So this post will be one that will be a compensation for all these days that I haven't written a word...
First I'll start with saying that it's so obvious that I come here to write as soon as I have some work to do for Uni. I keep looking for escape :-) I have an essay to hand in, and I have another 3 weeks or so to finish writing it. I've only read some literature so far and found some articles. So let's hope that I actually get to write this assay. I need to write 15 pages in German. Wish me luck.
Other than that, we had some nice activities lately, for example we went on a weekend with Rob's family, a bicycle tour that was dedicated to Rob's dad, who loves riding his bike. It was a birthday present from all the kids. I, of course, lazy me, didn't ride the bicycle, but I was in charge of the picnic car, so I met the happy family on the way each day bringing them some food. I also had all their belongings in the car- since we slept in 2 different hotels that weekend. It was a really beautiful weekend, I took amazing pictures, and it was honestly fun driving alone in this absolutely inspiring scenery. It was in the area of Stuttgart, in the Swabian Alb. I really recommend going there if you have the chance.
Other than that- I just had a tooth pulled out, one of my lower wisdom teeth, which has been there since I'm 18, so it was really hard to let go. I'm still recovering, but I didn't suffer from much pain since they took it out, so I guess I was lucky there. But the whole procedure was a bit complicated because........ well....... because...........
I'm pregnant :-)
yep.
And that's one of the reasons I haven't written here in a while. The first 3 months were horrible. I had sickness throughout the day, and lost 4kg just because of that. The last month was much better. I'm starting my fifth soon, and I feel ok.
Anyway, I wonder who of you is reading this and will now know the news. My Israeli friends all know already, but you guys around the world - I haven't had the chance to tell you, and was actually wondering if I should even write it here on the Blog or not. I decided that I should, I mean, at some point I would have written that I have a baby, and that would have been even funnier no?
Now I just hope and wish for, as they say, a "boring" pregnancy, and a healthy baby!
That's it for now, told you this will compensate for a long time not writing...
Showing posts with label Germany. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Germany. Show all posts
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
working in Germany vs. working in Israel
I started writing this post at work, when I had a couple of minutes for myself (something that didn't really happen lately, since we're under staffed and it seems like we're working much harder than before...).
I will try to compare my working experience in Israel with the one in Germany, as well as comparing working with Germans vs. working with Israelis...
1. Payment:
Although living expenses are not much higher in Germany than in Israel (in average of course), the salary in Germany is much higher. In Israel, for example, I got about half as much as I'm getting now per hour, for the same job (in the same company). Oh, and what I'm getting now is lower than the average salary for this type of job in Germany.
On the other hand there is no minimum wage law in Germany, which leads to a lot of jobs that pay very little (especially students' jobs, what they call here "under 400€ jobs" - coz this amount is the amount ppl don't have to pay taxes for).
2. Holidays:
In Israel it works like in the USA: the law says that one should get a minimum of one day off per month, for a full time job. Therefore, most ppl have 12 days a year, that they can take off (not including the bank holidays of course). In certain cases, governmental offices give more days off every year of working, up to a certain maximum of course. My mother, who's been working for the same gov. office for more than 20 years now, has about 24 days a year, to take as holiday when she wants. Remember this number.
In Germany it's a bit different. The law is a bit more complicated. It basically says that the minimum of days off one should get is 1 and a half days per month of the year (that's the absolute minimum). That makes 18 days a year. It also says that for a normal 5 day week, one is entitled to at least 20 days off a year.
I got here 24 days off the first year that I worked here. Remember this number? Every year I get one day more till I'll reach 30 days.
I'm much younger than my mom, have much less work experience, and still have more days off a year than she does.
How does this effect one's life? In many, many ways.
Obviously, the more days off payed by your company, the more days you have to relax and go on vacation, meaning, doing everything else but working. Knowing that you have these days, and actually using them, makes you, as a worker, much happier, and of course much more satisfied in your job. It also allows ppl to have a life next to work. Helps develop hobbies, helps make ppl a bit more interesting and interested.
This brings me to the next point:
3. Working hours:
I only have experience working for this one company in Germany, but I do look around me, my husband works in a German company, and I have friends around. Here, although it's starting to change to the worst a bit, ppl work for money and for living, not the other way around. They go to work, most of them start around 8, they have lunch together, have a real break, and then they go home around 17:00. They have hobbies, do sports, take care of pets, or spend some time with their families.
