Backflash to Vienna

You will have to excuse me as I jump around for the next few entries. I was just able to download some pictures of our stay in Vienna so now you get to see them.

Typical of our style of travel--we bring everything we think we will need and then some! One whole extra suitcase for Carl's equipment for videography. Thank goodness for Aaron who drove us to the airport and took home the overage. Also for the willing van driver at the other end who searched diligently for the Pension Nosseck which was right on the main walkway for the opera circle. Picture 2 is our first breakfast in Vienna in their lovely dining area. I was relieved they didn't serve bangers like they do in England. Instead we enjoyed yogurt, cereal, and delicious bread and hot herbal tea and then headed across the street to attend Mass at St. Peter's church. It was bitterly cold both outside the building as well as inside. How do you heat a stone building that is 40 feet tall and wide and has nooks and crannies with marvelous architectural features that are aging rapidly? We were very interested in the service as Carl has never attended a Mass and it has been 40 years since I have. It was sparsely attended, but we noticed the devout ministrations of the priest and his helpers...don't know what they are really called. The priest did look like Tom Plummer, but he said he had not flown over for the day to make us feel at home. Right after that we caught a taxi to the LDS ward in Vienna and joined the International Branch which was fortunately in English. It was delightful to speak with a high school girl from the Phillipines studying languages here. Carl spoke with another Filipino, Andre, who had just completed a contract with the UN and was going to stay on to get his master's and keep looking for a wife. It was ward conference so the Counselor in the Stake Presidency taught Sunday School and also gave a talk in Sacrament meeting. He is a native Austrian and grew up attending church in this same building. It was such a contrast to see a very historic and grand church in the morning, sparsely attended, but nonetheless devout and then in the afternoon meet in a very functional building with nothing grand in it, but friendly people happily talking to one another and planning for their meetings ahead. As the meeting ended Andre was kind enough to help us get back to our Pension on the subway and we invited to dinner with us so we could talk longer.

Later that evening we attended a Mozart chamber music concert. It was in the salon area of the building that Mozart studied and lived in during part of his time in Vienna. Again we were able to walk to it because of where we were staying. The musicians were very skilled and the ensemble among them helped me hear things I hadn't noticed when I heard this same music at the U of U so many years ago in a music appreciation course. Hooray for the "real" thing!