Vienna-Alexander's story

I will be writing a little excerpt for each child's experience in Vienna. First up, Alexander...

The weekend before we left for Vienna, Alexander was as sick as a dog. He had been home a few days for a sore throat, and he took a turn for the worse just two days before we left. It was finally confirmed as a double ear infection and we got a few doses of meds in him before we flew! 

Alexander is a rock star traveler. He has been ever since he turned two. He goes with the flow, helps out when he can, and sits nicely doing one activity to the next. He had a hard time getting comfy to sleep on the plane, but papa remedied that by fixing him a bed. I felt bad for him because I think the antibiotics were upsetting his stomach (throughout the trip). But he was a trooper! 

The first days in Vienna for Alexander were a mix of getting comfortable, whining/yelling at us, and catching up on sleep. Poor kid had to take his medicine 3 times a day. Plus he hadn't eaten anything inthe days prior to leaving. Now in this new environment I was worried he wouldn't find anything to eat. Imagine my joy when, on our third day in, he gobbled up a huge piece of chocolate cake (schoko kuchen) plus a mug of hot cocoa while visiting the Museum of Natural  History. 

I think Alexander felt so comfortable so quickly because he still held memories of Vienna. He commented on where the couch used to be in our house and which parks he remembered. He still could make his way around the zoo, no problem. One of the best things was seeing and hearing Alexander's German take off. One evening at dinner, he came to the table with a hand written book and read it aloud: 

"Ich bin ein dinosaurie. Ich bin hungrig. Ich sehe Essen. Ich gehe raus. Ich putze meine  zähne..."

He also made a birthday card (98 years old!) for Urli that read "alles gute zum geburtstag!". He wrote this all by himself!

Alexander truly loved each and every day in Vienna--He ran around his old house and garden like he had never left. Riding the 40A was always an adventure (especially with Unkie!). Playing with cousins Julia and Jakob and Felix. Visiting the dinosaur museum not once, but twice! Exploring the parks. The rainy days didn't slow us down! But one of the last days there we went to the Prater- to ride the Riesenrad plus do some rides. Finally the sun was shining! I think this really was one of Alexander's favorite days. 

The two weeks there really flew by. But it was just enough time to give the boys a taste for it and we ended on a high note (Easter egg hunt in the garden!).  Next time, we promised, we would take them in the summer and stay for 3 weeks.