In Israel I had a totally different experience.
Ppl are slaves to the job, answer phone calls on their cell phones at all hours, even if it's at 20:00 at home, whilst tucking your kid to bed. There are no borders about these things or limits, it's all Kosher.
I'm making a huge generalization here, I'm very well aware of the fact that there are both kinds of working ppl in Germany and Israel, but that's the big picture.
These were all just thoughts of mine lately at work, I must say that it's not all bad working in Israel. for example: ppl there are much more flexible, much much much more open to new ideas, and give you much more freedom in choosing your path, weather it's inside a company, or when hiring you. In Germany ppl are scared to death from "holes" in their CV (for example a year of traveling etc.). They are so afraid of that they never dare to go outside of the "path", of the "box". They try doing everything by the book, otherwise, they wont even be invited to the next interview. I miss being a bit more creative, having a bit more say about little things that make a difference. I miss the flexibility of the ppl, and their open mindedness.
Yeah, it seems as if in Germany ppl don't judge you for who you are or what you did (when you compare German reactions to stories with Israeli ones), but that's only coz the Germans would just not tell you their opinions right away. Inside, they would think: wow, she's too old for this job, and what a waste of time was her traveling around the world working here and there, and she doesn't have a diploma we know, how weird, we can't afford to take a chance on a person like that.
and yes, again, I know that I'm generalizing everything, but- these are just my impressions and experiences... I really hope that life would surprise me and show me how different things can be here :-)
I will try to compare my working experience in Israel with the one in Germany, as well as comparing working with Germans vs. working with Israelis...
1. Payment:
Although living expenses are not much higher in Germany than in Israel (in average of course), the salary in Germany is much higher. In Israel, for example, I got about half as much as I'm getting now per hour, for the same job (in the same company). Oh, and what I'm getting now is lower than the average salary for this type of job in Germany.
On the other hand there is no minimum wage law in Germany, which leads to a lot of jobs that pay very little (especially students' jobs, what they call here "under 400€ jobs" - coz this amount is the amount ppl don't have to pay taxes for).
2. Holidays:
In Israel it works like in the USA: the law says that one should get a minimum of one day off per month, for a full time job. Therefore, most ppl have 12 days a year, that they can take off (not including the bank holidays of course). In certain cases, governmental offices give more days off every year of working, up to a certain maximum of course. My mother, who's been working for the same gov. office for more than 20 years now, has about 24 days a year, to take as holiday when she wants. Remember this number.
In Germany it's a bit different. The law is a bit more complicated. It basically says that the minimum of days off one should get is 1 and a half days per month of the year (that's the absolute minimum). That makes 18 days a year. It also says that for a normal 5 day week, one is entitled to at least 20 days off a year.
I got here 24 days off the first year that I worked here. Remember this number? Every year I get one day more till I'll reach 30 days.
I'm much younger than my mom, have much less work experience, and still have more days off a year than she does.
How does this effect one's life? In many, many ways.
Obviously, the more days off payed by your company, the more days you have to relax and go on vacation, meaning, doing everything else but working. Knowing that you have these days, and actually using them, makes you, as a worker, much happier, and of course much more satisfied in your job. It also allows ppl to have a life next to work. Helps develop hobbies, helps make ppl a bit more interesting and interested.
This brings me to the next point:
3. Working hours:
I only have experience working for this one company in Germany, but I do look around me, my husband works in a German company, and I have friends around. Here, although it's starting to change to the worst a bit, ppl work for money and for living, not the other way around. They go to work, most of them start around 8, they have lunch together, have a real break, and then they go home around 17:00. They have hobbies, do sports, take care of pets, or spend some time with their families.
In Israel I had a totally different experience.
Ppl are slaves to the job, answer phone calls on their cell phones at all hours, even if it's at 20:00 at home, whilst tucking your kid to bed. There are no borders about these things or limits, it's all Kosher.
I'm making a huge generalization here, I'm very well aware of the fact that there are both kinds of working ppl in Germany and Israel, but that's the big picture.
