Grüß Gott, Bread and Games

As far as I can tell, the Austrian are a courteous folk. They are not too overtly friendly, they do not overstep the boundaries of personal space such as some more Southern customs might involve, yet are always there to greet you in a friendly manner with one of the weirder sayings:

Grüß Gott

I was aware of the fact that Austria has been a strong supporter of Roman Catholicism for quite some centuries, but that they are constantly reminding people of their faith by openly using it as a standardized introduction, somehow baffles me a bit. First, where it comes from:

It's an abbreviation of „(Es) grüß(e) dich Gott“ (Griaß di god) and from what I heard, there is doubt about what exactly they mean. Maybe they want to utter a divine greeting to whomever they are talking to or whenever saying the words, hope to receive some sorts of blessing by their God. As of right now, I am not sure yet. The first times, I did not quite expect it and did not know what to say in return, but I have gotten used to it and am just saying it back. Somehow, I feel that it has lost quite a lot of its religious connotation and is just like saying hello or bonjour.

What I'd like to know, though, is what people think who are not of the same faith. There is still an overwhelming part of the population that is Roman Catholic, but it's always decreasing and has dropped to about 20% less of the general population in the last 40 years.

Bread and Games
In those weeks that I have been residing in Vienna, I have noticed a few things. The biggest of which has been the warning level of bread. I know bread is not supposed to be at the top of the gourmet's wish list, but can still taste delicious. Belgium is one of the best countries in that regard, we are a nation that loves the dough and flour-based products in all kinds and varieties. We do not only have plenty of bakeries (something that Austria has plenty of as well, you should be able to find one in every street in the centre of Vienna for example), but on top, have specialized sandwich bars that offer so many possibilities to add to a baguette or some other bread sort. I do not know why, but Austrian bread simply lacks taste. It is so bland and although they are freshly baked, are so tightly-knit, it is almost as if they forced two bread loaves in one.

I am sorry to rave on about it. But as of right now, it is the thing I miss most (besides my girl <3), because it's something I am used to eating a lot and it should be made a lot better! A Belgian-based bakery would make a fortune here. The Austrians would not know what hit them! Ehm scratch that idea. It's mine! ^ - ^

During the weekends, some friends of Bernhard have visited and brought something fun: Tabu. It is a card game you play in two teams and where the goal is to guess the word and gain points. One person of your team will be given a card with a word, person, building written on top and 4 to 5 words below that could describe it. As you might have guessed, these words are the most common ones to describe the word and you, who is holding the card, are not allowed to use any of them (while one player of the opposing team watches on, checking up on you) and you need to spout out words to make sure to your team mate which word you want him or her to guess.

It might sound boring, but as a foreigner it is a fun game to test your skills. It is quite difficult at times, especially the typically German references. But Tabu has been fun to play :D I have lost each time (the other team uses the home advantage, being all Austrian and such ><! I call cheat!), but have had some good runs as well (I think).

That is it for now, I am looking to write another Blog about my first experiences at the University as well - writing down the more stranger things I have noticed. Greetings from Vienna!