Look for the Good: 01.10

It snowed here. Again. Now, don't get me wrong - I love the snow. BUT I do not enjoy the cold that comes with it and the slipping and sliding that is then inevitable when walking around or biking around. Both activities are very dangerous currently. Which means I took the S-bahn and U-bahn for the first time since moving here. It really amazes me how complex a system is underground with all these giant buildings on top! Or the underground garages?! I mean, this city is pretty old aka the underground is pretty old aka how do they do it?! It's crazy.

So I had a low the other day while I was trying to figure out what I want to do in my life. Or just in the next year. I know I want to stay in Frankfurt and thankfully I live with a great family that would love me to stay another year and is therefore helping me out on making that happen! I'm torn between studying and getting a job/internship although I believe the latter is more important really in the whole big picture scheme. I have quite a nice excel sheet listing jobs that interest me. Now the only problem is that this list ranges from bartending (in Ireland preferably!) to being a teacher to getting a masters in international cultures/finance to being an accountant. Kind of a range. So then I have the "established" and "successful" peoples telling me to take the more "accredited" path aka getting into the financial world. I think I want to intern in the financial world but then again I think I would also be happy doing something completely different. Hence my problem: deciding what to do. SO STRESSFUL. Of course, as Kayleen says, there is always my baking school. :) So I might run around the corner to the guy who owns many bakeries around town and chat him up! Bah. In the mean time I'm going to become more fluent in German. I'm still in the 5 days a week class but next term I'm jumping back into 3 days a week AND I get to skip the next class which means that I will be in the 9th class and then after that the 10th class and then I take the test that, if I pass, means I can take classes at the University. Woot!

I want to go to Australia. Or back to Florida?! I'm having beach withdrawals. Italy in May. Or Amsterdam. . .

Berlin Highlights:

We were in Berlin for a week. The kids and I left on the Sunday before xmas and the parents got there on Wednesday. Berlin was covered in snow when we first got into town but that turned into dangerous ice two days later. I thankfully did not fall on my butt once. I wandered the city on Monday and saw all the main sites - last time I was in Berlin was 5 years ago with friends Regina and Julia before heading to Sweden! Not much has changed since last time but it was fun wandering the city and enjoying the xmas festivities. The kids and I and Anki (the grandma) went to a museum on Tuesday and then the kids and I walked over to the main train station and had fun getting lost around it. For xmas Phillip's brother Moritz, his wife Judith, and their daughter Lilly came over. I got some pretty neat gifts including a few bath items in my favorite smell from The Body Shop, a cute sweater from Anki, the book The Tender Bar, two shirts (one featuring a giant heart saying something about being a great aupair:) ), and chocolate! Side note on The Tender Bar - Granny and Poppop's Rabi mentioned this book in a lecture he gave and I've had it on my list of books to read. Well. A friend of Anki's was at her house the first two days the kids and I were there and I had talked to her about the book (as well as about the amazingness of Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle!) and on Christmas Day I open a present from her and it is the book The Tender Bar! Can you believe that?! How thoughtful of her! I was and am so touched. I finished the book five days ago and I must say it is hilarious and ya'll should read it. It's about a boy pretty much growing up in a bar. Not the type of book you would expect a Rabi to recommend but nevertheless. . . It inspired me to listen to Sinatra and read The Catcher in the Rye since these were two favorite things of the author. Let the musical education begin!

