Trying to Settle

I’m slowly trying to settle into the life here in Mosbach and life in Germany as well. I’m waiting for my residence permit and my work permit. They both come in hand and hand, and the whole thing with waiting for this permit is that there are other things, like getting a bank account, that are a little complicated too. I’ve tried to apply for one at a bank that I thought didn’t require proof of my residency. But apparently not... they want proof that I’m legally here and need a bank account for work. Anyways its a bit of an ongoing saga with the permits, but hopefully within the next 3 weeks it should come.

Kim had posted that she’d found an interesting blog so I thought I’d go and see if I could find any blogs that I’d like. And I did... I was looking for something either about travelling, expats in germany or baking. I wasnt so sure how to find them. So I found Katie’s blog (bakingthroughgermany.blogspot.com)- an American girl who has come to Germany to be a baker! J She’d won “ Blogs of Note” earlier this month. She’s been here for a about 8 months and living in the north of Germany but still, interesting and it is inspiring me to blog and bake more J I bought a cook book when I was on board and so now want to work through it.. trying different things. I’m starting with a Carrot cake which I’ll make later today hopefully. Some of the recipes I’ll not be trying though, like some of the fish main course dishes. But a goal for me is to get my german up good enough buy a good German cook book and turn out great cakes and tortes! And for that- I need to go to German classes. Which I tried to get registered for yesterday. I had two moments in the same day where I seriously wished I could speak german but couldn’t. It was only after those moments that I remembered what I should have said. IT was classic stage fright. One happened while I was on the phone with the Volkhochschule and the other was after I got carded at Aldi for buying some wine...( like really, I’m old! And I still get asked for ID to buy some cooking wine!?!?) An older lady came up to me and asked me how old I was- which I only really understood after she repeated her question to me twice and then I stumbled out “ Ich spreche keine deutsche” . She asked how old ( wie alt?) and as my brain scrambled through the numbers, all I could think of was 36! Ha ha anyways, I have a feeling that these moments are going to be increasing... I had another moment yesterday of really wanting to be able to speak, too. I just need to get my discipline together and follow up some more.

So while I wait for my residency and work permit, and as I slowly learn my german, I’ll bake what I can, trying to pull together a decent kitchen full of equipment in the hopes that I am going to be here for at least another 18 months. I’m not sure what happens if I dont get my residency, but I’m praying that I dont have to find out