Authentic

Authentic, that is what Amy and I made the super bowl party we attended at midnight Sunday night. Apparently. The formula for this "authenticity" included nachos (without salsa or guacamole), popcorn (salted, not sweet...the Germans weren't all that certain about that decision), corn bread, and our combined knowledge of the rules of football. ha. I was a "football expert." for a night. In Germany.

A good friend of Thomas' is (for reasons still unknown to me) a big fan of all American sports. He follows all of them much more avidly than I do. It is somewhat astounding to me how much he knows, actually. So, anyway, Stefan informed me that he and a few others would be watching the Super Bowl and I was welcome to join them if I wanted. After weeks of thinking that I would be not watching the Super Bowl for the first time in my life, I was overjoyed and, surprisingly, willing to begin watching the game at midnight! Amy of course wanted to join, and I told Stefan that we would bring some "Super Bowl appropriate food" (much to his delight!) We only stayed for the first half (and until Amy and I stopped singing along with Journey at the top of our lungs) and here are my observations:

First of all, I love nothing more than watching the confusion/discomfort of Germans when I tell them that you eat nachos with your hands. In a country where everyone eats pizza with knife and fork, nachos are a strange concept. (all Mexican food is very very foreign to them, much to my dismay) I think it is hilarious.

Secondly, I never realized how complicated football was until I explained it to a bunch of people who have never ever been exposed to it (even a little bit).

Along those lines, explaining how you play football and all of the rules in German makes it that much more complicated. 

I don't think I have ever watched a football game in which more fuss was made over the tackles than the plays.

The Super Bowl feels just like a regular football game without the commercials. I missed the commercials.

I really enjoyed my evening of American Football with the Germans (many of them were quite disppointed to learn that it was the last game of the season...I think we did a good job of creating a few football fans) As usual, this new cultural encounter left me laughing hysterically and once more thankful for this place where I am, people who I am blessed to know, and all the experiences that I am blessed to have. 

As always, I send my love. I carry you all in my heart and miss you daily. ~love~

Christmas in Pictures part 2

now on to the exciting second installment of my wildly popular previous post: Christmas in Pictures part 1!

The Schulze family's Christmas tree - they cut the top off of one of the trees in their yard this year - I found that pretty impressive. Apparently they used to use real candles on their trees, but with their two cats, the danger outweighs the allure of ambiance and tradition. (an understandable trade) Also, this nativity scene belonged to Thomas' grandparents and was made shortly after World War Two - very cool.

We set our gifts under the tree on the day of the 24 and opened them that night (Heiligabend - holy evening) after Thomas and I went to the Christmas concert at church and we ate dinner all together. Thomas' mother rang a bell, and we all hugged one another and wished one another a merry Christmas, then everyone opened presents all together. It was definitely different, but interesting and fun to celebrate German Christmas. For the record, I saved my stocking for Christmas morning and opened it with Thomas before we went down for family breakfast - so I got the best of both worlds, which was fun. 

This little scene was set up in Schluchsee and added a lovely festive air to our afternoon walk. Thomas was sick (with what we now presume to be mon0) so I went for a walk with his parents around Schluchsee. Despite the bitterly cold wind, it was a beautiful day! (and of course I always enjoy seeing such a blue sky!)

Christmas morning we woke up to a couple centimeters of snow which really freshened everything up. Being so high up in the mountains, there was naturally a lot of snow there, but much of it had melted before we arrived due to a few days of warm weather then a few days of rain. The light dusting of snow made my dreams of a white Christmas come true!

The view of Schluchsee from a tower atop a mountain above town is just breathtaking. We hiked up there one day and I captured this beautiful picture of part of the town and the lake - what a charming getaway! (See is the German word for lake, just fyi)

So, there it is...a short photo-journal of my Christmas away from home. It was much quieter than I am used to, but really restful and wonderful. I love and miss you all, thanks for your prayers and support through the holiday season! ~love~

Christmas in Pictures part 1

If I were as fun and cute as Calli, I would have sent you all Christmas cards this year. However, I am not quite so on the ball (as I think you are all pretty well aware...) So, here you are, folks, my Christmas card blog post.

