Horses Never Share

Good news: I officially have friends in Germany!  This weekend had a funny way of proving this fact.  I went out with the people I'd met at the Oktoberfest again on Friday night and had a fine time.  We went to a disco not far away which was surprisingly pleasant.  It's a big place but has lots of little rooms so you can listen to different kinds of music and dance if you like, but also sit and chat if you so fancy.  We danced a bit and luckily went home at a reasonable hour.  This was due to the fact that my friend Reike and her boyfriend were having trouble in paradise and wanted to leave early.  I was pleased with this decision because I tire early these days.  So we rode home and her boyfriend talked politics at me, which was pretty annoying. Oh, and I was clever enough to put my money and house key in my boot rather than carry a purse that could be lost or stolen, but I wasn't smart enough to remember to grab my phone after I put it down to get the key out of my boot.  So, it was left in my friend's car.  I moped around the rest of the weekend, sure I'd never see the phone or my friends again, but quite luckily they found it and brought it to me on Sunday.  After that we had coffee in a nearby town and watched a soccer match.  It's really awesome to finally have a group of people here that will let me tag along.  Unfortunately the language barrier keeps me from knowing what's going on most of the time, but I get to see cool places with them.  So let's see, this weekend I also met most of Catrin's extended family at a reunion.  It was pretty cool, ate tasty cake at a family member's house and then had a huge dinner at a hotel restaurant.  I think several people spoke a little English, but no one felt comfortable enough to use it, so I spent most of the event just watching people laugh and tell stories.  Those are the times that feel lonely.  I miss being able to talk to just anybody about anything.  But hey, at least the food was tasty.  Piet loved it because he's a glutton for attention.  I've taught him "This little light of mine" and he was pleased to perform it for a room of 50 or more relatives.  He also made public announcements about the talking birds in the lobby of the hotel.  These birds repeated only German and did so in raspy, creepy voices.  I wasn't a fan, but Piet was entranced by them so we spent most of the reunion in the lobby.  There was also a machine that cleaned shoes, and after Piet discoverd this machine my shoes were incredibly clean.  It was cool to see him have so much fun.  It was also cute to watch him interact with his older boy cousins.  He'd just stare and copy whatever they did to try to fit in, until his 4 year old mind wandered and he was begging me to ride the elegator (elevator in piet language) up and down.  I have a lot of silly fun with him, I must say.  Nice weekend.

This week has been a little weird because everyone is still sick.  Jorn still says he feels woozy and exhausted all the time so he hasn't gone back to school.  Yesterday he and I dropped Piet off at kindergarten, went to the grocery store, and then went right back to the kindergarten after they called and said Piet looked like he had pink eye.  I had noticed it that morning and asked Jorn about it, but he said they'd put drops in it and he'd be alright.  Wrong.  So the next trip was to the doctor.  When we got home Piet still seemed in high spirits so we played a lot.  Later I left to help clean the veggies.  It was another pleasant day there, just organizing food and listening to German, trying to understand a little.  Being there and around my German friends as well as class is beginning to help.  Not leaps and bounds, but small steps at a time.  Class yesterday was another pleasant experience.  I rode the bus with my friend Elisa and we again met Marcos and hung out before class.  Hanging out with them and having a new, nice teacher has helped me to actually like the German class, which I guess helps me want to learn.  yay!  Last night I wrapped up the night by watching Shawshank Redemption with my host parents.  It was a little late to watch such a long movie, but it was good.

Today has been a lot less eventful for me.  Piet got an ear ache last night so he had to go to the doctor again this morning and get drops. This family just can't get well.  So Piet and I had a lot of time today to play. We went on a walk and took some pictures of the neighborhood since it was sunny and gorgeous.  When we got home he asked to listen to my ipod.  He's still obsessed with Simon and Garfunkle and has decided that the verse "Voices never share" in the song "Sound of Silence" is actually "Horses never share" which makes us all laugh every time.  He's super cute and I have a genuinly good time hanging out with him.  That's convenient considering it's my job : )  So, things are going smoothly.  I'm pretty homesick for Athens since Halloween is such an awesome time there and this year people seem to really be going all out for it.  I also miss my friends from Athens and my buddies from camp.  I'm very lucky to have met exceptional people in the past year, but it's hard to be away from them. I also miss my family tons and tons.  Traveling always makes me love home more.  Lately I've just wanted to be able to curl up on the super comfy couch in my parent's big living room and watch t.v. with Kelsey.  Piet is a good hugger though so he always cheers me up when I'm down.  The next days should be super.  Tomorrow I'll stay busy because Jorn's parents are visiting and then I'll go to class.  Friday I think I'll go to Hamburg and meet the past au pair Mallory and her friends and Saturday I think I'm going with Reike to the disco again.  So lots to do and see, and best of all, I'll be busy.  You'll hear about it soon!

