Photo Dump

Well we've been going a million miles an hour trying to make the most of all this.  Blogging is getting less and less apealing.  Turns out Jay has a fancy schmancy program that makes a musical slideshow of our photos with the click of just one button.  Sooooooo we'll be doing a few photo dump slideshows on Jay's youtube channel.  If you want to see the visual picture of what we're up to just click the links below.  Cheers!

First Weeks in Germany
https://youtu.be/by2UBPgie5Y

Sweden & Denmark

https://youtu.be/sKq5HBgA9NA

Playmobil Fun Park in Nuremberg
https://youtu.be/A5d8Mzm3Gyc

Berchtesgaden & Tegernsee
https://youtu.be/DMWBjT-MAR8

 -Aber & Out

Berries & Beer

We've spent our first few days here doing most of the touristy things because that is what is easy and familiar to us.  The girls have survived on sausages, french fries, and gelato.  With a new circadian rhythm, new environment, and constant air of excitement and exhaustion we are just happy to get calories in them.  We've made the rounds at the Glockenspiel, Viktualienmarkt, Englischer Garten, and Hofbrauhaus.  Riding the trains, buses, and trams has been a bear with the girls.  Having not grown up riding public transport they want to go crazy and run around shrieking excitedly every time we get on.

As I write this is day two of Jay being back at work.  I knew if I didn't dive in head first on day one with the girls I might never get out so we headed to the store to stock up.  We walked to the grocery store, drug store, and bakery.  I came out relatively unscathed even after using a credit card with the mean checkout lady.  Jay called to ask if we could meet him and his new coworkers at the Hofbrau Keller after work so we got in our first solo train ride as well.  No transfers, but I'm just happy we got off at the correct station and found the elevator to the surface.  Eeek!

Today we took the bus!  It was just a short practice ride with the double stroller and we were able to get to our local berry picking patch.  The berry patch is a mommy toddler paradise.  A shaded outdoor play area with logs, water features, and a tricycle track.  We ate and drank all the things and even got strawberry ice cream for the walk home.  I have a feeling we'll be spending many of our days there. 

The parks we have explored so far have been awesome.  So different from what we are used to.  So many of the playgrounds are made of rough logs and integrated into the natural environment.  Every park we go to feels like we are in some kind of magical forest school where kids can explore and play.  There's always some industrial element such as a pulley and chute setup for rocks or water pump and loch system.  The kids naturally organize and set to work, Rose typically acting as the foreman.  Rose had a particularly fun time yesterday playing in a tree fort with about five nine year old girls.  She thought she was really something and the older girls loved listening to her English and trying to teach her German words.  Definitely all we had hoped for and more! - Aber & Out

Roses & Thorns

A few unexpected roses from our first couple of days in Munich:

~That free wine on international flights.

~There are actual roses and a yard.

~The toilet paper here is so thick.  It's like wiping with a paper towel.

~An entire extra toilet in our rental that was not advertised!

~Someone left a decent bike with a lock here.  We were planning on buying a used one for Jay to ride to work so we saved a few bucks.

Jay's sweet freebie bike.

~A weekly visit from a cleaning person is included in our rental...also not advertised.  Holy. Crap.

~No screens on the windows and also no mosquitos.

~There's a balcony off of each bedroom.

~This kids chair that I've always wanted back home.

~Many people are wearing joggers out of the house here.

Some minor thorns:

~There is a church directly across the street that dings and dongs like the city is on fire right into our open windows at noon and 3 just in time for naps.  There is minor dinging and donging at all other hours.  Closing the windows and baking alive with no a/c is not an option.

~They are shutting down the main train stops from our house to downtown every weekend in August for maintenance.  This means a wierd bus route and no chance for me to practice using the train with Jay on the weekends for my solo trips with the girls on the week days.

~Our train stop and all of our destinations so far have not exactly been ADA accesible as we anticipated.  Lifting the stroller in has been a two person job...another thing I'm not looking forward to doing solo.

~Our tablet does not lend itself to formatting blog posts well.

~I was inches away from bringing my Adidas classic tennis shoes and one people watching trip on the train made it clear that I most definitely should have.

