Köln: City Shopping Trip

Last weekend, the kids and I spent Saturday exploring the shopping in Köln (Cologne), which is the larger city just north of Bonn.  Cologne has a trendy area with a bunch of cute shops, coffee roasters, and cafes. It was very hipster and reminded me of midtown Atlanta but with a European setting and a foreign language. :)

In case anyone is interested in the places we found, I took some pictures (mostly of furniture since we were furniture shopping. We're still filling in our place here.). The belgisches Viertel (Belgian Quarter) is full of independent, quaint places, and yummy food.  I plan to come back for brunch someday. 

How We Live is a cute shop just south of the belgisches Viertel.  They have some rugs, side tables, knickknacks, and such. It's so cute.  I wish it were down the street from me so that I could wander in just to browse whenever I feel like it.

ROOMS Cologne - has tables & chairs.  Didn't have anything we were looking for, so no pictures. But that entire street has furniture stores on it (mostly modern design). Hohenstaufenring 48.

The Flying Fawn on Aachener Str. is full of fun home decor & cute stuff. Also, Aachener str is full of restaurants and shops I want to explore.

We stopped for lunch at a very hipster little burger bar which offers gluten free buns. It was awesome.  What was not awesome was Brandtley climbing into Jackson's chair as we were getting ready to leave and taking a bite of Jackson's gluten-full burger & bun. We spent all of Sunday at home making frequent trips to the bathroom. I could have strangled him, but am hoping that the natural consequences of his actions have been punishment enough. Thankfully the bathroom necessity didn't start until after we got home later that afternoon, but his tummy started hurting within an hour.

Hipster German cashier complete with man bun and fedora and a snooty hipster attitude. We felt right at home.

(Note: this place doesn't have much seating. There are 3 tables outside & 1 inside which were all full, so we sat at the bar.  There are a few standing tables too, but those would have been way too tall for the kids.) 

My burger with goat cheese, bacon, and apple slaw.

Really great sodas. A German friend explained to me that the lemonade "Kölsches Wasser" is made in Köln and the name is a joke. There is a very famous perfume that has been made in Köln for many many years (the German version of Channel No.5) named Kölnisch Wasser.  This is a play off of that name and ridiculing the perfume's exclusive reputation.

After lunch, we ventured out of the belgisches Viertel to several warehouse-style furniture shops in random places around town.  These are the coolest places that I keep finding around here. They are independent shops who find, (sometimes) restore, and re-sell vintage furniture. Often industrial or shabby-chic or rustic. You never know what you'll find. Which is the fun of it. And can also be disappointing if you're looking for something specific.

Here are some of my favorites that we've found:

Rarehouse - (Ernst-Heinrich-Geist-Sr 12) These are the people who furnished the big Burrito Rico locations  (the one on Aachener Str in Köln & the one in downtown Bonn).  I talked with the owner for a while, who was very nice & friendly, and she also recommended the shop Schee.  Schee has a location in Düsseldorf with reclaimed furniture (which I plan to visit) and a location in Köln with decor.  

Rarehouse is pretty large, with a lot of pieces.  Their website has pictures of the interior showing how large it is.

Geliebte Möbel (translated: Beloved Furniture)  - This place had a much smaller selection than Rarehouse but more refined, less rustic pieces. I didn't check any prices, but I wouldn't be surprised if they were on the high end.

Exquisit - really cool stuff, some is pricey. These photos were taken a few months ago when we first visited. By the way, all of these warehouse places are unheated in the winter and are FREEZING!

 Kultliving - Not really a warehouse like the others since their furniture is all new. But similar eclectic styles. They have a warehouse location in Bergisch Gladbach and a new concept store in the southern part of Cologne.

I have a whole Pinterest page of other places I want to visit, but a few of my top picks are GrünBlauGrau (looks like a fun decor shop similar to How We Live), Waage Vier, Schee, and Mill - Vintage & Interior.

One funny story from our day...

We took the long train back to Bonn because it was more convenient than making a connection.  During our trip, one lady near us enjoyed watching the boys play and spoke to them in perfect English. She had a suitcase and full shopping bag with her, which is not uncommon on trains, and I didn't realize until near the end of the ride that she was a bag lady.  However, she clearly enjoyed speaking with us and before she got off the train, she pulled a tract out of her bag and offered it to me,  telling me that I might enjoy reading something in English.  She clearly doesn't read English as well as she speaks!  Here is what she handed me:

So there's that. And now I have the suicide hotline number. :) 

Tschüss!