Amy and I are all about the self-portrait (and traveling together, and just generally being together) so here is a picture of us at the ice-skating rink outside of the Karlsruhe mall one cold December evening. Luckily we are sufficiently bundled, and quite cheerful - infected with the highly contagious holiday spirit that comes along with the Christmas market, ice skating rink, and festive lights all around town. 

I discovered that getting pictures of the Christmas Market is quite difficult, but here is the best I have to offer you all. The market is made up of a lot of little stands (like the one behind Amy) where they sell all sorts of goods (of varying quality) and of course food and Glühwein (hot spiced wine, perfect for keeping warm in this chilly weather) A little tip that Amy found out the hard way: don't get the German version of egg nog, unless you actually enjoy the taste of raw eggs in a thick, hot drink. Once sip and I just about tossed my cookies! 

On this particular night, a brass band was playing Christmas carols from this balcony above the Christmas market - it was so festive and just wonderful. I am definitely a fan of this German tradition.

Now on to Schluchsee - This is Thomas' family home where we spent almost a week for Christmas. Located in a beautiful tourist town in the mountains of the black forest (click on the link, if you go to the bottom, and click on fotogalerie, there are pictures you can scroll through, if you are curious - I know the site is in German, they don't have an English version, sorry!) Anyway, Thomas' family was so kind, generous and accomodating, it was really the best Christmas away from home I could have hoped for. They were especially great about making sure that I had enough gluten free food - I was so blessed by their generosity and hospitality!

The week in Schluchsee was a lot of fun and gave me a chance to meet a few of Thomas' friends from high school. It was fun to get a look at his life and his childhood by being with his family in his hometown and getting to know his friends (and seeing old pictures!) I would like to add in regards to this picture, that Germans (maybe Europeans in general) have a thing about not smiling in pictures...I have no idea why. I promise that Thomas is a very happy person who laughs and smiles all the time (and makes me double over in laughter every day!) but this is the closest I got to a picture of the two of us in which he is almost smiling - intercultural relationships are such fun! This picture was taken on the mountan overlooking Freiburg (the closest city to Schluchsee) where we took a day trip one day. 

My NEW new year's resolution

So, normally I'm not really one for new year's resolutions - its just too depressing to think about all the things people resolve to do and then give up on after a few days/weeks/months. I've always thought that a constant sense of seeking to grow is preferable to a specific day of the year when everything is suddenly supposed to change. Anyway, I threw that out of the window this year (well, sort of, I still stand by my philosophy) after having two conversations in short succession with Thomas and Amy about my difficulty with punctuality. So, I bravely announced to Thomas (Amy was in England, so I had to wait to tell her...) that I was resolving to work on being more punctual. And, for the record, I have done rather well thus-far.

Fast forward 3 days and you have my new new years resolution: to not end up in the hospital anymore. Yep, here you go. Here is the story of how I spent 10 days in 2 different hospitals in Germany...aka, how I was barely able to spend time with my good friend who came all the way here to visit me...aka, how I spent my boyfriend's birthday in the emergency room...aka, how to improve your working vocabulary of German medical terms. 

It all started 2 days after Shawn got here for a lovely visit. The day he arrived we took it pretty easy, just walked around Karlsruhe a bit. The second day we enjoyed the only Christmas market still open in the area (a Christmas and New Year's market...quite convienent). That night I was freezing. Looking back, I must have had a pretty high fever, regardless, the next morning I woke up completely miserable: sore throat, high fever, aching skin and bones, headache...yuck. So, Shawn bravely set off to see a bit of Karlsruhe on his own. The next day I was even worse - Shawn went to Heidelberg with my friend Jonathan and we ate new year's eve dinner with my Italian friend (I think I may want to celebrate every new year's the Italian way...the food was just to die for!) . The next day, I was maybe a bit better, but my eyes and neck had somehow become a bit swollen - Shawn and Jonathan went to an art museum here. I resolved to get better because the next day was the much anticipated day of our trip to Berlin - my very favorite place! (ok, honestly, it has dropped in the running a little bit, partly because of the problems with their hospital system, but I still love Berlin)

I got up feeling good - I hadn't had a fever in a little while and my sore throat was gone. I was convinced I was on the up and up. Thomas, however, insisted that if I did come to Berlin, we would go straight to a doctor there before it was the weekend and too late. We arrived in Berlin, went to the doctor and I learned I had a double ear-infection. Lovely. We got my antibiotics, pain medication and were on our way (and I felt much better to know that I had an infection and just needed some antibiotics) We saw the Brandenburg Gate, Reichstag and walked down Unter den Linden that night, enjoyed a traditional German dinner, and arrived in the hostel frozen through and through (did I mention that Germany is having the coldest winter in 100 years...sounds like my first winter in Boston, lucky me!).

