Things I Do in Germany That I Never Did in the USA

Trash and Recycling:
There are so many things that are different here in Germany.  When I was younger and living in New Zealand, there were a lot of differences and I loved seeing the differences.  Perhaps I had more support (missionaries always have a partner to work with - most of my co-missionaries were from Australia or New Zealand), or maybe I was just young and ready to go with the flow.  I still go with the flow, but I'm a little confused about the flow and which way it's going.  The first confusion I had was the trash.  You think - how can trash be confusing.  Well... let me tell you!  Okay, too confusing, so let me show you:

In theory, you have 4 trash containers.  A trash trash bin, an organic waste (any scraps of food, peelings, meat bones, you can see the list.  (Sorry it's not so clear - blame my selfie phone again.), a blue paper bin - the trash bags MUST be blue, and the yellow packaging bag - the trash bags MUST be yellow.  I have this in my kitchen as a cheat sheet where things go.  I have no blue trash bag or trash can, so I have to walk all my paper, cardboard,.... to the paper recycling containers that are at various points all over the city.  This does not even mention glass - which is next to the paper bins.  This does not come every week at the same time.  

Here is the second page:

I also got a calendar showing which zone I was in and when to have the bags ready for pickup.  It's once every 2 weeks.  I started putting my organic waste into the freezer so it didn't bring flies or stinkiness to my apartment.

I do WHAT with my bottles? 

So obviously Germany is serious about it's recycling.  So, in Germany, you pay extra for bottled drinks.  So, you take them back to where you bought them so you can get money back.  Yes, you TAKE THEM BACK WHERE YOU BOUGHT THEM!  There is an exception.  If there is another place that has the same type of bottled water, fanta, random drink, you can take them there.  So, let's say you are walking down the street and say, "Wow, I'm parched" and decide to buy a bottled water, you will have to pray that other places take the same bottle.  They actually have machines in grocery stores for returning bottles.  It's electronic and reads the label on the bottle (I have to break myself of the habit of taking the labels off) and you get a receipt to take the cashier for the credit.  Luckily, I have a drink place next to my house.  It does sell beer and wine, but it also sells orange juice, apple juice, water, fanta, and almost every drink imaginable.   I took my bottles back there and surprisingly they took all the bottles I had!  Woo hoo!  In theory, it would be great if I just had my own water bottle I can re-use, but I have yet to buy one or remember to refill my old one.  One day, I'll be a pro at this bottle thing..... (Trick if the hassle isn't worth the money - you can put the used bottle in the waste cans in the middle of the city and homeless people or cheap people will go through and pick them up to turn them in.  Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.  Meanwhile, I'm collecting bottles in my house until I decide to go buy more drinks.)

Open Your Window!!!

I heard a rumor that in Germany you must open your window at least once a day for several minutes during the winter.  It's actually in my apartment contract.  "All rooms have to be cleaned and aired out regularly."  Supposedly if you don't do this, mold could start forming on the walls.  My plan is to do it when I shower.  I'll open them, jump in the shower with really hot water, jump out, close the window and turn up the heat!  We'll see how I survive this....  I am very cold nurtured.

Things I Have in the States that I Don't Have in Germany:

1.  A car - by choice - I don't really need one.  The bus and train system are great and I am getting a bike from a member of my church.

2.  A dryer & dishwasher - I miss these most of all.  I have to iron all my pants and I think that's tragic!  People have given me hints and things to do, but none of them have worked so far.  :(

3.  My fleece blanket.  I miss it so bad! I need to buy one, but I don't know where to get it.  I'm thinking Amazon.  Everyone in Europe have duvets which are nice for normal temperatured people.  I'm a cold person and I need my snuggly blanket - I had to kick it out when I didn't have room in my suitcase.  :'(  So tragic!

Things I Have in Germany that I won't in the States:

1. Bakeries on every corner with super fresh bread and amazing pastries. YUM!

2. Beautiful historical cities that are walking distance. I get to walk beside a gorgeous river almost every day. It's just breathtaking.

