Moving Along

Maddie started at the International School today and loved it. Her teacher is great and the principal reminds me of the grandmother everybody always wanted. After she took Maddie to class, we walked down the hall with her and she called at least six students by name as they passed by.

Today was a big day for another reason. We bought me a bicycle. That, along with the train and buses, will be my primary mode of transport. I have saddle bags for the back and will probably add a basket to the front. It's amazing how many people (of all ages) travel by bicycle here.

Our big gripe with Germany right now is the smoking. Skip claims that there are more restrictions than even five years ago, but it is still so much more prevalent than in the US. We won't be able to eat at resataurants in the winter. Now we can eat in the outdoor seating area, but there's no way we're sitting inside. We've had to re-educate Maddie so that she won't point to the smokers and hold her nose. We've had to reinforce that smoking is bad, but people who smoke aren't.

In spite of all the ice cream she is eating, Maddie seems to be getting even skinnier and we've adujusted her pants as tight as they will go. She hasn't quite made the adjustment to all the German food. Even familiar foods taste just a bit different here. I'm pretty sure that the frying oil here is more animal than vegetable and even some fruits are not quite the same.

This may be the last post for awhile. This is our last night in the hotel, and I will have to wait until the cable folks come and set up our tv/phone/internet at the house. Nothing is quick here, so I'm hoping we'll be up and running by this time next week.

Tomorrow I hit the annual activity fair put on by the American Women of Dusseldorf Club and I'm hoping all my remaining questions about living in Germany will be answered there.