Trip #6 = SUCCESS!!

Happy Friday everyone!  Well, today has been quite a day!  Brian called me this morning to tell me to meet him and Norbert up at the Rathaus at 10 a.m.  After I hung up from him, I checked the train schedule... I soon found out that I had 35 minutes to finish getting around if I wanted to make the train... So, I quickly finished getting ready, got all of my paperwork in order, grabbed my coat, and flew out the door.  I looked at the time, and I only had 9 minutes to get to the train stop... Unsure as to how long it actually takes to walk there, I decided that I was going to run all the way there...  Let's just say that I must've looked like quite a sight... Running at full speed down the street, trying to put my coat on and button it up, trying to throw my purse over my shoulder and zip it up, all the while holding on to a large manilla envelope that held all of my precious paperwork!  I managed to get there before the train, I purchased my ticket, and then sat down to wait for the train, which I was expecting to show up at any second... After waiting for what seemed like hours (but was actually only a few minutes), I looked at my watch and found out that I still had about 3 minutes to wait... Somehow I had managed to make it out my front door, and down the street to the train stop in about 2 minutes flat... Needless to say, I was pretty impressed with my ability... Maybe I'll sign up for the Berlin marathon after all! :)  

I ended up getting into town earlier than necessary, so while I waited I browsed through the Friday Farmer's Market that they had set up in the town square...  They were selling flowers, fruits, vegetables, eggs, cheeses, wine, etc... It was quite a nice little set up.  The one thing I found slightly strange, was that all of the eggs on sale were dyed different colors...  Apparently, they dye them and sell them that way for Easter...  Interesting.  But, then I thought,  doesn't that just take the fun out of dying Easter eggs for the kids?! :)  And, of course, I couldn't take a trip to the Farmer's Market without actually purchasing something... So, I ended up getting some very fresh carrots, peppers, and cucumbers... Mmmmm! :)  After my purchase, I started making my way towards the Rathaus, and I came across a flower display.  The man working the display came over and handed me a rose, and then started talking to me.  I informed him that I didn't speak German, so he then started talking to me in another language... Lovely!  At that point, I informed him that I spoke English, and he attempted to speak some English, but he wasn't too successful.  So, after receiving a flower from the man, I felt kind of obligated to buy one of the bouquets of flowers that he was selling (which is the bouquet in the picture at the top of this page...).  So, he wrapped up the flowers, and I paid for them, but instead of giving them to me, he held on to them and started talking away in some foreign language.  I proceeded to simply smile and nod, but I quickly found out that that was the wrong thing to do... I think I may have agreed to have coffee with him...  Oops!! :)  At that point, I was starting to feel awkward considering that the two of us were standing there having a conversation in two completely different languages... So, I reached out to grab my flowers from him, and that's when he started pointing at me and saying "Mann".  I stood there trying to decipher what he was saying and I finally realized that he was asking me if I was married, to which I replied, "Yes!". :)  Upon hearing this, he said something else that I didn't understand and then pointed at me again and then pointed at himself and said "Coffee?"... At this point in time,  I finally got the picture that he was asking me out... Took long enough! :)  So, I shook my head no and he finally relinquished my flowers, which I quickly grabbed and walked away.   Can't say I've ever been in a situation such as that before! :) 

I met up with Brian and Norbert at the Rathaus at 10.  After all that we've been through with trying to get this residency permit straightened out, I wasn't going in with high hopes.  Even though I had all of the paperwork they had requested, I still figured that they'd probably tell me that I needed something else.  After our number was called, we walked up to the desk, and low and behold, the woman waiting on us was the mean old lady that made me cry on my first trip there... Great!  She started looking through my paperwork and nodding and checking things off of a list... She then came across the paper from Brian's employer stating that he worked there, and she informed us that she couldn't accept it because it didn't have a recent date (it was from July)... Now, Brian contacted his human resources department on Wednesday to have them type up another letter for him, but the never responded to his request (Don't even get me started on the Human Resources Department at his work... ugh!), so we had to turn in the original letter.  We then informed the woman of this, so she told us that she had to take it to the man who's been in charge of my file this whole time to see if he would approve it... Apparently he was in a meeting, so she told us to wait... So, we waited and waited and waited... And, at this point, Brian had to tell me to calm down, as I felt as though I was going to spontaneously combust right then and there!  I was just waiting to be told that we needed something else, which would prolong everything again.... Well, while we were waiting, another man sat down at the desk next to us, and apparently he was feeling the same way as I was towards the people there... Let's just say that he was very TICKED OFF!  He was raising his voice and telling someone off.  I found it quite humorous to be honest.  It made me realize that it wasn't just me feeling this way! :)  Eventually, they had to bring out the man (who we were waiting for) to calm him down...  Finally, after about an hour's wait, the lady finally came back and told us that they were just going to approve everything and give me the permit... Seriously??  I was literally in shock when I heard those words come out of her mouth! :)  So, after 6 trips to the Rathaus, they finally approved my paperwork... woohoo!!!  I now have an official residency permit... And I'm now able to travel outside of Germany again... But, most importantly, I don't have to go back to the Rathaus anytime soon... yay!! :)  

After leaving the Rathaus, I met up with my friend, Sarah, for lunch at a Thai restaurant.  She introduced me to her friend, Amanda, who's from the U.S... I was quite happy to meet another fellow American! :)   We had a nice time over lunch and we're hoping to all get together again very soon.

Overall, it's been a pretty full day... Now, Brian and I are headed for the gym.  We're not quite sure what the weekend plans are yet, but now that I can travel outside of Germany, we're contemplating about a ski trip to Austria tomorrow... Let's keep our fingers crossed! :)  I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!  Miss you much!