Across The Water – Page 13 – From Canada to Austria to…?

September 28, 2009September 28, 2009

Under the Tuscan Sun

(I know, I know….but I couldn’t resist the title.) When I returned from the summer in Canada, Markus reminded me that 2 years ago we had given his father a GC for a travel agent to encourage him to visit us in Canada. He never came, and the certificate was set to expire in October. Markus parents didn’t feel like taking a holiday (or were just being kind and let us have it), so Markus and I were forced to come up with some travel plans. Poor us.

We decided that it would be better to drive somewhere, and spend the GC on a hotel instead of airplane fares. (And frankly, I was none too keen to get back on a plane after my busy traveling summer.) Through the magic of the Internet and a helpful travel agent, Markus found the Tuscan Isola D’Elba, best known as the island where Napoleon was exiled.

Last Friday the three of us piled into the minivan and headed south (and a bit west.) I love the Italian countryside. You drive out of the mountains and then it is all rolling hills and centuries-old farmhouses.

After a six-hour drive we ended up at the port city of Piobino. The hour-long ferry ride went by quickly, especially as they have a skookum play area for children.

As we approached Elba it became clear that this small island (150km of coastline) is very hilly and has some serious history. A large tiered wall, clearly several hundred years old, surrounding one of the first towns we saw. Beautiful and Mama Mia-style Mediterranean buildings line the shore.

Elba from the ferry — One of the Elba villages

Close-up of one of the villages with old city wall

My first glimpse of the port town after we got off the ferry made me start wondering what our accommodation would be like, as it was a bit derelict looking. However, after a day or two on the island, I came to realize that approximately 90% of the buildings were in need of a good paint, and that people obviously abandoned their junkÂ (old cars, playground equipment, etc.) haphazardly. It was just something to be overlooked, as it in no way affected the quality of anything. Or even much impeded the view, as everywhere you look you can see beauty: the expansive ocean surrounded by craggy rocks and hillside villages; tall palm trees and those crazy cacti with the flat leaves like ping-pong paddles; vines heavy with wine grapes. Magic.

The resort where we are staying is past their high-season, so they upgraded us to a junior suite with a separate area for Annie to sleep. Very nice. And unsurprisingly…since we are in Italy, and since I have met Markus and know he wouldn’t choose anything different…the food here is fantastic. We are on a package called half-board, which means that we have breakfast and dinner at the hotel everyday. The breakfast is a well-equipped spread, including at least one dessert. For breakfast.

Dinner is a daily-changing, four-course affair, with three or four choices for each course: appetizer, pasta course (or risotto), main course and dessert. Fresh seafood, well-cooked meat, nicely blended flavours, and the pasta. The pasta! Fresh-made with delicate pesto, fresh prawns, creamy cheeses. Why can’t N.A.ers do pizza or pasta correctly? It is one of life’s great mysteries. Although I guess just as well, or it wouldn’t seem so special when you do get a chance to travel. (I can now believe that Elizabeth Gilbert gained 25 pounds during her three-month stint in the Italian â€œEatâ€ part of â€œEat, Pray, Love.â€)

And I am enjoying the local Elba wine as well. Amusingly, one night I decided not to drink, and the server asked several times, quite confused, “You don’t want any wine with dinner? No wine?” Clearly, this is an anomaly in Italy.

So far the days have been all about swimming and lounging, since the 30Â°C weather precludes much else. Two days on the beach and one at the pool hotel. The beach we have gone to both days (there are many to choose from) is great. Our hotel has a sister beach-side hotel, so we get a discount on the lounge chairs and parking. There are a few children still around, but mostly Annie has been playing and swimming with us. Just so much fun to have a relaxing family holiday.

Although a bit cautious at first, by the first afternoon Annie was swimming like a fish in the ocean. Hours are spent in the water, which is perfect for kids as the sandy incline goes out for ages. As you can see, Markus’ parents decked Annie out in a very Italian-appropriate bikini. I usually go for the full SPF body armour but, as they say, â€œwhen in Romeâ€…or 400 kilometers from Rome as is the current situation.

