Deustch Klasse. Take Two.

Hallo, mein Name ist Ashley. Ich komme aus dem USA. Ich bin zwanzig Jahre alt. Mein hobbys sind malen, lesen, und fußall. Ich spreche englisch und ein bisschen deutsch. Wie heißt du? Woher kommst du? Was sind dein hobbys? Was sprichst du?

German. What a language. I speak in it, dream in it, I think in it. It's invading my brain. Sometimes I even forget English words for things because of all the new German vocab I am learning. Languages enthrall me and German is no exception. But geez, this language is kicking my butt. Most of the time I look like a tongued two year old trying to say something. But I take pride in knowing that I have learned a lot and gotten better in the three months that I have been here. Just need to take a deep breath and constantly remember that I am just learning.

When I first arrived in Germany, it became very apparent, very fast that the German I knew so far at that point just wasn't going to cut it. Well. I knew a lot thanks to the wonderful class I took over the Summer. The problem was accessing that info in real life moments. Frieda could communicate better than I could and she's two. I felt beyond dumb. I pride myself on my ability to communicate through my words. Those of you who know me, know that I never shut up. So finding myself in a totally different culture and then not being able to communicate barely at all was beyond frustrating. It was embarrassing. I was beyond relieved when Johannes and Christiane signed me up for German class (deutsch Klasse).

My class was to be from early November to late December, five days a week, four hours a day. I was slightly dreading having to sit that long, especially in the morning. I just don't have that kind of concentration. Too much of a wiggle worm. But I knew it was worth it. I absolutely needed to improve my German. It wasn't an option to back out. I needed this.

The first day of class I walked to the school. VHS Karlsruhe (an adult school) is only a ten minute walk (or a five minute bike ride) from my apartment. I walked up to the big brick building and proceeded to try and push a door that you are supposed to pull. Story of my life. I do this all the time, no matter where I am in the world. I entered the classroom with the usual first day of class jitters. I had already realized that this was a great opportunity to meet some people my age, and I was holding my breath to see who would be in my class. The classroom was small, and the desks were set into a large square in the middle of the room. I sat down near the door next to a girl with lots of curly hair. I watched as each person arrived and wondered about where they were from and why they were here. Then the teacher arrived. And she immediately started talking in German. Come to find out, she only spoke German. I just about died on the spot.

As the days and weeks went by I realized how blessed I was to being take this German class. My teacher, Irene, was super sweet, funny, understanding, and extremely patient. Her speaking only German was the kick in the ass that I needed to force me to speak in German. As for my classmates, they were a blessing too. Once we got into a comfortable groove that most classes fall into, everyone became friends. I adore each one of them. I could go into detail about each of them and how awesome they are, but I won't embarrass them like that haha. It was just so refreshing to have people near my age to relate with and hang out with. Being away from my friends and family back home has been hard. But my classmates have helped alleviate missing home. Through this class, not only did my German improve a whole bunch (along with my confidence in regards to speaking it), I made friends from around the world.

Celebrating Ioana's Birthday! (Top row: Maria and Kush Bottom row: Me, Nacha, Ioana, Gabriel, and Carmina)

Out to coffee on our last day of class. (From the left to right: Irene, Maria, Ioana, Edina, Aryenn, Gabriel, Me, Cindy, and Carmina).

If someone would have told me this time last year what my future held for me I would have laughed at how far fetched it would have sounded. Me, live in Germany, learn German, meet people from all over the world, and see places I have only seen in books? Ha. Yet here I am.

The Boots

Last night I cleaned my boots and left one by the front door and dutifully went to bed "early" like a good little girl. I am sure you are wondering why I would do this. Isn't it obvious? Sankt Nikolaus was coming, and I had to be prepared!

My very clean boot.

I can bet most of my American readers are very confused as of this moment. As for my German readers, they know exactly what I am talking about (duh). Shall I explain for the clueless out there?

When I think "Sankt Nikolaus" (Saint Nicholas... in English) I come up with two thoughts. One being of a big, jolly man in a red suit who comes and brings me presents on Christmas Eve. The other being the legend surrounding the actual Saint Nicholas, and all his kind deeds hundreds of years ago. But most Americans would only think of the first thought. Because Saint Nicholas and Santa are one in the same for us. But, this is not so in Germany.

Germans give Sankt Nikolaus a whole holiday all to himself. And the Weihnachtsmann (literally translates as "Chrismas man") gets a whole holiday to himself as well. Because they are different people! Nikolaus was an actual man who became a saint in the Catholic Church; while the Weihnachtsmann (Santa Claus) is not a real person, but just an embodiment of the Christmas spirit and a great way to bring joy to little kids, and parents, across the country. So Sankt Nikolaus day is on the 6th of December, and the Weihnachtsmann gets to spread his holiday cheer on 25th of December.

How this holiday works is that on the night of December 5th, you grab your boots and scrub them clean. Then, you put them on your doorstep with some milk and cookies. And if you have been good this year, Sankt Nikolaus will come in the middle of the night and fill your boot with candies and sometimes small presents. Then of course when you wake up in them morning you run to the front door to see what you have received. As you can tell this is a kid centered holiday in many aspects. The fun for the parents comes in another form. Usually if you have a party on or near the 6th of December, Sankt Nikolaus will show up. He will then read off all the naughty things the children in the room have done this year. Then the children are expected to sing a song or recite a poem to curry his favor. If they do well, all is forgiven and they get goodies. If not, Sankt Nikolaus' helper will swat you with a birch stick. Of course, all in good fun. Usually the parents get a good kick out of the kids squirming and trying to deny their bad deeds of the year.

So last night, Martha, Frieda and I cleaned our boots and set them in front of our front doors. We also prepared a plate of cookies and a glass of milk. All in the hopes that we had been good enough little girls this year and cleaned our boots well enough to receive candy. Then we went to bed early like good little girls should. (I must confess I didn't go to bed early. Shame on me...).

Martha and Frieda's boots. Along with the milk and cookies.

This morning I hopped out of bed (an unusual occurrence) and swung open my front door. There stood my boot. Full of chocolate. I was so excited! Before I closed the door, I noted that the girls had already grabbed their own boots. Typical. I hopped back into bed and gleefully dumped out the contents of my boot. All chocolate. Then, like the "grown up" that I am, I had to get ready for German class. I sadly couldn't linger over the awesomeness of the morning.

My boot and my loot.

I just got back from class and thoroughly enjoyed a few pieces of my chocolate. I want to make these last me till Christmas (when I will be getting more chocolate), but I doubt that will happen. Chocolate is just too good to resist.

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble!

My great-grandmother lived into her nineties and died when I was in Jr. High. So I have a lot of solid memories of her. The first few things that come to mind when I think of her are: poodles, piano, Lamb Chop, and turkeys. An odd assortment to be sure. But they all are associated with very strong memories of her. Poodles because she always had a pet poodle before she got moved into a nursing home. I remember taking them for walks with her. Piano because she is the first person who taught me how to play. She would make me put my hand on the Bible and pray before we ever played anything. Lamb Chop is a special one because it is my very first memory. When I was two-years-old she gave me a Lamb Chop stuffed animal for Christmas. My very first memory is of holding that stuffed animal and thinking how absolutely wonderful it was. Turkeys. Well that one just makes me laugh. In her later years I remember her starting to tease me at Thanksgiving by going: "What does a turkey say Ashley? Gobble, gobble, gobble!" It never failed to make me laugh. She was just so silly. So, whenever I think of Thanksgiving now, the first thing that comes to mind is a gobbling turkey and my great-grandma. Which always makes me smile.

