Monday, November 27, 2006

Frustrations, but overall progress

Guess who now has electricity in her apartment? Yup, that would be me. Last Monday morning someone from the power company called me and asked me to meet him at my apartment so he could turn on the power. After he tweeked some things on the electric meter and flipped some switches in the circuit breaker box, I was overjoyed to see the lights above the bathroom sink and in the storage closet come on. (Besides a light above the stove, these are the only light fixtures that came with my apartment.) Also on Monday I got a couple more light fixtures and a telephone. I ordered my phone and internet service a week ago Saturday, but my phone is not yet working. I went by the phone company this afternoon, and they're sending someone out to my apartment tomorrow to look at things. Hopefully it will be an easy fix. I've also had a problem getting the heat working in my apartment. Finally on Friday the landlady and a repairman came to look at the water heater and after bringing in a hose and filling it with water (it apparently was empty and is not connected to a water source), they got it working. I have radiators in my apartment, so if the water heater isn't working, the heat isn't either. My apartment is now a comfortable temperature, though, instead of the freezing temperature of last weekend. I had to wear my coat while I was laying the carpet! I'm very thankful it's fixed.

In the past few days I have also tackled the task of laying carpet squares in my apartment. The living room, bedroom, and half-room all have wood flooring that's seen better days. The floor is very solid; it's just old because the building is old. If it was refinished it would be beautiful, but since I'm not going to live in this apartment forever and I don't have the time or money to spend on the floor, I'm not going to worry about it. The storage closet at the apartment was filled with padded, hardly-used carpet squares that the landlord said I could use. The carpet has a rubber backing on the underside, so I didn't have to glue or tape the squares down, but I did have to solve quite a jigsaw puzzle of carpet pieces. Obviously some of the squares had to be cut to accomodate the irregularities of the rooms, and it was an adventure trying to make all the pieces fit together, especially since I had no idea where in the room the people started when they first laid the carpet. There were some extra pieces which I think must have been scraps the first time, and I finally decided some of the larger pieces would need to be cut to fit the spaces I had left because nothing seemed to work for several areas. Despite the headaches, the carpet is now finished, and though it looks a bit like a patchwork quilt, it makes the apartment feel more cozy and gives it character. And hey, I didn't have to pay for it. :-)

I hope you had a good Thanksgiving holiday. Several people have asked me if I celebrated Thanksgiving. Some Americans in Hildesheim invited me and the Abercrombies to eat Thanksgiving dinner with them, but we decided not to go. The Springers returned from the U.S. last Tuesday, and they also were not going to celebrate the holiday. Karen said that she didn't want to celebrate because to her Thanksgiving is not about the pilgrims and Native Americans and their harvest meal together. Instead it's about spending time with family and getting ready for the holiday season, and since she's not with her family, she saw no reason to celebrate Thanksgiving. I can see her point, though for me it's not only about family but acknowledging the blessings God has given me. Since I didn't really want to take the train to Hildesheim alone, and I had a lot to do to my apartment to make it liveable, I spent Thanksgiving laying carpet squares and waiting for furniture to be delivered to my apartment. I did, however, call my family and speak to them for awhile. I called my grandparents for the first time since I've been here, and my grandfather was quite surprised to hear from me. He said it was the first phone call he's ever received from Germany. :-) Also, Ingrid left Thursday morning to visit some family in Berlin, so I spent the weekend cat-sitting for her. I generally like cats, but I think Julia (YU-lea) prefers Ingrid over me. :-)

Since the Springers have returned and I'm on my way to living in my apartment, I soon will begin the work that I've come here to do. I'm supposed to meet with the Springers on Wednesday to discuss details of my work and to set up a schedule. Please pray that we'll see where exactly God wants to use me in this community and congregation.

Please also pray for my sister's fiance, Matt. He was sick on Thanksgiving, so my sister took some food to him. I heard from my mom today that he was in ICU on Friday and Saturday because of a bad infection that made it difficult for him to breathe. He apparently is doing better now, but please pray that he will continue to recover.