Sorry if that Poison song is stuck in your head for the rest of the day.  - Aber & Out

Landed

We are on German soil.  The flight went remarkably well compared to previous flights.  No major melt downs, only a little crying.  The girls slept a grand total of one stinking hour so there was lots of uncomfortable rocking and singing to keep everyone happy but it worked and we survived the international flight.  The most yelling might have come from Jay when they informed us that they had split up our seats for the flight to munich and we would have to sit separately for 8 hours.  Glad all that is behind us now.

I had forgotten about the free wine on international flights.

As I sit here on night two reflecting on the past 36 hours I am happy with what we've accomplished so far.  Despite some wicked exhaustion and a little anxiety induced IBS I think things are going to be just fine.  Our first order of business after landing, getting to our place, and taking a nap was to have our first meal...doner kebab.  Wierd to come all the way to Germany for Turkish food, but it's what we have been looking forward to the most.  We plan on eating doners for dinner at least once a week.  We took the train downtown to a higher rated kebab shop and Jay went in to order.  I found a table outside and was immediately approached by a nice German lady whom I did not understand but gathered she wanted to sit at our table so I obliged.

Our new friend Sabina who used to work at Andres!

First of many gellato stops.

Waiting for the train.

First German meal.

Some familiar snacks.

Wouldn't you know she was thrilled to find we were americans and went on tell us that she lived in Overland Park and worked at Andres in the eighties!  She knows the whole Swiss crew and how to make all those delicious treats!  We remenisced about the Plaza and downtown and then she gave us the DL on some inside spots in Munich.  Such a happy chance meeting on night one that left us feeling welcome and at home.  

Night one was a doozey and the four of us were up partying at 2 am.  The girls have been unruly little monsters as they adjust.  We're trying to take things slow and decided to limit our day two outings to Aldi and the Hofbrau Keller.  The food here is so cheap compared to our usual so I'll be living off of the two dollar blocks of brie and fifty cent balls of fresh mozzerella.  Good thing we're doing a lot of walking.  My feet already hurt as they are getting broken in to a new standard of use.  There was a playground at the beer garden where we got our first chance to take a breath and soak in our new reality over beer, pretzel, and dumplings.  I'm excited to go to sleep tonight and hopefully wake up a little bit fresher every day.  Sunday will be spent at home unpacking and organizing our half of the "Double House Rose". - Aber & Out

Operation Deutschland

It's been seven years since our first sabbatical and you know what that means!  It's time to embark on another adventure.  This time with two toddlers in tow.  We swore we'd never take our kids on a European vacation until they were old enough to understand some history and wipe their own butts.  Well, we got the itch and found a way to make a long haul trip to Europe work.  We'll be living in Germany for three months while Jay works remotely from his company's office in Munich.  We'll have plenty of time to get over the jet lag and explore at a toddlers pace so it will all be worth it right?  We've got big plans and we're optimistic.

Jay's company has graciously allowed him to work remotely for this time period.  He's working hard to make it a smooth transition and continue to be a rock star engineer so they might let us do it again in the future.  I'm thinking the Aukland, NZ office could be stellar!  

We've been planning and researching our butts off and the number of spreadsheets created for "Operation Deutschland" is a little obscene but not surprising for us.  As we prepare for the trip we've been saving our pennies and churning all the flight mile credit cards we can so we can all fly free.  We were shocked at the monthly Airbnb rental prices in Munich but were able to secure a duplex (with a yard!) in Boggenhausen.  We desperately wanted to get the girls into a German speaking preschool or daycare but have had no lucking finding one with spaces open for us.  There are still a few things to check off our to do list but with passports in hand and flights booked we are feeling good.

We'll have several rounds of friends and family coming to visit.  We plan to travel regionally in Bavaria and to a few major European cities while there.  I have no idea how I'm going to manage the subways with two kids and a stroller but copious amounts of beer and bretzel should help.  I'll be spending the next few months brushing up on my non existent German language skills so that I can navigate the bakery and beer garden at the very least!  Stay tuned.

Aber & Out