Routine...

Not too much to post this week.  Catrin and Piet are back to school so the house has operated on the usual routine.  Jorn has had a bad cold though so he's been here all week.  I got a tiny version of the cold, but I'm doing fine.  Just decided not to run this week, which is not so bad seeing how it is freezing and windy.  We've had a couple of pretty days, but it's been mostly dreary.  Tuesday was pretty which made our little trip to Emden (I think I spelled it wrong before) very nice.  We went to a shmancy restaurant to celebrate the birthday of Catrin's mom.  She's a really cool lady.  She's petite and absolutely gorgeous; you would never think she's Catrin's mom if they stood beside each other, you'd assume sisters.  She carries herself with poise and is to me, the definition of a lady. Sadly, her husband didn't age as beautifully.  He's nice though.  So, lots of tasty food at the restaurant...baked chicken with basil over noodles in tomato sauce...mmmm, followed by dessert at their house.  Dessert started with a pear cake covered in some kind of egg liquor.  The pear part was good but I'm not a big fan of liquor in desserts.  Next came a chocolate cake with berries inside and cream on top.  Last was a light and extremely fluffy cheesecake.  Yes, three cakes.  I thought I was going to bust by the end.  Needless to say I didn't need to eat the rest of the day.  But one difference between most of their desserts and ours is that ours are much much sweeter. On the bus yesterday I sat beside a girl named Elisa from the Dominican Republic who complained of the same thing.  We both miss the dense, rich, near diabetic coma experience you have with a good dessert at home.  Here, you're just full from the quantity.  Elisa said she made a carrot cake for her host family and they could hardly eat it.  I told her I'd happily help her eat the next one : )  Back to Tuesday (food easily distracts me)....we spent most of the evening at Oma and Opa's house.  Piet and I had a good day of playing together.  We're having a lot of fun these days.  After playing we made it home.  It was an incredibly enjoyable day.

Wednesday was pretty normal.  I heard a big scary noise outside my window and realized that a big truck was dumping firewood in the driveway.  I went out to see what was going on a little later and realized that Catrin was moving all the wood to the back herself.  Crazy lady.  Of course I helped her and made sure she knew she could ask me to do this kind of stuff.  So we worked together and even so it took a while and a good bit of work to load it into the back room.  But now we're able to have a fire going in the furnace in the living room every night.  It makes everything feel cozy, I really like it.  Wednesday I also went back to the veggie cleaning place and again had a great time helping out and watching everybody tell jokes and stories.  It will be so nice to know what they're saying one of these days.   After that I came home and chilled with Piet for a while.  Since we've been having so much fun lately it is only natural that he also try to test the boundaries with me.  He played a game in which he would kick or hit me and then I'd send him out of my room.  I told him that he could come back in and try to behave at any point, but instead he sat outside my room and cried that I'd kicked him out.  He finally got bored of this act and the rest of the night was fine.  Kids. 

The big event yesterday was my German class.  As I mentioned before, I rode the bus with Elisa who lives really close to me and is also in class with me.  She's here as an exchange student and is a lot of fun.  Before class she and I met up with the boy from Mexico and chilled out in a pub.  It was a nice way to start the evening.  In class we had the really nice teacher again who takes time to talk to each of us and writes every word we don't know on the board so we can look it up.  She also makes us play games that force us to talk to each other.  It's intimidating, but it's the most I've spoken in German so far.  Class goes by pretty fast because people make lots of jokes.  Turns out I'm actually having fun in there and I've got a new friend.  Yay!
The learning bit is still coming slowly, but I know quite a few words and phrases now, which is progress.
Today looks pretty slow but tomorrow should be interesting because we're going to Catrin's family reunion.  So far I've had great weekends, so hopefully this will be another.  Hope all is well back home.  Feel free to send me emails or post comments on here, I love to hear from you guys!  Bis Spater!!  (See you later)

