Skip's colleague and our friend Ren has a burning desire to be included in this blog. So here are a few more pics of Skip's "business trip" to the states.
Ren is the one pointing at you.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
More on Skip's Trip
Skip's colleague and our friend Ren has a burning desire to be included in this blog. So here are a few more pics of Skip's "business trip" to the states.
Ren is the one pointing at you.
Halloween
Just a few pictures from Trunk or Treat. I understand several places in LR are doing that this year as well. We highly recommend it. Maddie had a blast and got lots of candy without having to trek from house to house. And people really went to town decorating their cars. Everyone but us, that is. I just couldn't spend money on Halloween decorations when Skip and I may have to buy coats because we still don't have our shipment from the US and it's getting cold! Okay, I could have bought decorations, but the coat thing is a good excuse.
Fortunately it wasn't too cold tonight.
Last Week
Last week, Skip had to return to the US for some very important training. Here is a picture of his time there, sharing a time-honored Arkansas tradition with one of his German colleagues.
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Blog 101
It's come to my attention that some readers do not realize that you can click on a picture and view it in its original size. Also, any underlined word in the text is a link to a related site. Just click on it to learn more.
Shopping Frenzy
We made a bit of an error today. Shops in Germany, by law, are closed on Sunday. So after church today, we thought it would be nice to head into the Alstadt and have lunch. Only the restaurants are open, so it wouldn't be too crowded and we could have some practice navigating that area of town by car. We inadvertently chose one of the three to four Sundays of the year when shops CAN be open. It was wall to wall people.
We actually had lunch at the Carsch Haus, which is an upscale department store. They have an entire market area with all sorts of restaurants. We ate at a really good Indian place, but there was also Chinese, seafood, a champagne bar, a pub and a deli.
Now today Skip just had curry chicken, but he's really been making some unusual choices (at least by American standards) at restaurants lately. On Friday night, he had a pig's leg. Really. A roasted pig's leg. Another day this week, he ordered a mushroom pancake. And as a special treat today for breakfast, I fried him up a thick slice of leberkase topped with a fried egg. Leberkase is a pate made from pork or veal liver, pork belly, garlic and onions and shaped into a loaf and sliced. I knew he wanted to get back to his German roots, but I didn't real
ize it would be a culinary journey.
We actually had lunch at the Carsch Haus, which is an upscale department store. They have an entire market area with all sorts of restaurants. We ate at a really good Indian place, but there was also Chinese, seafood, a champagne bar, a pub and a deli.
Now today Skip just had curry chicken, but he's really been making some unusual choices (at least by American standards) at restaurants lately. On Friday night, he had a pig's leg. Really. A roasted pig's leg. Another day this week, he ordered a mushroom pancake. And as a special treat today for breakfast, I fried him up a thick slice of leberkase topped with a fried egg. Leberkase is a pate made from pork or veal liver, pork belly, garlic and onions and shaped into a loaf and sliced. I knew he wanted to get back to his German roots, but I didn't real
ize it would be a culinary journey.
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Halloween in Germany
okay, it's not Halloween yet, but we did get to go to a Halloween party put on by the American Women's Club.
Halloween is funny here because it's not really a German thing, but people seem to have adopted it. There is a big Halloween bash planned in downtown Duesseldorf and all the area zoos will be having different events--kind of like our Boo at the Zoo. It's a great excuse for Germans to party because November 1 is All Soul's Day and a holiday. Nobody has to get up to go to school or work!
The British ex-pats here do Halloween except the costumes are always spooky. Never cute. Can you guess who the American kid is in this picture?
I was working at one of the games at the party with an English woman and she described the candy corn we were giving away as a prize as "some bizarre American Halloween candy." Guess Candy corn is not big in the UK.
There were prizes given away for the best costumes. This was my pick. I guess even witches sometimes need maternity clothes!
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
3 R's--Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Just in case you're finding it too time consuming to recycle because it involves having two different receptacles for trash, let me offer a little lesson on the German way of disposing of waste.
I have FIVE different receptacles in my home and really should get a sixth.
One is for organic matter. Egg shells, vegetable and fruit peels, etc. What cannot go in here is cooked food. This bin mercifully seals airtight until time to dispose of it.
One is for items that have the Green Point symbol on them. These are things like cans, milk containers, ice cream boxes, etc. These cannot be thrown in with the regular trash.
One is for stuff that doesn't fall into any other mandated category. And oddly enough, there is quite a bit of this.
The above items can be taken to large receptacles at the end of our little street and put in the appropriate bins. But that's not all there is.
Another bin is for paper and cardboard items that are not Green Point but can still not be included with the regular trash. And then there are glass bottles that are non-returnable. They have to be taken and put into the appropriate bins according to whether they are green, clear or brown glass. It's actually kind of fun to smash them into the bins. So far I do not have a separate container for these as we don't generate too many of them. There is not a receptacle for these items at the end of our drive, so they have to be walked or driven to the appropriate depository.
My fifth bin is for deposit bottles that can be returned for money.
This is yet another reason why most German women do not have jobs outside the home. Sorting and depositing trash takes up too much time. I guess being kind to the earth takes more effort than I realized. And all of the effort it takes to get rid of the garbage makes you more inclined to reduce and re-use.
I have FIVE different receptacles in my home and really should get a sixth.
One is for organic matter. Egg shells, vegetable and fruit peels, etc. What cannot go in here is cooked food. This bin mercifully seals airtight until time to dispose of it.
One is for items that have the Green Point symbol on them. These are things like cans, milk containers, ice cream boxes, etc. These cannot be thrown in with the regular trash.
One is for stuff that doesn't fall into any other mandated category. And oddly enough, there is quite a bit of this.
The above items can be taken to large receptacles at the end of our little street and put in the appropriate bins. But that's not all there is.
