American Mainhattan Move

Sundown Frankfurt SkylineDue to that logic test (because you can’t think logically when you’ve graduated college….) I had a complimentary train ticket to and from Frankfurt. What perfect timing as my best friend needed some help unpacking her container boxes from the container and a used to stick-shift driver. So after that lovely *ahem* test I met my friend and hung out at her office before we picked up a rental car and drove to IKEA. Yay fun but holy moly, I never realized that choosing light bulbs was so complicated! The reward was great though, yummy Italian at this restaurant in Rüdesheim where no one seemed to speak German – trade fair week.
On Friday we met M’s facility manager, who seemed super rude, and then the movers arrived and started to move M’s gazillion boxes from the container to her apartment. We just had to tell them where to put the furniture and then unpack all the boxes. Funny what kind of things you take along to another country when money isn’t an issue. I think we had 6 rolls of paper towels and about 15 Glühwein boots not to mention cans of tuna etc. 😀
Another yummy food treat, Mexican, and we were off to assemble the IKEA lamps (and yes, it was as hard as you’d expect it from IKEA stuff) and Robbie installed them. He definitely was the hero this weekend with his electrical knowledge, a hand for drilling and a toolbox!
For dinner we did another trip to IKEA to buy more things and eat a hotdog and then we were off to check out Sachsenhausen’s pub district. Caipis for 3€ – ’nuff said.
Saturday was again filled with unpacking boxes, trips to hardware and grocery stores, a stressful washingmachine delivery, getting M’s thigns from the hotel and more hanging and assembling and then Sunday some picture hanging (“oh American nails don’t quite work with German stone walls”) before returning the rental and heading to the train station. We had wanted to meet up with my other dear friend Kati and her beau but unfortunately we weren’t fast enough to meet them before they had to go elsewhere. 🙁 A nice chai latte from Starbucks and then off I was zooming up north in the ICE again.
I can only imagine how hard it has to be to move to a foreign country when you don’t have a company that takes care of some of the move. M already has things galore on her to-do list and at least she got some support from her employer and speaks German but yeah… wow to all those you have to do it themselves and don’t know the language and culture. Oy!

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What I’ve been doing…

Yeah, long time no entry but sharing a family PC to go online sucks. I’ve had a pretty uneventful week after my graduation. Did not go on vacation 🙁 but there was a federal holiday and even though almost all my friends here were busy with things like family visits, homoeopathic sessions and renovating my friend Jens took pity on me and spent the day with me in Hanover. First I got to see his apartment for the first time (he’s lived there for ages and has complained that no one ever visited him there). Then we attempted to go swimming but the pool was closed. Then we drove by the Octoberfest there but decided to have some ice-cream in the city center. So we did that, and boy was that ice-cream good! (Giovanni something at the Kröpke) Afterwards we attempted to stroll around the Herrenhäuser Gärten but they were still charging you to get in and so we finally decided to drive to the Steinhuder Meer, which is a big lake somewhere there. Very touristy and crowded but we took a look at everything before we drove back to Hanover. Had some tea at his place and then another stroll towards the city center to eat sushi. Yay! The food was fine but a highlight was definitely the door to the kitchen that was super narrow and only about 1.20m high so the poor waiters always had to crouch waaaay low. Afterwards we watched Lords of War, which was really good and then I finally drove home. So yeah, I don’t do much but when I do something, I sometimes do a lot of things.

The weekend was good, too. Went out to the pubs and then dancing on Friday with my dear friends and that was loads of fun. Wanna know our running gag: “In theory I have a job…” Saturday I felt really tired as I had had a night from hell (not from drinking… my stomach felt like it was full with Ahoi fizzy powder) and Sunday I felt really sick with throat ache out of no where and a runny nose (which I both still have – yay…). Went into town yesterday to run some errands and today I took a few trains (like 6) to go to the German branch of my theoretical company and looked around there.
Thursday another trip to Frankfurt for that logic test with P&G and I hope the S-Bahn is still working then as they plan on striking again (bloody eejits) and then I get to help my friend Michaellyn move into her new apartment and paint with her so I’ll stay in Frankfurt until maybe Sunday.
Das geschäftige Leben einer Erwerbslosen…. (the busy life of an unemployed)
Cheers!

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Potatoland

Having lived with my Italian roommate for three weeks, I learned that Italians eat loads of pasta with (almost) every meal. Well, having lived with my family again for 5 days, I realized that Germans eat loads of potatos. I can’t see them anymore! Enough already. Let’s see, Thursday we had potatos and veggies, Friday I had to cook potatos and steak strips, Saturday I actually had to go to our field and help pick potatos from the soil (oh jolly farm life…), Sunday we had potatoes, cabbage and chicken curry, and today I had to make fried potatos for lunch (which was breakfast for me due to my still messed up internal clock). Enough!!!

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