Big Weekend

The weekend passed as overall successful, with a few hiccups along the way.  Friday I cleaned the house really well which made me feel good.  My host parents said I could clean for a little extra money if I'd like, but if I didn't want to they'd hire someone else.  Given the fact that I have hours and hours with nothing to do, I took them up on it.  It makes me feel like I contribute, so I don't mind. When Piet got home from kindergarten (he's feeling better) we made chocolate chip cookies that turned out really tasty.  I was proud, given my limited kitchen skills. Friday evening was pretty quiet around the house so I offered to ride my bike into town and get a movie.  Riding my bike makes me nervous because it's a tad too big for me and it worries me to be near cars.  I prefer riding in mountains, although it's equally as dangerous.  So I made it to the movie store, grabbed Batman Begins, and began the ride home.  I was doing fine until the path split and I was in the bike lane very near the cars, instead of on the sidewalk.  That would have been fine during the day, but at night it freaked me out because it's hard to see bikes in the dark.  Knowing that no one would be on the sidewalk, I attempted to gracefully transition on to it.  Failure.  The sidewalk was an inch higher than the bike lane and my tire hit it at an angle, resulting in a crash.  On a positive note, a nice man smoking a pipe stopped to see if I was okay.  I checked myself and other than rattled nerves and a scrape on my foot I was okay.  The bicycle was fine with one sad exception, the light that my host parents had just gotten fixed for me was broken and pitifully blinking its last blinks on the ground.  Bummer.  So I made it home, cleaned my wounds, and watched Batman save Gotham City. 

Saturday morning started better than Friday had ended.  Jorn's parents came for a visit and proved to be totally lovely people.  They came bearing gifts, even for me.  They gave me a cute little plant and a bag with a candle and rose shaped candle holder, surrounded by chocolate covered toffees.  So grandmotherly : ) We spent the afternoon playing with Piet and eating a big meal of turkey and vegetables, making it feel like an early Thanksgiving.  After a walk we sat down again to apple cake and plum cake, both of which were delicious. Oma and Opa stayed for a little longer to play with Piet, then hit the road.  The rest of the evening was devoted to digestion and relaxation.

That night I attempted my first solo outing in Edewecht.  A local Oktoberfest party had been advertised all over town, and though I didn't know what to expect, I figured it'd be a good way to meet people.  I got there at 10, thinking it was already around my bedtime, but the place was not crowded.  Apparently I looked like a lost puppy dog because a nice man who worked there camp up to me and asked if I knew anyone there.  I said no so he took pity on me and chatted for a while before the crowds came in.  After he went back to work I got courageous and went up to a table of young people and asked if they spoke English.  Most of them spoke a little, so I stayed with them the rest of the night.  It was pretty fun, but as the night went on the fact that they were all still teenagers became apparent.  Everybody was talking about everybody and the boys were ready to rumble with any other boy who looked the wrong way at their girl.  A quote from Sam the Snowman, "Ah, Youth..."  Playing with teenagers wasn't my goal for the night, I wanted to make like minded friends, so after a little dancing I was ready to go home.  This desire, however, became a huge ordeal.  The party was about a 20 minute walk from my house, and my over protective host parents said it'd be safe and no big deal, but when I mentioned it to the crowd they seemed appalled that I'd walk alone in Germany, and said they'd be going soon and we'd all take a taxi together.  Of course, their soon was very different than my soon.  At about 4 in the morning, I finally got a ride home in a taxi.  If I had known that I didn't have to call a taxi because there were plenty outside of the party I would have marched outside and gotten one myself, appeasing everyone, but I didn't.  The night really frustrated me because everyone acted like I couldn't take care of myself.  The most frustrating part of being here is that it is hard to get around without speaking the language or really knowing the best way to get places, but no one trusts me to try it out.  Situations like this make me really miss my ability to drive my own car and the luxury of knowing where everything is all the time.  I'm remembering that it's just been a month and I'll get more independent as time goes by and I figure things out, but man do I feel handicapped at times.

