Treffen in Wolfsburg

By the time of my departure date for Germany, Mike had been away with Blue Lake for two weeks -- the longest we've been apart in years!  So, not only was I greatly looking forward to spending some time in Germany and seeing old friends again, but I was also very anxious to see Mike.

I have to admit that I was a little nervous, never having traveled abroad alone before.  Of course everything went smoothly and turned out fine.  Last year we always flew from Chicago to Munich before going back north to Hanover (we'd then take a taxi to Wolfsburg), but flying with Delta I had a flight from Minneapolis to Amsterdam, making the trip seem almost short!  The weirdest thing about Schipol Airport was their many announcements.  First they'd say it in English, which was fine.  Then they would repeat it in Dutch, the unfamiliar sounds confusing me.  It was always a relief when they would repeat the announcement a third time in German.  From Schipol, I had a short flight to Hanover, but by then I was exhausted and could barely keep my eyes open.

My first destination after landing in Hanover Airport was to my friends Christel and Alberto's new home in Wolfenbüttel, Germany.  Wolfenbüttel is about an hour southeast of Hanover and half an hour southwest of Wolfsburg.  Their new home is absolutely adorable and beautiful.  After settling in, I helped them hang artwork they had just bought for their walls.  Handling giant frames and drilling into brick and concrete is an adventure!

That evening we went with our friend Chisako and her twelve-year-old daughter Akari to the center of Wolfenbüttel.  Basically untouched by the Second World War, the town still has many of its original buildings that date back hundreds of years.  Unfortunately, I did not take any photos of the picturesque sights, so I took a couple off of the internet.

Wolfenbüttel originally housed the Dukes of Brunswick because Brunswick (Braunschweig) and Wolfenbüttel were part of the same territory.  Today, the ducal library is famous for having the largest and best known collection of ancient books in the world, including bibles, printed texts from before 1501, and books from the Reformation. 

We spent our evening having dinner at a Thai/Vietnamese restaurant.  Good food and lovely company.  Lovely multi-lingual company.  One of the attributes of my "German" friends that I've always greatly appreciated is the multitude of languages we use to communicate with one another.  We certainly were a curiosity for the waitress as our conversations were a fluid mix between English, German, and Spanish (Alberto is originally from Argentina and met Christel while she was living in Spain) with some Japanese (Chisako and Akari) on the side.  I was even more amused when we told the waitress where we are all from because none of us are from Germany!

The next day turned out to be a beautiful day for enjoying good company, sunshine, and warmth.  I was so pleased to sit down to a leisurely and wonderful German breakfast of breads, spreads, cuts of salami and meat, and pâté.  Alberto had planned to barbeque this day, so Akari had stayed the night and his daughter Michela joined us in the morning.  Before grilling, we hung up one last giant picture frame -- this time in the stairway of the house.  It took all five of us, a lot of shifting, adjusting, and sweat to get it in place.

Then it was time to prepare our meal.  Mmm... lots of German meat!

 Alberto is working his magic at the grill.

The house also had a lovely pond in the back with beautiful water lilies.

Christel and Akari are picking gooseberries from the many trees of fruit and berries.

 Father-daughter love.

Akari and Michela are ready for desserts of berries and cream and Christel's experimental apple-gooseberry pie later on in the afternoon.

Monday morning I went with Christel to school as she still teaches some French classes at the Waldorfschule-Wolfsburg.  It felt surreal to drive by our old apartment and walk the grounds of the school again, but it was very nice to see and chat with some of my old colleagues as well as meet the new English and music teachers.  It was also fun to talk to former students and marvel at how much they've grown and changed in a year.  I met up with Annette there (she served as chair person for organizing the Blue Lake visit again) and the two of us prepared for the arrival of Blue Lake (and Mike!!), who were coming from Schleswig-Holstein in Northern Germany. 

Finally they arrived (Annette and I had staked out two entrances, not knowing at which their double-decker bus would stop) and a sea of blue clothed teenagers began making their way towards the school, loaded with instruments and luggage -- all led by Mike.  It was wonderful to be swept up into his arms for a few moments before joining in on the task of helping the forty-some-odd students and the staff haul equipment and luggage in and settling down for lunch.

