Berlinfusion

New Year Honours

New Year's Eve is a time for taking stock of the past year and for making plans and resolutions for the coming year.

Taking stock of 2011 feels a bit like too much brain work for me today. (I've come down with a stomach bug and feel rather 'blah' about everything right now.)

As for planning what I want and need to achieve in 2012... well, that something that's likely to make my head explode with the enormity of it all.

I shall pass on both these until a later date.

However, Tim and I were thrilled to read the New Year Honour list this morning as several people we know have been recognised for their hard work during the Japanese earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis. We're very proud of the strings of letters bestowed upon them but sad it took such a terrible disaster to prompt the awards.

And let's not forget all the other people, as yet unrecognised, who worked equally as hard during that crisis.

Well done to everyone!

How Much?!

A trip to the post office gives me a nasty shock...

Back in May I had to make the painful decision to close my business - a letter writing service from "The Fairies". I blame the German postal system entirely for my loss. Postage costs are incredibly high and the nearest post office to me is a mile away. A mile!

Anyway, time had passed and I'd forgotten about the rules and regulations regarding envelope and parcel sizes and the impact the dimensions have on the astronomical cost of a stamp.

I took my Christmas cards and a few small parcels to the esteemed establishment. It was a long process; I send quite a few cards to places around the globe. Most are to the UK though, so I was unpleasantly surprised when half a dozen were pulled out and placed to one side.

"Too big" stated the clerk.

I looked puzzled.

"Too big" she repeated. "Not standard price"

Ohh. Well, it had taken me long enough to write and address them, so I told her to post them anyway.

They weren't that big. I've measured a leftover one and it measures 12.7cm by 14.2 cm. That's about 5 inches in old money.

The cost for sending each "non standard / too big" card? €3.45!

No, that is not a typing error. €3.45. How utterly ridiculous. The entire pack of cards cost about the same price.

I cannot get over this. Obviously I went to the post office a couple of weeks ago to send these Christmas cards and I still haven't managed to get the horrific cost out of my head. However much it hurt to close my business, this confirmed to me that I made the right decision.

My entire postage bill that day came to a staggering €75.96.

I love sending cards and equally love receiving them. Quite a few people don't seem to send Christmas cards any more though, and it saddens me to think I may have to become one of them, based purely on the cost of postage from here.

 

Our First Berlin Christmas

So. We've just experienced our first Christmas in Berlin and it was unanimously voted as possibly the best Christmas ever. The only thing that would have made it perfect would have been snow, but that seems to be missing for the foreseeable future.

It was also declared to be very stress-free.

Barring one early morning and unavoidable incident that I will explain in due course...

Our Christmas expectations aren't particularly high. For example, I don't go crazy baking cakes and cookies, and our Christmas dinner is a fairly standard roast. As there are only the four of us (us plus Mum), I don't have to adjust my default cooking settings. We don't have turkey, preferring a leg of lamb instead. So dinner is easy. To us, it's basically a normal day but with presents!

Anyway, let me start on Christmas Eve.

Tim and I had been to our 'local' Kaisers - a quite nice supermarket - and bought a number of lovely items for lunch. We'd also found some alcohol-free 'champagne'... and a small bottle of the real thing for me. Our lunch was a feast of truffle pâté, smoked salmon, Serrano ham, good old hot-buttered toast and Christmas cake (the only baking I'd done). Yummy! And success #1.

In the evening I heard the church bells start ringing. Tunelessly as usual. But this time the cacophony was joined by the distant and melodic sound of trumpets. I went out the front to see if I could work out what was going on and ended up standing outside listening to a brass band playing Carols at the hotel down the road.

Later that evening, Tim answered the door to our immediate neighbours who unexpectedly and very kindly brought around a card and three packets of delicious, home-baked cookies! Hurriedly, I wrote a card and sent Tim back to deliver it.

For the first time in ten years, I managed to get all the gifts wrapped by 8pm. Normally, I'm still frantically battling with paper and Sellotape at 2am on Christmas night with my knees and back screaming in protest. Therefore, I was able to properly relax with my family in the evening. Success #2.

 I managed to get Rhiannon's stocking up to her room without incident - no dropping presents everywhere, no waking her up, no accidentally setting off the Light Saber she'd asked for... Success #3.

On Christmas morning Rhiannon woke at 6.30am. Fearing the potentially heart-stopping sounds of a Light Saber going off, I suggested we open the stocking downstairs in the warm. So after lugging the thing upstairs at 2am, holding my breath every step of the way, I ended up taking it back down again! She enjoyed her presents very much. Success #4.

Then, at 7.30 there was a slight commotion in the hallway...

Raymi the cat had decided to enter into the gift-giving spirit by bringing his own little present to us... a live and totally unharmed field mouse. This is the first time in his entire seven year life that he's done that.

Mayhem ensued. The first thing I did was shut Kita in one room and turfed the cat back outside and locked the catflap. However, I couldn't catch the rather endearing rodent and after a couple of circuits of the room it took refuge under the fridge.