The hotel pool is freezing, much colder than the ocean. But once we heated up in the sun, it felt nice.

There is a large grassy area, comfy lounge chairs, and an exceptionally friendly staff. I’m learning a few Italian words, but get by quite well using mostly my German, as there are far more German tourists here (Austrian, German and an unexpectedly large contingent from Switzerland) than English-speaking visitors.

Our vacation is only five days plus the two travel days, but we are already happy and relaxed. We will hopefully make it to Napoleon’s residence for a look back in time, but otherwise more of the same in on the agenda for the last two days. An unexpected welcome surprise to round out our summer.

Ciao!

September 22, 2009September 24, 2009

Almabtrieb und Landesumzug, 2009

There are few weekends here where there isn’t something going on either in Innsbruck or in one of the neighbouring towns. Pretty much anything is taken as a reason to gather outside, drink beer, eat deep fried cheese and sausages, play traditional Austria tunes and…drink beer.

This weekend we fit in two festivals. The first, on Saturday, was in Kufstein. The festival is a celebration of the cows being taken down from their alpine summer home back to the farms. “Look, the cows are coming! Let’s sing, eat and drink!!” Cracks me up.

The farmers dress their prized bovines in floral headdresses and huge cowbells and parade them through the city center. My friend, Nicole, caught the action on her cell phone video.

Almabtreib from Hillary Samson on Vimeo.

The other festival was a 200-year celebration of Andreas Hofer. Hofer is a huge hero here, as he and his army of pitchfork-carrying farmers pushed back Napoleon’s troops. A few times. The result of these battles (eventually lost by Hofer’s troops) was that Sudtirol became a part of Italy. The parade included several groups and banners calling for the reintegration of Sudtirol into Austria. This part of Italy even has a “distinct society” status. All very Quebec, right down to the protest bombings in the 1960’s. Markus tells me that the Italian police weren’t too fussed about giving the suspected rebels a fair trial at that time. They just never came home.

The parade was massive. 26,000 participants marched through downtown Innsbruck for four hours in front of about 50,000 spectators. Given that Greater Innsbruck has only 350,000 residents, this is an impressive turnout.

The traditional costumes are always interesting to see and Annie loved the music. The highlight of the parade was the carrying of a giant crown of iron thorns on the shoulders of 20 men to represent the suffering of the Sudtirolers. Apparently this caused quite the controversy in the past, so the thorns are now covered with red roses. In celebration of the year, 2009 roses were used to beautify the crown. Very impressive.

Our pictures weren’t great, but you can see 44 images of the parade here on the local newspaper’s website.

Another highlight for me was taking Annie to the start of the evening festivities in the square behind the hotel. A band was playing traditional music that literally everyone in the crowd knew and sang along to. Annie and her cousin, Lili, joined the dirndl and lederhosen-outfitted couples and were dancing queens for over an hour. Sadly, no pictures or videos but, trust me, it was cute, cute, cute.

I’m sure there is more going on next weekend, but on Friday we are off to the island of Elba, Italy (between the mainland and Corsica) for 6 days. But more on that later…

September 13, 2009

Sugar and Spice…and a dash of puppy dogs tail

Annie is a delicious mix of personality traits. She is pink ballerina, twirly dancing, kiss and cuddle her dolls, sensitive heart one minute, and bam-bam, chaos, screaming-wildly-running the next.

When Annie emerged from her room this morning, it wasn’t hard to tell which side was on show today.

You make me smile, my love.

September 4, 2009

Wee, Wee, Wee, All the Way Home

My brother, Andy, and I just finished a Skype chat. He lives in Korea with his beautiful wife in their home they built themselves. I haven’t seen him in too long so we try to connect whenever we can using the magic of the Internet.

