Busy Vienna Socialite Night
Hey you guys. I'm amazed I am not currently horizontal. Well, I am using the laptop as a crutch. Blessed be for leopard print flannel pyjamas and eggnog in my coffee. Last night was an absolutely insane night and I even impressed myself with my endurance and the fact that I feel relatively fine. I try not to go out more than twice a week because, you know, I'm a mom. So because I try to keep the nights out to a minimum, I try to pack in as much as possible in a night out. I had 3 events planned in a row yesterday and when I told a friend about it the other day she was like; your one night out is like a whole month of going out for me. Hey, I like to multitask. And drink.
Yesterday morning, The Kid woke up stuffed up and we had to cancel our therapy session. He of course was absolutely fine shortly after the cancellation but I am not going to be the asshole parent who infects other people. He was an absolute joy yesterday which has seemed like the status quo the last couple of months thank you Jeebus. At one point he grabbed an apple from the fruit basket, sat on the sofa and ate the whole damn thing. I was so incredibly proud and wonder where he picked up that habit. I'm not exactly the best example of healthy eating re: eggnog in coffee. That's like an 800 calorie latte right there. Anyway #proudmom #thisiswhyimfat
Around 3, I put on a plaid shirt because the second event promised to be urban and hipsterrific. Put on my fake fur super furry black vest because the first event was being held at a beautiful jewelry shop in the first district. And I put on my short black skirt because my legs are the only decent thing I have going for me... from the knee down. I walked down to the Ubahn station and made my way to Stephansplatz and then on to the Der Grosse Bär. A friend invited me to a type of open house at his friends' jewelry store. When I received the invite, I happily accepted and put my credit card away.
I arrived in the center and walked along the beautifully lit Graben. They put up these incredibly huge chandeliers above the street and it always takes my breath away. Christmas tree stands were full of awesome smelling monster trees and it was idyllic. Save for the three trillion people in front of me, determined to suddenly stop in mid-stride. Ban the tour groups on Saturdays, guys. GAH! I am useless with directions unless the street is familiar. I easily found Tuchlauben because there is a Vivienne West store on it. Want me to find the right place? Tell me there is a Chanel around the corner. I arrived at a beautiful baroque courtyard and made my way in. At the end of the courtyard was an amazing jewelry shop/workshop with low arched ceilings and uneven wooden floors. LOVE! I walked in and was offered some wine and because I am always a gracious guest.
Friends showed up shortly after I arrived and we chatted and drank and I looked at the jewelry. I fell in love with a couple of pieces and one in particular was a necklace with a gold chain and beautiful small carved hand at the end. Want! I ended up meeting a mathematician briefly and before he could even say hello properly I did the whole "Mathematician, eh? Swoosh! I'm terrible at math." with my hand flying over my head. Keep it classy, Tova. I also asked a teenage girl what she wanted to be and she said she didn't know yet so I leaned over and said "Marry rich." Ugh. Bad, Tova. It was pretty surreal to be in a gorgeous atelier, drinking wine and surrounded by beautiful pieces. I even got a mixed CD from the friend who was hosting. I am currently listening to it and thinking I need to probably expand my musical tastes. Opera and Taylor Swift might not be enough anymore. The time flew by and I stayed longer than I expected. I sadly realized I had to run to my next event: The Vienna Würstelstand Vanille Kipferl bake off in the 7th. This promised to be a hipsteriffic time.
The event was held at Supersense last year (which, by the way, is one of the coolest cafes/shops in Vienna. Definitely too cool for me but I still love it.) but this year the location was at the Hotel am Brillantengrund. I had never heard of this place and I had to write down directions on a post it before I left home because I get lost all.the.time. I showed up at 6 and walked through the lobby and into the cutest courtyard. The hotel has a set up like a multi storied motel; outside walkways to the room. Christmas lights were strung allover the balconies and the large tree was decorated with large balls. Don't worry, that joke was made after a punsch. I ordered myself a baked apple punsch which was just what I probably didn't need. I talked to the Vienna Würstelstand folks who I adore and then chatted with a couple of people I knew. At one point I met a musician and realized once again that Vienna is a village based on who we knew in common. He also works at an Irish bar I know and I was like "Oh, your bar is haunted!" and he was like "How do you know that?!?" and I was like "I know everything."