Another bin is for paper and cardboard items that are not Green Point but can still not be included with the regular trash. And then there are glass bottles that are non-returnable. They have to be taken and put into the appropriate bins according to whether they are green, clear or brown glass. It's actually kind of fun to smash them into the bins. So far I do not have a separate container for these as we don't generate too many of them. There is not a receptacle for these items at the end of our drive, so they have to be walked or driven to the appropriate depository.
My fifth bin is for deposit bottles that can be returned for money.
This is yet another reason why most German women do not have jobs outside the home. Sorting and depositing trash takes up too much time. I guess being kind to the earth takes more effort than I realized. And all of the effort it takes to get rid of the garbage makes you more inclined to reduce and re-use.
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Stuff From Home
Skip made it back after being in the states for almost a week with a suitcase full of goodies from home. Cornbread mix, chili mix, baking soda and powder, children's Tylenol and cough syrup (hope we won't need it!). He also hauled back two 10 by 16 cookie sheets, but he could have saved the room. They are too big for the oven. Yes, that would be 16 inches. Too wide and too deep. Won't fit either way. Mercifully, I found this out poping in some ready-made waffles for Maddie and not after I had made a huge batch of cookies!
We also got some movies and TV series on DVD. I don't have to watch television all the time, but I do like to watch it SOME time and there is nothing I can watch here--especially since Skip is out of town so much. Maddie gets some English and German cartoons, Skip gets all sorts of sports, but all I can get is BBC Prime, and even though it's English, I can't understand what they're saying.
side note: I do have to say I like the fact that you don't have to be pretty to be on television in Europe. The people who play cops on BBC and German channels look like they could be cops--not underwear models. Kind of refreshing, really.
Anyway, I'm afraid my true colors are coming out. Church on Sunday morning at the English-speaking Anglican church didn't do much to help me cope with being a stranger in a strange land, but the episodes of Grey's Anatomy that Katie Kasten taped and transferred to DVD for me did wonders for my overall attitude.
We also got some movies and TV series on DVD. I don't have to watch television all the time, but I do like to watch it SOME time and there is nothing I can watch here--especially since Skip is out of town so much. Maddie gets some English and German cartoons, Skip gets all sorts of sports, but all I can get is BBC Prime, and even though it's English, I can't understand what they're saying.
side note: I do have to say I like the fact that you don't have to be pretty to be on television in Europe. The people who play cops on BBC and German channels look like they could be cops--not underwear models. Kind of refreshing, really.
Anyway, I'm afraid my true colors are coming out. Church on Sunday morning at the English-speaking Anglican church didn't do much to help me cope with being a stranger in a strange land, but the episodes of Grey's Anatomy that Katie Kasten taped and transferred to DVD for me did wonders for my overall attitude.
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Never take for granted
your ability to decide to go somewhere and be able to do so without getting lost at least once (and more likely several times) or possibly having to give up the idea altogether because your desired destination is impossible to locate.
Yet another life lesson one learns from living in a foreign land.
Yet another life lesson one learns from living in a foreign land.
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Friday, October 20, 2006
The food IS different here
Okay, I really didn't realize how different the food is here until today at Wal-Mart. There was a guy just inside the door with a hot dog cart selling "American Hot Dogs." On our way out, Maddie asked if she could have one. She's not a big hot dog eater, so I asked if she was sure and she insisted. She ate all but two bites of a FOOT LONG hot dog with a bun and ketchup. She kept saying, this is a great hot dog, Mommy. She has decided that hot dogs are the Friday Special at Wal-Mart and that we can get one there every week. Hope she's right! She hasn't eaten that much of a meat product since we got here.
Just some of the food differences between America and Germany:
They often serve mayo with french fries.
Curry is the condiment of the hour. Curry powder, curry wurst, curry sauce. Heinz even makes a curry sauce in a bottle that looks like ketchup.
They like to plop a sunny side up egg on top of things that really don't call for it.
You can't buy popcorn shrimp in the frozen food section of the grocery store. This was a previous staple of Maddie's diet.
Vinegar is big.
Produce, except in large grocery stores, is ridiculously and wonderfully fresh. Maddie eats at least an apple a day and so far, the old adage has held true.
Mexican food is VERY hard to come by.
McDonald's fries their fries in something other than vegetable oil. In fact, just about all restaurants are frying in something other than vegetable oil. Not sure if it's peanut oil or animal fat, but it's heavy!
The Atkins diet must have flopped here big time. Nobody could give up the great bread you can find here.
This is kind of a food thing that I just realized today. Duesseldorf reminds me a lot of Boston. And in Boston, people were almost permanently attached to cup of coffee wherever they went. In Duesseldorf, you almost never see anyone walking around with a cup of coffee. You sit down to have coffee. However, you see people all the time walking around with ice cream cones. When we lived in Boston, it was just the opposite. People walked all over with cups of coffee, but the outside of ice cream parlors was always crowded with people who were sitting down to eat their ice cream. Don't know what it all means. Just found it interesting.
Anyway, I'm going to go make my kid a breakfast-for-dinner meal of American pancakes (that's the name of the mix) and bacon. The bacon here is so salty that I can't eat it, but Maddie and Skip seem to like it.
Just some of the food differences between America and Germany:
They often serve mayo with french fries.
Curry is the condiment of the hour. Curry powder, curry wurst, curry sauce. Heinz even makes a curry sauce in a bottle that looks like ketchup.
They like to plop a sunny side up egg on top of things that really don't call for it.
You can't buy popcorn shrimp in the frozen food section of the grocery store. This was a previous staple of Maddie's diet.
Vinegar is big.
Produce, except in large grocery stores, is ridiculously and wonderfully fresh. Maddie eats at least an apple a day and so far, the old adage has held true.
Mexican food is VERY hard to come by.
McDonald's fries their fries in something other than vegetable oil. In fact, just about all restaurants are frying in something other than vegetable oil. Not sure if it's peanut oil or animal fat, but it's heavy!
The Atkins diet must have flopped here big time. Nobody could give up the great bread you can find here.
