Monday I was up early to go to my language class in Erlangen. Two new people came who weren't there last week. One is Spanish and one is Brazilian. At one point the Brazilian was telling the class that her spoken English is much better than her spoken German. I jumped at the opportunity and said, "Me too!" Everyone laughed. After class I had to rush back to Nürnberg. Since I'll be going skiing with my host family in Italy in January, I need ski clothing. Aldi Süd had a bunch of ski attire in the store on Monday so I made my way over there and bought basically everything I need: jacket, pants, goggles, pullover, socks, and undergarments, all of which are specifically for skiing. Aldi Süd is known for being very "inexpensive," and I managed to get everything I need for about €90. It's not top quality, but if I'm only going to use these items for one week this year, it's a pretty good deal. I also made my way over to a store called the "American Store." I was really excited, thinking I would find some food I'd been missing. But no, it was about 99% military attire and 1% over-priced junk food. I was a bit disappointed, but I haven't given up on finding more American food quite yet. The rest of the day I spent at home with the host family. I also finally baked the pumpkin seeds from the pumpkin we carved over the weekend. They were a huge hit with the host family. HM and One in particular couldn't stop eating them. I'm proud of myself, as it was my first time baking any on my own.
Tuesday was a long day. HD left early that morning for Karlsruhe. While we were all eating breakfast One made a funny comment. Him, Two, and HM were still eating while I was unloading the dishwasher. One looked at me and said, "You're like a papa!" HM and I tried to ask him what he meant, but he instead he went on to say that he has "two mama's." I'm not entirely sure what to make of his comments, but I think it means he's accepting me as a part of his family. I went with HM to drop the kids off, then I dropped her off at work, and finally I had to run some errands. I went to Aldi again, but this time to buy some ski items for everyone else. I couldn't find everything I needed at one store so I had to drive 10 minutes in the other direction to another Aldi, where I still didn't find everything but I found more of what I needed. Then I came back home, loaded up the car with the yard waste, and drove to the recycling center to dump all the waste. We left the house at 7:50 and I didn't make it home until 10:30. I returned to pick the kids up at their normal time. When I walked in to where Two was, none of the workers recognized me. I had never seen any of them either. One of them came over to me and asked me who I was and who I was picking up. They couldn't find the paperwork that said I was allowed to take the kids, so they ended up calling HM and then asked me to show my ID. When I went out to the car to get my license, Two watched me leave and started crying. I laughed to myself because if any of them knew him, they'd know his crying was proof enough of who I was (he only cries when he cares about the people who leave the room). It was eventually all sorted out and we carried on to get One. A worker near Two laughed when she saw me and said, "They didn't know you, huh? I did!" I had the kids for most of the evening by myself so that HM could work late. I was surprised by how smoothly it went. There was not a single meltdown from either kid. I managed to get them both ready for bed at a good time, which happened to be just as HM was getting home. It was an exhausting yet successful day.
Wednesday was another busy day, though unexpectedly so. When everyone was gone, I went back to sleep, woke up awhile later, went for a run, and then got ready to head into the city. I had been waiting for a package from home for a month and it still had not arrived. Two weeks after the package was sent, my mom found it returned on the doorstep because the customs form had fallen off. She re-sent it, but this week was another two weeks since it was re-sent and it usually takes about a week to get mail. I just so happened to check the mail as I was leaving the house. I found a letter from the Zollamt (customs office) informing me that there was a package that I needed to go and pick up. I made my way all the way out to the Zollamt, which ended up taking an entire hour. I had to take the train to the Hauptbahnhof, wait 10 minutes, grab another train 10 minutes south, and then walk 20 minutes. When the guy finally came back with my package, he made me open it and show him what was inside. There was a variety of things, but two of the items were children's books for the kids. When the guy saw the books, he laughed and asked if they were for me. Clever. This "little" adventure ended up eating up my whole afternoon. By the time I made it back to the house, there was only 30 minutes until everyone got home. The evening of work was typical for a Wednesday. One has been in a good mood lately and seems to be more pleased with my presence. That evening he looked at me and asked me if I remembered the day I arrived when I met them all at the bus station. He said he remembered that I spoke German with him and that he didn't know who I was then. He's said this kind of thing to me a few times before. It's always at a very random time, so I'm not sure what to make of it.
Thursday I went over to M's to help L with some English homework. Most of it was easy for me, but I had to look up some of it. If I'd ever learned those concepts in school, I'd forgotten them. Overall I think we were pretty successful and L seemed to understand. It took and hour and a half to get through half of his homework, so we called it quits for the day and said we'd work on the rest at a later date. Afterwards, M and I cooked some pasta bolognese. I was starving and it was delicious, as her meals always are. That evening someone came over to inspect the damage done to the wall downstairs. About a week or so after I got here, HP rearranged some furniture and HD fastened a huge wardrobe to the wall next to the front door. He unknowingly drilled through a water pipe. Water had been leaking into the wall for the past month. He noticed the water behind the wardrobe last week and someone finally came Thursday to check it out. The guy was here for a good hour or so. Now we won't really be able to use either of the bathrooms upstairs until the problem is repairs (could be several weeks). There's one bathroom downstairs, and it's just a half bath with a toilet and sink. Looks like I'll be "showering" in the kitchen sink for the foreseeable future. HM went to dance after dinner. HD was talking to One about who would get him ready for bed, saying it could be him (HD) or me. One chose me! I was a bit shocked. When he was laying in bed, he turned to me and called me "Papa." This could have been a complete accident, but it was still strange.
Halloween is this weekend! I can't wait to see how the Germans celebrate.
Friday, October 30, 2015
Sunday, October 25, 2015
Langsam hab' ich das Gefühl, ich gehöre hier her.
This weekend was really good! I feel like I'm finally getting out there and meeting people. I'm bound to stumble into a few lasting friendships the more people I meet.
Friday night I met up with Eddie and some of his coworkers. Even though they work/live in/around Ansbach (40 minutes west of Nürnberg), they were in Nürnberg for a going away dinner. Eddie was kind enough to invite me along. I met up with all of them at the restaurant. We stayed there for a bit until everyone was ready to leave. They all were planning on going to another bar for some more drinks, but Eddie wanted to check out another bar called Rush first. We got ourselves some drinks and then went to sit down, which just so happened to be next to three other Americans. Small world, eh? We chatted with them for awhile before we left to go meet up with his co-workers again. The next bar, Finnegan's, is apparently a hot spot for Americans. I made friends with some cool strangers there (people from places like Ireland, Canada, and Germany) and spent a decent amount of time talking to them. Eddie left a bit early to meet up with a friend back Ansbach, so I stayed out a bit longer with the people I had been talking to.
Saturday was another action packed day. I helped One carve a pumpkin in the morning. HP had never carved a pumpkin before, so I tried to impart my wisdom on them so that they can do it next year when I'm no longer here. The pumpkin turned out really great and I was happy to be doing something from home. That evening I went to a MeetUp event at a Chinese restaurant. I was a little apprehensive in the beginning but I ended up meeting some really cool people. These events are always a little awkward in the beginning because most of us are strangers and the language differences can be difficult. I'd say there were about 25 people there, split between three tables. The six other people at my table were from the US, Germany, India, and Spain. The conversation was flowing almost the entire time and we laughed a lot. Not everyone could speak German well, so we stuck with English. After dinner we all went to a really interesting bar. On the inside it kind of looked like an old theater. I definitely plan on going back sometime. I really hit it off with three people in particular, Simon (Germany), Mike (US/Japan) and Theresa (Germany/US). Dinner started at 6pm and I didn't head home until 12:30am. I don't think any of us had planned on staying out that long. I hope we all can hang out sometime soon.
Sunday was typical for me. I got up and had lunch with the family, skyped with some people, went for a run, had dinner with the family, etc.
Next weekend is Halloween! I'm really excited to see what kind of trouble I can get into, maybe with some of my new friends.
