(From Rob) Goodbye, Vienna ...or...Mummy-Dogs and the Green Danube

To say goodbye to Vienna, Maddie wanted to go to the Natural History Museum and Will wanted to swim in the (la la la la la....Bump Bump, Bump Bump) Blue Danube. Not my idea of "must do" events, but sure, why not? So here the kids are letting out their energy on Maria Theresia Square in front of the museum.
Speaking of the aforementioned monarch, not only was she Marie Antionette's mom, she also had her lap-dog mummified and stuffed. It's on display on a stairway at the museum. Who knew?

The Museum is a major turn-of-the-century production number with marble, statues and a huge dome. I love it for its many old display cases. If I could furnish my home the way I want it, there would be thousands of small apothcary drawers and lots of nifty old wood-and-glass display cases. With cool stuff in them. Like Mary Ann's collection of Esprit stuff from the 80's and my old retainers. But I digress...

The kids were way into the minerals, animals and dinosaurs. I was looking forward to that chubby, zaftig little stone dream woman with prehistoric Junk in her Trunk, the Venus of Villendorf. She is in a display somewhere else. Damn.

Aftewards it was of to the Gansehaufl again to jump into the Danube. First, of course, we had to join all of the Europeans sitting around in their speedos eating pastries and sausages. No one should be seen eating sausages in a speedo. It is too much metaphor for one meal.

Here is our man Will-O jumping off into die schöne grüne Donau. He saw a fish and was trying to knock it out by landing on it. And below, our lovely Maddie jumps backwards into the river. I told her to hold on or she would float to Budapest.

Afterward, we did a round of miniature golf at a campy putt-putt-place right there on the beach. A middle-aged man behind us was teeing off with his speedos propped dapperly half way down his po-po. Again: Golf in speedos--too much metaphor for me.

Check out Will. Every time we head out into public, he ends up next to some nice old lady and immediately chats her up. This is the first time that I have photographically captured this particular phenomenon. She, of course, was thoroughly charmed by him. Already, at his age, he can work the ladies. One time he got an ice ream cone out of some broad on a boat in Berlin. After 20 minutes with her, she was waving goodbye to him with a hankerchief and adminishing us to "Be good to that wonderful boy." Oh, he's a gold digga...way over town...

Signing off from the land of waltzes and castration anxiety. I'll report from the Alps in a few.