Week 2 in Deutschland

The last week or so has been really great.  I've gotten to spend time with my "family", meet new friends, and spend time with old friends while expiring new places.  I've been thanking God often for the ways he has been blessing me here.

Last Tuesday I had a great day with Janet. After we took the girls to school, ran a few errands.  Janet had me drive everywhere we went so that I could get familiar with the roads and the rules as well as the car.  We went to the Rathaus (city house) in the town they previously lived in and then when to a second-hand shop where she bought me a couple great scarves. (I really love scarves!) The town was adorable. We then drove a couple of minutes over to the Rhine River where we ate pretzels at an adorable old restaurant. After lunch I drove up a tiny little road to an old castle. It was fun because we were the only two people at the castle. We explored the dark towers and looked out to the hills and the Rhine.  Later, she took me to lunch at the Lufthansa Center near here. It was so weird to be there because it was in the middle of the hills with no buildings nearby.  We went and it was like a bubble. It was a brand new hotel and conference center full of people in business suits and they were all speaking English. It was unreal.

I spent a lot of the rest of the week setting up my room (finally), playing with the girls and taking them to and from school, and going to the nearby University town, Darmstadt. On Thursday I met Jenny, the au pair from England.  We window shopped then had some good Italian food for lunch.  Later in the evening Jenny and I met Axel to go to the Campus für Christus (Cru) meeting at Darmstadt. There were 30-40 students at the meeting.  After getting over my fear of not knowing the language and approaching others, I met some pretty cool people. Some people were scared to speak English, although everyone I talked to spoke it well.  The meeting went well. It was cool to listen to worship songs in German. Jenny translated the main part of the messages.  I was happy to hear that the man spoke about the Prodigal Son because I've heard sermons on that multiple times. I was able to ponder the story and pray on my own and still felt like I was following along. It was so great to be part of a Christian community of college students. That's what I had been praying for.

After the meeting we went out with some new friends.  Axel ordered me my first "real" beer at a biergarten. I got the smallest one I could and it was alright, but I couldn't drink much more than that.  It was fun to socialize and meet new people.  We stayed there for about an hour or so then headed back home. We were running late so Jenny, Axel and I just ran and jumped on the tram. After Jenny and Axel had already gotten off, I realized I was on the wrong tram. It was the right number, but it wasn't the one that went all the way back to Seeheim.  When I first found out I kind of freaked. It was 12:30am and I didn't want to be stranded at a tram stop on a winter night. I wasn't thinking clearly and called Axel to ask him to check the tram schedule. A nice guy on the tram heard me and told me I would have to get off at the last stop then wait 30 minutes for my tram.  Axel was nice enough and called me back so that I would be a little less freaked out while waiting for my tram at Frankenstein. Oh yeah, the last stop happened to be "Frankenstein Place".  Although I was freaked out at first, I said a prayer and felt a great sense of calmness.  I know this wasn't even that bad of a situation, but I love how God can calm my nerves when I just put trust in him. As I was waiting at the dark tram stop, snow started to fall. It was so pretty.  At around 1:30am I arrived at home safely.

The next morning I left to visit Ching in Koblenz then we went on a day trip to Bonn and Cologne. I'll write more about that great adventure in another post, because it is now past my bedtime.

Called to Go?

I feel really blessed with the opportunities that I've had to spend time overseas.  At this point, I've gotten to spend a week or more in about 5 different countries. I know to many people that doesn't sound like much, but I hope to see that number to continue to grow. I'm so thankful for my time in Italy and even my week stay in Guatemala and already thankful for my time here in Germany.  I love experiencing new cultures.



It wasn't too long ago that my mom was picking me up from sleepovers at midnight (that was even when I was still in middle school...) Things started changing a bit when I decided to go to Guatemala on a mission trip.  Guatemala was a place I had always want to go and I saw the trip advertised at church one day and within about a week I was signed up.  God was totally working there and I didn't even fully realize it at the time.  I found it odd that I was just excited and confident with my decision and didn't even feel nervous.  I was going to another country with a group of people I didn't even know.  With my history, it was pretty odd that I did that. I mean, at one point I didn't think I'd be able to go to school 2 hours away from home. I am so glad God sent me on that trip.  I really loved my time in Guatemala.  I learned so much from the people I was with and especially from the children there.  I really saw the love of God there and God really put a love and a desire in my heart.

