Our weekend and visiting Heidelberg

I haven't blogged for awhile because I've been busy trying to get this house finished up and in order. We had a really nice weekend. Saturday morning, Sam went crazy in the back yard. He trimmed all the bushes and trees. He even cut down a few trees and generally just did a lot of clearing that needed to be done. The neighbor told him he didn't think it had been trimmed in several years. Sam loaded all the trimmings in the truck and we took them to the dump on our way into town.

We were hoping that the rain would hold off long enough for us to get to Ikea, pay for, then pick up the entertainment center at the warehouse and get it home. Thankfully, it did and probably no longer than 30 minutes after we brought everything in the house it started pouring.

On Sunday, we had every intention of going to church. I kept thinking it started at 8:30 (probably because that's what time our church in Hawaii started), but somehow it didn't seem right. We made it to church "on time" and found out that it doesn't start until 9:30 and that day it was going to be held in a different place at 10:00. So...instead of waiting around for 1 1/2 hours we decided to go check out another of the Army posts. We drove to Heidelberg, which is only around an hour from us. Again, I was very surprised by the size of the posts. Very small.

Sam saw signs for a castle nearby, so we followed the signs to this castle. Driving through the old town of Heidelberg, I looking out my window and up the hill I saw it looming over the city. It was really awesome. I was amazed at how big it was. We drove up the hill to find it. I guess I didn't realize how huge the castles were. Almost like a small city within those walls.

One of the corner towers was destroyed I think in the 1600's. You can see the side of the tower that looks like it just fell off and is still there. You can even see hallways in through the tower from where the side of it fell off. It was really neat to see.

Another thing we found really interesting was the large wine vats within the castle. One of them is suppose to be the largest in the world. It holds over 220,000 liters! It's HUGE! They've since made a dance floor on top of it. The picture below is actually the smaller of the two vats. Of course, my dear husband had to be get a picture of him "drinking" from it.

As I've said before, it's really hard to capture all the details on film, but it was a very interesting tour. We did LOTS of walking up and down stairs and hills. We didn't realize how far down we had walked until it was time to go back up. It ended up being a really nice day. We want to take advantage of our weekends here and take the time to visit places like this because we're only here for a limited time. Well, that's about it for now. I've been putting the entertainment center together since Monday. Tonight, hopefully, we'll get it all put together. Here are a few more pictures from our day in Heidelberg.

Getting ready to go down the stairs to the castle

Another view of the destroyed tower

Me standing in the center of the castle

Sam looking out a window with Heidelberg in the background

Sam on top of the huge wine vat

Me and Sam with Heidelberg in the background

Sam's TV

When we were getting ready to leave Hawaii, we decided to get rid of anything we didn't need or use (which was a lot). We didn't want to just move our junk from place to place. Some of the things we hadn't even looked at in the 2 1/2 years of our marriage. Our bachelor neighbors were thrilled, because we set everything in the middle of our living room and told them to come take what they wanted.

One thing that Sam would have liked to bring with him was his "big screen TV". The reality of this "big screen" is that it was one of the 1980's fold out projection TVs. It worked just fine, but was a bit of an eye sore and took up a lot of space. I didn't really want to bring it to Germany, but would have if I'd thought it would make the trip. I thought the projection bulbs probably wouldn't make it. Besides, now that we're here and see everything we can't use because of the different voltage, I'm glad we decided to leave it in Hawaii.

Anyhow, since he wasn't able to bring his TV to Germany, he's been saying that he's going to get a flat screen once we get settled. I didn't mind, because I know how much he wants it and it'll be so much better than what we had. We thought this last weekend would be a good time to look, with the Memorial Day sales going on. We found a 42" plasma at the PX for a pretty good price. We didn't have the truck with us and it wouldn't fit in the car, so we've been waiting for the rain to clear so we can bring it home.

The rain has finally cleared today, so I'm sure my husband will be grinning from ear to ear when he walks in this evening with his new TV. It'll be a little while before we set it up. We need to clear a space amid the boxes and we still need to buy an entertainment center that we liked at Ikea. Besides, we also need to buy another AFN decoder box in order to view the American channels.

