So...I literally spent the last 5 hours trying to upload a video to share with you all, but as you can clearly see my attempts were unsuccessful. Lucky for you however, I have come up with a little something to fulfill your reading needs….
Top 10 things I miss the most,
10. Super Stores. Now don’t get me wrong the BX here is HUGE and fulfills all our needs...the only problem is that it is expensive (and if you see something you think you might want in the next year, GRAB IT, because I can promise you if you don’t the next time you go to look for it, it will be gone). German’s have their equivalents but when you can’t read the packages finding the correct fitted sheet or right type of vacuum bag becomes extremely difficult (not to mention the exchange rate is not in our favor).
9. Speed limits. Nate would totally disagree with me here but I feel much safer knowing that it is not legal to go over 100 miles an hour in busy traffic.
8. Window Screens. I can almost guarantee that you never thought you would see this listed on a top ten. However, when there is no AC and it is a law that windows must be opened for at least 10 minutes a day to air out the house (to prevent molding), window screens suddenly become worthy of notation. Good luck finding them here (and even if you do there is no way to attach them). Let’s just say that we have invested in a nice set of fly swatters.
7. Commercials. Yes, you read that correctly. We are lucky enough to get 7 American t.v. channels which proudly come with “home made” military commercials. You can imagine how bad these must be for me to miss real commercials. I would trade them in a heart beat to see a cuddly bear advertising extra strength rolls of toilet paper. Radio commercials are even worse….mostly because I can’t understand them. Germans are not really know for their music acts (shocking I know) so all of the music is in English, the commercials…not so much. A daily reminder that I am living in a foreign country.
6. Individuality. I say this for two very different reasons. (one) Because here you are automatically grouped into one of two groups, German or American, and judged accordingly (two) because all of the Americans shop at the same place so when you buy something you can be sure that the next time you go some where there will be 30 other people wearing your outfit.
5. Ice. In order to insure that you are getting the exact amount of beverage that you pay for, Germans do not put any ice in their drinks. Now some people prefer water without ice, I however, am not one of those people. When I order a soda or water (no gas) I prefer it to come out cold, especially when I am paying $3 a liter. Ice is not even an option at home….the freezers are too small for food let alone an ice maker or trays. So, when I come back to visit you can be sure that I am going to over indulge on the crunchy goodness.
4. Walk in Closets. You never realize how much stuff you really have until you don’t have any closets to hide it in. We got lucky and found a house with 1 closet (yes one closet in the entire house) and have come up with some unique storage solutions, but I definitely miss the days of simply closing the door to hide the mess when company comes over.
3. Fresh Tortillas. For some reason the Germans don’t enjoy schnitzel burritos, so good luck finding tortillas off base…and in order to get tortillas from the states to Germany before they go bad, they must be frozen for the journey. As you can imagine this leaves them less than desirable for someone who grew up in the land of local tortilla factories.
2. Internet. So I know what you are thinking….you have internet (finally). Yes, you are right, we do have internet (which I am very happy about), but it is much different than the internet we have come to know and love. When we log on we are greeted by yahoo Deutschland, which must go through a translation process before we are able to go on. Enter something into the search bar and you must sift through all of the German websites before you finally find the one you were looking for, usually around page 4. The only way to successfully navigate is if you already know the exact website you are looking for and have memorized the German word for log on/sign in. There are also MANY things that we can not view because we have a German IP address, these include (but are not limited to) videos, music, and tv episodes.
And the Number one thing I miss the most.........DRUM ROLL PLEASE................
1. Spontaneous Phone Calls. You never realize how much you take for granted until it isn’t there anymore. The time difference makes it very difficult to find times convenient for chatting. No more frantic phone calls home to find out what ingredient I left out of the scalloped potatoes or spur of the moment calls just to say hi to friends and family.
As you can see it is the little things that make such a big difference.
P.S- A huge shout out to the best mom and greatest friend I could have ever asked for- HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY! I love and miss you lots :)
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