(I hope you read that with Adele's "Hello" in your head.) Anyway, I have returned! When June was over, I thought, yes I'll just post in July. Then July happened...then August, September...but finally we are in October and I am here again to say hello wonderful friends and family!
A LOT has changed and happened in the past few months, so let's go :D
1. I MOVED.
I said goodbye to Berlin, packed up my things, and meandered down to Potsdam. That totals now three moves within a year (from Lichterfelde to Schöneberg to Neukölln to Potsdam), so I'm planning to make this one last.
My apartment is completely my own, so you could say July and August were a little preoccupied because suddenly, I was doing *all* of the steps of having your own apartment at once. I thought getting my registration for an apartment and visa took a long time...this was something else. Since I lived with WGs in Berlin, I never had to personally decide on the little things, so suddenly, I had to choose internet, electricity company, a place for my deposit to sit, register the apartment, and find furniture. Luckily, my apartment came with a kitchen pre-installed, this was quite helpful. However, the lights were not installed, so this was another thing I learned how to do. (In case you're wondering apartments are supposed to come as they were found, so most if not all apartments will come without lights, and some even come without flooring!)
Left is old room, right is insight to initial new apartment. (New furniture has been added and there's pictures hanging now!)
2. FURNITURE FINDS:
On the topic of new furniture, I was worried that the things I successfully obtained through Free Your Stuff Berlin wouldn't be as accessible because Potsdam does not have such a Facebook group (that's active). Fortunately, because moving occurs here similarly to Berlin, rather than posting things on FB, I find things on the street. (Yes, I know this sounds sketchy, but when you're able to find things you need, i.e. pot for your plants, a full sized mirror, trash cans, then so long as you disinfect, it's good as good.)
Additionally, the beautiful wonder of ebay kleinanzeigen has come to my attention. With the combined used of to give for free and buying things for cheap, I have fully furnished my apartment. (I even bought a temporary washing machine through the app and transported it on the S bahn!)
3. TRAVEL.
Okay, so we should avoid excessive travelling, yes, but I had to visit a few things, especially a friend who was moving back to the US....
I visited Szczein, Poland with a group of friends, which was quite lovely. It's right over the border from Germany, so it was a quick out and back trip.
I visited the beautiful Erin before she left! Our wonderful little Fulbright trio of Erin, Sid, and I traversed through Aachen and took a quick visit to Belgium and the Netherlands due to their close proximity to Aachen. Erin was a lovely tour guide through Three Points (where the three aforementioned locations meets). We also visited Mastericht in the Netherlands, and I purchased the cheapest and best peanut butter (under the US of course) I have ever found. It was a kilo, and I do plan on finding a way to return, just for the peanut butter. (I should have bought more really...)
Exploring Potsdam! You can't enjoy living in a new city/town without exploring the area! So here are few of my favorite pictures I have taken so far (including my favorite coffee shop where I frequent too...frequently). The first picture is of the most well known church in Potsdam followed by the former Rathaus/city hall. Then is the coffee shop (with a vegan croissant!) and two pictures from the park where I run.
4. SCHOOL.
In less than two weeks, I go back to school! In what you might ask? Cognitive Science. (*crickets*...but I thought she was doing music...or math...or was it something with history?) Yes to all. I'm going to study cognitive science while continuing my pursuit of music and math research. It's so exciting to start this new journey! I began an internship earlier this year after the Fulbright grant ended at the same university, and really became fascinated with what they were doing, so I applied and was accepted. My background my not be the direct path taken for this degree, but I am prepared to learn and have a good time while doing it! I even worked with the head professor in producing a commentary for a recently published article. We are waiting with baited breath to hear if our article was published. If so, it'll be my first published article, woohoo!
5. WORK.
This summer, I was working like crazy with a boat rental company. In German. What did I know about boats? Nothing. What did I know about German boat vocabulary? Also nothing. And yet, by the end of the summer, I could give the entire low-down on what was on the boat, the important rules of how to drive the boat, and how to actually drive! Here's a few pictures of me driving with some friends. It was a really cool opportunity and REALLY improved my German.
6. OTHER STUFF
So the other things ~ I am taking part in the international group at my university, so we toured the city and got to know one another. The crazy part was, during our tour we stumbled upon a Christmas market. In October! However, turns out it was a set for a commercial. They built and ENTIRE Christmas market for 30 seconds of advertisement...crazy right?
One of my biggest obsessions as of late is Too Good To Go. It's an app where you can help "save" food from being thrown away. So a big theme (other than saving money) for me is saving things from being simply thrown out. Therefore, I am happy to post my last photo of what I saved today, an phenomenal bagel with veggies. I don't know when I'll be posting again, but I hope it'll be some time soon. I'll keep updates of the adventures and life I'm living with online university, and am thankful for all who read my blog. Lastly, please try to stay safe and wear your mask. Since the numbers are going back up here, I'm stopping all travel and am trying to minimize my contact with others. Take care of yourself and others! Cheers and a lovely day/evening to you all.
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