All summer I have been patiently awaiting our trip to Germany. I knew with our move to Deutschland came an Orientation Trip for us to get a lay of the land and make sure we like the place. Quick update…we LOVE the place!
We flew out around 11:00 AM on Sunday(Texas time) and landed Monday at 8:00ish AM (German time). We stepped out into the courtyard (for lack of a better word) and it just felt right.The air was so fresh and crisp. It was gorgeous. I don’t really know how to explain it.
The week was more of a vacation than a business trip. We spent being tourist. We ate at all sorts of restaurants. Walked around town everywhere. Drank lots of coffee (and beer!). And attempted to speak some German.
What we Did in Regensburg Germany
Here is a quick recap of what we did during our Orientation Trip. (Also, below is a video of our trip!)
Monday– Landed in Munich around 8:00 am. Rented a car and drove the 1.5 hour drive to Regensburg. We got to drive on the autobahn with no speed limit and I prayed a lot during that 1.5 hour drive. Once we got to town, we unpacked then headed out to a nearby coffee and cheese shop. We got a snack before returning to our hotel for a nap.
We woke up exhausted (and me a bit grumpy) then met our friends for dinner. Because Regesnburg is open container, we got a couple of drinks after dinner and walked down to the river while chatting with Cheyenne and Cory (the expats from Continental Seguin already on assignment there).
Tuesday– First things first, we found me a hair straightener since the adapters Cody brought would not work for my hair straightener. Then we found some breakfast and attempted to dissect a hand-written, German menu. Luckily the waitress realized we needed an English menu and helped us out.
We walked around town and tried to familiarize ourself with our new town. That afternoon we got on a boat that took us to Walhalla (pronounced Valhalla).
Walhalla is Parthenon replica and inside it is filled with busts of famous Germans. We decided to wait for the boat to come back and get us instead of hopping on a bus so we found ourselves a little bench overlooking a valley and read for an hour or so.
Tuesday evening was more dinner with friends. This time at an Italian restaurant, which is a really popular type of food there because it is so close to Italy and many Italians live there.
Wednesday- Cody went to work around 11:00 on Wednesday, which I was kind of excited about. I spent an hour or so in the hotel room catching up on emails, doing a little bit of work, and then I loaded up my stuff and decided to venture out on my own.
I just walked around the town, found some ice cream, and meandered my way down to the river where I sat and journaled for a little while.
We got dinner at a tapas restaurant right by our hotel. Sangria does not help one read a German menu any better. Luckily, there were some Spanish words on the menu and since I am so good at my Espanol, I was able to translate for us! 😉
The Dult- the Regensburg Oktoberfest. That was probably one of the highlights of our trip. We felt like we were back in New Braunfels at Wurstfest. Same music. Same clothing. Even the same kind of stands/booths/carnivals. All of it was great.
Thursday– Our last full day in Regensburg was spent touring the town with our local relocation manager, Stephanie. (This whole process is incredibly repetitive, 2 or 3 people doing the same job…those Germans though, they are on top of everything.)
Stephanie is the one on the ground actually helping us find a place to live, showing us where the grocery stores are, and she is going to become Milo and Scout’s biggest advocators- she just doesn’t know it yet! More on that in a minute..
The morning was spent on a bus tour around downtown (or city center) learning about the history of the town. Then the afternoon was spent in Stephanie’s car driving around the outskirts of town looking at potential areas we could live in.
Our hope this whole time has been to be downtown within walking distance of work, restaurants, stores, etc. But because of the dogs, it doesn’t look like that is much of a possibility. Stephanie asked for pictures of the dogs, which she is probably regretting by now. She got lots of pictures of the pups, plus Milo’s Certificate of Achievement for completing puppy school. What she doesn’t know, though, is that it is pretty much a participation certificate. Behind that certificate are three other certificates from all the puppy schools Milo went to….
Friday- Friday morning ate breakfast, packed up, and walked down to the river one last time before heading back to Munich. Friday was a nasty, cold, rainy day- none of which we had packed for.
Once we made it to Munich and got all checked in, we pulled out our Germany guidebook and did a walking tour around the city center. We saw lots of cool things, none of which I remember because I was too grumpy and cold to fully enjoy it or even remember to take pictures of.
Friday night, though, we did find this really cool Italian market full of Italian shops, restaurants, and a TON of wine!
Saturday- Saturday was a full day of travel back home. We woke up around 6:30 AM German time. And I think when I last looked at my phone before we put our head on our pillow in New Braunfels, it was 5:00 AM German time.
Needless to say, it was an exhausting day of travel and we were happy to be home with our pups.
But also missing Regensburg. I feel really grateful that I have this “longing” for the city in my heart. As sad as I am to leave our home here, I am so excited and ready to get to Regensburg and call that home for the next few years.
Below is a video I pieced together of our trip. My hope is to “vlog” and blog a lot during our time abroad so our friends and family back home can keep up with us!
Our Moving Status
As of today, September 24th, here is where we are in the moving process:
Contrary to what most think, we did not find a place to live while we were there. We didn’t even look at any potential homes. The housing market is so tight right now in Regensburg that we would have had to sign a lease beginning that day.
Once we move we get 4 weeks of temporary housing. It is during that time that Stephanie will take us to find apartments/flats/homes.
We would appreciate any prayers over a home for us. Multiple times in the Bible, it is said that if you ask for something in faith, you shall receive it. (Matt. 21:12, Mat. 7:7-8, John 15:7.) We know, regardless, that God already has this whole move ordained and taken care of. Our specific prayers for a home are a landlord who will be accepting of our dogs, 2 bedrooms, a kitchen included, and a small garden area for the dogs. A cute room with lots of natural light for my office would be the cherry on top!
Yes, I did say kitchen included. Most homes in Germany do not come with a kitchen. It’s just a room and you have to buy the cabinets, sink, appliances, etc.
The most updated move date is October 11th. Originally we were slated to fly out September 27th but our appointment at the German Consulate in Houston is tomorrow, September 25th. It takes at least a week, sometimes more, for all the paperwork to process.
October 11th is our unofficial official move date. Official enough to book tickets, (which happened today!!!) but still a chance to get pushed back.
Also, thank you to our friends and family who came out the past couple of weekends to celebrate our move! We are so grateful to have so many people in our corner as we embark on this next chapter!
Until next time,
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