About a year after that trip to Guatemala, I started searching for opportunities to spend time overseas.  When I got to IU I started looking for overseas study programs right away but nothing was working out well with my major (which seems odd considering I'm studying tourism.) So over Christmas break of my sophomore year I made a profile on an au pair website.  I really didn't think much would come from it when I made the profile.  Within about two weeks, I had a offer from a great family in Italy to spend the summer with them as their first au pair. Before I knew it, I was buying a plane ticket and making travel plans.  That was kind of unreal for everyone in my family.  I, a homesick little girl, was going to go to Italy without anyone I knew for 12 weeks.

 I was confused before deciding to go to Italy, though. For months I had planned on going on Summer Project with Cru and doing campus ministry overseas for 6-8 weeks.  I really had a desire to go. I easily saw ways that God could use me.  I did have a hard time giving that decision to Him.  I tried to trick myself, but I think knew Summer Project wasn't what God was calling me to do the whole time.

So in May, I packed my bags and headed to Macerata. I got to live with and really be a port of a wonderful family, eat great food, see so many different towns, and have a lot of great alone time.  It was also odd that I enjoyed so much alone time.  I have (had?) a bit of separation anxiety.  I've always loved being close to my close friends and family (especially my mother) but I really took advantage of my free time in Italy and did a lot of thinking, journaling, and praying during that time.  My love of being overseas grew and grew.  I did have some days where I missed home a lot. It was hard not knowing the language and although I had a great relationship with my host parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles, I didn't have the best relationship with the kids.  Me being there was hard on me as well as Gabriele and Elena at times.  Overall, I had a wonderful experience and although I was ready to be home, it was so hard to leave at the end.  I fell in love with the Italian towns, language, food, and people.

A couple of months ago, on a Saturday morning I woke up and decided I really wanted to go overseas again. The next thing I knew everything worked out perfectly for me to spend this "semester" in Germany as an au pair.  I didn't understand why God would be calling me here and I still don't know what the reasoning is, but I do know this feels right.  It's hard to describe my feelings since I've been here. I may be speaking too soon considering this is just my first week here, but everything just feels right I guess. I've had my times when I've felt nervous (mostly because of language barriers and figuring out public transportation, etc.) but for the most part this just feels right.  It's a different feeling than I've ever had when I've traveled.  Well, I've felt this before but not quite to this extent.  I love this community I'm a part of and the people I've gotten to meet and the things I've already gotten to see. I'm also excited for my future plans while I'm here.  It's odd that I haven't felt homesick yet.  I know this culture is similar to American culture and I'm living in a home where English is spoken fluently, but it's still a change for me and I'm still thousands of miles away from home.  This is really confirming to me that I'm able to live overseas, especially if it is something God is calling me to do.

I see opportunities that I have for mission work both in the US and overseas after I graduate.  I know all of these opportunities are great and if I go where God is truly calling me I"ll be satisfied, but I really hope that He ultimately calls me to go overseas.  I have this huge desire in my heart to serve in this way.  I love ministry and I love being overseas and being with people from other cultures and backgrounds.  I am so grateful for the opportunities I've already had and interested to see where God will lead me next. My biggest prayer is that I will just really open myself up and listen to God.  He knows my heart and I know if I listen to Him great things will happen.  So, if you're interested in praying for me, please just pray that I will open my mind and my heart to God. I'll be praying the same for all of you as well. 

International Weekend

I've had such a great first weekend here in Deutschland. :) I met so many people here this weekend and saw a lot of new things.

On Friday, I slept in, made lunch, then went to school to pick the girls up.  I drove Leonie and her friend Nia to the house along with the neighbor boy Francesco (who is half Italian and have Scottish, so I'm having him help me with my Italian.) While the three kids had a play date, I made brownies for the bake sale the next day and then sat and had coffee with Janet.  Soon after that, Mareike arrived with her friend Clara and the 4 girls played all night.  They had a sleepover and it was fun to play with them and watch them play.

On Saturday morning we went to the school Open House. The girls go to an international school so it was a lot of fun.  They didn't have enough volunteers at the Spanish Cafe run by the Spanish classes, so I volunteered. It was fun to sell baked goods and coffee with some of the moms. I got to work with one Italian woman who is good friends with my "family." I was excited to get to speak some Italian with her and we both tried to speak Spanish at the café.  It was so interesting because everyone at the school speaks English. I met people from so many countries and heard many different languages.  I rarely heard anyone speak German. It is great to be a part of this international community, it makes me feel much more comfortable here.

