I love the fact that the street lights turn yellow again before they turn green, like a warning to get ready. I love it! I don't know why - I'm not even driving. It reminds me of a race car track. I also love the autobahn. A friend drove me to Ikea yesterday...we were going so fast. A little scary when it rains, but it's pretty neat. They do have some speed signs that light up, telling you to go 80km/h (50mph) instead of the 160 km/h we were going. I kept looking at the speedometer to see how fast we were going and converting it on my phone. I'm still not great with the whole conversion thing.
Like Celsius. Seriously. It drives me nuts that I'm not very good at it. Even when someone says it's going to be 20 tomorrow, I'm still thinking "holy crap that is freezing" when it's actually not. Definitely have to work on that, as well as my German. I'm doing a German class at school once a week. It's coming along but slowly. I just need to pracitce more. I've got my numbers up to 12, but then it gets a little tricky, especially after 20. They say "one and twenty" "two and twenty" and my brain just can't switch them. 21 is einundzwanzig. This really confuses me when I buy things, and if they don't have a screen for me to look at, I try to hand them a big bill, hoping it's enough.
Apparently this isn't just in Germany, but many European countries - no screens on the windows. Uh, hello! I'm not a fan of little black bugs, gnats or bees flying around my place. Not to mention the 2 dead bees I found on my pillow the other night. I leave some windows open when I'm at work to air it out - it gets a little stuffy being up here in the attic, but I surely don't like coming home to nasty bugs inside. Eventually they die but then they're all over the floor. Sick. I've got to figure something out.
I do like the public transportation system. I buy a monthly pass, which is such a good deal, especially because I use it every day for work. Of course there are times when I would LOVE to have a car. It would just be faster and easier. Maybe eventually, but not right now. The tram stop is right outside my apartment. I catch that every morning and take it down to the Sbahn station to catch my train to work. Apparently it's all great and dandy and on time until they decide to go on strike. That hasn't happened yet, but when it does, I don't know how I'll get to work!
I also am loving how cheap flying is. My plane ticket to Croatia in 2 weeks is cheaper than my train ticket to Munich. Of course it's expensive because I'm going the weekend of Oktoberfest, but there are a ton of great deals. A guy at work was telling us that you can also go to the airport and find these little booths with last minute deals. He went once with his partner, bags packed and checked out the many discounted flights leaving that day. They've ended up going to some amazing places around Europe. I'll have to check that out.
I'm not a fan of having things closed on Sundays. I get it - it's a time to rest or be with your family. But I'm still not remembering and it's making me so mad. I needed to get ingredients to make play-dough tomorrow at school. There is a grocery store down at the train station open today, but I don't know if I want to go all the way down there for play dough ingredients. We'll see.
There is a Frankfurt Newcomers festival going on downtown this weekend. Yesterday was too rainy to go, so I did my Ikea stuff instead. I'm thinking about checking it out with some friends from work. It'll be nice to get out (hopefully the sun will come out) and see what it's all about.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Friday, September 24, 2010
2 weeks without internet
It's been a while, I know. I've been without internet for 2 weeks now, but thankfully the Unity Media guy came yesterday and got me hooked up! I am now living in my apartment and it is coming along - slowly but surely. My furniture came from IKEA last weekend and I spent Saturday and Sunday putting it together. Pretty sure I got man hands after using screw drivers and allen wrenches. I borrowed tools from another teacher, but forgot to get the hammer. Saturday afternoon, Stephanie and I were putting my furniture together when we realized we needed a hammer. After trying to use the end of the screw driver, a wooden spoon and the bottom of a Nutella jar, we decided to go down to the Zeil to look for a hammer. I don't know too many areas yet, but the Zeil is one of the least likely places to have a hammer. They have a lot of shops and restaurants, but we thought maby Karstadt (a department store) would have a tools section. They didn't. We ended up finding a craft store and spending 5 euros on a craft hammer. It did the trick and the furniture is still standing :)
School is finally starting to settle down. I'm getting the hand of it and getting prepared a week in advance - or at least I try. Plans always change, but as long as I've got an outline, copies made and activities created, I feel so much better. My kids were absolutely crazy on Monday. They wouldn't shut up or keep their hands to themselves. The way they line up just drives me NUTS so I demonstrated what they looked like with my assistant - pushing, shoving, changing spots. My rule is once you line up for find your spot on the carpet, you stay there. No switching. They laughed at my demonstration of course, but I had them practice. Sometimes I feel like I'm too harsh on them - they are so little, but I don't care how little you are, you can learn to sit on the carpet quietly, line up calmly and walk down the hall without scream and touching everything. Is that too much to ask?? We do a lot of practicing, and we seemed to do an awful lot this week. I think there was a full moon sometime recently..that might have something to do with the craziness. I started the colored rock jar though. I've used it before, but they LOVE it. If everyone lines up quietly, is a good listener on the carpet, helps clean up etc. they'll earn colored rocks. Once we fill up the jar - mind you it's not even an 8 oz. jar - they'll earn a treat or game or something special.
