Japanese dollar-store in Market City mall. She also got creative when she wasn't out sightseeing or bargain-hunting and among other things made three necklaces, one of which I snatched.

(Not pictured: little china milk jug)

Shrink to Fit

2011-11-12T08:53:00.003+01:00

As I've previously mentioned, the female population of Sydney favours extremely high heels and extremely short skirts (or dresses). The sight of these ladies in front of a dry cleaner's made me suspect they'd left the bottom half of their clothes for cleaning and were waiting for them to be ready for wearing again. Who knows?

Six

2011-11-11T08:00:00.002+01:00

Can you believe it that this blog is already six years old? In human time, it would be a school kid now!

What started at another way to pass time at my not particularly adrenaline-fuelled job (you know, when I ran out of books to read and necklaces to bead...) has become my favourite "creative outlet" both for writing and photography. Both are things I have always liked. As soon as I could write, I filled notebooks with stories and started "collecting" international penpals. As soon as I could handle a simple camera, I wanted one. On my first "long-distance" holiday in Ireland when I was six years old (remember, those were the 1980s, I know that now kids embark on their first plane journey when they're much younger) I would get out of the car to mimic my Dad taking photos with the case of his SLR. I still remember feeling very important even if at the same time I knew it was silly pretending to shoot pictures with my pretend camera.

Ever since coming to Sydney, I've been writing a regular newsletter and therefore haven't posted as much here as I otherwise would have. When I'm back home an won't be regaling my friends with daily updates of my mundane routine anymore, this will once again become the main outlet for my verbal diarrhea.

Be very afraid.

One More...Suitcase

2011-11-09T06:49:00.005+01:00

Call me slow in the uptake, but it took two ruined suitcases to make me realise that even expensive brands are not meant to race around with on cobblestones or pavements. The first victim was my chic Mandarina Duck "business cabin trolley" that had a stuck wheel, but was repaired on MD's expense ultimately. It's a long story that I'll spare you, but UPS definitely made a profit from it.

On Friday night, Mum and I walked to Sydney's Central Station where we caught the Greyhound bus to Canberra. We had contemplated taking a taxi, but then decided to walk. I should add that it's a 15 to 20 mins walk, which is not what suitcases are made for, see above. Two traffic lights away from the station, I noticed that my suitcase had got considerably heavier and felt like I was dragging along a petulant child. A quick check revealed that this was due to the fact that 50% of its "wheelage" had gone awol. Oh-oh. I told Mum to hold on to the mutilated suitcase and went to retrace my steps. Not far behind, I found the wheel on the pavement, just as a young man was about to kick it onto the street. I picked it up and tried to force it onto its metal...suspension (?)...whatever the technical term may be. Said metal was hot. Very hot. What must have happened was that the metal got so hot from the constant friction that the wheel's plastic got soft and the hole widened enough to make the wheel fall off. Unfortunately, I couldn't force the re-hardened and slightly deformed wheel back on again. At the Greyhound station, I asked an employee if he had a hammer, which he did, and tried using force to reunite suspension and wheel. Without success. So I tried the universally successful "blonde-helpless-foreign"-approach that also works well in Toronto and the nice guy obliged and managed to press the wheel back on again. Alas, it wobbled and looked about to fall off again any time. Not keen on having to carry the suitcase again and having it destroyed on our plane journeys, I decided to buy a new one in Canberra.

The nation's capital is not exactly a shopping mecca, but we eventually got lucky at the department stores and after some comparison I settled for a somewhat bigger, but still very lightweight one by Antler, a brand not known in Austria, but apparently renowned. Mum wanted to pay for it and declare it a Christmas present and I didn't object. Still, I was sad to leave my trusty Travelite suitcase behind - we saw a lot together, the two of us.

I hope the Antler doesn't bring back luck as it travelled to Sydney one flight behind ours last night...

Down Under/Upside Down

2011-11-04T07:09:00.002+01:00

Now this might not be anything particularly Australian at all, but I wanted to share some oddities of my studio apartment with you anyway. First of all, the fridge is incredibly cold even at the lowest setting. I first made the mistake of buying regular butter, only to realise that you have to take it out of the fridge at least an hour before you get hungry unless you have an ice-pick or battleaxe at your disposal. "Spreadable" is the keyword to look out for. The arctic temperatures of my fridge are no doubt due to the fact that there is an ice-covered "freezer compartment" without a door in the top shelf. I have never tried actually storing frozen goods in there, but the coke in the bottle to the left of it definitely had frozen solid when I wanted to drink it. What's also strange is that the jug apparently "lives" in the fridge, too. It was there when I moved in and as it doesn't fit into any of the kitchen cabinets I've decided to leave it in there.

Another strange thing is the location of the (rather short) LAN cable - fixed into a socket next to the bed and farthest away from the desk. It cannot be removed from there and plugged in elsewhere. One more reason why I decided to rely on my mobile internet.

Last, but not least, my dishwasher does not have a cutlery compartment, so I always have to hand-wash my knives, forks and spoons. Whether some past tenant snatched it or this is what it is supposed to be like, I don't know, but I certainly find it unusual.

I also have a very funky toploader washing machine, but I've had one (with fewer buttons and blinking lights, but still) of those in my previous apartment in Vienna, too.

I'm off to a road-trip later tonight and won't be back in Sydney until Tuesday night. More then.