Friday night I met up with Eddie and some of his coworkers. Even though they work/live in/around Ansbach (40 minutes west of Nürnberg), they were in Nürnberg for a going away dinner. Eddie was kind enough to invite me along. I met up with all of them at the restaurant. We stayed there for a bit until everyone was ready to leave. They all were planning on going to another bar for some more drinks, but Eddie wanted to check out another bar called Rush first. We got ourselves some drinks and then went to sit down, which just so happened to be next to three other Americans. Small world, eh? We chatted with them for awhile before we left to go meet up with his co-workers again. The next bar, Finnegan's, is apparently a hot spot for Americans. I made friends with some cool strangers there (people from places like Ireland, Canada, and Germany) and spent a decent amount of time talking to them. Eddie left a bit early to meet up with a friend back Ansbach, so I stayed out a bit longer with the people I had been talking to.
Saturday was another action packed day. I helped One carve a pumpkin in the morning. HP had never carved a pumpkin before, so I tried to impart my wisdom on them so that they can do it next year when I'm no longer here. The pumpkin turned out really great and I was happy to be doing something from home. That evening I went to a MeetUp event at a Chinese restaurant. I was a little apprehensive in the beginning but I ended up meeting some really cool people. These events are always a little awkward in the beginning because most of us are strangers and the language differences can be difficult. I'd say there were about 25 people there, split between three tables. The six other people at my table were from the US, Germany, India, and Spain. The conversation was flowing almost the entire time and we laughed a lot. Not everyone could speak German well, so we stuck with English. After dinner we all went to a really interesting bar. On the inside it kind of looked like an old theater. I definitely plan on going back sometime. I really hit it off with three people in particular, Simon (Germany), Mike (US/Japan) and Theresa (Germany/US). Dinner started at 6pm and I didn't head home until 12:30am. I don't think any of us had planned on staying out that long. I hope we all can hang out sometime soon.
Sunday was typical for me. I got up and had lunch with the family, skyped with some people, went for a run, had dinner with the family, etc.
Next weekend is Halloween! I'm really excited to see what kind of trouble I can get into, maybe with some of my new friends.
Friday, October 23, 2015
Wer wagt, gewinnt.
Monday was a busy day! I had to wake up entirely too early to catch my train at 7:36am into Erlangen. My German class started at 8:30am and my train arrived in Erlangen at 8:13am. I was a bit disappointed by the people in my class, from a potential-friend standpoint. There were only three other women (one was from England, one from Turkey, and one from Belarus), they were all older, and two were married. So that's a bust. However, I think it'll be good to take the class because it'll only help strengthen my German. Reviewing grammar rules while applying them in my every day life should help me improve at an even faster rate. The teacher is a 60-something year old German woman. When she saw my name on the roster, she asked me about it and where it's from. She said it was a very different name and had never heard of it before. "Farrah" has some Persian/Arabic roots, and she asked if anyone from my family came from there. I then launched into the complicated explanation of my unique name and my teacher looked at me blankly. After class I spent some time walking around in Erlangen, specifically in the Schlossgarten (castle gardens). When I got back to Nürnberg I went shopping for some warmer clothes. I made it home around 2pm. I spent the rest of the day hanging around the house and spending time with my host family. At dinner time, HM asked me if I would be interested in going to the kids school a couple times a month to read English books aloud. It's a bilingual school and they are always looking for native speakers/exceptionally fluent speakers for the kids to listen to. I said I'd be more than happy to do so. She said she'd talk to the director of the school and let me know.
Tuesday I got up and went into town to buy some warm socks. Yep, you read that correctly. I needed to buy some warmer socks. There was nothing out of the ordinary about my working hours, just the garden variety meltdowns and playtime activities.
Wednesday I went for a run. While on my run I ran into (no pun intended) M and L, who were working in the garden. The invited me to come over for lunch later, which I did do. We all cooked together and it was simply delicious. I think I'll have to make the same thing for my host family soon. HM dropped One off with me later and immediately left for swim class with Two. One and I waited for HM and Two to get home so we could all eat dinner together. HD had left that morning for a work trip to England. The evening was otherwise uneventful.
Thursday I went to the Dokumentationszentrum Reichsparteitagsgelände (or Documentation Center Nazi Party Rally Grounds). I spent about two hours walking around and listening to all of the information. It was mostly concentrated around Hitler's political party, the NSDAP (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei) rising to power leading up to WW2. There was also a lot of information about the grounds themselves, as they were originally 11 square kilometers of rally grounds, most of which were never completed. The few areas that had been completed were destroyed/built over after the war, repurposed for other city functions, or were turned into the museum areas. I already knew a good amount of the information. I did enjoy being in a place where so much history had happened, even if it isn't the pleasant kind of history. I'm also really enjoying exploring Nürnberg. I'm not sure where I'll visit next week. After everyone got home, HM left shortly after to go to run some errands, leaving the kids with me for awhile. There were a few meltdowns, but nothing I couldn't handle.
Today I got up and went for a run and then did some chores around the house. M picked me up and the two of us went to pick up One from school so that I could take him to soccer. I have to get him by 2pm, which is entirely too early for HP to leave work (and hey, that's what I'm here for). I worked until 6pm. Now I'm waiting to go out and meet up with some friends. More on that later!
Tuesday I got up and went into town to buy some warm socks. Yep, you read that correctly. I needed to buy some warmer socks. There was nothing out of the ordinary about my working hours, just the garden variety meltdowns and playtime activities.
Wednesday I went for a run. While on my run I ran into (no pun intended) M and L, who were working in the garden. The invited me to come over for lunch later, which I did do. We all cooked together and it was simply delicious. I think I'll have to make the same thing for my host family soon. HM dropped One off with me later and immediately left for swim class with Two. One and I waited for HM and Two to get home so we could all eat dinner together. HD had left that morning for a work trip to England. The evening was otherwise uneventful.
Thursday I went to the Dokumentationszentrum Reichsparteitagsgelände (or Documentation Center Nazi Party Rally Grounds). I spent about two hours walking around and listening to all of the information. It was mostly concentrated around Hitler's political party, the NSDAP (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei) rising to power leading up to WW2. There was also a lot of information about the grounds themselves, as they were originally 11 square kilometers of rally grounds, most of which were never completed. The few areas that had been completed were destroyed/built over after the war, repurposed for other city functions, or were turned into the museum areas. I already knew a good amount of the information. I did enjoy being in a place where so much history had happened, even if it isn't the pleasant kind of history. I'm also really enjoying exploring Nürnberg. I'm not sure where I'll visit next week. After everyone got home, HM left shortly after to go to run some errands, leaving the kids with me for awhile. There were a few meltdowns, but nothing I couldn't handle.
Today I got up and went for a run and then did some chores around the house. M picked me up and the two of us went to pick up One from school so that I could take him to soccer. I have to get him by 2pm, which is entirely too early for HP to leave work (and hey, that's what I'm here for). I worked until 6pm. Now I'm waiting to go out and meet up with some friends. More on that later!
Monday, October 19, 2015
Alle Züge sind ausgefallen.
Friday was a busy day. I tagged along with HM and M to a big clothing sale at a warehouse. It took us 2 hours to get there because of detours for construction. We only stayed about an hour, as the sale was much smaller than they anticipated. It took less than an hour and a half to get back. We left the house at 9:30am and didn't get back until about 2:30pm. HD arrived shortly thereafter with the kids. Him and I took One to his soccer class while HM stayed with Two. We aren't allowed to stay during the class because it distracts the kids, so we came home and then HM, Two and I left to do some grocery shopping. I worked for another hour when we got back. I was finished working at 5pm. I then got ready for my big night out meeting other au pairs.