Also, this weekend Wolfgang, one of the pillars of the congregation here, was hospitalized with chest pains. The doctors decided he didn't have a heart attack but are treating him as if he did. He was moved into a different hospital yesterday, but I haven't heard anything new about his condition. Please pray that he also will recover smoothly.

Well, as you can probably tell, life here has been full. I've definitely experienced my share of frustrations with getting my apartment set up. It's been a great learning experience, though. When something doesn't go the way it should, I have to learn all sorts of new words in order to describe the problem and find a solution. I'm also discovering how vastly different apartments here are from those in the States. It's all the little things you would never think about that are the strangest. Despite all of my "learning opportunities," I can see overall progress even in the week and half that's passed since I signed the rental contract for my apartment. I plan to stay in my apartment tonight, even though I don't have a working phone or a ceiling light in my bedroom yet. Maybe it'll be a bit like camping. Only I have a refrigerator...and heat...and an indoor bathroom. Okay, so maybe not camping, but still an adventure, an adventure in my new German home.


A view of my bedroom part-way through the carpet-laying extravaganza.

Saturday, November 18, 2006

Blessings abundant

Well, I now officially have my own apartment. Thursday morning I signed the Mietvertrag (the rental contract) and got the keys. It was kind of surreal. I can now say that I LIVE in Bremen. It's a nice feeling, though, because it's a great sense of accomplishment and a step forward.

So, yesterday Ingrid and I went to the electric company to have the power turned on in the apartment. While everything is set to turn on the electricity, they can't do it yet because they need the reading from the gas meter. The heat runs on gas, but the thermostat for the heater is electric, so the power company needs both readings in order to turn everything on. Thus, we went to my apartment to look for the meter but could only find the one for the electricity. When we got back to Ingrid's I called the landlord and explained the situation. I originally was told that the building did not have a basement, but apparently there is an apartment downstairs in what would be the basement, and the gas meter is in that apartment. So, I'm either going to have to ring this person's doorbell and ask if I can look through his apartment for the gas meter, or I'm going to have to have the landlord set up something for me. Because the power company can't do anything else until they get this meter reading, I won't have electricity until at least Monday, if not Tuesday.

However, Ingrid and I were able to go to the phone company today and set up my telephone and internet service, so that process is now underway. I've also been looking at things for my apartment. It's a bit overwhelming knowing that I have to get things like light fixtures, curtains, and dishes besides basic furniture. And then there's the big question: What am I going to do with all of this stuff when I leave Germany? I suppose I'll just do what I did in Searcy -- sell my things or give them away. It's looking like most of my apartment furnishings will come either from people at church or second-hand stores, so I shouldn't have a whole lot of money invested in these things.

Despite the frustrations I've experienced in my search for an apartment and in my efforts to make it liveable, I'm extremely blessed. Every day here I pass people on the streets begging for spare change. Some of them play the accordion or guitar in an effort to entertain and coax a few coins from passersby. I am blessed not to be in the same situation. Also, Ingrid has been very hospitable in allowing me to live with her. She accomodates my seemingly constant questions, mistakes, and strange American habits without complaint. Because of this, I have a warm place to sleep, a roof over my head, and food to fill my belly until I get my own apartment up and running.

And I can't forget about my wonderful family. :-) Today they are in Columbus, Ohio, to watch the Ohio State-Michigan game with my mom's sister's family, and they set up the webcam in front of the TV so I could watch the game with them. One of the things I've missed the most here is watching OSU games with my dad and brother. I'm sure people think it's strange to hear of a 24-year-old woman who follows college football, but I come from a long line of Ohio State fans, and it's in my blood. :-) (When I lived in the dorm at Harding, I used to get up early on Saturday mornings to watch the games, and my roommates thought I was really weird.) Anyway, while watching The Game over the webcam of course isn't the same as being there in person with my family, it's the next best thing, and it's good to see all of them and share in the excitement. The game's not over yet, so we'll see how things turn out. GO BUCKS!