3. Buses and trains are clean and safe. I can take a train or plane for a pretty reasonable price and be in a different country where they speak a different language and have a completely different culture.

4. Outside time. Any excuse to be outside and Germans are there! If it's cold? No problem, we'll provide a blanket for you. By the way, the indoor places during cold weather are extremely hot. (okay, now it is coldish, not really cold, but I still sweat indoors.) Hot enough to make you wish you had warn your bathing suit under your clothes.

5. Games - there are so many new games that I have never heard of! I played something called Camel up at game night and it was amazing!

6. Groups - If I wanted to, I could join a group, a class, a get together, a meet-up and be busy every night of the week. I'm currently in a English group (so Germans can practice English), a Game Group (so Germans can practice their English), and I'm contemplating seriously about taking a flamenco dance class.

There are no checks in Germany/Stuttgart & a Free Bike, Shopping.

Rent is Late.
I asked a friend at work about how to pay rent, and they said that it was automatically taken out of the bank account.  So, when I went to the ATM to check my balance and on around the 8th of September and I was surprised they hadn't taken out the money from my checking account yet.  Later that day, I got a not so nice e-mail about my rent being late.  No one told me that I had to go to the bank and set up an online bank account and get an automatic transfer to the rent company.  When I went to the bank I asked about checks.  They said that no one uses checks except for big businesses.  The bank only sees 1 or 2 checks per day.  It seems that everything - paying for all bills like cell phone service, rent, insurance, and even school lunches - are paid through a bank transfer.  So, I went to the bank where they speak English thank heaven and set up my online banking, an automatic draft to pay rent, and a transfer to pay rent the next day.  I am getting all these official letters, some of them with dollar amounts and I have no idea what it is or what they are saying.  I take them to school and have someone translate for me!  Thank heaven I have people who speak German!  Hopefully I'm not late with other bills and hopefully I can read the screen for my online banking!! Wish me luck!!!

Stuttgart and a Free Bike
Today instead of having regular church in Ulm, several congregations (called a stake) met in Stuttgart to have a stake conference.  I was debating on going because it is an 1 1/2 hour train ride, but I talked to my friend Bianca about it and we decided to go together because it would cost 1/2 the price if we were together.  She was also willing to stay after and show me around the town.  As I was waiting for Bianca while she talked with her friends from the stake (she is moving in 3 weeks), I saw some people from my congregation (called a ward) and they spoke English, so I started to talk with them.  I told them that I was going to buy a bike tomorrow probably.  They said, "We have his bike in our cellar.  I am sure you can use it."  So, I asked the bike's owner if I could use it.  He said, "I have a bike in your cellar?  Really?  Wow.  Yes, you can use it.  I didn't even know I had it!"  So, I have a free bike.  They said it probably needs fixing up a little since it has been in there for a long time, but it is mine and it would be cheaper than buying one.  So, I got blessings for going to church!  Also, I got to meet a few people from the Stuttgart International Ward.  It has about 200 people attending and they all speak English!  I am thinking about going there a few times just to meet people!

Touring around Stuttgart
It is Sunday, so no stores were open, not that I would go shopping anyway, but we walked around and saw this beautiful plaza in the middle of downtown with great music playing.  There were fountains everywhere and some great buildings with fun architecture.

 I love fountains.  There were all types of interesting and beautiful fountains all over Stuttgart.  I look forward to going back and discovering even more!

This little courtyard had several museums attached to it.
They all looked interesting and I think
I'll go back another weekend to take a look inside.

I love these clocks they have everywhere.  If you are late in Germany there must be something wrong.  Not only are they extremely visible, they also chime every 15 minutes.

My super cute and fun friend Bianca who was nice enough to join my on my excursion!

A map of Stuttgart and all the fun places to see.

This was a palace where royalty lived.