I'm getting a lot done everyday, but there is so much to go through that it's taking awhile. Even with everything that we gave away in Hawaii, we've filled two more boxes of stuff we don't need and I'm working on a third. It feels good to clean house and get rid of anything we don't need.

Speaking of, I guess I need to get back to work. Talk to you later.

Our day visiting cousins in Ulm

I'm so glad this was a long weekend. It seemed too short even with the extra day. The weather was very nice (maybe a little warm for my taste) for a couple of days, now the rain has returned and it's actually quite chilly again.
Sam's cousin, Silke, and her husband, Ralf, invited us to their place in Ulm. That was about 2 weeks ago I guess. We were finally able to get there this weekend and really enjoyed our visit. Saturday morning we drove to Ulm which is about 85 km away from us. The drive was absolutely beautiful. Silke had to work, but we met Ralf and their son, Dominic, downtown and were given a wonderful tour of the city. Silke's twin sister, Iris, also met with us downtown. I love the old cities here in Germany. Every town seems to have it's own unique story. I learned that Albert Einstein was from Ulm. That's one of their "claims to fame".

Another highlight of the day was the Ulm Cathedral. I couldn't get the whole building in the picture because of the height. This church was built around 600 years ago and is unbelievably beautiful. It's known to be the tallest church in the world at 530 feet. We could have climbed the 768 stairs to the top, but it was a little warm for that the day we were there. We were not suppose to take pictures (with flash) inside the church, but I did get one of Sam standing beside the wooden pews (posted below). I can't explain how awesome this church was. The detail of the statues, the stain glass windows, the old pews--it was just incredible to see. Such a piece of history. That's one of the things I love about Germany. It's such an old country so you're able to see a lot of history with the buildings that are still around. They sure know how to build a sturdy structure here since some of them are still standing hundreds of years later.

We went to Ralf and Silke's house for the afternoon. We needed to leave early enough to go by Ikea when we got home, but we stayed until a little after 7:00. They all tried to speak English so I could follow along in the conversation, but I'm sure they were much more comfortable reverting back to German. Sam's German has gotten much better in the two months we've been here. When we first arrived, I could see him struggling to remember words. Now, it seems to come to him much more fluently.

I was taken back by how much Iris reminded me of Sam's Mom. She could easily be her daughter. It was really interesting to see those similarities in someone I had just met.

Silke made a wonderful dinner for us. It was so nice to meet some of Sam's relatives here in Germany. We had such a nice day with them and I'm sure we'll be getting together again in the future.

Here are a few more pictures from our day in Ulm. I know Sam's family, in particular, will be interested in seeing them.

Sam standing by the pews in the Ulm Cathedral

Misty, Sam and Iris

Iris, Sam, Ralf and Dominic in front of the Ulm Rathouse (City Hall)

Sam, Misty, Iris, Ralf and Dominic in front of the oldest house in Ulm. It's now a hotel.

Ralf and Dominic in front of their house

Iris and Silke

Stacy and Rich are leaving

Last night we went to a going away dinner for Stacy and Sam's boss, Jackie. (Stacy is in the back and Jackie is on the right - the lady on the left works for PARO Europe) I'm wondering if it's a coincidence that the two people who picked us up at the airport when we arrived in Germany are now leaving??? That could give us a complex.
Both of them were helpful in our move to Germany. Stacy in particular was a God send. In the early days, Stacy drove us everywhere without ever seeming like we were a bother. She and Rich were always there to answer our questions, to help when everything broke when we moved into the house or just give us incredibly helpful information about living here. They never once seemed annoyed or like we were intruding. When we first moved here they had us out to dinner and always opened their home to us. We've really enjoyed spending time with them and we're going to miss them a lot. They're moving back to Florida. Stacy was just accepted for a position in Key West.

I'm meeting Sam at Patch after work and we're going to watch a movie. "Premonition" with Sandra Bullock is playing and it looks pretty good. It doesn't seem like I'm making much progress with the house. It's just a slow process. Before putting things away the dishes and clothes all need to be washed. That's a long process in itself since the German washing machines have such long cycles. Everything that can't be used here because of the different voltage is going to be stored in the attic. I also have a box for give away. I thought we purged quite a bit before coming, but I'm still finding things we just don't need or want. The house that, at one time, seemed so big is feeling smaller and smaller. My idea of opening one box at a time and putting those things away just didn't work out as planned. Well, I should get back to unpacking boxes. Have a wonderful day!