So the biggest downside of getting caught in that pointless fiasco is that I had to run the 5k Sunday morning with only 4 hours of sleep.  However, the race went really well and is actually one of the coolest things I've done so far.  My host dad dropped me off in Oldenburg and I signed in and got the number 1230 to put on my shirt.  I found two really nice women who were also running and stuck with them to find the starting line.  There was a super cool energy in the air. The weather was pretty chilly but sunny and absolutely gorgeous.  The leaves are changing here and it's breath taking.  Everyone seemed in good spirits.  I thought it was cool that so many families were running together.  The fact that so many people were running at all was cool to me.  I think there were 2,000 people who ran the race.  I don't know how I placed among the 2,000, but probably somewhere in the middle.  I started the race feeling good, but running a lot faster than I usually do around town.  A little more than half way through the race I started feeling pretty tired and had to slow down a bit.  There was a man wearing a red balloon who was meant to be the 30 minute pace setter.  I knew I wanted to do better than 30 minutes, so I tried to stay in front of him, but at some point I decided it best just to stay beside him.  He noticed me and started talking to me.  Luckily he spoke a little English and asked what time I wanted to make.  I said 28 minutes would be good.  He said I shouldn't have started so fast, and I agreed.  He told me to stay with him, which really helped.  I was doing well but then I hit a wall and had to slow down.  He went ahead of me for a while and then with just a couple minutes to go he looked back and yelled "c'mon."  I sped up and got beside him again, about to die.  At the last 30 seconds he tapped me and said, "now go!"  and I used my last bit of energy to sprint to the end.  Piet and Catrin were at the finish line cheering. I crossed the line at 29.12 seconds, right in the middle of my goal and the dreaded 30 minutes.  I was actually really proud.  I received a medal with a castle on it and then was inhaled by a huge crowd.  Luckily I found Piet and Catrin easily and we started for the car.  On the way I saw the balloon man and said thanks for the encouragement.  He said I did well, which made me happy.  After we got back home and got settled we ordered Greek food which consisted of tons of meat and rice.  The lack of sleep, fast running, and heavy food resulted in one long, fabulous nap for me.  I got up for dinner then retreated to my room to end the day by watching "Cool Hand Luke."  I can't explain how much more I love that movie each time I see it.  The quote "What we've got here is a failure to communicate" has always been a favorite of my Daddy, and obviously runs through my mind here a lot.  But, the communication between me and my host parents is getting better and better.  It's still hard to learn all the little weird things they do around the house that I'd never think of, but when they drive me to a race, cheer me on at the finish, and have a sweater and water ready for me in the car, I know I'm loved and being taken care of.  It's amazing to have the opportunity to try new things like an Oktoberfest and a race in a foreign country, all the while having a safe base to come home to.  I continue to be in awe of how lucky I am.

Burrito!!

There hasn't been too much to report in the past few days. Piet had a fever all week so he stayed home instead of going to kindergarten.  The fever was a little over 100 F, but he bounced around like he felt fine asking, "What do we now?" every five minutes.  We made a fort, played grocery store, looked up computer games, and read books.  We also created the cutest game ever called "Burrito."  First, I move my computer chair to my bed and after I sit down he stands on my legs.  I hold his hands and then start bouncing him till he falls onto my bed.  At that point, I wrap him up in my comforter so that he looks like a burrito.  After a moment I open the burrito and Piet asks "In what land are we now?"  Then I precede to make up some silly story about the two of us having adventures in places like Egypt, Antarctica, and India. We also come upon magical creatures or even magical shoes that allow us to jump the tallest buildings in the biggest cities.  It's convenient that his parents don't allow him to watch television or movies; I can recite the classics and he thinks I'm making them up.  Aladdin was a big hit.  He also didn't know anything about the pyramids or pharaohs and didn't now that people can charm snakes or that snakes shed their skin.  I know he's four, but man!  However, he does know a lot about tractors and trains.  I'll catch him up on the rest.  On this note, he's got a limited number of English books but he loves to hear stories.  So, if anyone has extra kids books lying about, we'd love to have them here.  I plan to see what I can find in the local book stores soon.  It's nice to just have that kind of down time with him, especially since the t.v. is never on.  I'm not so sure how I feel about that policy, but I don't make the rules so I just have to get imaginative with the alternatives, which was probably his parents' intentions anyways.  So, Piet and I are learning to have a great time together.  He told me at dinner tonight that he likes me and that he's my friend.  It was cute.