As previously stated, I had made plans to attend an Au Pair/FSJ meeting in Erlangen. It takes 30 minutes to get from our train station to the central train station in Erlangen (taking the local/slow train). For geographical reference, we live on the far east side of Nürnberg. Erlangen is north and slightly west of Nürnberg. When we drive the car from here to drop the kids off at their school in Erlangen, it only takes 15 minutes. Luckily I have the year-long train/bus/tram pass that extends all the way to Erlangen, so it's really easy for me to get there and doesn't require me to pay. I arrived in Erlangen 20 minutes before the meet up was scheduled and made my way over to the Volkshochschule on foot. This is also where my German as a Foreign Language class will take place. Upon immediate arrival, there were only three other people there. My heart sank. To my delight, over the next 10 minutes another seven people ended up turning up. Most were also au pairs, but one was a student and a couple others are doing something called a Freiwilliges Soziales Jahr (FSJ) here. These are the countries of the other people in attendance: Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Korea, Nepal, Turkey, Spain, Mexico, and Albania. Their ages ranged from 18 to 27. Quite a mix, as you can see. The people from Spain and Mexico were guys and the rest were girls. It was naturally a bit awkward at first. It got much better as the evening progressed. The woman who coordinated it had only brought information in German with her. A couple of the people couldn't speak any German. She couldn't speak English well, so I was the interpreter/translator. Not kidding, I actually translated a piece of paper she brought and then also interpreted a few times when she spoke. In the beginning she told us a little about Erlangen, gave us some information pamphlets, and told us about what we'd be doing during the monthly meetings. We then did a speed dating type of thing to get to know each other. It worked wonderfully and I had really great conversations with mostly everyone (except the people who couldn't speak German and who could barely speak English). We ended up being there half an hour later than we what was planned. Eight of us went out for a drink afterwards. We spoke a German/English mixture the whole night. We didn't stay out too long, as several of them had to catch the last bus back home around 11:30pm. I really enjoyed myself. It was fun to be around so many people who completely understand my situation on many levels.
I know I've said this before, but everyone is always really impressed with my German when they hear that I'm American. Yeah, my German is good. Would I say it's better than the other advanced German learners I met Friday night? No, not necessarily. It's just that 1) Americans don't bother learning languages and, 2) I guess when they do learn them, they leave much to be desired. I think everyone I talked to on Friday night asked me where I learned German so well and then how long I had been studying it. They also commented on my lack of a pronounced American accent when I speak. I guess now is when I should stop doubting my German skills. All the signs seem to point to me being much better than I give myself credit for.
Saturday I was supposed to go on a 15k hike with a group of people through MeetUp.com. The high was only 45F and everything was still wet from all the rain Friday. I'd have been gone from the house from about 9:45am until 5:30pm. I would also be spending that entire day with ~25 strangers. In the end I decided that I didn't care to be outside, wet, cold, and with so many strangers for so long. I don't really have any good hiking clothes, just running gear, and none of it is particularly warm. If I wasn't enjoying the company or if I was too cold, there would be no way to leave and go home until the hike was over. Some of the same people will be meeting next weekend for dinner, so I eventually decided to pass on the hike in lieu of dinner the following weekend. It's a good thing I didn't go, as HD was sick. HM would have been on her own with the kids all day while trying to get some chores done. I worked from about 9:30am to 1:30pm. We raked leaves and did some other work outside and then took all the leaves and yard clippings to the recycling center. I also fed the kids lunch while HM went back with more stuff to the recycling center. There's no way she would have gotten everything done so quickly with HD being sick if I hadn't been there to help. I could tell that HM was really grateful I stayed and lessened her load.
We all went over to the neighbors for dinner. T's mom has been in town and her and M cooked dinner. It was probably one of the most "German" meals I've had since I was here. It consisted of Buletten (German "meatballs" - ground beef with diced onions, bread crumbs, salt, etc, and then pan fried), a cabbage salad, and a potato salad. I left after we ate to meet up with some of the au pairs from Saturday night. There were only 5 of us this time. We went to a bar and hung out there for a few hours. I can feel some actual friendships blossoming! When I was ready to head home, I made my way over to the train station. For whatever reason and much to my surprise, all the trains were cancelled. There was not a single train coming or going from the train station in Erlangen. The next bus from Erlangen wasn't for an hour and a half and it would take another hour and a half to get home. I had no choice but to call HP to come get me. HD picked me up even though he was sick. I think I said thank you about seven times. He finally said, "hey, we're here for you when you need us."
Sunday was exactly as most of my Sundays have been. I slept in, exercised, skyped, and just generally lazed around.
As previously stated, I had made plans to attend an Au Pair/FSJ meeting in Erlangen. It takes 30 minutes to get from our train station to the central train station in Erlangen (taking the local/slow train). For geographical reference, we live on the far east side of Nürnberg. Erlangen is north and slightly west of Nürnberg. When we drive the car from here to drop the kids off at their school in Erlangen, it only takes 15 minutes. Luckily I have the year-long train/bus/tram pass that extends all the way to Erlangen, so it's really easy for me to get there and doesn't require me to pay. I arrived in Erlangen 20 minutes before the meet up was scheduled and made my way over to the Volkshochschule on foot. This is also where my German as a Foreign Language class will take place. Upon immediate arrival, there were only three other people there. My heart sank. To my delight, over the next 10 minutes another seven people ended up turning up. Most were also au pairs, but one was a student and a couple others are doing something called a Freiwilliges Soziales Jahr (FSJ) here. These are the countries of the other people in attendance: Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Korea, Nepal, Turkey, Spain, Mexico, and Albania. Their ages ranged from 18 to 27. Quite a mix, as you can see. The people from Spain and Mexico were guys and the rest were girls. It was naturally a bit awkward at first. It got much better as the evening progressed. The woman who coordinated it had only brought information in German with her. A couple of the people couldn't speak any German. She couldn't speak English well, so I was the interpreter/translator. Not kidding, I actually translated a piece of paper she brought and then also interpreted a few times when she spoke. In the beginning she told us a little about Erlangen, gave us some information pamphlets, and told us about what we'd be doing during the monthly meetings. We then did a speed dating type of thing to get to know each other. It worked wonderfully and I had really great conversations with mostly everyone (except the people who couldn't speak German and who could barely speak English). We ended up being there half an hour later than we what was planned. Eight of us went out for a drink afterwards. We spoke a German/English mixture the whole night. We didn't stay out too long, as several of them had to catch the last bus back home around 11:30pm. I really enjoyed myself. It was fun to be around so many people who completely understand my situation on many levels.
I know I've said this before, but everyone is always really impressed with my German when they hear that I'm American. Yeah, my German is good. Would I say it's better than the other advanced German learners I met Friday night? No, not necessarily. It's just that 1) Americans don't bother learning languages and, 2) I guess when they do learn them, they leave much to be desired. I think everyone I talked to on Friday night asked me where I learned German so well and then how long I had been studying it. They also commented on my lack of a pronounced American accent when I speak. I guess now is when I should stop doubting my German skills. All the signs seem to point to me being much better than I give myself credit for.
Saturday I was supposed to go on a 15k hike with a group of people through MeetUp.com. The high was only 45F and everything was still wet from all the rain Friday. I'd have been gone from the house from about 9:45am until 5:30pm. I would also be spending that entire day with ~25 strangers. In the end I decided that I didn't care to be outside, wet, cold, and with so many strangers for so long. I don't really have any good hiking clothes, just running gear, and none of it is particularly warm. If I wasn't enjoying the company or if I was too cold, there would be no way to leave and go home until the hike was over. Some of the same people will be meeting next weekend for dinner, so I eventually decided to pass on the hike in lieu of dinner the following weekend. It's a good thing I didn't go, as HD was sick. HM would have been on her own with the kids all day while trying to get some chores done. I worked from about 9:30am to 1:30pm. We raked leaves and did some other work outside and then took all the leaves and yard clippings to the recycling center. I also fed the kids lunch while HM went back with more stuff to the recycling center. There's no way she would have gotten everything done so quickly with HD being sick if I hadn't been there to help. I could tell that HM was really grateful I stayed and lessened her load.
We all went over to the neighbors for dinner. T's mom has been in town and her and M cooked dinner. It was probably one of the most "German" meals I've had since I was here. It consisted of Buletten (German "meatballs" - ground beef with diced onions, bread crumbs, salt, etc, and then pan fried), a cabbage salad, and a potato salad. I left after we ate to meet up with some of the au pairs from Saturday night. There were only 5 of us this time. We went to a bar and hung out there for a few hours. I can feel some actual friendships blossoming! When I was ready to head home, I made my way over to the train station. For whatever reason and much to my surprise, all the trains were cancelled. There was not a single train coming or going from the train station in Erlangen. The next bus from Erlangen wasn't for an hour and a half and it would take another hour and a half to get home. I had no choice but to call HP to come get me. HD picked me up even though he was sick. I think I said thank you about seven times. He finally said, "hey, we're here for you when you need us."