Point of View

2011-11-03T04:27:00.004+01:00

As I have mentioned, I have been writing an almost daily newsletter to friends since coming here. In the first two weeks or so, I frequently ranted about the rain outside and the sub-arctic temperatures in the office, giving some people the impression that I was rather unhappy and regretted coming here. Not in the least! It is true however, that the weather in general and an inside temperature that allows you to work without wearing a hood and gloves somewhat affects your mood. To illustrate my point, here are some photos taken from the window in front of my desk at the office.

Exhibit A: dusk, with great reflections in the windows of the skyscrapers:

Exhibit B: late afternoon with blue skies

Exhibit C: grey and rainy. I think this calls for a gratuituous emoticon :-(
The third photo was taken this morning, but thankfully, it looks like the second now. Yay!

The Race that Stopped the Nation

2011-11-01T08:00:00.004+01:00

Today is Melbourne Cup Day in Australia. So you haven't heard about that? Welcome to the club, then. I read up on it before coming here, but was eager to experience the event that is dubbed "the race that stops the nation" myself. At the office, people always commented, "you've picked a good time to come - you're here for Melbourne Cup Day." Well, the race itself which took place at 3 p.m. local time today might take less than three minutes, but it certainly was ecxiting to see everyone dressed up as if they were going to a wedding and getting to drink free champagne on the office...Lucas Cranach, the horse I drew in the office sweepstakes actually came third so my first ever go at gambling was successful, too. Citizens of Victoria, the Australian state of which Melbourne is the regional capital actually have a holiday today, but even elsewhere it's party-time from noon onwards.

Ever since I arrived here, the city was geared up for MCD. Department stores seemed to sell nothing but party dresses, hats and fascinators on their fashion floors and even arts and crafts stores only seemed to have one topic: the races:

Supermarkets reminded you to order your MC deliveries on time:
My new red shoes came in handy, too today:
And I had to succumb to peer-pressure and get a hairband-cum-fascinator of course:

The victorious horse was Dunaden, ridden by French jockey Christophe Lemaire, in case you were wondering.

How to Get a Free (Turkish) Coffee in Sydney

2011-10-31T08:40:00.003+01:00

On Sunday night, Mum and I had dinner at the foodcourt of Sydney's fancy Star. After checking out the different cuisines on offer, we settled for Mediterranean and my guess that the propriertor and his staff were Turkish was right when I overheard them talk in Turkish to each other. While I was waiting for my char-grilled lamb to be done (side note: Australians seem to eat a lot of lamb and I can understand why: it's delicous in all types of dishes I've tried it in so far) I got offered a tasty looking piece of gözleme and after I had eaten it, said that it was very good in Turkish. The man was quite surprised and asked me where I was from and where I had learnt. After a bit of small-talk (my rudimentary Turkish doesn't stretch any further) I sat down to tuck in. When we were almost finished, the proprietor turned up with two Turkish coffees on a tray. We were very moved and joked that we should hang around longer to get a free dessert as well. And it was good coffee, too:
This is what I had - yum, yum.
When we were leaving, I thanked him again and, scratching up my vocabulary, promised we'd be back.

I suppose with Europe being so far away, people from the Old World get nostalgic when someone speaks two words their native language.

Customised

2011-10-28T08:29:00.002+02:00

Are they doing it on purpose? BuyVIP (one of the many pseudo-exclusive "gated" shopping communities I am a member of) are currently selling BREE bags, a brand I really like. I had a browse yesterday and what do I see? A line called "Sydney". I'm not tempted by the shapes and so will be good. In real life, I've had my eyes on COACH and MIMCO...we'll see.

click to enlarge!

Going Bananas

2011-10-26T09:08:00.003+02:00

If this were a joke, it would start with "What do Australia and the former GDR have in common?" The answer is: bananas are just as precious and expensive a treat. First I noticed that the office canteen is well-stocked with all sorts of fruits every day, including 3 different types of melon, fresh pineapple and passion fruit, but never banana.

Then I was at a supermarket, about to break off some bananas from a bigger stalk, when I noticed the price. 13 AU$ (10 € ) for a kilo? WTF?!? Had I misread that? It turned out I hadn't and thanks to the Australian filling me in I now know that most fruits and vegetables are grown locally in Australia and most banana plantations are located in Queensland and therefore destroyed by severe floods this January. Therefore bananas had become scarce and expensive. Prices have stabilized a bit now, and you can get them for under AUD 10 again, but still...

I found it very funny when a colleague told me that at a business trip to New Zealand, which is not affected by the "banana crisis", she took a banana from the breakfast buffet and when checking out reminded the receptionist that she also had to pay for a banana. He gave her a puzzled look as the fruit was free of course, but she was so used to bananas being an "extra" you had to pay for that she assumed she would be charged for it.

B(l)ondi Beach

2011-10-25T11:38:00.004+02:00

On Sunday, I finally made it to the famous Bonid Beach. To be honest - Nice and the Cote d'Azur are much more impressive, but then the beaches there are not sand, but pebbles and Sydney's beaches do have fine sand. I was really surprised that the water was so cold, but I actually liked that. What was strange was that nobody seemed to actually swim - people were either just jumping around in the waves, or surfing. For swimming, people clearly go elsewhere. Another thing that struck me was that it was nowhere near as crowded as beaches on the Adriatic, but then it IS only Spring.

bronzed, the safe way

Life-saver with floating tyre? Hmmmm.

We (=the Australian and I) were among few non-tatooed people

If the Shoe Fits...