My house is full again

Our household goods were finally delivered yesterday - Yeah! The house is a total mess now, but I guess that's to be expected since all of our belongings were dumped on us in one day. Now the real work begins. I've been opening boxes and unwrapping things all day, as well as, keeping the washer and dryer going steady. Everything smells funky after being packed up in those crates for the last two months.

The movers were scheduled to be here between 10:00 and 11:00 yesterday morning, but they were delayed by a stau (traffic jam) on the autobahn. They didn't get here until 1:00 and there were only two of them. Being PCS season, the company was too busy to send more workers. I felt bad for them, but that's what they get paid for.

Other than the big items that were taken to the guest room or upstairs, most everything is stacked in the dining and living rooms. I had our inventory list from Hawaii and checked off the box numbers as they came in. I think we have everything, but some of the box numbers were different than what was listed.

I'm going through and trying to organize what is going to be put in the attic and where everything else will go. Thankfully, we have a larger house than we did in Hawaii, so space shouldn't be an issue.

When the movers left at 4:30, the first thing I did was get the computer unpacked and set up in the office. Rich and Stacy came over in the evening and got us connected to the wireless Internet. I LOVE having my computer back. It's so much better than having to make a special trip to Patch just to check email.

We had a pretty busy weekend. Saturday was our day off, so we went to the flea market in downtown Stuttgart. I love that place! There are so many interesting things to look at. This particular day there were also several fresh fruit/vegetable/flower markets set up. I think that would be the best place to buy our fruits and vegetables if it was just a little more convenient. We didn't buy anything big at the flea market, but I picked up a few things that I liked.

Saturday evening we went out to dinner with Rich and Stacy while Kelsey was at the last middle school dance of the year. We went to this "American" restaurant called Route 66. It wasn't too bad. Friday we noticed that the TV wasn't getting a signal again. We've had problems with it since the painters came and moved the satellite dish when we first moved in. So, after picking Kelsey up from the dance, Rich and Stacy came out to try and fix it. It didn't get fixed that night.

After church on Sunday, we came home and stacked some wood that Sam had bought from a farmer up the street. We have a cockle oven in the dining room. I've never seen one, but it's a neat idea. The wood has to be pretty small to fit in the door, so this size will work great. We stacked it right outside the dining room door so it's easy access in the winter.

We knew the movers were coming on Monday so we put some things away in the attic then moved the bed up to the master bedroom. That was a headache and by the time we got it up there the back of the mattress was torn and the box spring had grass stains all over it from falling off the 3rd floor balcony. Oh well, it's done and those stains will always have a story behind them.

Most of the houses here in Germany have flowers in planter boxes either in the windows or hanging off the balconies. Well, we have planters for the balcony and we bought some flowers this weekend. I only bought enough flowers for two boxes, so I'll have to go get some more. I was surprised at how expensive flowers are here though. Here is a picture off the balcony so you can see one of the planter boxes.

This morning, after Rich couldn't get it to work the last two days, the TV just decided on its own to come back on. So this afternoon Rich and Kelsey came by to tune it in better and tighten it down. We shouldn't have anymore problems with that. I hope. Well, I have plenty to do besides this so I should probably get myself busy.

Phones are working again

The good news of the day is our phones are working again. I've come to understand that all phones in Germany are not like what we have. The people who own the house set it up with a wireless system, so we can't just get any ordinary phone and plug it into the outlet. Believe me, we tried that when we couldn't get them to work. Thank goodness for Rich, Stacy's husband, because he told us to unplug everything, wait awhile then plug it all back in. Whatever the problem had been was taken care of by doing that. Whew!!

Our household goods are being delivered on Monday and we couldn't be happier. We have to call tomorrow to find out for sure what time they'll be at the house. It's been cold and rainy for awhile now. I hope it's not pouring rain on Monday, but either way I'll be glad to have our furniture again. I think I'll be happiest about having a computer in our house again. No more trips to Patch just to check email. Well, that's about it for today. I have to get to the Commissary and head home to finish cleaning.

