Neusiedl am See
What is common
to you
and uncommon
to others:
this lake
its white shore ―
an awkward tree line
squeezed
between opal and grey
bath water.
Could be
the Solent; Bristol Channel;
an other other.
To you
heat and nakedness
a pizza
shared with ants
an argument
with ducks.
Neusiedl am See was known as Nezsider until 1921 when it was part of Hungary, but the Treaties of Saint-Germain-en-Laye and Trianon awarded it (and the rest of Burgenland) to Austria. The town is on the northern shore of the Neusiedler See, a lake that borders both nations, known for its reeds and shallowness, as well as its mild climate throughout the year. It is Austria's largest lake and the largest endorheic lake in Central Europe, meaning that it retains water and allows no outflow to other external bodies of water (such as rivers or oceans) but converges instead into lakes or swamps. The area has been settled since neolithic times and densely populated since the 7th century BCE, though Bergenland is the nation's least populous state.
ReplyDeleteThe Solent is the strait that separates the Isle of Wight from the rest of England. It was 1st recorded as "Soluente" in 731, possibly derived from a Celtic Brittonic root. After James II was nearly shipwrecked there in 1685, Henry Purcell composed "They that go down to the sea in ships." The "Titanic" departed from there in 1912.
The Bristol Channel (Môr Hafren) separates Devon and Somerset from South Wales. It was formerly known as the Severn sea.