So I mention that I am home safely and he asks if Austria feels like my home. I reply, well, Markus is here and I don’t need to live out of suitcases, so in that way it is home. But there is no denying I have the feeling of one foot on the dock and one foot in the boat and whoa what is going to happen next? I feelÂ disconnected, which, I admit, could be due mainly to the jetlag. But still.

Happily, the trip was uneventful. Although I am always a stressy traveller (and packer), the long flight doesn’t phase me in the least anymore. And the charter airline, Air Berlin, was just fine. We had a pillow and blanket and two to-be-expected gross meals, so all the basics were covered. The seats were a bit squishy, but better than Air Transat from what I remember. And all for â‚¬500 for the both of us. I brought the portable DVD player for Annie and the computer for me, so didn’t miss the in-seat entertainment too much. Markus and cousin Lili picked us up in Munich and, except for a missing stroller (that thing always goes missing…very old and well-used, so we aren’t worried if it doesn’t find its way home), everything went smoothly. Annie was over the moon to see Lili and they laughed and joked until Annie (and I) conked out in the car on the 2-hour drive back to Innsbruck.

Of course there are lots of things I’ll miss about my first and always home, Canada. Friends and family at the top of the list, of course. Speaking English a close second. (I immediately felt that anxiety of speaking German as soon as we landed in Dusseldorf. But I was able to get through the basics with Lili, who doesn’t really speak English yet, so I haven’t lost as much as I feared.) Shopping for craft supplies and English books (both adult and children). Actually, shopping in general. I’m really showing my middle-class North American colours, but I love going to huge stores that carry everything and just browsing and shopping and walking out with scrapbook paper, Kleenex, Tylenol, make-up, bread and magazines all from the same store. That just doesn’t exists here. (The above list is at least three, if not four, stores to complete.) And the ocean. Oh my beloved ocean. It has a unique place in my soul and I was so thankful that I spent time near the water both in Victoria and Vancouver.

I’m sure I’ll settle in again here pretty quickly though. The mountains are still, and always, stunning to me. The bread and cheese and pizza (oh the pizza) are calling. The bells chiming throughout the day sound of ancient times and something unchanging. And all the pretty people dressed in their beautiful clothes make me feel excited about hopefully making some money in this country so I can add to my beginnings of a Euro wardrobe.

Sometime I wonder what the hell I am doing here, but I’m sure (sure? maybe hopeful) it will all become clear in the fullness of time. And until then, the adventure continues.

August 30, 2009September 5, 2009

Mother of One

It seems that there is always something, something, something that women feel guilty about. Or, worse yet, are made to feel guilty about. (A great line from a fascinating New Yorker article on parenthood observes: “all the mothers want forgiveness; all the fathers want applause.”)

Being single, being childless, staying home, working, working too much, living in a messy house, cooking prepackaged meals, letting kids watch TV, andonandonandonandonandon…

Lately, my potential guilt-causing thoughts have been moving to the fact that, in all likelihood, I’m going to be the biological mother of one child. And since, psychologically, more than an 8-year gap between siblings (my step-daughter Rebecca is almost 16)Â means they turn out like “only” children, it is the reality I have to ponder for myself and Annie.

These pastÂ six weeks in Canada have brought a lot of contact with my many friends. (I am rich and blessed in that life department.) And many of these friends are moms who had their first child around the time Annie was born, and went on to have a second. I’ve heard more than once on this trip something like: “I thought one child was hard, but it is a piece of cake compared to having two.”

And a few weeks ago, when I was having one of my mommy pangs and askedÂ Markus, mostly jokingly, if we should have another, he said with a slight laugh: “I’m not sure you couldn’t handle more than one child.” Despite the fact that this is a very painful thing to hear from one’s partner, it doesn’t make it any less true.

I also very accidentally stumbled on a horrible blog post aÂ couple of months agoÂ (by clicking on a ubiquitous Blogher ad) that railed on about how people should either have no children orÂ more than one, because parents of only children are overprotective, pushy, perfectionists, blah, blah, blah.

