Thanksgiving

Well this is the first year that I didn't celebrate Thanksgiving. Firs I thought it wouldn't matter at all. Turns out that I was actually quite missing it. Never thought that living for 8 years in the States had changed me that much.
That got me thinking, that there are a ton of things that are typical Austrian & European and I think they're entirely ludicrous! Apparently living in the States has changed me way more than I initially thought. Some of those things I can't change...i will just have to learn to live with them. But there are other things that I can change...for example Thanksgiving.
From the year where I will have my new place set up I will be celebrating Thanksgiving as well.

Rio

Today I finally got around to watching Rio. For those of you who have no clue what I'm talking about, check out the IMDB Page of Rio.
The story in itself isn't something particularly new. It's a story about friendship, love and courage and does an adequate job to carry the plot along.
In an animated feature I really don't expect sophisticated character development or excellent dialogue. I expect a pretty straight forward story with a few twists and turns. And here the movie delivered all I was expecting. On top of that there are times when the dialogue is quite funny actually. The fact that Blu, one of the main characters, is a bit of a brainiac and nerd leads to lot of slapstick moments. There are times when Blu comes off as a little bit of a coward, but in the end he redeems himself by freeing Jewel and using his 'nerd power' to accomplish that.
The only way to describe the animation is amazing. The effects are crisp, clear and outstanding. Some of the flying scenes are absolutely incredible and very well planned through. The color scheme is vibrant and alive and the music does an awesome job supporting the animation. That taken all together make for a great audio-visual experience.
On a scale of 1 to 10' I would give this movie a 9!!

Pirates of the Caribbean 4

Today I finally got around the watch the fourth installment of the pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
For those of you who don't have a clue what I'm talking about check out the IMDB Page of Pirates of the Caribbean 4 for a synopsis!
It's a typical 'Pirates' movie. Funny, compelling story and lots of great action scenes. Right at the beginning Johnny Depp impersonating a british judgen is definitely quite funny. Shortly after that we learn that someone is trying to recruit a crew by impersonating Captain Jack Sparrow. Turns out this one is Penelope Cruz in disguise.  Really thought that this twist was a cool idea.
This time there is no epic sea battle. Blackbeard is an ok character but his role is definitely being outplayed by Depp and Cruz. The fight scenes on board are fun to watch and they're very well planned out. Personally I would have loved to see more great sword fight scenes.
The entire battle is with the mermaids is very well planned and just fun to watch. A hot, shirtless cleric was a bit a surprise and definitely down my alley! That in the end the cleric was going to fall for the mermaid was pretty much a given.
The scene of infiltrating the Spanish camp was quite comical actually. Johnny Depp's quite inventive escape from the camp, was just a fun action scene to watch. The entire scene with the fountain of youth was ok and Johnny Depp gave another great performance as a goofball of a pirate. That Blackbeard dies in the end doesn't come really as a surprise and neither does that Penelope Cruz survives. During the credits we had the setup for the next installment of Pirates of the Caribbean, and everyone who did watch the previous movies did expect exactly that.
So all in all it's a very entertaining 'Pirates' movie. Loved the well planned action scenes. The SFX were outstanding, the story consistent and fairly fast paced. The general plot is exactly what we have gotten used to, when watching a 'Pirates of the Caribbean' movie. Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz give an outstanding performance. It's your typical fun, action packed popcorn movie.
In a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the worst and 10 being the best, I would give it a solid 9!!

A Fall Hike to Aggstein Castle

Today I decided to take Daisy for fall hike. Since it was pretty foggy in the valleys, there was a chance that in the lower foothills you are already out of the fog. So I chose a fairly short hike, about 2 1/2 hours total. We hike from Maria Langegg to Ruine Aggstein (Aggstein Castle).
This is a fairly easy hike and there really isn't much difference in elevation. But it definitely is a great hike through the forest and especially in fall the forest make for beautiful hikes. I just love the fall colors of the forest. Daisy was doing very well during the hike and had a tons of fun with all the different smells and scents.
When we finally made it to Aggstein we could have had a great view of the Danube Valley, but there was still a lot of lingering fog and so the view wasn't that impressive. On the other hand, that really wasn't the main reason for the hike. I chose not to visit the castle, since I didn't feel like paying 5 bucks entrance fee and I've been to that castle several times already.
So Daisy and I just hung out for some time in the sun and then headed back to Maria Langegg. After a fairly late lunch, it was already 3 pm, we headed back to my parents.

A Visit to Sto'Vo'Kor

Today my parents re going to Styria to visit the graves of some family members on my Mom's side of the family. They had asked me to join them since my Dad didn't want to drive back home at night. I agreed to join them, not because I particularly care about the custom of visiting graves on November 1st, but it also provided the possibility to meet some of my relatives that I haven't seen in about 10 years.
We left at my parents around 10 am and picked up my aunt Erna in Mürzzuschlag at about 11.30 am. After some catching up we continued to pick up my aunt Lisl at Krieglach and headed to the nursing home in Mitterdorf to visit my aunt Mizzi. After that we had lunch at a restaurant. Took quite some time for the food to get ready, but early enough to make it in time to the cemetery. And that bring us to the title of the post. In the Klingon belief system Sto'Vo'Kor is the place of the honored dead. If you were to ask an Austrian kid in Elementary school where the honored dead are, you probably get as answer: on the cemetery.
We went to he grave of my uncle and met up with my uncle Adi and my cousins Resi, Dorli and Stefan. I haven't seen my cousin Stefan in at least 25 years...if not longer. Then the 'fun' thing with the service on the cemetery started. I really had to pay close attention not to start laughing. I haven't heard anyone trying to convince himself with of his faith with pseudo arguments in a very long time. Of course the Vernon was entirely ludicrous, but actually quite entertaining. After the priest had finished we visited the graves of my uncles Willi and Otto, before heading over to my cousins house for some coffee. We spent about 2 hours there catching up.
While hanging out with my relatives it occurred to me how different the guys on my Mom's side of the family are compared to those of the guys on my Dad's side if the family. The first one are laid back, easygoing and fun to be around with...the latter one not so much, they're kinda stuffy and always tend to look for the needle in the haystack. When I look at myself I do realize that I definitely have both traits and I think that I manage to keep a reasonable balance between the 2 sides. So having been away for over 8 years has definitely its benefits, as you get completely new insights into your own family.
Around 6 pm we said our good byes and dropped of my 2 aunts before heading back home. Halfway through the drive home we stopped at a restaurant to have dinner and by about 9.30 pm we were back at my parents.
So all in all it was a quite enjoyable day and catching up with relatives was quite fun.