Nope. Nope. Yep!

Week one in Bonn-

We do everything wrong once, if not twice, before we get it right. That has been the theme of our first week in Germany. Everything from purchasing a bus ticket, to checking out at the grocery store, to ordering food to-go...we get it wrong. Germans seem to get pretty huffy about things when you don't do them according to protocol. I don't know this for sure, I'm just guessing based on intent gesticulations, rolling eyes, and general sounds of disgust. Stupid Americans.

Slowly though, and painfully at times, we are starting to get just a few things "right."

Successes in the first week:

Our Apt. Building

Cologne, Germany

• Apartment: We FOUND one. It's a 72 square meter two-bedroom flat on the top floor of a 19th century 4-story building. The kitchen is minuscule, the bathroom is minuscule x 10, but it's very cute and quaint. It's not perfect, but the locals think it's a miracle we managed to find a place so quickly (usually takes a month +) so we are happy to have it. We move in Friday the 21st.
• Cell Phone: We successfully activated my unlocked iPhone. You can reach me from the US by calling 011 49 152 3820 7694. We're 9 hours ahead PST.
• Travel/Transit: Buses, trams, subways, local/regional/long-distance trains, we've got them figured out (well...mostly) and have already done some exploring. We spent a day in Cologne and a few days across the border in Luxembourg. We could definitely get used to this.



Luxembourg City, Lux.

• Work: I managed to make it through my first two days on the job. It's too early to comment so stay tuned for blog posts to come. I will say the campus is beautiful, right along the Rhein with a great walking path. I have my own office. The cafeteria sucks. I've never heard so many languages in one day in my life. I locked myself out of the building on day one. They offer language and yoga classes at lunch. I have to figure out how to write everything in the Queen's English. Damn you Limeys.

My Office Building

We've been successful overall, but the week has still been a bit rough on our emotions. We miss our friends, our family, our house, our yard, and our Goober dog (Lucy). Every time I see a dog here or a group of close friends talking and laughing, I get all weepy (and those who know me know how much I LOVE to weep). I've had plenty of moments where I've thought, "WHY THE HELL DID WE DO THIS!?!?!"and wondered if we made the right decision selling everything we own, leaving our family and friends, and settling across the ocean where we know no one, don't speak the language, and own nothing but what's in our suitcases and a few boxes. I think, just maybe, we might be a tad bit crazy. I know my mother thinks so.

We've been in transition so long, we are both simply exhausted and deadlined-out. The last 8 weeks have been a whirlwind of details, to-do's, boxes, packing, goodbyes and hellos and that will continue as Jeff returns home Monday to wrap up final details in Eugene, while I continue to forge ahead here. It is just now sinking in that we are really here. Now what?!

German-pastry goodness

We know this will pass. Even with the sadness, we are glad to have each other and still have "pinch" me moments when we realize we are living in Europe, I am working for the UN, and we can hop on a train and be in one of 20 countries in a matter of hours. And THAT, is pretty fucking cool.

Still, I hope my tales of weeping have inspired you all to come see us SOON :) We have a spare bedroom and after Friday, you are all welcome anytime. Christmas, I hear, is an especially beautiful time to be in Germany, as long as you have thermal underwear, gloves, and some strong beer to keep you warm ;)

Love and hugs to you all,
Hillary and Jeff

It's Business Time

Day 1 in Bonn, Germany.

We've determined that business class is definitely, 100% for sure, the only way to fly. We feel qualified to say this, having spent hundreds of hours in coach, hunkered between odorous strangers, fighting for foot room and the arm rest, rifling for ear plugs to muffle the baby screaming behind you, all whilst holding a full bladder until the duty-free carts clear the aisle.

This trip was different. Courtesy of my new job (Thanks UN), we flew business class. As in, here is your very own overhead compartment all to yourself class. Or, have a couple glasses of champagne before taking off class. Or, I can't decide which of the 17 seat positions is best to watch the 60 selections of new movies and TV shows whilst getting a chair massage class. Or, would you like to pair each of your courses today with a wine selected by our special sommelier? class.

They used tablecloths on our pull out trays.  Need I say more?

The only bad thing about the flight was that is wasn't long enough. 11 hours is not sufficient to push all the buttons, eat all the food, drink all the wine and watch all the movies. Alas, all good things must come to an end. I only hope there are some business class tickets in my near future.

We arrived in Frankfurt noonish, and heaved, pushed, pulled and staggered our bags through one train ride, one tram ride, one taxi ride and several flights of stairs. I can safely say I've never travelled anywhere with that much baggage. We got several looks implying our bags were really simply just too large. I think the bags took it personally as the largest suitcase took a header down an escalator to end it all. Fortunately, there was no one on the escalator at the time. And, the bag was unsuccessful. He still rolls well and packs a ton.

Now we sit in Hotel Krug, a simple little pension hotel with a kitchen, which will be home base until we can find an apartment. We have a few appointments set up and continue to look for others. Tomorrow at 9am we are going to see what looks like a lovely two bedroom place....fingers crossed. It would be awesome to find a home so soon.

From the day I was offered this job, to today, 7 weeks elapsed. Those 7 weeks deserve a post as well, but my travel-addled brain forbids it.

More from us soon,

Hillary and Jeff