This is kind of a food thing that I just realized today. Duesseldorf reminds me a lot of Boston. And in Boston, people were almost permanently attached to cup of coffee wherever they went. In Duesseldorf, you almost never see anyone walking around with a cup of coffee. You sit down to have coffee. However, you see people all the time walking around with ice cream cones. When we lived in Boston, it was just the opposite. People walked all over with cups of coffee, but the outside of ice cream parlors was always crowded with people who were sitting down to eat their ice cream. Don't know what it all means. Just found it interesting.
Anyway, I'm going to go make my kid a breakfast-for-dinner meal of American pancakes (that's the name of the mix) and bacon. The bacon here is so salty that I can't eat it, but Maddie and Skip seem to like it.
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Cologne Zoo
Just a few pics of the zoo and the zoo playground at Cologne. Great zoo. Lots of indoor exhibits to escape the rain and a chance to be really close to the animals in the outdoor exhibits as well. First time I ever heard the noise a hippo makes. It's not pretty.
Cologne
Maddie and I headed out into the unknown today and took the train to Cologne. We had not a clue as to what we were doing, but seemed to make out okay. Nothing like going to a large foreign city with your five-year-old for the day! Compared to Duesseldorf, Cologne isn't that pretty, but there were some really cool things to see and do.
The main train station in Cologne lets you off right in front of the Cologne Cathedral. The big claim to fame of this humongous church is that it holds the relics (or the bones) of the three Wisemen. The best part is that the reason these relics came to be in Germany is that somebody way back when STOLE them. Guess they're not going to be returned anytime soon. Maddie was more disturbed than impressed to f
ind out that the bones of the three Wise Men were being housed at the church. Here's a link to find out more about the Cologne Cathedral.Then from the Cathedral, we took the Shocko-Express to the Chocolate Museum. Wow! There was everything you ever needed to know about chocolate--including a walk in a created rainforest to experience the climate and the vegetation where cocoa beans grow. There was also a whole section that showed you how they make specialty chocolates today, and then of course a large chocolate gift store at the end of the tour.
Then back to the Cathedral where we caught the zoo express to go to the Cologne Zoo. Just a note on these very inexpensive little shuttles. They were the bumpiest rides I've ever experienced and I may need to seek chiropractic care. But anyway, the zoo was fabulous and it was worth the price of admission just for the zoo playground. Germany just has the BEST playgrounds. I'll include pics from the zoo in a separate post.
By the way, this was the year to come to Germany. Until Maddie turns six, almost everything is free to her--the train ticket, the cathedral tour, the chocolate museum--all free for kids under 6. I only had to pay for her a small amount for the jarring shuttle rides and zoo entrance. We need to all we can this year. Next year, she's going to be expensive!
When it was time to come home, we headed for the Cologne train station and as we were waiting for our train ran into Maddie's friend Meg with her Mom and Dad. They, too, had been in Cologne today and we rode the train back together and had dinner at an Italian place in Duesseldorf's Alstadt.
Big, long day. Please, please, let Maddie sleep late tomorrow.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Fall Break
The fall break portion of the blog is also for Skip who is in "the states" this week for training and to pick up some much needed items for us back in Germany. Our shipment of stuff will probably not be here in time for Halloween which means I needed another Tinker Bell costume for Maddie. Mom was great and got the last one at Target!
Yesterday Maddie and I hit the Aqua Zoo in Duesseldorf where, naturally, her favorite thing was the playground.Afterwards, we hit Apfelparadies, a local fruit and vegetable stand for yet more apples. They're one of the few things that Maddie will eat here on a consistent basis.
Today we went to Schloss Burg with Maddie's friends Meg and her parents Steve and Anne. The village, as Anne said, was quite "twee".
We were able to tour the castle, take a ride on a ski lift to the bottom of the village, eat lunch that a goat dropped in on and enjoy a beautiful sunny day (which don't come often enough here!)
Monday, October 16, 2006
Things I Have Learned Thus Far
In Germany:
Mister Clean is Meister Proper
Barbie is Barbie
Bob the Builder is Bob Baumeister
Coffee does not come with free refills.
The Swiffer (both wet and dry) is a daily necessity here.
Sometimes people here sound like they are angry with you, but really, they’re just speaking German.
Because Germans so appreciate visual beauty, there are beautiful things everywhere. From flowers to tablecloths to dishes to artwork.
No matter where you go in
Germans can linger for three hours over a simple dinner in a restaurant, but once they get behind the wheel of a car, you don’t want to be the person who slows them down.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Weekend Stuff
Friday is market day in Kaiserswerth. Every Friday from about 7 a.m. until noon, sellers set up booths of veggies, cheese, bread, meat and even fish. There's an even bigger market every day in downtown Duesseldorf in the Alstadt (old town).Saturday, we went to Schloss Dyck which is a castle not too far from Duesseldorf. Not the best pick for Maddie since this castle's big claim to fame is it's gardens. She got kind of bored until we found the play area.
We're supposed to go to a German-American Day celebration today and I'm supposed to bring some kind of finger food. Since I haven't figured out how to bake in Germany yet (baking soda doesn't exist, the baking powder works differently and the flour has numbers like 450 or 550 and I don't know which to use for what), I decided to make deviled eggs. Seemed like a no brainer. Germans love eggs. If you're not careful, you're as likely as not to get an order in a restaurant served to you with a big ol' fried egg on top of it.
However, the deviled egg plan has not turned out so great. The tube mayo that they sell here made the mixture a really weird consistency and then I couldn't even cover it up with paprika since "paprika" in Germany is a bell pepper, so I have no idea to buy to get what would be paprika in the states. Next time I'll shell out the extra bucks for the imported Hellmans!