As November rolled around this year I was starting to get slightly heartbroken. I couldn't handle the thought that I had just missed out on Halloween and now would be missing out on Thanksgiving too. That's like half the holiday season right there. It made me super homesick thinking about all the fun I was missing out on. Now, of course, I had made my own sort of Halloween here in Germany. I was determined to do the same thing for Thanksgiving. I knew it would help me not focus on being so homesick. So I asked Christiane if I could make dinner for her and the family on Thanksgiving Day. She said okay, and I immediately got to planning.

I of course went to my trusty aid (Google) and went searching for Thanksgiving recipes. And my Grandma Marmion gave me me a couple to choose from. I soon found all that I was looking for and started to make a shopping list so that Christiane and I could get all that was needed.

My Original Menu

1. Pumpkin Pie

2. Stuffing

3. Turkey

4. Green Bean Casserole

5. Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows

6. Salad

7. Mashed Potatoes & Gravy

After a few trips to a couple different stores it became apparent that I wasn't going to be able to get my hands on certain American products. Many we could find a substitute (like using sunflower oil instead of vegetable oil), but many there were just no substitutes for. Like pumpkin puree. So I had to switch up my menu a bit.

My Official Menu

1. Apple Pie (couldn't find pumpkin puree)

 2. Stuffing

3. Chicken (not a turkey in sight)

4. Green Bean Casserole (I ended up having to make my own French onions for the top)

5. Sweet Potatoes with "Marshmallows" (we had to resort to the German version of them which were pink) (this is my Grandma's recipe, so unlike the others it has no link to the actual recipe)

6. Cranberry Salad

(note: I vetoed the mashed potatoes and gravy considering we didn't want to be eating too many potatoes)

Thanksgiving came. And then all of the sudden I realized that I was cooking an entire Thanksgiving meal by myself. And I don't consider myself the most amazing cook. I just about died of laughter at that moment as I realized that I had actually decided to take on something this ludicrous.

Unlike most afternoons, I didn't have to watch the girls. I spent the whole afternoon and early evening cooking away like fiend.

Now, I know you are thinking, "Ashley, you just had to follow some very simple recipes!" Well, let me remind you of these two facts: 1. I was the only one cooking 2. I had to convert from the imperial system to the metric system 3. I somehow always manage to screw up even with a recipe. I just had to trust that my "instincts" would kick in and I wouldn't totally fail at making this dinner turn out yummy.

Towards the end of my cooking Christiane hopped in to help me with the last few things (she pretty much made the sweet potatoes). While she was sitting at the kitchen table mashing sweet potatoes, I was in the kitchen confronting a dead chicken. A dead chicken with it's legs still attached. I was thinking some very vegetarian thoughts looking at that thing. I mean it still had some of it's feathers! Gross. All I could think was back in high school biology when I had to dissect a frog and it turned out to have like hundreds of frog spawn in it's abdomen. Ugggh I will never wipe that image from my brain. Thankfully Johannes stepped in and then prepared and cooked it for me.

With Johannes and Christiane's help I was able to pull it all together and serve my German family a authentic American Thanksgiving dinner. They loved all the food! Johannes enjoyed the homemade French onions the best. Christiane really like several of the dishes; especially the stuffing. And Martha and Frieda devoured the apple pie.

Me and my creations.

I came away from the day extremely tired, but extremely proud of myself and my achievement. I fell asleep right as my head hit the pillow. And no. I didn't have any dreams of gobbling turkeys. Although, that would have been pretty awesome.

Sankt Martins Tag

I love holidays. If there is a holiday to celebrate, no matter what it is, I am so there! So when I heard that I would be celebrating my first truly German holiday, you can imagine my excitement.

Sankt Martins Tag (or in English... Saint Martin's Day), is a day where little kids make lanterns and then parade around in groups (usually you go in a group from your school or church) singing songs. The parades usually end up at big outdoor bonfires where you have bread and drinks. This day is to remember Sankt Martin, a kind and generous man, who was a Roman solider, monk, and then Bishop (against his wishes). He is best known for the legend that he (while a solider) on a cold Winter's night, cut his cloak in half to give it to a beggar. I never really got how the lantern's became a part of the tradition of the day, but I am sure there is a very good explanation somewhere. You will have to investigate that one on your own folks.

This holiday is celebrated on November 11th. Which is strange to me because all my life I have know that day by a different holiday: Veteran's Day (It was also a cool day because it was 11/11/11, but that's besides the point). So, as weird as it was not celebrating Veteran's Day, I enjoyed a very fun Sankt Martins Tag!

So for Sankt Martins you need one thing: a lantern. I was the one who went out to find pre-made lanterns. Which wasn't a difficult task. I found them at Papier Fischer (the coolest paper store everrr). I stood there a good fifteen minutes debating on colors and sizes of the lanterns. Finally I picked two big ones, one red and the other yellow.

The next day the girls, Christiane, Oma (Christiane's mom), and I sat down at kitchen table to make the lanterns. Even though they are "pre-made" you still have to assemble and decorate them. Martha chose the yellow lantern and got right to work. Frieda on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with lantern making. She was supposed to go to her school's parade that day but ended up not going because she was so upset by the whole thing. So I made the red lantern for her because she could use it in Martha's school's parade the next day.

The next evening we went to Martha's school for the parade. A colorful crowd had assembled in the schoolyard: kids in bright colored jackets running around with beautiful lanterns, while their parents chatted and kept an eye on them. After a quick set of instructions from the principle, everyone started lighting their lanterns and heading out into the twilight.

The parade sets out into the twilight.

The parade in motion.

Oma pushed Frieda in the stroller, who was clingy tightly to her unlit lantern. We didn't light it because we didn't want her burning up the lantern on accident. Christiane and I stayed near the stroller while trying to keep an eye on Martha who had bounded ahead of us to walk with her friends.

I, being a total kid, got to carry a lantern! I was quite pleased. I hadn't wanted to miss out on the fun just because I was a "grown up". The lantern that I used was one that Frieda made in Kindergarten. Which of course she never used since she didn't go to her school's parade. And Frieda was carrying the one that I made her the day before. So it was the extra lantern that became mine.

My lantern.

Our parade route was a walk through the park behind the school. Which was a really pretty walk, especially as the darkness fell all around us. We stopped at certain places to sing songs. My favorite song of the night is called, "Ich geh' mit meiner Laterne." It's has quite the catchy tune. In fact, it was stuck in my head for several days after. Another song that we sang was appropriately called, "Sankt Martin."

"Ich ge' mit meiner Laterne" lyrics and notes.

"Sankt Martin" lyrics and notes.

 So, after a good fifteen minutes we found ourselves at a big bonfire. Everyone circled up around it and began to sing again. This was my favorite part of the whole night. It was utterly dark except the fire; and completely silent except for the voices of children and grown ups alike that pierced the night air. I almost felt like I had taken a step back in time. There was something so primitive, yet so beautiful about the whole scene. I wanted to linger in this moment. I was caught up in it's magic.

The bonfire.

