At the suggestion of ze Blademan, i’m just copy pasting up a coupla emails. Nothing much has happened since these, as i’ve spent the last few days in bed with the flu. Fun times people!
I’m still feeling sick as a dog atm, so formatting and pics are gonna be missing (i’ll get back to it later). Most pics related to emails are up on FB, otherwise i’ve got a currently identical photodump on google.
Munich, stayed there 3 nights
https://picasaweb.google.com/109517742522365610696/Munich?authkey=Gv1sRgCLbRueby3v-Pcw
Augsburg where i’ll be working
https://picasaweb.google.com/109517742522365610696/Augsburg?authkey=Gv1sRgCL-v9_r6kKLh8wE
COPY AND PASTE JOB GO NOW!
Mail 1:
As some of you have heard, my plane(s) did not explode in a giant fireball as it did in my dream the night before leaving Sydney. To the contrary, the journey had practically no hiccups at all. The windy weather in Sydney meant I was required to make a mad dash across the terminals at Melbourne (the Freq Flyer flight meant I went Sydney -> Melbourne -> Hong Kong -> London -> Munich) but made it with a couple of minutes to spare.
The first leg was taken up by listening to the Blues get thumped in Origin on the radio, much to the pleasure of the kiwi next to me. I then took a sleeping tablet for the Mel-Hong Kong leg which (as Colleen promised) kept me in a very relaxed state and I slept for the majority of it. It was only on the next part of the journey where the realisation of how bloody far from home I’d be working finally set in and I got my first taste of homesickness. While the fact I know bugger all German is still a major concern for me, I realise now homesickness is the first real hurdle.
Some final notes on the flight:
[FONT=Calibri]- [/FONT]Despite most people’s thoughts on airline food, I really enjoyed the Qantas food, and managed to have seconds for a couple of the meals (think I had 5 separate meals across the flights)
[FONT=Calibri]- [/FONT]The check in guy at Sydney must have been off his rocker thinking it was strange I’d booked the seat in the exit isle for the Mel-London stint. He tried to convince me the narrow seats in that isle on the 747 meant I’d be much more comfortable moving somewhere else if I could. But I thoroughly exploited the unlimited leg room and ability to get up any time I wanted without disturbing people, and didn’t notice it being cramped.
Even the trip from Munich airport to the hotel was hassle free, though I think this came more down to luck than anything else. I’d planned my packing and Australian affairs rather meticulously, if I do say so myself, however I’d left everything beyond that to “we’ll cross that bridge when we get there”. Getting off at Munich airport and being confronted with German signs that didn’t always have the English translation made me desperately wish I’d planned to do more than just wing it. Opting for a 45 min train ride without a station map and only a vague idea of where I wanted to get off did not help my nerves. Amazingly, the 10 or so words I jotted down on the back of my travel itinerary proved to be sufficient in getting me to the Art Hotel. Unsurprisingly, my first request of reception was a map so I knew where the hell I actually was.
The trip ended with me crashing at 8.30pm and not getting back up til 8 this morning. The buffet breakfast is great and very European (I’m assuming anyway). Lots of breads, cheeses and meats, as well as plenty of fruit and solid coffee. I tried but failed to get into contact with the Immigration department in Augsburg (I need to pick up my work visa) and after a short chat with HR I realise I’m not completely out of the woods yet with getting work sorted. It seems I won’t be starting work at least until the 18th, which is fine by me as I can hopefully use the free week to go have a look at some flats.
I spent a couple of hours wandering through the city centre. Being my first time in Europe, I’m left staggered by almost every old building I come across. No doubt the Marinplatz and Odeonsplatz are definite highlights, the latter not only for the architecture but also because Lamborghini had a display of 5 classics along with the brand new Aventador. However, I didn’t take my camera with me on my first outing so I don’t have anything to show sadly. Tomorrow I’m going to make larger inroads into the Englischer Garten, which is slightly larger than New York’s Central Park. I only touched the southern end of it before turning around, but it looked stunning. It also made me realise there are buskers (such as those in Sydney), and then there are BUSKERS. I first came across a 3 piece band (guitar, box drum and cello) which I thought were fantastic, but these were then trumped by 2 opera singers and a piano.