I like to tell myself that, should I become pregnant again despite our best prophylactic measures,Â I would still be a good mom to both my children. I would rise to the occasion and, though complaining often (I was a chronic complainer long before motherhood was bestowed upon me), my kids would grow up loved and relatively normal.

And honestly, I don’t think I’m kidding myself about that. But being over 40 as well as having been told any further pregnancies would be considered high-risk due to my placenta issues after Annie’s birth, I also have to admit that raising a high-needs child might be more than I could handle. The constant time and attention a high-needs child requires would, I think, send me spiraling into depression. I’ve seen moms of these children, amazing, loving, energeticÂ women, and I don’t see myself in them. Maybe I’m underselling myself. Maybe not.

ThatÂ leaves adopting, which, although I love the idea, doesn’t really seem to be in Markus’ and my future.

So it looks like I will be raising one child.Â (I don’t feel like I raised Rebecca, as she has two very loving and involved parents…although I do hopeÂ I’m avoidingÂ the evil step-mother archetype.)

And frankly, oddly, interestingly, I’ve come to the conclusion (at least for now) that I feel pretty good about that. I’m an intense introvert, in that the only way my battery is recharged is to be completely alone for long stretches of time. I don’t enjoy the basics of running a household. I can’t be a stay-at-home mom, so need to pay for daycare. My stress level goes up when there is too much noise (of any kind,Â but particularly yelling.) Annie adores Rebecca and will have her to share herÂ adultÂ lifeÂ with, if not her childhood.Â I still have a double-shot at grandchildren, which I think will be totally awesome. (Rebecca is an experiencedÂ superstar at accepting every single definition of “grandparent”, so I feel confident that I can be involved in her children’s lives.) And, perhaps most importantly, I feel like I’m being a good mother to Annie. Not perfect, maybe not even great, but right now, with one child to raise,Â I’m confident that I fall into the good mother category. (Thanks, Stacey, for the positive reinforcement of that during my stay in your beautiful home.)

But what all of these comments and articles and thinking has made me realize, is that parenting Annie since she has turned three-years-old, is, in fact, fairly (or should I say relatively?)Â easy. I loved the first 10 months on maternity leave (although wouldn’t have called it easy), had a very, very…very…hard time being a parentÂ when Annie was two (not all due to Annie, but alsoÂ externalÂ life circumstances compounding parenthood). But theseÂ last few months, I gotta say, haveÂ been much less challenging.Â Not every second, not even every day, but overall I have to admit it isn’t that tough. First and foremost, Markus is an amazing and involved father, and often takes Annie alone for dad/daughter time. (Oh, how I missed that these past 6 weeks!!) As well,Â Annie is a ridiculouslyÂ happy child who spends most of her life laughing, running, singing and begging to be tickled.Â Pouting and crying almost never last more than one or two minutes. Her high, high energy can be expended in many ways, as she is open to almost all experiences. I love it when she is in daycare a few hours a day, and she loves it when she is in daycare a few hours a day. When I can’t reason with her (sometimes I can!), bribing almost always works. And, putting guilty feelings aside, when I need a break or want to get somethingÂ doneÂ she is very open to watching TV. Now I know everything in childhood is a phase, and Annie could wake up tomorrow a miserable, difficult child for the next six months, but I certainly can’t say that about her at this time in her life.