Once the last note was sung, everyone converged on the snack and drink table. Martha grabbed everyone rolls, and we munched on them for a few minutes before deciding to go home.

The whole way home I found myself singing "Ich geh' mit meiner Laterne." I didn't want the night to end. It was too magical. Yet, the night slipped through my fingers and I found myself waking up to just a normal Saturday morning.

10 Things I Love About You

One of the big questions that my friends and family have all been asking me is: "What's the family like?" I have of course shared with them my thoughts and cute little stories. For the past few weeks I have been pondering how I wanted to write a blog post about them. I came up with several ideas, but none of them ever sat well with me. So I kept thinking. Finally this week I decided what I wanted to do. I would give a list of ten things I love about each member of the family. You may find that the things I love aren't things you typically love. I love the things that make them, them. And the things that I see God's hand working. He has so much in store for this family. So these lists are to give you a broad scope of who they are without getting too wordy or getting too personal on the internet. So without further ado, I give you my four lists! Enjoy.

Johannes (dad)
1. He tells pirate jokes and finds them extremely funny.
2. He loves to cook (and the food is so yummy!).
3. He is super smart in ways that I am not (math and science).
4. He has the funniest laugh which can actually be described as a "snicker."
5. He is a fun and caring father.
6. He has a habit of forgetting where he puts things.
7. He enjoys taking care of all the plants we have in the kitchen and on the balcony.
8. He is quiet and introverted (and isn't really a fan of large parties).
9. He is tall and wears shoes twice my size.
10. He is funny (and not on purpose sometimes... he has the greatest facial expressions).

Christiane (mom)
1. She is considerate of everyone around her.
2. She has this habit of tucking her flyway hairs behind her ears frequently.
3. She is so smart and witty.
4. She takes joy in the little things (like wearing bright colors in the wintertime when everything is colorless).
5. She is a devoted and caring mother.
6. She can multitask amazingly well (juggling work, a hubby, kids, an au pair, and a household is no easy task).
7. She is honest in her opinions.
8. She loves to talk and is a great story teller (and I love listening to her).
9. It's a rare thing to seen her in jeans/pants; she usually wears tights with a skirt or a dress.
10. She likes to get my opinions and thoughts on things.

Martha (kid)
1. She is sassy and loves to banter with me (broken German and facial expressions as of now haha).
2. She has a wonderful imagination (today we were pretending to be circus performers).
3. She makes me attend "school" and teaches me German words, math, and cursive.
4. She is so smart and clever.
5. She is creative (you should see all her drawings).
6. She is a leader.
7. She and I are ridiculously alike (I see a 7 year old me in her).
8. She is independent.
9. She is stubborn.
10. She adores all things Harry Potter and is always talking about the books.

Frieda (kid)
1. She is stubborn and we battle over the most ridiculous things (yes, I fight with a two year old).
2. She gives the most enthusiastic hugs ever.
3. She has a very specific way of tucking her hair behind her ears when it gets in her face.
4. She is utterly sweet (when she wants to be).
5. She sings "Mamma Mia" songs (in a mix of German, English, and nonsense) all the time.
6. She is fierce, and ready to take the world by storm.
7. She tries to steal things from my room (most notably my bathmats and picture frames).
8. She is independent.
9. She and I make faces at each other whenever we catch each other's eye contact.
10. She thinks everything is hers (much to everyone else's exasperation).

Die drei Hexen

As an American, if you take a step back from our culture you will find that Halloween is a pretty strange holiday. I mean, come on, think about it. We dress up and go door to door asking strangers for candy, we create creepy houses that are meant to scare us on purpose, and we aren't really celebrating anything in particular. Weird? Most definitely. But fun? You bet.

I was really sad that I couldn't celebrate Halloween here in Germany. People have tried to start it up here, but it hasn't really caught on. Christiane told me that it is such a unique American tradition that it would have a hard time really catching on in other cultures. Which totally makes sense. But even though I couldn't really celebrate like usual, I was determined to celebrate in my own way.

I woke up on Halloween morning really excited. As I styled my hair and makeup crazily, I formulated a plan for the day. It was to be a day full of crafts, dress up, and pumpkin carving.

Martha was on Fall holidays (Yeah. They get a week off just because it's Fall. Why didn't they have this when I was in school?!). And because of the holidays she had her best friend Carlotta (from Freiburg) over for a couple days. The house was full of a lot of energy and happiness, perfect atmosphere for a holiday!

When I walked in the apartment the girls pronounced that I looked like a witch (we talk of nothing in this house but Harry Potter these days). I personally was going for the 80's vibe, but I was totally stoked to be a witch if that's what the girls wanted. They liked my hair and makeup so much that they begged me to do the same for them. I obliged of course. I got the biggest giggle out of the finished product. Big, ratted, poofy hair. Dark brown eyeshadow and some mascara (Johannes thought they looked like vampires haha). Martha got the idea to dress themselves up in "witch costumes." They ended up looking much more wild than I did. But utterly adorable of course.

My 1980's/witch "costume"

The morning and early afternoon consisted of lots of playing pretend. The house was not just anyplace, it was Hogwarts. Martha was Professor McGongall and Carlotta was Hermione. I was not allowed to join in, but I got the biggest kick out of watching them. While they played, I set up different crafts. When they needed a break from playing they would come and do a craft with me. We made ghost windchimes, mason jar lanterns, halloween themed pictures, and paper plate monster masks. Both Martha and Carlotta did an amazing job! I love how all the crafts turned out.

Our ghost wind chimes.

My ghost lantern.

Martha's pumpkin lantern.

Carlotta's lantern.

Martha's drawing of her and Carlotta as witches.

Our paper plate monster masks.

In mid afternoon Frieda came home from Kindergarten with Johannes in tow. She, unlike Martha, didn't have Fall holidays. All five of us spent the rest of the afternoon outside soaking up the nice crisp Fall weather. Frieda scooted up and down the street on her "bike" (it doesn't have pedals), while Martha whizzed around on her unicycle, and Carlotta tailed behind on roller blades. Johannes and I were pretty much just there for moral support (and to make sure they didn't get run over). For awhile I held Carlotta's hand to help her with her balance, but soon she was zooming around without my assistance. And gosh, I must say I am so impressed with Martha. She has balance I will never have. My disastrous self will not be riding a unicycle anytime soon. But she on the other hand, can fly down the street and turn around and come back without falling. Martha did take a couple spills, but she knows how to fall properly. She definitely did get frustrated towards the end of the afternoon when her falls became more frequent, but with some encouragement from Johannes and I she kept at it. Totally proud of her!

After our romps outside, my little witches and I decided to go buy ourselves a pumpkin. We tromped down to the local supermarket with the girls chattering away the whole walk there. We searched the store but came up empty handed. All the big pumpkins were gone! So the next best thing was to pick out three mini pumpkins and hope that we would be able to carve them. While we were in the check out line, I realized we were garnering quite a bit of attention. I mean, it must be a rare thing two have three witches walk into a supermarket (haha). The checkout guy looked up when he took my money and his mouth just hung open. It was all I could do to not bust up laughing right then and there.

Once we got home we went straight to work. Carving pumpkins is of course serious business. I covered three areas of the kitchen table with newspaper and got out the knives. Yes, I let seven-year-olds handle knives. I (along with Christiane and Johannes) helped them of course! We don't need missing fingers thank you very much! Frieda then decided that she wanted to join in on the fun. Thankfully we just happened to have a extra mini pumpkin lying around the house.

