O du wunderschöner Herbst - life in German and Austria thread

[admylin]

It is a wunderschöner Herbst at the moment isn't it. Lovely sunny bright blue sky with a chill in the air. Shame we're stuck in the house, ds has a flu like virus so the balcony is as far as we'll get.

I'm quite pleased that my 2 are older now and would rather have money so I'm not going to try and get them gifts from my parents, I'll just let them have the money. Ds is saving anyway and dd just doesn't want much at the moment so she might as well save it too.

I have a problem with my parents actually - they keep sending me necklaces and earrings for bday or Christmas that I would never wear. Not sure how to break it to them that it's just a waste. I have little boxes with never-worn jewellry stored in a bag in my wardrobe. I only wear small stud earrings but they send me long drop ones. Once they've sent it it's hard to say well actually I'll never wear it so I just say thanks.

It's good that your DC want to save the money they get; ours would just want to spend it on yet more Playmobil and Lego. Instead... DH ends up buying them yet more Playmobil and Lego. He also spends the entire amount, whereas I think it's far too much and that they should save half of it. Money is a bit of an issue with us - not our money, but how much the DC get spent on them (our arguments generally end in me claiming I was quite happy with a satsuma and a few nuts at Christmas).

I had a similar problem with my parents buying me Turkish Delight year after year; I eventually broke it to them one Christmas that I only like Fry's, not the floury stuff they used to buy, and I think they were slightly offended! Could you mention at some point before Christmas that you don't wear much jewellery any more? My ILs give the same presents year after year after year; I got chocolate covered fruit from both my PIL and SIL for my birthday this year, whereas DH always gets Lindtkugeln and my parents a box of Mozartkugeln. I don't want to appear ungrateful, but after three or four years you start wishing for something slightly different.

I could get dd to break it to them - mum doesn't EVER wear sparkly, dangly jewellry!

Ds is coming down with a cough again,hope he doesn't get it as bad as last time. Was awful. Am force feeding him soup, healthy, full of veg soup for lunch when he gets in!

Dd's gerbil is on the mend atleast, and now she reckons they need a new cage. Trouble is, the ideal housing for 2 gerbils is a massive terrarium which 'only' costs 130 euro.

Latest homework headache:
What the hell is Physiozentrisch and anthropozentrisch and how does Tierschutz relate to these two words? Year 7 - all I can find online far too complicated philosophy and ethics. Think he'll justhave to write a few lines of what he thinks about Tiere und Rechte or something...

Good evening! I'm still alive, as you can see. Took the last of the cortisone pills yesterday and am feeling a bit wonky from the withdrawal symptoms but will check in again tomorrow!

Hi westvan, hope you pick up soon. You've gotto be fit for Advent time so you can go out and get Glühwein!

Hopeforthebest, not quite sure what a Zsarina does on here, is it a new thread you mean? Anyway this thread is quiet (might get better if Ernest sorts her connection out and a few others would join in again though)!

Did you get the homework sorted out in the end, admylin? I would have been even less help than I was with the rabbits as I have no idea what physiozentrisch and anthropozentrisch mean wrt animal rights - a human-centred way of looking at the issue rather than animal-centred? I'm not looking forward to having to help with that kind of homework; apparently it will get harder next year when DD1 starts having to write essays.

Hi westvan, nice to see you again! Hope the withdrawal symptoms are getting better.

It is very quiet on here, isn't it? We could do with a few more people from Austria too; there are so many expats in Vienna, I'm sure there must be more Austrian MNers than it seems!

Well, I survived the book club without falling asleep; I actually had the opposite problem, as I had a cup of coffee there and couldn't get to sleep when I got home! It was a nice evening and it felt quite liberating to be out by myself - I managed not to get lost and the train back was much busier than I thought it would be (and nothing like catching a train in the UK at 10.30 pm would have been!).

DD1's dentist appointment went fine; she said it didn't hurt at all, not even the injection (a friend of mine asked whether she was going to have a local anaesthetic - WHY would you not have one?! I just don't understand the Austrian mentality...), and has proudly taken the tooth into school this morning to show her friends!

Well done for staying out so late Linzer! I was fallling asleep at 9:30 again. Did you find it straight away? What's your next book?