 After warming up and sleeping, I woke up and took medicine for a pending migraine the next morning. I was feeling good and ready to go. We visited the Holocaust memorial and the accompanying museum, went to Checkpoint Charlie, and were dazzled by the goods in the KaDeWe (Berlin's equivalent of Harrods in London) 

We went back to the hostel for a nap before Thomas' birthday dinner and when I woke up, I knew something was wrong. Really wrong. Things were not getting better, they were getting worse. After talking for a long time, we decided the wisest thing to do was to go to the hospital (they definitely talked me into that...and I am so thankful they did) We took a taxi to the hospital where of course we spent a really long time sitting around waiting for doctors. I met with the first doctor, explained everything that hurt, and he decided that the most important/worrisome thing was my head (I tried to explain that headaches are pretty normal for me, but he was convinced I needed to see a neurologist) So, he drew some blood for tests then left us to wait 2.5 hours for the neurologist who then proceeded to tell me that there was absoulutely nothing wrong with me besides an ear/sinus infection. (she recommended that I go see an allergy specialist since she was fairly certain my infections could be allergic reactions of some sort) I of course started bawling (always the first sign that I am actually really sick...) She got my papers and was about to send us on our way when Thomas (my hero) asked if anything showed up in the bloodwork. She went to go check and came back and sheepishly explained that something did in fact show up in my bloodwork and that I was probably going to have to stay the night (convienent, since it was already well past midnight) So, I met with another doctor who told me that my blood indicated that there was something wrong with my liver and that they were going to admit me to the hospital. I got a room and Thomas and Shawn finally got to go back to the hostel to sleep. Without going into details, (haha, well, as many as I could) the hospital in Berlin was not great. I didn't see a doctor or a nurse until at least 3pm the next day, I couldn't get anything to eat (gluten free was too tricky) and when I finally did see a doctor, every one told me something different. We decided to sign out (against doctor's advice...I feel like such a rebel) and go home with the train tickets that we had already bought for our return trip to Karlsruhe. So, I left Berlin with a yellow-ish, pale, very swollen face (not to mention very swollen liver and spleen) please note: I chose the smiling picture to post on the internet, even though I wasn't all that happy (well, I was actually very happy to be going back to Karlsruhe) because even though I looked horrible all through my illness, who willingly puts really really horrible, ugly pictures of themselves up on the internet for all to see? well, not I. (you all are lucky you got even one...)

After making it to Karlsruhe, everything was much less complicated and a lot better. Thomas brought my computer so I was able to watch movies (in between my long naps), I got my cell phone charger so I could talk to my poor, worried mother, I got much better care, and I got lots and lots and lots of visitors. (actually, I'm kinda surprised they didn't hurry everything along a little more for me in the hospital...I think they got a little tired of me having dozens of visitors every day...well, dozens, or, like 3. or 6)

So, for the first 2 or 3 days in the hospital in Karlsruhe, before they had definitively diagnosed me with mono, they wanted to make sure that it wasn't anything really really contagious, so all of my visitors (doctors, nurses, cleaning ladies, everyone) came in looking a little like Thomas in this picture! Masks, gloves and gowns, but at least I could still have visitors! Luckily there were only a few days of this, and I do appreciate the caution that they took. (although for Thomas, who had been with me every step of the way, I did find it kinda hilarous and a little over the top...if I was that dangerous, they might as well have just set him up in a bed next to mine!)

