We were fortunate this year to have been able to take a lovely trip to central Europe over the holidays. I'd wanted to see the Danube River ever since I was teenager reading the magnificent Clan of the Cave Bear series by Jean M. Auel. I used to pore over the tiny maps in the books, following Ayla's journey, imagining the places where she was, excitedly noting that the "Great Mother River" must, in fact, be the Danube River, the "Sister" must be the Rhine, and that these were real places that I might some day visit. After seeing the Rhine a few years ago, this year I finally saw the Danube. Beautiful blue, even in winter, making its way through the city of Vienna, which is also home to a museum that any fan of Auel's books would love, the Naturhistoriches Museum Wien, 
If you are ever in Vienna, you simply must visit this museum. It has the single best exhibit of artifacts and interpretation related to prehistoric man that I have seen anywhere, and is the location of the famousVenus of Willendorf. I was also thrilled by the small artifacts related to spinning and fiber work. Imagine spinning on a spindle with these stone whorls! I have always been interested in archaeology, especially that related to the Paleolithic Period, so I was in hog heaven at this museum. Someday I'd like to return to the area, as there are a great many sites in the vicinity with artifacts from the same period, not to mention, the landscape in northern Austria and southern Czechia is stunning!
Our trip was originally scheduled for November, but due to a detached retina my husband needed emergency eye surgery a few weeks before we were to go. I was luckily able to reschedule things over the last days of December, meaning we were able to spend New Year's Eve in Vienna. I've never been abroad on New Year's Eve, nor yet spent that day in a city that rolls out a huge celebration like Vienna does - wow! Close to midnight we joined the crowds heading towards the Hofburg Palace to see the fireworks. I had read that at the stroke of midnight they play the Danube Waltz and everyone starts waltzing! No one near us waltzed, but we could heard the Danube Waltz playing nearby amidst the popping fireworks. Having grown up watching looney tune cartoons, we found this hilarious.
Right - so the pattern! Inspired by the colors of the winter Danube.
The pattern is available here. Ours is made from Cat Mountain Fiber Arts Mist, one each of the colors Rain, and Stoney Brook. If you purchase two skeins of Mist from our web site, we'll include a free paper copy and email you an electronic copy of the pattern with your order. If you already purchased the pattern through Ravelry, let us know and we'll refund the pattern cost to you.
Thanks for reading and best wishes for your wellness!