Away from Piet I went on a couple of long runs and saw more of Edewecht.  Exploring whilst running makes the time pass faster.  I'm feeling pretty good about the race on Sunday.  I think I run about 8 kilometers when I go normally, so 5 should be nothing.  Apparently tons and tons of people will be racing, so it should be a cool atmosphere.  Piet and Catrin will be there to root Jorn and me on.  I'm pretty pumped.
Oh, and I also started something new this week.  I told my host parents that I want to get connected to the community here and that I'd love to volunteer somewhere. They looked around and got me plugged in to an organization that collects leftover food from the local supermarkets and distributes it to needy families for super cheap.  Yesterday I went to their main facility and helped them sort the food and clean the vegetables.  It was a pretty neat experience, one in which I thought "I'm weird for being here."  Everyone there was over 50 and seemed like someone you'd find in Chatsworth: sweet and full of character, but with a definite country bumpkin vibe.  I don't think they'd guess that I'm happily rooted in the same kind of people, but they were warm and welcoming anyway.  When I got there we all first sat around a little table and had coffee and cookies while they smoked cigarrettes and apparently argued the actual weight of the world's largest dog.  They inspire me to want to understand German, I can only imagine what the rest of their small talk consists of.  After the break we worked on the food.  A nice lady who spoke zero English taught me how to do everything through gestures.  It was pretty fun and the confusion made us laugh a lot.  I had a nice time and I plan to return once a week.

It's been a slow week but it looks like it will be a pleasant weekend.  Jorn's parents are coming to visit on Saturday and of course we'll have the race on Sunday.  Catrin and Jorn just visited me in my room with champagne to toast to their 10th anniversary.  My reaction was, "What?  Why are you here?  Go enjoy yourselves!"  But they said they prefer to stay home so we all watched a Harry Potter movie together.  Goofballs.  Perhaps I can convince them to at least go together to the village that's ten minutes away tomorrow night for some drinks or something.   They should take advantage of my being here more often, I would.  But it keeps things easy for me; I'm going to be ruined when I return to the real world and people actually ask me to work.  Oh well, I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts : )

The best laid plans....

A few months ago, my host family emailed me and asked if I'd like to join them in Berlin to visit their first au pair Hannah. Obviously, I said yes and got pretty excited. This weekend was the big weekend, and while it was overall enjoyable, it didn't pan out quite as we planned. The trip started off rough with several traffic jams on the ever exciting autobahn. My host dad was so frustrated he was twitching when we finally made it through an hour of waiting in traffic. The usual 4 to 5 hour trip last between 6 and 7, so when we arrived in Berlin everyone was pretty drained. Hannah met us at our apartment and helped us settle in. Apparently it's common in Germany for landlords to rent their apartments as we would rent a hotel, for just a few nights. They can charge more but it also gives families a nice place to stay and cook while they're vacationing. This is particularly good since I've realized Germans don't love to eat out, at least my family doesn't. The first night we splurged and we got pizza from a restaurant. However, we brought it back to the apartment to eat. The pizza was tasty though and chilling in a quiet place gave me an opportunity to get to know Hannah. She's lived all over the U.S. but spent the most time growing up in Texas. Like me, she finished school and wanted an adventure. Unlike me (because my mom would kill me), she has stayed an extra 2 years working in English camps and teaching elementary school outside Berlin. I think she'll be heading back to America soon, but only after she enjoys a two month tour of Africa. Crazy travelers. Anyway, we had a nice time with Jorn and Catrin and then she invited me to go out with three of the women with whom she works. First we went to a restaurant where a group of old eighties rockers were playing classic American music. It was cool, but super loud. Next, we followed one of the girls who apparently has money into this shmancy club where everybody wore their fashionable clothes and fashionable frowns. I was not impressed by their apathetic coolness, nor was I intimidated. I put a smile on my face and tried to get the girls to just enjoy themselves and dance, after all, we paid 10 euro, but they weren't comfortable so after just a few minutes we left. The next stop was at an even more awkward venue where the clientele were in their mid forties but all looked like they'd paid good money to look twenty something. However, these people weren't as worried about maintaining their composure and were dancing and having a lot of fun. One strange element was that some of them were wearing Dirndle and Lederhosen, traditional German clothing as pictured above. I've never seen anyone actually wear these outfits, especially not out on the town, but cudos to their fun spirits; it helped create a cool atmosphere and made the girls I was with chill out and have fun. The night was a little strange, but overall a success.