Bernard the pumpkin (my creation).

After some serious carving time, the pumpkins were complete. I got the votive candles and all three girls set the pumpkins out on the balcony and lit them. They took out our lanterns too. As it grew darker and darker the lights became more and more distinct. It was so pretty and eery all at once.

Our creations!

After dinner Martha and Carlotta came to my room to tell me they were going trick-or-treating. I laughed. I figured that was going to be something I missed out on this year. Well, I figured wrong. Christiane, myself, and the two girls headed out into the night to go to Christiane's office. Two of her co-workers were still there so that's were we were we would get our treats.

It was a chilly night and I was thankful I had thrown on a scarf and sweater. We walked for a good fifteen minutes and actually ran across a few other trick-or-treaters. When we arrived at the office, the excitement was running high. The girls rang the doorbell and announced "treat-or-treat!" to Christiane's co-workers. Lots of smiles and laughter followed. We stayed and talked for a few minutes and then we were off again. The girls of course got candy and were utterly happy. Christiane surprised me with a Twix bar. So even I got candy. Which made me really happy too!

Me, ridiculously excited that I got to go trick-or-treating.

Over all it was a great, very eventful day. It may not have been the usual Halloween for me, but I enjoyed myself all the same. Halloween with a German twist... what a treat!

Harry and Me

When I was eight years old I found a book in my mom's hope chest. One of her students (she is an elementary school teacher) had lent it to her so she could read it. But my mom doesn't really enjoy "fantasy" books (and movies) so she set the book aside and forgot about it. In fact, she thought she lost it, and had to buy her student a new book. Well, I found it a couple months later and my mom said I could keep it. That very day I began to read it, and gobbled it up within a matter of days. And suddenly, Harry Potter became apart of my life.

I grew up during the time when the Harry Potter books were being published. Being eight (1999) when I started reading, I was able to read the first three and then I only had to wait for the other four. Of course this waiting took most of my childhood since the last Harry Potter book came out when I was in the tail end of high school. I also had the pleasure of getting to see all the movies in theaters. I guess you could say I grew up with Harry Potter.

I have read and re-read all the books over and over again. Each time I discover something I didn't see before. There is just something about these books that never gets old. I re-read other books, but not as frequently as the Harry Potter series. I usually end up pulling out the series if I need some comfort or escape from every day life. Books are a means of escape for me, which can be good and bad like most things. But usually I read to remind myself that it is all going to be okay. No matter what goes on in a book, life always moves on; things change and grow. Harry goes through so much shit. But he isn't sitting in a corner crying the whole entire series. Sure he has his moments, like everyone does, but he always picks himself up and keeps going. And in the end, through all the pain and sadness, there is a happy ending for him. Harry always reminds me to keep going. He gives me hope.

Right now I am re-reading the series again (Christiane has all the books in English, yay!). I grabbed them all off of Martha's bookshelves and put them in my room. Over the past week I made my way through The Chamber of Secrets. I just started on Prisoner of Azkaban last night. Why am I reading them right now? Well, if I am completely honest with myself, I am feeling a little home sick. I miss my life. Halloween being tomorrow is totally not helping in the slightest. I feel so very far away from everything I know, love, and feel comfortable around. Not that this makes me regret my decision to come here in the slightest. I know this is where I need to be. And really do love it here. But not having a firm grasp on German has really made it hard for me. So once again I find myself turning to my Harry Potter books. It's really amazing how much better I feel after reading a chapter or two. The sense of panic in my stomach leaves and I am able to truly enjoy being right where I am. Of course it doesn't take away the home sickness, but it lessens it.

Me and three of the seven books (these are the UK editions)

Sometimes I wish I was eleven again, and that I was hopping onto the Hogwarts Express. But then I remind myself that living in a world of witches and wizards wouldn't solve all my problems. As much as my life isn't a cake walk, I have been blessed with so many wonderful people and opportunties. I would be a fool not to see that my life is magical in it's own right. I may not have a wand, invisibility cloak, or a lightening shaped scar; but I do have determination, imagination, and a life full of possibilities ahead me. I don't doubt that many other adventures await me after this one. I just have to be brave and strong enough to welcome them with open arms.

17 Again? Nope.

Last week I had the pleasure of being reminded that I am most definitely getting old. This twenty-year-old body just isn't the sprite youthful thing that it used to be. Kidding... sorta. As much as twenty-somethings have youth and spunk unknown to their elders, we don't have the crazy energy of teenagers. That is zapped out of you quite quickly once you aren't a teenager anymore. This past week Johannes and Christiane's seventeen-year-old niece stayed for a couple days. I absolutely adored hanging out and going on adventures with Lea! It was one heck of a couple days. After which I proceeded to take a nap.

Lea and her family dropped by for a few days before they went on their Fall holiday house boating in France. Everyone in Germany gets a Fall holiday, how fancy is that? But Lea and I had so much fun that she decided to stay for a few days once she was done house boating with her family. This first adventure was before they went house boating, all the rest are once she got back.

On Monday (not this past week, but the week before) we visited was Karlsruher Schloss, which is one of my favorite places to just frolick about. It was a gloomy, cold, and windy day. But I love those kinds of days. Lea and I roamed about the vast castle grounds, including the Hartwald (a forest). I told Lea that one of the things my friends and I love doing is taking pictures when we are on adventures (or when we are bored haha). So I made sure we took a couple pictures while we walked around. My favorites are the ones of us walking on one of the tile spokes that show that the castle is in the middle of the city and most of the streets radiate out from it. After the castle we went to a fancy little cafe and drank absolutely amazing hot chocolate.

Lea in front of the castle.

Me walking on the blue tile "spoke".

Lea came back on Sunday with her family, and then they left that evening to go back home. Monday morning we found ourselves trying to figure out what to do. The museums aren't open on Mondays, so we couldn't go there. And other things would take too long (I had slept in a little too late). So we decided to watch the movie 'Bride Wars'. We laughed so much! But for the afternoon we did go on an adventure. Lea and I took Martha to the Karlsruhe Zoo. Now, when I think of a zoo, my mind goes directly to all the trips I have made to the San Diego Zoo and the LA Zoo. Both are huge and have a certain fancy California feel to them. The Karlsruhe Zoo is pretty much the complete opposite. It's really quaint, sprawling but not huge, and has a fanciful quality to it. It is almost like a park. I would say the main focus of this zoo is its botanical gardens (which are gorgeous) and then amongst the gardens, lakes, and rivers are the little exhibits. Another thing that surprised me was that they have animals I would never expect in a zoo because I don't consider bunnies, goats, sheep, Shetland ponies, and ducks to be exotic. There is even a petting zoo within the main zoo. This is where we spent most of our time. Martha was totally enthralled by all the goats. She spent the better part of a half an hour "training" them. It was so adorable; and Lea and I couldn't stop giggling.

See! I wasn't joking about the Shetland Ponies!

