Wrap up for Carole In Munich

I have started a new blog, as 'Carole In Munich' is no longer true! Someday I'll figure out how to combine these all onto one site. For now, head to carole2007.blogspot.com for my current blog.

Parting is just sorrow

Well, this is my last post from Munich (this time here, I hope to be back!). It has been wonderful to be here, I'm sorry to leave. But I feel I must, for a while. I have love in my heart to absolutely everything that has made this time possible, and deep thanks to all the wonderful people I've met and made friends with here. I look forward to visiting, in Munich and where ever in the world you end up.

Notes to self: don't leave a place you've been in, a while, just after the winter holidays. People are gone so the goodbyes have stretched out from early December through January. It's very hard to keep saying goodbye.

Check out the "Interactivist of the week" at Grist: brother John!

I will start up a new blog from Rochester, once I get all connected there. I arrive there the evening of Friday the 12th and will be very happy to see Greg, Andrea & Gavin. In blogs to come I promise before & after pics of the house, proof that I'm staying in great shape - have I mentioned the wonderful Mike, trainer par excellence, recently? - and pics of the area so you all know how lovely upstate New York can be. And are motivated to come visit, if you're anywhere near the area!

TTFN,

Carole

Catching Up

I’m starting to do the final clearing up in the apartment as time is getting short and the weather is rainy. Now I’m working on organizing the photos and backing them up. Here are some I took at the Munchner Freiheit Christmas market. This market is for the local craftsfolk; these people typically have stores in the area.










This is the market at Marienplatz, it is much more focused on Christmas ornaments for the tourists.






And this is the Krippenmarket at the Rindermarkt area; it is focused on Christmas crèches (‘krippen’, in German). This is a small market, with maybe 10 non-food stalls; all selling objects to put in the creches.






In Bavaria, a crèche always includes a pot suspended over a wood fire, and local people in Bavarian dress.



And the smells of the markets are wonderful. The perfume in the air is the roasting nuts; typically coated in cinnamon & sugar:



And the hot drinks. 'Feuerzangenbowle' is 'fire blood bowl'; it involves hot tea & rum. Waay too tasty, and smells wonderful too.


Now I must launch myself out into the snow/rain, I'm on cat care duty for a friend. More later!

What a week

The movers came in this morning, and packed up what looked like a gigantic pile of my clothing, books, souvenirs, kitchen stuff in 45 minutes flat. And I felt like I fell off a cliff.

The past 2 weeks I have been busying myself with moving. I have a ticket to get back to Rochester on January 12. (At least that's the theory - it is a paper ticket that has not yet shown up in my mailbox here.) Once I set my date for return, wait, let's go back here, on December 8th "I" closed on my house. (I wasn't there, so the attorneys went to the 4-hour long meeting on my behalf. Delightful!) The sellers, who are renting back from me until their new house is completed, officially notified "me" then that they would vacate on January 14. Thus setting off the chain of events to get ready to go, to take a handover in person on January 15th.

In the past 2 weeks I have been creating a pile of my things to be shipped, and finding corners in this apartment that I swear didn't exist, but they do and they were full of my stuff. I have taken loads of paperbacks to the Munich Readery, a used English bookstore. Sorted through my files. Talked to lots of people about how to get stuff home that I couldn't carry on the plane. Finally ended up with Gosselin Worldwide Moving, and 2 cheerful, competent men showed up this morning and packed my pile into several boxes & took 'em away. I anticipate seeing the boxes again 2 - 3 weeks after I have taken possession of my new place.

And, during these 2 weeks, the ladies clubs each had their Christmas lunches and I was involved with the IWC one - set-up, clean-up and making brownies for the crowd; and very involved in the LIA one – making all the place cards, getting the newsletter out to all. One museum tour on the 12th, Alex led us through an exhibition of Rodin sculpture here called – The Kiss, the Pairs. Lots of his works that involve pairs of people. As usual, I learned a lot.

Also, wrapped up my involvement with LIA, got all the files organized and handed over to the 2007 incoming secretary. Took hours!

And the Christmas markets are open! I love browsing them, hanging out in the evening and sipping gluhwein. The smells of the markets are wonderful – at each market, there is usually a booth roasting almonds so there’s a sweet cinnamony-almond smell; the hot mulled wine (gluhwien); the roasting wursts; and the pine scent of the decorations and trees. The weather here had been fantastic – sunny and warmish, up to 45 – 50 F in the daytime. So I spent lots of time walking the city. It has turned sharply colder here now, and the market season is over tomorrow, so I anticipate more time indoors.

And of course, during this season, ya gotta do the Christmas baking. I went to a cookie exchange on the 14th, which requires that you bring 3 dozen of one kind to exchange. There were 3 other American women participating, 2 of them brought the Hershey’s Kiss cookies. Made the roommate happy, he likes them.

And I’ve been grocery shopping for the next week over the past 2 days; stores here close midafternoon Saturday and then are closed until Wednesday. It is Christmas-crazy busy in the stores so I wanted to go early in the day, a few days before Saturday.

So, after all this activity, I feel dizzy with nothing to do. I do have a list of the next items – address changes, backing up of computers & transferring files, the financial homework that the mediator needs us to do but I will wait on that for a day or so!

Logan is heading to Pennsylvania tomorrow, to visit his Mom and see friends. On the 30th he goes to California and will see friends and have several meetings – with our realtor (we’re selling the CA house), our financial advisors, and he’ll poke the moving company. The furniture will get shipped from California to Rochester; there are things in storage I really really want - like the quilt Maggie made for me. And some framed art. And my Riedel wine glasses and the load of platters, bowls and other stuff for parties I have collected over the years of my adult life. Not to mention it would be nice to have chairs & a table. Until the CA stuff gets to me I’ll use furniture saved out of my folk’s house. I am ambivalent about that, at best. But it won’t be for long.

Man, I exhaust myself just chronicling all that I’ve been doing recently. But I love working at full tilt – for a while. Time to sit with a good book. Tonight, “Thud” by Terry Prachett.

Misc

So the weather here has still been mostly beautiful. Last Friday I did some local touristing and will post the pics soon. Now into the throes of the holiday season and I'm baking. Did you know that channel lock pliers make a good nutcracker? And one can crack 400g of walnuts during a Buffy episode. It helps if the dialog is all spoken, though.