After lunch and before the kids went off with their Wolfsburg host families, two parents from the school had organized an art project for some of the German kids and the Blue Lakers to complete together.  They were to trace outlines of each others' bodies and fill this "frame" with images and words that shared impressions of their homes and the home of their foreign counterparts.  The finished product would be hung up for all to see during the school week and for the concert Blue Lake would play for the community Wednesday night.  As they worked, I enjoyed getting to know some of the Blue Lake kids and the staff as well as spending time with Mike.

Here are some of the finished posters.

Once all the kids had left with their host families, we went home with ours.  Mike and I as well as the band's director, Dennis Zeisler, and his wife Carol were all hosted by the Herths.  Back at the house, we spent the evening barbequing, drinking German wine and beer, and talking late into the night.

Someone... had scheduled an 8 am rehearsal for the band the next morning, so we returned to school bright and early.  Afterwards, the group was scheduled to meet the mayor of Wolfsburg at the Rathaus.  We all loaded the double-decker bus driven by their very kind driver Sven and headed downtown.  I'm sure it was quite a sight for the Wolfsburgers to see a mob of uniformly dressed students make their way into town hall.  

Blue Lake Northern Winds being photographed with the mayor.

After a short speech, we sat in the chambers where the political party members meet to watch a video about Wolfsburg.  The mayor then handed out a book about Wolfsburg to every member of the group.

The mayor and the Blue Lake Northern Winds staff holding their Wolfsburg books.

As a thank-you, the Blue Lakers sang the closing piece of their concerts, May the Lord Bless You and Keep You.  Mike gave their their starting pitches before joining the tenors/basses.

There was a bit of free time afterwards, so we took the kids to our favorite ice cream place in Wolfsburg, a little kiosk inside the City Galerie (the mall).   While the kids roamed for a while, we adults went out with our ice cream and walked along the pedestrian area of the city center.  Germany is the host for the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, so there was soccer paraphernalia and soccer related activites everywhere.  In the center of the pedestrian mall the city had erected a huge temporary "sports bar" where people can watch the soccer matches on television screens outside while having something to drink or eat.  When there are no matches going on, there are live music groups playing on a small stage.  

One of the activities was a giant white soccer ball that people passing by could paint.  Carol and Kayla, one of the other counselors, decided to get in on the action. 

Their lovely artwork.

After joining up with the kids again and waiting for them to load up the bus, Mike and I stole away to have some lunch at one of our favorite Italian restaurants downtown.  Our caprese salad and pizza were excellent and it was great to have some time for ourselves.  We rode the bus back to school using bus tickets that I still had from last year and arrived just in time for the next big activity with the Blue Lakers of the afternoon.  

The last group activity of the day was heading down to Wolfsburg's Allerpark, which is a huge recreational area that includes the Volkswagon Soccer Arena, an indoor swim park, an outdoor wake board park, ropes courses, sand dunes... the list goes on and on.  One of the families at the Waldorfschule is on the board of the Rowing Club there, so they opened up the club house for Blue Lake and Waldorfschule students use.  We all spent the remainder of the afternoon swimming in the Allersee (Aller Lake) and soaking in the sun on their sand beach.  Our evening was spent having an incredibly huge dinner at Annette and Jo's favorite Greek restaurant. 

Wednesday's schedule was filled to the brim.  It began with sightseeing some major historical sites in the area.  I hadn't bothered to take any photos because Mike and I have visited both Hötensleben and the Kaiserdom in Königslutter many times and taken photos, so unfortunately, there are no current photos of either sites.

Our first destination was Hötensleben, a village that is situated on the former border between East and West Germany.  There, the "Hötensleben Border Monument Association" has preserved 300 yards of the original ten foot high wall that divided the east from the west for over twenty years.  All of our pictures are on Mike's camera, which is currently still traveling with him in Europe, but if you click here, you can watch a ten-minute video someone put together about the area as well as our next sightseeing spot. 

Nearby Hötensleben, there is a ginormous "hole" that is miles long and deep where the Germans have been mining brown coal for years.  We stopped at a viewing platform to see it (these pictures are also on Mike's camera).  At the stop, there was a large field of wild poppies.

From there, we went back north to Königslutter, which has a large Romanesque cathedral completed in 1170.  Annette and Jo are both tour guides there, so Mike and I have toured it and even attended its grand re-opening when all of its renovations were completed last year.  Annette gave us some history and we spent time looking around the beautiful building.  Click here for photos from their website.

Before leaving they sang The Lord Bless You and Keep You inside the cathedral.  You can view the video here.  