I get the feeling, because I have had the exactÂ same thoughts, that many people see lifeÂ as aÂ contest. Whoever is the busiest or makes it through the hardest times or rises to the most difficult life challenge wins. If someone comments how easy it is with one child, my reaction is always to think or say something like: “well, you have family nearby, or you have lots of money, or you have [insert excuse why I can claim that my life is just as difficult.]” I actually talk myself into thinking my life is sooooooo hard. I really think that it is time to let that go. I don’t need to believeÂ this life is that kind of (con)test and even if it is, I’m O.K. if I don’t win. (You people, all you commenters who want me to knowÂ you are superstars because you have more challenges than me, you win. Because, in honest-to-goodnessÂ fact, I think you are superstars too. Good job!) What I doÂ need to do is complain less, appreciate my life more, accept myself and other people for who they are, and love my family. Not easily done, but I’m going to start putting in more time working on just that. And the next time a friend asks how is it going with Annie, I’m going to say: “Delightful, thank you. Now tell me about your parentingÂ troubles. Right now I’ve got lots of time and energy to listen.”

August 17, 2009September 5, 2009

Hoping to Dry Off Soon

Well, how do I describe this month in Manitoba? Let’s see…3 1/2 weeks of rain and cold in a small cottage, two weeks of the worst cold I’ve had in a long time, and I tried to kill my father. Too negative? Let me try again.

I’ll start with the positive. Annie had an absolutely wonderful time with her family. She had hours of screaming laughter with Winnipeg relatives Uncle Bruce, Aunt Sylvia and cousins Paige and Devon, as well as Uncle Ian and Evan who flew in for a few days from Vancouver. Lorraine, my step-sister, was visiting from Ottawa as well and Annie was thrilled to play with her “friend”. As in, saying very loudly in the main room of the small cottage every morning, “Where is my friend Morraine (sic)? Sleeping? Can I play with my friend?”

Annie is an expert at sitting calmly in a canoe and watching the wonders on the shore. She loved splashing in the water at the beach (on those 6 sunny days), and made progress in her bravery at swimming off the dock into the cold, dark lake. Nana and Grandpa Drew spent hours reading, tickling and baking delicious blueberry muffins together with her. Grandpa and Grandma Samson had good visits with Annie including a big boat ride across The Lake of the Woods. Since I had such a grim time, I’ve decided to think of myself as a cardboard cut-out Mommy whose only role was to make sure her daughter enjoyed her summer and got to spend time bonding with family. Mission accomplished.

So what am I complaining about? Well, first of all, my own faulty decision making. My lowest times this year were when Markus was out of town, as I just am not a person who can happily manage a toddler by herself, even though Annie is quite an easy child. (Some genetic deficiency couple with advanced age I think.) And then I go and apparently take some crazy drug that makes me think I’ll be fine being alone with Annie for 6 weeks. Not fine. Even though Mom, Drew and Lorraine were very helpful and willing to lend a hand, it just isn’t the same as switching off with Markus.

As well, I’m just a wee bit stressed around any family member (Pavlovian response from days gone by.) And it rained. And rained. And rained. In our 29 days in Manitoba, we had 6 sort-of sunny days. The insane amount of mosquitoes who made my daughter’s fair skin welt up like she had been beaten didn’t help much either.

Oh and then I caught a monster cold that lasted 10 days and then morphed into a excruciatingly painful sinus infection which, as I write, is starting to feel better after 3 days of antibiotics. So I had to cancel many plans to seeÂ friends, not feeling up to visiting, nor wanting to pass on my germs.

Except I didn’t make that decision when my dad asked us to come for dinner. He even suggested that Annie and I come another day, but not wanting Annie to miss out on spending time with her cousins, I thought we could make it. But then (because apparently I am an idiot) I went out on the boat with them where it, of course, started to rain. By dinner time I had a fever and thought for sure that H1N1 was upon me. (This is the trying-to-kill-my-father part.) My dad had stage-4 cancer about 5 years ago, and so has a depressed immune system. Even a mild cold for others can turn into pneumonia for him. And here I am spreading swine flu around. Not really very bright. Or kind, for that matter. I ended up getting my very sweet brother Bruce to drive me to the Kenora hospital, where they informed me that they don’t test for H1N1 anymore because the wait is too long, and that they wouldn’t do anything for me anyway so I should just go home. O.K. then. So much for detailed flu protocol. My fever broke the next morning, once I dried off and warmed up, so there was never any flu anyway.