Yes, managed to figure out what ds was doing in the lesson before he was set that homework, and infact they were comparing Christianism with Hinduism. So he just wrote abit under each title about the different views on how animals should be treated and why. Was a page long so think it was enough.

Why was dd getting a tooth pulled? My 2 had lots of teeth pulled in Berlin to make room for the new ones and it seemed very wrong to be pulling healthy milk teeth. Ds still hasn't had any new ones grow into the space so I am very suspicious as to why they did it.

Germans like to have dental treatment without injections too, no idea why. You always have to tick a box to say you want pain relief or not.

The cafe itself couldn't have been much easier to find; I just had problems finding the group itself, as I had no idea what any of them looked like! Our next book is A Christmas Carol, which is nice and short in comparison with the last one - and I've read it before (albeit years ago).

DD1 had 21 milk teeth, so the orthodontist advised she had one out (it was very crooked). I can just about understand why an adult might decide to have a filling without anaesthetic (my dentist in the UK even persuaded me to do so once, as he said it would mean only a few seconds of pain and then I wouldn't have the numbness afterwards - I think I'd still rather have the injection!), but why my friend thought we would want to let DD1 have her tooth pulled out without anaesthetic, I have no idea - she would probably be traumatised for life and refuse to ever set foot in the dentist's again!

I was thinking last night how different my life would be if we lived in Vienna; I suspect it would be a much more expat lifestyle as everyone was saying how hard it is to integrate with the Austrians. I don't have much choice living out here as there are so few expats, but I think it's probably easier to get to know people in a smaller town anyway.

We were also talking recently about how it can make a difference if you grow up in a big city or a small village. He reckons the dc would be better off in life if they grew up in a city like Berlin, I'm not sure because you can't really generalise. I grew up in a small town and couldn't wait to get away into the big wide world but others from my age group were happy to stay and haven't moved further than doiwn the next street.

I have to wrap up and go out to the Turkish shop now, don't feel like going but we've got another guest tonight. Dh said he would cook when they getin (he's bringing him straight from work) but I said I'd get something ready otherwise it'll be so late and I know the colleague isn't one to stay late, he likes to be off home just after 9pm (a guest to my liking!)

I grew up in a large village near to a city, which is my ideal really - and fairly similar to our situation now, although we're in a town rather than a village (and actually, I can't imagine living in a village in Austria; my ILs live in a hamlet and I would go mad if I had to live there).

Hope you get something nice for this evening; I used to love the Fladenbrot you could get at the Turkish shops in Berlin. Your guest sounds perfect; yawning just seems to be ignored here so it's quite hard to drop hints if you're getting tired!

Must get back to work, but think I need coffee to help me concentrate... I am far too easily distracted this morning.

hello all!! have had a busy week with not much MN time! been twice to the dentist for the torture of deep cleaning under local anaesthetic - no opting out of a local there! in fact the more the better for me! the appt on tues was just awfully awful but today wasnt quite so bad and only 7 teeth left to clean! cant wait for it to be finished!

and then yesterday was this crazy school holiday so feel i've been skiving a bit from my german! and there's no class tomorrow since they are being externally assessed! going to brave getting my haircut tom - hate the hairdresser at the best of times but dreading explaining it all in German! need to make sure i know the word for layers!

Linzer - well done you for going to the book club (and for not falling asleep)!! do you have to read another book before next week or is it not every week? i love reading but not enthused about reading in german yet!
glad your dd was ok at the dentist - she sounds like she was really brave! (braver than me!)

admylin - i like the sound of your guest tonight - leaving at 9pm! thats my kind of guest! what are you cooking for him? is he a colleague from your dh - can they have a bitchfest about the nightmare boss? he sounds like a nightmare to work for! but think you're dh took a stand against him the other day and maybe he'll think twice about it in the future! i'm impressed at him getting published in such an esteemed journal - i know from my career in the UK and from dh how important these things are! only ever had my name on 2 abstracts at meetings and even then i was proud!

so what do you all think about this terror warning - i felt really disconcerted about it yesterday - a good friend from the UK is flying over in 10 days to Frankfurt airport! and then there was talk about the risk of christmas markets! dont feel any great risk day to day in my wee village but we'll go to bigger cities when my friend is here and she's obviously got to get here first! it just seemed like they had concrete information about an imminent terror attack - scary!