On Tuesday we once again found ourselves not being able to go to a museum because they were closed for some reason. But that morning we had more time, and were able to go sort of far. So we chose to take a train to Durlach (a suburb of Karlsruhe) and ride the Turmbergbahn. What is that? Well it's the oldest train in Germany! And it goes up the side of a mountain (more like a hill) where at the top you get an amazing view of Karlsruhe and the surrounding areas. You can even technically see France. The Turmbergbahn was really neat! But when we got to the top of the "mountain", I stopped thinking about trains. We climbed up a old watch tower from like the 1200's or 1300's to get the best view of it all. I was totally floored. The view was so amazing! The pictures I took just don't capture the vast beauty. Lea had packed us a snack (gummy bears and cookies) and we ate those as we basked in the view. It was really windy, but I like to think that it made it all much more epic.

Lea and I in the Turmbergbahn.

Just one of the epic views from the top of the tower.

Once Lea and I left the Turmbergbahn, we realized that we still had time to kill before we went to pick up Frieda from Kindergarten. Lea suggested we go and see Gottesaue Schloss, which was actually about a five minute walk from Frieda's school. The castle isn't really a castle. Nor has it ever been, so I'm not quite sure why it is called one. For a really long time it was a monastery. And then at some point it became a music college. Unlike a lot of old historical buildings, this one is not a museum. This meant we could only look at the outside. Which was fine; it was neat just strolling around the grounds  listening to all the students practicing their music.

Me in front of Gottesaue Schloss.

Lea in front of Gottesaue Schloss.

On Wednesday we finally got to go to a museum! And what a museum it was. I was super impressed by it all; I have never been to a museum like ZKM. I was really excited to go because ZKM is a modern art museum. And I do love a good art museum. But, unlike all our previous adventures we couldn't take the train (because the workers were on strike that day). So it was about a twenty minute walk from the house, in the rain. Great day for the train workers to be on strike right? Ha. The museum is in the same building as an art school, which I thought was pretty darn smart. Lea and I spent the morning nice and warm (as opposed to our walk in the cold, cold rain) looking at and interacting with the exhibits. The main exhibit at the moment is all about crazy modified cars. But the mini exhibits were all about technology. There were iPads, classic arcade games, karaoke, futuristic virtual reality games... the list goes on. It was the most amazing thing to see stuff that I am familiar with, in a museum already. I can already tell I am going to be one of those grannies that takes her grandkids to the museums and says, "When I was your age the iPad was a new fangled idea..." Nothing wrong with that right? Oh geez.

Me playing with bubbles that react to my shadow.

One of the cars from the main exhibit. It was an art piece all about the environment.

All these morning adventures combined with watching my girlies in the afternoon really made me one tired girl. When Lea left I was super bummed that I was losing my adventure buddy; but man, was I stoked to spend the next morning at home in my pajamas. Lea still has that teenage vivaciousness that I can't quite keep up with anymore (though I am pretty sure I talked her ear off). And I adore her all the more with dealing with me: the tuckered out twenty-year-old.

Being a Karlsruher

Ahh Karlsruhe. I think I am in love... with a city. Possibly the whole country. Or for that matter, maybe all of Europe. I think I am still a little starstruck at the fact that I am getting to go places I have only dreamed about. I am so blessed by this opportunity. But don't worry America, you are still my favorite.

Since I have only been here three weeks, I have yet to travel beyond Karlsruhe just yet. I know I will soon be going other places, so I am not worried. And anyways, there is just so much to explore within Karlsruhe city limits. Now, I have a gone to a good couple places (as you can see in my photos on Facebook, Picasa Web Albums, and Flickr) and I don't feel the need to go on about them all in this post. Some of them will be highlighted in a new post sometime this week. But I thought I would give you some of the observations I notice daily when I am out and about.

The first of these observations is the weather. Yes, a mundane topic, but it is an important one! Growing up in Southern California has made me, and all my fellow Southern Californians, absolute whimps when it comes to weather. The instant it starts to sprinkle, we throw on our raincoats and rain boots and walk around with umbrellas complaining how terribly cold and wet it is. When it's slightly too hot and humid we moan and groan about how darn hot it is and how terrible it is to sweat and be outside. We like our weather to not be weather at all. Karlsruhe (and all of Germany) in that respect is a Southern Californian's worst nightmare. It actually has weather. Like real rain, real snow, freezing cold temperatures, and it's known for not getting very hot at all. I'm naturally a very warm person, so the idea of being cold is nice. But when it actually happens it's not so nice. Like last Friday night, I froze my butt off (not literally haha) while walking around the city in the fog. With cold comes layers. And with layers comes a very toasty Ashley who has to strip off all her layers every time she enters a room, or she will turn into a pile of sweat. Ew. I don't want to even ponder what Winter is going to do to me. I have such a hate love hate relationship with snow. For now, the weather has been quite lovely though. It has been a proper Fall. Crisp air, mix of brilliant blue skies and cloudy, rainy days; perfect weather to wear cute clothes and an appropriate amount of layers. Today is another blue sky kind of day, I can't wait to get outside and frolick about on my bike.

This is weather from last week, so pretty. 

The second of these observations is the history. The makings of Karlsruhe began way back in 1094 when Gottesaue Monastary (which is now a music college) was created and the settlement of Durlach (which is now a suburb of Karlsruhe) bought a charter. The seat of Margrave of Baden was moved from Pforzheim to Durlach in 1565. Lots of things happened in between that I won't bore you with (wars, politics, etc) and in 1715 Margrave Karl Wilhelm started the building of a stone palace (Karlsruher Schloss) and the foundations of a city not far from Durlach. Once it was finished he transferred his seat from Durlach to Karlsruhe in 1717. Another load of things happened (such as the creation of the modern bicycle and car; no big deal). 1940 saw the end of the historically peaceful relations between Christians and Jews in Karlsruhe. Why? Because 945 Jews were deported to Gurs in the South of France. At the end of WWII in 1945, more than 35% of the city was in ruins. In 1952, the state of Baden and the state of Württemberg were combined into the new state of Baden-Württemberg. This meant that Karlsruhe was no longer a capital city. By 1967 the city has almost completely rebuilt itself from the damages that had WWII caused. And then of course a lot more history has happened since then. But those are the main key points that I wanted you to know because they really have shaped the life of this city.

Me in front of Karlsruher Schloss.

The third observation is of the city layout and the architecture. Karl Wilhelm put the Karlsruher Schloss in the middle of a big circle and city streets are like the spokes of a wheel basically. That's really for the heart of the city though, because Karlsruhe has obviously grown since 1715 and doesn't quite follow the spoke pattern. It's a really neat concept though, and actually it is one of the cities that Washington D.C. was based on. Pretty cool right? The architecture is a strange mix of old and new because of all the damage that was done to the city during WWII. I think it gives the whole city a lot of character. One moment you are looking at buildings that are several hundred years old, and then you are looking at ones that were built less than sixty years ago. The mix of old and new is a beautiful pairing and you see it in most big cities; even if they weren't destroyed by war. I am fond of the layout and architecture because it all reminds me of three cities that I love dearly: New York City, Washington D.C. and San Francisco. It's a weird mixture, I know, but it makes absolute sense to me and only makes me love the city more.