Our household goods have arrived!!!

Good news!! We just found out that our household goods have arrived! They weren't suppose to be here until the 19th of June, but they came in early. We are so excited about that! We're going to love having a "home" again. Of course, it'll take me a little while to get it all in place, but what a relief to have it here. We hope to get it delivered late this week or early next, but it depends on how busy the moving companies are. We're going into PCS season, so it's going to get really busy in June. Hopefully we beat the rush though. The picture above is of a rose bush growing up the side of the house. A better picture of an individual rose is below.

I've been so bad about posting to this blog. I've only been making it out to the library about once a week, but once we get our computer up and going at home it should be easier. We don't have any phone service at the house right now, but we don't know why. I was talking to Kristy Saturday night and it just went dead. Last week, Sam received an email saying that the phone company was going through a strike and it may interupt some service, so he's calling them today to see if that's it. It's been a frustrating couple of days, because I don't know where to go for help here in Germany. Back home in the states I would call the phone company, but I don't speak the language yet, so I can't call or read the phone manual. There have been several things come up lately that would be so much easier if I spoke German. Another example is a freezer in the basement that I can't get working. I know it's a freezer, but it won't freeze and once again I can't read the manual. Frau Muller called yesterday and insists that it's not a freezer, but a wine cooler. There are pictures of animals and meat cuts on the door showing how many of each would fit in the "freezer". I'm pretty sure it's a freezer, but I think they just used it for a wine cooler.

On Saturday, Herr Muller and his daughter came to look though the shed out back. They have had stuff stored there since they moved out 7 years ago. So they came and took what they wanted. We went through the rest and threw what we didn't want. We moved a shelf into the shed and Sam got everything back in neatly. Anything left in the house that belongs to the Muller's I'm boxing up and storing in the attic. They left some pictures, trash cans, etc., and I would rather not having someone else's things in my house. They still have quite a few boxes in the attic too, so I'll just add to it.

While Herr Muller was there he took us for a ride to show us where the dumps are in Plattenhardt. It was really interesting. It's so orderly in Germany. Our dumps back in the states are smelly piles of trash. Here, everything has it's place. Paper here, metal there, electrical appliances somewhere else. I was impressed.

Last Wednesday I turned 32. I miss my family especially around birthdays and holidays. We went out to eat at a little Italian restaurant "Da Franco" in Bonlanden, a village right next to Plattenhardt. Then on Friday, we went to a concert being put on in the PX parking lot at Panzer. The Lt. Dan Band (with Gary Sinise) was playing there. The weather turned stormy, so we sat there under umbrellas, but it was nice being out at an American event. It felt a little bit like home.

Yesterday morning Sam went into work late because we had the chimney sweeper coming by. It was like stepping back in time - the chimney sweeper was dressed just like Dick van Dyke in "Mary Poppins" and his face was black from the chimney dust. I wish I'd gotten a picture.

One of the roses growing outside.

Our weekend

Today is one of the few dreary days we've had in Germany. From what we hear those are the norm around here, but we've had such beautiful weather since we arrived that it's hard to believe. Saturday was rainy as well. We planned to go to the flea market in downtown Stuttgart again because we had so much fun shopping there the last time, but since it was raining we decided not to. Instead we made a run to the PX and while there Stacy called and asked if we wanted to go to a sports store with them. We were up for the adventure so we met them at the Kelley hotel and we all piled into their car. This store, Decathalon, is huge and they allow you to try out what you plan to buy so there were kids (and adults) riding bikes, skateboards, scooters, etc all throughout the store. It was interesting.

We went to a Turkish restaurant for lunch. It's a challenge to find a place open after 2:00 in the afternoon on Saturday. Most everything closes down early. I couldn't tell you what I had, but it was pretty good.

Yesterday, we planned to try out an English speaking Baptist church outside of Patch, but Sam woke up through the night with a sore throat and a muscle in his neck and back. He was in so much pain that we didn't get up for church. Later he was up and started raking the yard, which he said helped loosen the muscles that were hurting him. So we met up with Stacy, Rich and Kelsey at the Panzer Bowling alley. I honestly can't remember the last time I bowled, but it must have been in my teens. We had a lot of fun with them though. Later in the evening Stacy and us went to see a movie at Patch.

