Stranger in a Strage Land

I'm not going to lie...I am not a world traveler, nor do I have aspirations to ever be one. I don't feel the need to travel across Europe or Asia...I don't even care if I ever see Canada (yes, I am the ONE American never to cross our Northern boarder), that's just not me. Sure, I wouldn't mind a nice, tropical vacation somewhere, and I would love to visit Australia, but that's about it.

Most of the reason for me not being a huge fan of traveling is b/c traveling is not a huge fan of me. It doesn't matter where I go, I end up sick, can't sleep, the food doesn't agree with me...my body reacts negatively to it. This is something I might have passed on to my kids, since they both got sick last summer when we went to NC and we had our little issues this trip as well, but more on that later.

I am also not big on being in a place where I don't understand the language. We have had Rosetta Stone software for a while now, but haven't gotten a microphone needed to use it, so I, once again, was lost. It is not a feeling I enjoy...having no clue what is being said all around you...feel awkward when a stranger tries to talk to me and I am like, duh, sorry...

But, alas, my extended family resides in Germany, so, like it or not, I had to leave the comfort of home and fly across the Atlantic.

I did force myself to be calm for the trip over. I worked overtime to suppress my anxieties and it worked, more or less. I even made it through security without having a major panic attack...which is pretty big for me. We had our layover in London and completed our final leg to Germany and it was all uneventful and I didn't freak out.

I did get super air sick and spent 6 hrs willing myself not to puke in the airplane bathroom (entirely too small and as if I am going to actually puke at my seat in one of those bags), but that was the worst of it.

My FIL and SIL picked us up at the airport and we made the almost 2 hr journey back to their house from Berlin. It shouldn't be a 2 hr journey, especially on an autobaun with NO speed limit, but I think we cruised a cool 50-55mph the whole way...I slept for most if it, though.

So, we got to the house, got settled, and my air sickness eventually went away. This allowed me to indulge in a yummy treat I discovered on my first trip...the Doner. A delectable Turkish treat, which is kinda like a Gyro, but different. SO good. Something I had really been looking forward to since leaving Germany last time...lol. If Kai and I opened a Doner stand here, I think we would do very well. Too bad we aren't those type of people...who, you know, do stuff.

Now, Germans, or at least Kai's family (but I suspect most Germans), are way more formal then Americans. Every meal we had to eat together...and there was a little problem one afternoon when I fed the kids some pretzels and offended a family member who thought we were having tea without telling them. The kids are expected to act a certain way and people don't speak as freely (aka jokingly, sarcastically, etc)...I am not saying it's bad, it's just different. I am very laid back and come from a laid back family...it made it hard b/c I wanted to connect with his sister, but wasn't sure what was appropriate to ask about. I know she has a boyfriend, but I didn't get the vibe from her that she wanted to sit and gossip, ya know...anywho, it was just very different...

After a few days with them we began our 2 week RV adventure...and that is where our real adventure begins...