The final observation is of the city sounds. It is rarely ever quiet in a city. The wailing of ambulances and police sirens can be heard for miles. And I must say they are not at all fierce sounding like the ones back at home. Which usually makes me laugh. But I shouldn't laugh at people getting hurt or arrested... yeah, um. Moving on. The church bells are my favorite sound. Constantly ringing on the hour, reminding me what time it is. Which is great because I hardly ever know what time it is these days. The sound of a procession of cars honking, signals that there has been a wedding and you know the bride, groom, and their family and friends are on their way to the reception. Trains can be heard sliding down the tracks usually from any where in the city. I can ever hear one from my bedroom. Bike bells ringing, cars horns honking, pigeons cooing; but the most constant sound you hear is talking. Everywhere I go I hear German. I am so used to it now that I often scare myself when I talk aloud in English because the sound has become foreign to me. The city is alive with sounds. I love to just sit and listen to it all.

I have come to love Karlsruhe. I can't wait to spend a whole year living here. But I also can't wait to get outside her city limits!

I Spy With My Lil' Eye...

Having lived here in Karlsruhe three weeks; I have come to notice the many things that make Karlsruhe different from Long Beach. Mostly I get the biggest giggle out of the differences, or I like them. There are very few that I don't like. I thought I would give you a list of some of them. Tell me if you find them as interesting or different as I do! Here they are in no particular order:

1. Language. I thought I would start with the most obvious. This is the one cultural difference that is giving me a run for my money. I have never been very good with picking up languages (see my 3 years of Spanish in high school for affirmation of such). But I am a very stubborn and driven person when I want to be. I really enjoy learning, and I must push myself to learn and become fluent. I will do this... It is just going to frustrate me to no end for quite some time.

2. Food. Bread, meat, and cheese. That is my diet these days. Along with organic fruits and veggies, coffee, beer, jam, and dairy products. I love it! I just really miss American food. Don't get me started! I have been dying for a bean and cheese burrito...

3. Fashion. This one is a sorta different. There are elements of American fashion here. But there is something that makes it all uniquely German. I can't quite put my finger on it yet. But I like it, and I plan to give my wardrobe a mini style makeover while I am here.

The morphing of my style has begun!

4. Smoking. People smoke so much, everywhere! Christiane tells me only recently they made smoking and non smoking restaurants. As a So Cal girl I am so spoiled with all the rules about where and when people can smoke. I really don't like the smell of smoke, and I'm also allergic to it a bit so it makes my eyes all red and itchy. Blah.

5. Plugs/Light Switches. The plugs are all circular and have two circular holes in them. It's so strange. I need an adaptor for anything (like my straightener) that I need electricity for from the States. The light switches at my house (and other places I have been to) aren't the flick up and down ones, they are big flat squares buttons that you push to turn the light on or off. They do have the same type of dimmer light nobs here though!

6. Curbs. There are pretty much no curbs. They are like an inch tall, or there isn't any at all. Which also means the gutter system here is different. And from what I hear it handles water and snow much better than Long Beach's gutters do and doesn't flood. Just sayin' haha.

An example of the drains and no curbs.

7. Church Bells. Every hour on the hour at least one or two church bells can be heard across the city. Certain hours (like 9, 12, 6) get more bells ringing. I adore this! It makes me feel like I am in a fairytale/back in time. It also makes me think of Christmas, which makes me very,very happy.

I can hear the bells from this Catholic Church from my house!

  8. Sundays. Absolutely no stores, except the Bakers, is open. All day. It's the Lord's day and that is that. (I imagine it as... No Ashley, buying that pair of shoes is not more important than going to church. And just so you don't get tempted, I am closing all the stores!)


9. Politeness. The Americans and Germans are kinda flip flopped here. Germans don't know the meaning of bubble space. For example: standing in line at the grocery store tonight I wanted to turn around and tell the person behind me to take a step or two back. They also don't concern themselves with how tightly they squeeze past you if you are shopping or walking. And man, do they walk and bike fast! I am so not fierce enough; often times I have to just stop and get out of their way. They are friendly, but not in the way that Americans are friendly. Usually we consider people we just met as friends. But here it takes awhile to be considered an actual friend and not just an acquaintance. But, they are super friendly in so many moments where Americans would be rude. Ahh, these are little examples, it's hard to explain the widespread difference of it.

10. School System. In 4th grade kids (along with the parents) choose their future. They have to choose between three different "high schools" and only one of those leads to going to a university. Oh the pressure. I don't envy this school system all too much.

11. Finishing Your Plate. In America it's considered pretty rude to gobble down your whole plate for several reasons (including that people will think you are a fatty). In Germany, it is considered extremely rude to not finish your plate. Why? Because you aren't accepting the wonderful generosity of whoever made the food/it makes it seem like you didn't like the food.

12. Size of Food Portions. The plates, cups, spoons, etc are actually smaller here. The bowls are more shallow. It's so strange! But it's crazy how quickly I have gotten used to these portions. I can no longer eat as much as I used to (thank God) but it is kind of a problem when we are out at restaurants. The portions are bigger there. What would have been an easy plate to clear three weeks ago, is now a monumental amount of food that I struggle to finish. I have tried and failed each time we have gone out.  Remember, it's super rude not to finish your whole plate. I am try my hardest to not come across as rude, but I just can't eat it all! (Never thought I would say that!).

13. Modesty. I almost jump out of my skin everytime I see a naked or half naked people in advertisments. And I thought we were scandalous! Pff. I never realized how modest we Americans are. I blush at these ads. When did I become such a prude?!

14. AC/Heating. I have yet to see anything A/C related so I am guessing that is very few and far between; it might not even be used here. I can see why, considering it doesn't get very hot. Heating on the other hand I have seen a lot of. But not like the central heating most of us have at home. In Germany "old looking" wall heaters seem to be what is used. And when I mean old, I don't literally mean it's age, I mean they look the same as they have been making them for the past hundred years or so. I like them though. I have four in my mini apartment.

15. Cars/Transportation. To start, the cars are smaller (this is how it should be America! Step away from the SUVs and drop your keys now!). They are also used with less frequency. With trains being able to take you somewhere almost every couple of minutes, why would you take a car? And who needs to drive down perilously narrow streets when you can get around much quicker with your bike or on foot? (The fellas at Top Gear would be so ashamed of my no car promoting). Of course cars are still useful. Especially to get places that your feet, your bike, or a train can't get you to. And then of course, there is the Autobahn. You can't miss out on such a fabulous opportunity. I can't wait to learn how to drive stick shift! Then I can drive on the Autobahn (insert manical cackle here).

My bike! His name is Sebastian.

16. Houses. Most people live in apartments. It is super rare to live in a house. When you live in a house that means you have a lot of money. But the apartments here have a different vibe than the ones in California, so I don't think that everyone living in apartments is in anyway demeaning.

17. Household Appliances. It's all about actually being "green" here. So that means energy saving appliances to the max. It takes the dishwasher like and hour and a half to do one load. And it's not a very big dishwasher. The washer and dryer take almost two hours each. And they are really small too. What used to take me three loads of laundry at home now is about six loads.

18. Closets. Built in closets are not a very common thing. Most Germans buy closets for their bedrooms. How strange.

19. Beds. They are much lower to the ground. Also they don't use sheets, its all about down comforters and pillows. Which is just fine with me!

20. Sidewalks. Almost all the sidewalks I have seen have some form of cobblestone going on. Which is so neat! It makes me feel like I am stepping back in time. Of course, its deadly if you wear spiky high heels. Thank God that's not an issue I will be dealing with.

The cobblestones on Helmholtzstraße (my street).

So that's my list! There are many more I assure you. And there are a lot of similar things too. But differences are much more interesting to point out aren't they?

