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Settling In

 Guten Abend aus Regensburg! And spraznikum on this Feast of the Nativity of the Theotokos! 

The goal for this morning was to do a practice run to where my new parish church is, and to get some more groceries at Aldi's. We still need things such as honey, toothpaste, vinegar, and so on, as well as the day's meals. Ironically, the best fish we could find that didn't have breading, or come in a huge bag was pink salmon from Alaska. Yeah, we're going to eat the salmon that Alaskans feed their dogs on this feast day. The Germans don't know what they're missing. But we do...

It was a quick ride to the "Altstadt", the Old City inside Regensburg, which is older than anything in the US. The Romans were here at one time. The Holy Transfiguration parish is located in a building in the Altstadt. No one was there on this visit, as we expected, but I will be heading there Saturday evening for Vigil. We did only a little exploring while we were in the Altstadt, but seeing the famous cathedral and other sites had to wait until another time. I am still a bit limited on how far I can walk.

The picture below shows the bus stop that I will be using to go to and from church. The Altstadt is full of buildings like these. 

Some observations I've made so far: the buses are big, comfortable, shiny, and clean. They often have two sections joined by a flexible connection. The drivers whiz around narrow streets and seem to barely miss hitting bicyclists (which there are a multitude of) and other objects. We have a monthly pass, but you don't have to show it when you board. In fact, people get on and off the bus very quickly. However, at any time a pass cop (for lack of a better term) can show up and demand to see your pass. The fine is 60 Euros for 'riding black', meaning riding without a ticket or a pass. 

I've also noticed parking lots, if there are any, are small, and that there are areas set aside for people to lock up their bikes. Even the mail is delivered by bicycle. If we wind up staying, we'll have to look into getting bicycles, with baskets for carrying our shopping.

Looks like we'll have to walk to the store later today to get some baking powder. With our pantry starting out empty, it's easy to forget we're lacking one critical ingredient. We do have flour, eggs, milk, and salt. What we can't get is pancake syrup. They don't do that kind of syrup over here. Ah well, in Germany, do as the Germans do. We'll get some powdered sugar. 






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