2011-10-24T08:06:00.004+02:00

So you didn't believe me when I said that Sydney girls wore VERY high heels? This photo was taken on Saturday night and is very representative both as regards heel-height and dress/skirt-lenght:

The "walking-home" picture is equally representative:

Furry and Scaly

2011-10-22T09:56:00.003+02:00

I know you're expecting some Aussie wildlife, admit it. Well, happy to oblige. Let me introduce the following to you. Meet Mr. Wombat:

..."Thumbsucker" Kangaroo
Highly interactive (not) koalas:
...and those mini-dinosaurs you have to take care not to step on:

This specimen was walking around the outside area of the Queensland Gallery of Art, together with many of his relatives.

Creative Messaging

2011-10-22T09:00:00.002+02:00

Dispenser in ladies' toilet at Sydney airport. I found the message at the bottom somewhat...unusual!

Aiming Higher

2011-10-21T08:55:00.003+02:00

Australian women wear high-heeled shoes to work and VERY high-heeled shoes for going out. I was beginning to feel somewhat inadequate in my superflat ballerinas, trainers and sandals and so decided to see if I could find a pair of shoes with a moderate heel. After browsing around stores on Thursday night (when shops are open longest) and buying two cheap mugs ($2 each), I popped into my favourite shoe-store here, Wittner, one of the few shops selling good-quality shoes of European standards and style and discovered this fire-engine-red patent leather pair. The shoes are a bit "auntie-ish", but in a 1940s way and I can definitely walk 100 metres in them without getting a back ache:
What was even better was the price:
My bargain-radar obviously is cross-border compatible...

Brisbane Haul

2011-10-20T07:28:00.001+02:00

I just thought I'd share some recent purchases (all of the flat, lightweight and easy-to-pack variety). The Australian took me to really nice places such as this one, but I kept thinking of my baggage allowance...Both on the way to and from Brisbane I bought a magazine with freebie. The make-up palette, though good and surprisingly not rash-inducing, might join the heap of things to leave here before I return home. We'll see. The tote bag is from Australian brand Mimco , which has some very tempting bags indeed:

I also bought a cool red bracelet:
Not to forget the new dress which might get its airing at a theatre performance this Saturday.

Way to Go!

2011-10-19T12:10:00.003+02:00

My postcard collection is growing steadily:
Thanks, everyone!

Colour Explosion

2011-10-17T12:02:00.003+02:00

I spent a truly wonderful weekend in Brisbane, visiting the Australian. She took me to all the must-see places and some more and I have about 300 photos of koalas and kangaroos from the Long Pine Koala Sanctuary. Maybe I'll share these with you some other time, but what really impressed me were some amazing colours I had not seen in "real life" before. Such as free-flying lorikeets that looked like testimonials for colour-prints:

The sky was also picture-perfect blue on Sunday, but it's not like I haven't seen blue skies before. Still:

My new love, botanically speaking, are jacaranda trees. I had never seen them before and could not take my eyes off that incredible colour. It does not really come out that well in the photo below and I don't have Photoshop or comparable editing software on my work computer, so you'll just have to trust me:

Food-wise...

2011-10-14T08:03:00.001+02:00

I know you've been having sleepless nights, tossing and turning, thinking about what I eat here. Not. Still, I thought I'd share some pictures of the fuel I've been ingesting here. Last night I went to the Night Noodle Market in Hyde Park (not the only place name in Sydney that makes you think you are in London) with my team mates. It's an annual event that is a highlight of the Sydney Food Festival. Half of Sydney seemed to be there as well and the queues were crazy. Two guys volunteered to stand in line for food and did not return until a good 45 mins later, with the food being completely cold. My noodles didn't look too exciting, but the pork buns they got for everyone as well were gigantic:

I have not actually cooked anything at home so far, only made salad twice. My kitchen is not well-stocked with crockery at all and as I've declared the big plastic bowl my fruit basket, I have to use my pyrex bowl instead:

My first week at work there was a sports event with a barbecue: yum, yum! Even though food in the canteen really is delicious and offers a balanced diet, I hate eating off paper plates...

Unless you go to an expensive restaurant of the wait-to-be-seated variety, chances are high you're going to end up having to fight your way through steaks (it was a bad idea to order "medium"...) with flimsy plastic knives:

On Fridays, there's a night market in China town. I checked it out last week and tried the "tofu balls" (well, cubes, more like) with satay sauce. I should have got a second skewer as these were really moreish:

I'm particularly amazed by the great variety of authentic Japanese (and other Asian) restaurants. Last Saturday, exhausted after walking around all day, I treated myself to a "Wagyu beef bento". The meat was incredibly tender and the takeaway version of the bento looked pretty as a picture:

I'm off to Brisbane this weekend - have a good one, yourselves!

Seriously, ORF?

2011-10-12T06:49:00.003+02:00

Occasionally, I need a break from staring at Excel sheets all day (don't get me started, I have a certified Excel-allergy...) and am looking for diversions. Every few days I take a look at orf.at, the homepage of Austria's national broadcaster to find out what's happening back home. What do I see there this afternoon (Sydney time)? A headline saying "Many don't change socks daily". The article is about how one in five Austrians does not put on a fresh pair of socks every day. Ooooh, breaking news! I expect to see more hair-rheadlines in the vein of "Secret Revealed: Tuesday Follows after Monday" or "Study Proves it: Year Has 365 Days!"