And that’s about it, hopefully my ranting made for at least semi-decent reading. For the coming weekend I’m expecting I’ll be keeping it pretty quiet. The great thing about moving here rather than just holidaying is I don’t feel compelled to pack stuff into every minute of the day. My head’s still fuzzy at the moment so I’m spending time just acclimatising and trying to work out what will be happening next.
============================================
Mail 2:
Hallo alle!
What the German actually refers to - my residency in Germany has been approved! Along with that I’ve now got my Niederlassungserlaubnis (residence permit) plastered in my passport, letting me live in Deutschland for as long as I want… BAM! And no, I can’t say those words, at least not quickly. The Deutsch love to stick words together, which is going to take a very long time to get used to. Itsbadenough when people do that in English! Also no (specifically for mum), I don’t ACTUALLY intend to stay here forever, but I could if I wanted to… which I don’t… yet!
Stepping back a bit, the fact I’ve got my permit also means I survived the trip to Augsburg. The first few days in Munich were a Godsend, as organising the train and tram to the hostel was a lot easier the second time. Had I tried going from the airport straight here, I would have been stressed out of my mind (even more so)! The train ride itself isn’t bad at all, taking a little less than 45 minutes, and was sped along by talking to a very nice lady who was heading to Augsburg visiting relatives. Given how nice and lively it is in Munich (at least the central area, can’t say I’ve seen a lot of the city), I can easily see why people choose to make the trip daily.
Having said that, Augsburg appears to be a very lovely place, if not a fair bit quieter (though it is now a weekday). I haven’t seen a great deal but what I have seen is as picturesque as it gets. Narrow cobblestone roads make almost every laneway worthy of a picture, although the bubbly stone mixed with tram lines look to create havoc for motorbikes (of which there are many… scooters at least). While the central area appears quasi-touristy, this would appear to only be for the benefit of other Germans visiting the area. For a point of fact, here’s the sign posted outside St. Ulrich’s church (gotta hand it to the Renaissance, they knew what they were doing when it came to churches):
[CENTER][CENTER][/CENTER]
[/CENTER]
There isn’t a scrap of English anywhere (not that Munich was much better) and the people in the few shops I went in on the main street spoke no English either, though I still managed to end up with a tasty pizza!
Depending how time goes tomorrow, I’ll try to move further away from the city centre to find a park or two. After spending 5 or so hours in English gardens last week I’ve got the urge to get away from the cement and stone and breathe the free air again (LOTR reference, another BAM!). Why I may NOT get around to doing that is while I very much want to do touristy walks and jazz, I’m also acutely aware of what I haven’t got prepared for working here. I still need tax info (which I could live without) and a bank account (which I can’t), and I can’t get that until I have a permanent place to live. I’ve talked to one real estate agent who seems to have semi-pricey stuff, but might do for a few months to make the transition less stressful. I’ve also been enquiring about a few places on a German website which lets me talk directly with owners. The up-side – people seem to advertise stuff cheaper, and it saves me possibly paying several hundred Euros in commission. The down-side – it’s all in Deutsch and I can’t tell if people are running scams or that’s just the price of things around here. Still, I’ve been in contact with one person who’ll set me up ridiculously nicely on the main street (fully furnished 2 bedroom) and as long as I’m not just getting scammed outta 800 euro (2 mths rent straight up), I’ll be laughing!