Luckily, to date, my dad is fine. I can’t imagine how much therapy would be required to get over causing one’s father’s demise, but I’m guessing more than our health plan would cover.

On the plus side, I had one dinner with friends Lori and Shawna, and their gorgeous new baby Matheson. I saw Dawn and Tracey, two friends from grade school, with their children. I had lunch with Leslie, who I have known since Kindergarten and keep in close touch with. And another lunch with Mara-Lee, a friend from high-school, who hopefully will come to visit me in Austria this fall. I had short visits with some lake pals, Shannon and Jennifer, but most of the plans for longer get-togethers were cancelled due to illness. I did attend a beautiful 50th wedding anniversary ofÂ Jennifer Hayden’s parents, and so got a chance to chat with lots of people for a few minutes. Yesterday my aunt let me come to her place despite the sniffles, so I saw her and my uncle and cousins briefly. Aunt Jean has some great old pictures; I am putting a longer visit with her on my life wish-list to gather pictures for a heritage scrapbook. So there, not all was lost.

I’m off to Victoria for a week on Wednesday, and then a week in Vancouver with my brother and his family. Hopefully the weather will be fine and I’ll get a lot more visiting in. Knowing that there is a chance I won’t be back to this part of the world for at least a year makes me feel more frantic to fit things in. This is absolutely one of those times when I am going to need a vacation from my vacation.

August 1, 2009

Going to Wash My Mouth Out With Soap As Soon as I’m Finished Writing

“Oh my!”, says my just 3-year-old daughter as we are driving in the car.

She continues, “I can say ‘oh my’. I don’t say ‘oh shit.’ Shit’ is an adult word. Only Mommy and Daddy say ‘shit.'”

And then after a few moments thought, “I can say ‘Oh my goodness’ too!”

That’s right baby girl. Your first lesson mastered in the complexities of the social levels of the English language.

July 29, 2009July 29, 2009

Showing Off Our Part of the World

WeÂ had a great week with the Ravenhills. I loved the long conversations, great laughs and getting to know Emily and Amanda better. We stayed up late, talking on the balcony or drinking at a local bar. It was a welcome gift from home.

And of course we had interesting times touring around Innsbruck and area. I remember always enjoying showing off Victoria to guests, and Austria is even more fun, especially when visitors have never been to Europe. The history and buildings and landscape are impressive even before we hit the attractions. As with every visit, there were some successful adventures as well as some duds, but overall I think they left knowing a bit more about our part of the world.

Since I have a zillion photos, thanks to Mike’s obsessive diligent photo taking, I’ll let the pictures (mostly) speak for themselves. Enjoy.

1. Walking up to the Alpenzoo, where springtime was in full swing with lots of animal babies.

2. Bling-bling tour of the Swarovski museum. It was too modern/kitschy for the Ravenhills’ taste, but oh did we have fun in the gift shop.

3. Very cool tour of the Red Bull Hanger 7 aviation museum in Salzburg. This testosterone session nicely balanced outÂ crystal world. Those dudes are marketing geniuses, given that the drink is, well, great if you are totally wasted.

3. Touring the medieval Hohensalzburg Fortress overlooking this historic city was impressive, even a second time. The view from the tower is magnificent, and shows why this castle was never captured in battle. And a massive pretzel at the end of the day…what could be better?

4. A challenging hike up the Alps with lots of photo ops and tasty traditional Austrian fare to make it worthwhile.

Tempted? I’ll be back in Austria in September if you want to make you travel arrangements to visit.

July 18, 2009July 18, 2009

Arrivals and Departures, or How Canada Regains a Resident

Our phone rang at 5:00 Wednesday morning; it was Rebecca letting us know that she arrived home safely back in Canada.