Backward?

2011-10-11T12:15:00.003+02:00

As everyone knows, the seasons are "upside down" in Australia and it is currently spring here. Shops are full of bikinis, sleeveless tops and hotpants and what's left of wintery stuff is being sold at a discount. There was one burning question I had which elaborate Google searches could not solve in theory, but had to be ascertained in "fieldwork". The question was this: with the Australian summer (and the other 3 seasons) happening 2 months after Europe, the US, etc. does this country actually get our "old" stuff with a delay or are they the pioneers and their current summer trends won't hit our shops until 2012?

Well, at first it was difficult to find out as many shops here sell brands that are not available back home. Then I visited the chic new Westfield shopping mall which houses a branch of Zara (the only one in Sydney apparently) and Ted Baker each and can tell you that the Australians are indeed getting Europe's old collection. Ted Baker's SS collection is very recognisable with bold flowery prints and they currently stock a miniskirt which the Empress had just bought when I visited her in Paris in May. At Zara, I saw a t-shirt I own...

Also, "Midnight in Paris", which I saw weeks ago won't be in cinemas until the end of October here. I love the Australian advertising poster, though, which is so much nicer with the European version with its Van Gogh "Starry Night" motif.

More on the rather unique Australian fashion another time.

Retail Therapy

2011-10-09T12:58:00.005+02:00

What with the weather having been very much of the "British" variety ever since my arrival (with the exception of today, actually), I felt the need to buy something warm. I also felt the need for some instant gratification of the retail therapy variety. Thankfully, most of the winter stuff is on sale here now, such as this woollen dress by Autralian brand Country Road:
It wasn't actually that cold here that you'd want to put on something made out of wool, but I can definitely wear it at home when I get back to winter temperatures. What I really felt like wearing to protect my sinuses from the wind, was a hoodie. It's not as if I didn't own any, but all three of them are in my wardrobe at home. After much research I ended up buying this hoodie by Ben Sherman:
The alternative would have been getting either something with big letters shouting "Australia", "Bondi Beach" or some other Sydney suburb or something ridiculously overpriced. This hoodie was on sale and so I did not mind having to take off all 18 buttons. I though the "Napoleon look" was a bit too much and I much prefer it in its buttonless reincarnation.

Today, I walked past a shop with merchandise in bright colours and a big fat "Sale" sign. Needless to say, I had to check it out. It was a two-storied shop selling prints, clothes and accessories by Australian artist Ken Done (of whom I hadn't heard). His art seems heavily influenced by Matisse and partly by Keith Haring, but it certainly looks decorative. I bought this bag - discounted to $ 19 and a set of textile coasters with a brush-stroke pattern:

What I really like about Sydney is the fact that thanks to its large Asian popolation and relative vicinity to China and Japan, there is a big variety of Asian shops and restaurant. Some booty from the Asian supermarket in the Market City mall in Chinatown:
I haven't lost my interest in glossy mags, either. Although the AU version of Marie Claire is nowhere near as good as the UK one. Magazines are rather expensive here, but they sometimes come with freebies, such as this sample bag exclusive to Woolworth:
We all know about my obsession with all things Japanese. Yesterday I visited the big Kinokunya branch on George Street and marvelled at its books, magazines and stationery items. I could have spent all day there. Drinks-wise, I've found a new love, Chatime, where I can satisfy my matcha cravings. I've tried their hot matcha latte and cold matcha milk-tea with red beans (pictured below). I prefer the hot one as the iced tea with beans was way too filling, almost like a dessert. Some Starbucks branches also seem to sell matcha lattes here and I'll have to check out if they are as good as I remember them from Japan. The sushi-rolls in the picture are stocked in the micro-kitchens in our office:
Today I seized the sunshine for a ferry-ride to Manly. What do I see when disembarking from the ferry? An Aldi branch (and a Bavarian beergarden). I didn't actually need anything, but on my way back I went in to have a look anyway and picked up a few things, including a leaflet, just for the novelty of it.

Liquid Sunshine

2011-10-08T12:17:00.005+02:00

My friends are probably sick already of my moaning about the "April weather" Sydney has been enjoying ever since I arrived. Don't blame me, though - until yesterday Austria had a rare heatwave with summer temperatures in October, so it wasn't me who imported the cold and rain. I'm soaking up the rare rays of sunshine greedily (protected with sunblock, of course) on the weekend, slowly defrosting from the arctic temperatures in the office that are like poison for my sinuses.

This afternoon, there was sunshine and rain at the same time: that's what I call value for money!

More Interesting Discoveries in the Ladies', Both Yellow.

2011-10-05T09:13:00.004+02:00

Have you ever see a "syringe unit" in a public toilet? I hadn't, until I saw the one pictured below in the Ladies' at the Chinese Garden of Friendship. Whether the target group is diabetics or drug addicts, or both, I'm not sure:

Last week, i.e. my first week in the office here, I was rather disturbed by the distinctively yellow water in the toilets. And no, this was not due to the previous user not having flushed. When you flushed, more yellow actually liquid filled up. This week, the yellow tint has gone and so I assume it was some kind of detergent or air freshener. Bad choice of colour, if you ask me!

Update (Oct. 10): ever since last week, the water has actually been blue: much better!