Thursday, October 12, 2006
You Can't Beat 'Em
We tried to speed up our furnishing process by ordering our chouch and chair for the living room from IKEA--where the turnaround time is less than half of most furniture stores and so is the price. It was due to arrive next week, but we got a letter yesterday letting us know that our order had been "delayed" and it should arrive sometime on Week 51. That means the second to the last week of the year. The week of Christmas! which means we'll get our furniture AFTER we return from the states sometime in January.
The good news is that because the stuff we had shipped from home has gotten held up because of work permit stuff, they've decided to air ship it (rather than send it on the slow boat) once all the paper work has cleared. That will mean once it ships, it will be here in about a week to 10 days rather than 4 to 6 weeks.
Here's a picture of Mad
die at our train stop. Maddie and I take the train to and from school each day. We get on at Muhlenacker and get off at Alte Landstrasse--just four stops. She still thinks it's fun every day--which either amuses or annoys the other commuters who are riding with us.
These are pictures of the playground at Maddie's school. We can stay as long as we want after school and play. When the weather is good, we usually stay about an hour bef
ore heading home.
Skip heads to the st
ates for training next week, and he'll be taking one full suitcase and one empty one to fill up with stuff we can't get here in Germany like cornbread mix, baking soda, baking powder (in Germany, it's only single action, ours is double action), kosher salt, a Tinkerbell costume for Halloween, children's Tylenol, Delsyn (cough medicine), etc. We're not as bad as some people. There are folks here who have peanut butter and macaroni and cheese shipped over on a regular basis.
If you need anything from Germany, let us know before Monday. Skip's got a whole suitcase he can fill!
The good news is that because the stuff we had shipped from home has gotten held up because of work permit stuff, they've decided to air ship it (rather than send it on the slow boat) once all the paper work has cleared. That will mean once it ships, it will be here in about a week to 10 days rather than 4 to 6 weeks.
Here's a picture of Mad
die at our train stop. Maddie and I take the train to and from school each day. We get on at Muhlenacker and get off at Alte Landstrasse--just four stops. She still thinks it's fun every day--which either amuses or annoys the other commuters who are riding with us.These are pictures of the playground at Maddie's school. We can stay as long as we want after school and play. When the weather is good, we usually stay about an hour bef
ore heading home.Skip heads to the st
ates for training next week, and he'll be taking one full suitcase and one empty one to fill up with stuff we can't get here in Germany like cornbread mix, baking soda, baking powder (in Germany, it's only single action, ours is double action), kosher salt, a Tinkerbell costume for Halloween, children's Tylenol, Delsyn (cough medicine), etc. We're not as bad as some people. There are folks here who have peanut butter and macaroni and cheese shipped over on a regular basis.If you need anything from Germany, let us know before Monday. Skip's got a whole suitcase he can fill!
Sunday, October 08, 2006
We have Chairs!
Sat at our own table to eat today. We have six chairs! I sat in all of them. Really good feeling. We also got two more kleidershranks (or closets) to give us somewhere to put stuff. We were skirting the law here today in moving the furniture from one house to another. Sundays are by LAW quiet hours here in Germany. You cannot mow your lawn or play loud music. All stores are closed except gas stations and a handful of small grocery-type convenience stores (they are exempt through some statute). It's funny to me that the government enforces Sabbath in a country where a very small percentage of the population actually attends church. It does make for peaceful Sundays--and very little traffic on the way to church.
We have a cable television package that doesn't give us much US TV to watch--Maddie can get Boomerang and I can get Fashion TV and E--Entertainment Television so I'll be able to keep up with the latest skirt lengths and what's up with the Olsen Twins. But Skip has this great sports package and actually got to watch the Arkansas Auburn game a day late.
Skip was really quite mean about the whole TV thing today. I've been trying to find something that I might enjoy watching and he called from downstairs, "Anne, in about 20 minutes, there's a program coming you're going to love!" All excited, I call down "What?" Would you believe we can't get Grey's Anatomy or Boston Legal, but we get Joel Osteen! There is no where to hide, is there?
Here's a couple more pics of Maddie with friends. The first one is with her friend Meg, from England, and the other one is her buddy Matthew. Matthew has three older sisters (one of whom is just one minute older), and he just loves girls! His mom, Joy, has loaned us some toys for Maddie to play with until our container with all of hers arrives. We have indeed met some very nice people here.
We have a cable television package that doesn't give us much US TV to watch--Maddie can get Boomerang and I can get Fashion TV and E--Entertainment Television so I'll be able to keep up with the latest skirt lengths and what's up with the Olsen Twins. But Skip has this great sports package and actually got to watch the Arkansas Auburn game a day late.
Skip was really quite mean about the whole TV thing today. I've been trying to find something that I might enjoy watching and he called from downstairs, "Anne, in about 20 minutes, there's a program coming you're going to love!" All excited, I call down "What?" Would you believe we can't get Grey's Anatomy or Boston Legal, but we get Joel Osteen! There is no where to hide, is there?
Here's a couple more pics of Maddie with friends. The first one is with her friend Meg, from England, and the other one is her buddy Matthew. Matthew has three older sisters (one of whom is just one minute older), and he just loves girls! His mom, Joy, has loaned us some toys for Maddie to play with until our container with all of hers arrives. We have indeed met some very nice people here.
Friday, October 06, 2006
Finally some photos
Maddie has ice cream every day after school. There is a law in Germany that keeps down the price of basic staples. Milk, bread, ice cream and beer are all considered staples here. A once-scoop cone costs 60 Euro cents--about 80 cents in America money.
I took this one a couple of weeks ago. This is in the check-out line at Wal-Mart. Above the mints and gum are small bottles of liquor for sale. All are kinds that are thought to help in digestion. Any guesses on how long the picket lines would be if they started selling Jaegermeister in the US checkout lines?
Here is Maddie and Skip's cousin Ollie at the top of a castle tower in Heidenheim. They are looking over the town where Horst and Maja (Skip's parents) met. Maddie decided that the princess who once lived in the castle was very happy there.
