Something(s) sweet, Kathrin in Kiel, & Bad beginning

March 18th-23rd

This week at school only consists of today and tomorrow and I didn't have much to do today. Tomorrow I am supposed to give my Barnesville presentation again, only this time for a 10th grade class. I spent the evening baking cookies (chocolate chip and peanut butter) to take to school for my colleagues and bought some chocolates for my students, since in Germany if it is your birthday, you are expected to give everyone else something instead of the other way around. I find this to be an interesting concept, but wanted to take part, since I have received something sweet from everyone else who has had a birthday thus far.


On Wednesday, I had a relaxing day and since I had decided I would take my treats in before Easter break because my birthday would be during the break and I'm coming back a week late (because of the Fulbright Seminar in Berlin), I set the cookies out in the staff room. I guess in Germany it is bad luck to wish someone “Happy Birthday” before it is their actual birthday, so all day people were thanking me for the cookies, but saying that they couldn't wish me a happy birthday until they see me after the break. I thought this was funny because in the U.S. one would say, "if I don't see you, have a happy birthday." These are just a few of the slight cultural variations concerning birthdays in Germany. Anyway, lots of people were asking me for the recipe for the chocolate chip cookies and I had to laugh because they were almost immediately gone! I saw one teacher eat 3 or 4 chocolate chip ones herself and she said she saw me counting! Of course she was teasing me, but I was thinking to myself “save some for everyone else!” Apparently it is the same in every teacher's lounge in Germany. At least my friends have similar stories...nothing lasts long, if left out, it will be eaten!! (esp. if it is made of sugar) After school I was supposed to have tutoring with a student, but he didn't show up (maybe I just couldn't find him, but he was nowhere to be seen). I don't know if he forgot or if he just didn't want to come...his teacher isn't going to be very happy though because it is the new student I just got and this was supposed to be our first day. So I ended up heading back and waiting for a message from Kathrin to let me know which train she would be coming in on. I ended up heading into town a little early to get a new hat because I had lost the new one I had just gotten last week, go figure. At least it had only cost me 2 Euro since winter things were on sale. I ran into a friend that I hadn't seen in a few months while downtown and she apologized for not returning my phone call because she had been busy at the University. I told her not to worry and that we would meet up after Easter break when I am back in Kiel to stay for a while!

I got to the station and Kathrin's train had a small delay, so I just wandered around until it arrived. I was really happy to see her since it had been since May that I had last seen her. She's one of those friends that it doesn't matter how often you see, you can pick up where you left off and everything is just like normal! It's a great thing to have friends like that. Sometimes people change a lot over time and similarities just aren't there anymore, but with us that isn't the case. So we started our 30 minute walk back to my apartment from the station (in the snow!!!) I kept teasing her that she must have brought it with her because it had been a beautiful blue sky, sunny day until then! (actually, it had started snowing when I was downtown about 30 minutes earlier) It was pretty snow, but it was also very cold. I was excited because it was one of the first real snows we actually have had here in Kiel, but it would have been nice if it had come before March! After dropping off her bags and warming up over a cup of coffee we decided to go for a walk along the harbor. We walked for about an hour and a half and then went to the old part of the city. There we went to Subway for dinner and to warm up. After this we walked to the bridge by the station so that Kathrin could see the amazing view of Kiel at night from there. I think she was impressed! Then we headed up to Dee's to get a sleeping bag and pillow for her and then we came back and spent the rest of the evening sharing stories and pictures. On our walk back we passed some sort of cultural event that consisted of singing and dancing around a fire. Neither of us were sure what was going on, but we think they were Turkish. It sounded beautiful and the children were all dressed in similar colorful outfits. We never did figure out what it was they were doing.

Thursday we woke up early and headed to the beach. We went to Schilksee and walked along the beach to the cliffs and back. We saw a couple fall in love or so we like to think. They were walking their dogs and then introduced themselves and we saw them walking together for a long time. We kept wondering if they were planning to meet up again or go out together. It was fun making up stories and predicting what would happen next. We also saw a man digging in the sand for something. We aren't quite sure what for, but he was intensively searching for whatever it was. After our walk, we sat down for a picnic lunch and when it started to rain is when we decided to head out. We went to the store on the way back and bought food for spaghetti and together we cooked a delicious meal.