Improvisation

2011-10-04T13:40:00.007+02:00

I have to say I'm enjoying the "student lifestyle" I'm leading here: minimal kitchen utensils (3 teaspoons!), a minimal percentage of the clothes I have at my disposal at home (and let's be honest, I always end up wearing the same 20% anyway) and the need to improvise. What I don't like so much even tough it is authentically student-ey is the fitted beige carpet with numerous traces of previous tenants. Yuck. That in combination with a cleaner who undoubtably has many wonderful qualities none of which, alas, are a fetish for thorough hoovering, makes me seriously contemplate the purchase of a vacuum cleaner. I couldn't resist stocking up on some things, such as towels (the apartment-issued set that is replaced once a week by the cleaner is quite threadbare and doesn't smell particularly nice) and some additional cups, bowls and glasses (I only had 1 water glass versus 4 wine and champagne glasses each) and a water filter to make the tap water bearable.

As I don't like dryers for various reasons (first and foremost their evil carbon footprint), I knew I needed to find an old-skool clothes drier and I had a hunch I would find it in Chinatown. Bingo! After an adventurous journey home through busy streets, I have already put it to good use. Before that I tried improvising with a clothing line purchased in the supermarket. As there are no hooks or nails whatsoever, I ended up wrapping it around a leg each of my desk and dining table. Not exactly decorative, but it wasn't as if "Elle Decoration" or "Architectural Digest" had booked a photoshoot in my apartment...

Another sentimenal nod to my student days: Blue Tack! I've started sticking postcards to the diving wall between my "bedroom" and "living room". There's space for many more...hint, hint.

On the wall behind my sofa I actually found a random screw and developed a "hanging system" for the pretty Louis Vuitton Sydney notebook watercolour postcards using foldback clips and a rubber band. Hey, I should think about having this patented!

Meanwhile, in Vienna...

2011-10-03T09:00:00.004+02:00

Apart from the glorious sunshine and summery temperatures that we've so NOT been enjoying in Sydney lately, I'm obviously missing out on some great daily deals back home. "Beginner's course in Pole-Dancing" - wo-hey! That and those botox treatments seem to have the same target group in mind, I reckon...

Signs

2011-10-02T14:18:00.006+02:00

Back home, this blog has been my main "literary" outlet for years. Now that I have decided to update my friends in a daily (let's see how long I manage to keep it up at this rate) newsletter in order to share the trivia of my daily life here with as many people as possible and am sharing my photos with them online, posting here does feel a bit like repeating myself. Nevertheless, I'm definitely not letting the blog dry up and while I'm not going to inundate you with photos of sights (you know what the Sydney Opera and Harbour Bridge look like anyway, right?), I'd like to share some of my observations and show photos I don't include in my Picasa albums.

Here's a selection of things I saw yesterday, such as Australian's answer to Häagen Dasz, with an even less unlikely pseudo-Scandinavic name:

I was quite surprised to see Batman had moved from Gotham City to Sydney in his retirement:
click to enlarge

Living on the edge: enjoying French food can be dangerous:

Aaah, here he is, the gentle dentist. Last time I took the wrong door and landed at the brutal one:

Settling in

2011-09-30T06:02:00.002+02:00

Having left my trusty Hello Kitty! mug in Vienna with clear instructions only to let the worthiest of visitors drink from it, I needed to get a mug for my daily dose of ginger & lemon tea here as well unless I wanted to either incur someone's wrath by nicking their prized cup, or have to rely on paper cups or plastic mugs for the next three months. Last night I invested in this pretty specimen to spice up my hot beverages from an aesthetic point of view...

Another stable on my desk, with air conditioning in particular: hand cream.

You've got mail

2011-09-29T14:17:00.002+02:00

This morning, I got a call from reception telling me a parcel had arrived for me. It was from the Australian who had sent me a magazine on Brisbane, where she lives and where I will be going on a weekend-trip soon and a cool collection of 50 Sydney "adventures on foot" that I will be trying out (chronologically?) soon. My fantasies about ferry rides and open-top bus trips on the upcoming long weekend neglected to take the current rainy weather into account. After almost ruining my leather trainers and ballet flats I really have to start looking into rain-proof shoes.

Shopping Update

2011-09-28T14:25:00.000+02:00

Now that I've been doing some shopping, it's about time to give an update here. Tonight, on my mission to stock up on yellow accessories for tomorrow's "sports carnival" at work, I also bought a belt to wear with my dusky pink trousers:

I haven't been able to explore many shops as they mostly close quite early, with the exeption of the mall at Darling Harbour where I also bought the above. I'm putting my hopes on the weekend and possibly tomorrow night, when shops are open until 9. On Sunday night, I did spot some elegant stores in my area, such as the Miu Miu flagship store:
With the elegant shops offset by the dark night and bright city lights, I was reminded of the Ginza in Tokyo. I'm particularly keen to discover Australian brands, of course, and while my experience is still limited in the clothes department, I've already fallen in lust with the stuff at Typo (a bit like Paperchase).
Having only packed a minimal supply of cosmetics, I had to stock up on various products. Again, I was most interested in Australian brands and settled for Natio's offererings, which were decently priced. As my purchase was over the required threshold, I lucked out and got a toiletries bag packed with goodies:
Jet-lagged as I was during my 5-hour stopover at Bangkok airport, I could not NOT shop. I bought a gorgeous silk scarf for the equivalent of 15 EUR. I love the colour:
More retail therapy exploits to come.