One kind of funny that I heard about yesterday. All the moms who have kids at the International School see each other every morning and afternoon for drop off and pick up. Those of us who haven't been here long talk about how we're adjusting, how the kids are adjusting, what we can do to help the kids, etc. But yesterday was a first. Kelly hasn't been here much longer than I have. Her kids are fine. She's fine. The husband's job is going well. But the dog is really mad about being moved to Germany. He (or she) has destroyed 2 lunchboxes and a backpack. This is a really big problem because you can't find lunch boxes here because most German kids go home for lunch. Backpacks are hard to. The ones that German kids carry to school are kind of hard and shaped like a big rectangle and they don't fit in ISD lockers. I've looked and none of the information I've received gives any advice on how to help your dog with major life transitions.
I took this one a couple of weeks ago. This is in the check-out line at Wal-Mart. Above the mints and gum are small bottles of liquor for sale. All are kinds that are thought to help in digestion. Any guesses on how long the picket lines would be if they started selling Jaegermeister in the US checkout lines?
Here is Maddie and Skip's cousin Ollie at the top of a castle tower in Heidenheim. They are looking over the town where Horst and Maja (Skip's parents) met. Maddie decided that the princess who once lived in the castle was very happy there.
One kind of funny that I heard about yesterday. All the moms who have kids at the International School see each other every morning and afternoon for drop off and pick up. Those of us who haven't been here long talk about how we're adjusting, how the kids are adjusting, what we can do to help the kids, etc. But yesterday was a first. Kelly hasn't been here much longer than I have. Her kids are fine. She's fine. The husband's job is going well. But the dog is really mad about being moved to Germany. He (or she) has destroyed 2 lunchboxes and a backpack. This is a really big problem because you can't find lunch boxes here because most German kids go home for lunch. Backpacks are hard to. The ones that German kids carry to school are kind of hard and shaped like a big rectangle and they don't fit in ISD lockers. I've looked and none of the information I've received gives any advice on how to help your dog with major life transitions.
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Sigh of Happiness
As of today, we have Internet access, a home phone AND television with several English channels. I'm pretty sure my anxiety over being separated from Internet connection indicates that a job as a missionary in deepest, darkest Africa would not be for me.
I plan a day tomorrow of sitting around and surfing the net and watching TV and possibly talking on the phone. I need the break. Germany is really quite exhausting. I need to get a pedometer and see how many miles (or meters) I cover each day. No one thing is really that strenuous, but after all the walking, the carrying shopping bags while walking, dividing up the trash into various recyclable and composting types and delivering the items to the proper bins, the laundry and the sweeping and mopping (Germany is very dusty and we have all hardwood and tile floors), I'm quite tired at the end of the day.
If my speech is sounding a bit more formal than usual, it's because I hang out with quite a few English people. Expression like "a bit" and "quite a few" are creeping into my speech. I'll send more later, but now I have to run to the loo.
I plan a day tomorrow of sitting around and surfing the net and watching TV and possibly talking on the phone. I need the break. Germany is really quite exhausting. I need to get a pedometer and see how many miles (or meters) I cover each day. No one thing is really that strenuous, but after all the walking, the carrying shopping bags while walking, dividing up the trash into various recyclable and composting types and delivering the items to the proper bins, the laundry and the sweeping and mopping (Germany is very dusty and we have all hardwood and tile floors), I'm quite tired at the end of the day.
If my speech is sounding a bit more formal than usual, it's because I hang out with quite a few English people. Expression like "a bit" and "quite a few" are creeping into my speech. I'll send more later, but now I have to run to the loo.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Ugly American
Am coming to you from the Ugly American Cafe in Dusseldorf where the air is smoke free and the wireless internet access is free as well. But tomorrow, we SHOULD have a phone, internet access and television in our very own home.
Sunday we will be moving a table and chairs along with light fixtures from the home of Trudy Arrigo who will soon be returning to North Carolina with her husband. We will have SIX places to sit down.
Things continue to run less than smoothly here in Dusseldorf. The trip to see Tante Rosel this weekend was longer than thought. It took us eight, rather than the expected 5, to get there because of bad traffic for the holiday weekend (yesterday was unification day). The rental car (because we still can't lease a car until all of Skip's work visa stuff comes through) broke a belt and had to be repaired. But Tante Rosel and Maddie really hit it off even though neither speaks the language of the other. No telling what all was actually said this weekend.
Tante Rosel lives down in Southern Germany in an area east of the Black Forest known as Scwabenland. It is really beautiful. And we found a great playground for Maddie. I came to the realization that the reason playgrounds are so much better here than they are in the US is that you can't sue the park's service here if your kid busts a lip or breaks an arm. So the elements on the grounds let kids climb higher, swing bigger and let the parents bear the responsibility.
Once we get Internet Access we can begin to plan some good day and overnight trips. Dusseldorf is kind of like Boston in that there's lots of stuff to do and see right in the immediate area. An hour's drive can take you to the Netherlands, Belgium and a whole handful of other German cities.
Have been out of the news loops but just read today about all the violence that has been happening in the US in schools again. Am really saddened by that.
Hope to get some pictures up soon.
Anne
Sunday we will be moving a table and chairs along with light fixtures from the home of Trudy Arrigo who will soon be returning to North Carolina with her husband. We will have SIX places to sit down.
Things continue to run less than smoothly here in Dusseldorf. The trip to see Tante Rosel this weekend was longer than thought. It took us eight, rather than the expected 5, to get there because of bad traffic for the holiday weekend (yesterday was unification day). The rental car (because we still can't lease a car until all of Skip's work visa stuff comes through) broke a belt and had to be repaired. But Tante Rosel and Maddie really hit it off even though neither speaks the language of the other. No telling what all was actually said this weekend.
Tante Rosel lives down in Southern Germany in an area east of the Black Forest known as Scwabenland. It is really beautiful. And we found a great playground for Maddie. I came to the realization that the reason playgrounds are so much better here than they are in the US is that you can't sue the park's service here if your kid busts a lip or breaks an arm. So the elements on the grounds let kids climb higher, swing bigger and let the parents bear the responsibility.