I'm not going to lie - I totally bribed them for the fire drill we had yesterday. We talked in the morning about what a fire drill was, and how we needed to practice in case there really was a fire. Some of the responses from my kids were so funny. Benjamin said if we don't practice, then if it really happens, we'll get hurt and have to go to the krankenhaus (hospital) and get a cast on our foot. I had them practice lining up quietly (without pushing and shoving) while I made the alarm sound. Paul said to me after we had practiced that they had a fire drill at his old school but the teacher didn't make the alarm - it came from something on the wall.
Anyways, my kids were pretty freaking awesome when the real fire drill happened. I think I only had to tell one kid to turn around and stop talking. I definitely had bribed them with 5 colored rocks but they earned them.
We're nearing the end of our friends unit. I'll start doing our summative assessments next week. We were going to have the kids do roll plays of being a good friend, but they would struggle with that. It will be more like scenarios - what would you do if...? And talking about what a good friend is, why we need friends etc. Even though friendship was a great topic to start off on, there's not much you can do besides why we need friends, how to make friends, learning each others' names, sharing, saying please and thank you etc. They don't grasp concepts about nurturing friendships - it's too far over their heads. Our next unit is called Tell Me a Story so that should be a pretty fun one.
It's been fun getting to know the other teachers and doing things after school. Monday night I went with Scott and Sarah to the Zeil and we ate at a delicious Japanese restaurant. They are both hilarious and it was just nice to do something after school. Last night we had a girls night out. We went shopping on the Zeil and went to dinner at a Thai restaurant. We ended up staying there for 3 hours and finally realized we should probably get home to bed - since we had to work today. This weekend there is a New-Commers festival downtown. I think some of us might go check it out. It's suppose to be rainy all weekend though, so that's kind of a bummer. I still need a lot of little things for the apartment, so hopefully I can go out and buy a few things.
Next weekend is...OKTOBERFEST! I'm so excited. I'm leaving after school on Friday - I think my train leaves around 6 and I get to Munich around 9:00pm. I'm meeting Megan there and another teacher she works with. We're staying at a campsite. It was one of the last places available and the most reasonably priced. For 50 euros a night, they provide us with a tent, sleeping bag and pad, as well as breakfast, dinner and a shuttle to and from the festival. Plus, for 5 more euros (not that we'll need it) you can have unlimited beer and sangria during the day. Should be pretty crazy. I was hoping some other teachers from work would come with us, but a few are going this weekend instead. Dave is going with another friend who could only go this weekend, and Brooke might be going this weekend with her boyfriend, because he was going with people from work. Lizzy's brother will be visiting next weekend but she said they might come and meet up with us. I was contemplating 2 weekends in a row (I know - crazy!), because Dave's friend has a company car so we wouldn't pay for gas and they know someone who lives there so we wouldn't pay for lodging. But, I came to my senses and decided to get my school stuff done for the next few weeks since I won't have next weekend at all. Definitely looking forward to it.
In 2 weeks we have our October break. Ashley, her friend from home and I are going to Croatia! Should be beautiful and warmer than here. I can't wait. Cheap flight too. We're leaving Monday the 11th and coming back the 14th. We're hoping to do some other trips during the 2 weeks too - we're throwing around some ideas with girls from work about Amsterdam, Rome or Spain. We'll see. I just want to start traveling.
For all of you back home, I miss you all so much! I'm planning to come home for part of Christmas break - hopefully around the 17th to the 28th or so. It's still in the works, but I can't go too much longer without friends from home and family. I'll write more later..sorry this one is kind of chaotic. I just wanted to update you on what's been happening these last 2 weeks. xxoo
School is finally starting to settle down. I'm getting the hand of it and getting prepared a week in advance - or at least I try. Plans always change, but as long as I've got an outline, copies made and activities created, I feel so much better. My kids were absolutely crazy on Monday. They wouldn't shut up or keep their hands to themselves. The way they line up just drives me NUTS so I demonstrated what they looked like with my assistant - pushing, shoving, changing spots. My rule is once you line up for find your spot on the carpet, you stay there. No switching. They laughed at my demonstration of course, but I had them practice. Sometimes I feel like I'm too harsh on them - they are so little, but I don't care how little you are, you can learn to sit on the carpet quietly, line up calmly and walk down the hall without scream and touching everything. Is that too much to ask?? We do a lot of practicing, and we seemed to do an awful lot this week. I think there was a full moon sometime recently..that might have something to do with the craziness. I started the colored rock jar though. I've used it before, but they LOVE it. If everyone lines up quietly, is a good listener on the carpet, helps clean up etc. they'll earn colored rocks. Once we fill up the jar - mind you it's not even an 8 oz. jar - they'll earn a treat or game or something special.
I'm not going to lie - I totally bribed them for the fire drill we had yesterday. We talked in the morning about what a fire drill was, and how we needed to practice in case there really was a fire. Some of the responses from my kids were so funny. Benjamin said if we don't practice, then if it really happens, we'll get hurt and have to go to the krankenhaus (hospital) and get a cast on our foot. I had them practice lining up quietly (without pushing and shoving) while I made the alarm sound. Paul said to me after we had practiced that they had a fire drill at his old school but the teacher didn't make the alarm - it came from something on the wall.
Anyways, my kids were pretty freaking awesome when the real fire drill happened. I think I only had to tell one kid to turn around and stop talking. I definitely had bribed them with 5 colored rocks but they earned them.
We're nearing the end of our friends unit. I'll start doing our summative assessments next week. We were going to have the kids do roll plays of being a good friend, but they would struggle with that. It will be more like scenarios - what would you do if...? And talking about what a good friend is, why we need friends etc. Even though friendship was a great topic to start off on, there's not much you can do besides why we need friends, how to make friends, learning each others' names, sharing, saying please and thank you etc. They don't grasp concepts about nurturing friendships - it's too far over their heads. Our next unit is called Tell Me a Story so that should be a pretty fun one.
It's been fun getting to know the other teachers and doing things after school. Monday night I went with Scott and Sarah to the Zeil and we ate at a delicious Japanese restaurant. They are both hilarious and it was just nice to do something after school. Last night we had a girls night out. We went shopping on the Zeil and went to dinner at a Thai restaurant. We ended up staying there for 3 hours and finally realized we should probably get home to bed - since we had to work today. This weekend there is a New-Commers festival downtown. I think some of us might go check it out. It's suppose to be rainy all weekend though, so that's kind of a bummer. I still need a lot of little things for the apartment, so hopefully I can go out and buy a few things.
Next weekend is...OKTOBERFEST! I'm so excited. I'm leaving after school on Friday - I think my train leaves around 6 and I get to Munich around 9:00pm. I'm meeting Megan there and another teacher she works with. We're staying at a campsite. It was one of the last places available and the most reasonably priced. For 50 euros a night, they provide us with a tent, sleeping bag and pad, as well as breakfast, dinner and a shuttle to and from the festival. Plus, for 5 more euros (not that we'll need it) you can have unlimited beer and sangria during the day. Should be pretty crazy. I was hoping some other teachers from work would come with us, but a few are going this weekend instead. Dave is going with another friend who could only go this weekend, and Brooke might be going this weekend with her boyfriend, because he was going with people from work. Lizzy's brother will be visiting next weekend but she said they might come and meet up with us. I was contemplating 2 weekends in a row (I know - crazy!), because Dave's friend has a company car so we wouldn't pay for gas and they know someone who lives there so we wouldn't pay for lodging. But, I came to my senses and decided to get my school stuff done for the next few weeks since I won't have next weekend at all. Definitely looking forward to it.
In 2 weeks we have our October break. Ashley, her friend from home and I are going to Croatia! Should be beautiful and warmer than here. I can't wait. Cheap flight too. We're leaving Monday the 11th and coming back the 14th. We're hoping to do some other trips during the 2 weeks too - we're throwing around some ideas with girls from work about Amsterdam, Rome or Spain. We'll see. I just want to start traveling.
For all of you back home, I miss you all so much! I'm planning to come home for part of Christmas break - hopefully around the 17th to the 28th or so. It's still in the works, but I can't go too much longer without friends from home and family. I'll write more later..sorry this one is kind of chaotic. I just wanted to update you on what's been happening these last 2 weeks. xxoo
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
I found an apartment!
I found an apartment!! Woo hoo! It's in an area of Frankfurt called Nordend. It's close to the Berger Strasse (street with shops, restaurants and bars) and Friedberger Platz...the park we went to at the beginning of the school year that had food carts and lots of wine. It's close the the tram, the bus and the U Bahn and S Bahn stations. It's also really close to Nat and Ben's new place as well as Ashley and Steph's. I'm really excited to move in. Tomorrow I meet with the lady and sign the contract so I'm hoping to get the keys by Friday. Keeping my fingers crossed.
It's small, but it works. It's 60 square meters, but it's an attic apartment so I think the slanted ceilings make it feel smaller. The front window opens up to a small balcony with an awesome view. The kitchen is small...but it works. It has a fridge (very small), oven, stove, sink and some cabinets. It's good, because I don't have to buy my kitchen. I would like to have a bigger fridge though haha so maybe I'll have to buy an extra mini fridge or something. I'll have to take some pictures and post them, because it's a pretty German apartment. It's kind of funky, but I'm excited for it. It will be so nice to be out of this hotel and I'm really looking forward to cooking my own meals :)
Tonight was parent night at school - pretty much like back to school night back home. I always get nervous talking adults and find myself talking super fast. Only about half my parents came, but most are really nice. I do have one family who is just odd. Really odd. They asked some of the weirdest questions and expect us to do the weirdest things. They are so overly obsessed with food and how much their child eats, it's ridiculous. I don't always have lunch duty, but they can't comprehend that it's not our job to spoon feed their kid. I told them if he's hungry he'll eat and that they need to have a conversation with him if they feel he is not eating enough. When I was giving examples of health vs. unhealthy snacks, these particular parents got really concerned because milk and yogurt are healthy snacks but get warm throughout the day so they wanted me to buy a fridge for the classroom or have parents pool their money to buy a fridge to keep snacks in. Or if we couldn't do that, she wanted us to keep the snacks in the cafeteria fridge. Ha like that is going to happen and I don't have time to be fetching snacks from the cafeteria. I replied that they could pack an ice pack in their child's snack box and suggest he drinks his milk or eats his yogurt during morning snack time, and has something that doesn't need to be kept cold for his afternoon snack. It was pretty much ridiculous. The rest of the night went well. I feel like I'm getting more comfortable talking to parents, but it's still not what I want to be doing on a Wednesday night. It's over though..whew!
Not too much else has been going on. I was sick last Friday and home with the flu. It was a miserable weekend and I didn't leave the hotel. I did get a lot of school work done..planning and what not, since I had so much time on my hands. It's really helped me this week and I have a pretty good idea of what I want to be doing in the next couple weeks as well. I've been thinking about everyone back home a lot lately, and especially my teacher friends! I can't believe school has started...where or where did summer go? I hope everyone is off to a great start this year. It's really going to be weird not subbing and being able to see everyone at Elmonica and Oak Hills on a daily basis.
Oktoberfest is right around the corner. I think Meg and a couple teachers from her school and a few from mine are going to go the first weekend in October. Somebody at work told me it's the 100th anniversary, so it should be a good time :) That's only about 3 weeks away. I also have 2 weeks off, from October 9 to the 24th. I'm hoping to visit Meg in Poland on that last weekend, since we're so close. Ashley and I were talking about going to Amsterdam sometime during that break and checking out other places in Germany and Austria. In November we have a weekend trip planned to Paris, so I'm looking forward to that. I'm hoping to travel some more in December too, but I'm not sure where I want to go yet. Still debating on if I'm coming home for Christmas. I should probably decide soon and book my flight soon though, so it's cheaper. I've never had Christmas away from home, and although I am super excited for the Christmas stuff in Germany, it will be really hard to be away from friends and family. There are people staying in Frankfurt though, so I wouldn't be completely alone.
Alright, it's late and I'm tired. Just wanted to give you all an update. Sorry for the typos. I'm too tired to proof read :) Goodnight!
P.S. They make chocolate covered rice cakes here and I am LOVING these. Mom, I'll have to send you some.
It's small, but it works. It's 60 square meters, but it's an attic apartment so I think the slanted ceilings make it feel smaller. The front window opens up to a small balcony with an awesome view. The kitchen is small...but it works. It has a fridge (very small), oven, stove, sink and some cabinets. It's good, because I don't have to buy my kitchen. I would like to have a bigger fridge though haha so maybe I'll have to buy an extra mini fridge or something. I'll have to take some pictures and post them, because it's a pretty German apartment. It's kind of funky, but I'm excited for it. It will be so nice to be out of this hotel and I'm really looking forward to cooking my own meals :)
Tonight was parent night at school - pretty much like back to school night back home. I always get nervous talking adults and find myself talking super fast. Only about half my parents came, but most are really nice. I do have one family who is just odd. Really odd. They asked some of the weirdest questions and expect us to do the weirdest things. They are so overly obsessed with food and how much their child eats, it's ridiculous. I don't always have lunch duty, but they can't comprehend that it's not our job to spoon feed their kid. I told them if he's hungry he'll eat and that they need to have a conversation with him if they feel he is not eating enough. When I was giving examples of health vs. unhealthy snacks, these particular parents got really concerned because milk and yogurt are healthy snacks but get warm throughout the day so they wanted me to buy a fridge for the classroom or have parents pool their money to buy a fridge to keep snacks in. Or if we couldn't do that, she wanted us to keep the snacks in the cafeteria fridge. Ha like that is going to happen and I don't have time to be fetching snacks from the cafeteria. I replied that they could pack an ice pack in their child's snack box and suggest he drinks his milk or eats his yogurt during morning snack time, and has something that doesn't need to be kept cold for his afternoon snack. It was pretty much ridiculous. The rest of the night went well. I feel like I'm getting more comfortable talking to parents, but it's still not what I want to be doing on a Wednesday night. It's over though..whew!
Not too much else has been going on. I was sick last Friday and home with the flu. It was a miserable weekend and I didn't leave the hotel. I did get a lot of school work done..planning and what not, since I had so much time on my hands. It's really helped me this week and I have a pretty good idea of what I want to be doing in the next couple weeks as well. I've been thinking about everyone back home a lot lately, and especially my teacher friends! I can't believe school has started...where or where did summer go? I hope everyone is off to a great start this year. It's really going to be weird not subbing and being able to see everyone at Elmonica and Oak Hills on a daily basis.
Oktoberfest is right around the corner. I think Meg and a couple teachers from her school and a few from mine are going to go the first weekend in October. Somebody at work told me it's the 100th anniversary, so it should be a good time :) That's only about 3 weeks away. I also have 2 weeks off, from October 9 to the 24th. I'm hoping to visit Meg in Poland on that last weekend, since we're so close. Ashley and I were talking about going to Amsterdam sometime during that break and checking out other places in Germany and Austria. In November we have a weekend trip planned to Paris, so I'm looking forward to that. I'm hoping to travel some more in December too, but I'm not sure where I want to go yet. Still debating on if I'm coming home for Christmas. I should probably decide soon and book my flight soon though, so it's cheaper. I've never had Christmas away from home, and although I am super excited for the Christmas stuff in Germany, it will be really hard to be away from friends and family. There are people staying in Frankfurt though, so I wouldn't be completely alone.
Alright, it's late and I'm tired. Just wanted to give you all an update. Sorry for the typos. I'm too tired to proof read :) Goodnight!
P.S. They make chocolate covered rice cakes here and I am LOVING these. Mom, I'll have to send you some.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Hump Day
I'm half way through my third week with the kids, and it sure feels good to know there are only 2 days left. They are a great group of kids, but it's exhausting. Especially this first month. I am noticing though that I'm not as tired as I was last week. I'm getting into the groove of things and getting organized. I'm finding more resources and I found the most amazing kindergarten website with tons of printables and amazing ideas for activities in the classroom, so that has helped out a ton. My teammates are great too, but I'm missing my 3rd grade team back home. It's just not the same.
Last Friday a bunch of people from school went over to Ben and Natalie's new apartment. They have the most amazing view from their new place. Huge windows from ceiling to roof that can open up and you can look out over Nordend. It's awesome. They have 2 little girls and needed help putting their IKEA furniture together. It was a fun Friday night putting together tables, beds, and dressers. Good practice for when I get my furniture. I went to IKEA with a bunch of people on Sunday and got some ideas for my future apartment. I also went back to Vodafone on the Zeil so they could fix my iphone settings so my internet would work. I have a new German number - no more AT&T, but now I can't figure out how to get my voicemail to work. Maybe another trip to Vodafone is in store for me this weekend. On Sunday, Stephanie and I went into Bornheim and stopped by her new apartment. She hasn't moved in yet, because she has to install a kitchen and was waiting for some furniture to arrive. Then we met up with Ashley and her boyfriend and went to dinner. By the time we got home though, it was after 9 and I was exhausted.
Monday night I went to look at an apartment. It was the first one I'd actually gone to see. They do apartment viewings kind of weird in Germany though. A lot of them have a certain viewing day, kind of like an open-house and if they like you, they'll call you back. Some of the apartments I've emailed haven't responded. Some don't want to rent to an American. Lame. And others get rented out before I even get called back about viewing it. It's been a frustrating process, but Scott (a 5th grade teacher) came with me on Monday to check out an apartment in Sachsenhausen. It's a great area, very clean, close to the city center and it has a lot of bars, clubs, cafes and museums near by. Well we were standing outside one of the most beautiful buildings on the block, and then noticed there was a doctor's office on the floor that was supposed to be the apartment. Then we realized we were on the wrong street. The apartment was on Openheimer Strasse and we had gone to Openheimer Landstrasse. Eventually we realized our mistake and set off to find the correct apartment. The building wasn't as beautiful, not that it really mattered though. I thought I would be okay with living on a ground level apartment, but it turns out I'm not. The apartment was bigger than I expected (and needed), but it had a tiny kitchen. Parts had been remodeled, but there was still that old, musty smell in the air. If I lived there, I'd want the windows open all the time, but living alone on the ground floor, that wouldn't be so smart. When we left, Scott asked if I would take it if they offered it to me, and I said maybe, but I needed to think about the ground floor thing. He said that there's my answer. If I'm not comfortable with it now, I wouldn't be comfortable with it when I moved in. So true.
At least I went and looked at one though. When I first started this process, I was being pretty picky. I admit. But in these last few weeks, I have dropped a lot of my qualifications. I will still be picky about WHERE I live though. I want it to be clean and fun with a lot of stuff nearby that I can walk to. I'm looking at the areas of Nordend, Bornheim or Sachsenhausen. I have given up a lot of other things on my list and have settled for at least 2 rooms (bedroom and living room), built in kitchen (because that's a drag and way too much money to put in), at least 1 level up and clean. There is a deposit I put down (as with most apartments), but here's it's not like 500 bucks. It's more like 2 - 3 times your cold rent. Many of the apartments for rent have a provision attached to them as well. This, unlike the deposit, you don't get back in the end. Many of the provisions are around a couple thousand euros (which sucks), plus tax. It's been really hard to find apartments that are provisionfrei so as long as it's not too much all together, I might just end up paying it. I just want to get out of this hotel and have my own place. I'm going to look at another apartment tomorrow night that is off the Berger Strasse (the longest shopping street in Frankfurt - this could be dangerous!haha) The pictures look great, although it's a little more in rent than I was hoping to pay, but oh well. If I like it, I might just take it. I'm excited to take a look, and the man who is meeting me speaks English! Ya! :)
Things are working out better in the classroom. My assistant and I are getting along. Hopefully it stays that way. We got off to a rocky start, but it seems to be turning around (knock on wood).
There's a lot of fun stuff coming up, which I'm excited about. Ashely's birthday is on Monday, so we're going out this weekend to celebrate. Another kindergarten teacher Jen has a birthday Sunday, so a bunch of us are meeting up for lunch, which will be nice. Oktoberfest is in the works...I'm pretty excited about that, and some girls from work and I are planning a girls weekend to Paris to celebrate Sarah's birthday. Lots to look forward to.
It's been fun checking out the different areas of Frankfurt. Dave, a 2nd grade teacher, goes rock climbing at T-Hall which is an indoor rock climbing gym, so some of us thought that would be fun to check out. I don't think I've been rock climbing since freshman year of college, so it's been awhile, but that would be fun to do.
I'm missing home a lot. I can't believe it's September 1st. I've been here almost a month. I did have my first German lesson yesterday afternoon. Some of the new teachers are taking it every Tuesday, so hopefully I'll start to feel comfortable using the few words I know :)
Miss you all back home! Love you!
P.S. Once I get my apartment, you're all welcome to visit (anytime)!!
Last Friday a bunch of people from school went over to Ben and Natalie's new apartment. They have the most amazing view from their new place. Huge windows from ceiling to roof that can open up and you can look out over Nordend. It's awesome. They have 2 little girls and needed help putting their IKEA furniture together. It was a fun Friday night putting together tables, beds, and dressers. Good practice for when I get my furniture. I went to IKEA with a bunch of people on Sunday and got some ideas for my future apartment. I also went back to Vodafone on the Zeil so they could fix my iphone settings so my internet would work. I have a new German number - no more AT&T, but now I can't figure out how to get my voicemail to work. Maybe another trip to Vodafone is in store for me this weekend. On Sunday, Stephanie and I went into Bornheim and stopped by her new apartment. She hasn't moved in yet, because she has to install a kitchen and was waiting for some furniture to arrive. Then we met up with Ashley and her boyfriend and went to dinner. By the time we got home though, it was after 9 and I was exhausted.
