(Click on underlined part to read, I’m not sure what’s wrong with the formatting) I got to Germany last week Wednesday, so I have officially completed my first week here. My dad flew back home today, he was here to help me with MANY bureaucratic errands (Germany is the land of that stuff) and also see his parents and best friend. I never knew how many things you have to buy when you move… somehow the thought never crossed my mind that I would have to buy a trash can lol, amongst other things such as a laundry basket, towels, and scissors! Never would I have ever thought I would need to pack scissors for Germany. I am lucky enough that my apartment is furnished (I actually thank god everyday for that, I cannot imagine having to buy my own furniture AND haul it up the FOUR flights of stairs to my apartment, no elevator very European haha). I live with two other girls in my apartment, Izzy, who is from the UK, and Diana who is from Ukraine, both very nice and we are already friends. 🙂 Diana is actually unexpectedly moving out at the end of the month because she got a new job, so Izzy and I get to search for a new roommate. Picking are truly slim, so far we have had TWO men apply for our women only apartment (it is very clearly stated that this is a women only apartment in the title of the listing so this is actually quite funny, especially because one of them is 34). We also had a 27 year old woman apply, who happens to be married. So needless to say, we are not going with either of those options. Living in a new country REALLY makes you not care about some things, like I bought some weird face towels where they actually aren’t a towel, they are like a case for the towel? I’m not sure I really couldn’t tell you what it is but I am just rolling with it. I dropped my dad off at the airport today and on the train ride home I was understandably a little emotional and crying on the train, and I had the ticket checker come up to me and go “ticket please” (of course all in German, this is very typical in Germany to check often for your tickets) and it was honestly a hilarious interaction.
A cultural difference that I have been adapting too is the frequency of grocery shopping here, and I have certainly been enjoying the low cost of things here! Some examples include oat milk for 0,90 euros so 1.15 dollars, yogurt for about a dollar, and pasta for also about a dollar. Of course there are more expensive options, but I am not shopping at the special discount markets even, just the normal grocery shops. As many of you know I am sure, Europe is the land of schlepping, especially Germany. I am grateful to have a Kaufland a 4 minute walk from me (think half the size of Costco selling things not in bulk, similar to a King Soopers) where things can be quite cheap. But even though I am not far away from the grocery store, let me tell you carrying two heavy bags of groceries up 4 flights of stairs is no fun, I’m hoping to gain some arm muscle from this. Things are also quite small here compared to the US, which is the land of everything ginormous, such as the fridge, washer, etc. I really miss the dryer. My socks were crunchy after the first wash and I was introduced to fabric softener, and now I can live crunchy sock free.
My plans are half ambitious and half make it through the day. I have not been doing too much besides spending time with my dad when he was here, and running necessary errands, but I will start looking for jobs soon because I have to wait for something to be sent to me in the mail from the government for me to be able to work. Cooking for one is no fun let me tell you. I’m used to my little brothers being vacuum machines and eating everything in sight, especially when I have leftovers. Making pasta for one is honestly just sad, and confusing because it is actually quite hard to gauge how much pasta I should cook. While I do enjoy being able to pick out things I like at the store, the sucky part comes when you buy something and don’t like it, and now you are stuck with it. I tried this granola that is surprisingly quite bad, that I will just have to drown in honey to not let it go to waste. But really all in all I am doing well, and I will continue to update since there is quite a bit going on! (I attached some photos as well)
Clara
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