I'm also blessed to have encountered many people who are patient with my mistakes with the language. So far I've not come across anyone who looks down on the fact that I don't speak German fluently. When I make attempts to speak in German, people are accomodating and gently correct my mistakes. I guess it's like swimming in the fact that you learn the most by being thrown in and forced to try. Several of the women at church are excellent "lifeguards" for me. They refuse to speak with me in English, even though they speak much better English than I do German, but they never fail to toss me a line when I feel like I'm drowning in lack of understanding or of knowledge of the words I'm looking for.

Most of all, I am blessed to know the God who loves me and knows my every need, worry, and joy. Recently, while riding on the streetcar, I noticed that the teenage girl sitting across from me looked really depressed. I started wondering what she was dealing with in her personal life and then found myself saying a prayer for her. I then started wondering what all of the other people around me were thinking about. It suddenly hit me that God could hear not only my thoughts and worries but also those of all the other people crowded into that streetcar. I then thought about how that streetcar is miniscule compared to the size of our planet and the universe, and God knows everything about those as well. How can the God of such a vast universe care about tiny little me when there are billions of other people on this planet and billions of other stars and planets filling outer space? I don't know the answer to that question, but I do know that He does. And that makes me feel special. :-)

The next few days are going to be full. We have a fellowship meal after church tomorrow and then Ingrid and I are going to a Nepalese cultural presentation at the International University of Bremen. Ingrid has befriended a Romanian girl at the IUB, and she invited us to come. I also still have lots to do to get my apartment to a state where I can actually stay there.

Life is good, though, and I never cease to be amazed at all that God has provided for me in life. I only hope that I can spread just a few of the blessings God has so gracially showered upon me to those around me.

Thursday, November 16, 2006

A very good week...and a half

Well, it's been a while, but I have great news: I have an apartment! I looked at it last Tuesday, and it has many of the things other apartments have lacked. While it's in the center of the city, it's on a side street that's not so busy, and it's within a short walk of three different streetcar lines. It has 2 and a half rooms (Germans count all rooms besides kitchens and bathrooms, so that's basically 1 bedroom, 1 living room, and a half room that could be used as an office or dining room), and the bathroom and kitchen have been renovated in the past couple of years. And...the kitchen has the Einbauküche I was so desparately seeking! Tomorrow morning (er, later this morning, as I just looked at the clock!) I'll meet with the owner's daughter to sign the rental contract. Since the owner's daughter takes care of renting the apartment, there are no realtor fees to pay, which saves quite a bit of money for everyone. Except the realtors, of course. :-)

Since this apartment isn't furnished, for the past couple of days I've been on a quest for furniture. Today Karen, Katarina, and I went to IKEA and easily spent more than 5 hours there. If you've never been to an IKEA, it's quite an experience. They literally have anything you could need for your home, from couches and wood flooring to silverware and watering cans. And, the best part is that their products are of good quality for good prices. They display their products in mock rooms so you can see how they look when assembled and how you might use them in your room. I got lots of good ideas there today. I've also been to several used furniture stores, and today Karen and I went to one that has lots of furniture in great condition for very low prices, so I think I might have to go back again in the next couple of days. Several people from church have offered me furniture that they no longer need, so I'm also trying to look at that to see what I might be able to use.

It's all so overwhelming. I've never had to start from scratch in furnishing and filling a place to live. I went to college and had to buy things like towels and sheets for my dorm room, but I didn't have to get furniture. When I moved into my apartment in Searcy, I only had to get bedroom furniture because my roommate, Katharine, already had the furniture for the living room and kitchen. So now I'm starting with nothing but my clothes and a few odds and ends like measuring spoons and oven mitts I managed to squeeze into my suitcases. I have trouble knowing where to begin. How do you go about getting EVERYTHING for your apartment? Something tells me that a bed would be a good place to start, but what about light fixtures? Most apartments here come with only the wires hanging from the wall or ceiling, so if I want to be able to see I'm going to have to get some lights. Unless, of course, I get some candles. But then does that mean I should get those before a bed? ACK! At least I won't have much to move out of Ingrid's. Oh! Except for my vacuum cleaner! The bank here gives you a gift if you refer a new customer, and Karen went with me as my referrer (I think that's a word. My English skills have declined a bit as my brain has tried to adjust to German!) when I opened my account. When they asked her to choose a gift, she told me to pick what I wanted because I need everything and she and Mark already have most of what they need. So, I chose a vacuum cleaner. Seemed practical and quite a bargain. Thus, I have a box to move with my suitcases.

