For starters, I've must confess that I packed 8 huge bags for us to take on the plane (free for military!). Plus two carry-on's, a backpack, a purse, a violin, and a cat. Why? Because I was told that worst case scenario, we wouldn't have any of our household goods (which we shipped in October) for a few months, and I wanted to be prepared for that. Ever wonder what that much luggage looks like going into the airport? Here's a great pic:
Don't ask where Luna is on the stack. I won't tell you. I'm afraid of animal rights activists coming after me. Anywho, we pushed these carts through the Little Rock airport without much trouble, and made it on the plane with time to spare!
Here's a great little side note: did you know that when you go through airport security with a cat, they make you take the cat out of its carrier and hold it while you go through the metal detector? Yep. They say this: "ma'am, you're going to have to take the cat out and hold it and then wait until we call you over." Me: "um, ok....how long?" TSA: doesn't answer--just makes you wait with a terrified, claw-bearing cat in your hands. FINALLY, Luna and I (with minimal scarring) make it through the gate, and she gratefully jumps back into her carrier.
*Uneventful layover in Chicago*
Getting off the plane in Frankfurt: it's 5:45 am, and we haven't slept a wink since 7 am the morning before. So we're in that weird, I'm exhausted and ready to fall on the floor, but totally wired because I'm in a foreign country and don't know what's going on state. Luckily, all of our baggage made it!!! YAY!!!! We happily pulled it all off the belt, and AJ went to get a couple of carts to put it all on. But OH-HO! Germany Lesson #1: airport carts are smaller than American carts. Meaning we need 3 carts to fit all of our stuff! Fine, except there are TWO of us, and these carts require you to push down on the handle before they'll move. And we have to cross 3 terminals to meet our ride. So AJ decides to push two at the same time, and i'll follow behind with the 3rd (and Luna, who is now in a panic--probably because she's hungry, or has to poop, or something....). I love AJ, but to be honest, he's not very good at pushing two huge, luggage-filled carts through a busy, international airport. There are things like people and doors in the way, and he is struggling. I'm trying really hard not to laugh at him, but it's pretty hilarious, and I can't help it. Finally, I take over the two cart thing, and who'da thunk--I'M AWESOME AT IT. I was BORN to be a dog sled driver or something, because I ROCK at maneuvering these carts through the next couple of terminals. *thank you, thank you...*
We meet our driver, and he takes us to the Ramstein Air Base. From there, we go to the hotel to check-in. Here's what it looks like:
Awesome, right?! Except this isn't where we're staying, because we have a cat. And people who have animals don't get to stay in nice places. People with animals get sent to this place:
I wouldn't call it dank, or ugly, or smelly, or old, but for some reason, those are the words that come to mind, so I'll leave it at that :) But seriously, it's nice enough for what we need until we find a house, but the smell really kind of gets to me.....not sure what it is exactly, though I can guess it has something to do with every previous tenant having an animal with them.....?
*quick nap, then a tour of the base with our sponsor, then BED*
Next morning: AJ has to go through in-processing, and I have spouse in-processing. In my in-processing, I learn about things like banking, how to rent a house, German customs, spouse activities, etc., and meet some pretty cool ladies :) I realized really quickly that I basically have NO IDEA what's going on with anything on TWO whole levels--(1) I don't understand the military, much less the air force, and (2) I don't understand Germany. Everyone else in the class understood the military at least, so I was the one that was like "uuuummmm, what does TLA, OCONUS, RIP, etc., etc., mean??"
AJ and I then meet up again to GET STUFF DONE!! Only from this moment on, until this very moment that I am writing you all, "getting stuff done" is easier said than done. Rather than give a detailed explanation of every frustrating moment we've had, I'll summarize in this one paragraph in red. You can choose to skip it if you'd like, or read it to understand our plight:
Before you can do anything, you need a way to get places, and a phone to communicate with people. Oh, you don't have a car or a German driver's license? Better take a test! What? You want to take the test, but you don't have your husband's orders? Better call him and have him bring them to you! What? Neither of you have a phone to call each other? Better email him! What? He doesn't have an internet connection to get emails? Bummer. *finally get driver's licenses* Now you need a car to get places! You found a car, but you need money to buy it--good thing you have money! Except too bad it's in an American bank that will only allow you to withdraw 1,000 Euros a day! Maybe you should open a German bank account! Except you don't have a car to get to that bank, so Bummer. *eventually get car, eventually get it registered* Now to get cell phones! Whoa, whoa, whoa! Can't get cell phones until you have a German bank account! Better get a GPS to find a German bank since you don't have cell phones with map capabilities! *get to the German bank* Whoops! Can't open an account here because we can't speak English! (they tell us in English....) But call this number and set up an appointment to open an account *make appointment for next day* Gotta find a house! Call German strangers (hoping they speak at least some English) to see houses. Drive a million miles to see different houses (using the GPS!). Find a house--now you need to go through the Air Force Housing Office to get the contract approved! *Eventually set up that bank account* Go back to cell phone store, get told that AJ's German credit has not been approved (which is pretty hilarious considering he's been here a week and has no credit....apparently this happens a lot). Try doing the phone contract in my name, but have to wait another day. Still no phones. *go to a million different offices on 2 different bases to get housing contract approved* Now to figure out utilities and internet (which requires quite a few more office visits.....and money......everyone wants our money......).
Suffice to say, we are exhausted. We have been here 11 days, and can only move a few inches at a time. BUT, we do see a light at the end of the tunnel. We're hoping to move into our house as soon as the cell phone situation works out. The reason for this is so that we can have some sort of internet connection and communication capabilities, because guess how long it takes internet to get switched on (even when it's already ready to go--they just need to flip a switch)? Anywhere from 20 days to 3 months. This is not a joke. Or it could be a crazy, heinous joke they play on Americans. I'm not sure. But it's just another one of those hoops to jump through....
So the house--we saw about 9 different places, all very different, and eventually decided this was the perfect fit for us. It's in a little village (but I won't say where for Air Force security reasons--message me if you're interested). It's in the countryside, about 20 minutes from AJ's work. The house was built in 1876, and we're pretty in love with it :) Here are just a couple of pictures--more to come later:
It's definitely got a lot of character to it, and for us, it feels like home :) I'll post more pictures once our household goods arrive, and it's furnished. But finding this house has definitely been a positive highlight for us in a mountain of frustration, so we feel very blessed.
Speaking of blessings--we're making friends! The people in our ward over here are pretty awesome! We've been invited to dinner at a couple of homes, and gone on some fun outings! It makes a huge difference. Last Saturday we went to Lichtenberg castle with 3 other families, and had a blast. Here are some of those pics:
We have a place for Thanksgiving, and a trip to Belgium this weekend. Church = insta-family, and I am very grateful for that. I hope one day we can be that family that reaches out to help the "new kids" :)
Love you and miss you all!