A group of us sat outside and drank punsch and it was just lovely and tranquil... save for my braying laughter in between. After my second punsch, I realized I was frozen and I also realized that I had to head to my third and last appointment of the night. A mini high school reunion at der Fuchs und die Trauben.
I showed up at the right time and one friend who did not got to AIS was already at the table. I warned her that the upcoming dinner might be a bit of shit show but she was ok with that. Shortly after, a friend who I went to school with but was a couple of grades above me showed up. We've become friends over the past couple of years which is nice. And then another friend from her grade showed up with a classmate from my year in tow. I haven't seen the classmate in tow in almost 20 years and it was a little surreal. He's taller. I'm the same height. I said to him "Last thing I remember from you is that you wanted to go clown college? Did you?" and he said "No, I went to Yale." Oh. At this point the people I know who went to Harvard are currently shrugging and saying "Same thing." Aww, Ivy league BURN! It was pretty clear within 10 minutes of us all sitting down that we were all going to revert into teenagers. And did we do it well! Oh the laughing and the guffawing. Every time someone tried to steer the conversation into something intellectual, one of us would make a sex joke.
The food arrived, more drinks were ordered and Venn diagrams were drawn. The funny thing about attending International schools is that when you re-unite with your classmates, you automatically feel like you've come home. Now, I didn't really have a great experience when I was here in the 90's. I wasn't pretty, I didn't excel at sports (I was on the softball and soccer team but I think they felt sorry for me), I wasn't a drama nerd, or artsy or super smart... so while I had some amazing friends, I didn't really fit in. It wasn't until my junior year in Moscow that I hit my stride. I'm guessing a lot of this had to do with finally growing boobies and discovering the fun of dancing on bars (hi Mom! Hi Dad!). But what is funny is catching up with international school kids and realizing we all had a hard time adjusting to moving back to our home countries. Certain life skills were lacking. Opening a bank account? What's that? Not having a driver or a nanny? What madness is this? Sure, we could tell you about the best resorts in St. Anton and when to book for a trip along the coast of the Adriatic. We actually could tell if a wine was corked by the age of 16 and which fork to use for which course. We were all entitled without realizing it. So this is what bonds us. Oh, and sex jokes. By midnight it was time for me to head home and I ended up missing one of the funniest moments of the night. But that's ok because I don't think my bladder could have taken anymore laughing... or pink gin and tonics.
Last night was really an idyllic night. There was so many Viennisms (jewelry, courtyards and old friends) and so much fun and laughter and it makes me feel grateful for all the opportunities and experiences I have, so often. I may not have loved my life back in the 90's, but I can totally say my life is pretty damn good now. And I still have the boobies.
I wish you all a fabulous Sunday. Today I have some laundry to do, some cleaning to clean and I need to make some notes for my super important probably life changing meeting tomorrow afternoon. Wish me luck and tell me to stop drinking eggnog straight out of the carton. My heart doesn't need the cream.
Yesterday morning, The Kid woke up stuffed up and we had to cancel our therapy session. He of course was absolutely fine shortly after the cancellation but I am not going to be the asshole parent who infects other people. He was an absolute joy yesterday which has seemed like the status quo the last couple of months thank you Jeebus. At one point he grabbed an apple from the fruit basket, sat on the sofa and ate the whole damn thing. I was so incredibly proud and wonder where he picked up that habit. I'm not exactly the best example of healthy eating re: eggnog in coffee. That's like an 800 calorie latte right there. Anyway #proudmom #thisiswhyimfat
Around 3, I put on a plaid shirt because the second event promised to be urban and hipsterrific. Put on my fake fur super furry black vest because the first event was being held at a beautiful jewelry shop in the first district. And I put on my short black skirt because my legs are the only decent thing I have going for me... from the knee down. I walked down to the Ubahn station and made my way to Stephansplatz and then on to the Der Grosse Bär. A friend invited me to a type of open house at his friends' jewelry store. When I received the invite, I happily accepted and put my credit card away.