Time to wake Tim up. He ended up dismantling the kitchen cabinets and we finally captured the mouse an hour and a half later and released it at the end of the garden. Lucky little mouse! Success #5.

Timings for the Christmas dinner were put back a little but that too worked out well. Success #6.

All presents were a great success. I actually had mine a few weeks ago. Tim ordered me an iPhone (yippee!) but Apple telephoned me on the home phone to confirm his order, so his fabulous surprise was scuppered. Thanks Apple! I also received a couple of gorgeous antique necklaces and a raclette grill.

We got Mum some tickets for a classical concert on New Years Day and Rhiannon had tickets for Apassionata - a horse show. She squealed with delight. Rhiannon also recieved a numer of kits to make things such as slime, soap and candles... lots of mess potential!

Tim received a telescope and a weather centre so is now talking about focal lengths, millibars and other atmospheric gibberish.

Sucesses #7 - #154.

The rest of the day was spent playing Pictionary (another present) and generally lazing around. Boxing Day has been much the same.

We did drag ourselves out for a walk in the forest around Grunewaldsee where we met more dogs than we've ever seen at the same time. I may need to employ a dog trainer as Kita did not enjoy this part of the walk at all.

There was also a rather disturbing number of families out competing in what appeared to be family athletics competitions. A circuit was set up with wooden exercise equipment and groups of people ran around the track, having races and stopping to work out on the bars etc.

We didn't join in.

So it's all been good so far! I do hope you all enjoyed your Christmas too.

 

 

 

 

A Christmas Roundup

It's been a busy couple of weeks. So busy, in fact, that I don't feel I've shared enough of my mundane life with you all.

Let me rectify that now...

We've been to Christmas parties: one for the kids where Santa appeared with presents. I think this is possibly the last year Rhiannon will go to this particular party. She was one of the oldest there and was all 'pre-teenage' angst beforehand, worrying what to wear and so on. Once there she had a good time though.

Another party was at Tim's office where we had a wonderful "small world moment". We bumped into someone we both worked with in Vienna about 11 years ago! The amazing coincidence is that he no longer works for the establishment and was just visiting a friend here for the weekend.

Last week - Tuesday 13th December - Rhiannon had her school's Christmas Show. We've attended a number of these over the years; usually a deadly dull concert showcasing the dubious talents of the school's orchestra and choir.

This one, however, was different. Well it would be - it's a different school in a different country!

They put on a production of "The Wind in the Willows". It was held in a very posh place called Konzerthaus in Gendarmenmarkt.

Beautiful building, isn't it? The school had hired a smaller hall inside and the play took place there.

It was an ambitious production and the kids performed extremely well indeed, with no errors that I could spot. I have to admit I've never read the book and don't know the story. And I have to admit that I'm still none the wiser as to the plot...

Rhiannon played, "Sally, the Jailer's Daughter". Just a few lines, but a part nonetheless.

She soldiered on despite suffering from a nasty bug of some description. She'd spent the previous weekend with a temperature and a dreadful cough. Which she is still suffering from, unfortunately.

School finished on Wednesday 14th so Thursday was spent lazing around the house, recharging our batteries for a short time. Or rather, Rhiannon recharged her batteries while I spun around the house frantically tidying up and cleaning ready for our Very Important Visitor...

Later that evening, we collected Mum from the airport. She's spending three weeks with us and came bearing gifts of tea bags, magazines and other lovely goodies.

The following day, Tim and I had a function to attend, so we press-ganged Mum to babysit for the afternoon. I enjoyed getting all dressed up for a change and wore a gorgeous sparkly Vivienne Westwood top and a pair of palazzo pants. To my surprise, nobody else had bothered to put their glad rags on. The very different culture in this country is going to take some getting used to.

Never mind. I didn't care that I was overdressed and I got to talk to people, something that is lacking somewhat in my day to day life. Our host informed us we had to "sing for our supper" and produced song sheets. We all gathered in front of the real fire and sung Carols with alternating verses in English and German.

The food was wonderful. Not particularly Christmassy, but very "British" with a fantastic bread and butter pudding for dessert.

The rest of the time has been mostly spent travelling into town to finish the Christmas shopping. Much of our enjoyment has come from admiring all the incredible Christmas decorations available here. They really are beautiful - and sometimes bizarre - a Christmas gherkin bauble anyone?

Unfortunately, the weather hasn't been good - and there is absolutely no sign of any decent snow, a few flakes spun around a couple of times, but mainly it's been raining. So it's been pretty unpleasant out there.

Rhiannon's cough has been very bad so I've not wanted her to spend much time outside. She gets tired very easily. But Mum needs entertaining so I've found it a bit stressful keeping everyone happy and occupied.

Then poor Mum got ill and we have had to spend the past couple of days indoors. Of course, this coincided with Rhiannon finally getting a little better and wanting to go out! (It's OK - Mum's feeling much better now.)