In other news, overall life here is going well. I have to admit, I experienced a bad case of homesickness in my first week, but as I've settled in a bit, that's gotten better. I'm adjusting to hearing German all the time and am doing better about forcing myself to speak it. I've even had several Germans tell me my German is very good, but I know I need to review the more complex grammar structures and build my vocabulary. I never seem to have all the right words for what I want to say.

Church is still really difficult just because it's several hours of concentrated Biblical German, which I of course did not learn in school. I'm still trying to learn the books of the Bible in German. Some are easy, like "Markus" and "Lukas." Even "Rut" is fairly self-explanatory. But how is an English-speaker supposed to get "James" from "Jakobus"? That one always throws me. Or what about "Offenbarung?" My mind can't seem to connect this with "Revelation," even though that's exactly what the German word means. And I always have to count Genesis through Deuteronomy to decide if the one I'm looking for is 1., 2., 3., 4., or 5. Mose since German assigns each of them a number as a book written by Moses. I'm thinking that I should try to get a German Bible other than the Luther translation I have now because the books of the Bible are in a different order, and I'm continually getting confused. Hebrews (or should I say "Hebräer") always seems to be hiding from me.

I've been able to do a bit of traveling each of the past two weekends. On Sunday, November 5th, I went with Mark, Karen, Stefanie, and Karsten to Braunschweig to worship with the congregation there. After morning services in Bremen, we boarded a train and made the roughly 2 and a half hour trip, only to miss our connection in Hannover because of construction on the tracks. We finally arrived an hour late but still were able to spend the evening with the 7 adults and 2 children that make up this congregation. Jim usually preaches for them on the first Sunday of each month, but since he was in the U.S. with Elsa, Karsten agreed to take his place, and he did a great job. We also shared Abendbrot ("evening bread") with them, and this is something I'm still getting used to. Germans generally don't eat a meal for dinner but instead have rolls with butter and some sort of meat or salad (like egg or potato, not lettuce and carrots) on them. When I ate one part of my roll with only butter, several women looked at me with concern and asked if I had seen the meat farther down the table. I received an even stranger look when I ate bread with nothing on it. I wonder how long my strange behavior will be excused by the fact that I "just arrived in Germany?"

Last Saturday Karen, Ingrid, and I accompanied Stefanie to Hildesheim where she had been invited to speak at a Frauenfrühstück ("women's breakfast"). Stefanie did a wonderful job despite her jitters, and it was good getting to meet some of the women in the Hildesheim congregation. Two of them are Americans, and they invited me and Karen to celebrate Thanksgiving with them. They and the Americans at the congregation in Peine alternate years as hosts, and this year's meal will be in Hildesheim. I don't know yet if we will go, but it was wonderful to receive the invitation from other Americans who are away from friends and family during the holidays.

Another big event of the past week was my appointment at the Ausländeramt to apply for my residency visa. No one was available to go with me, so I was without company for this big adventure. I made my way through the building and to the room where I thought I should go and found myself surrounded by people from what seemed like at least 17 different countries speaking just as many different languages. I noticed a crowd around a desk with a woman behind it, so I followed suit and showed the woman my appointment ticket and was told to have a seat. A few minutes later my number was called to go upstairs to a different room, where I again showed my number and was told to sit down and wait. My number was finally called again, but this time I was to go to a numbered room in a certain hallway. Now, this hallway is no ordinary hallway. You have to press a certain button to enter it, and as you walk down it, all the doors are closed and there is absolutely no sound, making you feel like you're in some sort of horror movie in which something dreadful is about to jump out at you. I finally found Room 152 and cautiously opened the door to be greeted by a rather friendly woman who said, "Hallo, Frau Adams." I sat at her desk, handed her my passport, and she proceeded to cheerfully enter my name into her computer. And that's where her perky demeanor ended. She became rather irritated and tried to tell me something about the Bürger Service-Center and kept repeating the word anmelden. I knew I had seen and heard this word but could not for the life of me figure out its meaning. She spoke very quickly, and even when I asked her to slow down she seemed to think that if she just continued talking I would finally come to understand her. I finally decided that anmelden must mean "to register" (which it does) and that I was supposed to have registered at the service center before coming for my appointment. She also explained that I needed to bring 2 photos of myself (similar to the ones you have to have when you apply for a passport), as well as several other documents I did not have with me at the time. How I was supposed to know these things is beyond me. No one told me when I went to make my appointment that I had to bring these things with me when I came back. And now this woman was upset with me for not having taken care of these things. I finally thanked the woman and left her office feeling rather drained. It was the most frustrating and overwhelming experience I have had here so far. And now, I have to go back at least one more time to take the things I did not have the first time. I can be in the country for 3 months as a tourist with only my passport, so I still have some time, but it was still an all-around frustrating and embarassing experience. As Mark says, though, everything here is a learning experience, and at least now I know what needs to be done and can save Mark and Karen the trouble of going through the same hassle.