We arrived back in Wolfsburg late into the afternoon.  Between arriving and the concert that Blue Lake would perform that night was a few hours of free time as well as a barbeque put on by the school.  The downtime was nice and the food was delicious.  Soon everyone was getting ready for the performance.

Mike in concert dress.

Kids warming up on stage.

Annette gave the welcome and introduction to the audience that included school families, community members, and even a government official.

The opening piece of the concert was written by James Sochinski, an American composer and professor at Virginia Tech.  He just happened to be friends with Dennis and also just happened to be visiting Germany at the same time.  We were able to spend time with him and his wife over the week.  

Here is Jim conducting his piece for the concert.

There was a fervent request that Mike MC the concert.  He did an excellent job introducing all the pieces in German.

Soon enough, Stars and Stripes Forever was played and the audience gave the Northern Winds a standing ovation.  Their clapping and hollering for an encore was rewarded by the kids singing The Lord Bless You and Keep You, which surprised and amazed at least the audience members around me. 

After the concert, everything but luggage was loaded up onto the trailer of the bus.  Everyone went home and we had one final night of wine and snacks (Mike was gracious enough to accept the role of slicing serrano ham with a rather dull knife) with good company.  Before long, it was very late and time for the guests to leave.  Mike, Dennis, and Carol had to pack up their things before going to bed.

The next morning was hectic as we had to arrive at school extra early and make sure everyone had their luggage and belongings.  Once everything was ready for Blue Lake to take off, everyone headed back into the school for one last gathering.  A recorder choir (with flutes and violins) played a song for the group.  Then Frank, a good teacher friend of ours from last year, brought his class (now class 7) up to sing the school's traditional "goodbye song", Möge die Straße.

This beautiful song is an Irish blessing that essentially wishes the traveler(s) safety and luck while they are away.  This video is quite close to what we heard that morning.  Music, words, and translations can be found here. 

Following that were tearful good-byes and hugs as we saw them off to their next destination.

Although Blue Lake had left Wolfsburg, I was still in town for another two days.  I spent the remainder of my time staying with Chisako and Akari.  Chisako, who taught in the Waldorfschule-Wolfsburg last year, still has an apartment in the center of the city.  While she and Akari were at school during the day (Chisako in Hanover and Akari in Wolfsburg), I caught up on sleep, reading, and wandering our old city.  Of course I had to hit up some of our old favorites.

Oven-baked pasta from another local Italian restaurant.

San Pellegrino (gotta have the bubbles in Germany).

A cappuccino from Cadera.

Strawberry cake.

Besides the coffee and cake from Cadera, all of my meals and treats on the entire trip thus (besides breakfast) far had been non-German.  Asian, Italian (ice cream from our kiosk and Spaghetti Eis from an Eiscafe), and on Friday evening I knew we were going out for sushi.  So, for lunch on Friday afternoon I decided to seek out some German food -- actually surprisingly difficult to find in Wolfsburg. 

In one of the smaller side streets there is a little German cafe.  Looking at the menu, I saw that they had Bratkartoffeln, so I said, "why not?"  I was rather proud of myself thus far for getting by on my German skills.  I ordered a dish that included the potatoes and what I thought would be a lightly fried fish.  

This is what came to my table. 

The potatoes were correct (though I've had tastier), but along side of the Bratkartoffeln were two large pieces of cold pickled herring. 

It was alright though.  Thanks to a visit to the Gasthaus in Stillwater, MN with Mike and his parents, I've had pickled herring before and it's not so bad.  I like it in small amounts, anyway, so I had a good portion of my meal.  I also had a nice chardonnay afterwards as I read my book and it made for a nice afternoon.

Akari and I spent a lot of time together since she usually got home before her mother did.  We played games that tested my very limited knowledge of German geography, played Monopoly on a Japanese board, colored together, went grocery shopping, and watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (the Johnny Depp version).  She also had me listen to her practice violin (though not the clarinet, because it is apparently far too easy to practice).  

Chisako had a presentation to give on Japan in school, so she dug out one of her old kimonos that now fit Akari.  She looked lovely in it.

Friday night we had sushi at a restaurant in Braunschweig.  The actual sushi itself hit the spot, and I liked my miso soup as well.  I also got myself a beer since I figured I should have at least one German beer before going home.

