Alive and well

Hi everyone! Checking in from the local Internet Cafe, which is actually a couple of computers hooked up at the community center-- THANK YOU LORD! Was telling a friend yesterday that my Internet deficiency is reaching dangerous levels and that I might end up losing some limbs from the sheer deprivation!

Other than that things are great! Better than I could have even hoped for, actually. The move went smoothly and most of our boxes have been unpacked.

S and B started going to the local kindergarten this week, which is such a blessing! They actually have a program that runs through the summer, which means that S & B can spend their first couple of months together and get a head-start in German for when school starts in September. It's also a relief because I was running out of ways to entertain them-- was afraid I'd have to take up clogging or something!

The area is even more beautiful than I'd remembered. Our house is perched near the top of a very large hill and looks out over the valley. There are some huge birds (bigger than a hawk, smaller than an eagle, bigger than a breadbox) which glide overhead in wide, mesmerising circles. With the warm summer weather I keep feeling like I'm staying in a resort hotel except that I'm the one that has to vaccuum up the doghair when it gets ankle deep.

So many people felt compelled to tell me before we moved how closed and unfriendly the Germans (and especially the Schwabians) are. But our experience so far has been quite the opposite. The neighbors have gone out of their way to introduce themselves and are unbelievably patient with my halting German. Have had some funny misunderstandings so far, though-- will post those separately.

Guess I'll close this for now. Thanks for your words of encouragement and kind e-mails! Should be back online at home soon, and until then plan to drop by the community center more often. Someone's cooking tomato sauce here somewhere and my mouth is watering! It just adds to the surreal quality of the whole experience...