Stuttgart's main square has several very cool fountains.

The best part about today was hanging out with someone and chatting about life.  It's too bad she is moving soon, but I'm looking forward to visiting her in Dresden.  (Woo hoo!  Another place to visit!)

















I Hate Shopping
If you know me well at all, you will know that I hate shopping.  I once gave my roommate a credit card and said, I need a dress, please go buy it for me.  I have a gay friend that works with me at school, he said that he knew where some second hand shops are in Ulm.  I figured if anyone could help me with shopping, it would be him.  He dresses really well.  So, on Monday he took me to one.  I tried several things on, but nothing fit me - it was all too small.  I decided that if everything was too small there, I would go to a big girls shop and there, everything was too big.  UGH!  Luckily my friend told me where to go (She used to live in Germany).  So on Tuesday, I went shopping again, I found things that fit me!  Woo hoo what a relief, I won't freeze during the winter!  The weather had been pretty chilly for a few days and then luckily it warmed up for the weekend.  On Friday, I went to the beer garden with a lot of teachers from school and they mentioned they were going to go dirndl shopping.  Dirndls are the traditional German dress.  They invited me to go along and I said no because I already tortured myself twice already during the week.  Friday night a friend and I were chatting on WhatApp and said it sounded like fun, so I messaged them and said that I would like to join them.  At first nothing fit, then I finally discovered the correct size and wala!  It not only fit, it looked good!  So, now I want to wear nothing but the dirndl every day so I can look cute!  Where I am, I see people wearing them on a regular basis, but I think I'll stick with special occasions.  It also looks a little like Jane Austen age, so we may have a dirndl/Jane Austen party just so we can wear them!  Lol!

 The one on the left is the traditional dirndl, the one on the right is me trying to make it a Jane Austen dress (minus the apron).

The one on the bottom is one I tried on, but I didn't keep.

Hanging out with an Australian and Austrian.

How do an Australian, Austrian, and 

American Know Each Other?

Last year, I went to Germany and did an English immersion company called Diverbo - in Germany it's called Englisch Hausen (In Spain they call it Pueblo Ingles).  The Austrian who lives in Germany was also there and we became friends.  I was actually with her in June also and she took me to Austria.  She did another Englisch Hausen recently and met the Australian there.  She took us both around to Roth and Regensburg.  She has been so kind and generous with her time!  She is an amazing person!

Rock Concert, Roth, and Regensburg

This was the most interesting concert I have ever been to.  A guy in a small small village has a barn.  Several years ago, he invited a few of his friends to come and play music for fun.  That grew into an annual event that includes about 300 people and a cover band.  It is absolutely free and there are venders (or friends) who are serving drinks and food that is for sale. (Bratwurst and beer mostly - this is Germany.  I had an apple juice and water.) There is even a portable bathroom (not an outhouse) with several stalls!  It was cold and a little drizzly, so they had a bonfire going and tents up so people wouldn't get wet or cold.

Most of the people there were either from the village, knew someone in the band, or heard about it from word of mouth.  My friend knew several people there because her ex-husband had worked in the same village.  Several people knew how to speak English and they were very friendly.  One girl I met was determined to find me someone to talk with, so she kept dragging her friends over to meet me.  It was really funny.  They would say, "How can I help you?"  I would say, "She wants me to meet people who speak English!"  Then we would chat for a few minutes - I was mostly there because it was close to the fire.  :)  I went into the actual barn where the band was playing just a few times.  Once because my friend told me to join me on the stairs so I could see better.  (It was the first time I realized how extremely tall Germans were.  I would say 75% of the men there were over 6 feet tall.)  Anyway, when I got to the stairs where she was, there was really no place to sit, so a man who was over 75 years old offered his lap.  Lol.  I said, "Nein" and stood.  

This is Purple Mania - A cover band for Purple something or other.