Circus Fun!

When I was a kid, we put on a musical performance every year in elementary school.  At Jackson's school here, the kids put on a circus performance!  Every year, the school has a "project week" in which normal classes are suspended and the kids work all week on a project.  Once every 4 years, this project is Circus School.  All of the kids are divided into different groups and each group learns a circus skill together.  At the end of the week, the kids put on a circus and perform for their families.

Friday afternoon was spent at the Circus party, complete with concessions of popcorn, ice cream, and other treats.

Brandtley enjoying popcorn.  Here, the popcorn is popped with sugar (similar to kettle corn) and he loves it!

Then the kids performed their show, which lasted nearly 2 hours!

There were clowns, magicians, tightrope walkers, gymnasts, unicycle riders, and jugglers...just to name a few.  Jackson was in the group who learned "tellerdrehen" (literal translation: plate turning) which is the spinning plates on a stick.

In this video, Jackson is one of the kids on the floor:

Jackson's group walking in.  Unfortunately, I didn't have a good angle for pictures, so this was the best I got of him.

Clown performance

Tightrope walking

Unicycling

Showing off his red nose after the show.  

(Side note: The days are getting very long here now. The sun doesn't go down until nearly 10pm and this picture was taken at 7pm but looks as bright as mid-afternoon.)

A week full of news

Do you ever have weeks on end where nothing new happens and then everything happens at once? This past week brought a lot of good news for us and a little bit of not-so-good news. On the Good list, we've FINALLY gotten both boys enrolled in the school programs that we've been waiting on!

Brandtley has been going to his trial kindergarten afternoons over the past two weeks.  We knew he had received a full-time place starting in August for the next school year.  This kindergarten has 3 rooms of 20+ kids each and every May, they invite the new kids to come play in the afternoons while the teachers observe and then they assign the kids to each of the 3 classes based on the teachers' assessment of personality, friendships, etc. Thursday was the last day of the assessment and when Matthew went to pick him up, the director told him that they have accepted Brandtley to start in June instead of August! He is SO excited!  He's had a great time playing there and making new friends over the past two weeks!

Earlier in the week, I sought out the OGS director at Jackson's school to ask when next year's slots would be assigned. (OGS is the afternoon program at the school.  He currently is finished with school at 11:45 or 12:45 every day while most of the other kids stay and play or do activities. He very much wants to go to OGS and we do too so that he can make friends and develop his conversational language skills through play & interaction.)  This teacher only speaks to me in German and very quickly, but I am fairly certain that she said he will be given a slot for next year and that we will be notified officially via letter in the next two weeks. YAY!

When Jackson first started school, we told him that we needed to continue asking her and telling her how much he wants to go to OGS. He really took this to heart and continues to ask her every time he sees her...which can be daily.  As he put it, very simply and in a very German manner, "She will say no until she says yes." And yes, she did. :)

Also on the good list, Jackson definitely does not have Celiac. Both boys had blood tests performed two weeks ago to test for inflammation markers, and Jackson's came back fully in the clear.

Unfortunately, Brandtley's results did not come back so great.  This blood test is routinely performed 6 months after a Celiac diagnosis to ensure that the gluten free diet is working and his body is healing from inflammation.  The inflammation markers are supposed to be below "10".  Brandtley's registered at 33. (as a reference, Jackson was at 0.2).  However, six months ago Brandtley was at 135.  So, compared to that he has improved greatly and may just be taking longer to level out & heal.

Due to the improvement so far, the doctor said that she feels it best to test again in 3 months.  If he continues to improve at this rate, then he won't need to see the specialist.  If not, then we will go to the pediatric GI specialist at the hospital to troubleshoot whether there is a secondary cause (such as corn, soy, or other protein triggers), or if somehow he is still consuming gluten. We realllllllllly want to avoid this.

I've struggled a lot this week with frustration and worry.  It feels like we're already doing everything we can for his diet, so how can we do more??? It doesn't help that he hasn't grown again in nearly 2 months.  I don't know if that's a sign of gluten contamination or just him being a normal kid who grows in spurts.  But then what if he continues not to grow and goes to German first grade next year looking like a 4 year old?  I know God has a perfect plan for his life, but I'm praying it includes health and growth. And that I can trust that with peace while "trying harder" to help him heal.