Bet you'll be glad to have the last dentist's appointment out of the way, Canella - I really need to make an appointment with the dental hygienist, but keep putting it off. I was also thinking about going to the hairdresser's tomorrow, something else I've been putting off for the last few weeks. Layered is gestuft in German btw; I usually ask for my hair to be leicht gestuft (mainly because it's one of the few hairdressing terms I know, along with nur die Spitzen for just a trim!).

I've been trying to avoid news of the terror warning as it just worries me too much; it always seems to happen whenever DH is due to fly somewhere and sure enough, he's off to Berlin next week.

Luckily the book club is only once a month; I don't think I could cope with once a week! I hardly ever read anything in German (too lazy) which is one of the reasons why I decided to join an English book club, the other being that I'm not sure reading groups really exist much in Austria.

I had my stitches out today and got the results of the biopsy; there were some atypical cells in the mole, so the dermatologist said it's a good thing it's been removed. I have to go back for a check-up in six months, but otherwise that's it for the latest round of medical appointments!

aw thats good news that it was the right thing to remove the mole! and good news that its not serious - these things are a proper worry!

aw i didnt realise the book club was an English speaking one! aw that makes more sense now - and cures my jealousy that you had so quickly read a german book!

the terror situation got worse in my eyes today - BIL and SIL flew to Namibia last week and now they are saying there was a bomb in a suitcase at the main airport there, which i know they have to fly from. on the other hand the security there will be impressive now but its just scary to think the terrorists are in that country where they are on holiday!

thanks for the hints for the hairdressers - will imprint that word on my brain although i have got so many layers she cant miss them! (courtesy of me doing the MN haircut for the last 18 months!) but it just has gone beyond me cutting it - it needs a profesional touch! will report back tom at what it turns out like!

How did you get on at the hairdresser's, Canella? I've just been - it was pouring with rain when I came out, so I had to make a mad dash for the car. Luckily I found an umbrella in the back of the car, otherwise I needn't have bothered getting my hair dried (ausföhnen - to blow dry straight - is another useful word, although possibly not for you!) as it takes a minute or so to walk up to our house from the road and I would have got soaked. We were planning on going out ice skating with friends this afternoon, but it doesn't look like the rain is going to stop any time soon.

I can't remember the last time I read a book in German and I don't think my German would be up to discussing one! It was hard enough trying to come out with something sensible in English at 9 pm, when my brain has normally switched off for the day.

I'm determined to make a start on my Christmas cards this weekend (early I know, but I have a few cards and letters to send to the USA), as we should have a photo of the DC with Father Christmas to enclose with the cards after the Advent market tomorrow. I actually feel quite organised this year, mainly because I managed to buy quite a few presents at M&S; now I just need to work out the best place to buy the GPS system for DH from, as I noticed they sell it at Libro too.

are you ready for my big rant about the hairdresser??it said outside on a sign 27? - and i read it as being for a cut and dry! that was about how much i paid in the UK!

so went this morning - had it washed, a conditioning treatment put on, cut and dried straight. was there about an hour and a half cause i've got so much hair! but do you know how much they charged me .........63?!!!!!!!!!

19? for washing and drying, 20? for the cut, 12? for the treatment and an extra 12? to dry it straight!!! i nearly fell over and she was blatantly waiting for a tip which i refused to give! and its not even had that much cut off it! but i'm just not confident enough to complain about it but feel they have ripped me off! wonder if i might get dh to complain for me? or my MIL? she's rip them apart! obviously wont be going back there!

sorry for the big moan but i've been seething about it all the way home!

linzer - good on you for making a start - i've done nothing! dont thankfully have that many presents to buy since dh's family and us have decided only to buy for the dc (and no-one apart from us has dc!!!). but need to get on the internet and buy things for family in the UK! know what we're getting the dc - just need to get it!

I have had that often with hairdressers here canella, one price outside and another at the till. You probably have to ask for the 27 euro deal before they start, but I think it's a rip off here anyway. Used to always get hair cuts in UK but as that wasn't so often my hair is longer than I would like it, just daren't get anything done here except for a trim.