Over the Counter

2011-09-27T12:51:00.002+02:00

I knew this was coming. If there's one thing my immune system is utterly defenseless against, it's airconditioning blasting from the ceiling. Everytime I visit a branch of the Firm in a country with an A/C happy culture my nose blocks up, my lymph nodes swell, my throat gets sore and my contact lenses get glued to my eyballs within an hour. The room temperature in the office requires me to sit in a cardigan and with a scarf at all times and when I left home I knew I was in desperate need of some drugs. Luckily the drugstore/pharmacy in one of the shopping malls on my way home is open until late and I stocked up on everything promising to work instantly:The body lotion was an unrelated purchase added for good measure...

10 First Impressions of Sydney

2011-09-26T13:01:00.005+02:00

Hello! Or rather, G'Day! I arrived safely and in one piece on Sunday morning and surprisingly, both my bags (one weighing 20 kgs, the other 16) did, too. I was welcomed by rain of the worst kind, but as I was in desperate need of fresh air and stretching my legs after a 24-hrs-journey cramped in a plane, I decided to test-walk the route to work. Within minutes my leather trainers and socks were completely wet and my floor-length jeans had soaked up the water right up to knee length. Not the most comfortable of sensations, let me assure you. Ah, well, let's not dwell on details.

Here are some random observations I made in my first 24 hours in Sydney:

1. It gets dark, and I mean middle-of-the-night dark, around 6 p.m. already:

2. Salt & Vinegar crisps are recognisable by purple packaging (unlike the UK, where they come in green or, rarely, blue bags):

3. Toilets are not the flushing type. No, really. At first I thought it was just the one in my apartment that wasn't capable of sucking in the - admittedly above-average - amount of toilet paper I tend to use. This was until I went to the office loos and got the impression that the person using the cubicle before me had forgotten to flush. I used the one next door and once I had flushed noticed that I gave the impression I had forgotten to press the button myself. Hmmm.

Speaking of plumbing: it really is true that water goes down the drain in opposite direction in the Southern Hemisphere.

4. Grocery shopping is quite expensive. When I arrived I was totally hydrated and after the horrible water on my Thai Airways flight that tasted of mothballs (I joke you not!) I wanted to buy a decent beverage. I went straight into the WH Smith (yay!) branch in the arrivals hall and was shocked by the prices. AUD 3,50 (EUR 2.5) for a small bottle of water? About the same amount for a small packet of crisps? I thought it must be inflated airport prices, even though this was in the public part of the building. I bought a Vitamin Water instead, reasoning that if it was expensive, I might just as well pay for some added colour and arguable health benefits. In the afternoon, I went to a supermarket near my apartment, stocking up on staples like salt, pepper, oil and vinegar, toilet paper, washing-up liquid and the like. I realised that water and crisps really are expensive compared to Austria. As is all the other stuff as well. While I'm not the best mental calculator I still did not expect a sum exceeding 100 AUD for my mundane purchases, many of them the supermarket's own brand. Ooops:
Later on, I realised that I had forgotten tea and bought 3 different types in the food halls of a department store. My favorite Ginger & Lemon infusion by Twinings cost a whopping AUD 11.50 (about EUR 8.50) for a pack of 40.

5. According to Wikipedia, about 17% of Sydney's inhabitants are of Asian descent (data of 2006 census), but to me it seems the percentage is more like "almost half", reinorcing the similarity with Hong Kong.

6. Bringing an umbrella is a good idea. Here you can see my trusty ultra-lightweight tiny Japanese umbrella in action:
7. Australian women must be quite vain. Apart from the fact that the office toilets not only stock the usual supply of female hygiene products and deodorants (staples at the Firm's Ladies'), but also hairdriers and, take this, hair straigtheners for hairstyle emergencies, I noticed this vending machine selling lipgloss at a shopping mall toilet:

8. Australian TV warns you of "explicit language" and "reference to sexuality" before shows or films. This could possibly backfire by making them more interesting for the people they are supposed to "protect" by this...

9. Traffic lights must be of the same make as the ones in Dublin. While the light is on red, there's a consistent "Tock.Tock.Tock.Tock" and when the light turns green, an enthusiastic "Djoo!" sound goes off. It makes me think of Dublin every time I cross a street.

10. The ratio of shopping malls per square metre seems exceptionally high in Sydney, at least in the area I live in. This is interesting for a city where - with the exception of yesterday, obviously - the weather usually is consistently good. Yesterday, I took this photo in QVB, which was just about to close for the day. I will definitely return:

PS

2011-09-23T17:58:00.002+02:00

Hmmmmm

Tonight!

2011-09-23T14:05:00.002+02:00

For some reason, I am as sentimental and nervous as I am excited. I'm trying to think back to the feelings I had when embarking on my Erasmus year (which was actually only 9 months) in Dublin, but I think excitement prevailed. Back then, I simply had less responsibilty and "contracts" in my life - no job, no flat where I lived on my own, no car, no plants to water and post to forward, and also much less stuff to pack.

Unlike now, my friends were not (for the greater part) married women with children, but travelling the world themselves. 9 months or a year was hardly a noteworthy period of time. Now, however, everyone seems to find 3 months very long and I was surprised with several thoughtful "farewell-gifts" that make it feel like an emigration of sorts.

In keeping with this sentimental mood, I tried to memorise what late summer/early autumn looks like in Austria by taking this picture of a garden-flowers bouquet put together by my father:
Next time I see the garden, it will be barren and possibly snow-covered. If it weren't for the "upside down" seasons in Australia, this would hardly be a noteworthy fact, but as it is, it feels really bizarre to depart into a metereological spring that feels like a summer.