These were all just thoughts of mine lately at work, I must say that it's not all bad working in Israel. for example: ppl there are much more flexible, much much much more open to new ideas, and give you much more freedom in choosing your path, weather it's inside a company, or when hiring you. In Germany ppl are scared to death from "holes" in their CV (for example a year of traveling etc.). They are so afraid of that they never dare to go outside of the "path", of the "box". They try doing everything by the book, otherwise, they wont even be invited to the next interview. I miss being a bit more creative, having a bit more say about little things that make a difference. I miss the flexibility of the ppl, and their open mindedness.
Yeah, it seems as if in Germany ppl don't judge you for who you are or what you did (when you compare German reactions to stories with Israeli ones), but that's only coz the Germans would just not tell you their opinions right away. Inside, they would think: wow, she's too old for this job, and what a waste of time was her traveling around the world working here and there, and she doesn't have a diploma we know, how weird, we can't afford to take a chance on a person like that.
and yes, again, I know that I'm generalizing everything, but- these are just my impressions and experiences... I really hope that life would surprise me and show me how different things can be here :-)
Thursday, October 04, 2007
In Germany. Again.
2 days ago I took a flight back to Germany. It was at 16:20 from Israel to Istanbul (Turkish Airlines) and my connecting flight to Berlin was only the day after at 08:40am. I was already planning my 13 hours at the airport waiting for my flight. My dad advised me to ask the at the transfer desk if it's possible to stay in one of the airport's lounges until then. So I went there and asked. The guy there told me that it's better if I take a hotel. He said that Turkish Airlines will provide me with transportation to and from a hotel, and a night there- on their own expense! I was so surprised and pleased! So I went through passport control in Istanbul (how lovely it is that the British need a visa to Turkey but us Israelis don't???) then they took me to a really ok hotel in town, and in the early morning they took me back to the airport... It was great having my own room and my own shower and a bed for the night...
Got to Berlin and Rob picked me up from the airport - we met Aaron his friend for lunch, and then drove to his parents' to be here for a few days - coz they're not around and they wanted us to be with his little bro a bit.
Today we didn't do much, Rob was kind enough to give me a drivers lesson here (I feel that I need the reinforcement to know the local weird rules and all) and met his former piano teacher (when we picked up his bro from a lesson). She's one of the coolest ppl I ever met- a 60++ year old that looks much younger, dances around and jumps and moves like a little girl. She's an x-Russian (Jewish too) who lives here for years and years, and I understood almost everything she said in German so it was nice- I wasn't left out of the conversation at all... She suddenly opened her kitchen door and on the table she had food and cakes- coz it's her Birthday today. Did I say she's really cool???
The weather here is really shit. Cold (about 13°c) and gray and rainy- but it's still gonna take a few days until I'm sick of it so... I'm not complaining yet!
Liya from China just moved to Germany after a year in China, came here after a boyfriend too- and I'm so happy she's closer now!!! Liya!!! when are we gonna meet??? miss ya!
That's all for now, gotta do my nails... (I'm such a girl sometimes... lol)
Got to Berlin and Rob picked me up from the airport - we met Aaron his friend for lunch, and then drove to his parents' to be here for a few days - coz they're not around and they wanted us to be with his little bro a bit.
Today we didn't do much, Rob was kind enough to give me a drivers lesson here (I feel that I need the reinforcement to know the local weird rules and all) and met his former piano teacher (when we picked up his bro from a lesson). She's one of the coolest ppl I ever met- a 60++ year old that looks much younger, dances around and jumps and moves like a little girl. She's an x-Russian (Jewish too) who lives here for years and years, and I understood almost everything she said in German so it was nice- I wasn't left out of the conversation at all... She suddenly opened her kitchen door and on the table she had food and cakes- coz it's her Birthday today. Did I say she's really cool???
The weather here is really shit. Cold (about 13°c) and gray and rainy- but it's still gonna take a few days until I'm sick of it so... I'm not complaining yet!
Liya from China just moved to Germany after a year in China, came here after a boyfriend too- and I'm so happy she's closer now!!! Liya!!! when are we gonna meet??? miss ya!