After the open house, we took the girls to play dates and birthday parties, then Janet Mattias and Iwent out to get "Turkish" Doner for lunch. I liked that quite a bit.  After lunch we came back to the house and our Italian friend Benedetta came again.  Her, Janet and I got to sit and drink wine and talk while Matthias went to pick up the kids. She gave me advice and told me the best way to get back to Italy to visit my Italian family.  Later, her daughter came over for a play date with Leonie and Mareike.

Today was a fun day.  We got to sleep in and then eat a late breakfast as a family. After breakfast, we went hiked about 5 kilometers up the hills to the Frankenstien Castle.  The hike was fun.  We followed the trails for the most part.  There were cool markings on trees.  It was cold out, but the fresh air along with the workout felt really good.  At one point, we figured out we took a wrong turn so we had to climb up a really steep, muddy hill and at about that point it started raining.  We all got pretty dirty and it took a little longer than expected, but we had a great time.

When we got to the castle, we met some family friends for lunch.  The family who has a 2-year-old son Jonas and a 7-year old daughter Carolina just got a new au pair, from England so they thought it would be good for us all to meet.  Jenny just arrived in Seeheim yesterday.  I was excited to meet someone else my own age but curious to see if we had any of the same interests and see how we would get along.  After a minute or two of talking, I decided that we would get along well.  We definitely have some of the same passions and I know God is answering my prayers.

Jenny is here to look for a job in Frankfurt as well as be an au pair for a few months.  She is with a church in England and plans to help plant a brand new church in Frankfurt. (How cool is that!?!) I was so excited when she told me this. She just got back from an 18-month-stay in Ghana where she helped plant another church.  This was such exciting news for me.  I'm excited to get to know her better and hopefully spend more time with her. She already plans to go to a Campus Crusade meeting with me in Darmstadt this week if we both can fit it in our schedule.  I prayed a lot before coming here that God would provide me with good connection to other Christians during my time here, and I already see him providing that. I'm excited to see how the next few months will go. :) 

Exploring Deutschland

The last few days here have been good. 

I’m still trying to adjust to life here. Jetlag has been one of the hardest things at this point.  Not knowing the language has also caused me a few problems.  I get so nervous when I go alone to a store or try to use public transportation. It seems as if almost everyone under the age of 50 here speaks English well (some people even speak it better than I do). But I still feel uncomfortable.  In Italy, I hated how people could tell I was American and would right away speak English to me.  I’m a bit flattered that everyone here automatically speaks German to me, but that has also been difficult.  It was embarrassing when I had to pay for my meal and gave the wrong amount of money because I couldn’t understand what the cashier said to me.  I also can’t read maps, so touring around has been a bit difficult. I’m starting to understand just how hard it can be to move to a new country. 

But overall, things have gone really well. My family is great. On Tuesday, I went to Mannheim, a city about 45 minutes from here, with Janet. While she was working, I explored the city for a few hours.  I got coffee at a cute café, took pictures, walked around in cute residential neighborhoods, talked to the lady in the tourist center, shopped around, and ate lunch.  It was a good day. I didn’t make it to the castle there, so I’ll have to go back another day. On Tuesday night, I went to circus class with Mareike.  Janet and I played with the kids and it was fun.

On Wednesday, I took the girls to school for the first time by myself.  It went pretty well.  I was nervous to drive Janet’s car, but I got to the school just fine. After dropping the girls off, I went to the grocery store. It wasn’t where I thought it was, so I had to pull out the navigation system.  It was helpful, but it was in German so I’ll have to figure out how to change that. I bought some things for lunch, but couldn’t read all of the packages. I got tortellini and was so happy to find prosciutto! I plan to eat like I did in Italy. J I spent the afternoon sleeping (fail!) and the evening playing with the girls.

After taking the girls to school today, I went on an adventure to Darmstadt. I went to meet Axel, a German student I met while he was on a mission trip to IU last fall.  I was so nervous to ride the tram.  I didn’t exactly know how to buy a ticket, didn’t know which tram to ride, and couldn’t read any of the directions.  Luckily, there was a nice lady at the tram station who helped me buy my ticket and gave me some advice. I was proud of myself for getting on the right tram and even getting off at the correct stop.

I met Axel at the station and he showed me around the great town of Darmstadt.  We saw some city buildings and went into the university library.  We also walked through a really pretty garden and played on the zip-line at the park. It was a lot of fun! Later in the afternoon, we met Axel’s friend Erika for coffee. She was sweet and I enjoyed getting to know her. Later, I got lunch on my own. I had my first schnitzel.

I got back to Seeheim just fine and made gummy bears with the girls when they got home from school.  We spent the rest of the evening playing. Tomorrow, I may actually unpack my bags and stay around the house.  I’ve enjoyed exploring and can’t wait to see more this weekend and next week. 

