Cheese Please

My short stint in Freiburg was not only an amazing getaway, but another reminder of how ready I am for the next section of my life.  I really do love my job and if it weren't for the previously mentioned unsatisfactory housing they provide us with extending would be an easier decision.  One of my bosses stopped me the other day and told me that they want me to stay and all I need to do is send an e-mail and an extension would be in the works, so it's an option.  This is really flattering and something to consider, but I definitely want to be closer to Marcel and on to a new set of challenges.  Welp, I have some time to figure things out.  I have a feeling September is going to be here sooner rather than later and I'll have to decide the next year of my life.  I think I liked it better when I just had to decide which classes to register for each semester and the rest was cake.  Oh how I miss Bloomington.

So Freiburg was short but sweet.  I managed to stay up for just over 24 hours between my grave shift and my commute to "the nicest city in Germany".  Surprisingly I was quite pleasant after Marcel picked me up at the train station.  He wanted to get a coffee and the thought of yet another cup of the stuff was not appealing so we got an afternoon beer and enjoyed the sun outside of a cafe.  I did need some sleep and only allowed myself a 45 minute nap when we got back to his flat.  He's too good to me. He gave me an extra 15 minutes and a great homemade dinner of spinach and cheese stuffed cannelloni.  You should have seen us attempting to use a pastry bag to fill the noodles, we resembled toddlers playing with Play-Doh.  By the time the filling was gone we were covered in the stuff and laughing at how ridiculous of an idea the pastry bag was.  Dinner was delicious.  I then slept.

The next days were full of our usual coffee stops and a trip to the zoo.  Freiburg doesn't really have a zoo so we substituted with the nature park outside of the city that had all sorts of fun farm animals.  Marcel had his first close encounter with a goat and frantically asked me over and over if it was ok.  I managed to snap a good 15 pictures of this little billy goat scratching his newly incoming horns on Marcel's arm.  The scenario brought me back to when Bill and Cathy (the two goats "I had to have", named after my grandparents, of course) had the 3 little guys on the day of Mom's Mary Kay party.  Thinking of Lucky standing on the kitchen counter and peeing all over the place while being watched by 10 women still makes me laugh.  I was so lucky to grow up on the farm and have the opportunity to witness so many neat things that many people won't see in their lifetime.  So anyway, coffee, zoo's, and now cheese, are Marcel and I's favorite things.  We stopped at a small cafe on the way home for another cup of coffee and a snack.  An appetizer plate of cheese arrived minutes after he went inside to order and it was fantastic.  My stomach wasn't happy with my choice to gorge on more milk product than is necessary in a week period and I made sure to tell Marcel I wouldn't be eating cheese for a while.  Don't worry though, at dinner I totally forgot my cheese boycott and ordered the quatro formaggi pizza.  He just laughed and said "Ohhh Yen" and went on to help himself to a bite.  Most of the trip is a blur, but I have Easter weekend in Bielefeld to meet the family to look forward to.  I'm sure I'll create some lasting memories during my stay.  Mostly awkward and embarrassing, I'm sure, but those are always the best.

Lindsey and her parents left Garmisch this morning.  I was so glad they decided to stop in for a couple days to see me.  It's always nice to see people from home.  I was really eager on Sunday while I was waiting for the phone call from Lindsey saying that they had arrived.  I called Mom to share my excitement and let her know how much I missed her. I think it was the idea of having parental figures around that got me so worked up.  It's like in college when a friend's parents visit everyone is engulfed in a flurry of anticipation.  You get to relax and have a little bit of home with you, even if it's not your own.  A short tour of Garmisch was given, we sampled my most frequented restaurants and pubs, and even made a day out of Lake Eibsee and the Zugspitze.  I had a fun time showing them around Garmisch and getting in some quality time with fellow Northern Indiana-ers.  It was sad to see them go and I really hope I will have more visitors soon. In other Garmisch related news, Christina's return has been great.  Her room is huge, roommate nice, and they have acquired an attractive floral velvet couch that I can't get enough of.  Now we just need to plan our first trip together and all will be back to normal.  It was hard enough for us to remain alive during our short stays in Munich, I can only imagine the trouble that will arise while traveling outside of Bavaria.