Prost

Caught the train to go to Vienna today. Had been planning this trip for pretty long time. Ben, a fellow student from Rice was here spending his summer at University of Wien(Vienna in austrian/German). And he was going back the next weekend, so pretty much decided to go this weekend (well, okay. an extended weekend). Changed trains at zurich to catch the train to Vienna. The total journey took 12 hours, but time past pleasantly. Lausanne-Zurich I had done quite a few times, so concentrated on my Let's Go Western Europe for some information on vienna and munich. I had used the book so much in the last 3 years, that it was almost in tatters held together by some tape. Invaluable book. I recommend it to anyone who is or wants to fall in love with the old world.

I will quote from the book, I must -- "If Western Europe were in high school, she'd be the girl that all the others students love to hate. She has a voice crafted by the likes of Verdi and Mozart. When she opens her mouth in class, pearls of wisdomfrom Dante, Sartre, and Kierkegaard drop forth. She was a classic before the word had meaning, and the rest of the class hurries frantically to copy her style. She wore a toga in the court of Caesar, and now adorns herself in the more terrestrial chic of Chanel and Armani. She moves from sipping Ambrosia to champagne with seamless grace but isn't above tossing back a few pints of Guinness, or screaming herself hoarse at a football match. Why wate the time envying a creation this divine when Western Europe is there for the taking, an inexhaustible supply of art, music and natural beauty? This is one Homecoming queen who is far from unapproachable. So ask her out. Go." Could anyone have put it any better? And I am so fortunate to get the chance to discover this exotic beauty called Europe.

As my train moved towards the border of Austria, I frequenty looked up from my research. So beautiful outside. Rolling meadows, high mountains at a distance, crystal clear lakes. At the border came the customary immigration check, and we moved on. We moved along a narrow valley with high mountains on both sides, following the path of a tributary of danube. Snow capped Alpine peaks peeked here and there, majestically rising high above. One had to crane his neck to see the high mountain tops. Gradually, the valley widened with lush green meadows of
wildflowers, thick and dark forests and rolling countryside. It was heavenly - the land of the Sound of Music. Reached vienna late that night, thankfully my friend was there to receive me. And so I was in Vienna - the cultural heart of Europe for centuries. Here from came Freud's theories, Kafka's dark fantasies, and Mozart, Beethoven and Mahler's deathly beautiful music. This city is at the crossroads of East and Western Europe, drawing the best (and worst) of them both.

Went forth to a tiny pub after freshening up at the house. Over the beer mug, I learned to look at the partners eyes directly and saw "prost". If one did not, as the legend in these parts go, one was condemned to seven years of bad sex. And so, everyone in the pub did their prost very very seriously.