Just Another One of Those Wonderful Vienna Nights

It was that first balmy summer weekend. We made it through the Eis Heilige and we are now well into summer. Now, before I continue with my post, let me quickly tell you about the Eis Heilige. I've heard this term in the past but I never really paid attention. A couple of days ago, I heard it again and decided to look into this Austrian phenomenon once and for all. What it actually is, is a time span of 3-5 days in the middle of May, when the temperature drops suddenly and so does your will to live. It's fascinating that this is an annual event and I would like to know more but I think that would involve science and there is a whole lot of celebrity gossip to catch up on so I don't have time to learn about weather. Speaking of which... this Johnny Depp versus Amber Heard thing is nuts. When she first filed for divorce I was all like:

But now with the claims of abuse, I am all like:

So anyway, yesterday evening ended up being one of those wonderful Vienna nights. In the morning I had a photoshoot with a lovely woman. We did a couple of different looks and I am pretty sure I will end up looking chubby and squinty eyed. IT WAS SUNNY! She has a great apartment and beautiful terrace overlooking rooftops and too bad it was 10 a.m. because I totally would have cracked open a bottle of bubbly. It actually turned out to be a lot of fun and I appreciate her attempt at making me feel comfortable. Well, the most comfortable I will ever be in front of a camera. After trying to disguise my double chin with a move that feels incredibly unnatural (stretch neck, push chin out and down (I am not double jointed) I went home and spent the rest of the afternoon, playing with the Kid and even snuck in a nap because AMAZING!! Around 5:30 I was ready to head to the Danube for the Vienna Würstelstand Fish and Ships event that they were hosting at Grelle Forelle. Grelle Forelle is a nightclub that I have never been to, but has an awesome outside space. Grelle Forelle also translates to Flashy/Garish Trout and if I ever open a nightclub, I shall call it the Declasse Hamster. Mark my words. I arrived just after 6 and met friends and we sat on a padded palette and ate chips and drank beer and I kept exclaiming "I love this! I love this weather! I love summer!" over and over again. I sometimes act like I never leave the house. It's very People Under the Stairs but not. I stayed for a couple of hours and then headed to The Beaver Brewing Company to keep my party of one, going.

I didn't have firm plans for the evening so I decided to see where the night would lead me. I walked to the bar and said hi to D.B. who runs the place. We chatted and I ordered a beer and we talked about dis and dat. And one point the conversation turned scientific and I didn't have the heart to tell him I recently found out that carrots actually don't grow on trees. I'm a city girl, leave me alone. At one point he had to talk to some guests and a couple of them were Canadian so that was my cue to join. After a little while, it started to rain so we went back inside. At one point a bachelorette party showed up and I sat at the bar, content to drink my beer and look at Instagram. Of course my name was called and that's enough to get me to do anything and so I walked over to the bride who promptly lifted up her sweater and asked me to eat one of her cherry candies pinned to her shirt. Seeing that I had not had a real meal, I obliged. I looked at her ring and we chatted briefly and then went back to my seat. It was about 11 when I realized I could head home or see where the night could still lead me. I texted a friend but she didn't respond so I decided to try and text an old school friend. He wrote back immediately and said "Come to the Stehbeisl!" and so I bid farewell to my buddy at the Beaver Brewing Company, hailed a cab and made my way to the 6th district.

I walked into the Stehbeisl (first time) and obviously I did not blend in in my full length coral dress, Coccinelle turquoise purse and lots of bling. The bartender looked at me and said "Are you meeting someone?!?" and I decided to say my friend's name believing that there was zero chance he would know my friend but hey, look at that, he did! I walked over and greeted him and his two friends. I pulled up a chair and we all chatted for about 45 minutes. At that point my friend was like "We are heading a to a friend's party across the street. Come!" and I was like "Really? Isn't that a little weird? And o.k. yes, I will come." Twist my arm. We walked across the street and entered a beautiful Altbau building. Being the picture of sophistication I exclaimed "GUYS! THERE'S A BENCH IN THE ELEVATOR!! A BENCH IN THE ELEVATOR! LET'S SIT DOWN!" and we did because it's cool and I'm bossy. We exited on the top floor and walked into an incredible apartment. I kept saying "Are you guys sure I can be here?" as I physically restrained myself from snooping. There were bedrooms and bathrooms and rooms but I pressed on until we entered a large kitchen with bay windows and I was in love. We walked up some steps to a sloped ceiling room with a beautiful fireplace and French doors leading out to a large terrace over looking the city. INCROYABLE! I was passed a glass of wine (by the host but at that point I didn't know he was the host so I just thought he was a very very nice guy) and Edith Piaf was blasting from the stereo and it was all so surreal and very random Vienna.

I chatted with my friend for a while and when the storm subsided (there was a storm), we stepped onto the terrace and took in the lightning storm in the distance. At some point Falco replaced the French rap that was playing and of course I love Falco because FALCO! We danced to a few of his hits and then I realized it was time to call it a night. The host walked me to the door (really nice guy or perhaps making sure I leave and not end up squatting at his place because I AM IN LOVE with his place) and I jumped into the elevator and sat on the bench because there was a bench in the elevator. The storm had left the city fresh but still warm and the streets were shiny and the air was scented with flowers and I decided I would walk all the way home, happy for another random Vienna night.

I love this time of year where you never know what's around the corner! I love meeting new people and old friends and discovering places I have never been to before. I love this city year round but this time of the year almost seems magical, like anything could happen! Man, self hug, I'm happy. Enjoy your Sunday everybody and catch you all on the flipside! Or if you have a nice apartment, I might just be hiding under your bed.

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