Speaking of farewell-gifts, this is the booty:
(Guide) books, stickers, bookmarks and a Japanese lucky charm. I can't complain! Although I like all, I have to say that the Louis Vuitton "Sydney" travel notebook with pretty water-colours and a set of postcards was particularly impressive. And luxurious! Not that there was any doubt, but my friends rock!

PowerPoint-Karaoke, the Clerical Way

2011-09-18T11:25:00.005+02:00

In my line of work, I've experienced my fair share of PowerPoint-Karaoke, where the presenter either did not have the time to rehearse or just couldn't be bothered to take a look at the slides before.

This morning, I encountered this awkward phenomenon in a different context.

I had decided to accompany my mother to mass. As usual, we arrived fashionably late and sat down in the last pew. Since I'm not exactly a regular, I did not even notice that it wasn't the parish's regular priest, but a substitute. We arrived halfway through the sermon, which was basically a rant against reformist tendencies in the Catholic Church. Mum nudged me and whispered, "Just as well we didn't arrive earlier...". After a while, people started rummaging in their bags and taking out money for the collection. Except, none came. "Are they not collecting today, or what?" the lady in front of us asked her neighbour. "Well, the sacristan has been doing her job for two years now, you'd think she'd know her cue", the lady in front of her who had just belted out a hymn at the top of her lungs remarked sotto voce.

People began whispering. Soon, it was time to file up for communion and everyone realised that the moment had passed. Some dropped the coins into the candle box on the way back from the altar. The elderly ladies in our section continued to bitch about the unorthodox turn this mass was taking. One took pity on the priest, "Well it's not that easy to find your way when you're new, is it?". The priest must have begun to sense the unease and mutterings and began to stumble over his "script" like a confused tv presenter. When it was time for the announcements at the end of the mass, the deacon - a regular of the show - likewise got stuck at every other sentence that was interspersed with increasingly long silences and I got the impression that he was trying to decipher someone else's illegible handwriting. By the time he finished with an awkward "...well, that's what it says here", Mum and I couldn't stifle our giggles any longer. As tomorrow is the first anniversary of my granny's death, we likewise dropped the change "saved" from the collection that never was into the candle box and lit two candles in her memory.

When we stepped out of the church, the greater part of the congregation was standing around in little groups, all muttering about the badly rehearsed play they had just experienced. Well, at least it had been free of charge (if you don't count church tax, that is).

Ready, Steady, Go!

2011-09-16T08:52:00.003+02:00

After my Japanese holiday that wasn't meant to be due to 3/11, I did not want to jinx MY NEXT BIG ADVENTURE (hereinafter referred to as MNBA) by prematurely mentioning it here. Now that I'm all set to depart according to plan on Friday, September 23, I want to warn you that lots of Australian-related posts will be coming up. From October 26 through December 19, I will be working at the Firm's Sydney office. I know, I know, you are pitying me already. What's worse is that I'll experience spring and the beginning of summer when everyone here will be enjoying grey November skies and the slush of melting city snow. It's a tough job, but someone's got to do it. To make things worse, both office and corporate appartment are situated within spitting distance of Darling Harbour.

The last few weeks have been extremely nerve-wracking in more ways than you could possibly imagine, with the uncertainly if my visa-letter will come through in time paling in comparison to other much more severe threats to MNBA. Now, however, I am couting the days both with anticipation and slight panic (So many things to tick off my imaginary check-list, I'm this close to actually writing a hard-copy one), trying to co-ordinate final farewells with as many people as possible and getting around to the fact that next time I'll be in Vienna, the Christmas lights will be up in town and it will be dark and cold.

I'll of course be posting here and sharing my Picasa-Albums with friends and family. I've even overcome my social-network allergy and set up a Google+ account. Early adopter I am not... For offline musings I've bought this Sydney-themed notebook which contains a subway map and other practical info:

Needless to say, MNBA also called for the acquisition of yet another bag, or suitcase really. A super lightweight and super expensive Rimowa number. I love the colour:

Don't expect too many posts before my departure, but I'll definitely wave goodbye from "Up Over" before escaping to Down Under.

Foxy vs. Kurt

2011-09-14T08:01:00.003+02:00

A while ago, I wrote about my visit to Kurt, one of Vienna's two frozen yoghurt places that are very trendy in this frozen-yoghurt-deprived country. Last week, I went to check out Foxy, the other one. My verdict: the frozen yoghurt is of comparable quality and the variety of toppings is even more exciting at Foxy's, but the decor and corporate identity is definitely much more professional at Kurt's, plus they have more seats and a total of 3 flavours (Foxy only sells plain yoghurt), mango/peach, blueberry/acai and pure. My Foxy cup (smallest size):

Queues are inevitable at both places, it seems:

Sleeve

2011-09-12T09:47:00.003+02:00

Last week, I got a new gadget for test purposes, a Motorola Xoom tablet. I didn't want to get it scratched in my bag and therefore did a little online search for sleeves/covers. They were either ugly (faux leather, anyone?) or not being shipped to AT. The usual offline suspects (Mediamarkt, Saturn and the like) did not stock them yet and so I remembered the felt DIY kit I bought ages ago. Voilà! The sheets of thick felt were the perfect size and I made a sleeve while watching "Tatort":
It closes with a button and a piece of Japanese fabric bought at La Droguerie in Nice:

And now for a shot with the actual tablet emerging from its sleeping bag:

The reverse side is grey, by the way.

