First day

The flight was great. I never knew it’s possible to have a tablecloth on your tray, be served ice cream, and lie almost completely flat while you drown out the sensory overload with an eye covering and earplugs. Business class is luxurious. Although I did feel like quite the imposter; a guy had to help me load my tray back into its space ship worthy compartment. Anyway, it’s nothing I’m ever going to pay the extra money for myself, but it was nice to have the extra legroom. Thanks Edelmans.

It’s so beautiful! Oh my goodness. The country here is so perfect; it’s quiet, calm, and lovely. I’m sitting in the living room of the apartment we’re staying in, and I can hear birds chirping out the window and the sounds of horses and farm machinery. Driving from Hamburg to Gartow (where we are now) there were hundred of wind turbines creating energy. It seems to be getting big here; Bonnie’s cousin Friet, who is the earl of the schloss, (he’s so young, probably in his early 30s) works in developing alternative energy sources for small businesses. We stopped at a grocery store on the way and picked up the necessary breads, meats, sweets, juices, etc. John and I had a funny moment where the woman was asking us how many bags we had and we both looked at each other in complete confusion until Bonnie rescued us. I feel stupid whenever I go somewhere and people need to adapt to my cultural background instead of accommodating theirs. Oh well. It’s a phenomenon bigger than me.

We had lunch at the schloss with Friet, his younger brother Jasper, and a friend. It was lively conversation about hunting wild boars and bulls of a neglectful neighbor. Needless to say, we’re having a barbeque tonight…just the right time to start eating meat again. The schloss is beautiful. I haven’t seen the whole thing yet, but it just feels so old and full of history. The stairs are lined with paintings of family members dating back to Friet’s great-great-lots of greats grandfather who, in the 1600s, helped the King of Hanover become the King of Britain, and received loads of wealth in return.

This afternoon Olivia and I walked to town while John, Bonnie, and Oscar took naps. We spent about half an hour in a large toy store, without any money (a good plan), and walked the rest of the main street, which consists of a couple restaurants, a bike shop, an appliance store, an ice cream shop, a bank, a pharmacy, and a little gift shop. Very cliché. Oh, I forgot the liquor store, filled with a window of different beer varieties. Exactly like my vision of Germany. It has filled all the stereotypes so far. Then I got to sleep while they all went for a swim at the lake. And now they just got home; I guess it’s time to go barbeque! Auf weidersen!