It was also another "international" gathering of my "German" friends.  Celine, a French teacher at the Waldorfschule picked up Akari and me.  We met Christel, Alberto, and Chisako at the restaurant.  Since Celine and Christel are both French and Celine is married to a Spaniard from Italy, there was even more French and Spanish flowing with the mix of English, German, and Japanese with an occasional slip of Italian.  

It was a lovely way to spend my last evening in Germany.  We had a great time together laughing and eating.  

The next morning went pretty smoothly.  Chisako, Akari, and I went out to the farmer's market in the city center to get some groceries for them and breakfast for us.  I also made a last stop at our ice cream kiosk making it so that we had ice cream with our breakfast (I couldn't help myself... it's too good to pass up.)  

My taxi to the airport came late because of traffic, but the driver definitely made up for lost time going back.  The flight to Amsterdam was easy enough.  I was a bit nervous about getting my connecting flight, as my layover was just an hour, which meant they were already supposedly boarding the second plane when my first one landed.  But, except for a little bit of hurrying down the length of Schipol Airport, I made it without a problem. 

It was a very nice trip to Germany and I was so glad to see Mike and our old friends again.  To quote our beloved Schlusslied... "Und bis wir uns wiedersehen, halte Gott Dich
fest in seiner Hand."

Everything in Germany is Ill – a.k.a. Adventures in Universal Health Care

V and I have been sick recently and yesterday afternoon we decided it was time to see a doctor.  After calling one doctor and finding out that they weren’t able to take on any new patients (often they have patient quotas) we found one with open hours where you can stop in for an appointment.  It was too late to make it during yesterday’s hours, so we went in this morning instead. 

We arrived there shortly after they opened and, after having our insurance cards taken, were escorted to the waiting room.  Unlike in the US, we didn’t have to fill out any forms when we arrived.  The only information they needed was our telephone number.  After a 5-10 minute wait (there was one patient with an appointment before us), we both made it into the doctors office.  No, we didn’t wait weeks upon months for an appointment; no, we didn’t stand hours upon days in lines.  Quite the contrary, we found it relatively easy to see a doctor in this socialist, communist loving universal health care society.

The appointment was very normal and we both were prescribed some antibiotics.  The only real differences were that 1) it was in German, 2) we have to mail a form they gave us to our insurance company, and 3) we had to get a doctor’s note.  As we may have mentioned before, teachers and students at our school have often been ill for long periods of time.  This is perfectly acceptable, provided you have a doctor’s note verifying that, yes, you are indeed ill.  We called the teacher who organizes substitutes this morning and after we saw the doctor we brought our ‘Krankenmeldungen’ note to the office to excuse ourselves for the day.

We were told to take today off of work and if we didn’t feel healthy enough on Monday to come in for a note to stay home until next Thursday (7 day medication).  Our inclination is to be back in school on Monday barring anything serious.  However, one nice difference is that we have an appointment next Thursday after we’ve had the full run of medication to make sure everything is working.  How about that for service!

Some of you may be wondering about how all of this is paid for.  Similar to the states, a portion of our monthly compensation goes toward our insurance.  Being that we are employed, no worries.  When we arrived last October Annette shuttled us around from city hall to department store to insurance agent, making sure we had all our bases covered and were willing (and legally able) to teach.  We did have to pay a (one time per year) copay of 10 euros to see the doctor, but we feel that was offset when we went to the pharmacy to get the antibiotics and were told that they are free. 

After having to change buses when one refused to keep its engine running (hey, I did say everything in Germany is ill) we made it home and began our quiet, relaxing, recuperating day with lots of rest and vitamin C.  Gute Besserung!

Happenings in Wolfsburg

As usual, life has been very busy for the two of us: school, traveling, playing in the city's music school orchestra, and just being normal 20-somethings.  This week is also going to be full since we have our second big concert of the school year.  The school choir, the project choir (led by one of our colleagues), and the orchestra will be performing Thursday evening.  It's hard to believe that we've made it this far!

I've started the first blog about our spring break tour of the Rhine Valley from March, but putting it all together is going to take a bit of time -- especially with all the other things going on.  So, hold tight -- the photos and stories are coming.  Instead, here's a little look at some of our encounters closer to home.

A couple Fridays ago was an absolutely gorgeous day.  We went downtown after school to pick up train tickets for an upcoming trip in May and ended up with some time between then and the start of our orchestra rehearsal.  We decided to walk up the city center and to the mall for an after-school treat in the sunshine.  As we made our way through the pedestrian area we ran into many of our students also out enjoying the sun.