I’m breaking the little flow my email had as thoughts pop into my head (i’ve been writing in parts), but I’m not going to bother trying to mend it and instead just make a small note about the hostel. It’s very plain, but I’ve got a nice view of an old apartment block/hotel (I don’t actually know what it is) which sits across a small waterway. However I am finding it more like a cheap hotel for large groups rather than a hostel for lone backpackers, which is a little different to what I expected. The only people I’ve seen are in groups of 6 or more, and there’s no option to use the kitchen for personal meals, so I’ll be eating out for the next week. However, as I am more or less in work mode (focussed on sorting myself out asap) I haven’t made much effort to find other singles, and am glad I’ve got a room to myself. Assuming I’m not in my own apartment by the end of the week (seems highly unlikely) I’ll be moving to the other hostel in town, where I know for a fact I will be able to cook (that is not to say that I have cooking ability).
While I’ve hardly been adventurous, I am still amazed I haven’t been struck by any major disasters. I can only attribute this to me taking everything I do very slowly, coupled with my standard massive amount of paranoia. Having now said this, I am convinced the place I am hoping to rent is actually property of a drug lord/scheduled for demolition/has a leaking gas line. If there’s news of an Australian killed in an explosion in a small German town, I’d like my remains to be brought back home please!
The only things to have gone wrong so far are the development of some rather painful cold sores (now almost under control) and getting smacked around by flu, which first appeared the last day and a half of Munich, and kicked into high gear the night I got to Augsburg (causing me to sleep for 10 hours). Codoral has kept me soldiering on (immigration took 4 hours, walking around town was another 4) but now my body has really had enough so it’ll be a quiet night (though I plan to get dinner, which I missed yesty) and a late start tomorrow. However, planning to have an early night and actually having one are difficult atm. My body is still tuned in to the early Aussie winter sun-down. This is a view out of my room at 8.30pm…
[CENTER][CENTER][/CENTER]
[/CENTER]
It’s still light til around 9, and the Sun’s back up sometime around 6 I think. So by the time I think I should get dinner, it’s generally been around 10pm.
As a few people have heard on skype (a grand total of 2 people, for shame the rest!) the Germans are very literal in their language. Much like the translated comedies article I sent to some ppl (haven’t had a chance to find it again, friggin hilarious), they take a no-nonsense approach to sickness. The lady in the Apotheke was very confused when I said I needed ointment for cold sores. When she realised I was talking about “blisters on the mouth”, she said “ahhh, you have Lippenherpes”… I am very much in favour of calling them cold sores and am making it my mission that at least a few Germans are saying “kalt schmerzhaft” by the time I’m done in this country.
Lastly I’ll leave you with a picture which I won’t subject the rest of the world to…
[CENTER][CENTER][/CENTER]
[/CENTER]
While neither yours truly shirtless nor a shower make for great photography, I just wanted to point out I believe this to be the first shower I’ve been in where there is zero risk I will smack into the shower head (at least since I’ve been fully grown). At its max position along the rail it’s probably a foot above my head. While I praise this engineering solution, both this hostel and my Munich hotel put SEALANT over the bathroom drainage hole (obviously not the one in the actual shower), giving rise to a flooding potential (Munich especially, since the taps leaked onto the bath edge and straight out onto the floor). This has left me somewhat confused about German engineering prowess. I also realise your brains have probably not taken in a scrap of this last paragraph, as they’re more concerned with the question – “is he pant-less, or did he just take his shirt off for the photo?”. I shall not oblige you with the answer!
For actually purdy pictures, I’m uploading em slowly but surely to the internet. I can’t bring myself to take personal photos (unless they have horror value), so until I actually make a friend (cue sad violin music) all you’ll be getting is landscapes, landscapes and more landscapes. LANDSCAPES FOR ALL! Speaking of friends, as of about 3 hours ago I learned 1 of the two people I know in this town (and the only Australian) has just quit the very company he signed me up with and is leaving for America… THIS DOESN’T HELP MY NERVES! Hopefully I’ll meet up with him for dinner sometime this week and he can give me a reason that isn’t linked to new workplace laws that now mean I must receive 10 lashes every hour on the hour. As long as Bob returns (he’s currently on “holiday”, or is that just another way of saying “fled the country”?) it can’t be THAT bad to work here…
Until next time people, chow!
.
