Sunday Outing

It was a beautiful day on Sunday and I wanted to get the kids out of the house.  Henry has been resistant to my outings, so I told him we'd find a new toy store.  No stores are open on Sunday, so we couldn't go in, just find it so we'd know where it was.  So off we go, the kids on their scooters and me walking.  Pretty soon we start seeing people dressed up and heading to the City Center.  By dressed up, I mean traditional dresses and men in green vests.  By the time we found the toy store, we'd seen LOTS of dresses and even some men in lederhosen (leather shorts with suspenders).  So we had to follow them to see where they were going.  Turns out it was a big street fair/festival with people dancing, playing music, booths selling food, drinks, traditional crafts.  This would have been lots of fun to explore, if I didn't have a folded up scooter in each hand, Henry pulling on my arm and Grace diving into the crowd. And was it CROWDED! And, as it turns out, lederhosen aren't just for men. Henry just wanted to leave, and Grace was bound and determined to find where all those giant cookies were coming from.  Neither one got their way since we got a little lost trying to find our way out and didn't find the cookies on the way.  Turns out all those little side streets, well, some of them lead to courtyards and some lead to exits.  I wish I had known more about what was going on, but it was a little overwhelming for all of us. The pictures below show men dancing (it was like stomp dancing), accordion players, and Grace's best attempt at capturing the traditional outfits. Did I say it was crowded?  I later found a newspaper and discovered the festival was Das Aufsteirern - celebrating Styrians. Styria is the state we live in.  It's history goes way back, but that's for another day.

Sue