I had promised to post pictures of the house when we got back from our trip. There were a couple complications that had to be worked out. We are now 95% sure that this will be the house we rent when we move to Germany. The whole town sits in a valley and the house is built into one of its sides. Our house isn’t that high up, but its enough to get a view of the town from our back windows. There is a patio on top of the tiny garage. It will be nice to sit out there in the summer. It was a bit foggy when I took the picture below from one of the bedrooms.
The inside is either wood flooring or tile depending on the room, so we will need a lot of throw rugs. One thing that I thought was strange is that the kitchen is stripped down to the walls when you change tenants. This is regardless of if you are renting or buying. The cabinets, sink, appliances.. everything. Here is a random picture from inside. Most of the rooms look like this.
It is only a 12-14 minute walk to the town center, a 4-minute walk to a small bakery and a 2-minute walk to an outdoor beer garden. Strangely enough the beer garden is across the street from an elementary/middle school.
Liz is back in Germany right now for work. After dropping her off at the airport yesterday, E and I have been running errands to get ready for the move. There is a possibility that we will begin packing as early as a week from Monday. Someone from Den’s company is coming to do an estimate early this week.
A quick post. We had a very nice treat last weekend. We were able to visit with Jed and Anne. They are doing well but are both really busy with work. It was awesome to see them and just hang out. E and O were able to play together again. They hadn’t seen each other since E’s birthday party. O doesn’t look like a baby anymore. All the baby fat has turned to muscle from throwing the ball around with his dad. His enunciation of the words he knew was incredible. Jed’s parents watched E and O on Saturday night so that Anne, Jed, Liz and I could go out to dinner. It was a lot of fun, but felt pretty strange at the same time. No worries though, the babies fell asleep right after we left and didn’t wake up until morning.
The day before we came home we drove to Frankfurt so we could avoid any morning fog during the drive and to drop off the rental car. Our flight was early in the morning and we didn’t want the hassle. In the afternoon, Christine took us for a tour of the city. Christine is a friend from the Up with People Alumni Board. It was a chilly and sunny day. Above you can see Liz, E and me in front of the Old Opera House. Christine knows a lot about her city. She did a much better job explaining the history than I could if I brought you around Raleigh or Durham. The city was very beautiful. Most of the downtown had to be rebuilt after it was flattened in the war. You could tell that much thought had gone into the planning.
With the wide promenades, we were able to walk around the city easily. It must be amazing in the summer. Check out the skyscrapers in the background of the photo below.
Tonight Liz, E and a I went to a brew pub after work. Friends from my work had set up a small get together for a going-away party. It was very fun. Several of my work friends even brought their kids and spouses. I think it will be a long time before I feel as comfortable at work.