From the bottom of my heart, I say thank you, Sarah. For that one, so unexpectedly enlightening sentence that emerged during a cheerful evening conversation between us about half a year ago. And that has since proven to be such a unqiue and loyal companion for me. So many times. I’m saying this because it’s precisely this sentence, and the memories and feelings it evokes, that keep making me smile and giggle every time I pass by the above-posted picture that hangs in the nursing home where I am working.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls – “Buama und Mädels” (as we say in the deepest Austrian slang) – exclusively for you, the visitors of our fine blog, I would like to present now the two truly unique Austrian counterparts to Rhode Island’s lighthouses and beaches! The alpine pendants to the usual maritime Atlantic motifs. The Austrian “twins” of many tourist’s dreams, the “Cliché Cousins” so to say – or, maybe even funnier, the centuries old “siblings of romantic merchandise”.
A curtsy and a wink to Mountains & Lakes, please. If Lighthouses & Beaches are the go-to for many photographers in Rhode Island, then these are the “undying evergreens of a muse” for many creatives, businessmen, souvenir makers, and painters from over here – on fridge magnets, postcards, coffee pots and/or throw pillows (to name just a fraction of what’s really circulating out there).
And now I would now like to raise my glass for a very, very special “anniversary toast mix”: “Glück auf!” and “Heave Ho!” to this truly wonderful similarity of slightly overused motifs and all tourist clichés in general, to two full years and the unbelievable number of a 100+ posts here on the Photograf*in Blog, a full 8 years of a fulfilling and inspiring transatlantic friendship, and perhaps also to the curious fact that it has indeed been half a year now since my unforgettable and transformative trip to Sarah and the U.S. (and bringing the above sentence with me!). Year three, here we go!