Austria

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with love from Pertisau am Achensee, Austria (1976)

With love from Pertisau am Achensee

Dear Hilary,  I am having a great time I haven’t fallen over once yet. I hope you are having a great time as well. The weather is beautiful and so is the view from our bedroom window. By the way Clive is behaving. We went to the glass place at Kufstein and we saw them carving things on glasses see you sometime love Jackie xx

 

Another card posted from Austria (almost 40 years ago!) and postmarked ‘Pertisau 3-2-1976 6213’

The picture of Pertisau am Achensee is similarly repeated in the other post mark, so must be the ‘classic’ view of the town.

The ‘glass place’ mentioned is the world famous Riedel glass factory.

 

Jackie posted this from a school ski trip – she still went on the trip even though she had left our school and moved out of the area (with her family) some months earlier. I went away skiing with my family the same week – my parents figured that there would be lots of kids who’d missed lessons and had to catch up. This was, of course, back in the days when trips and holidays could be taken in UK term time without any hassles or fines! Clive, was the boy I fancied at the time – I probably spent much of my own week away imagining him and the others getting up to all sorts of fun without me…  

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with love from Brand, Austria (1984)

With love from Brand Austria 1984

Mon. 23rd Jan ’84 Dear Hilary, Hi! The hotel is really beautiful, as well as the food. We are literally surrounded by mts, and there is loads of snow. David and I practiced downhill just behind the hotel yesterday and today we took 2 chairlifts up to the top. The slope we took was supposed to be easy but they were steep enough for me. However my skiing is improving – with David’s patient teaching. The cross country also looks good and I’m really looking forward in having a go again. Hope you are all well. Lots of love Wendy

Post marked 24 Jan 84 from Brand bei Bludenz, this status update gives a vivid description of the holiday that Wendy is taking with her boyfriend, David.

The stamp is 4 Austrian Schillings, which was the Austrian currency prior to their adoption of the Euro in 2002

Wendy was from North Wales and proud of it; hence the address specifically identifies England, Great Britain. ‘Great Britain’ is less usual now – these days most people seem to opt for ‘United Kingdom’.

Wendy was also a mother’s help in Oslo, becoming firm friends with Anne and me, as we shared the experience of being away from home for the first time. We also all learned cross country skiing together and spent our days off touring through the cross country trails around Oslo. I continued to correspond with Wendy once we returned to the UK, but I do not recall meeting with her again and we eventually lost touch.