My Australian friend made this amazing salad.  She called it an Australian salad.  :)

An American, Austrian, and Australian.  These ladies were so much fun!!!  This pictures is of Regensberg. It is a cute town on the Danube River.  It has beautiful old colorful buildings and great architecture.  It is a World Heritage Sight.

Roth

The following pictures were taken when me and the Australian went for a walk in Roth.  In both places, we saw an opening in a wall or gate and went in to see what was there.  The first pictures were an amazing garden with all types of flowers blooming full force.  The last 2 pictures were inside the courtyard.  It has a little turret on the outside, so we just went around the corner to see what it was protecting. We weren't disappointed with a fountain, a beautiful clock and great artistic facades.

Nuremberg: Who is to blame?

Nuremberg:  A place of castles, cathedrals, and a long history.

All these pictures were taken with my cell phone using the selfie method because the SIM card messed up my regular picture taking ability on my phone.  So, sorry if they are a little sideways or cut off.

I almost didn't see this!  You have to look over the bridge to see this view.  I love the arches to make way for the water.

I love this saying.  Although it is sad and tragic, I think it's a metaphor for when anything horrible happens in our life.  This cathedral - one of the smaller ones - has pictures of right before the bombing of Nuremberg with Nazi flag after Nazi flag to the finish of the rebuilding of the cathedral.  There are sayings like this that accompany each of the pictures.  It is moving to say the least and had me wondering who was to blame.  I am going to chalk it up to the casualties of war with my American brain saying that it had to be done, Hitler had to be stopped and this was how it was done.  There was no alternative.

  

Walking down a cute colorful street on the way to the cathedral.

 The following pictures are from either the top of the 

castle tower or the surrounding area.

This shows the destruction of Nuremberg from the bombings of World War 2.  Most of the buildings are completely destroyed and all seem to have at least some damage.  These pictures were all around the top of the tower.  So you would see the before picture, the after picture, and look out the window to see the city as it is now.   I liked the pictures in the cathedral a little bit better because to me, this shows the destruction only.  It didn't show the row after row of Nazi flags like the cathedral did.  To me the castle talked about the destruction rather than the consequences of following an evil dictator.  

This is a model of a well that was found inside the castle walls.  It is so deep that it took about 5 seconds for us to hear the splash of water that the guide poured in.  Sorry I don't have a picture of the well, but you can't see down it at all because it is so dark.

I climbed to the top of this tower!  It has great views!

This was breakfast - It was very yummy and not cheesecake at all.  The "plain" one actually had a nutty mixture in the middle.  I love German bakeries!  YUM! 

New Friends and Places to Go - Woo hoo!

I Made New Friends!
These are my new friends Bianca and Corina.  They are from church and about 20 years younger than I am.  They are super cute and fun girls.  This is Corina's house and I love the ceiling!  Such cool architecture in her apartment and building.  I tried to capture it, but it's almost impossible!  Ugh!  I got to visit them on Tuesday - Bianca invited me over when I told her I was lonely!  :)  So cute!

This maybe capture a little bit of the charm, if you look closely!  Anyway, trust me, it was cute and very German!

I Made Dinner!

So, if you know me, I'm not that big on cooking.  I asked my friend Karma how I can help her since she is going through a hard time.  She is also from church and works at the same school I do.  She asked if I liked to cook and I said I didn't but I would do it anyway.  She said she didn't like to cook either!  HA!  So, I cooked and it actually turned out better than I thought it would!  Thank heaven for the internet, great recipes, and a bit of luck!  I got to visit her and her family at her beautiful house on Thursday.

School - Good and Not so Good.

People at school are super nice!  One guy offered to show me where the 2nd hand store was!  I realized that I didn't pack as many clothes as I thought I did (I am not sure if I had that many in the first place).   

Today (Friday), I went to have "drinks" after the school meeting today.  Drinks for me consists of fruity drinks like Fanta.  I did discover though that there is a multitude of fruity drinks here.  Today, I'm not sure, but I think I had rhubarb and apple drink.  It was great just to socialize for a couple of hours with other people!