Sunday was exactly as most of my Sundays have been. I slept in, exercised, skyped, and just generally lazed around.
Thursday, October 15, 2015
...krieg' ich das irgendwie hin
Monday I only had to work an hour in the morning. Throughout the day I went for a run, a bike ride and grocery shopping. The rest of the time I was home doing an assortment of things. After being away all weekend, I was happy to have a day of rest before really getting back into the swing of things. That evening I spent some time looking up courses to take at the Volkshochschule in Erlangen or the Bildungszentrum in Nürnberg (both are essentially community centers). I waited too long to register and most of the classes were already full or had already met several times. I eventually decided to take a German as a Foreign Language grammar course in Erlangen. It meets once a week for 12 weeks and lasts for an hour and a half each time. Initially I didn't want to do a German language course, but taking one is better than not taking any class, especially since I'm using this as a way to try and meet people. I also signed up for a "course" for Au Pairs/foreigners through the Volkshochschule. It only meets once a month on Fridays for four months. It's obviously not a real class, just a way for people to meet up and then go do something else. I feel like I should make at least a couple of friends through these courses or the meetup.com activities. If I don't, then I'll have to pursue other avenues.
Tuesday was much busier. After everyone was out the door in the morning, I slept some more (as I typically do), went for run, and then had to rake some leaves. HP have decided that they want me to spent an hour a day a few days a week doing some kind of household chores, ranging from raking leaves to doing laundry, basically whatever is needed at the time. If nothing is needed, then I won't do anything. As I was outside, M drove past me and invited me to lunch with them. When we were finished eating, I spent half an hour helping L with his English and French homework. I was quite impressed with myself, being able to help with both French and English while explaining things in German. I often have trouble switching between my second language (French) and my third (German). I was pleasantly surprised by the low level of difficulties I experienced. I plan on eventually taking a French class at the Bildungszentrum. I need to keep up with my French and not let it backslide too much. The evening with the kids was fairly typical. After dinner, HM went to her dance class and I was left alone to put the kids to sleep (HD is away on business, as he usually is in the middle of the week). The only thing out of ordinary was how easy it was to get Two to sleep. Normally he cries a little bit when it's time to get into his crib. That evening he didn't do it at all. Maybe I am finally becoming commonplace and safe to him!
Wednesday was a day of exploring. I went to the other side of town to a cemetery by the name of Johannisfriedhof ("Friedhof" in German means "cemetery"). As weird as that sounds, it's actually listed as a thing to do here. A number of famous people are also buried there, the most recognizable name being Albrecht Dürer. It was quite beautiful, even though it was also quite cold. The high was only 42F! I also noticed that the professions of the people buried there were written on the grave stones. I didn't expect to have a vocabulary lesson during my outing. To get to the cemetery I used the subway for the very first time. The subway here isn't extensive, as there are also many buses and trams. I really enjoy using public transportation, maybe even a little too much. That evening HM dropped One off with me and then left with Two for his swim class. After dinner, HM left again for dance class. She was hesitant to go, afraid that it would be too stressful for Two with his swim class and then her leaving (remember, Two cries when HP leave the room. It's 10x worse when they leave the house). Wednesday night is her favorite class and she usually doesn't go. She asked me a couple times if I was sure, and I insisted that she left. As soon as she walked out the door, all hell broke loose. One was overly tired and acting accordingly. Two was overly tired and also screaming because HM left. For a solid 15 minutes, it wasn't pretty. Eventually they both calmed down and both kids were in bed on time.
Today/Thursday was cold and rainy, but I decided to make it another day of adventure. I took the opportunity to go to the Nuremberg Trials Courthouse, or the "Memorium Nürnberger Prozesse." Luckily for me, Courtroom 600, the actual room where the trials took place, was open. Some days it's closed when they are holding court in there. Anyways, I started the tour sitting in Courtroom 600. It was humbling to be in a place where history was not only created, but also revisited for the world to see and understand. It was also eerie to think about all of the men and women who were on trial there for such abominable actions. You don't remember how small you are until you're faced with such grandiose events. I continued the tour through their exhibit. The information started in the late 1800s and went to modern day talking about a number of wars, nations, and powerful individuals. Obviously the Nuremberg Trials were covered the most in detail. I learned about everything from the judges, to the prosecutors and defenders, to the defendants, to the physical logistics of the trial, and even the translators and interpreters. One unexpected thing was how it highlighted international law and how this type of law evolved in the wars leading up to, including, and following WW2. All of that background information made it much easier to understand all of the post-WW2 trials. I ended up being there for a full 2 hours. I could have probably been there another hour if I had taken the same time with the last fourth of the exhibit that I had with the first three-quarters (I had to get back home for work). As far as work goes, it was a normal day. There wasn't anything particularly abnormal or interesting to report on concerning my working hours.
I have a big weekend ahead of me. I'll be going to a couple events to try and make friends. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
Tuesday was much busier. After everyone was out the door in the morning, I slept some more (as I typically do), went for run, and then had to rake some leaves. HP have decided that they want me to spent an hour a day a few days a week doing some kind of household chores, ranging from raking leaves to doing laundry, basically whatever is needed at the time. If nothing is needed, then I won't do anything. As I was outside, M drove past me and invited me to lunch with them. When we were finished eating, I spent half an hour helping L with his English and French homework. I was quite impressed with myself, being able to help with both French and English while explaining things in German. I often have trouble switching between my second language (French) and my third (German). I was pleasantly surprised by the low level of difficulties I experienced. I plan on eventually taking a French class at the Bildungszentrum. I need to keep up with my French and not let it backslide too much. The evening with the kids was fairly typical. After dinner, HM went to her dance class and I was left alone to put the kids to sleep (HD is away on business, as he usually is in the middle of the week). The only thing out of ordinary was how easy it was to get Two to sleep. Normally he cries a little bit when it's time to get into his crib. That evening he didn't do it at all. Maybe I am finally becoming commonplace and safe to him!
Wednesday was a day of exploring. I went to the other side of town to a cemetery by the name of Johannisfriedhof ("Friedhof" in German means "cemetery"). As weird as that sounds, it's actually listed as a thing to do here. A number of famous people are also buried there, the most recognizable name being Albrecht Dürer. It was quite beautiful, even though it was also quite cold. The high was only 42F! I also noticed that the professions of the people buried there were written on the grave stones. I didn't expect to have a vocabulary lesson during my outing. To get to the cemetery I used the subway for the very first time. The subway here isn't extensive, as there are also many buses and trams. I really enjoy using public transportation, maybe even a little too much. That evening HM dropped One off with me and then left with Two for his swim class. After dinner, HM left again for dance class. She was hesitant to go, afraid that it would be too stressful for Two with his swim class and then her leaving (remember, Two cries when HP leave the room. It's 10x worse when they leave the house). Wednesday night is her favorite class and she usually doesn't go. She asked me a couple times if I was sure, and I insisted that she left. As soon as she walked out the door, all hell broke loose. One was overly tired and acting accordingly. Two was overly tired and also screaming because HM left. For a solid 15 minutes, it wasn't pretty. Eventually they both calmed down and both kids were in bed on time.
Johannisfriedhof
Johanniskirche (the church, right) at Johannisfriedhof
Found this gem in the Hauptbahnhof today. I had somehow never noticed it before. It's a map of the old city on a wall.