We also saw these guys having some fun in the sun.

Apparently there are a few sets out all summer and you just need to obtain the key from city hall to play.

In the mall, Mike decided to get a very typical German snack -- a bratwurst with bread.  

For a country that eats so much bratwurst and other sausages, we cannot figure out for the life of us why they don't make bread that holds the entire sausage.  I guess hot dog buns are an "American" thing.  

Another thing we find interesting about Germany is the different kinds of stores they have in malls.  Sure, there are the typical clothing, books, and shoe stores.  And I do think it makes sense that there is a specialty wine store in the mall since coffee and tea places exist.  However, I think that grocery stores inside the mall is strange.  Weirder yet, though, is this butcher/meat counter at the place where we got Mike's bratwurst.

Around the corner from the Wurst-Basar is our favorite ice cream place in Wolfsburg.

 

  

There are lots of Italian ice cream shops (as well as restaurants) in Wolfsburg because of a large population of Italian immigrants.  Our favorite place for just a cone of soft, delicious ice cream, however, is the little kiosk in the mall.  The stuff is almost like gelato, but better.  It's just a touch heavier than gelato, but not at all like thick, rich American ice cream.  So good, and reasonably priced, too!

One last difference that we've noticed living here is how much Germans love their dogs.  Or more accurately, we've noticed that Germans take their dogs everywhere, because you see them everywhere.  On the bus, on the train, in the mall, at a café... you name it, they're there.  I only bring it up because I have a picture of a dog we've seen a few times on the street for Kim.  It's not from this particular Friday, but it works.  

Look!  A lion dog!

(Okay, so it's not that close, but it was weird sneaking a picture of someone's dog on the street.)

Hello, sunshine!

Today was probably the first confirmation that winter has gone away from Germany for good.  To celebrate, Mike suggested we pack a picnic and head out into the surprisingly extensive woods behind our apartment complex.

We found a nice spot just off the main path and made ourselves a little spot to soak in the sunshine.  Then we feasted on lunch:  a nice Dornfelder from our trip south, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and sesame stick crackers.

We also broke out Bananagrams -- and not the virtual version.

We needed the relaxation time -- it has been an extraordinarily busy few weeks -- and the sunshine.  We're both a bit pink now, but I think the vitamin D was well worth a bit of a burn.  We'll have to add sunscreen to our next shopping list.

Life Outside of School and Wintermarkets

Sometimes life in Wolfsburg can be pretty interesting.  The last month before the winter holidays was actually a pretty exciting time with all of the wintermarkets, going to the Van Heen concert, and cooking lots of good food.  Early in December we were invited to a basketball game by Mike's mentor, Mattias.  He lives in Braunschweig and is a big basketball fan, so he got us all tickets to the Braunschweig New Yorker Phantoms game against some team from southern Germany. 

Braunschweig Phantoms are in yellow.  The team, currently sponsored by the teen clothing store New Yorker, is the only basketball team in the area, so Wolfsburg and VW also have a stake in the team.

The entire evening was full of surprises and quite the adventure given that we had never tried getting to Braunschweig on our own before.  It was a long bus ride and a little interesting trying to figure out the street trolley system, but we did manage to find our way to the arena. 

The game itself was actually extremely entertaining and enjoyable -- definitely surprising for me since I never was all that interested in how the Timberwolves did or basketball in general.  A lot of European pro-basketball players are American players that did not get into the NBA.  There was a ridiculous amount of fouling and the Phantoms actually managed to blow a huge lead and lose the game in overtime.  So it goes. 

I was extremely amused by their mascot who, half way through the game, trading his stalking around the court to scootering across the court.

 

The other amusing part was the dancers.  Compare these kids to the cheerleaders at the Target Center...

Just before the game started we decided to grab a bite to eat since we hopped on the bus immediately after school.  Hilariously, we ran into another Waldorf teacher colleague who was also there to cheer on the Phantoms.  This was fortunate because he happened to also live in Wolfsburg and we then had a ride back to Wolfsburg!

Of course the basketball game was an exception to our usual outings.  More typically, we take the bus out to the city center in Wolfsburg and walk around the shops or catch a bite to eat.  One weekend we met in a more "historic" part of Wolfsburg for coffee with the other new teachers at our school.  It was in a quieter part of the city where the buildings were more quaint.  Our drinks came in bowls and they had delicious cake. 

