New Year and More

We've recently passed several milestones of the Jewish Calendar. For Rosh HaShana (Jewish New Year) my husband and I visited our old stomping grounds: Vienna, Austria. We took advantage of the direct flight and the fact that we had two days off work. Vienna is my favorite city in Europe. Forget Paris or Berlin...Vienna is the place to be. My husband and I studied abroad there and lived there after graduating college. This time when we visited, it felt like we had never left--and we almost didn't want to! Below you will see (1) the "exotischer salat" at the Nashmarkt, complete with the new wine called Sturm, (2) the Hapsburg Palace Shoenbrunn, and (3) the Vienna woods.

For Yom Kippur (the Jewish Day of Atonement) all the streets were closed to traffic and we rode our bikes on the highway to a neighboring town. It was a good workout and an eerie experience. The next day we just relaxed in our apartment because everything is closed.

Celebrating two New Years gives me two chances to renew my resolutions. This year I still would like to learn how to make bread (so far I have made banana bread, honey bread, naan, biscuits, scones, and pizza dough) and I would like to start waking up earlier, reading the newspaper, and walking to work while listening to a podcast or book on tape. We'll see how long that lasts.

Last, but certainly not least, a blogger friend of mine, Kate Miss, recently found out some bad news about her boyfriend. You can read about it here and/or support them by purchasing some of her rad prints as a fundraiser. I have been very shaken by the fact that they are so young, but I also know that young people are resourceful and generous. Please consider buying a print for a good cause.

Thanks everyone and Shana Tova vMetuka (have a good and sweet new year)!