Today/Thursday was cold and rainy, but I decided to make it another day of adventure. I took the opportunity to go to the Nuremberg Trials Courthouse, or the "Memorium Nürnberger Prozesse." Luckily for me, Courtroom 600, the actual room where the trials took place, was open. Some days it's closed when they are holding court in there. Anyways, I started the tour sitting in Courtroom 600. It was humbling to be in a place where history was not only created, but also revisited for the world to see and understand. It was also eerie to think about all of the men and women who were on trial there for such abominable actions. You don't remember how small you are until you're faced with such grandiose events. I continued the tour through their exhibit. The information started in the late 1800s and went to modern day talking about a number of wars, nations, and powerful individuals. Obviously the Nuremberg Trials were covered the most in detail. I learned about everything from the judges, to the prosecutors and defenders, to the defendants, to the physical logistics of the trial, and even the translators and interpreters. One unexpected thing was how it highlighted international law and how this type of law evolved in the wars leading up to, including, and following WW2. All of that background information made it much easier to understand all of the post-WW2 trials. I ended up being there for a full 2 hours. I could have probably been there another hour if I had taken the same time with the last fourth of the exhibit that I had with the first three-quarters (I had to get back home for work). As far as work goes, it was a normal day. There wasn't anything particularly abnormal or interesting to report on concerning my working hours.
The outside of the Memorium Nürnberger Prozesse and Courtroom 600. This is actually just the right wing of the building, The whole thing is ginormous.
Courtroom 600 today.
Courtroom 600 then and now.
I have a big weekend ahead of me. I'll be going to a couple events to try and make friends. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
Monday, October 12, 2015
Ein richtig geiles Leben
This weekend was fun and exhausting. As I stated in an earlier post, M invited me to go to Bochum with her. Her husband, T, couldn't come because of work. Her son, L, was also supposed to come. He's been sick for the past 3 weeks and therefore he didn't go either. It was just her and I in the end. Bochum is roughly a 4 hour drive northwest of Nürnberg. M grew up there. Her sister, K, still lives there with her family. The weekend was centered around a big party on Saturday night. The party was supposed to be equal parts a house warming party and a family get-together. K and her husband, A, just finished renovating their house. They inherited it from M and K's parents and spent a year and a half completely renovating it. They just recently finished it, hence the house warming party. Though both of M's siblings were there, four other family members backed out for various reasons. Initially there were supposed to be several of M's nephews (most my age, a couple of whom I've already met), but in the end the only nephew there was K's son P, who is 10 years old. I had been looking forward to spending time with people my own age. However, everyone that I did meet was very nice. They were all very welcoming and also quite funny. More to come on that later!
We left at 9:30am Friday morning. We stopped at an outlet mall on the way because M wanted to do some shopping. It had never occurred to me that there would be outlet malls in Germany. I had never heard of most of the stores and some were insanely expensive. In one store I found something for €600, and it was on sale! In the end all I bought was some Lindt chocolate for €5. We ran into some traffic during the last hour of our trip and finally made it to Bochum at 3:45pm. The rest of the day was a combination of being introduced to various people who were helping setup at the house, eating dinner, and then hanging around and chatting. Everyone was pleased to discover that I could speak German. Many people initially greeted me in English. I would respond to them in German and they were all pleasantly surprised and spoke to me in German from them on. At one point we were all outside on the back patio. I was wearing my socks. Before I continue, you must know that Germans are very serious about their house shoes. They often have inside house shoes and outside house shoes. They do not wear street shoes in the house. This is common practice in every German household I've ever been in. When you walk inside, it's understood that you take off your shoes and if you have house shoes with you, you change into them. Anyways, I don't have any house shoes. I have some slipper sock things, but they don't have a real sole. It was a bit chilly when we were all standing outside. K looked at me bewildered and asked if I had any house shoes. I said no and three of them started to get up to remedy the situation. One of the three took off his shoes and gave them to me and then went and got himself yet another pair of house shoes. Anyone who says Germans aren't warm people, well, they're simply wrong. I spent a lot of time talking to S, Maria's brother. He was completely impressed with my German. One thing that plays to my advantage is that I'm American. Everyone knows that Americans mostly don't learn languages, so when they meet one who can speak another language well, even if it's not perfect, they're impressed. We all went to bed early Friday night in anticipation of Saturday.
Luckily we didn't have to be up at a specific time on Saturday. We all got up when we woke up and had a calm start to the day, slowly eating a typical German breakfast (fresh bread, cold cuts, cheese, jams, butter, nutella and chocolate). I finally was introduced to the custom of eating chocolate squares on bread with butter. I'd heard of it before but I'd never had it. It's exactly as it sounds, thin squares of milk chocolate that you put on bread. I'm absolutely a chocolate lover, and it was nothing short of delicious. I'll have to look for some in the grocery store here. Germans basically always put butter on their bread before they put anything else. Though it might sound a bit unappetizing, it actually makes everything better. After breakfast I went into town with M, S, and P. K and A stayed at home to do more setup. M was in search of two specific things, only one of which we found. It was nice to see Bochum. It's not exactly a pretty city but it's not ugly either. We had yet more setup to do once we returned from shopping.
The party started at 6:30pm. I assumed the first person surely wouldn't arrive on time. The door bell first rang at 6:25pm. I wore my brand new Dirndl for the first time. Everyone said it looked fantastic. I'll let you decide for yourself (see photo below). A few people asked me if I brought it with me all the way from the US. I would say there were approximately 35-40 people there. I knew 10 of them before the party began. I talked to a number of people, including one adorable couple. The wife spent a year abroad in Wisconsin. My dad is from Wisconsin and I've spent over a year of my life there (yes, I did the math). She also is an English teacher, so we had a lot to talk about. They told me that I speak the best German out of any American they've met. I spent some more time talking with a few other people, one of which told me that my German is better than that of some actual Germans he knows. I'm sure he was exaggerating, but I was pleased to hear it. A few times throughout the evening I heard a few people whispering about how I was "the American." I didn't hear anything rude, they were merely interested in who I was. The closest person to my age was the 10 year old, so I kind of stuck out like a sore thumb in the age department. I finally got into bed at 3am. Many people had already left by then. Everyone was gone by 4am.
Something funny about my German is that it needs to be "warmed up." When I wake up in the morning it's rusty, same if I go a few hours without speaking it to anyone. It gets better and better throughout the day once I've been using it for a while. I noticed this over the weekend, especially on Saturday. I also realized the impact of alcohol on my speaking abilities. A lot of people say that their language skills get better the more drunk they are. This is mostly true when I speak French. It's completely different with German. My level of competency stays the same until I get too intoxicated, and then it drastically gets worse.
Sunday I woke up hungover. It wasn't a raging hangover, just an upset stomach and a headache. I was laying on the couch for awhile with my reusable American water bottle. Everyone thought my bottle was hilarious, saying it was something they'd "see in the hospital here." Germans mostly drink bottled mineral water and reusable bottles aren't common because of their recycling/deposit system. Anyways, we spent the morning and afternoon cleaning up from the party. M and I finally left around 3pm, making it back to Nürnberg just after 7pm.
All in all, it was a good weekend. I was glad to have a complete break from the kids. I won't lie, by the end of the weekend I found myself missing the kiddos a little bit.
A map of Germany. Bochum is a little hard to see, but it's between Dortmund and Düsseldorf.
I was most excited to meet Mia, the family dog (a beagle!). I've missed having pets around.
An actual bar/restaurant in Bochum. A piece of home!
Me in my first Dirndl!
Sunday I woke up hungover. It wasn't a raging hangover, just an upset stomach and a headache. I was laying on the couch for awhile with my reusable American water bottle. Everyone thought my bottle was hilarious, saying it was something they'd "see in the hospital here." Germans mostly drink bottled mineral water and reusable bottles aren't common because of their recycling/deposit system. Anyways, we spent the morning and afternoon cleaning up from the party. M and I finally left around 3pm, making it back to Nürnberg just after 7pm.
All in all, it was a good weekend. I was glad to have a complete break from the kids. I won't lie, by the end of the weekend I found myself missing the kiddos a little bit.
Sunday, October 11, 2015
Mit vollem Mund spricht man nicht!