We've still got a Christmas Market to visit - a "Must Do" for Mum; all the wrapping to do, food-shopping to finish - we still haven't got a meat to have on Christmas Day!

Thankfully, Tim has got some time off next week so hopefully we can explore Germany a bit more and have some day trips out and about.

I'm exhausted already!

 

It's Curtains...

Isn't it amazing how a piece of material and a lick of paint can change your mood?

I've mentioned before on the dreadful decor in this house; the stark, clinically white walls, filthy taupe carpet and hideous, over-coloured curtains.

It is no more!

While Rhiannon and I were in Basel, Tim repainted a couple of walls in the living room. I chose the colour - a light mossy-grey green. It's made a huge difference; the hangings on the wall look fabulous again as they have off-white accents, which when viewed against a white wall made them look grubby. Tim also decorated Rhiannon's room. She chose the colours and they are somewhat more vibrant than my choice yet work together incredibly well - lilac and seafoam green.

Anyway, we spent some time admiring the effect the new colour gave the room, yet bemoaned the utterly vile curtains we had to look at.

See? Horrible! And the photo doesn't adequately show the sheer brilliance of the colours. (Apologies if you have chosen these for your house. Each to their own, of course, just not my taste. At all.)

However, we struck lucky. There's an empty, work-owned house nearby. And they haven't yet removed all the furniture and curtains...

We got hold of the key and went to see what they were like. Lovely! All plain and modern.

So we swapped them out and brought them all home and then spent a tiring evening unhanging and rehanging vast amounts of material. Pretty much one entire wall of the living room is curtained. Now it looks fantastic with heavy light cream brocade drapes. The room looks larger, airier and far more sophisticated.

Rhiannon claimed some dark chocolate satin curtains for her room and they pull the new paint-work together in a very grown-up manner.

We're very happy with them. I no longer feel oppressed by my living room!

Now we plan to buy lots of rugs to cover the worst of the carpet stains...

Where's the Snow?

Every person who gleefully informed us of the bitingly cold and snowy winters in Berlin is now backtracking a little.

We have had no snow (yet). There have been a few frosts and the lake started to freeze, but now it's just wet and chilly. Not freezing. Not snowbound. Not a frozen wonderland. Just damp, grey, dark and depressing.

Everyone keeps justifying their previous comments as if we don't believe them.

"This time last year we were knee-deep in snow. Honestly!"

"I can't believe how warm it is this year. Truly, it wasn't like this before." And so on, with occasional references to global warming.

I know why the weather has remained relatively balmy. And it's nothing to do with global warming.

We recently invested a hell of a lot of money buying suitable coats, gloves and snow boots. We researched for ages so we didn't waste money on the 'wrong' attire, basing our expectations on the warnings we received. We tried on countless boots (or rather, I did. Rhiannon and Tim were easier to please and fit).

So, a lot of time and a lot of money was spent preparing for a cold and snowy Winter.

That's why it's not snowing.

According to various weather websites we can't expect any freezing temperatures or snow for at least the next ten days. So much for a white Christmas.

I feel a bit sulky about that.

 

 

 

 

Basel

Rhiannon and I have just returned from an impromptu long weekend in Basel.

A very good friend of mine moved there from Tokyo a while ago; her daughter is one of Rhiannon's best friends. When we moved here I was happy to be nearer to her and planned to visit 'at some point'.

Her husband moves jobs approximately every two years. It occurred to me that they'd been in Basel for over that time, so I got in touch urgently. Just in time too - they are moving back to Tokyo next week!

So we hopped on a plane for a quick visit.

We experienced a small hitch at the airport. Armed with my friend's address I strode through the exit and approached a taxi. I showed the driver the address and he said "No, you are in France, I can't take you to Switzerland"

"EuroAiport [Basel] is located in France, in the tri-national Upper Rhine Region, i.e. very near to Switzerland and to Germany."

How wonderfully quirky... one door leads to France and another leads to Switzerland! I wonder which one goes to Narnia?

Back through the airport again to exit into the correct country and this time successfully caught a cab to my friend's home.

Basel is beautiful.

We had a fabulous time. The girls played while us mums drank pink champagne, grilled raclette and put the world to rights.

We caught the tram into the small and attractive city to visit Christmas markets. Münsterplatz was full of happy people drinking Glühwein and roasting marshmallows and damper over open fires. The girls wanted to climb to the top of the tower but my dodgy knee prevented me from joining them. Instead, I stayed at the bottom watching an enthusiastic busker playing some unusual bagpipes. I have no idea what they were (not the Scottish type, that's for sure) but the melodies produced were haunting and the sight and sound provided a surreal experience for me.

One of the highlights of our stay was meeting their new puppy. I say "puppy" in the loosest sense as a nine month old Bernese Mountain Dog is a heck of a lot of dog! She was utter gorgeousness on four legs and gave us a lot of love and fun.

All too soon it was time to head back to Berlin. But armed with an invitation to go and visit them again in Tokyo, it shouldn't be too long before we can see our dear friends again.