Our New Home

Wow. Where do I begin?  Well, we've had an interesting break from technology lately.  We wanted to get into our new place so quickly that we were more focused on things like linens than internet accessibility and when you see our place, you'll likely understand why.

We really fell in love with the fourth district: Wieden and we feel fortunate that we've found a place to live here.  We're one train stop away from the Staatsoper and two from Stephansdom.  My big, beautiful, overwhelming Vienna is so close, yet we are allowed to feel we are living in a smaller community.  The fourth district is home to quite a few foreign embassies, so it's not unusual to hear three or four languages other than German being spoken while out and about.  We have a tiny little supermarket just around the corner and are also near Wiedener Haupstrasse, which has a plethora of little shops in which I've already purchased a tea kettle (necessity!) and a toaster (because it turns out I burn toast if I try to make it in the oven) There is a brewery called Wieden Brau, complete with beer garden directly across the street from us and a lovely Asian restaurant called Chang just down the street.

This new apartment is on the first floor (that's actually the second, for you Yanks) and is twice the size of our temporary apartment we were living in when we first arrived.  It is also altbau (an old building), so the ceilings are very high and there are tall doorways in between all the rooms, making the space feel quite open.  When you walk into the entryway, you’re flanked by both bathrooms: one with a toilet (this is odd for Europe, because they are usually separate), sink, shower and washing machine.  The other we have deemed the girls' bathroom since it only has a tub and sink.  Directly to the right of the entry is our living room, complete with fabulous chandelier...and where we will soon have a sleeper sofa (for guests!  Hint! Hint!) and big comfy leather chair (for John).  When we first moved in, this is where Audrey plopped down on the sofa, like the Queen of Sheba, demanded a snack and proceeded to lounge while we figured out things like how to turn on the electricity. 

Leading off of the living room is our dining room with more shelf space than I'll know what to do with and an alpine hutch for linens; I can’t wait for our shipment to get here so I can actually fill all those shelves.

Leading off of the dining room is the master bedroom which is really quite huge; there is a massive (for Europe) bed with a gigantic bed frame/shelving/nightstand combo and a wardrobe on the opposing wall that is at least five times bigger than we need it to be.  I’ve been really good the past few years with keeping things in that department simple, so it’s going to be difficult looking at all that empty space and resisting the urge to fill it. John, by far, has more clothing than I do; he’s the one who’s got people to impress.  Plus, I like it when my man looks snazzy. 

 Moving on! 

So, all those rooms I just described line one side of the main hallway, and at the end of the hallway, next to our bedroom is the girls’ room...with a heart-shaped mirror. That apparently sold the place and it's how Audrey clarifies where we’re going: “To our apartment with the heart-shaped mirror”.  The girls also have a wardrobe that spans the length of an entire wall and probably could contain all the clothing they will wear from now until they graduate from college.  They have a tall bookshelf for their books and toys, Audrey has her own big, big-girl bed and there is still room for Bailey’s crib, hopefully a future reading nook and also a kid-sized craft table. When we first looked at the apartment, we could not pry the girls out of this room--they're comfortable there and that speaks louder than anything.   

Going back down the hallway on the opposite side is my kitchen…yes, mine.  It has a lot of counter space, especially since I don’t plan on having a microwave or any other electric appliances that tend to clutter things up.  Instead, I have fruit and coffee and tea on display and plenty of room to spread out while I’m making a mess in the kitchen.  And do I ever.  This is the first significant amount of time I’ve spent cooking with a gas range.  I used them in school and I understand why they are superior to glass/electric ranges, but I just burn everything…always have.  Now I have no choice but to learn and I’m actually happy about it.  It’ll probably still be a few months before I’ll buy a decent cut of meat, for fear of burning anything that nice, but for the moment I’m mastering the art of boiling water and burning bacon. 

Further back down the hallway is a storage room…and I use that term lightly because this could’ve probably been a third small bedroom, but the previous owner put up some massive shelves (because we need even more storage), which we’ve conveniently stowed all of our (EMPTY!!!) luggage on and I use the room to dry laundry.  If you’re in town for an extended visit, you’re more than welcome to use it as your bedroom.  We’re booking reservations. 

Now we’re back to the entryway and that’s our apartment.  We’re in love with it; we love the building, the neighborhood, the nearby parks and the close proximity of the Naschmarkt (more on that later). 

I wish I could’ve bottled the happiness we felt that first night here; hardly anything but our bedding was unpacked, we had half a bottle of crap red wine and an absolutely horrid dinner that I burned to a crisp…and it was delicious.  One of the best meals I’ve had in a long time: I’m with my little family in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, in an apartment that I don’t deserve. Our little world is just rosy.  God is good.  We are so grateful for our blessings.