The next morning we got up early and went to the Berlin Zoo. Piet had been before but last time lost interest in the animals when he realized he'd have to walk around to see them. This time he was a trooper and we saw the majority of the zoo. It was cool, but some of the cages, especially the one for the lions, were super tiny. One lioness looked at me with the most pitiful gaze I've ever seen on an animal. Though, the polar bears had a big cage and they seemed to be content.

After the zoo we went back to the apartment, had some coffee and a shower, and then I made a fatal flaw. I agreed to a car tour knowing that I had an irritable McDonalds McGrittle in my stomach. It was Hannah's idea for McDonalds; we reasoned that American food plus the zoo equaled a perfect morning, which was basically true, but did not equal a perfect afternoon. We saw downtown Berlin and some pretty statues, but at some point I had to close my eyes from car sickness. Meanwhile, Piet was in the back seat repeating "I feel not so good." So we gave up on the tour and returned to the apartment where I took a two hour nap. When I woke up, I learned that Piet actually had a fever and was in the bed. So Jorn and Catrin stayed in with Piet, but Hannah was still around and asked if I'd like to have dinner with her and her friends. We ventured to her neighborhood and enjoyed a casual dinner with an Italian, an Australian, and an additional American. The food was great and the conversation was delightful. I called it a relatively early night and because my host parents were convinced I'd be murdered if I went alone, Hannah escorted me back to the apartment. She was incredibly kind and hospitable and I’m looking forward to seeing her again soon. I'm hoping to take a train to Berlin in early November during the twentieth anniversary of the wall coming down. Looks like the train tickets are pretty high that weekend, but hopefully it will work out. I think she might also visit Edewecht one last time before she goes to Africa. So, another cool person to add to the list of folks I've met here.

Today we woke up pretty early and made the trip home. This time traffic wasn't so bad, but we had to take Piet to the doctor on the way home which took a while. Luckily they said he just had a little bug and just needed rest, fluids, and ibuprofen. By the time we were home he perked up and seemed better all evening. After he went to bed Catrin, Jorn, and I watched Gran Torino with Clint Eastwood. His character says things that only an old grumpy war vet played by the one and only Clint Eastwood can get away with, but luckily our curse words and slurs don't mean much to people who've never learned that they were bad. They liked it and it was good to end the crazy weekend all together just watching a movie.

Hence, the trip didn't allow for a huge amount of site seeing or really experiencing what Berliner life is all about, but I got to know Hannah and I got to have one crazy night and one very relaxed night in a cool place with good company. It was a bummer that Piet didn't feel better and Catrin and Jorn didn't get to venture out with him as they planned. However, I view the trip as an introduction and I hope to see more of the city during another visit. Perhaps I'll make a friend around here who'd like to join me there or other German cities. This week I plan to look more for a theater or volunteer work to get plugged in to Edewecht or Oldenburg. I'd like someone close by to spend time with, but I really can't complain at this point. The last two weekends I've met cool, like minded Americans who could relate to my experience here and were very kind to me. At least I know that Germany has a good record of attracting my kind of people. I'm sure I'll run into many as time goes by. Still missing the good ones I've left at home, but it's amazing that so many keep in touch. Thus far I don't feel at all alone or isolated, so I'm doing fine to be so far away.

Food Glorious Food

It's been a very pleasant week so far.  It's fall break for the schools so I didn't have to go to my German class which meant more time to play with Piet.  His English has totally come out of the woodwork and we're able to chat and understand each other easily.  Yesterday we made a band called The Riff Raff and the Crazy Pirates.  He sang into his maracca and I played the bowl drums.  We sang his new favorite song, "Mrs. Robinson."  It makes me laugh to think that one day he'll grow up and see The Graduate and realize what that song is actually about.  Ha. 

