House Swap Letter

Dear Anja,

Thank you for your letter with all the details about your lovely house and surroundings. Just a few additional things – you mentioned we could play sports in your garden, for example, badminton. But you weren’t clear whether we were the only people who were allowed to use your garden for that. I mean, do you mind if we invite your neighbours if we need any additional player? Other than that, everything looks fine. Now, as promised, here is everything you need to know about our place.

The house

It is easy to get to the house using public transport. I’ve arranged to leave the key with my neighbour on the ground floor. If you have any problems with anything during your stay, just ask him. Fillip is very friendly; if you need any kind of help, just ask him. This guy will give you the apartment key, which is the same key for the lift as well, so I’ve asked him to show you how everything works. In the apartment you can use all the appliances you find. Everything works properly and nothing is complicated to operate, well, maybe with the exception of the dishwasher. If you want to start it, gently push the start button – I have to warn you, this machine doesn’t like violence. Before you leave the apartment, please unplug all the devices. I might be a bit paranoid, but I think this helps to prevent any unpleasant accidents caused by electronic devices.

Food

I’ll leave you something to eat in the fridge for when you arrive. If you want to buy any other groceries, we have a local supermarket just around the corner. By the way, in case you don’t fancy cooking for yourself and you don’t want to go far, the coffee shop in the neighbourhood - it’s also a bakery - does very good food for breakfast and snacks. The coffee they serve is also fantastic! Make sure to try it! Walking there will take you only a few minutes. You can find more opportunities to eat out downtown. There are Capperi! and Torona, which are famous for their good food, but I should warn you that they are also a bit pricey. I would steer clear of the restaurants on the main street of our district, though. The food is awful there and is not worth your money.

Places to see

The main attraction in Graz is, obviously, the city center. It’s a bit touristy, though. I would recommend you go to Eggenberg - just take the tram line 1, going to Eggenberg. There is a beautiful garden there, where you can have a relaxing walk and take a look at rare sorts of trees and flowers. If you are interested in the baroque palace and its history or architecture, you should visit the exhibitions there. The one in the new building showing Roman treasures is fantastic. It captivated me, though such things had never interested me before. If you decide to go downtown anyway, you should walk up the Schloßberg, a former fortress on the big hill in the city centre and explore it. From the top you have a wonderful view of the entire city. You should take some photos there. You will not regret it. If you want to go shopping, you’re best going to K&Ö, the big department store just off the Main Square (Hauptplatz). I will leave you a city map with descriptions of a few places which are a bit off the beaten path.

Well, that’s about it. Should you need anything else or if you’ve got any special requests, please feel free to contact us.

I’m looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Kristina

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