Once we get Internet Access we can begin to plan some good day and overnight trips. Dusseldorf is kind of like Boston in that there's lots of stuff to do and see right in the immediate area. An hour's drive can take you to the Netherlands, Belgium and a whole handful of other German cities.
Have been out of the news loops but just read today about all the violence that has been happening in the US in schools again. Am really saddened by that.
Hope to get some pictures up soon.
Anne
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Still Waiting
Am coming to you from a Starbucks in Old Town (Alstadt) Duesseldorf. Our Internet/TV/Phone will be set up on October 5. So for those of you planning a move to Germany, it takes about one month from the time you arrive to get these services.
We still have no lights, no table and no couch or chairs. We are waiting on the Arrigo family from North Carolina to move back to the states so that we can get their light fixtures, table and chairs and some closets. I think we can have them by next week. We also have ordered a couch and chair from Ikea. We (and by that I mean mostly Skip) have become experts at assembling furniture--because nothing from Ikea comes ready to use. There must be at least 100 screws and a few nails involved in each piece. But moving up a notch from Ikea means a HUGE increase in price, so suddenly the assembly process doesn't seem so bad.
Am starting to figure out where to get what and where to get it a fairly reasonable prices. My German is not great, but am starting to develop a good vocabularly in relation to breads, veggies, fruits and meats. I speak what I call market/resaurant German.
I have figured out what size clothes both Maddie and I wear in European sizes and have found that most book stores here carry at least a few English books. That's important, since our container of stuff we shipped here to Germany is still in the United States--held up because of some paperwork related to Skip's work Visa. We don't know when it will ship or how long it will take to get here once it does.
Maddie has already made some friends. One is from Canada, another from Korea and her "best friend" is from England. Meg lived in Jakarta, Indonesia last year. It's really bizarre to hear a little girl with an English accent say, "Last year, in Jakarta..."
I, too, have made some friends. The International School is great place to network with other displaced American moms.
I figure by November, we will be entirely visitable. We should be fully furnished, wired and know where everything is. For you shoppers out there, you may short circuit when you hit downtown Dusseldorf. It's pretty incredible. AND plan to gain at least 5 to 10 pounds when you come. The food is fabulous.
We are still having some homesickness. Bob Owen, a member of my church, died this week and it's the first funeral that I won't be there for. Skip will actually be in the states in October for some training and I'm sending with him a list of stuff he needs to bring back.
We're planning a trip to see Tante Rosel in southern Germany this weekend. Maddie has Monday and Tuesday off from school.
I may not be able to post again until October 5, but hopefully I can hit a Starbucks or a library before then.
We still have no lights, no table and no couch or chairs. We are waiting on the Arrigo family from North Carolina to move back to the states so that we can get their light fixtures, table and chairs and some closets. I think we can have them by next week. We also have ordered a couch and chair from Ikea. We (and by that I mean mostly Skip) have become experts at assembling furniture--because nothing from Ikea comes ready to use. There must be at least 100 screws and a few nails involved in each piece. But moving up a notch from Ikea means a HUGE increase in price, so suddenly the assembly process doesn't seem so bad.
Am starting to figure out where to get what and where to get it a fairly reasonable prices. My German is not great, but am starting to develop a good vocabularly in relation to breads, veggies, fruits and meats. I speak what I call market/resaurant German.
I have figured out what size clothes both Maddie and I wear in European sizes and have found that most book stores here carry at least a few English books. That's important, since our container of stuff we shipped here to Germany is still in the United States--held up because of some paperwork related to Skip's work Visa. We don't know when it will ship or how long it will take to get here once it does.
Maddie has already made some friends. One is from Canada, another from Korea and her "best friend" is from England. Meg lived in Jakarta, Indonesia last year. It's really bizarre to hear a little girl with an English accent say, "Last year, in Jakarta..."
I, too, have made some friends. The International School is great place to network with other displaced American moms.
I figure by November, we will be entirely visitable. We should be fully furnished, wired and know where everything is. For you shoppers out there, you may short circuit when you hit downtown Dusseldorf. It's pretty incredible. AND plan to gain at least 5 to 10 pounds when you come. The food is fabulous.
We are still having some homesickness. Bob Owen, a member of my church, died this week and it's the first funeral that I won't be there for. Skip will actually be in the states in October for some training and I'm sending with him a list of stuff he needs to bring back.
We're planning a trip to see Tante Rosel in southern Germany this weekend. Maddie has Monday and Tuesday off from school.
I may not be able to post again until October 5, but hopefully I can hit a Starbucks or a library before then.
Friday, September 15, 2006
AAAARRRRRGGGGHHHHHH!
Okay, I have a chance to log in from Skip's cousin's computer. Nothing here works right! The dishwasher is different. We finally got a washing machine and dryer, and the washing machine door locked and wouldn't open! The mops are different. The brooms are weird. I can't find a lunch box for Maddie to save mz life! We still have no television, telephone or Internet access at home! We have put together two Ikea beds and two Ikea closets--something I NEVER EVER want to repeat. I think I have carpel tunnel. Our container of stuff we had shipped is still in America waiting on all of Skip's work permit stuff to come through. That means all of Maddie's toys, my guitar, our towels, flatware and table are held up until ?????
On the upside, Maddie continues to enjoy school. Today was a teacher work day and Maddie and I had lunch with some of her classmates and their moms. We were the Americans. There were two Korean and one Japanese family. We are definitely expanding our horizons.
The other ex-pat wives who have been here awhile say the first month is awful, the next two months are not great, but after that, it's fabulous. We'll let you know!
On the upside, Maddie continues to enjoy school. Today was a teacher work day and Maddie and I had lunch with some of her classmates and their moms. We were the Americans. There were two Korean and one Japanese family. We are definitely expanding our horizons.