I'm really impressed with the MWR facilites here. From what Stacy says they just recently renovated them and before that they were dumps. Sam and I checked out the gym yesterday. We're both saying that we're getting back to going regularly and we wanted to check it out. It's so much nicer than any we went to in Hawaii. All new equipment and very clean. The theater is brand new too, as well as the Bowling Alley. There's really not that many military here, but a lot of brass which allows us to have nicer facilities.

We know everyone is interested in seeing our new place, but right now it's just an empty house and looks very bare. So, once we get our household goods and get it put together we'll get some better pictures posted. For right now - here is a small glimpse.

Last night we cooked steaks on the grill. This is in the back yard looking toward the house. Door open on the ground floor goes into the guest bedroom (where we're currently camping out in). The second floor window is the living room and top floor is the master bedroom.

A small shed in the back yard.

Coming up the stairs, looking into the dining room. Living room to the left, kitchen to the right.

Living room

Looking toward the kitchen.

The kichen in the process of being cleaned.

Finally in our house

Free at last! I have my car!! I love having my freedom back.

We met up with Stacy at Panzer on Monday morning to sign over the title and get the safety inspection done. Before that, we met with Herr Muller at the Housing office to finish the contract for the house. Then we went to sign the washer and dryer over to us. The ones that are in the house belong to the Army and were in Stacy's name, so we just left them there and signed them over to Sam.

We also went to the telephone company to change the number at the house over to our name. What a fiasco that was! One would think it should be a pretty simple process, but not in Germany. Even though Stacy was out of the house as of 30 April, it will take the phone company 3-4 weeks to change the line over to us. On top of that, they were trying to push us to take a different (newer) DSL plan. In the end we didn't, because it wouldn't have worked with the modem in the house and it's not as simple as plugging in a new one. You can't even just buy a phone and plug it in. It has to be programmed. So, to save us the headache we stayed with the same plan Stacy had.

We went to Robinson Barracks to pick up our mattress. We tried to go a faster way and ended up lost for 2 hours. That was frustrating, but seems to happen to us a lot over here. Thankfully, the PX had a box spring on a truck that had just come in. So we loaded up and took the bed to the house. We won't have our household goods for awhile, but at least we have a bed.

When we got back to the Romerhof, we packed just about everything and loaded the car. Yesterday morning we got up early and took that load out to the house so I could finish the rest after Sam went to work.

I stopped by the PX to get some things to clean the house and to hold us over until our household goods get here. Even though I know Stacy cleaned the house before moving out, I still like to clean it all before I feel like it's been christened by me and it's ours.

I didn't expect Gabby to react the way she did when I let her out of her cage. She crept along the floor looking for a place to hide. She was so scared. I picked her up and she hid her face in my arm. I gave her a tour of the house and she was beside herself. It really is big and seemed even bigger after running up and down the 3 floors all day long. Yesterday I felt like I was running constantly, but didn't really accomplish much. I did get some laundry done and starting cleaning. I really am happy that we're finally in the house. I want to get some flowers planted in the pots for the balconies. I'm sure I'll keep myself busy.

Today, a couple of workers came to do some repairs around the house. I needed to leave so I left Gabby shut in the room downstairs. She should be fine, but I always worry about her.

Bills are paid differently here and no one will accept cash or check. Everything is wired through bank accounts. So, we set up an account on base in order to pay our rent and utilities. Since the bills have to be paid in Euro, we had to get a local account.

We got an email yesterday saying that our house in Hawaii is finally closing on Friday. We can't wait to get that over with. It's been a headache, but we're thankful that it sold. Especially after hearing that the market is declining there.

Well, no pictures for today, but maybe tomorrow I can post some. I have to finish our last Temporary Quarters paperwork and get that turned in by tomorrow, so I better get busy.

We finally have our own vehicle

Someday I will learn to save my posts as I go. I had just spent awhile typing and ended up losing it all. AAARRRRRHHHHH!!!!! Soooo..... I'll try this again.