Amy got in at 10AM on the 27th and after about an hour of searching for one of her bags she found it on another luggage rack. So dumb. But we got out of there, back to the house, unpacked and repacked her bags and then headed to Katie's to drop off our bags, dropped the car back off at the house and then walked to Katie's before walking to the train station to catch our train at 2PM. Sheesh! It was only a little stressful. But in the middle of that I got a super SWEET and AMAZING jacket from some of my bestest friends in the whole wide world. Kayleen, Jennifer, Mallory, Hilary, and Landers got me this awesome winter jacket that I so needed for the following two weeks. It is so sweet. And Mal made me a scarf and Landers made me a hat, and Kayleen got me earrings, and Jenn got me a scarf and chocolate. I might have mixed up some of the gifts but basically I got a super duper amazing fabulous xmas package from my loves. I love you guys!!!!!!! Amy brought me some essentials too, especially herself. :)

Prague Highlights:

Prague was so much fun. Our group included me (dropbear), amy (drama), Katie (Charlie), johanna (mom), Alex (kaiser), Stefan (rock), Susi (roll), Maria (5%), Ben (), Anthony (Bummel), Louis (Von Schnodel), and Bini (Knife and fork). We were quite a rambunctious crew with the boys being loud and drunk for most of the trip (amy did not appreciate this). They bought fireworks (or what they like to call bombs) and Bini burnt his hands because he held the fireworks in his hands as they went off. Ben through them out our hostel window where they landed a little too close to cars.

Day One (night one)

Katie, Amy, and I made it into Prague safe and sound but then had a bit of trouble finding our hostel. We had to take three trains to our hostel and we didn't realize that the currency was different in Prague. So after changing in some Euros (1Euro = 25 Cronons???) we just bought a random ticket which we didn't know what it actually was for and then jumped on what we hoped to be the correct train. Thankfully it was. After speaking to a nice guy on the phone with a french accent (turned out to be Anthony, silly anthony) we got off on the right stop and now just had to find our way "across the train tracks." We crossed the train tracks and wandered back and forth on this one street and at one point I could have sworn I heard Anthony yelling my name (and he was). Some police were coming down the street so we asked them if they could help us find our hostel - they were not helpful AT all. In fact they were kind of mean. We were "stupid Americans" after all. Well we finally figured out that there was a bridge crossing over a bunch more train tracks and that was actually the one that we needed. Anthony met us on the bridge (big hugs!!!!) and led us to the hostel which was like 3 minutes away. Oh how I missed my Anfernizzle from Brizzle. For those who don't know I met Anthony in Australia when I studied there - he might have been in a class with Kristin and he might have dated one of the loves of my life Megan for just a wee bit. (Steph - "uhh I think you left something behind" MWAHAHAHAHA) ;) ANYWHO. After unloading at the hostel we all went out and wandered the streets but lets just stay no one really wanted to let in a rambunctious crowd of 12 so we ended up just walking around the city and seeing the beautiful buildings and catching up with each other.

Day Two
Wander the city, taking pictures of everything, seeing the sights. Eating yummy food.
(night two)

Somehow Anthony, Louis, Katie and I got separated from the group while taking pictures up at the giant Castle (largest in Europe or the world). We had a lot of fun though - went to two different dance clubs. Creep hits on me - I run away, he moves on to Katie and she dances a bit with him and then he tried to grab her hands and she keeps dancing while shaking her hands and saying "no touching!" so so so funny. Then the other club was so smokey I could hardly breathe but Anthony helped me work on my thecno dancing techniques. Needless to say I fail. Katie and I left after enjoying the four guys wandering around with no shirts on that were slightly sketchy. We walk around for 40min in the freezing cold before deciding to get a cab. We got back at 4AM and I jumped in the disgusting dirty shower (forgot the rule about bringing flip flops - sick.) to warm up. So cold.
Day Three
Katie and I head into the city, see the sights. I send her off to try and catch the others who are meeting at the astronomical clock at 3PM and somehow she miraculously makes it back to the restaurant we were out with the whole gang. Thank goodness since who knows what would have happened if she didn't since she had no phone and no map. Gracious me Katie.
(night three)

It SNOWED!!!! Wild snow fight between everyone but somehow Amy, Susi, and Stefan snuck off in the middle of it to head back to the hostel. I get snow all over my face (thanks Louis and Bini) but I get my revenge. So much fun. When we got back to the hostel my plan was to crash but then I ended up crying laughing in my bed until about 3AM as Ben serenaded us with "Wictim of Love" and other sayings. Too much fun. Ben is so funny. He just makes you laugh constantly. He enjoys throwing firework bombs out of the hostel window. At least he didn't get burns on his hands from fireworks like Bini did! Painful. And then Bini decided to jump on Maria and he fell funny and had a horrible limp the rest of the trip. Bad job.

