I had been in communication with a man on the Toytown Germany forum about renting an apartment here. He suggested I use the Filderstadt newspaper and a few other magazines that he gets free. Well, we don't get those magazines or the newspaper nor would I even know what they look like!
Since he's a stay-at-home Dad (for now, anyways), he suggested we meet in the square and he would give them to me. He was going to recycle them anyways, so why not recycle them my way! I did some company work before I left for our meeting.
I knew I needed to get to the bakery before it closed so I was out the door by 11:45 and was hoping the bakery would be open when I got there. Thankfully, it was! I bought a loaf of the wonderful bread that I bought last week. It's SO good when it's fresh. They have tons of different types of bread, but I can't seem to get past this one kind. I know I have to try some other ones but I don't want to buy a loaf of bread and then not like it...but somehow, I don't think that will happen! I also bought a "Bretzel" (Preztel) like the kind you get at the Mall...only better, MUCH better! They also had an array of different items for Easter. As soon as I get more Euros (Ted has to go get some from the bank at the base), I'll get something special for Easter Sunday.
With my purchases in hand, I decided to walk a little further and get a Hazelnut Ice Cream Cone from the Venezia Cafe. I only got one scoop just in case my husband wanted to go this evening after dinner. When I calculated the exchange rate, the cone was 90 cents!! In California we were paying $2 per scoop and it wasn't NEARLY as good!
I had a short conversation with the Gelato lady. I asked her how long she had lived in Bonlanden. She said she'd been there ove 30 years! I asked why she came here and she said there was no work in her town in Italy so they came here. She also said there was work there now. I wondered to myself why she wouldn't move her family back to her homeland but I refrained from asking because I didn't want to offend her.
I still had an hour to wait so luckily I brought my "Exodus II" book with me to read. After my ice cream cone was gone, I looked for a place to sit. It was a terrific sunny day so I found a nice bench to the side of the fountain (which doesn't have any water in it, unfortunately) I was sitting on the side where the lady is walking.
With the sun to my back, I began to read. This is probably the third time I've read this book and I never get tired of reading it. I have a wonderful story that goes along with how I came to be in possession of this terrific book. It was written in the 80's about prophecy that has since come true and was written by Steven Lightle.
At 12:50, I put my book away and went in search of my new friend, Dustin. I knew I would know him because he would be pushing a baby carriage. We had agreed to meet in front of the Jewelers. The Jewelers was about 200 feet from where I was sitting so I got there in less than five minutes. (I was thankful it was down hill!) So I window shopped while waiting for him. Lovely pieces but nothing I couldn't live without.
So I see a man pushing a stroller and he's waving. I found out his family (his wife, daughter and himself) have been here for six months and that there are other Americans living in this general area. His wife works for the government and he's a geologist. How funny is that? That I would meet someone with that background. I explained to him that I'd been working for an Environmental Public Relations firm in California and have continued to work for them long distance from our apartment here in Germany.
He also suggested I contact base housing at the base where his wife works as it's a smaller base and he said they are more apt to be of service since they are not overrun with requests.
We chatted for some time and then he walked me towards my apartment. We parted ways at the street that I have to turn to go to the apartment. By the time I got to the "dreaded" stairs, I was parched. I opened every window in the apartment and seriously thought I would open the suitcase with my summer clothes and put shorts on. But I nixed the idea because I thought perhaps I might jinx the good weather.
There was not much to do except some company work and look at the magazines. I could get some things prepared for dinner like the salad. We were having my husband's favorite...Bertoli (from the freezer department). Although I'm 100 percent Italian, and I'm picky about my Italian food, there are three Bertoli meals that we both like. Besides, this is a quick and easy way for us to eat Italian and it's proportioned perfectly for two. Not bad at all.
It's after 6pm and Ted's not here yet. We have a phone in the apartment but it's only for incoming calls. Ted calls me on that line when he's coming home. It has such a curious ring to it that it startles me every time it rings! He called to tell me there was an accident on the B27 (freeway from Ted's job) and that traffic was backed up. He indicated he wanted to find an alternate surface street route for situations like this but thought he may not need to because the Germans are so orderly even when there's an accident.
Case in point: on Saturday on the Autobahn there was an accident which backed up traffic. We thought we would be there for hours (like it happens so often in California) but interestingly there was only one jackass who jockeyed to the front of the line. He probably was not even German! Anyways, our wait was minimal because of the orderly way the Germans do things.
My husband absolutely LOVES driving here in Germany. He says it is so pleasant to drive even though we have a big car (by German standards). I haven't had the pleasure of driving yet, but I will...soon!
And another thing...why do Americans think the Germans are cold? They are not! Even in a small village such as this one, the people are kind and helpful. If they know English they will make an effort to communicate with you. American films have portrayed the Germans as cold and calculating and it's wrong! I know, from past experience, that there are Americans who are arrogant and go to a foreign country and expect the native people to be sub-servient. I don't agree with that. I think one has to have respect for the country one is in and abide by their cultural rules.
I wanted to make Iced Tea for dinner tonight but I didn't have a pitcher to put it in so it's going into a pan! UGH! I'll have to put that on the list to get at the BX/PX knowing full well, I'll have pitchers when my "stuff" comes from the States.
We also only have one very small ice cube tray. So it's back to doing things the old-fashioned way (before automatic ice makers): making ice and putting it into plastic bags!
I'm sitting here looking at the full moon and the clouds surrounding it through the skylight above my desk. I'm wondering if it's cold out now that it's rained. I'll have to check on the balcony when I finish this post.
Then it's off to bed with me. I hope to go sit at the square to read again. It's so pleasant because I can people watch, read and have walked. I also need to program my pedometer so I can measure just how much I am walking!
Until tomorrow...Auf Wiedersehen!
No comments:
Post a Comment