Our guest didn't leave early as expected (and I tried the yawning trick too) as his dd has just moved abroad and he's alone, his ds also moved away last year and his wife left him years ago so I think he was glad of some company. Yes, canella, they had a joll yold bitchfest about the 2 bosses, they have names for them and it was quite funny listening to 2 grown men talking about K and K and Lady Gaga! He's a maths genius so we've made a deal when one of the dc needs help in maths he'll come round after work and in return he'll get a meal!

The terror warnings are serious aren't they, but I think security has been put on high level so it's probably very safe. Dh goes to Berlin in December for nearly 2 weeks but hopefully he'll avoid crowded places and be in his lab most of the time, also won't be travelling at rush hour times which is my biggest worry in a city like Berlin (or London). He'll be in and around the Regierungsviertel which is being watched and policed even more than other places. How long is your dh in Berlin Linzer?

Wow, that is expensive Canella. I thought I paid enough (?40 for a cut & blow dry plus ?4 for conditioning treatment), and I only go to a cheap and cheerful chain (but I like the fact that you don't need an appointment).

DH will be in Berlin from Monday to Wednesday next week, not sure exactly where he'll be though or even why he's going! He hasn't mentioned anything about the terrorist warnings, but probably thinks that I haven't heard and doesn't want to worry me.

We're off out ice skating now - apparently the ice rink has a roof, so it doesn't matter that it's raining. Luckily DS is at a friend's this afternoon; neither he nor DD2 can skate so I find it virtually impossible to take all three of them on my own (not that DH is much help, as he can't ice skate either so refuses to go on the ice).

oh canella, I feel your anger. Exactly the same thing happened to me too, I was fuming. I believe the most important words at the hairdressers are "nein Danke"! No special treatments, no styling products, so special head massage.Since that initial shock I have been going to DM for a cut and go...it´s about 27 euros - they wash it, cut it and you dry it yourself. Of course it does not have that wonderful I have just been to the hairdresser look, but mine is so short that does not make a difference and twice they have dried it for free cos they know me and had no other client waiting.

Linzer- great to hear you enjoyed the book club.how often does it meet? when´s the other one? Is the tooth business okay now? glad it did not hurt and did not scar her for life. good news on biopsy. Ohm and what M and S do you go to in Bratislava? We went to the one at the Eurevea (or something like that) centre but there was no cafe, I don´t think...

admylin- glad dh reacted like that and boss apologised. has boss been around since? has he been better behaved?

ah, what a week! 20+ hours of course plus all the other stuff... and I am knackered. I think it is also because it is in German and requires constant concentration to understand what is going on. After this week I am not sure I want a job :). DC3 did a wee in the potty yesterday, first time after 4 weeks of doing them on the floor, so I am a happy mummy!

Have a good weekend everyone and let´s hope the rain goes away.

Oh my goodness! Ds14 came home from school this afternoon with a handout from the school head saying that on Thursday they had found a desk scribbled with obscene comments and a threat to go on a shooting spree in the school next Tuesday. [schock] They sealed the classroom they found it in and called the police who are on the case now trying to find out who it was. It's our own decision whether we keep the kids home from school on that day or not. My kids say they think it's just a joke but who knows? I think the principal took this action because there was a similar incident at a school in another town last week and the parents weren't informed at all, but rumours got out and they started a telephone chain and in the end everyone knew and the parents were having an absolute fit that no one from the school had bothered to tell them. Some came and dragged their kids right out of the classrooms. We're going to see how things go and if any more information comes up on Monday.

The terror thing is unsettling too. Lots of picture in our local paper of policemen armed with machine guns in and around the Hannover train station. My dh has to go to Nürnberg on a business trip by train on Monday and Tuesday and I'm a bit nervous about that. Last week I was on the bus halfway downtown and happened to catch the words "Bombenalarm" and "untererdisch" on the bus driver's radio and a whole bunch of people got on the bus at one stop because the trams apparently weren't running. Turns out that they had found an abandoned suitcase trolley thing at a tram stop outside the train station and they had to call in experts to x-ray it. It was empty, thank goodness.