Today was pretty rainy, but we spent most of it at Catrin's parents home which is about 50 minutes away in a town called Emmen.  Her mom fed us really well, like a good grandma always does.  We had a very traditional dish for lunch that consisted of thin slices of roast beef filled with vegetables and rolled up, served in a tasty gravy.  We also had potatoes and red cabbage, which were delicious.  For dessert we had vanilla ice cream with plums that had been soaked in red wine.  It was pretty unusual, but I liked it.  After we had completely stuffed ourselves, we rolled into the car and looked around the town.  Most towns look similar with brick roads and brick buildings and lots of Eis (ice cream) shops.  Emmen is a port town so we walked on some restored boats, one of which Catrin and Jorn got married upon.   It was nice.  When we got back home, Catrin's mom, we call her Oma, showed me how the people in that area have tea throughout the day.  They take cute and tiny tea cups and place in them a piece of sugar that looks like rock candy. Then they pour black tea over the sugar and then use a miniature dipper to pour cream in.  Then you take time to see how awesome it looks when the cream rises to the top. I liked that that was an actual step in the process.  Small spoons are given but you're not supposed to stir the tea, you're just meant to put it in your cup to signify to the server that you don't want anymore tea.  Oma said we could stir ours though so we could taste the sugar better.  Tea was served with shortbread cookies and chocolates.  It was simply delightful.

By the way, as I was typing the previous paragraph, Catrin came in a offered me a small glass of grappa, a strong alcoholic drink that's meant to be good for digestion.  I took a swig and forgot how strong that stuff is.  Blaaa.  I forgot to mention that we also had a tasty dinner which consisted of super fresh fish, prociutto, and bread.  I think the fish was bought at the store, but usually they eat fish that Opa (grandpa) catches in Norway every summer.  He loves to fish.  Their house is located beside a little water way where he can fish everyday.  Their back yard was perfectly manicured, like all German yards, and had a huge tree that had an owl living in it.  You could see his digested mice below his favorite branch. EEW. They also had an "American Oak" which I think was a white oak.  Daddy's quized me enough times that I should remember, but I still get my oak trees confused.

In short, today was a simple but lovely day and I got to learn a lot more about old German eating traditions.  Oh, I also ate fresh cherry tomatoes, or tommy-toes, as we always called them, straight from Oma's garden.  They were as sweet as candy...much better than this last swig of grappa that I need to finish before I go sit and watch t.v. with Catrin and Jorn.  It's so nice to be a part of a family and their daily traditions.  Definitely makes me miss my own from time to time.

Friends!

As predicted, good things have been happening here in Germanland.  Friday was super fun from start to finish.  I picked Piet up from school and we came home and made tasty sugar cookies.  He was a great helper and it was nice for just the two of us to do our first big project.  I'm thinking tomorrow will be fort extravaganza day using chairs and blankets.  We'll see how that project compares to the first.  After that we played for a while then went swimming at the local public pool.  It's got one outdoor pool and two which are indoors and are surprisingly fancy. There's a huge slide and a nice hot tub. In the smaller indoor pool Piet and his mom take a little class together where Piet learns how to swim and dive.  I went to the bigger pool and tried to swim laps, but it was family swim time so most of my exercise came from dodging the little boys who eagerly jumped over me.  I enjoyed the swim, none the less.  Afterward, I came home, got ready and hopped on the bus to Oldenburg.  There, I met the family's past au pair, Mallory, who was kind enough to introduce me to her friends and let me tag along for the night.  She's been working at a hotel in Greece for a while and was just stopping by Germany to see her friends.  I think she's heading to England now but she'll be back before she goes back to the U.S. and we've planned to meet up again.  She was super cool, as were her friends.  One of them lives in Oldenburg and offered to hang out any time I'm in the city, which is at least two times a week for class. So Yay! I finally have a friend in Oldenburg!  Anyways, Oldenburg at night was cool, but apparently most people were at a big festival in another part of the city that we meant to end up at, but didn't make it to.  I think the distance plus the cold weather made the flashy lights of the Ferris wheel lose their appeal.  So we walked back to one of the girl's apartments and the next morning my host family picked me up and we drove about 2 hours to a city called Hannover.  They have friends there who have an au pair from California and they all wanted us to meet.  I'm glad they created this opportunity for us because the au pair, Julie, is awesome and we got along great.  She's only been here two months, so we had fun relating our experiences and commenting on the strange aspects of our jobs to which we are still adjusting.  We watched the cheesy movie "Sweet Home Alabama" which I secretly adore and had a good time playing with the kids.  Their family has three kids and she swims on a water polo team, so she's super busy.  The kids were really cool though.  They remind me of country kids, tough but super bright and good at entertaining themselves.  I'm still working on toughening up my only-child Piet, but we'll get there.  It's too bad they live 2 hours away and Piet can't be around the other kids more and I can't hang out with Julie more easily.  We are hoping to do something together for Thanksgiving, like make a huge dinner for both the families and then force them to watch "It's a Wonderful Life."  Should be fabulous.