In a few days they informed me that I definitely have mono (German: Pfeiffersches Drüsenfieber) which I had pretty much known since Berlin (thats what they thought there too) I also was informed (thanks to Thomas' internet research) that I belong to the approximately 5% of people who react really really badly to mono (figures, right?) and that I probably got it from Thomas who probably had it over Christmas (he had all the symptoms, they were just mild) After I was diagnosed, it was just a waiting game (of a week!) until my liver and spleen showed enough improvement (they are still swollen, I have to go get blood drawn again tomorrow, lucky me!) and until my fever went away. I had on and off fever for at least 2 weeks, with temperatures reaching rediculous levels (104 and probably a little beyond) but after I started receiving daily infusions of fluids and regular doses of medicine, my body was finally able to normalize a little and I was allowed to come home on Tuesday. To welcome me home, Thomas got me these beautiful tulips (my favorite! he got lucky on that guess-he handed them to me sheepishly and said, here, I got you flowers, I have no idea what kind they are, I've never bought anyone flowers before...which of course made me laugh a lot)

So, the moral of this (very very long) story is: I resolve to not go back to the hospital in 2009. In order to do that, I need to actually follow the doctor's orders and lay low for at least another week (meaning no classes, not a lot of walking around - ha, like that's easy in Germany with no car, and not doing anything too strenuous) My appetite has returned (thank goodness) and I need to continue to drink a lot of liquids to make sure my fever doesn't return. Thank you all for all of your prayers, love, and messages...I am overwhelmingly blessed, even from afar. And now with all of this time in which I am not going to be doing anything strenuous, I will post soon pictures and stories of Christmas - a much happier theme! I hope this helps you all understand and feel a little more in the loop. Take heart in the knowledge that I have so many good friends here looking out for me, I can hardly believe it. Also, I was fortunate to recieve really great care at the hospital here - all of the nurses were simply fabulous and my doctor was kind, patient and understand. I am so thankful that I received such great care. I love and miss you all, and I apologize for the worry that I caused you all! ~love~

Merry Christmas

Well, a post with pictures and detailed summaries will have to wait awhile until I am back in Karlsruhe with my computer and my camera cord and such, but I want to write you all and tell you how much I truly love and miss you all. I think as far as "Christmas without your family" I may be the luckiest person ever. I am currently staying in a condo in the Black Forest of Germany. Thomas' mother manages vacation condos in the small tourist town of Schluchsee (not to far from Tittisee, which you may have heard of...) and so I have a comfortable bed, kitchen, living room and bathroom here and it is simply wonderful! We have hiked a fair amount and seen the breathtaking beauty of the Schwarzwald - I cannot tell you how happy I am to be in the mountains with snow!

Anyway, all that is to reassure you all that I am safe and warm and happy this Christmas. However, being away from family also provides a unique perspective of just how thankful I am for my family and 23 years of being "home for Christmas". I couldn't ask for a better family or a better support system than the network of people who have raised me into the person I am today. Thank you. I love you all so dearly.

Giving Thanks, International Style

At last - the story of Europahaus Thanksgivng (aka: how Bekah and Amy, with the help of a few others, cooked Thanksgiving dinner for 35-40 people) Months ago Amy, Jonathan and I began discussing Thanksgiving and how much we really wanted to celebrate here properly, not just with Americans, but with the people here who have become our European family. Now, that is pretty enough in a theoretical sense...I mean, Thanksgiving is a holiday about friends and family, generosity and thankfulness. The logistics of such a fest, are something entirely different, however. Luckily Amy and I are quite laid back and "go with the flow" kind of people - open to experimentation and mistakes. We began the night before with baking - pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, cookies, and cake. 10 am on Saturday morning we began the "real deal" cooking - more pumpkin bread, a 5kg turkey, 2 turkey breasts, mashed potatoes, and sweet potatoes. Unfortunately, neither of us had ever in our lives cooked a whole turkey ... needless to say, we were a little nervous: 

Clearly, I was a little nervous. To ease the tension, we named the turkey: it was much easier to work with Marv than with a rather intimidating mass of raw flesh and bones. (at least from my perspective) At this point of the day we made the executive decision to serve sloppy joes if the turkey flopped. We also comforted ourselves with the knowledge that most all of the people who celebrated with us  had ever celebrated Thanksgiving and thus had absoultely no idea what everything was supposed to taste like.

