1 Month 3 days - The move - Decmber 16th

I couldn´t forget about the lack of accessible cultural activities for refugees in Vienna. Growing up amongst art and culture, thanks to my parents and the city I was born to, shaped me as a person, my view of the world, of its inhabitants, of religion and of philosophy. The Rasoul´s had a home now and even though it was very difficult to find them a home it was easier than making Vienna their new hometown. And that is why accessibility to cultural activities that represent each country are crucial. First you learn and then you love. 

In Vienna, a visit to the State Opera is a must and therefore I decided to write its press office an email. I briefly explained my position as a guardian for the Rasoul´s, noting that from my point of view, access to culture and arts leads to positive integration and I asked whether the State Opera would perhaps invite the family. I received an email right away, stating that my request would be discussed with the director of the State Opera, Dominique Meyer, and I would be notifed. I was keeping my fingers crossed. 

I also sent out an email to the Konzerthaus however I did not receive a response for more than a month. On January 25th I sent my email once more and I received a swift response stating that my request was forwarded to the responsible person and that I would be contacted as soon as possible. It is February 11th today and unfortunately I have not heard back from them since. 

I had plenty of other things to do though. Mo, my translator friend was in town and we had decided to move the Rasoul´s on this day into their first apartment where i had dropped off a bed sofa the night before. All they needed now were more beds, sheets, pillows, table, chairs, dishes - frankly they needed everything BUT a bed sofa. :) 

I browsed online and found a great, sturdy bunk bed that would be perfect for the boys. It would not take much space either. There were very little bunk beds for free. Those that were free of charge came with 99 problems. I chose to pay the 60 Euros for the bunk bed. Mo and Tony were able to pick it up together and Mo´s brother had offered his car once more. As I was still at work, I was unable to give Mo or Tony the money upfront. Mo payed for the bunk bed and refused to get reimbursed.

After work I went to Saturn, a shop that offers household items and purchased a small vacuum cleaner and a water cooker before meeting Agnes who was also helping on that day. 

We picked up the mattresses from Eva and Stephans place as well as some of the Rasoul´s personal belongings. The Rasoul´s would meet us directly at their new place.

Time was flying by and Agnes drove pretty fast back to the main shopping street as I wanted to get bed sheets, one more blanket, linen and a bath rug. We arrived 10 minutes before the shop closed and I was able to purchase everything. The 200 Euros of the first donation made this shopping trip possible as well as the water cooker, the vaccum cleaner and the transport costs for the bed sofa. Two hundred Euros can take you a long way if you know how to spend it and if you have helping hands like I have. 

We arrived at the Rasoul´s new apartment and we all started to mount the bunk bed together: Shamse, Abdelaziz, Helz, Diar, Mohamad, Tony, Agnes and me. It turned out to be very very tricky as whenever we added the last slatted frame, ALL of the frames fell down. That happened around four to five times. It felt a bit like playing pick-up sticks. We shared some good laughs and suddenly it was 10pm and the bed was nowhere near finished. So we decided to return the very next day with a drill and make the bunk bed happen. In the meantime the kids could sleep on the mattresses.

The Rasoul's children snuk out and came back with Doner Kebabs for all of us and we sat down wherever we could and enjoyed our late night dinner together before heading home. 

And here are a few pictures of all us working hard. :)