Afterward, we went to a nearby Italian restaurant that someone recommended. 

We split a very yummy pizza and salad.

 

Strangely, we've probably had more Italian food in Germany than any other kind of food.  But it is good...

An apartment with a view

In August Annette had planned out nearly every moment of our two week stay in Germany. In addition to having living quarters for us, she put together our school schedules – making sure we were put in classes with the good teachers, rounding out our days so we got a complete overview of what the school was like, etc., and when we were home from school and not napping, she laid plans for us to see the interesting sites in and around Wolfsburg and beyond.

So naturally, Annette became superwoman again and took care of all of the arrangements for our move to Germany. What our lives would be like without her, I can’t even imagine. Aside from straightening out paperwork and whatnot, one of the major things she did for us was to find us an apartment.

So...

Welcome to our apartment here in Germany!


You have just walked into our place. Apartment buildings are set up so that each floor has only two apartments, which makes the building seem more private.

To your immediate left is the storage closet. Just past that is the entrance to our living room and dining room. The kitchen is past that and to the left of the bathroom (the door straight ahead). The first room on the right is our spare bedroom that currently contains our desks. Beyond that (and to the right of the bathroom) is our bedroom.



Here is the living room/dining room. Our table is nearly always scattered with school papers and books. The doors open out to a small balcony which hopefully will have some plants and such come spring.






This is the rest of the room. The cabinet next to Mike holds about six different types of glasses. There are lots of windows looking out to the balcony and the rest of the neighborhood of Detmerode.


Another shot of the living room and Mike...










Below are various views of Detmerode from our living room. Our school is the funny slope-shaped roof and the land to the left of that building. You can really see how close we live to work.



The park between our building and the school is nice, but we often find students there during their break times... not so good because they're not allowed to leave school grounds during the school day when they're under 16.







The room next door is our kitchen. There is definitely much more open space in this kitchen than there had been in our previous apartment, but the amount of counter space is about the same. We do have a little dishwasher!

Can you find the refrigerator? (It's sneaky and looks like a big cupboard.)

As you can see, the washing machine and dryer are also here. Convenient, except that it takes forever and a day to get wash done. At most we can do two loads on a Saturday or Sunday because each cycle takes at least an hour and a half, you can only run one machine at a time (you also cannot run the dishwasher while either clothes machines are going), and we can't run them between 1 pm and 3 pm or after about 6 because of quiet hours (and these machines are LOUD -the sound of the washing machine was once likened to that of a jet plane taking off). We do a lot of air drying...

You can't tell in these pictures, but our trash is separated into five different groups in the kitchen. We have one garbage for bio-degradable waste, one for special recyclables that have a specific symbol on the packaging, paper waste, aluminum and glass waste (which later has to be divided up by color), and a garbage for everything that doesn't fall into any of those categories. Germany is very serious about protecting the environment.



These are pictures of our bedroom. There is actually a good amount of storage space in spite of the lack of closets. We each have a wardrobe and then there are two other little cupboards in addition to two small nightstands, one on each side of the beds, with drawers.






The rooms facing the east also have very nice views. There are some homes and other apartments there, but beyond that is a good amount of forest that separates Detmerode from the autobahn that leads into the city-center of Wolfsburg. There are lots of biking trails and space for walks and exploring. We were told that the paths from the forest eventually lead to the main road and that we could walk into the city-center from our apartment.


If you look closely, you can see that dirt has been dug up in various places in the grass across the street. We were told (by various sources) that the digging has been done by wild boars. Apparently they are quite a problem around here - the hospital nearby had to put special grates in the ground to keep them from walking in the hospital area and ruining their plants and such. Annette told us not to go for walks out there too late in the evening, and if it is after dark, to make lots of noise because we don't want to run into wild boars.
















Last, we have our extra bedroom. Before we
moved in there had been two beds and one desk
in this room. Annette had the company change it
so that there are now two desks and one bed. If
we ever have multiple guests, however, we can
always ask for the other bed back. There's even
a wardrobe in the room!

And so concludes the tour of our apartment. There are, of course, more pictures to come. Putting them up has been a very slow process because we still do not have internet or a land line at home. It is standard for the hookup process to take 2-3 weeks time in Germany. Obviously it's been more than that. I won't get into the details now (maybe Mike will write about it?), but it's taking FOREVER.