Hear them ring

I now wake up at 5:30 a.m. to start off my day. Outside it is dark. Street lights are sparse. After our shower we hear the first church bells ring. Three churches are within distance of hearing the bells, and they ring many times a day. We have a bruchen with meat and cheese or jam for breakfast. A bruchen is similar to a dinner roll, but much better. At quarter to six, we turn off the one radiator we turn on while we are in the apartment, and then we walk on the dark streets to the train station. At our temporary housing, it’s about a ten to fifteen minute walk. On the early buses, the trains are packed, but people are accomodating for the cyclists trying to squeeze their transportation in alongside them. At our stop, we walk another ten or fifteen minutes to base.

Life has been interesting here. I did not pack enough good walking shoes, so I hope to pick up some boots in the next few days. Last weekend I picked up a new red knee-length petticoat. Slowly, projects are becoming clearer at work. There’s a great need for organization, so I feel like I am here at the right time. It’s a time of growth, whether people know it or not. 😉

On the housing front, we thought we had found a place, but negotiations aren’t going well. The landlady is in her eighties, and is set in her ways. I have also heard that if something were to happen to the landlady, we could be forced to move. If that happens, we would have to pay for it, not the Army. This could then cost several thousands of dollars, so regardless of the contract issues we are facing, I am now concerned about renting from someone so elderly. Nothing against her and her yellow flowers and lilac hating, but if she finds it her time to go, I could get stuck in a very hard spot… I’m so bad!

Herr has started the job search. We found a few potential jobs, so he’ll be putting in for those as well as applications “on the economy” (a phrase used to mean on the German market). I’m looking forward to my first three day weekend! 😀