Marv nestled in his lovely home...stuffed and laying on a bed of vegetables (aka: just before the point of no return) Note the smiles on our faces: one part hopeful joy, the other part sheer terror! At this point we still had two more turkey breasts to cook (and had no idea how we were going to cook them) We ended up getting a little creative and making an orange-turkey breast and one with lots of vegetables. I would like to say that we pulled off everything flawlessly on our own, but that would be a gross exaggeration: without the help of Cindy (of course - her middle name is Save Bekah's Life Whenever Possible!) Sophie, and our Italian friend Giorgio no one would have eaten mashed potatoes or gravy...the were the 11th hour heroes! Also, Vicki, Melissa, and Justina did all of the decorations: what amazing friends we have!

Somehow, everything really turned out. Jonathan made chicken, sweet ham and apple pies, some people brought salad, some dessert, some drinks...it was an incredible group feast. We talked a little about why we celebrate Thanksgiving (origins, traditions, etc) and thanked everyone for being there...once everyone started eating, I finally started breathing again! Thomas was kind enough to stick by in the flurry and make sure that, in spite of my excitement, I ate something. 

I cannot even begin to describe to you the overwhelming number of compliments we recieved, or the joy that I felt in being able to share such a meal with so many of my good friends here. A friend lived in the US for a summer and lost like 15-20 pounds because he didn't like the food, but went back for 6 plates of food - we restored his hope in American cooking. The family of one of our good friends was in town and they joined us for the celebration - the entire night was just a shower of praise from them: how none of the French stereotypes about Americans seem to ring true with us, that they were so impressed by our work, generosity, cooking, and mostly the amazing community that we were able to gather. I had at least 5 people ask me for the pumpkin bread recipe (which everyone here is convinced is actually cake...) The list goes on. My thankful heart grew at least 10 sizes that day

Our smiles of terror turned to smiles of disbelief, relief, and sheer joy by the end of the night. I could not ask for a better person to do all of this with...and I still can't believe we pulled it off!

My Europahaus (and Karlsruhe) family...most of the group was still there when we took this picture (although a few had to leave a little earlier) I am so thankful. So blessed. ~love~

Confessions of a Delinquent Blogger

My faithful readers:

I am a delinquent blogger...you wouldn't believe the backlog of half-written blogs that are clogging up my thoughts, and yet, I cannot seem to find the time to upload the pictures and write them. Subsequently I have two thoughts/hopes: 1. that you all are just as busy as I am in this crazy time of year and aren't checking my blog that regularly 2. that you all will overlook this delinquency and continue reading my blog as soon as I continue writing in it! 

To tide you all over (because of course I am on my way out the door to go to lunch then go see Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carole" at the Jakobus Theater here in Karlsruhe...so cultured, I know) I would like to fill you in on some of the intricacies of cultural differences that I encounter daily. Today's lesson is about food. The following are two actual conversations that have taken place within the last week or so (translated, of course, for your convience)

Incident #1:

(setting: the train, approximately 6:30pm)

Thomas: I'm hungry

Me: Me too...maybe we should eat some dinner

Thomas: Ok, well, what are we going to eat?

Me: Well, we could make pasta, or chicken stir-fry.

Thomas: But I've already eaten warm today.

Me: You are so German!

Thomas: Well, why do you think Americans have an obesity problem?

Me: I'm pretty sure it has nothing whatsoever to do with the temperature of the food.

Thomas: Well, I guess you're right, but I still already ate warm today.

Me: (laugh and roll eyeballs)

Incident #2

Me: Thomas, what are you doing for lunch?

Thomas: I don't have plans. Lets eat together. But I don't have any food.

Me: Well, I have lunchmeat and cheese.

Thomas: Oh, well, I do too. And I have tomatoes and mozarella.

Me: Mmm...sounds good to me.

Thomas: But thats all breakfast food. 

Me: (rolling eyeballs) You are so German.

I am so not even exaggerating these conversations. They happened (more or less) exactly as here replicated. Germas are so funny about their food. Who cares how many times you eat warm in a day? Who cares when you eat warm in a day? (here its mostly midday, then something cold in the evening) Also, since when is salad, lunchmeat and cheese only for breakfast? I tell you what, these Germans are crazy! As much as I am blending in here more and more, I just can't break myself of my "American" conceptions of food and meals...and thats okay with me! 

More to come, I promise! ~love~