Four Stories Up

When I think of apartments, several mental images come to mind. The first being flashes of nasty, grimy apartments that I have been to in my lifetime, and that can be found in many corners of the globe. The second being the ritzy apartments that can be found in major cities (like NYC) that I have only seen in movies and TV. The third being the apartments my friends are slowly beginning to migrate into after leaving home. The last image is a newer, less familiar mental image. It is of the apartment that I live in, and of all the many interesting apartment buildings in Karlsruhe.

The word "apartment" brings a lot to my mind. Some thoughts negative and others positive.

Apartments hold a particular intrigue to me. As a child I grew up knowing that to live in a house was an amazing blessing, and only people on their way to the top had to live in apartments (unless you lived in said ritzy apartments). I always wanted to live in an apartment though. They were just so different from what I was used to.

I currently am living in an apartment for the first time in my life. And I love it! Of course I live in a beautiful apartment, so that makes it hard not to like. It's not the Ritz. But I think it is just perfect.

I will describe it to you!

To get to my apartment you must walk up "four flights" of stairs (more like eight in my opinion... there isn't an elevator since the building is like 200 years old) and then you will arrive at the fourth floor landing. Here you have the option to open two doors. The door directly in front of you takes you into the main apartment. The door to your left takes you to the mini apartment (my room).

The main apartment is where Johannes, Christiane, Martha, and Frieda live. It is very open, big, airy, and sunshiny. The walls and ceilings are all white and the whole apartment has light colored hardwood floors. There is a modern flair to everything, with a touch of traditional here and there.

My room is big, white, and full of light. The floors are a light hardwood, and the walls and ceilings are white. It is a very odd shape because it goes along with the shape of the roof (we are on the top floor), but it is roomy and big all the same. I have my own bathroom which also has white walls, and the floor has really pretty jade tiles. All of the furniture and accessories in both my room and bathroom are from Ikea; which gives it a modern feel. I think the coolest looking thing is the big, white flower light that hangs in the middle of the room. I am not quite finished decorating my room; it is a work in process. But I like how it is shaping up.

My flower lamp! Isn't it the coolest?!

So that is my home here in Karlsruhe! I love it so very much. Whether I spend time in my room, or hang out in the main apartment, I feel very at ease. The sense of "home" hasn't quite happened yet, but I don't think it will be too long before that feeling occurs.

From now on when I think of apartments I think this home will be the first thing that comes to my mind. And that doesn't bother me one bit.

And the Year Begins

I have been in Germany for two weeks this upcoming Friday. How strange! I still doesn't seem real. It's kinda like I am waiting for someone to tell me, "Hope you had a nice vacation, but it's time for you to go home now." But that isn't going to happen. I am going to be here a whole YEAR.

My first day here feels like ages ago. I don't recall a lot of it already because I had jet lag and that made the whole day kind of fuzzy. But I will do my best to think really hard and remember it all.

Johannes picked me up from the airport at 10 am (ish) in the family car. I have only been in that car once since that day. Germans have cars of course, but because they have amazing public transportation (ex. trains) and everything you need isn't "super far away" you can just bike or walk. Cars are used only for holidays and places where it would be easier to drive to than take the train.

It was a beautiful drive; I didn't expect Germany to be so green! Of course the leaves are starting to change colors, and soon there won't be any colors at all... but that is besides the point. Another thing that suprised me was how much open space there was. Coming from LA County, the land of squished together suburbs; it's strange to find myself in a very different place (we aren't in Kansas anymore Toto). A place where cities are actually not right next to each other. Weird. But neat.

I didn't just look out the window the whole time! Johannes and I talked the whole way. Or should I say I talked the whole way... he got in a couple thoughts in here and there haha. We covered a wide range of topics, but I won't bore you with a play by play of the conversation. One of the things that we did talk about was speed limits on the Autobahn. I was pretty stoked at how fast we were going (and that I was actually on the Autobahn) and Johannes was like ehh no big deal, I like driving in the States better. What?! Ehh.

The middle part of the day is a blur. But it is kind of coming back to me as I really ponder it. I met Christiane and all her colleagues and her boss at her work (embarrassing! I looked a total mess after being on a plane so long. But they were all so sweet). And then I got to go with Christiane and Johannes to get Martha from school. Martha was having two new friends over so they played all afternoon at the house. I think it was Johannes that went and got Frieda from school around that time. Point being, we all had lunch at the house and I got the tour.

The first I walked into my room I was so stoked. I still get pretty stoked every time I walk in. It is big and white and airy. It's amazing how much light gets in the room. The room was pretty bare, except for the bed, because I was going to go with Christiane the next day to get stuff from Ikea. They wanted me to personalize it. Which I am so thankful I go the opportunity to do. I am quite the interior design nerd. It looks much more homey now, but it's not quite there yet. Just a couple more things to add. All in due time of course.

Then as a family we went on a bike ride (me on a rented bike since I didn't have my own bike at this point). I got to see the castle grounds and the castle in the middle of Karlsruhe. The city is really amazing and I could scarcely take it all in. I was loving it all though. We stopped at an organic food store (think German Trader Joe's) and bought some items we needed. And then we went to a Biergarten by our house and had dinner. I had pasta (not very German, I know, shame on me) and my first legal beer! I love the drinking age here.

I didn't take any photos today so here is a great aerial view of the castle and part of it's grounds that I found on Google. Amazing right?

We got home and I pretty much jumped for joy that it was bedtime. I don't think I have ever been so excited to go to bed before midnight. My head hit the pillow and I was out like a light.

Plane Adventures

Most people really loathe airports; but I love them. As much as they stress me out, I can't get over how much beauty is taking place. At an airport people tend to show their true emotions all over their faces. If they are pissed off at the security guard, you know it. If they are deeply sad that they won't be seeing a relative for several months, you know it. And if there is extreme joy in homecoming of a friend, you know it. There is so much to soak in at an airport. I love just sitting and observing.

I was lucky enough to fly to Germany. And with flying there are airports! The plan was that I would fly from LAX to Philly, and then from Philly to Frankfurt. Three airports! So I was pretty darn stoked. Of course I wasn't so stoked that I would be on one plane for 5 hours and another plane for 8 hours. Quite the trek.

LAX. I can't count how many times I have flown out of this place or dropped off people there. I know this place well. But this still didn't help the nervous feeling in my stomach the whole drive there. Amber, Johanna, and Megan drove me to the airport. Which I loved. They are fabulous friends to wake up early on a Thursday for me.

We pulled up to the US Airways drop off area and got out of the car. At that point I couldn't quite process that I would be leaving California for a whole year, and would be leaving all my friends and family too. So I hugged my girlies and headed off to the check-in counter without even crying. I would have bet money that I would have cried. But I surprised myself. I think I was just too nervous about getting my butt all the way to Germany without issue that I could think about little else.

The lady at the check-in counter was a scary beast to behold. She seemed nice; until she opened her mouth. Attitude with a capital A. But she helped me get my tickets and my big red bag checked; and I am thankful for that. I headed off to security after that.

Ahh security. Everyone's favorite place in the airport. It's hilarious to see everyone stripping off their shoes, jackets, belts, and jewelry. It's quite scandalous if you think about it. No where else in America is that really "allowed" unless you are behind closed doors. The fabulous older lady in front of me turned around and sarcastically said to me "Anything I forgot to take off? Because there isn't much left." All I could do was laugh and shake my head.

