Passage of Time

In general, the inkling that the weekend ahead is bound to be pleasant is confirmed when you set your luggage down in your room and there are chocolates adorning your pillow.

And when your morning breakfast, presented after waking at your leisure, is filled with traditional Austrian delights, including homemade elderberry jelly, you can be assured that this getaway weekend was indeed a good idea.

In my opinion the best way to see any country—villages, cities, towns and tourist spots—is through the eyes of a native of the land. The insight and the information regarding local culture and custom are priceless. As is the chance to spend some bonding time with a friend.

Sonja met me at the train station in Linz late on Thursday evening, and as we drove to the city toward her village, I could not help but loudly exclaim “Wow, what a beautiful country!” It is a visual splendor to see the farms and the barns stretching on through the hills: Barley, Wheat, Hops, and Cornfields decorate the land, far as the eye can see in every direction. As she steered the car down narrow snaking roads over the hills toward her home, I grinned, then giggled, and grinned some more.

The next three days that grin didn’t fade in the least.

I spent my first night in Linz chatting long into the night with my friend, then retiring to my perfect guest room, and slept soundly and long.

Friday we toured the city of Linz, spending the day just the way I love to spend time anywhere, wandering along streets, camera in hand.

Friday evening we dined at a local restaurant in the countryside, along with part of Sonja’s family (a brother, a sister-in-law, a niece, and her friend).

My beauiful friend Sonja and her darling niece.

That is where the table full of Austrian teases got their giggles on teaching me German (specifically Austrian) words, and getting a right guffaw out of my murderous attempts to pronounce words with the “Pf” diagraph.

However, I did master the word “Brettljause” (bray-tle-YOW-zah) which is a plate filled with thinly sliced meats, sausage, bacon, shaved radish, red pepper, onion, potato spread, hardboiled egg and a pickle. The tray of meats is served with a hearty brown bread in slices. You then pile the farmers bread with the plate’s contents as pleases you and gobble it down. Since I could say it, everyone agreed that I should order it for dinner. So I did.

And I drank this:

A drink made from Pears, called Most. It was most delicious.

The dinner ended with a shot of apricot schnapps, which my dinner company assured me was the traditional way to top a Brettljause dinner. I think partly they were hoping that this raucous American would get up and do some tap dancing on the wooden tables. Alas, it wasn’t THAT much schnapps. I must admit, I did join in on the tongue tricks demonstration (I can touch my tongue to my nose) and I did do my share of loud open-mouth–head-thrown-back laughing. That wasn’t the schnapps, or the most either. That was pure joy over keeping company with new friends.

What way to spend a day.