There is much more to tell of my experiences so far, but they will have to wait for tomorrow (or rather, later today!) because it is well past my bedtime and I have the meeting for the apartment in, well, about 7 hours. So, I need some sleep. Please know that I appreciate each of you for your love and support. Thanks so much for wading through my blog and my detail-oriented tendencies! I really will try to post more often so the posts aren't so long. I have learned so much so far. Each day teaches me more about the language and culture and about how God is working in my life and in the city of Bremen. Sometimes I'm still surprised to realize that I'm actually here. I want to share all of my experiences with you so you can not only keep up with my life and work here but can also perhaps learn a little about the German culture. I'll try to post some pictures of Bremen as well so you can get a glimpse of the city. Tschüs for now!

Saturday, November 04, 2006

And the search continues....

I know I've only been here for two weeks, but somehow it seems like I should have found an apartment by now.

On Thursday evening Mark and Karen went with me to see an apartment on the street behind theirs, and it was really nice. It's the perfect size for me, and the rent and utilities fit into my budget. Someone even shovels the snow in the winter and cleans the basement. The only problem is that it's being shown by a realtor instead of the owner, and if I choose to rent the apartment I have to pay almost 1000 Euros in fees to the realtor. Besides the fact that I just don't see how I can pay that much for anything right now, it seems silly to me to give someone money when they do nothing but show you around the apartment (and in this case, the person currently renting the apartment was there and she was the one who did most of the work).

I had another appointment yesterday to see an apartment that sounded perfect...until I found out that it was on the eastern side of a park on the eastern side of Bremen, and the bus that goes to that area only runs twice an hour in the daytime on weekdays. Ingrid suggested I also find the schedule for Sundays, which I hadn't thought about, and it turns out the earliest bus on Sunday comes about 8 minutes after church starts. So, that apartment won't work just because it would make it difficult for me to get anywhere. Ingrid even said she's never been to that part of Bremen before, and she's lived here more than 20 years. I wanted to look at it anyway, though, so that I could have something else to compare to other apartments. Each one I see shows me something else I either want or don't want in a place.

Ingrid had an eye appointment yesterday morning, so I went with her in hopes that she would be finished in time to go with me. No such luck. I had to leave before she was finished, but I was confident that I could find the place on my own and that I would appreciate (even if not until later) the learning experience of seeing an apartment on my own. I had my street map and I knew the bus schedule. All I had to do was walk about half a block down the street, get on the streetcar, ride down about 4 or 5 stops, get off, and get on the bus, which was supposed to leave 8 minutes after the streetcar arrived. The map showed the same name for both the bus and the streetcar stop, and the stops were at the same place, so I figured I had more than enough time to make the connection.

As I've learned time and time again here, if it should take 30 minutes to get somewhere, if I allow at least 45 I might get there on time. Well, this was one of those cases. When I got off the streetcar, the signs at the stop showed the streetcar numbers and Bus 21, but I was looking for Bus 20, which was no where to be found. I double-checked my map, and when I was sure the bus should be there at the same place, I crossed the tracks to the stop on the other side and asked a woman there if she knew where Bus 20 stopped. She did not know and suggested that I ask the driver on the next streetcar if he knew where it was. So, when the next streetcar came, I got on and asked the driver, who continued driving down the road in the direction from which I had just come. He gestured over his shoulder and said something about "Marcus," which I took to be the street name, so I thanked him and got off at the next stop.

