Please remain calm

I forgot how stressful a move is in its final stages. A month from now I will be in Denmark with Silja - Bjarni will join us there shortly after. But this last month.... Craazy. I think we were slightly overambitious when we planned that we would leave right after I finished my MA studies. As an international student I'm currently running from office to office, filling out bureaucratic paperworks and making sure I'm adhering to deadlines and guidelines and what not. But in between my broken German and secretaries', at times, rusty English, misunderstandings still happen. I submitted my thesis in the beginning of this week, but learned at the same time that I need a grade for the thesis two weeks BEFORE I can register for the final exam. My advisor, who is relatively new to Uni Wien didn't know either. She now has less than a week to read and grade my 100 page paper, if I'm to take the final exam before we leave. This whole mess has now left us trying to postpone the exam to the last minut, one or two days before I leave Viennea. Worst case scenario is that I have to come back to do the final exam over the summer, but man, I hope this works out before we go. I was hoping for a little breather after I had submitted my thesis, but it doesn't feel like it now. I will be studying and packing/organizing right up until we leave.

On a positive note, Silja finally received her US visa, and we decided to ship our belongings straight from Vienna, making that part considerably more easy. What else? We are drinking the expensive wine, because there is no need to save things like that for special occasions. From now on its clearing things out, which has its nice moments to it too.

Phew, I hope to check in sooner than later, but we'll see how it goes.

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Fasching

We have been celebrating Fasching over the last couple of days. Eating fastelavnsboller, the Danish equivalent of Krapfen with Danish and German friends, and today Silja celebrated the festivities in Kindergarten dressed up as a little lamb -- very Icelandic.

Today we have settled where we will stay in Boston until the end of August. Turns out we will have a garden over the summer. Oh yeah!

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Frozen Morning

We were early for our visa interview at the US consulate this morning, and went for a walk in Stadt Park to kill time. Although the Siberian winter conditions have left Vienna, the city is still frozen. According to the weather forecast the weekend will bring sun and 6 (S I X) happy degrees.

We got the visas. Well, except from Silja, whose newly issued passport has been delayed from the Danish authorities. Hopefully it will get here soon though, so she can come along. Vienna is nice, but we don't want to leave her behind. Next on the to-do list is to find a rental van to take to Hamburg (and leave there) with all our stuff that will then be shipped to Boston. Oh, is it nice this endless to-do list is getting shorter.

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Brazilian Generosity

South west of Vienna, far far away in the tropics of Brazil has a sweet old grandmother made four pairs of soft knitted baby shoes for Silja. I got them earlier this week, when I met with my dear friend Priscilla for lunch. She went back home to do fieldwork in Brazilian prisons over the summer (yeah, forget about my coffee dates with skilled migrants in Vienna...) and the grandmother gave her a bag with more shoes for the friend in Austria, who had a baby. She also provided two pairs when Silja was newborn. Oh well, now they don't fit. In fact we need to go and buy new shoes, because those feet are growing so fast, but we'll save these little ones well, and hopefully the hand-knitted goods from a Brazilian grandmother will eventually fit someone else's tiny feet.

Have a happy weekend!

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Glugga veður

There's an Icelandic expression that I like, and which fits perfectly to this weekend, where Wien like most of Europe has experienced double digit minus degrees. Brrr! Glugga veður or window weather is when the weather is sunny and beautiful, but only enjoyable from the (warm!) inside looking out. We didn't stay inside the entire time, but the trips outside were minimized and shortened as it was just so freaking cold!

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