Ich brauche Urlaub.

The most important lesson of this week is that publishing blogs on a Friday night is not a good idea.

This week/end has been hard- at uni this feeling doesn't really arise until like December, but I am now remembering at school you suddenly find yourself CRYING OUT for half term.

And so it is currently- I'm hearing people talk and thinking, why are you STILL speaking German? WHY?! I'm finding it more difficult to cycle to work every day... and on top of that, was at stunt camp for cheer yesterday. Got me thinking about how I'm so into cheer as a idea- the bows, the spirit, the American footballers, but when it comes to lifting another person on your own? No thank you, I much prefer teamwork ;)

Luckily I am taking a few days off in 10 days time for some exploring and well-earned lie-ins.

That being said, today is Sunday- where everyone hangs out with their own families... so of course I slept for 12 hours (I blame the Muskelkater - muscle hangover, great word) and am trying to re-organise my life while I have the time.

I cleaned (even my bedclothes)

I'm writing lists

I'm writing a blog (and trying to figure out what it means to write about your life and have people read it and why and what I should write about. I could write a whole post on why I blog etc. Blogception)

And admittedly, this is all preparation for, and avoidance of, the 8000 words that I have to write for uni this year.

What I mean by all of this I suppose is, that I'm 8 weeks into my year abroad and I want to becoming ever more intentional, rather than slowly losing the plot. I want to make sure that I am squeezing every bit of life and lesson that there is to have whilst living on "the real mainland." I am definitely having fun and learning lots, but I have let time get ahead of me, and at the end of the day I need to document all my learning, and basically be able to speak really, really professionally good German.

And this is difficult. However, it is a challenge I still think I am capable of!

So here we go again...!

P.S. This blog was interrupted by the appearance of the Matin Responsary on my iTunes shuffle. My room enjoyed a spectacular lip sync.

We're Not in Kansas Anymore

All my best thoughts happen on my bike.
60 minutes a day of rushing green and mindpeace.

It turns out I really love metaphors; this week's favourite is The Wizard of Oz, because it crept up on me and I suddenly realised I had been humming to myself on my bike (the Wicked Witch of the West theme, when she's on her bike).
And indeed it started with the bike- looking for a basket for my bike I couldn't help but think how cute a little Toto dog would be in a basket... Maybe for a day :P

Then, on Monday, I went out for hot chocolate in a fancy hotel, where you could see the whole skyline...

http://instagram.com/p/uIRdE3rewo/?modal=true

It was pretty great! But the best moment was on my way home (on my bike, again), where I looked back on where I'd cycled and saw my Emerald City lit up! It's amazing, and someday I will actually stop and take a picture. Then I happily travelled home on my yellow brick road.
It was pretty great! But the best moment was on my way home (on my bike, again), where I looked back on where I'd cycled and saw my Emerald City lit up! It's amazing, and someday I will actually stop and take a picture. Then I happily travelled home on my yellow brick road.
It was pretty great! But the best moment was on my way home (on my bike, again), where I looked back on where I'd cycled and saw my Emerald City lit up! It's amazing, and someday I will actually stop and take a picture. Then I happily travelled home on my yellow brick road.
But I've been considering how this all ties up with Dorothy's great desire to go home, and I think I might be the Wicked Witch, because I don't really want to go home!
I'm just generally having a good time and am busy- at work I've been working on social media (follow us), and have been cheering my ass off. I love cheer and I love the team. Yay.
The only thing I'm sad about is that I keep missing stuff! I missed Oktoberfest, I have missed today (!!) the Nacht der Clubs, and I will miss the end of football season in September.I don't know how I will feel by the end of the year, but I really am fascinated by everyday German stuff! I learn new words every day, am baffled by phrases, and stumped when I speak English and find there is a perfect word in German that doesn't translate...Obviously the culture is still quite jarring. Sometimes I feel like people are just rude- but most of all that the coconut saying is true! On our year abroad prep week, I read Germans were hard on the outside, and super soft and lovely and the best friends ever once you get to know them- this is definitely true with almost all people I have got to know.I'm still struggling to tie down any friends at church- I meet a different person every week, and then seem really nice and then I don't see them again! But I'm definitely happy with my choice and am in it for the long haul.
Despite all this, I do think about home the odd time! I have a price alert on flights to Dublin, sending messages that make me wish I could click my heels home instead.Until then, I'll be doing my best to send postcards, and thinking up metaphors for life on my bike.



Bis später!

übergangsphase

It's really weird to say I've been in Frankfurt for nearly six weeks! Not very good at the whole updating thing- I am in a pretty solid routine, which is as follows:

Monday: up at 7.30, work, home at 6ish, dinner, normally skype someone or watch a film (in English, sorry not sorry)

Tuesday: work, leave a bit early, go to cheer (I have never managed to be on time, either because I don't leave on time, or because public transport is a persistent bane of my life), come home about 7.30, eat and collapse.

Wednesday: same as Monday ;)

Thursday: work, then Jugendkreis in Bad Soden. At youth we sing songs in English or German and then do a little Bible study.. it's really cute! Then someone gives me a lift to the train station, or sometimes even all the way home! Get home at like 10... I have a fairly strict 11pm bedtime, otherwise I am a horrible person the next day. 

Friday: work, and now cheer in the evenings.

Saturdays: I can do whatever I want! But I am a tired lady.

Sunday: I now go to church at 4pm, which is great.

Free time activities including constantly being on public transport or having just missed something and having to wait...BUT I now have a bike! So hopefully these dog days are over... The amount of times I have massive panics because of being late etc is unreal (reference: the need for a river of calm when I missed the train to my friend's church http://instagram.com/p/sovtGuLe3G/?modal=true). Another day I missed it again (I'm a slow learner), so I decided to go into town... wow do they take being closed on Sundays seriously. Literally NOTHING. I did go to a quirky little coffee shop near the cathedral though, and then showed a lovely Portuguese woman to the train station. I'm a local don't you know.

Then again, I did make a completely rookie error of going shopping on the Zeil on a Saturday afternoon. It was horrible and exhausting and I impulse bought shoes. In Primark. Oh the shame. I've been researching vintage shops so hoping to go a bit off the beaten track soon.

Otherwise in terms of shopping, I have been to Wertheim village, which is in the same chain as Kildare village down south. Probably even more expensive and there was no Jack Wills! But it was a nice look round, and good to get a few hours away from Frankfurt!

This post is completely disordered.

Cheer is going well- but it has been really hot these past few weeks so just feeling a bit under power. I miss Ruby boobies, and uni and friends, which I really did not think I would. I definitely do not miss studying. I love work- thank the Lord!

I've made a few friends from cheer which is cool- last week I was at a birthday party and this week I was building a wardrobe! Everyone is really nice and gets my situation (both lingual and social!).

Last Sunday I ran 5k. It was so hot, and therefore I feel it was even harder than the LURADV 10km. The runner's high did not come. But it was a nice run around Museumsufer, and half a day with my new cheeries!

In terms of church, I've been going to Frankfurt City Church for the past two weeks. I haven't talked to many people yet, but I really like the worship and the teaching.

Yesterday, I met up with a couple of Erasmus people which was cool. It was interesting because they had all been in Frankfurt for like two weeks and under. It was weird to be the one to tell them that everything gets better, even though I don't think I'm out of this übergangsphase (transition phase) yet. I think it will take a while. I am still getting lost and saying the wrong thing. In saying that, I know I have come far already, and have adjusted reasonably well. I have learnt new words, invented some of my own and drunk a lot of Wasser mit Kohlensäure! I also now don't thank the bus driver, even when I get off at his side :( need to try harder to remember! Sometimes UK customs are just better..!