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Getting into the Rhythm of Germany

 Gruß Gott!

What a beautiful Sunday in Regensburg. As I sat at the bus stop waiting for the bus to take me to church, I thought about how blessed I was. It was a refreshingly cool morning. The birds all around were chirping and church bells were ringing. Across the street was a store that was closed, as are most businesses on Sunday in Germany. That's been no problem for us. Since the stores are closed on Sunday, we plan accordingly. And since there are four grocery stores within walking distance, it's not hard to plan.

At coffee hour today, we had a French man that didn't speak English very well, but could speak German, so we all sat around speaking in our second language, some better than others. I'm still working on being more fluent in speech, so I mostly listened. Apparently, while Bavaria is strongly Roman Catholic, it's more cultural than spiritual. At some point, it must have meant more to them, as there are countless beautiful churches and monasteries here. 

Well, we filled out our immigration papers yesterday and are waiting to submit them. Even if we don't stay permanently, if we want to stay past 3 months, we have to get a temporary residence permit. 

For those who have never been to Europe, the object in this photo is a wall socket. If you don't have an adaptor, your US-made electric and electronic items will not work. As it is, things like hairdryers won't work, anyway. Below is the plug. Seems if there's a way to be different here, that's the way it turns out to be. 

(This blog site won't let me put photos side-by-side, so that's why sometimes it seems a little wonky). 

Another things that's different is that the price on shelves include tax, so if you buy something that's for 1.99 Euros, and you have a 2 Euro coin in your pocket, no worries. You'll get a 1 cent coin back.

At the grocery store, the cashiers are always seated. They quickly and efficiently, in German manner, scan your groceries. You have to go to the other side of the cashier and quickly bag your own groceries. I often just throw mine back into the cart and balance the load out in my bags after the transaction is finished. If the cashier is busy, they don't chat you up, but if business is slow, they'll talk to you. On one such evening, I had the experience of trying to use the exact change, and still failing. I said something to the cashier about trying to learn, and that I was new here. She asked where I was from. Her eyes widened when I said, "Alaska". She then welcomed me. I think it's nice that they are able to sit. 

The day is still young, and the weather beautiful. I think we might make an excursion of some sort. 

Tschüss 

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