Not so good?  Well.... one of the girls in my technology class said, "Ms. Trent are we going to learn anything in this class? (We had already done 3 different projects on Digital Citizenship.  Animoto, Voki, and Tagxedo)  Last year's teacher made us take notes.  Are we going to have tests in this class?"  This was one of my favorite classes and I hated that she didn't think she was learning anything.  So, I told my friend Karma while I was cooking dinner about this experience and she said that I should give them a test and tell everyone that it was her idea.  So, today, they walked into class, I said, So... somebody said they weren't learning anything, here is a test, let's see if that is true.  The girl that made the comment asked if it would count and I said, you bet it will.  Let's just say, I had a very quiet class today.  At the bottom of another girl's test she said, "I have enjoyed your class and I have learned a lot!"  Things teachers have to do at the beginning of the year to set a line through the sand!  UGH!  I had so much fun with that class!  I hope it can still be fun!

Weather in Ulm

So far:  Week 1:  HOT!!!!  Week 2:  Fall weather, had to wear a jacket in the mornings  Week 3: Warm, with a HOT weekend.  Next week:  Fall weather again.  It's kind of odd that the weather stays consistent for several days.  NC weather tends to have mood swings.  If it rains here, it rains for a few days.  At least this is my observation from a newbie who doesn't know better.  :)

Teaching in Germany

So, this was my first week of working with the whole staff and my first week of teaching middle/high school students.  The staff is great and I've been fixing their problems left and right, so I think they like me!  Ha!  I'm actually lucky, because I'm the technology person, I get to know everyone very quickly and they all know me.  I think I'm helpful and friendly, so it's great.  There are 2 people who work in the office - Doris and Martina that are especially friendly and I have a lot of interaction with them asking for keys to this and copies of that.  Luckily, they haven't gotten tired of my visits - yet!

Wednesday was the first day that the students were here, but I don't teach on Wednesdays.  So, it was a nice easy transition and I got time to plan (thank heaven).  On Thursday I did my first teaching and I found that I only had 4 or 5 students in each of the 3 classes I taught and I could be relaxed and easy going.  I had 2 of the students that were "hyperactive" and I was a little worried, but with only 5 students, it is not a problem at all.  (But of course it's the first week of school.)  The only problem that I found was these students do things a lot faster than my elementary kids, so I need to make sure I plan extra things to keep them occupied!  Next week I have a class with 16 kids for 2 hours!  :)  That should be interesting!

On the IT side of things, I'm learning how to do a little networking - so far I'm horrible!!!  Kids with Macs and Iphones come to me and beg me to put them on the network.  NO CLUE how to do that!  I don't know the password for the guest wifi and even when I did put it on one, it didn't work.  Grrrr!  So someone is coming who used to work here.  Luckily his wife had an appointment at 6 in Ulm.  So, I'm at school at 6:00 waiting.... on a Friday. :)  I'm so excited he's coming though! 

My life in Neu-Ulm:  Outside of school it is quiet.  Very very quiet.  I'm such a social person, I'm jealous of people walking with their friends into town.  I think I'll take a German class.  That is twice a week.  It will help me get to know people and I won't be quietly on my own.  I think the biggest difference is that in the US, I was Soooo busy with so many things.  Now, I have work and that's it.  On Fridays we have shorter classes, an early dismissal and have a staff meeting.  After every staff meeting they go to the beer garden to socialize.  I thought that was so fun!

I do walk a lot.  Some days, I walk to Ulm - about a 20 minute walk - by the river.  I think it's actually longer to walk by the river, but it's so gorgeous I can't help it not to mention it's healthier.  This picture was taken on my walk home.  There are actually 2 sidewalks - one for bikes close to the road and another one through the trees for pedestrians.  I bought a camera - a real one, so pictures very soon hopefully!