Our truck has finally arrived! We didnt' expect it for another month. Last Friday we went to pick it up at Panzer. Unfortunately it didn't pass the safety inspection. It needs all new tires, which Sam knew but just hadn't gotten around to ordering yet. So, we have temporary plates until then. Tomorrow, the tires should be in and we'll drop the truck off in the morning to have them put on.

Our new landlord, Herr Mueller, called and wants to meet with us on Sunday to hand over the keys. We'll probably move in on 1 May since that's when our contract begins. It's going to be so nice to have a place of our own again. I'm not sure who will be happier....us or Gabby. She's going stir-crazy in the hotel room.

Speaking of Gabby... I think she may have terrorized the housekeeper yesterday. I don't know for sure, but there are some signs that the housekeeper may have left in a hurry. I usually stay home on the day the room is to be cleaned (one day a week). I take Gabby out on the balcony until the cleaning is done. Well, yesterday I had to go to work with Sam to get our reimbursement paperwork done and turned in. We left a note on our door saying that our cat was in there and to be careful she didn't get out. (Sam wrote the note in German, so I can only assume that's what it said) Anyhow, when I came home later, the room wasn't as clean as it usually is and the bed was only partially made. The sheet was just draped over the bed and not tucked in and the nightstand was moved out of place. Gabby usually hides under the bed if someone comes in and I'm thinking she may have gotten nasty and given the housekeeper quite a scare when she started to make the bed. I'm almost afraid to ask. I just hope she didn't leave any marks.

Last Friday evening Sam worked at the SAS Lock-in and didn't get off until 8:00 Saturday morning. He slept most of that day, but that evening we went to eat at a Chinese restaurant here in Vaihingen. The food I got did not set well with me, so we didn't go to church on Sunday. Later in the day when I was feeling a little better we went for a drive. We wanted to find Robinson Barracks, which is mostly military housing, but also has the furniture store. We got pretty lost, but took some nice pictures along the way. The one above is just driving into a village. I think we were lost at this place, but we stopped and took some pictures of these old buildings.

An old Bavarian style building. I love the old style buildings here.

An old barn beside the road

A vineyard on the way to Robinson Barracks

We did finally make it to Robinson and this is looking down the hill from the furniture store

Because of working all night Friday, Sam had Monday off. So we took the train to downtown Stuttgart. It's so beautiful down there. So many beautiful old buildings. Pictures really don't do it justice, but here are a few from Monday.

An old castle like building in Stuttgart city center

Ivy growing up the side of this old building

Me standing in from of a fountain at the city center

Sam with the city center in the background Like I said, the pictures really don't do it justice. There is so much detail on the old buildings that you just can't see in a picture. Well, that's about it for now. Sam will be getting off of work before too long and I want to go to the commissary before that, so I better get busy.

Sunday in Germany

Today is our 3 week anniversary of being in Germany. This morning we took the housing contract to the housing office for approval. Our landlords had to fill it out then we take it to housing for approval, then we sign and it becomes official. Well, there were a few things that need changed on it, so we'll have to go back to sign, but it's nice to be moving on toward getting our house. We only have about two more weeks at the Romerhof. It hasn't been a bad place to stay and the people there are very nice and helpful, but it will just be nice to be in a place of our own even though we won't have furniture for a couple of months after that.

Yesterday, Sam and I had a really nice day. We checked out the chapel on Patch Barracks and really liked it. The Protestant service is at 11:00. The people were very friendly and we were happy with the service. We were done with church at about 12:00 and decided to go for a drive. To me, that's still a daunting proposal. I'm getting pretty comfortable driving to Patch, Panzer and to the Romerhof, but going further is still a little intimidating. Anyhow, we drove toward Sindelfingen (I think??) and took a road there that led us to this little village. We ended up stopping and having lunch at a little Italian bistro and ate outside at tables set up on the cobblestone sidewalk. We really enjoyed that. It felt very European to us. Sam said he felt like he was in an American Express commercial - ha, ha But we did really enjoy it.

Later on, Sam wanted to see if we could make it to Plattenhardt, where we will be living. This was our first time on the Autobahn, but he did great. We got a little irritated with each other and it took us awhile to find the house, but he did. We had no problem finding the village, but then there are so many little road that it took awhile to find the road that the house is on. It's very hilly in Plattenhardt and the roads are narrow. It's a really cute little village.

