Ich esse einen Apfel

(by Peter Hoskin)

Hallo! This is Peter again, typing from Sachsen (bei Ansbach), Bavaria, Germany. Sachsen is a town of just over 3000 people just a few kilometers outside of the (slightly) bigger city of Ansbach. It’s a beautiful town with a church at the center and red roofs all around. It’s chilly outside and a dusting of snow, though everyone tells me they usually get quite a bit.. sure Germany, have you met Canada? They get snow.

I’ll tell you a bit about my first week in Germany (see previous post for the pre-Germany trip!). I flew into Stuttgart with Brendan on the morning of January 4, where we made our way to the train station. There we were met with a lot of signs in German pointing in different directions.. “It’s ok,” we thought, “just find the ticket counter.” Easier said than done! Eventually we did find it, we each bought a BahnCart which allows us to get 50% off our train tickets while in the country, a pretty sweet deal! And we bought our tickets, Brendan to Ellwangen and myself to Sachsen!! Brendan’s left first so we said a quick “seeya” and parted ways. I waited a bit and then jumped on my train.

The trip lasted just over two hours and I got to look out the window at this new (to me) country. What I saw was an interesting combination of modern technology and old landscape. There was this super sleek train traveling through rolling hills filled with small farms. Also, there were solar panels everywhere! Many farmhouses, townhouses, and larger buildings had panels, and I saw at least 2 solar farms. Btw, I had my German phrasebook in my hand just in case someone talked to me! (but no one did) I changed trains in Ansbach and then made it to Sachsen. I can’t believe how nervous I was on that train ride, I’ve taken the train into Ansbach a few more times now and I have it figured out!

So I got off the train in Sachsen and had somewhat of an idea where to go.. Pretty much: Go down the hill, take a street to the right, take third left, find number 37. And I found it! It’s actually a really nice house, I have the entire top floor: bedroom, kitchen, spare room, spare spare room, and bathroom. Super Sweet. The only imperfection is that the shower is quite short, like built for someone who’s five-foot-nothing… but I’ve managed alright. Here’s the house and this is the view out of my front window:

I managed to get a tv hooked up in one of the rooms, and Brendan helped me move a couch upstairs too when he came over last weekend. My new friends Dale and Kay, who live on the main floor, have been very helpful in getting me set up and I am very thankful for them. Dale even took me for a drive around Sachsen and Ansbach to help me get oriented. And there are so many football (soccer!) fields here, wow, there are three or four at the small school in Sachsen and then another two in the town. Apparently there’s a Sachsen club team so I’m going to try to see a match and support the home team!

Work has been good too, I have been able to get a ride with some of my coworkers so that has cut my 50-plus minute commute in the morning to about 10! And everyone is really nice! Though I really wish I could speak German, Brendan agrees with me on this! Everyone I work with can speak English, but it’s normal for them to speak German because it’s their first language. And some people don’t speak English. There was one meeting I went to, and it was ENTIRELY in German. After about an hour, my boss asked if I was catching any of what they were saying.. I shook my head. It’s alright, I’m doing some really interesting work. The product that I’m working on is a control unit for electric power steering, and I work on a team that designs the assembly line of these units. There’s been a really steep learning curve, but I’m getting it.

Sunday January 6, was the first time I had been away from home for my birthday, and I must say I will remember this one! I was invited to go to church with Lee and Nicole, friends my mom had connected with during our search for an apartment during the fall. It was a church of mostly Americans, and they spoke English! After the service, Nicole brought out a birthday cake and everyone sang happy birthday (sort of Grebel-esque!). Then we went out for lunch at a place called Gutshof Colmberg . Very nice German food! Then, that evening I was invited to go go-carting with Corina and her friends. Wow those Germans drive fast! It must be all the Autobahn driving. And I got to skype with my fam that night too! A good day.

My evenings are generally pretty empty, I’m trying to get back into a workout routine and I’m working on my Deutsch. A few months ago I learned, “Ich esse einen Apfel” which means “I eat an apple” and Brendan, Jae and I have kinda joked about it since it was the first thing we were able to say with confidence. Now I wish that I could say many more things with confidence :) well, I’m working on it!

And this is me actually eating an apple, so that I can legitimately use, "Ich esse einen Apfel."