I've officially been banned from the bread knife

I finally got a visa appointment scheduled today! I'll have to miss work, but at least I'll finally get it taken care of. I punctually called the visa office the minute they opened and a good thirty minutes of explanations got me an appointment sooner rather than later. In an air of victory, I proceeded to make myself breakfast. Evidently, my brötchen was old and hard, so my bread knife slipped and I cut myself pretty good on my hand. Not quite bad enough for stitches, but it bled a whole bunch. So much for a good start to the day. I made quite a mess of the apartment in search of bandages, but I managed to clean myself up. It finally stopped raining today and I was able to fit in some well-deserved and well-missed sunshine and book time on the Rhine.


lg,
Lauren

Approaching the end of week two

So I'm about to hit the full two week mark. I was getting a bit grouchy (translate = bored and lonely) toward the end of last week, but I continued to push through with one goal: the Mainz Literature Festival. Readings of classic novels aboard old trolleys, a music and lit hybrid concert, and to top it all off, a slam poetry competition. Needless to say, I was pretty excited for Friday to roll around. Unfortunately, I didn't make it to the festival. And I missed taking pictures of the huge letters placed in the Schillerplatz garden. Oh well.

Instead, I went with Stephan to his friend's birthday party. Stephan was the native speaker in the German House my junior year at Hendrix, who happens to live in Mainz. I had a nice time, and in all seriousness, it fulfilled the much needed social interaction that I had been thriving since my arrival. My roommate, Marie, came home on Saturday. We had breakfast together on Sunday and chatted until early afternoon. She is lovely and excited to have me here. I answered all of her questions about "real American life," both confirming and extinguishing the cliches presented through dubbed American TV shows. Marie also said that I was "half-German" because I crave German bread and German beer whenever I am in the States, which I find quite amusing. We officially celebrated my arrival by going out for Indian food for dinner. Yum.

The weather here has turned a bit sour, providing a bitter fall preview. It has been raining since Friday and it is much much cooler with highs in the upper 50s. The rain is supposed to break tomorrow, hopefully, and it will warm up a bit. I really want it to stop raining, so I can enjoy me book near the Rhine again, instead of snuggled in my bed (not that being snuggled up in bed is all that bad). Since I plowed through a few history books pretty fast, I hunted down an English copy of Eat, Pray, Love. It was no easy task, but so worth it. Eat, Pray, Love details the author, Elizabeth Gilbert's personal memoir of traveling for a year to rediscover herself - pretty perfect for someone who is living abroad for a year. I've laughed, cried, contemplated my life choices, and everything in between. The stories are clever, humorous, and so so fantastic. The movie version will be playing in OV (Original Version = in English) in Wiesbaden in a few weeks. I'm interested to see how the book is adapted to film.

I'm still waiting on an appointment to get my visa. It has been a bit of a challenge to actually get in contact with anyone in the office. I'm also in battle with O2 over my phone SIM card, so I still do not have a functioning cell phone. I'm a little frustrated. Everything magically worked when I was in Bielefeld. I felt so prepared for this adventure, because I already knew the steps I needed to make when I got here. Somehow German bureaucracy seems to be ten times worse in Mainz than in Bielefeld, which a year ago would seem impossible.

Sally is coming back this weekend and the other Fulbrighter that will be here, Ashley, is supposed to arrive sometime this week. We all leave for Fulbright orientation on Monday. I will have work and I will have people. I can't wait!

lg, Lauren

*The picture above is an AWESOME slide about a block from my apartment at a playground on the top of an old Roman fortress. I stood in line with all of the other kids (their parents gave me weird looks) and it was one sweet ride.*

So I've been here a few days...

I'm officially moved in and settled in Mainz - except for that pesky visa thing. I have found my way around most of the city and lucky for me if I ever get truly lost I live next to a pretty big church, St. Stephen's, famous for its Chagall windows. My apartment is tiny - really tiny - but in an excellent location. I can walk anywhere in 10-15 minutes.

I've spent my days walking around the old city, trying to figure out where each small side street twists off to. Every little street in this city seems to magically connect to some square or church. I'm constantly finding new ways to get around town. There is a big market next to the Mainzer Dom (Mainz Cathedral) on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. I went on Friday and Saturday to pick up fresh fruit and flowers for my room. I plan to shop at the market for almost everything while in season - the selection is amazing!Most afternoons I go down to the Rhine to read. There is an awesome park with plenty of benches and green space for blankets. And the view isn't so bad either:
Yesterday, I met up with another Fulbrighter, Sally, who will be teaching in Mainz, before she goes back to the States for a week. She spent a gap year in Mainz between high school and college, so she was shocked that she was placed here again! We went to lunch then went to the beach on the Rhine (which I had yet to discover!). In the summer they put sand down in part of the park and set up beach chairs and hammocks facing the river. This will definitely become a new reading spot!

It was so nice to see a familiar (though Facebook) face. Mainz is an awesome city, but I am starting to get a bit bored exploring the city alone. I have thirteen days until orientation to keep myself occupied, which is a long time with very little money and the university not being in session. After trying to settle a few more logistics today, I hope to go over to Wiesbaden and up to Ingelheim this week and maybe cash in and take a Rhine cruise. Maybe I'll get out of town for a day-trip this weekend. I'm really starting to get anxious for my job to start!

lg,
Lauren