Monday was a gorgeous day. It was in the mid 60s and sunny, so a perfect day to do some exploring. I went into town and found a few things on my list of things to see, namely the Albrecht Dürer house and the castle gardens. Since it was perfect running weather, I went for a nice long run when I got home. HM got back with the kids about the normal time, but she left shortly after to go to work. I was alone with the kids for about an hour and a half. We spent the whole time outside on the trampoline. At one point, I went to wipe Two's nose. I had to grab him with one arm and wipe with the other hand. Since I had been eating an apple, I bit into the apple and kept it there to have both hands free. One started doing something he wasn't supposed to, so I told him to stop while the apple was still clenched in my jaw. He looked at me and said, "Mit vollem Mund spricht man nicht!" ("don't talk with your mouth full"). Kids are so sassy. HD got home around 6, but left immediately with One for swim class. I was alone with Two for about two hours. I ended the day by putting One to sleep. If Monday was any indication of how the week was going to go with the kids, it was looking promising.
Tuesday was busy but good. I got to sleep in. HM, Two and I went to my Ausländersbehörde Termin. Basically, we had to go to the foreigners office with a bunch of paperwork to extend my visa. The whole appointment only lasted about 15 minutes. At one point, she asked for my height in centimeters, which I had no idea of, so she went and got a measuring stick and measured me right then and there. Even though I applied for a visa when I was in the US and also thought that meant I wouldn't have to do it again in Germany, my original visa only lasts until the beginning of November. I have to go back yet again on November 3 to pick up the extended visa. All the paperwork is very frustrating. Afterwards, I came home with a sick Levi. In the afternoon we went over to Maria's. The three of us went for a walk during which we collected chestnuts and went to a little aquarium shop down the street. A lot of the fish were the same as what we had on Kwaj in our fish tank. It was fun to relive such happy memories from my childhood. HD got home with One at the normal time and I had the rest of the day off. Earlier in the day HM had told me a number of things I needed to make sure happened in regards to Two. Since I wasn't going to be around that evening, I wrote them down for HD. One of the items was a treatment for Two's cough in the form of beeswax. The word for bee in German is "Biene," and the word for leg is "Beine." I'm sure you can assume which I wrote. When HD read the list he happened to have Two in his arms. He looked down at Two's legs and said, "Huh, I didn't think your legs were that hairy!" We all had a good laugh about it. As stated in an older post, I joined meetup.com. It's a website where people form groups based on common interests/locations and these groups plan things to do. I'm in the following groups: Discover Nürnberg, Nuremberg International Expat Hub, Nürnberg Outdoor Fitness Meetup, Nürnberg Drinking Meetup, Nürnberg German Learning Stammtisch, and Young People in Nürnberg. Despite having joined so many groups, there aren't that many activities planned and many of the ones planned are at times I can't go. Last night there was a meetup for the Stammtisch group, so I went. Despite there being 70 people in the group and the fact that 9 people were supposed to go, only 5 showed up, including myself. I was the youngest one there. There was a woman from Italy, aged 34, a woman from the Czech Republic, aged 30, a man from Spain, aged 25, and a man from Pakistan, aged 31. They were all very nice and most of their German was about on the same level as mine, some a little better and some a little worse, except the guy from Spain who couldn't speak much at all. The whole thing was a little awkward. When you put people together who basically only share one language (and none speak it natively), it's bound to be a little uncomfortable at the beginning. We did have a few good laughs. We also actually did some grammar. The woman from the Czech Republic is also the group organizer. She brought a worksheet for us to do. It was about separable and inseparable verb. Yep, we did grammar in a bar. Fun, eh? All in all, I'd go back again.
Wednesday I went into town and bought my very own Dirndl!! I had been wanting my own, particularly because the one M lent me is too big. M told me that I needed to bring one this weekend. That was the catalyst to go out and finally buy my own. If I get a photo of me wearing it this weekend, I'll be sure to post it. HM got home with the kids at the usual time, dropped One off with me, and then left with Two for swim lessons. It was a fairly uneventful evening.
Thursday I got up, went for a run, and then went into the city to run some errands. I came home about the same time that HM got back with the kids. The four of us went over to M's for a bit. After dinner, HM went to her dance class and I was left putting both kids to bed. It went surprisingly better than I expected. It was also a test run to be able to do it more in the future, as HD is usually away on business for a couple of days during the week.
Here are some photos from Monday:
Tuesday was busy but good. I got to sleep in. HM, Two and I went to my Ausländersbehörde Termin. Basically, we had to go to the foreigners office with a bunch of paperwork to extend my visa. The whole appointment only lasted about 15 minutes. At one point, she asked for my height in centimeters, which I had no idea of, so she went and got a measuring stick and measured me right then and there. Even though I applied for a visa when I was in the US and also thought that meant I wouldn't have to do it again in Germany, my original visa only lasts until the beginning of November. I have to go back yet again on November 3 to pick up the extended visa. All the paperwork is very frustrating. Afterwards, I came home with a sick Levi. In the afternoon we went over to Maria's. The three of us went for a walk during which we collected chestnuts and went to a little aquarium shop down the street. A lot of the fish were the same as what we had on Kwaj in our fish tank. It was fun to relive such happy memories from my childhood. HD got home with One at the normal time and I had the rest of the day off. Earlier in the day HM had told me a number of things I needed to make sure happened in regards to Two. Since I wasn't going to be around that evening, I wrote them down for HD. One of the items was a treatment for Two's cough in the form of beeswax. The word for bee in German is "Biene," and the word for leg is "Beine." I'm sure you can assume which I wrote. When HD read the list he happened to have Two in his arms. He looked down at Two's legs and said, "Huh, I didn't think your legs were that hairy!" We all had a good laugh about it. As stated in an older post, I joined meetup.com. It's a website where people form groups based on common interests/locations and these groups plan things to do. I'm in the following groups: Discover Nürnberg, Nuremberg International Expat Hub, Nürnberg Outdoor Fitness Meetup, Nürnberg Drinking Meetup, Nürnberg German Learning Stammtisch, and Young People in Nürnberg. Despite having joined so many groups, there aren't that many activities planned and many of the ones planned are at times I can't go. Last night there was a meetup for the Stammtisch group, so I went. Despite there being 70 people in the group and the fact that 9 people were supposed to go, only 5 showed up, including myself. I was the youngest one there. There was a woman from Italy, aged 34, a woman from the Czech Republic, aged 30, a man from Spain, aged 25, and a man from Pakistan, aged 31. They were all very nice and most of their German was about on the same level as mine, some a little better and some a little worse, except the guy from Spain who couldn't speak much at all. The whole thing was a little awkward. When you put people together who basically only share one language (and none speak it natively), it's bound to be a little uncomfortable at the beginning. We did have a few good laughs. We also actually did some grammar. The woman from the Czech Republic is also the group organizer. She brought a worksheet for us to do. It was about separable and inseparable verb. Yep, we did grammar in a bar. Fun, eh? All in all, I'd go back again.
Wednesday I went into town and bought my very own Dirndl!! I had been wanting my own, particularly because the one M lent me is too big. M told me that I needed to bring one this weekend. That was the catalyst to go out and finally buy my own. If I get a photo of me wearing it this weekend, I'll be sure to post it. HM got home with the kids at the usual time, dropped One off with me, and then left with Two for swim lessons. It was a fairly uneventful evening.
Thursday I got up, went for a run, and then went into the city to run some errands. I came home about the same time that HM got back with the kids. The four of us went over to M's for a bit. After dinner, HM went to her dance class and I was left putting both kids to bed. It went surprisingly better than I expected. It was also a test run to be able to do it more in the future, as HD is usually away on business for a couple of days during the week.
Here are some photos from Monday:
Albrecht Dürer House
Nürnberg Castle
Nürnberg Castle
Nürnberg Castle Gardens
Nürnberg Castle Gardens
Just a cool street with neat architecture
Sunday, October 4, 2015
Du gehst mir tierisch auf den Keks!
This weekend was quite uneventful. On Friday evening we did go over to M's for dinner, as it appears we will do just about every Friday. I helped cook dinner and I enjoyed that.