We're going to a friend's place for dinner tongight. Hope I can stay awake!

I'll be back soon to read all these posts and comment properly.

Oh, the little face doesn't work if you write it in German! I think I've been here too long.

westvan - thats shocking about your ds's school!! i would be keeping my dc at home and i'm not a panicky type! hope you had a good time out at your friends!

bananas - thats great advice about the hairdressers! will remember that if i ever brave to go again! there is a hairdresser in my street in our wee village but she's got a really old fashioned name and i wouldnt trust her not to give me a granny do! weirdly dh didnt moan too much when i told him how much i'd paid! if he wanted to moan he'd have had to phone the salon - not my fault i was duped!

just reading the thread on the discussions of the day about the NHS - wanted to comment about how much better i find the healthcare system here but think it always sounds a bit funny like i'm boasting! i think there are faults with the system here - think the doctors refer you for too many unnessecary investigations and it is obviously more expensive than the NHS but i've had nothing but excellent care since we've been here! empty A&E's both times i went, amazing investigation of a strange swelling on ds's leg & excellent routine care of the dc and myself. what do you all think?

Westvan, that's awful, have you decided what you want to do about them going to school? Did your ds know who was meant to have written the message?

Hope you managed to stay awake and enjoyed your evening out. Are you starting to feel better now?

Canella, I feel the same as you about the health care here. The NHS is great but some of the hospital standards are shocking compared to what I've seen here, although it sometimes bugs me that I have to go to specialists for what seem like unnessecary investigations. Last time ds was ill we were sent off to the hospital for x-rays of his lungs, up to specialist for a scan to make sure he didn't have appendicitis and still didn't get anything to help ease his pain or help his cough!

It's not so much to do with the health care system but I just don't get why people here like to suffer rather than take a paracetamol or have an injection (see dentist discussion!) and you have to sometime sbeg for antibiotics. Dh always gets them when he wants as he just goes to the doctor to tell them what he's got and what sort of medication he needs.

Hope everyone's had a good weekend - it's suddenly got very wintery here, with snow forecast for next week. DH is at a meeting with the neighbours at the moment; it's to do with the Wohnungseigentumsvertrag (a long and boring story), which we would have been happy to sign as it is, but one of our neighbours is a retired lawyer and has made a list of 42 points that he wants to discuss with everyone. DH really did not want to go to the meeting, especially as he has to be up at 4 am tomorrow to fly to Berlin, but he said when he went that he definitely wouldn't stay any longer than an hour (8 minutes to go).

westvan - That's really worrying; I hope the school gets to the bottom of it soon. Even though it's very unlikely to be anything other than a joke, you can never be 100% sure.

Canella - I always feel like I have to stop myself boasting too much about the Austrian healthcare system too! Preventive healthcare is also so much better than in the UK; the mole on my leg would never have been picked up if we were living in Britain. Like admylin says, it's just the attitude to health that can be a little strange sometimes - I have managed to convert DH to the joys of paracetamol (haven't had as much success with local anaesthetic at the dentist's!), and then there's the whole 'you will get ill if you have bare feet/go outside with wet hair/wear less than 20 layers in winter', of course.

bananas - It sounds like you've had an exhausting week; has the course finished now? Good news about the potty, though; I can't wait until DS decides he no longer needs nappies at night.

The M&S in Eurovea Galleria does have a cafe, but it's a bit hidden - it's on the first floor, you need to turn left IIRC at the top of the escalators and walk through about half the women's department. The children love their jam doughnuts (with proper strawberry jam - none of this apricot jam nonsense!), which cost a bargain 20 cents.

The book club meets once a month. The other book club's meeting was supposed to be two weeks ago, so I don't know what happened about that (I asked the organiser and she didn't know either), but I've more or less decided I can only cope with one group anyway.

DD1's tooth is fine now, thanks, and she's back to a normal diet (she wasn't allowed to eat dairy products, raw fruit or anything with seeds for a few days). The dentist was very worried she'd be traumatised and originally wanted to take the tooth out under general anaesthetic, but DH said it was ridiculous - at that age he was regularly having fillings without a local anaesthetic and wasn't traumatised at all (he claims)!