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.