Saturday I was supposed to work, but I didn't actually end up doing anything. HD took the kids to a playground in the morning and then to get lunch. By the time they got back, it was nap time. And by the time the kids woke up, HM was back. I was originally supposed to help HD in the afternoon. HM went out of town on a day trip, but she came back earlier than we had thought she would. She brought her mom back with her. Her mom, or Oma ("Grandma"), is a nice lady. She brought the boys a couple little gifts with her. She even brought me a little present! It was very sweet of her to do so. We all didn't actually do anything besides hang around and eat dinner, much to my dismay. I get bored easily when I have to sit around the house all day. The whole time I've been here, I've only spent one day completely in the house. Every other day I've done something to get out, even if it's just going for a run or a bike ride. Basically, spending the whole weekend at home is less than ideal, especially considering that most of my working hours are spent within these four walls. Yesterday was also German Reunification Day. It marked 25 years since the wall came down and Germany became one united country again. It's obviously a national holiday and therefore everything was closed, aka another reason why I didn't do anything.
Today is as boring as it gets. It's been raining all day, so I couldn't even go for a run or a bike ride. We've just been hanging around the house. I'm actually excited for the week to start so I can do some exploring in the city.
Next weekend I'm going to Bochum with M and L (the 13 year old son). A few times a year they have a family gathering at one of the cities where part of the family lives. Sometimes it's here, sometimes it's in Bochum (4ish hours northwest of us, close to Düsseldorf), sometimes it's in Munich, etc. This time it's in Bochum and this time Maria invited me because T can't make it. At first I wasn't sure if I wanted to go, as I am clearly not a member of their family. I decided to take her up on the offer because I really want some time away. I've been quite stressed out by the kids lately and I need a change of scenery. I also have already met a few members of the family [remember, 1) Fabio and 2) M's other nephew in Munich], so I guess meeting the rest isn't too much of a stretch. I think it's going to be fun.
This week I'm going to start doing some of the sight seeing I've been talking about. I think I'm also going to sign up for a class at the community center. Basically, I need to find things to keep me busy and get me out there meeting people.
Saturday I was supposed to work, but I didn't actually end up doing anything. HD took the kids to a playground in the morning and then to get lunch. By the time they got back, it was nap time. And by the time the kids woke up, HM was back. I was originally supposed to help HD in the afternoon. HM went out of town on a day trip, but she came back earlier than we had thought she would. She brought her mom back with her. Her mom, or Oma ("Grandma"), is a nice lady. She brought the boys a couple little gifts with her. She even brought me a little present! It was very sweet of her to do so. We all didn't actually do anything besides hang around and eat dinner, much to my dismay. I get bored easily when I have to sit around the house all day. The whole time I've been here, I've only spent one day completely in the house. Every other day I've done something to get out, even if it's just going for a run or a bike ride. Basically, spending the whole weekend at home is less than ideal, especially considering that most of my working hours are spent within these four walls. Yesterday was also German Reunification Day. It marked 25 years since the wall came down and Germany became one united country again. It's obviously a national holiday and therefore everything was closed, aka another reason why I didn't do anything.
Today is as boring as it gets. It's been raining all day, so I couldn't even go for a run or a bike ride. We've just been hanging around the house. I'm actually excited for the week to start so I can do some exploring in the city.
Next weekend I'm going to Bochum with M and L (the 13 year old son). A few times a year they have a family gathering at one of the cities where part of the family lives. Sometimes it's here, sometimes it's in Bochum (4ish hours northwest of us, close to Düsseldorf), sometimes it's in Munich, etc. This time it's in Bochum and this time Maria invited me because T can't make it. At first I wasn't sure if I wanted to go, as I am clearly not a member of their family. I decided to take her up on the offer because I really want some time away. I've been quite stressed out by the kids lately and I need a change of scenery. I also have already met a few members of the family [remember, 1) Fabio and 2) M's other nephew in Munich], so I guess meeting the rest isn't too much of a stretch. I think it's going to be fun.
This week I'm going to start doing some of the sight seeing I've been talking about. I think I'm also going to sign up for a class at the community center. Basically, I need to find things to keep me busy and get me out there meeting people.
Friday, October 2, 2015
Die Welt hing an Fäden
Monday morning while I was brushing One's teeth, I made a startling discovery. There was a tiny little blue ball stuck up his nose. I asked him about it and he told me he stuck it up there over the weekend. HD was the closest to me, so I showed him. He was livid and began the process of extracting the ball from One's nose. At one point I heard HD asking One if he had stuck any other balls anywhere else. I had to laugh at that. Since the cleaning lady comes Mondays, I try to be out of the house so I don't get in her way. I made my way into town to pick up a few things I needed and to also look for a new, thicker jacket. I only worked for three hours that evening before HM told me I had the rest of the night free. HP asked me to work a bit on Saturday, so they wanted to "save" some of my hours to use on Saturday and not use all of them during the week.
Tuesday marked the one month anniversary of my time here. HD left early that morning for Karlsruhe. I got to sleep in (in an effort to use less of my working hours during the week)! I got up and went for a run then made my way over to M's and chatted with her for a bit. I left at 2:30pm to go to Erlangen and pick the kids up from Kindergarten. HM needed to stay late at work and the kids have to be picked up by 4:15pm at the absolute latest. I took the train and a bus, then had to walk a little. The whole journey took approximately an hour. When Two saw me walk up, he got a huge smile on his face and walked over to me with his arms open. It's confirmed, I now know that he at least prefers me to anyone else when HP aren't around. The three of us walked to the bus stop and caught the bus back to the train station. (Sidebar: On the walk from the bus stop to the train station, a man approached us and asked how to get to the train station. For those of you who read my blog in Mainz, you may remember that people constantly stopped me to ask some kind of question, usually related to directions. I guess that theme is continuing here!) That particular station is under construction, which resulted in a much farther walk to the platform and also a lack of ramp or elevator up to train platform. One walks slow and Two was in the stroller. I had to walk with One and Two up to the platform, set them down and make sure Two wasn't going to walk off, and then run down the stairs, grab the stroller, and run back up before either of the kids could get into some mischief. This all was exaggerated by the fact that the train was approaching when we reached the bottom of the stairs. One was yelling at me from the top that the train was there as I was scrambling to make it back up, all while about 10 people were walking down the stairs and staring at us. We ended up missing the train and it was a 20 minute wait until the next one. The whole journey from door to door already takes an hour, so an extra 20 minutes was less than ideal. I was sure that one or both of the kids would have caused a scene, but luckily I had candy to bribe them with. We eventually made it home and HM arrived shortly after us. The rest of the night was mostly business as usual. One was a little rude with me, but that's nothing out of the ordinary.
Wednesday was a hard day. Both kids seemed to have woken up in terrible moods. One was cranky and moody and Two wouldn't stop crying. The morning hour of getting everyone up and out the door was a complete nightmare. I was shocked to see that they even left on time. I spent the rest of my day running errands and walking around a festival in the city. While I was waiting for the train back home, a man approached me asking a question about the trains. I was standing there with my headphones in, so I couldn't hear the first half of his question. He kind of stood there looking at me until I said something. I later went for a bike ride and sat in the sun. It's getting colder here. The high Wednesday was only 59. In the sun, it's beautiful, but in the shade with the wind it can feel quite a bit colder. HM got home with the kids at her normal time, but had to leave immediately for swim class with Two, leaving me at home alone with One. He ended up going over to the next door neighbors to play for a little. When he got back, he was a nightmare. He kept telling me that he didn't want to do anything I said (like hang his jacket on the hook by the door), be in a room I was in, or even be my friend at all. At one point I heard him mumbling something about a sister, so I think he might have been saying that he doesn't want me to be his sister. I'm not sure what that's all about. After he hit me, I sent him up to his room until he apologized. About five minutes later he wandered into my room with a book and told me that he needed me to read to him while he went to the bathroom. Whenever he goes poo, someone reads to him. Needless to say, he apologized for being rude and hitting me. The night was much better from then on. HM and Two got home and we all had dinner together before putting the kids to sleep. During dinner, One was eating cheese. One typically does not like cheese at all. I asked him why he was eating it (it was "kids" Gouda slices with animal heads printed in them). He looked at me and said that he only likes the "animal" cheese because it's his favorite. Who knew imprinted animal heads could have such an impact on taste! I put One to bed while HM took care of Two, who is much more difficult to get to sleep. I was just glad the day ended on a much better note than it began.