So, we got home late and I went straight to bed.  I haven't had that much activity since I got here and it wore me out.  I felt great today though and was able to run for over 5 miles.  It feels so amazing to have the time to do that again.  College ruined me, but I'm getting it back here and I've signed up to run a 5k with my host dad in Oldenburg on the 18th.  It's going to be flat, since everything here is flat, and cool so I should have no problem since I'm used to running in the Georgia humidity and up and down hills.  Too cold might be bad though, so I'm hoping for a pretty day.  I plan to run a lot between now and then, so expect to read about it.  And if you're not reading about it, get on to me, because that means I'm being a sissy and not doing it : )

After the run we went to Oldenburg where I bought some boots and walked around.  The rest of the day I played with Piet and listened to This American Life stories, my favorite radio show that's available on the internet.  It should be a nice week since we're visiting Piet's grandparents on Wednesday and going to Berlin for the weekend.  I love the small random trips that pop up so often. I'm enjoying myself a lot here and feel more comfortable every day.  My room is a tad bit messy which is kinda nice, it looks like I'm actually at home here, which I am.  Jorn and Catrin are quirky, but they're incredibly inviting and have done a lot to make their home my home.  I am unbelievably lucky to have this opportunity and I'm loving it.

Super Day

Today was a superb day in Germany.  I got to sleep in until 9, eat some tasty cereal, and go for a nice run on this cool but sunny fall day.  I've been pretty proud of how much I've been running here.  It's convenient to go in the morning while Piet is at school and since it's super flat I can go for quite a long time, at least by my standards. I don't feel like I'm going to die so I can for about 45 minutes without stopping. So after that I took a long fabulous shower, which all who have lived with me know is one of my favorite things in the world.  Then I successfully drove the car to pick up Piet from Kindergarten and Catrin from the high school where she teaches.  We all came home and ate a delicious Mexican Casserole and then Piet and I raced remote control cars and made a picture frame for a picture of one of his beloved stuffed animals.  As you can see, most of my day is totally like it would be back home and not a crazy cultural experience.  It's steady and reliable, which I think will be a good base point for my later adventures.

Speaking of adventures, after playing with Piet I took a small one today to the city of Bremen where Cord and I spent the afternoon.  It was a nice city with tall old churches and lots of cafes.   We spent a lot of time walking around but as it got colder we settled into a nice restaurant from which we could see the city square.  At first lots of people were there chanting some cheer for their soccer team.  I never figured out where they were from, but they were super excited.  Later a large group of boys started taking their clothes off.  One minute they were clothed, the next they were down to their skimpies, next they started chivering, and finally the clothes went back on.  Somebody was holding a sign up so I guess they were making some kind of point, but I can't imagine what it was.  Interesting, none the less.  After the restaurant, Cord and I headed back to the train station and bought a tasty k-bob and waited at the platform together.  It was lovely to see a familiar face and be able to tell my dumb jokes with no language barrier that requires I explain them until they're not funny anymore.

Oh, Cord also brought me a headset so I can talk very easily on skype.  I've bought an unlimited calls plan so I can call you guys for super cheap and it shouldn't cost anything for you.  It's also free from computer to computer, so let me know your number and I'll be giving you lots of calls.

The weekend is looking like it's going to be a good one, so hopefully I'll be posting more exciting stories soon.  Until then, Auf Wiedersehen!