Lucky 13 [Paperback]

This book begins with a short journey through the meaning of the number 13 in human societies, religions, and cultures. Then this is followed by some historic dates on which certain things happened on the thirteenth day. As the number 13 has played an important role in Franz Kratschmer s life, he decided to start his personal history with his grandfather, who sailed the world in the late nineteenth century. Some of the countries his grandfather visited would later be part of Franz s journeys. This included Brazil, Africa, Indonesia, and Australia. The reader will be taken on a voyage that started off during the Austro-Hungarian Empire, passing both World Wars, the liberation of the Austrian capital of Vienna on April 13, 1945, and the author s birth four years later. His career in the Austrian military was followed by becoming a civilian peacekeeper of the United Nations in the Middle East and East Timor (Timor-Leste) for more than twenty-three years.