Thursday was another hard day. One was difficult from the moment he woke up. Two cried more than usual. I was amazed to see they got out of the house on time in the morning. I didn't do much during the day. I slept a little more and ran some errands. Thursday afternoon is when we go grocery shopping. One was still being rude when we went, so I ignored him the whole time. He kept being a brat throughout the evening. I ended up having to get very stern with him. After both kids were ready for bed, HM left to go to a dance class. It was just me and the kids until HD got back from Karlsruhe. Both were tired and they were practically already asleep by the time HD got home. I talked to HD about how difficult this week was with One. He seemed very concerned and insisted that I need to be more stern with One when the situation calls for it. I had already adopted this practice this week, but it was nice to hear from HP that what I was doing was fine by them.
This morning was much better with the kids. While I was brushing One's teeth he asked me if I remembered my arrival in Nürnberg when they picked me up at the bus station. I have no idea why he was thinking about it and he didn't elaborate. Hopefully both kids will be in a good mood when they get back. I did my usual this morning: slept another hour after everyone left, went for a run, and ran some errands. HM has been asking me to run more errands lately. They're nothing big, usually running to the grocery store to pick up something. Today I had to get fresh bread and then drop off a box at the post office. Today is also the first day of soccer for One. Though we won't be doing this today, I will normally go pick up One from school on Fridays and take him to soccer. It's a bit early in the afternoon for HP to leave work, so it falls to me. It's a beautiful day today. It's unusually warm at a sunny 68 F.
As previously stated, this was a hard week with the kids. At times I was feeling very discouraged, annoyed, angry, impatient, and flustered. There have obviously been bad days with the kids before, but this time I couldn't shake the feeling that it should be better by now, that so many moments of so many days shouldn't still be a struggle. A decent amount of what's happening is just the kids personalities. One is quite moody and Two really does cry a lot. However, a decent amount is also because of me, directly or indirectly. Two would cry no matter who was in the room if HP weren't there, but One very explicitly often doesn't want me around. I'm trying to stay positive, but it can be very difficult when a four year old is hurling abuse at you, physical and verbal, while a 1 year old won't stop screaming at the top of his lungs. If nothing else, this year will absolutely test my limits regarding patience and perseverance.
Hopefully there's something fun in store for this weekend.
Tuesday marked the one month anniversary of my time here. HD left early that morning for Karlsruhe. I got to sleep in (in an effort to use less of my working hours during the week)! I got up and went for a run then made my way over to M's and chatted with her for a bit. I left at 2:30pm to go to Erlangen and pick the kids up from Kindergarten. HM needed to stay late at work and the kids have to be picked up by 4:15pm at the absolute latest. I took the train and a bus, then had to walk a little. The whole journey took approximately an hour. When Two saw me walk up, he got a huge smile on his face and walked over to me with his arms open. It's confirmed, I now know that he at least prefers me to anyone else when HP aren't around. The three of us walked to the bus stop and caught the bus back to the train station. (Sidebar: On the walk from the bus stop to the train station, a man approached us and asked how to get to the train station. For those of you who read my blog in Mainz, you may remember that people constantly stopped me to ask some kind of question, usually related to directions. I guess that theme is continuing here!) That particular station is under construction, which resulted in a much farther walk to the platform and also a lack of ramp or elevator up to train platform. One walks slow and Two was in the stroller. I had to walk with One and Two up to the platform, set them down and make sure Two wasn't going to walk off, and then run down the stairs, grab the stroller, and run back up before either of the kids could get into some mischief. This all was exaggerated by the fact that the train was approaching when we reached the bottom of the stairs. One was yelling at me from the top that the train was there as I was scrambling to make it back up, all while about 10 people were walking down the stairs and staring at us. We ended up missing the train and it was a 20 minute wait until the next one. The whole journey from door to door already takes an hour, so an extra 20 minutes was less than ideal. I was sure that one or both of the kids would have caused a scene, but luckily I had candy to bribe them with. We eventually made it home and HM arrived shortly after us. The rest of the night was mostly business as usual. One was a little rude with me, but that's nothing out of the ordinary.
Wednesday was a hard day. Both kids seemed to have woken up in terrible moods. One was cranky and moody and Two wouldn't stop crying. The morning hour of getting everyone up and out the door was a complete nightmare. I was shocked to see that they even left on time. I spent the rest of my day running errands and walking around a festival in the city. While I was waiting for the train back home, a man approached me asking a question about the trains. I was standing there with my headphones in, so I couldn't hear the first half of his question. He kind of stood there looking at me until I said something. I later went for a bike ride and sat in the sun. It's getting colder here. The high Wednesday was only 59. In the sun, it's beautiful, but in the shade with the wind it can feel quite a bit colder. HM got home with the kids at her normal time, but had to leave immediately for swim class with Two, leaving me at home alone with One. He ended up going over to the next door neighbors to play for a little. When he got back, he was a nightmare. He kept telling me that he didn't want to do anything I said (like hang his jacket on the hook by the door), be in a room I was in, or even be my friend at all. At one point I heard him mumbling something about a sister, so I think he might have been saying that he doesn't want me to be his sister. I'm not sure what that's all about. After he hit me, I sent him up to his room until he apologized. About five minutes later he wandered into my room with a book and told me that he needed me to read to him while he went to the bathroom. Whenever he goes poo, someone reads to him. Needless to say, he apologized for being rude and hitting me. The night was much better from then on. HM and Two got home and we all had dinner together before putting the kids to sleep. During dinner, One was eating cheese. One typically does not like cheese at all. I asked him why he was eating it (it was "kids" Gouda slices with animal heads printed in them). He looked at me and said that he only likes the "animal" cheese because it's his favorite. Who knew imprinted animal heads could have such an impact on taste! I put One to bed while HM took care of Two, who is much more difficult to get to sleep. I was just glad the day ended on a much better note than it began.
Thursday was another hard day. One was difficult from the moment he woke up. Two cried more than usual. I was amazed to see they got out of the house on time in the morning. I didn't do much during the day. I slept a little more and ran some errands. Thursday afternoon is when we go grocery shopping. One was still being rude when we went, so I ignored him the whole time. He kept being a brat throughout the evening. I ended up having to get very stern with him. After both kids were ready for bed, HM left to go to a dance class. It was just me and the kids until HD got back from Karlsruhe. Both were tired and they were practically already asleep by the time HD got home. I talked to HD about how difficult this week was with One. He seemed very concerned and insisted that I need to be more stern with One when the situation calls for it. I had already adopted this practice this week, but it was nice to hear from HP that what I was doing was fine by them.
This morning was much better with the kids. While I was brushing One's teeth he asked me if I remembered my arrival in Nürnberg when they picked me up at the bus station. I have no idea why he was thinking about it and he didn't elaborate. Hopefully both kids will be in a good mood when they get back. I did my usual this morning: slept another hour after everyone left, went for a run, and ran some errands. HM has been asking me to run more errands lately. They're nothing big, usually running to the grocery store to pick up something. Today I had to get fresh bread and then drop off a box at the post office. Today is also the first day of soccer for One. Though we won't be doing this today, I will normally go pick up One from school on Fridays and take him to soccer. It's a bit early in the afternoon for HP to leave work, so it falls to me. It's a beautiful day today. It's unusually warm at a sunny 68 F.
As previously stated, this was a hard week with the kids. At times I was feeling very discouraged, annoyed, angry, impatient, and flustered. There have obviously been bad days with the kids before, but this time I couldn't shake the feeling that it should be better by now, that so many moments of so many days shouldn't still be a struggle. A decent amount of what's happening is just the kids personalities. One is quite moody and Two really does cry a lot. However, a decent amount is also because of me, directly or indirectly. Two would cry no matter who was in the room if HP weren't there, but One very explicitly often doesn't want me around. I'm trying to stay positive, but it can be very difficult when a four year old is hurling abuse at you, physical and verbal, while a 1 year old won't stop screaming at the top of his lungs. If nothing else, this year will absolutely test my limits regarding patience and perseverance.
Hopefully there's something fun in store for this weekend.
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