I Made It!

My first day in Germany has been great.  My flight here went really well.  I didn’t miss any planes or pass out, so that’s an improvement.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get any sleep on the plane (well, maybe 30 minutes), but I did sit next to a really nice lady who also couldn’t sleep so I had someone to talk to.  She was a woman from Russia who has been working in Washington DC for the past 15 years.  She was a diplomat headed to Saudi Arabia for 3 months.  I enjoyed talking to her for hours about travel, her 2 sons, the American school system, cheerleaders, etc.. It was great to not feel alone and I liked getting to know her.  I also helped a lady from Egypt spell out sentences in English such as “The handicap seat is a good idea” and “it is quiet”. So, the plane ride went well.

After collecting my suitcases, I found Leonie, Mareike, and Janet waiting for me outside of baggage claim. It was so good to see them.  They worked hard over the weekend to make me an adorable sign that read “Welcome Abby!” with stars, German and American flags, and horses (Mareike LOVES horses).  Mareike (the younger one) started talking to me right away.  She loves to talk and she’s funny and sweet.  The girls have the most adorable British accents. After leaving the airport, we rushed Leonie and Mareike to school. They go to an international school so it was kind of nice to go there and hear almost everyone speak English. 

After leaving the school, Janet took me to the house.  The house is beautiful.  The main level has large windows and a great view of the mountains. I got to sit in the living room and talk with Matthias (who unfortunately is sick right now). After chatting for a bit, I went downstairs to take a nap (since I hadn’t slept for about 24 hours).  After a long nap, I changed and then spent a couple hours playing with the girls. They are so sweet and really kind to me right now.  We played with puzzles and of course horses and Leonie showed me magic tricks.  After a dinner of pizza and toast, Janet and I read books with the girls and put them to bed. 

I enjoyed getting to talk to Janet.  She told me about all of her past jobs and adventures that she has had.  I told her that I am interested in event planning and plan to live overseas after I graduated so she started calling her friends and looking for internships for me right away. I was caught a bit off guard, I hadn’t planned on doing an internship while I was here. She said I could even go live with some of her friends in Munich or another part of the country for a week or so if I find a short internship that I want to do somewhere. I don’t know at this point if that is something that I’ll pursue, but I like how helpful she has been already.

Tomorrow, Janet is working in Mannheim, so she will take me with her so that I can explore the city on my own for a few hours.  I am really excited to see more of Germany.  I am excited to see what else will happen over the next 3 months.

Here I Go!

I’m sitting in the Louisville airport waiting to board my first flight on my journey to Frankfurt am Main, Deutschland.  In about one hour I will board a flight to Washington D.C. Dulles Airport, then after a 2 hour layover, I’ll board my plane from D.C. to Frankfurt. 

I’m in a weird state of mind right now.  All of this came about so quickly.  At the end of October, I woke up one morning and decided that I wanted to go overseas for an extended period of time again.  I kind of jokingly talked about taking the next semester off and going to nanny again.  I didn’t think much would come from it, but I decided to go ahead and make a profile on the au pair website.  Within about 24 hours, about 20 families contacted me.  I don’t know exactly how it all happened, but I think it was God working.  Within about 2 weeks I had a great family picked out, a nice girl to sublease my apartment and a plane ticket to Frankfurt.

I am really happy to be going to Germany. My host family seems very nice and I will get to meet up with German and American friends who are currently in Germany.  I will also get to travel.  I hope to spend a long weekend in Italy with my wonderful Italian host family from last summer, possibly visit my sister in London and maybe even fit in a trip to Eastern Europe.

I am interested to see how God will use this time.  I really love being overseas and happy to go to Germany and see new places and experience a new culture, but it was kind of hard to leave Indiana.  Last semester, I got involved in a great ministry on campus and I am really going to miss spending time with the new friends I have made.  I feel like there were so many ways God could use me and teach me in Bloomington this coming semester, and my vision isn’t so clear when I think about my time in Germany.  The way things worked out for me to get to Germany, make me pretty confident that God has something planned for my time there, but I have no clue what it is. 

I pray that I have the courage and faith to listen to God and follow his plans for me.  I feel so blessed with the opportunities that he has given me.  Over the past couple of years, I have gotten to meet so many people and experience different cultures.  In about 12 hours I’ll be meeting my host family at the airport.  I don’t exactly know what the next three months will look like, but I’m excited to see what will happen during this time. 

My German family-

Matthias, Janet, Mareike, and Leonie