So I thought I will start allover again in Vienna with my "walkability" project once settled in. Well, we eventually moved from the country life in my hometown in Upper Austria to the "Big Apple" Vienna in February. Little did I know until then, that there is already an amazing community here, called "WildURB".  

The vision of founders of "Wildurb" is as simple as that: They want to increase the general sense for Walking in the community and it's enjoyable benefits. 
They offer a variety of short walking tours, hiking tours off the beaten track and sightseeing strolls in the beautiful city of Vienna. These walks are published in their books, and some of them also on their website. Check it out for more information. 
www.wildurb.at 

Seems like they already do cover a lot of what my walkability concept is about, and they do it really well. So the question for me is - does Vienna need my "walkability"? For now I have set my goal in researching the existing companies and communities and am happy to just blog a bit on my website. We'll see if there is a little niche for my walking business. I'm in no hurry. 

It looks like life is going to change very soon for my family and me. 
As you might know, I am NOT a native Australian.  Life brought us here seven years ago - and we just enjoyed it so much that we haven't left (apart from a 2 year US adventure) and by now are lucky citizens of this great country. But we are also very much rooted in Austria. 

Hence, this is the reason we now just have to go back home for a while. My husband was offered a good position in Vienna, back home in Austria. As a family we decided that we have to do this move to find out where we belong. Our daughters are now 3 and 5 years old and we want them to feel "Austrian" as well - if we stayed here for another few years, they probably would not understand our attachment to good old Austria. 

Well, one doesn't know until one does it. We will be heading home in September, just a couple of weeks after the OXFAM trailwalker challenge. What it means for my walkability business, I don't know yet. I am definitely keeping the website, as I want to pick up on it once back in Australia. Also, I might just keep on blogging a bit - because I am sure that there is an opportunity for "walkability.at" back at home :-)

Check out my tours on offer. 

By now I created three interesting tours around the coast- and bushland of Sydney's Eastern suburbs. 
You can find them on this website in the walking tours section. 

I am inviting you to see this amazing city from a different perspective. Discover your destination while walking - it is like meditation and I will guarantee you that it is an unique experience. 

The "Coast to Bush" tour is still free on Fridays. Check out the pictures and details of the tour here on my page, and then don't hesitate and join me to check it out! 

May I introduce you to the origin of my business idea?

I always loved walking, using my feet as a means of transport, enjoying the environment and the simple fortune of being healthy, of having the  ability to walk. 

In early 2013 I was questioning myself about "What's next". At that time I was just getting ready to leave my job as a  "full time stay at home mom" to two daughters. The nearly three year old "baby" was fully toilet trained and started family daycare once a week, while my older daughter was in pre-school, twice a week. I was very much looking forward to that "time to myself" - but every friday, when I had that day "off", I was very frustrated and unhappy, I just couldn't enjoy it. 

It turned out that while staying home with my children I did forget about my "other" life, the professional life I had before, earning real money in the adult world. Not that I regret one minute of staying home, being together with my daughters and making a home to my family, but at that stage it was not satisfying me anymore - I needed to get out again. 

A visit at my GP verified the subconscious fear I carried with me for a few weeks already: I did have positive results at the K10 test for psychological distress. My JP recommended to see a career psychologist, who turned out to be just what I needed. In addition to teaching me about how to deal with difficult thoughts and feelings, she worked with me on my CV and resume, helping me also to find out what I wanted to do next. When prompted to name my favorite thing to do, I would always state that walking is a big pleasure for me and I would love to do it for a living, of course knowing that this is not likely to be possible. 

But what would be wrong in just starting a "walking business" for the sake of doing it, for the sake of having a goal for the future, for the simple sake of having something on the agenda for those "free fridays"... and this is how it all really started. In March 2013 I started with walking "on purpose" to establish my own little business "walkability.com.au" - a business of high importance as it saved my sanity, and let me find back to happiness.