Some of Our Challenges

It may sound like everything here has been fun and exciting, smooth sailing, which it is for the most part. However, there are definitely some challenges and difficulties associated with living in a foreign country - and Germany is known for it's plentiful rules and regulations. Here are a few - I won't call them complaints - just things that we've had to navigate here:


-NO stores or shops are open on Sunday (and most stores are closed by 8:00 the rest of the week - there is NOTHING like our 24 hour Meijer stores). Only gas stations, bakeries, and restaurants are open. Sundays are meant to be family days so they don't want people out running errands and busy that day, you're supposed to relax and have good quality family time. It's a great concept and we really do slow ourselves down more on Sundays because of it. I've learned to stop fretting on Saturdays that we have enough food to get us through the weekend and to make lunches on Monday.
-Also on Sundays, you are not supposed to cut your lawn. It's not relaxing for you or your neighbors.
-Every day, from 1-3 is supposed to be quiet time. This means your children should not be outside running and yelling, and again, you shouldn't be mowing your lawn or doing anything else that may disturb your neighbor. The kids are in school all week, so this only applies to us on the weekends.
-As far as I've seen, there are NO drive through ATMs (or dry cleaners or restaurants). This means that I either ride my bike or drive into town, find a parking spot, and walk a couple of blocks to get cash (which you need to use a lot more here). It's not so bad right now because the weather has been beautiful, but in the middle of winter I'm sure this will lose it's charm.
-The closest fast food is 15 minutes away, and out of the way from any of our activities. Not that we should be eating this so much, but you know there are days when you're so busy that a quick drive through McDonalds is perfect.
-Cakes do not have frosting, you cannot buy frosting in stores...enough said.
-You cannot just walk into a store and buy ibuprofen or cough medicine off the shelf. Medicines are regulated so you have to go to special pharmacies, an Apotheke, explain what you need and why you need it, then they decide if they'll sell it to you. I haven't had to do this yet because I brought a stash with us, but I've heard varying reports on how strict they are or how much they question you. Really looking forward to my first visit.
-Bleach is not allowed in Germany, they think it hurts the pipes too much. Rumor has it that you can buy it in Holland :-) Also, fabric softener sheets are nearly impossible to find, but that may be because dryers here aren't hot air dryers like at home, but rather condenser dryers that pull the water out of clothes. After each load you have to empty a water reserve.
-Driving has it's own charms, but the hardest thing to get used to is that cars to the right have the right of way. That means you can be cruising down a medium sized road at a steady speed, and a car to your right on the side street coming onto your road has the right to cut right out into traffic and you have to slow down and let them in. I've heard the idea behind it is to keep traffic on the main roads from going too fast, but my biggest fear is not seeing one of these cars coming and get T-boned.
-And finally, obviously, everything is in a foreign language! If we're out and about, between finding people that speak English and using a German dictionary, we get by just fine. It's things like mail and user manuals that trip us up. An example is the Senseo coffee maker I bought. Typically you'd open it up, read the manual, and have it up and going in 5-10 minutes. However, mine didn't have English directions so I searched the website for my model's manual. It wasn't there so I had to email customer service. They responded back the next day - so I got what I needed but it took about 30 minutes of research and half a day waiting for a response to get there. Luckily, for the next couple of months our Relocation Specialist will continue to help us translate mail and get through some bureaucracy.

OK, I feel better getting that out! Again, not complaining, but this is what fills my time all day while the boys are at school.