The other ex-pat wives who have been here awhile say the first month is awful, the next two months are not great, but after that, it's fabulous. We'll let you know!
Monday, September 11, 2006
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.
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.
Sunday, September 10, 2006
It's Different Here
Somehow I think I had it in my head that with Internet, globlization, etc, that Western Europe would really just be a smaller, more quiant version of America where people spoke a different language and drank more beer. This is not the case.
For instance, we're sort of moving between our home and the hotel as we await delivery of beds. After our first meal at the house, we put our dishes in the dishwasher, used the box of stuff we got at the Aldi that said "dishwasher" on it and wondered why our dishes came out so odd looking--kind of drippy and spotty. Then I discover that German dishwashers require three separate products. What we had used as detergent was actually "special salt" which gets put in a certain compartment at the bottom of the washer and is replaced every two months or so. In another compartment, you have to add some water softener that also gets replaced every so often and THEN each time you wash, you add detergent, which comes in a square pellet form.
Also, and I have to say I found this kind of cool, they only sell condensor dryers here. You know how you have to have all that tubing and stuff in your laundry room? Not here. The water from the dryer collects in this little container and you just empty it after every load. I have to say I never really thought about where all the water from my wet clothes went. We still don't have our washer and dryer, but we went up to Skip's cousin's house in Dortmund to do some much needed laundry. His wife showed me how to correctly use all the appliances. In keeping with the smaller is better theme, the washers and dryers are small as well and the cycles take about an hour each. Letting laundry pile up here would not be a good thing!
We are still trying to get modem/cable/phone set up in our home. We can't get my new "handy" to work and we are looking for a place to buy me a bike. Maddie starts her new school tomorrow and was so excited we almost never got her to sleep.
Only two more nights in this hotel! I just want everyone to know that I have lived with my husband and daughter in one room for a week in a country where I don't speak the language and can't even get a real diet Coke (only a Coke light) and I have only broken into tears once. Apparently, many of you have been sending your prayers. Thanks!
P.S. As soon as we get Internet access at home, I can include pictures with the messages.
For instance, we're sort of moving between our home and the hotel as we await delivery of beds. After our first meal at the house, we put our dishes in the dishwasher, used the box of stuff we got at the Aldi that said "dishwasher" on it and wondered why our dishes came out so odd looking--kind of drippy and spotty. Then I discover that German dishwashers require three separate products. What we had used as detergent was actually "special salt" which gets put in a certain compartment at the bottom of the washer and is replaced every two months or so. In another compartment, you have to add some water softener that also gets replaced every so often and THEN each time you wash, you add detergent, which comes in a square pellet form.
Also, and I have to say I found this kind of cool, they only sell condensor dryers here. You know how you have to have all that tubing and stuff in your laundry room? Not here. The water from the dryer collects in this little container and you just empty it after every load. I have to say I never really thought about where all the water from my wet clothes went. We still don't have our washer and dryer, but we went up to Skip's cousin's house in Dortmund to do some much needed laundry. His wife showed me how to correctly use all the appliances. In keeping with the smaller is better theme, the washers and dryers are small as well and the cycles take about an hour each. Letting laundry pile up here would not be a good thing!
We are still trying to get modem/cable/phone set up in our home. We can't get my new "handy" to work and we are looking for a place to buy me a bike. Maddie starts her new school tomorrow and was so excited we almost never got her to sleep.
Only two more nights in this hotel! I just want everyone to know that I have lived with my husband and daughter in one room for a week in a country where I don't speak the language and can't even get a real diet Coke (only a Coke light) and I have only broken into tears once. Apparently, many of you have been sending your prayers. Thanks!
P.S. As soon as we get Internet access at home, I can include pictures with the messages.
Everythings Smaller in Germany
The Germans do much better at taking up at smaller spaces for their living and leaving wider open spaces to just be open. However, that poses problems for Americans like us. Skip already has several bruises from getting out of the shower and trying to dress in the hotel bathroom. The sink in the half bath at our house to actually too small for him to wash his hands. He can't get them under the faucet.
And I've already figured out that when some of you visit, you will have to use the tub with the shower nozzel that is in the master bedroom because you won't fit in the shower in the other bathroom. I'm not sure my dad can could get his head under the shower head.
We've lucked out on our kitchen. It's quite large by German standards--even a larger than standard refrigerator.
We do have to get lighting fixtures. Rentals don't come with lights! Fortunately right now, it stays light till pretty late, and there are lots of windows.
We have two more nights in the hotel. Our beds are supposed to arrive on Tuesday. After that, we may even bust out and add a couch. Perhaps a chair or two.
And I've already figured out that when some of you visit, you will have to use the tub with the shower nozzel that is in the master bedroom because you won't fit in the shower in the other bathroom. I'm not sure my dad can could get his head under the shower head.
We've lucked out on our kitchen. It's quite large by German standards--even a larger than standard refrigerator.
We do have to get lighting fixtures. Rentals don't come with lights! Fortunately right now, it stays light till pretty late, and there are lots of windows.
We have two more nights in the hotel. Our beds are supposed to arrive on Tuesday. After that, we may even bust out and add a couch. Perhaps a chair or two.
Friday, September 08, 2006
We're Gonna Make It After All
I've been teaching Maddie the Mary Tyler Moore Theme song and we've been singing it several times daily.
Our Internet connection was down yesterday which is probably a good thing since it wasn't the best of days. I had a minor meltdown in the grocery store when I couldn't figure out what baking powder looked like and Maddie was singing some Veggie Tales song at the top of her lungs from the cart.
But TODAY, we have a rental car until we can lease one which allows us to begin to stock our furniture-free home with food and other staples. We also toured Maddie's school, and it was pretty incredible. She couldn't be unhappy at this place if she worked at it! I also got the American Women's Club of Dusseldorf's handbook which gives you all sorts of good information--including how to find baking powder!