When it was my turn to walk through the metal detector the thing went off. I had accidentally bumped into the side of it, and that apparently makes it go off. So I had to walk through it again, and guess what? I got selected for addition screening! Yippee. There is something extremely shameful about standing in a small clear plastic "room" in your socks. You become the curiosity of the moment and everyone stares at you probably thinking, "I didn't know blondes were terrorists" or "oh that poor girl, she is going to miss her plane." It's also embarrassing to think that you are going to be felt up by a female security guard. Thank the Lord they couldn't find an available one! All I had to do was get my fingers swabbed with something and then I was free to collect my things and put my shoes back on.

The older lady who was in front of me earlier was sitting on the nearest bench putting on her shoes. I sat down and joined her. We ended up having a little conversation. She was going to San Francisco for a friend's funeral. Apparently the friend had cancer so it hadn't been a surprise when she found out that they died. But it was still sad of course. I told her about my adventure to Germany, and she smiled and told me that I was going to have a great year. After we finished readjusting ourselves, we said goodbye and headed our to different terminals.

I got to my gate like ridiculously early. So I just sat there and listened to my iPod and people watched. Finally boarding began like an hour and half later. My section (right on the wing) was the last to board. How the heck does that make any sense?

So I got to the front where they check your ticket. The stewardess looked at my rolly suitcase and told me I had to check it because it wouldn't fit in the overhead compartment. I sighed and complied. Though I definitely grumbled to myself about how it so totally would fit. Thankfully I found out later that I didn't have to pay for it. And I must admit that it was nice only having to deal with my overstuffed backpack. So that made me happier.

The plane ride itself was pretty uneventful. I got middle seat (gag me with a spoon). To my right was an older lady (older than the last one) reading a book called "Over the Hill but Not Out to Pasture." I pretty much had to hold in a lot of giggles for that. To my left was a guy about my age. He kinda reminded me of a less surfer boy version of my friend Arthur. The guy slept like the whole time except for when he watched Super Troopers on his Mac. I got a kick out of that. I slept a little, read a bit of The Secret Garden on my Kindle, and then watched a movie. No, there was not an inflight movie, and no, I did not have my computer. I must admit that I watched The Other Boleyn Girl over the shoulder of the woman sitting in front of me to the right. Of course I didn't get sound, but I have seen the movie before so I was fun to make up lines for the actors. I think the lady knew I was watching it. How embarrassing haha. Well, not long after the movie ended, the plane stretched out its wheels and we landed.

Philly. I had never been there until the plane landed. And since I was only in the airport the whole time I was there, I still technically haven't been there. And I was only there about and hour and a half. My first plane landed early, thank God, otherwise I wouldn't have made it to the next plane in time. Because my plane arrived early, we "parked" (it's funny to think of a plane parking haha) at a totally different gate. Which was completely on the other side of the airport of where I needed to be. So I pretty much ran to the bathroom (acknowledging in the mirror that I looked like a total mess), and then ran down the airport (with the help of those cool flat escalators). I couldn't help but laugh because every five feet there were white rocking chairs. Apparently Philly wants you to feel like you are just chilling on your porch when you are at their airport. So I found a food court and ordered Chickfila. At this point I had like fifteen minutes to find the right gate. I fast walked (I was so over running) to the gate while scarfing down chicken nuggets and fries. I found the gate and plopped down into one of those strangely comfortable seats that you only find in airports.

I looked up to find a man staring at me. He seemed European (which turned out to be wrong, he definitely was American). I think I made a pretty big entrance haha, he probably thought I was crazy. We kept making awkward eye contact until it was time for us to board the plane. I was near the wing again (my favorite place) so I got called last again. So did the man sitting across from me. All I could think was "oh my gosh I am going to have to sit next to him, how embarrassing."

I found my seat, and surprise, surprise I had a middle seat again. (I died a little inside). I didn't end up sitting next to the man, but he was a seat over from me. How does that work? Well it was a huge plane! One of the ones with three rows of seats and two aisles. So we continued to have awkward eye contact the whole plane ride. Typical.

The people who I was sitting in between were a married couple that missed their flight and had to get placed onto the one I was on. (So if they hadn't missed their plane I would have had the whole row to myself... such selfish thoughts). They never said where they were from, but I knew. They have the same accents as my grandparents. They were definitely from Texas. The wife explained to me how she was a retired stewardess and had a bunch of flying benefits, so she and her hubby decided to go to Amsterdam (wonder what they were going to do there... giggle). So they had one more plane to catch once we landed in Frankfurt. Dang. That is a lot of airplane time. The couple was super sweet and we talked on and off throughout the flight. I eventually switched seats with the wife so she could sit next to her husband. She wasn't thrilled on sitting in the middle seat, but sitting next to her husband won out over her discomfort. So that meant I got an aisle seat! Wahahaha.

I spent all freaking eight hours as a very wiggly girl. I just couldn't handle the thought of being couped up so long. I wanted to walk up and down the aisles, but you get reaaaally weird looks when you do that. And the stewardesses start think you are going to take over the plane or something. So I stayed in my seat and watched all three inflight movies (well sorta, I fell asleep a lot). Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is very strange to watch when it is in German. The movie sucked, but at least the German made it entertaining. Next was Water for Elephants in English. Which was great, and I was totally into the movie. That is until my headphones broke. So I was left watching the rest of the movie without sound. Fail. The third movie was one of those Big Mama movies. It was really dumb and I was glad at that point that my headphones were not working.

My favorite thing about the flight came in the form of a three year old German boy. He and his dad were in the row in front of me. And about every five minutes (except for the 5 or so hours that he slept) he would turn around in his seat and talk to me. Which was hilarious. One, because he spoke a mixture of German and English, so it was hard to follow what he was talking about. Two, he was so darn adorable. Three, his father was soooo embarrassed but tried to play it off like it was no big deal. At one point towards the last hour of the flight, the little boy got out of his seat and stood next to mine. I was reading my Kindle, and he really wanted to play with it. So I showed him how it worked. He tried to use it like a touch screen (kids these days) and I just laughed. Eventually I distracted him and we played a game. I would tell him an animal and he would pretend to be it. He really loved being a dragon. The other people in their seats did not like the game as much as we did...

Finally the plane landed in Frankfurt. I was about ready to run down the aisle and hightail it as fast as I could out of the airport. I was ready to get off that plane and start my adventure. But of course I couldn't. The ramp that connects to the plane wasn't working. So all the passengers had to wait for them to fix it. And then when it was decided it wasn't going to get fixed right then, we had to wait for them to find some roll away stairs. We were finally able to exit the plane like thirty minutes later.

My first reactions to Germany? "Dang it's chilly. And wow the sky is blue! Like blue, blue." And then it was inside again. So I went through a line where I had to show my passport, and then it was off to the baggage claim. My luggage was some of the first things out. I grabbed them and awkwardly proceeded to walk away with two rolly suitcases and a backpack.

I didn't see Johannes right away so I figured I would just sit down and wait. Then a horrible thought struck me: what if we don't find each other?! My phone no longer had service now that I was in Germany. And I had no European money to make a pay phone call. Fear started to creep up on me. As I was trying to come up with a plan, I heard my name. It was Johannes! I was so darn glad to see him.  He grabbed my luggage and we set off to the car and to my new life.