The Taste of Far Away Places

2011-09-08T08:48:00.002+02:00

Last Saturday, I met Kitty-chan for lunch at Tenmaya. Our lovingly compiled lunch-boxes with seasonal vegetables, delicious fish and pickles made me long for the holiday lost this year and hope that I'll be able to see the cherry blossom in Japan next spring.

Speaking of far away places! Ah, that will be another post.

Hot Dog

2011-09-07T08:26:00.002+02:00

Why shouldn't dogs travel in style? Spotted outside a supermarket in Klagenfurt. The bike had a German license plate and so I assume Wuffi must have inhaled his fair share of intoxicating exchaust fumes already on the way there. He looked very happy, though.

Viennese Riviera

2011-09-06T08:23:00.004+02:00

Sometimes, you live in a city, but don't discover some of its gems for years. Decades even. In my case, it is the Old Danube, a lake/sea substitute in the North of Vienna. On Sunday, Mademoiselle and I went for a little walk and sunbathing there. I didn't have my camera with me for a change so excuse the phone-quality:

With the sailing boats zooming by with impressive speed and the skyline as a backdrop it looks even cooler:

I was tempted to rent a paddleboat, but it was too hot for physical excercise and since no candidates for willing galley slaves were in sight, we settled for less taxing activities instead.

This is my favourite pictures as it reminds me of a Canaletto seascape:
On the way back to the subway, somebody suddenly lunged at my back. It was the Gazelle , who had had the same idea as the two of us.

Must be Something in the Air...

2011-09-05T09:19:00.000+02:00

Sickening address?

Dubai?

2011-09-02T13:17:00.002+02:00

Mysterious tents on Vienna's Heldenplatz. One more strategy to attract tourists from the Gulf States?
Nah. Just the leftovers from a Waldviertel promotional week...

Window-Shopping

2011-09-01T08:49:00.003+02:00

Earlier this week, I made some interesting observations in window displays. First of all, I saw a "teaser poster" for Cinnabon in Lugner City. Cool! I've never actually eaten anything in any of their outlets abroad, but always noticed the almost overpowering smell of cinnamon. I love cinnamon and I'm looking forward to an interesting addition to the rather boring mix of shops in my "mall down the road".

Yesterday, I noticed what might be the most expensive roll of loo-paper unless the price is for a bumper pack and not just a solitary roll. I did not go inside to find out:

Only the best for your bum, I suppose.

Book Club on Tour

2011-08-31T08:30:00.001+02:00

Last weekend, 57% of the book club spent the weekend in Carinthia. The weather was mostly fine and so we went swimming. The above picture which was taken by B2, currently pregnant with her second child, shows 3 beauties posing at Strandbad Annenheim (Ossiacher See).

It was great to be able to spend time with B2 and to devote time to our two favourite pastimes - eating and bitching. Simultaneously. The only books we discussed were cook books (by Bill Granger) and reading material at the lakeside consisted mainly of more or less glossy women's mags.

Observations on Gravity

2011-08-30T08:34:00.000+02:00

From Saturday to Friday, I went swimming in Wörther See every day, with one exception in the company of my Mum. Every day we saw the same gang of mahagony brown regulars. Aged 60+, dressed with the skimpiest of bikini bottoms and no top. Not a pretty sight. All the young, pert and pretty nubile ladies wore complete sets of mostly flattering bikinis, whereas those in the autumn of their lives chose outfits that can only be described as daring. My mother said out loud what I was thinking: no matter whether you are skinny or obese - at a certain age, it's not a bad idea to consider investing in a slightly greater percentage of textile coverage for your body. "This is exactly why I'm thinking of getting a little pool for the garden", she added.

No Apologies

2011-08-27T08:57:00.002+02:00

Every summer, I at least spend a couple of days in a row in KLU. For some reason, whenever people ask me where I'm off to, I always say, "Ah, nothing special, only Carinthia, you know...visiting my family, going to the lake, getting my car serviced...the usual." The moment I say it, I get angry at myself for sounding almost apologetic. Why is only a "proper" (i.e. involving a plane or at least an international car journey) vacation something worth bragging about? I've had a week of glourious sunshine in a popular tourist destination, swimming in the most beautiful Austrian lake (yes, I am biased) with drinking water, was spoilt by my parents and enjoyed their beautiful garden. Admittedly, it feels more like a vacation when you are further removed from your daily routines and are not tempted to check your e-mails because roaming costs are too expensive, when a different currency makes you believe more than usual that it's only Monopoly money and you get to see something new.

Still. Vacationing in KLU rocks!

The Future is Rosy

2011-08-26T08:27:00.004+02:00

I am obsessed with rose gold at the moment. When I was in KLU less than 2 weeks ago, I saw a chunky bracelet in the window of a shop that was closed over the August 15 weekend. I hoped it would wait for me, and it did:

It looks like normal "yellow" gold in the picture, but trust me, it's red. As it is stainless steel, it was very moderately (i.e. € 30) priced...as were these rings (silver plated with rose gold) by this Austrian company:
It's a bit of a Pandora rip-off, but I actually like it better.

Speaking of rose - after the success of the French stick-on nails, I tried another set in pastel rose. They do have a very distinct white undertone and look very much like something Samantha Fox might have worn ca 1986, but it's a nice contrast to my tanned skin anyway: