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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
A little bit a heaven
We get the keys to our townhouse on Wednesday. Because of voltage differences, we need small appliances--namely a toaster and microwave (to feed the toddler). We've been looking/shopping in town, but it's overwhelming. Not being able to read the boxes/packaging is challenging and not knowing most of the European brands and their reputations is hard. We went to the German version of Walmart yesterday--and it stressed me the eff out. So, we tried the PX--it's tiny and the selection, to be charitable, is sparse.
I got the idea to head over to Ramstein Air Force Base, which is about an hour away (I thought it was farther as the shuttle bus that transported us when we flew into Ramstein took three plus hours to get to Wiesbaden. It stopped at two other bases, but still. I'm quite bitter that we were on the bus, and our dog was below in CARGO, for three hours, after three hours of in-processing, after an overnight flight. . .but I digress.). OMG. I'd heard that the Ramstein BX was nice, but day-um! It is fabulous! I'm sure that part of the thrill was the fact that I was feeling a bit homesick and frustrated, but this BX is beautiful! It has a Johnny Rockets and a Macaroni Grill! My new friend was with us, and both of us nearly cried.
I am, by and large, enjoying our adventure so far. But, it was so nice to pull into a parking lot, and walk into a mall where English is the first language and the brands were familiar. This was the antithesis of the experiences I'd had the day before. It was a little taste of home--even though we ate at the German restaurant in the BX/mall. I now know that when I am needing a bit of "home", it is just an hour away. I'm glad it's not closer--I look forward to finding my way in the local community. But, there are times when I will want something easy, comfortable and familiar.
I got the idea to head over to Ramstein Air Force Base, which is about an hour away (I thought it was farther as the shuttle bus that transported us when we flew into Ramstein took three plus hours to get to Wiesbaden. It stopped at two other bases, but still. I'm quite bitter that we were on the bus, and our dog was below in CARGO, for three hours, after three hours of in-processing, after an overnight flight. . .but I digress.). OMG. I'd heard that the Ramstein BX was nice, but day-um! It is fabulous! I'm sure that part of the thrill was the fact that I was feeling a bit homesick and frustrated, but this BX is beautiful! It has a Johnny Rockets and a Macaroni Grill! My new friend was with us, and both of us nearly cried.
I am, by and large, enjoying our adventure so far. But, it was so nice to pull into a parking lot, and walk into a mall where English is the first language and the brands were familiar. This was the antithesis of the experiences I'd had the day before. It was a little taste of home--even though we ate at the German restaurant in the BX/mall. I now know that when I am needing a bit of "home", it is just an hour away. I'm glad it's not closer--I look forward to finding my way in the local community. But, there are times when I will want something easy, comfortable and familiar.
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Re: A little bit a heaven
I've heard that Ramstein is nice. We have some friends that are moving there next week.
I am so glad that it made you feel like you were "home" when you needed it.
This! I'm glad you're starting to settle in.
Omg. Johnny Rockets sounds so good now!
I'm glad to hear you are getting more settled
67/200
I am looking forward to getting to the point where errands are not an ordeal. I am thankful that I can go to the commissary to get Aunt Jemima frozen waffles for LO, and the PX for my beloved make-up brands, but I plan to find a local butcher, fruit and vegetable market and winery (gotta love living in wine country!). But, we have been here less than three weeks. Rome was not built in a day.
This sounds amazing. It'll take time but you have a lot to look forward to and a "haven" if you ever need one!! Glad things are looking up!!
Your situation sounds awesome, despite being overwhelming. Ramstein is the only assignment that competed with hawaii to be our #1 pick. I have a feeling we'll never get out of asia, though.
I can understand wanting to see another part of the world. It will be interesting to see what the future brings for you and your DH!
I'm glad you found your little piece of heaven! Sounds like you really needed it.
You know what, I have a bunch of German language learning materials left over from college, I can send you any of it if you want. Just let me know!
Langenscheidt's (doorstop English/German dictionary)
English Grammar for students of German
A Practical Review of German Grammar
Graded German Reader (first year)
Kontakte 4th ed (main textbook)
Some CDs that say "Instant Immersion German Pro" on them (? don't think I ever used them)
Two sets of flash cards ( one set of verbs and one set of conversational phrases)
Ruckblick (intermediate reader)
Okay that took a while.... all of that was needed for 4 quarters (1.3 schoolyears) of German studies. The hard part I think is that it doesn't draw from other languages much. You really have to start fresh. And you end up with a lot of compound words because of only having the one language to draw roots from.
Edit: I also remembered I have Harry Potter und der Stein der Weisen
I mean, I easily picked up 'weiswein bitte' on our honeymoon. But no seriously, parts of it are so similar to the English we speak (obviously) that I can imagine you'll pick up quite a bit just being around it!
Glad to hear you're settling in to Germany well! Ramstein is a nice base.
It's funny how much we appreciate our own... American-style stuff when we lose it. I still remember how excited I was when AFN went from 4 channels to 11. Pretty much a big deal to a high school kid. :P
Germany is pretty easy to adapt to. Just wait until the Christmas holiday! Nothing will compare to those Christmas markets
Agree with PP. English is a "Germanic" language, so it's very easy for us to pick up on the words and sentences. You'll learn it (at least basic phrases) quickly, and A LOT of restaurants now have English translations on their menus. That certainly helps
Ahhh I'm envious of you living in Germany. My H will never get those orders, but I can still dream