Hey all! I'm so excited about the events of the day that I couldn't wait to share them with you! Maike called me this morning to see if I wanted to join her on her trip to downtown Friedrichshafen... She's almost finished with her thesis and she wanted to celebrate by having lunch at her favoite sushi cafe downtown, and she asked me to join. And, of course, I said yes! :) Instead of walking downtown, we opted to take the bus... I have to say that it was so much nicer to ride downtown rather than walk!! When we arrived in Friedrichshafen, Maike told me that she wanted to show me how to get around on my own, being that she starts work next week so she won't always be around if I need anything... How nice is that?! :) So, she showed me how to get a bus pass and how to purchase tickets for the train. She also took me into the local library and showed me how to go about getting a library card... They have a whole section of books in English, as well as English DVD's... I have to say that I feel much more comfortable about getting around and doing things after all of Maike's help... I honestly don't know what I would do without her! :)
After Maike's "tutorial", we decided to head to lunch. Being that we were right next to the hotel where Lena (the American who is here on vacation this week) is staying, we called her and asked her to join us. So, the three of us ventured into the local sushi cafe and enjoyed a very delicious lunch... yum! :) After lunch, we wandered around downtown and did a little shopping... We then decided to head to Cafe Aran for a coffee and some "coffee talk". Unfortunately, Maike had to head back home, so Lena and I were on our own.
We managed to order our coffee without too much confusion and we sat down. There was a group of about 5 women sitting close to us and we soon realized that they were speaking English. They also realized that we were speaking English and they asked where we were from... We told them we were from the U.S., and in turn, we found out that 3 of them were from the U.S. and the other two were from South Africa. As soon as we realized they spoke English, Lena and I got quite excited! We soon found out that all of those women live here in Friedrichshafen. Their husbands were all sent over here for work, and they came over with them... They've lived here anywhere between 25 years to 8 months. Apparently, they try to get together about once a month for coffee. They also organize movie nights (when they're playing movies in English), theatre nights, etc. Once they realized that I was here for the next two years, they told me that they wanted to get all of my contact information so that they could keep me updated on when and where they meet. That meeting completely made my day!! I can't tell you how excited I was to meet these women! It was so nice to see that I'm not the only person in this position and that there are other people out there who are feeling the same way I am... I am truly looking forward to hearing from them again! :)
Shortly after the women left, Lena and I were finishing our coffee and chatting away, when a familiar face walked up to me. I quickly recognized Alex (the girl I went to Konstanz with)... What a coincidence! So, Lena and I joined her and we sat and talked for another hour or so. I'm beginning to feel like this Cafe Aran is similar to Central Perk (the coffee shop in "Friends") for me! :) Overall, I had such a great day... I feel like I'm starting to adjust to life over here, I'm meeting new people and learning new things, and that makes me pretty happy! :)
On that note, I have to get going. Brian is playing volleyball tonight, so I'm heading over to Maike's for a "Girl's Night". I'm making a salad to take with me, along with my Ranch Dressing, so that she can get a little taste of America this evening... Meanwhile, she's making a German dish... We're combining our two cultures... Should be fun! :) Hope all is going well for you! Miss you much!
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