Someone at Sam's work let him borrow two bicycles, so we took a ride and found which path led to Patch Barracks. Sam road his bike to work this morning. There are beautiful bike/hiking trails all over the place here. It's really easy to be outdoors and we've been having wonderful weather. It was probably in the 70's yesterday. From what I hear we better enjoy it because sooner or later the rain will return. Something that I've noticed here that is beautiful is the flowers. Even in people's yards there are tons of little flowers. It's really beautiful. Daffodils, poppys, tulips, pansies and lots of other small flowers. These pictures were taken in a park we were walking in, but even in private yards you see a lot of flowers.

Daffodils along side a fence

Flowers in a park

Well, that's about all I have for today. More later.

We're in Germany!

Hello from Germany! I've finally been able to get to a computer long enough to give an update of our new life in Europe. Even signing in to this blog has changed. When I signed in to do a new post, all the links came up in German, so hopefully I can figure it out enough to get a post done. (To the right, I am standing in front of the Romerhof hotel. Our room is in the building to the left on the second story. You can see our two windows inside the balcony.)
What a difference a couple of weeks makes! The last blog I posted was the day before the movers were to arrive and pack all of our belongings up. It was bittersweet. I do miss Hawaii, just not the heat. And I have even missed that a couple of days when it's been cold and rainy here. I was terribly sick the whole time we were packing and flying to Germany. Thankfully, 3 weeks later, I'm finally getting over it.
We left Hawaii on Thursday, March 22 and flew to North Carolina to spend a couple of days with Kristy and the kids. We really had a nice time with them. It would have been great if we'd had more time there, but we made the most of it. We really enjoyed Kristy's cooking :) I think she's close to the best cook ever. I aspire to be like her when I grow up ;o) It was nice being with the kids again. Of course, neither one wanted to leave Uncle Sam alone, as you can see in the pictures. Even Hadassah had to be like him and put her hat on.

Hadassah was in a her bathrobe stage when we were there. It was so cute! When Kristy came to get us at the airport there she was with Hadassah walking beside her in her bathrobe. I guess she just discovered how snuggly it is.
Sam and I took a coconut with us from Hawaii to show them what a natural one looks like. Sam worked at getting into it one night out on the back porch. I think they all really enjoyed that. I wish I would have felt better, but we had a really nice time with them.
We left Fayetteville on Sunday, March 25. Since it was going to be a long trip, we gave Gabby a pill to help relax her. I know these long trips are even harder on her. The pill had a strange effect on her. She was acting a little loopy and then bit me really hard, so I just closed up her cage and left her alone. I think she was feeling strange from the medicine. The flight over wasn't as long and hard as I expected it to be. We really had a wonderful experience flying with Delta. They actually still serve meals and the flight attendants were very nice.

Flying into Germany was really interesting. Even the layout of the land was different than the United States. Flying over large cities in the states just looks like the city goes on for miles. On the contrary, flying into Stuttgart you could just see lots of small villages everywhere. Lots of open countryside and small villages spinkled here and there. It looked exactly like what I invisioned Germany would look like.

Going through the German customs was a little intimidating to me actually. When we stepped off the plane, suddenly everything was written in German and I couldn't understand any of it. I was definitely relying on Sam to get me to where we needed to be. The customs guard asked if we were here on business or pleasure. It went very smoothly. No one asked to see any paperwork on Gabby. We mentioned her, but they just waved us on.
Sam's new boss, Jackie and Stacy (who has been a life saver to us here) were at the airport to pick us up. Stacy left to get a litterbox and litter for Gabby, while Jackie took us to the Romerhof, where we were going to be staying. Jackie said she would be back in 1 1/2 hours to pick us up for in processing. There's nothing like being up all night flying, then having to go right to work when you arrive. I didn't get a shower because I didn't have the right plug to use my hair dryer or curling iron, which was a little frustrating. I hadn't thought about needing that right away.

When Jackie picked us up, we went to NAF(which is at Kelly Barracks) and I sat in on the in processing because the information they were going to tell us pertained to me as well (living quarters allowance, driver's license, ID cards, etc.). They didn't seem to like me going in with him, but Sam wanted me there as well, since he was so tired. He wanted me to take notes for later.

