Saturday, August 20, 2011

Too Tired To Be Witty

Hello everyone!
Jetlag is currently kicking my butt in all sorts of weird directions so this post probably won’t win the award for “Wittiest Travel Blog 2011,” (please don’t stop reading, I promise to do better next time!) but I wanted to give you a little update on my travels and new life here in Germany.

The three international flights (Minnesota to Iceland, Iceland to Denmark, Denmark to Germany) I took to get here were, for the most part, uneventful, but there were a few things worth mentioning…

Flying Highlights:
  • Seeing the sun rise and the moon set at the same time
  •  Flying into Iceland and seeing what an incredible land it is. I am SO going to visit there
  • Watching people gather around the windows to see Iron Maiden’s tour plane take off in Reykjavik

Flying Lowlights:
  •  The airline losing my luggage (but I got it back today so no real worries, though the bag they lost contained all of my pajamas so last night I slept in a pair of long underwear and a zip-up sweatshirt…Germany is already teaching me to improvise!)
  •  The short but memorable airplane ride from Copenhagen to Hamburg—think Captain Kangaroo in a windstorm
  • Not sleeping or brushing my teeth for far too long

After leaving Minnesota at 7:20pm on Thursday (August 18th)I finally arrived in Hamburg at 3:05pm on Friday (August 19th), where I was picked up at the airport by the “au pair dad” and driven to Stade, a small town about 50km from Hamburg’s city center.

Even though I have only been in Germany for 24 hours I have already had several noteworthy experiences:
  • Visiting a bakery where they sold at least two dozen different types of bread and nothing else (The Germans love bread like Jerry Springer loves a fistfight)
  • Having dinner outside at a real German restaurant and ordering dinner off a menu that I didn’t really understand. Luckily, I ordered something really good… now if I could only remember what it was called
  • Having my first conversation in German (don’t be too impressed, it mainly consisted of me telling the store clerk that I didn’t need any help and then apologizing for my poor German)
  •  Learning to communicate with a host dad whose first language is Dutch, a host mom whose first language is German and children who are being raised tri-lingual (Dutch, German, English). We do a lot of pointing and start many sentences with “How do you say…” (Admittedly, they’re all doing MUCH better than me!)

I also moved into my apartment, which is over the garage. When I walk inside the main building, if I go up a half flight of stairs there is a small landing and that is where my apartment is located. If I go up the rest of the staircase the family's apartment is there (they have an entire floor).

 My apartment consists of a bathroom with a washing machine that I cannot figure out, a small kitchen (fully stocked!), an office area and a bedroom. It is very nice and I’m thrilled to have somewhere to call my own. 


In future posts I promise to tell you all about my work, the town where I’m living and the life of an au pair. 

For now I am going to continue my valiant fight against jetlag and homesickness-- sometimes they win, sometimes I do. But, as Helen Keller famously said, "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing." And no one said adventures were easy J

Miss you millions!
Christina

P.S. Thanks for all the comments-- love it!!!

9 comments:

  1. Ich drücke meine Daumen für dich und hoffe dass alles wieder gut geht! Deutschland ist ein schönen Bundesland und es gibt viel zu tun und zu erfahren. Ich mache überhaupt keine Sorgen dass du diene Zeit dort geneissen wirst und ich freu' mich auf deiner nächsten Post! :) Mach's gut Süße und ich schicke dir ein ganz herzlichen Grüß aus Amerika.

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  2. Sissy, the German Shepard at the dog park has been teaching me German.... hows this..... Das Bark, Das Bark.

    Love Scouty

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  3. I am hoping your love of adventure and travel overtake your homesickness. Can't wait to read of your adventures and see the pics.
    I love you
    Mom

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  4. Your apartment is adorable!!! I'm so happy for you! Can't wait to visit! :)

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  5. Your apartment is cute, and the outside ivy gives the place real character. I know there is an adjustment period....but what an adventure you have started. Stay strong, and embrace your current reality :-) Aunt Julie

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  6. The apartment rocks! You're in a far better place than I am :) I'm so glad to hear that jet lag is your biggest adjustment, keep the stories coming!

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  7. Your apartment is really, really cute! So I believe Danielle and I have decided to do Germany (Hamburg area and Berlin) and Southern Italy for our Europe trip...so hopefully I can see you in a few months!! Also...is your washing machine made from a company spelled something like Miele? I had those in NJ...they are complicated, but you'll figure it out!

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  8. I figured google out and promise to be a loyal follower. Exciting travels to you!

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  9. Very well written. I look forward to your weekly updates, giving us a chance to see Germany through your eyes. I ran across two quotes that made me think of you.......

    "Two of the greatest gifts we can give our children are roots and wings." -- Hodding Carter

    "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." -- Mark Twain

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