Friends showed up shortly after I arrived and we chatted and drank and I looked at the jewelry. I fell in love with a couple of pieces and one in particular was a necklace with a gold chain and beautiful small carved hand at the end. Want! I ended up meeting a mathematician briefly and before he could even say hello properly I did the whole "Mathematician, eh? Swoosh! I'm terrible at math." with my hand flying over my head. Keep it classy, Tova. I also asked a teenage girl what she wanted to be and she said she didn't know yet so I leaned over and said "Marry rich." Ugh. Bad, Tova. It was pretty surreal to be in a gorgeous atelier, drinking wine and surrounded by beautiful pieces. I even got a mixed CD from the friend who was hosting. I am currently listening to it and thinking I need to probably expand my musical tastes. Opera and Taylor Swift might not be enough anymore. The time flew by and I stayed longer than I expected. I sadly realized I had to run to my next event: The Vienna Würstelstand Vanille Kipferl bake off in the 7th. This promised to be a hipsteriffic time.
The event was held at Supersense last year (which, by the way, is one of the coolest cafes/shops in Vienna. Definitely too cool for me but I still love it.) but this year the location was at the Hotel am Brillantengrund. I had never heard of this place and I had to write down directions on a post it before I left home because I get lost all.the.time. I showed up at 6 and walked through the lobby and into the cutest courtyard. The hotel has a set up like a multi storied motel; outside walkways to the room. Christmas lights were strung allover the balconies and the large tree was decorated with large balls. Don't worry, that joke was made after a punsch. I ordered myself a baked apple punsch which was just what I probably didn't need. I talked to the Vienna Würstelstand folks who I adore and then chatted with a couple of people I knew. At one point I met a musician and realized once again that Vienna is a village based on who we knew in common. He also works at an Irish bar I know and I was like "Oh, your bar is haunted!" and he was like "How do you know that?!?" and I was like "I know everything."
A group of us sat outside and drank punsch and it was just lovely and tranquil... save for my braying laughter in between. After my second punsch, I realized I was frozen and I also realized that I had to head to my third and last appointment of the night. A mini high school reunion at der Fuchs und die Trauben.
The food arrived, more drinks were ordered and Venn diagrams were drawn. The funny thing about attending International schools is that when you re-unite with your classmates, you automatically feel like you've come home. Now, I didn't really have a great experience when I was here in the 90's. I wasn't pretty, I didn't excel at sports (I was on the softball and soccer team but I think they felt sorry for me), I wasn't a drama nerd, or artsy or super smart... so while I had some amazing friends, I didn't really fit in. It wasn't until my junior year in Moscow that I hit my stride. I'm guessing a lot of this had to do with finally growing boobies and discovering the fun of dancing on bars (hi Mom! Hi Dad!). But what is funny is catching up with international school kids and realizing we all had a hard time adjusting to moving back to our home countries. Certain life skills were lacking. Opening a bank account? What's that? Not having a driver or a nanny? What madness is this? Sure, we could tell you about the best resorts in St. Anton and when to book for a trip along the coast of the Adriatic. We actually could tell if a wine was corked by the age of 16 and which fork to use for which course. We were all entitled without realizing it. So this is what bonds us. Oh, and sex jokes. By midnight it was time for me to head home and I ended up missing one of the funniest moments of the night. But that's ok because I don't think my bladder could have taken anymore laughing... or pink gin and tonics.
Last night was really an idyllic night. There was so many Viennisms (jewelry, courtyards and old friends) and so much fun and laughter and it makes me feel grateful for all the opportunities and experiences I have, so often. I may not have loved my life back in the 90's, but I can totally say my life is pretty damn good now. And I still have the boobies.
I wish you all a fabulous Sunday. Today I have some laundry to do, some cleaning to clean and I need to make some notes for my super important probably life changing meeting tomorrow afternoon. Wish me luck and tell me to stop drinking eggnog straight out of the carton. My heart doesn't need the cream.
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