I've felt really bad for Sam because from that first day on, he really didn't get a break. The next day, Stacy picked us up and took us to get our ID cards and we went by her house as well. We were so impressed with her place. The pictures they sent while we were still in Hawaii did not do the house justice. It's so nice. We were incredibly fortunate to have it fall in our laps like it did. We plan to buy her car when they leave too. That one will be mine to drive and Sam will have his truck. I sold my truck in Hawaii just a few hours before going to the airport. I had a hard time selling it. I loved my truck.

Monday was our two week anniversary being in Germany. It seems like we've been here so much longer than that. I'm adjusting, but really miss America, my home, familiar places and English speaking people. I miss going to a restaurant and being able to read the menu, having water with my meal and ice in my soda.
Something that's been hard to get used to is people staring at me. The Germans blatently stare. Especially when I wear my flip flops (slippers). I guess no one wears open toed shoes here. Walking down the sidewalk, I see them look at my feet then up to my face. It really does get a little annoying, when I don't care to be noticed anyhow. Everyone tells me to just stare back. People don't smile at you here either. They stare, but don't smile.

The toilets are quite different too, but I won't get into that here :) I do like American toilets better though. I think Gabby's getting quite bored in our hotel room. She has nothing to chase. She misses her roaches, geckos, spiders, etc.

Here are a few other things that I've noticed are different than America -

* I guess they don't use wash clothes here. In our room and in stores, all I see are bath towels and hand towels. Hmmmm

* The security at the Military posts is very strict. Our ID cards have a barcode that the guards scan and it shows a picture of the ID card holder.

* You can't get water with your meal without paying for it. And you have to specify if you don't want bubbly water. Most times, if you don't say otherwise, you'll get bubbly.

* German's don't serve ice with their drinks. If you ask for it, they look at you like you're crazy. One evening Sam asked for ice in my soda and when it came I swear it looked like they went to the freezer in the basement and chips some ice off the freezer walls. I'm giving up on asking for ice unless I'm at a restaurant on post.

* Going to grocery stores on the economy is a little daunting to me still. Everything is in German, as you would imagine. So, I can't read any of the labels.

* Stores close very early here. One night around 8:00, Sam and I were bored so we took the bus to the Swabien Gallery (small mall). Everything was closed, except for Kaufland which is a grocery store. I guess they have approval to be open until 10:00.

* Very little is open on Sunday. I've seen a few stores open around the Bahnhof (bus/train station), but that's about it.

* You can't wash your car here. You have to go to a car wash. I guess so soap doesn't get on the ground???

* They don't have normal beds here. Our bed is two twins pushed together. They keep slipping apart and they're hard. Needless to say, we're not sleeping too well these days. We have a new matress bought, waiting at the PX for us to more into our house.

* I don't know what this is about, but they have the oddest hair colors here and bright pink seems to be a big trend. Seriously, we were at the store the other day and I saw this very distinguished older lady. She was dressed very nicely and looked very put together, then she turned and I saw she had streaks of bright pink throughout her gray hair. I just don't get it. I haven't seen true red hair here, but lots of burgandy and bright orange.

* People drive crazy here! Fast and crazy. Sam and I managed to pass our driver's license a week ago Monday, but it's a little intimidating to drive. One of Sam's staff loaned him a car, so this morning for the first time I drove to Patch. I made it alright, but I have to really think about what I'm doing and keep German laws in mind and not revert to America.

Well, that's about it for now. It's hard to remember everything I noticed when we arrived because it's been a very busy two weeks. Here are a few more pictures from our time in Fayetteville and a few from here in Germany.

Hadassah holding the coconut

Working on getting into the coconut

Connor with a toad he found

Hadassah Ann

Coming in the hotel door, looking into the bedroom

Looking into the living room

Our "kitchen" is inside this closet

Our "kitchen"

Me standing beside a "Smart Car"

Not sure what this is. I don't think I'd take it on the autobahn though.

Sam standing out on the street by the Romerhof

This was last Sunday. We were walking to the Vaihingen Bahnhof to catch a train to Stacy's house for dinner.

Sam standing by a train as it comes in. The wind from the train is making his hair look funky