Day Four
- Packed up and left the hostel at 8AM to catch our train back to Eichstaaaaatt. We couldn't find our train and for a minute I saw Johanna running in front of me and I thought everyone else was behind me but in the next moment I'm alone at the train station in Prague with no clue where anyone is. I try and ask the Police people there how I get to the train to Munich. They were not very helpful. Strike two on the Prague police.

Sick in Eichstätt for a couple days completely exhausted from lack of sleep in Prague but SO happy to be back in my German family's house. I love my Schödels. And it was a lot of fun having Anthony and Louis there too. They are pretty awesome. We had fun shaving all three of the boys hairs. I don't even know why this was decided but next thing you know we are all in the basement taking turns shaving the guys heads. Hilarious. Even Esther got in there and shaved the boys! Now if only they would shave their beards - Anthony just shouldn't have a beard. lol. Love you!

The travelling aussies headed out New Years morning for a wild party in Dusseldorf and Maria and I stayed in as we were sick babes. Amy went out with some of Maria's friends and didn't get home till noon till the next day - I was shocked! Maria, Esther and I went outside at midnight with Momma and Pappa to watch the fireworks, light our new years hot air balloon (a tradition for them, I guess it is actually something they do in China??) and do a few of our own fireworks. This pic is of Hanni and Momma Schödel. Love them.

Thankfully I got better in time for the Skiing trip in the Alps. Maria didn't come because she was still sick and she had a lot of homework to catch up on. Sad day. Amy and I had fun doing some down-hill skiing with Momma Schödel with Papa Schödel as our teacher. On the second day I braved the red slopes and Esther, Alex (johanna's boyfriend), and Johanna were excellent patient teachers. My hips were very bruised from falling a lot. Oops! But it was a lot of fun. Next time I will take a real course though. I'll be skiing in the Alps again in March with the Frankfurt fam! In the evenings we enjoyed yummy food and then had fun playing games including one card game called Rage that is a lot of fun. Amy is in the right hand side of this pic right before she fell and busted her knee. Oops. The one time she falls she kills her knee. Very frustrating for her. But she was an excellent skier for her two days of experience! I was very proud. The third day we wandered around Langgries at a very slow pace. She'll be going to the doctor on Monday. Uh oh.

Back in Eichstätt Amy, Maria, and I went to the Streller's. I hadn't been to their house since I went home from school with Sabine five years ago. Maria left us after enjoying some amazing cappuccino's and plum cake. Then Amy, Anna, her boyfriend Patrick, and I went and visited Sabine's grave. She has such a beautiful grave stone with sunflowers on it. Tears. Then back at the house we played some monopoly (Amy won of course) before heading back to Walting to the Schödel's.

Now I am back in Frankfurt. Missing my wonderful German family - Momma and Pappa Schödel, Johanna, Benjamin, Maria, and Esther. I can't believe I was away from them for 5 years! Well not all of them, but still. The kids get back tomorrow morning with their parents from Thailand and then school on Monday! I woke up this morning to two inches of snow at least and it was so beautiful. I watched some movies, did some grocery shopping (it is VERY difficult to bike in the snow) and did some laundry and got settled in. Many details are missing but as they come back to my memory I shall update ya'll. Miss and love.

Look for the Good

31.1.10

So Many Decisions. Ok just one.

26.1.10

Give me the Sun!

20.1.10

4 1/2 months already gone. AH!

11.1.10

Getting older. Ah!

9.1.10

I am alive I promise.