Monday night I went to look at an apartment. It was the first one I'd actually gone to see. They do apartment viewings kind of weird in Germany though. A lot of them have a certain viewing day, kind of like an open-house and if they like you, they'll call you back. Some of the apartments I've emailed haven't responded. Some don't want to rent to an American. Lame. And others get rented out before I even get called back about viewing it. It's been a frustrating process, but Scott (a 5th grade teacher) came with me on Monday to check out an apartment in Sachsenhausen. It's a great area, very clean, close to the city center and it has a lot of bars, clubs, cafes and museums near by. Well we were standing outside one of the most beautiful buildings on the block, and then noticed there was a doctor's office on the floor that was supposed to be the apartment. Then we realized we were on the wrong street. The apartment was on Openheimer Strasse and we had gone to Openheimer Landstrasse. Eventually we realized our mistake and set off to find the correct apartment. The building wasn't as beautiful, not that it really mattered though. I thought I would be okay with living on a ground level apartment, but it turns out I'm not. The apartment was bigger than I expected (and needed), but it had a tiny kitchen. Parts had been remodeled, but there was still that old, musty smell in the air. If I lived there, I'd want the windows open all the time, but living alone on the ground floor, that wouldn't be so smart. When we left, Scott asked if I would take it if they offered it to me, and I said maybe, but I needed to think about the ground floor thing. He said that there's my answer. If I'm not comfortable with it now, I wouldn't be comfortable with it when I moved in. So true.
At least I went and looked at one though. When I first started this process, I was being pretty picky. I admit. But in these last few weeks, I have dropped a lot of my qualifications. I will still be picky about WHERE I live though. I want it to be clean and fun with a lot of stuff nearby that I can walk to. I'm looking at the areas of Nordend, Bornheim or Sachsenhausen. I have given up a lot of other things on my list and have settled for at least 2 rooms (bedroom and living room), built in kitchen (because that's a drag and way too much money to put in), at least 1 level up and clean. There is a deposit I put down (as with most apartments), but here's it's not like 500 bucks. It's more like 2 - 3 times your cold rent. Many of the apartments for rent have a provision attached to them as well. This, unlike the deposit, you don't get back in the end. Many of the provisions are around a couple thousand euros (which sucks), plus tax. It's been really hard to find apartments that are provisionfrei so as long as it's not too much all together, I might just end up paying it. I just want to get out of this hotel and have my own place. I'm going to look at another apartment tomorrow night that is off the Berger Strasse (the longest shopping street in Frankfurt - this could be dangerous!haha) The pictures look great, although it's a little more in rent than I was hoping to pay, but oh well. If I like it, I might just take it. I'm excited to take a look, and the man who is meeting me speaks English! Ya! :)
Things are working out better in the classroom. My assistant and I are getting along. Hopefully it stays that way. We got off to a rocky start, but it seems to be turning around (knock on wood).
There's a lot of fun stuff coming up, which I'm excited about. Ashely's birthday is on Monday, so we're going out this weekend to celebrate. Another kindergarten teacher Jen has a birthday Sunday, so a bunch of us are meeting up for lunch, which will be nice. Oktoberfest is in the works...I'm pretty excited about that, and some girls from work and I are planning a girls weekend to Paris to celebrate Sarah's birthday. Lots to look forward to.
It's been fun checking out the different areas of Frankfurt. Dave, a 2nd grade teacher, goes rock climbing at T-Hall which is an indoor rock climbing gym, so some of us thought that would be fun to check out. I don't think I've been rock climbing since freshman year of college, so it's been awhile, but that would be fun to do.
I'm missing home a lot. I can't believe it's September 1st. I've been here almost a month. I did have my first German lesson yesterday afternoon. Some of the new teachers are taking it every Tuesday, so hopefully I'll start to feel comfortable using the few words I know :)
Miss you all back home! Love you!
P.S. Once I get my apartment, you're all welcome to visit (anytime)!!
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