Her last few days in Europe were a bit crazy, but hopefully we sent her off well and with a good feeling about this place she called home for the last year. On Friday a few of her friends came over for a delish BBQ that Markus prepared. I think (not to put words in her mouth) that one of the best parts of this year for Rebecca was meeting new friends. They were absolutely lovely people, and I hope they keep in touch.

On Saturday our friends from Phoenix, the Ravenhills, arrived: parents Cassandra and Mike and their girls Emily (15) and Amanda (13). Rebecca spent countless hours with Emily and Amanda growing up, so they had a blast during this short reunion.

After a stroll around our ancient city center, we all went for a traditional Austrian meal. (There was a LOT of eating this last week.) The adults followed up with a drink on top of the city hall, while the girls took in a free concert by a Russian rock band.

Sunday morning we decided to take the tram up the mountain for a casual brunch at a chalet. Rebecca and Annie weren’t dressed for the cold (bad parents) but the rest of us did the short walk up to the peak, finding some snow on this cool rainy morning. The girls (including Doro, Rebecca’s best friend at school) had a snowball fight in July. Crazy. (Most photos are by Mike…he has a great camera and took maybe a couple of pictures. 1,200 and counting over the first 9 days of their Euro trip.)

Amanda gets to know the locals high above Innsbruck

The DoppelgÃ¤nger of Rebecca is Doro. She speaks English very well and is super sweet.

Rebecca’s last day was spent packing and shopping. She was given wads of cash from the family, which turned into many, many Euro t-shirts and other clothes. The Ravenhills went with her to get the shoppin’ started. As our present, Markus and I gave her some Austria music (Falco and Austrian folk music) to remember the year. (She requested it…not a bad joke on our part.)

Rebecca was sad to go but also was looking forward to being back in Canada and seeing her mom and Katherine. Markus was clearly down as he loaded the car and drove Rebecca to Munich. Annie and I will catch up with Rebecca in August, but it could be until Christmas or longer until Markus sees her again. Six months is a long time away from your little girl; (she will always be his little girl.) Even though there were some tough moments, I think Rebecca will look back on this year as a positive time in her life.

July 9, 2009July 9, 2009

Counting the Days

Annie and I are off to Canada in two weeks today. Despite the fact that I have a lot to do before then (including entertaining our friends for a week), despite six weeks without Markus, despite the long flights with a toddler and the jet lag, (not to mention the Manitoba bugs), I’m completely and totally looking forward to the trip. Those of you who are regular readers know that I’ve had some amazing adventures in Europe this year, and I don’t regret making the leap to come here. But it certainly hasn’t been all Alpine hikes and happy yodeling either.

Frankly, I need a break from the stress. The uncertainty of our lives. It has been almost a year since this little family had a steady income (including 8 months with NO income). Markus is daily trying to put together a deal, looking for opportunities, and also shooting off resumes for more regular work. And I’m pursuing about four different bureaucraticÂ channels right now to try to get permission to work in this country; it seems every day I run into another road block. People, I’ll pay my taxes…just let me find a job. (I’m still hoping that I can work remotely for my friend in Canada, but that won’t be known for a few more months.)

Of course, I could marry Markus, which would hurry things up considerable. And that is still an option. But not my first (or clearly second, third, or fourth) choice. The thought of scurrying off to city hall to hitch up with Markus just so I can get a work permit sounds so, I don’t know, icky. Shady. Desperate. Plus, how sad would that be to get married without a single one of my friends or family around. Not that I have ever in my life dreamt of a princess wedding. But seriously, it is hard to attach even an ounce of romance to that scenario. And I can’t see it being a day to celebrate as a yearly anniversary.

So the thought ofÂ a month and a half away from it all, surrounded by family and friends, four of those weeks spent lounging by a beautiful lake, are pretty appealing. I’m sure doing the single parent thing will be tough, especially once we hit BC and the grandparents are out of the picture, but it will be so worth it for the break. So biblical plague of giant mosquitoes, here we come.