By this time, about 5 of my 8 minutes had passed, so I took off running back down the street toward where I knew the stop should be. When I got back to the streetcar stop, I asked two girls standing there if they knew where Bus 20 was, and they said it was down the street, around the corner, and down a little ways on Marcusallee. How in the world was I supposed to know this? Especially when the map showed the bus and streetcar going to the same place? So, once again I took off running. I finally found the stop, only to realize I had missed the bus by about 2 minutes. And of course, it wasn't coming again for about 28 minutes, and my appointment to see the apartment was in about 16. I looked at my watch and thought that maybe I could walk there in that time, and again I took off down the street like a mad woman. When I finally arrived at the next stop about 10 minutes later, I realized the whole thing was useless because I still had another 2 or 3 stops to go and then a 5 or 6 minute walk to the apartment from the last bus stop. I already knew I couldn't live there since the bus didn't come very often, so as much as I hated to do it, I gave up and turned around.

To make matters worse I had to call the man who was supposed to show me the apartment to apologize and explain why I didn't show up. Besides all that, I think what frustrated me the most was that I felt like I got nothing accomplished. Mustering the courage to call and schedule the appointment felt like a step ahead, like I was making progress, and even though I had seen several other apartments, not getting to see this one made me feel like I was taking a step backwards. Last Monday I went to an appointment and the person never showed up to show the apartment, and I felt the same way then. I want to keep moving forward, and while I know everything I do here teaches me something, I was still frustrated with myself.

I was determined to do better today. This morning Ingrid, Mark, Karen, and I were supposed to take the bus outside of Bremen to a small town called Oyten to visit Stefanie, and when Ingrid and I stepped out the apartment door, the apartment advertisement pages from today's paper were sitting outside our door. There's an elderly woman who lives downstairs, and I think she brought them for me. We took them along with us on the bus ride, and at Stefanie's this afternoon they all encouraged me to look through the paper and find a place to call. So, I did and found several good prospects, one of which was furnished. They all thought I should call the people today because it would probably be rented quickly, so I got out my script and made the call. I was embarrassed about calling in front of other people, but after I called and made an appointment for this evening, Stefanie told me my German was very good. My first reaction was to say, "What's good about it?" Karen leaned toward me and said, "This is when you say 'Thank you.'" So I said, "Thanks!" and Ingrid and Stefanie laughed at me. It was good to hear, though, that a native speaker thinks my language skills aren't as bad as I think they are.

So, Ingrid and I went to see the furnished apartment this evening, and I had mixed feelings about it. The house it's in is about 150 years old and is gorgeous, and it was definitely good to get to see a furnished place; but, I would still have to provide a few things, and I think in general it's just more space than I need and is also too expensive.

Thus, I still have no apartment, though I do have more prospects to call on Monday. Please pray that I can find a place that will fit my needs and my budget and that will be where God wants me to be. I know there's a place out there for me, and I just need to be patient while I wait to discover it.

Tomorrow after church services, Stefanie, the Abercrombies, and I will take a train to Braunschweig where a small congregation of about 7 people meets on Sunday evenings. Jim usually goes there on the first Sunday of each month to preach for them, but he and Elsa are still in the States for a few more weeks, though we are going anyway to encourage the people there. Also, Stefanie says that Ute, who visited Bremen two weeks ago, has a few household things she wants to give me. Her mother died recently and she's trying to get rid of some of her things. Because we will eat with the people there after the service and then we have to ride the train back to Bremen, it's going to be a very long day and a late night. I think it will be a good day, though, and I look forward to seeing more of Germany and visiting with this tiny group of Christians I've heard so much about.

Then, I get to return to the dreaded hunt for a place to live, though I guess there are worse ways to spend a Monday morning, aren't there? :-)