No, this isn’t a type of hot dog in Vienna. One of my projects for class was to come up with at least five webcams of interest. One that I came up with is a panorama of Vienna with different sites listed. You can even control the little webcam. zoom in and out and pan by clicking on the video picture.
My apartment isn’t listed…yet. But I can only assume that it will be soon.
So I went to a pirate/ninja birthday party Friday night. I decided to be a ninja. I walked home from the party with a pirate and spent part of the time darting from shadow to shadow much like I'd envision a ninja doing (see picture).
Turns out Austrians think it's a bit odd for someone to lurk about Vienna in a ninja costume. I considered venturing down to the 1st district (the historical district), but thought better of it. I decided it would be difficult to explain to the Polizei why I was darting between shadows of historical statues and buildings carrying a red plastic broomstick…I mean bow-staff.
I've got mad bow-staff skills.
So my fever finally broke, but now my head is congested and my throat is raw. School was actually called off on Friday because too many teachers and students are sick.
In true Austrian fashion I looked for a tea to treat my throat and came across Halsfreund. Literally “Neck Friend.” So I thought, my neck needs all the friends it can get right now. And believe it or not, this is probably something similar to what I would have come home with if I’d actually gone to see a doctor. Well, that, maybe some form of Alka-Seltzer, and some scolding about not wearing my scarf more often.
Yes, my scarf. Austrians have this reverence for scarves that I find humorous and frightening at the same time. Cold air on the neck is a sure recipe for sickness and scarves keep your neck warm and your health up. Germs? Anybody?
So now I have two Halsfreunden: my scarf and my tea.
Apparently several cats in Austria have been found with the bird flu. Read Article Here. I wouldn’t be surprised if my long lost cat, Chestnut, is involved. She might even be running a flu vaccination racket on the side. Well, she might be if she were smart. And if you think she’s smart, I have a few stories to tell you. Like the one where she got stuck in the rain gutter…
The idea of religious superstition playing a role in the current spiritual darkness that clothes most of western Europe had been rolling around in my head before an old friend of mine had a similar reflection after spending some time in Italy. To what extent are old religious traditions (specifically Catholic) a detrement to Christianity in western Europe? It seems that traditions such as the Christkind flying around and delivering gifts on Christmas Eve only reinforce the prevailing European conception that Christianity is nothing more than of collection of myths and superstitions. As a child you are taught to believe in Christkind much like American children are taught to believe in Santa Claus. The tragedy is that this silly story is linked to true faith and religion. Outgrowing belief in Santa Claus is something of a rite of passage for American children, but in Austria it is almost akin to renouncing your faith. Not believing in Christkind is not believing in Jesus. Children are strapped with guilt knowing that they should believe in Jesus, but faced with the absurdity of the Christkind story. I fear that often they throw the baby out with the bathwater. If the Christkind isn’t real, then Jesus isn’t either. And it follows that other traditions the church holds are likely fictional.
Fighting through these issues is a huge uphill battle for missionaries here that work as church planters with Austrians.