To end on a good note, Brandtley has graduated to a bigger bike! It's still slightly too big for him, but his little bike's chain kept falling off so we pulled out Jackson's old bike to see if B could manage it. He rides well, and is doing great! (Even though he has to jump off every time he comes to a stop!)  He's able to go much faster on this one and is SO proud of himself!

I cut down a tree for you

Monday was the first of May, which is celebrated both as Labor day as well as May day. It's a public holiday, so schools, stores, banks, etc are all closed. Unlike May day in the US, the day seems to be much more celebrated here.

The night before (April 30th) is Walpurgisnacht which is a legend involving wintry witches & devils welcoming spring. We saw posters advertising midnight dance parties to "Tanz im den Mai" (Dance into May), but did not see any witches or devils. :)

However, we did see another traditional celebration associated with May day.  To show affection for a girl, a boy will cut down a birch tree from the forrest, decorate it with brightly colored crepe paper, and tie it in front of her house (or to her house).  The tradition dates back to the 17th century and originated from an older pagan tradition to symbolize the reawakening of spring and fertility.

I noticed on May 1st that several houses on our street had what appeared to be colorful ribbon decorations on an existing tree in front of the house, but upon closer look, they were indeed cut birch trees!

This morning, we found this one on our way to school, dedicated to Miriam.

A friend took this picture of their neighbor's house, which received TWO trees! Are there sisters or just 1 lucky girl??

I must admit, I was impressed. I had no idea German boys were so romantic!  It could help that supposedly part of the tradition says that the boy must remove the tree after a month and that he will receive a crate of beer from the girl's parents!!! I need to find out if this part is true too!

Spring Break Activities and Adventures - Part 1

We started off Spring Break this year with a bang. Not really. Half of spring break this year will be consumed with completing driver's license activities described in this post.   Luckily, in German schools, Jackson gets 2 weeks of break for Easter holidays! And even more luckily, Matthew is off work for all of it!

We plan on spending the first week as a "staycation", enjoying local hikes and being tourists in our own town (which we sort of really are), in between driver's license appointments and hopefully checking some of those items off the long list. 

Since we had not planned to travel immediately, we were lucky to be in town on Saturday, the first day of break, when Jackson's teacher got married!  The class was not invited to the wedding, but the room mom coordinated for the kids to be standing outside the church with handmade flowers as part of the couple's exiting processional. Here are some pictures of the bride & groom and all the kids:

Jackson waiting for the bride & groom to exit

Yesterday, we visited Germany's longest & highest suspension bridge, which is about an hour drive from our house.  There are multiple hikes in the area, or you can choose a gravel path from the town to the bridge.  We took the path to the bridge & then opted to hike back to town afterwards through the woods & hills. (The path is super easy & would accommodate strollers too).

View looking back at the town from the path to the bridge. This area looked so flat when we arrived, but is really very hilly with deep ravines.

Being silly.  They weren't afraid of the bridge at all!

On our hike back. We all returned covered in dirt!

You can see the bridge at the top of this picture

So pretty. Much of this hike reminded us of our hikes in Colorado.

The town

Instead of taking the highways back, we drove through backwoods and they were beautiful. Twisty roads that felt like we were in the middle of nowhere in the mountains. And then we would round a turn and see castles and quaint little towns and remember that we were actually in Germany!

Do I really need a Driver's License?

The short answer is yes. Yes. In my brain, at least, I know that I do need a driver's license.  But it is so tempting right now to say no and just go about my merry way.

Life here has settled in. We are comfortable and enjoying spring. We enjoy our pedestrian life. And while we have a car, we have little daily need for it. Between the closeness of our current home to everything we need, public transportation to get to friends, and the difficult parking, I hardly ever drive.

Which is contributing to even more dread of the process of getting my German license.

When you move to Germany, you have 6 months to get a German License. We currently still have our US licenses, but if we were in an accident or pulled over, technically we would be driving without the required license once we pass the 6 month mark. Part of me says that's ok, I just won't drive. Except that my US license will expire within 2 years and then if I ever want (need) to rent a car or drive elsewhere, such as when in the US, I'll be up a creek. And getting my German license 2+ years after establishing residency sounds a little sketchy.

The crazy thing is that some US states have reciprocity or at least partial reciprocity, and if your US license is from one of those states, you simply go get a new German license.  I don't know what Georgia did wrong but we get none of that.  We must go through the entire process as if we've never driven a car before.

