Schwarzkopf's Legacy

Happy birthday, Kaylin!

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Today is Plansee's Family Day to celebrate the 95th anniversary of the company (or, more simply put, the raison d'etre for our trip).

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We met up with the others for breakfast and then drove over to the plant in two cars. The weather was partly sunny and a bit cool with the forecast of showers later (Dan, Carrie, and Greg will remember that the 90th anniversary weather was full rain all day). We wanted to enjoy all the events in the good weather for as long as possible.

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We met up with Egon and proceeded to take a tour of the entire operation which was quite impressive as the shops were all in full swing (they are in operation 24/7 with the exception of six hours on Sunday, per Austrian rule on the Sabbath). I won't go into detail here (molybdenum, tungsten, and complicated machining), but I'll say this: The red carpet was out. Steve was greeted warmly and enthusiastically by colleagues both retired and currently in charge. We stopped for snacks, then lunch, then coffee and sweets. One tent was set up for entertainment which included some magicians, a "rock" band, and gymnastics from the Ukraine.

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Later in the afternoon, the rain came and went, but only after dropping buckets on the masses (eight thousand people were invited).

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We had plans to visit Michael and Christina Weirather and baby Maximilian at their new home with Maggie. We stopped and picked up flowers and wine and wound our way over to their village.

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What a delight to see Emile Haueis there for cocktails! He is a favorite of mine, and I'm sure Carrie and Sally remember our dinner with him well from last year. Christina made us a delicious Austrian feast of a salmon pate with bread and smoked salmon for an appetizer, beef roulade with prune, nut, and bacon stuffing, noodles, and salad from her garden. We had some kind of homemade cheese dumpling steamed in their oven, rolled in something (?) and served with cherries. Exquisite.

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Three year old Maximilian was a delight! I did not expect him to remember us, but he immediately took Steve's hand and pulled him in to his play area to show him a favorite truck. Emile said that when he told him that Steve from America was coming, little Max said, "No, Papa. Steve from the USA." He is so cute and so well behaved. He kissed us all good night at about 8:30, but when I attempted to kiss his cheeks, he said, "No, busse'" or something meaning, "on the mouth."

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The house is amazing. Think upscale Ikea- crisp, clean lines, and super efficient. And spotlessly clean. Wood and white. Tons of windows and huge full plate glass doors that open to the gardens. Lots of tile. Did I mention spotlessly, sparklingly clean? Christina is pregnant with their second child and she works at BMW, but somebody is spraying the Windex over there.

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Michael's parents live right next door on the other side of their driveway. It is typical in this area for parents to will their house to their children or sub-divide the property. Michael's sister will get the house and his brother will build elsewhere on the property. Michael and Christina's house is not large, but it is thoughtfully designed and beautifully appointed.

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Great night with an intimate look into the life of this charming little family!

#Austria #Reutte #Plansee