Just three days in Germany and my principles have all gone out the window. We've been having issues getting money transferred and very few places here take credit cards. That, coupled with the fact that stores are just stocked differently here and it's hard to figure out where to go to get what, made me beyond happy to find a Wal-Mart. I think it's the first time Maddie has ever been in one. But they took Visa and had everything from paper towels to school supplies to brown sugar (hard to find here).
Maddie starts school on Monday. Though she actually handled all of this extroidinarily well, she may drive us crazy before we can get here there! She met her teacher today and gave her a great big hug.
We will try to master the tram system tonight and make it to downtown Dusseldorf. The goal this weekend is to get a washer and dryer for the house. Skip's cousin is going to let us come to laundry at their house this weekend!
Our Internet connection was down yesterday which is probably a good thing since it wasn't the best of days. I had a minor meltdown in the grocery store when I couldn't figure out what baking powder looked like and Maddie was singing some Veggie Tales song at the top of her lungs from the cart.
But TODAY, we have a rental car until we can lease one which allows us to begin to stock our furniture-free home with food and other staples. We also toured Maddie's school, and it was pretty incredible. She couldn't be unhappy at this place if she worked at it! I also got the American Women's Club of Dusseldorf's handbook which gives you all sorts of good information--including how to find baking powder!
Just three days in Germany and my principles have all gone out the window. We've been having issues getting money transferred and very few places here take credit cards. That, coupled with the fact that stores are just stocked differently here and it's hard to figure out where to go to get what, made me beyond happy to find a Wal-Mart. I think it's the first time Maddie has ever been in one. But they took Visa and had everything from paper towels to school supplies to brown sugar (hard to find here).
Maddie starts school on Monday. Though she actually handled all of this extroidinarily well, she may drive us crazy before we can get here there! She met her teacher today and gave her a great big hug.
We will try to master the tram system tonight and make it to downtown Dusseldorf. The goal this weekend is to get a washer and dryer for the house. Skip's cousin is going to let us come to laundry at their house this weekend!
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Life in the Slow Lane
Life in Germany moves more slowly than life in America. Which might be nicer if you weren't waiting for service in a restaurant with a 5-year-old. It's weird to be in a crowded cafe where waiters seem to have no interest in turning tables as quickly as possible.
We're also held up with Skip's work permit. The process is (surprise!) slower than we expected, which we didn't think would be that big of a deal--but without it, we can't set up a bank account or lease a car. Very few places in Germany take a credit card--they only take debit cards (German debit cards). So we've been having to access cash from our Visa card, convert it to Euros in order to pay for things.
We went to get beds for our new house at IKEA and they can't deliver 'til Tuesday. So we have a choice of borrowing some camping cots from Skip's cousin Daetliff or extending our hotel stay. We're leaning toward the hotel--which is really great and serves a terrific breakfast. Not a donut in sight, but plenty of grainy bread, cereal, yogurt, fruit, cheeses, meats and, oddly enough, tomatoes. The coffee has been great everywhere we've been which is really important for my caffeine addicted self since Diet Cokes here are Coke Light and not exactly the same formula as back home.
Maddie has discovered that anywhere you go in Kaiserwerth-Dusseldorf, there is ice cream to be had and she is committed to trying every option. She is really rolling with this whole thing.
Chus!
We're also held up with Skip's work permit. The process is (surprise!) slower than we expected, which we didn't think would be that big of a deal--but without it, we can't set up a bank account or lease a car. Very few places in Germany take a credit card--they only take debit cards (German debit cards). So we've been having to access cash from our Visa card, convert it to Euros in order to pay for things.
We went to get beds for our new house at IKEA and they can't deliver 'til Tuesday. So we have a choice of borrowing some camping cots from Skip's cousin Daetliff or extending our hotel stay. We're leaning toward the hotel--which is really great and serves a terrific breakfast. Not a donut in sight, but plenty of grainy bread, cereal, yogurt, fruit, cheeses, meats and, oddly enough, tomatoes. The coffee has been great everywhere we've been which is really important for my caffeine addicted self since Diet Cokes here are Coke Light and not exactly the same formula as back home.
Maddie has discovered that anywhere you go in Kaiserwerth-Dusseldorf, there is ice cream to be had and she is committed to trying every option. She is really rolling with this whole thing.
Chus!
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
We're Here!
We made it! It was a long trip. Maddie did great on the plane, but now that we're here, she's up at 2 a.m. because her sleep schedule is all messed up. We thought once she went to sleep we would be golden, but that is not the case.
We are at a hotel for three nights while we get our house set up. We it IKEA tomorrow for furniture. The house is great. It's just perfect and near everything including Maddie's new school. The only thing Skip did not notice is that none of the bedrooms have closets! The only disadvantage to letting the man pick out the house!
The first person I met today in Germany (other than the hotelier) is the president of the American Women's Club of Dusseldorf. I took that as a good sign.
This week should be pretty hectic--getting sleep patterns worked out and setting up housekeeping, but Maddie starts school on Monday and we should be settling into a routine.
Will start taking and uploading pictures soon.
We are at a hotel for three nights while we get our house set up. We it IKEA tomorrow for furniture. The house is great. It's just perfect and near everything including Maddie's new school. The only thing Skip did not notice is that none of the bedrooms have closets! The only disadvantage to letting the man pick out the house!
The first person I met today in Germany (other than the hotelier) is the president of the American Women's Club of Dusseldorf. I took that as a good sign.
This week should be pretty hectic--getting sleep patterns worked out and setting up housekeeping, but Maddie starts school on Monday and we should be settling into a routine.
Will start taking and uploading pictures soon.
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Leaving on a Jet Plane
We'll be heading out for Dusseldorf in less than 48 hours. We leave at 1 p.m. from Little Rock and get to Dusseldorf some time on Tuesday. They're 7 or 8 hours ahead of us. We have no idea if we're taking too much or too little, but we're just going with what we got and hoping for the best!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)