So, I'm preparing to suck it up as we embark on the lengthy and painful process of getting a driver's license in Germany.

About a month ago, knowing that our 6 month mark was approaching, I emailed our agent to ask what steps we need to take to get started. She sent me back a lengthy email with no fewer than 10 lengthy and sub-bulleted steps. She ended the email with a very German sounding: "And that is all". Oh. Ok. That's all.  No biggie.

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Here's our list of steps to a license. Some are just logistical, but it's still a time consuming process.

1. Get our US licenses translated by taking them, with payment, to an office in town and picking them up a few weeks later. (I picked them up Saturday! ✔)

2. Purchase the study materials and app to prepare for the written test. To do this, you first pick a driving school and then go there to purchase.  I found a driving school, made the purchase, but have yet to study. Using the app is also dependent upon #3 where you receive a code.  Partial ✔.

3. Register at a driving school.  Although we've both been driving roughly for 20 years now, before we can register to apply for a license, we both must be registered at a school and have the paperwork to prove it. I am partially registered via the school's website, but must pick up my paperwork now, and negotiate with them the level of training that we will actually need. I have no desire to drive around for hours on end with an instructor (who I'm paying by the hour). Another Partial ✔.

4. Complete the Safety Course. This is a 7 hour course. All in German. I went yesterday and Matthew is going this afternoon. I have a renewed appreciation for Jackson sitting in German school every single day without complaining.

The course was taught in a room in the back of a salsa bar, and roughly 50 people attended. About a quarter were 17 year old kids getting their licenses for the first time, about half appeared to be immigrants of non-European descent, and a quarter were what Matthew joked were UOCs (unidentifiable older caucasians) like me.  Older being anything over 20. But they all appeared to speak German. And like good Germans (or wannabe Germans), all paid attention. Everyone dutifully put their phones away and participated in class.

We performed CPR on dummies, bandaged each other's arms, and had to practice rolling each other over on the floor. But most of the time was just spent sitting and listening.

It wasn't hard but I was exhausted at the end of the day. The instructor, who knew the material was boring, really tried to make the class interactive, so I spent my energies trying to make it appear like I knew what was being discussed without getting called on. :) At the end of the day, I succeeded in having only spoken a single word. ✔

5. Vision exam.  If you know the history of my eyesight and vision exams (specifically for driver's licenses), you'll understand why this was contributing to my stress.  And unfortunately, it's not something I can study for or practice. Amazingly, I passed (I think)!  The First Aid course I attended gave us the option take the vision exam at the same place as the First Aid course, so I took it and received a little piece of paper with a signature on it, which I take as a good sign. ✔

6. Get photos taken for the license. ✔

7. Register for the license at the Stadthaus (government building).  This is not actually getting the license, just registering that you intend to get the license - you still must pass the tests. We must bring proof of #1-6 with us to the registration, and we have an appointment scheduled for Wednesday morning of this week.

8. Once registered, we can schedule the written test. Thankfully, we can take the test in English. However, this will encompass all of the rules of driving, which differ just enough from the US rules, that it is incredibly difficult.  From what I hear, the fail rate is pretty high and there are rumors of people taking it up to 8 times before passing.

9. Complete any required driving with the driving school instructors. TBD on how much we will be required to do.

10. The last step (and the one I dread most) is the practical test in which we drive with an examiner.  Nearly all Americans fail, either from lack of knowledge of some road rule or just because we're Americans. I'm completely prepared to fail. More than that, if they ask me to parallel park on a hill, I might just get out and walk away. It won't happen. I have a hard enough time parking our manual transmission car on a sunny day without pressure or spectators, so the thought of doing it with an examiner is terrifying to me. So long as I don't hit a pedestrian, cyclist, or another car, I'll consider it a relief, even if I fail.
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So that's it. When I was looking for driving schools last month, I found the one below online. I ended up picking a different school that is closer to our house with better weekend hours. Hopefully their diarrhea rate is also low...or perhaps it's a bad sign that their website didn't say.  I hope not to find out!

Translation courtesy of Google Chrome 

The door to our classroom, with the CPR dummies, defibrillator, and rolled bandages

The front lobby of the salsa bar. A belly dancing class of Hindu women started mid-afternoon in the room next to ours, which you can sort-of see through the glass window in this pic.