Friday we woke up fairly early and since the weather looked decent, we decided to head back to the beach, this time to Strande on the other side of Schilksee. This must have been considered the first day of spring to the Kielers because they were putting out beach baskets along the shore, and everyone was out for the day in comparison to yesterday. It might have also been because it was Good Friday and everyone was off work. Kathrin and I took lots of pictures and then began searching for stones with holes in them because I told her about my host family hanging them on a string and putting them up in the bathroom as decoration. She thought this was a great idea and so we went on a search. We decided that we couldn't leave until we had found at least 10 of them. It was easier said than done, but we finally found enough to call it a day and have lunch. I managed to find 3 more heart-shaped stones (without looking for them) and decided I would have my own little collection too! After lunch we headed back to the bus so that we would get back in time to go to Dee's for dinner. We got back a little early so we were able to warm up an make no-bake cookies. I wanted Kathrin to try them and Siobhan hadn't had them yet either so the two of us made them quickly and dipped them out to cool. Then we left for Dee's. They were still preparing everything when we arrived. We had delicious noodles and stir fry for dinner and then came the big surprise, which I hadn't expected at all! My friends had baked a cake for me and had a gift for my birthday! I was really shocked and excited! They bought me a game based on a German TV show that we often watch. We decided that we would play later. First we decided to have Siobahn play us some music. She sang some Shakira and then she played a few of my favorite songs that she has written herself. After that we went out tot the kitchen to boil and paint the eggs that I had brought over. Kathrin had brought an egg dyeing kit with her because some of our friends in Heidelberg were dyeing eggs and she wanted to do it too. So we all had fun making a mess and coloring eggs!! They turned out really pretty except for one of the ones that I made... After dyeing eggs we attempted to play my new game! Who knew it would be so hard to figure out. We all had our laughs and Kathrin ended up winning.

Saturday Kathrin had to wake up early to catch the bus to the station because she was meeting her family in Hamburg to go the Lion King musical. She gave me Easter candy and a gift for my birthday which I decided not to open until the actual day. We said goodbye and then a few minutes later I got a call from her saying that she had accidentally picked up my gloves. I went downstairs to the bus stop to get them off of her and waited with her until the bus came. We had a great time together and I wish she could have stayed longer, but I will hopefully make it down to Heidelberg sometime soon and will be able to see her again!

I had to go shopping for food since the store will be closed both Sunday and Monday for Easter and Natasha is arriving tonight around 7!! After shopping, I packed lunch and went over to Dee's. She said that I had to come over before we all left for Hamburg together. They were catching a train to Paris and I had to pick Natasha up from Hamburg so we all decided to travel together to save money. When I got to Dee's she had Siobahn and I come into Sabine's room. She had put Easter candy in hats and laid them around the room. She said that is how they do it in her family and she thought we should all celebrate Easter together in Germany. She is so thoughtful and sweet and I really appreciated her doing this for us. After a group hug the three of us made our way to Aldi to get a few food items and then were off to the station. We ended up getting there early and got on the earlier train because a girl asked to ride on our ticket which saved us even more money. After getting to Hamburg we split ways because I had to head off to the airport. I got there an hour early so I wandered around the book store and read. After a while I noticed that Natasha's flight had been delayed. It ended up coming in an hour and a half late, yet I still couldn't find her anywhere. It appeared that everyone minus a few people had left and I was starting to worry that her flight had been canceled or she had missed it. Finally after another half an hour or so I overheard some men saying that they had lost their luggage from the U.S. and then realized this had to be what was going on. Everything was now running through my head....she's been standing there trying to figure out what address to tell them to send it to...she's probably freaking out because she doesn't know where I am...finally she came out and was so worked up and exhausted that she broke down. I think she was happy to see me. I calmed her down and then we went upstairs so I could take care of the luggage issue. A good start for her first time in Europe! It wasn't a big deal though. It was actually nice not to have luggage to worry about on the way home. We made it back to Kiel after midnight and after showering, went straight to bed. She had been going for hours.

The next day, Easter Sunday, I let her sleep in a little bit, but then forced her out of bed. The weather was absolutely beautiful so I decided that we would go to the beach for the day. We packed a lunch with us. We walked from Schilksee to Strande and back running into one of my teachers twice and she introduced me to her children as I introduced her to my Natasha. Tash thought that she was British because she speaks perfect and has a British accent even though she lived in California for many years and had only been to England for the first time this year! They learn British pronunciation here, this is why. We sat down and had lunch and then walked to the cliffs along the shore at Schilksee. We went up the stairs there and the view was absolutely breathtaking!!! The sunny blue sky made it perfect! That is now my new favorite spot in Kiel. After catching the bus back, we relaxed and then I started dinner. I made Schnitzel and Spaetzle with salad. A typical German meal (prob. not for Easter but that is besides the point). It turned out to be really nice.