That's all for now, gotta do my nails... (I'm such a girl sometimes... lol)
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
My new computer
This is my first post from this computer! Mine was very sick as you already know from all my stories about it from China, and now I have a new laptop- and I'm getting used to it. I like it that's for sure.
Since we came back from Sinai, we went traveling in the north part of Israel, slept on the beach of the Kineret lake for two nights, and traveled especially in the Galilee. It was very nice, and again I promise to put pictures soon. After that we went to Jerusalem, to spend Yom Kippur there- that's the day the Jewish ppl fast for 24 hours to ask for forgiveness for their sins. We spent it with my friend Yifat, who just moved to Jerusalem to do her 5th and 6th year of med school there. This day almost nobody drives in Israel, and the streets are filled with ppl and kids riding bicycles and other wheeled things. The most religious ppl don't do that of course. Jerusalem as usual is amazing, the feeling you get when you're there is so special, it's really hard to explain. Rob & I fell in love with it again. On Sunday, right after the holiday, we went to a museum- that shows all of the city's history- it's called Migdal David (the tower of David) and it's very recommended.
Adi, my best friend from school gave birth to a pre-mature baby, on the 6th month of her pregnancy - now the baby is gonna stay in the hospital until it's strong enough to leave... I cross my fingers the baby will be strong and healthy!
Rob left to Germany 2 days ago, and I'm going back there in less than a week- it feels weird to leave again for so long... My mom is going today for a week which means I won't see her again b4 I leave... It's a very weird feeling.
I've been trying to learn German alone here, yesterday I was good- sat for more than 3 hours. Today I'll do it after mom leaves, until the evening- it's another holiday today- and I'm going to my aunts place for dinner.
I really need to start doing sports again, especially Yoga. I feel so bad about not doing anything, a real icky feeling. I hope I'll find a good Yoga teacher in Germany, coz even though I have a really good Yoga book - I have no self discipline and I need a class to actually go to. I fear the fact that I'm not going to understand the teachers again- which really makes all the difference for me. I'll try to find out where there's a teacher that teaches in the method I like, and I'll see how much it costs. But even if it's gonna be paying money that I don't have- I'm going back to doing Yoga... Until I find a good Yoga teacher- I'll try to go to the gym at least...
I'm stressed about not having a job in Germany yet, I keep using the money I don't have (my savings...) and I really don't like this feeling. I haven't worked in a year, and it feels so useless... I really need to know that I'm making money, and not just spending it.
I'll write more in the next few days, I'm going to have lunch with my mom now (who bought so much food for me for the time she's gone- it's amazing).
Since we came back from Sinai, we went traveling in the north part of Israel, slept on the beach of the Kineret lake for two nights, and traveled especially in the Galilee. It was very nice, and again I promise to put pictures soon. After that we went to Jerusalem, to spend Yom Kippur there- that's the day the Jewish ppl fast for 24 hours to ask for forgiveness for their sins. We spent it with my friend Yifat, who just moved to Jerusalem to do her 5th and 6th year of med school there. This day almost nobody drives in Israel, and the streets are filled with ppl and kids riding bicycles and other wheeled things. The most religious ppl don't do that of course. Jerusalem as usual is amazing, the feeling you get when you're there is so special, it's really hard to explain. Rob & I fell in love with it again. On Sunday, right after the holiday, we went to a museum- that shows all of the city's history- it's called Migdal David (the tower of David) and it's very recommended.
Adi, my best friend from school gave birth to a pre-mature baby, on the 6th month of her pregnancy - now the baby is gonna stay in the hospital until it's strong enough to leave... I cross my fingers the baby will be strong and healthy!
Rob left to Germany 2 days ago, and I'm going back there in less than a week- it feels weird to leave again for so long... My mom is going today for a week which means I won't see her again b4 I leave... It's a very weird feeling.
I've been trying to learn German alone here, yesterday I was good- sat for more than 3 hours. Today I'll do it after mom leaves, until the evening- it's another holiday today- and I'm going to my aunts place for dinner.
I really need to start doing sports again, especially Yoga. I feel so bad about not doing anything, a real icky feeling. I hope I'll find a good Yoga teacher in Germany, coz even though I have a really good Yoga book - I have no self discipline and I need a class to actually go to. I fear the fact that I'm not going to understand the teachers again- which really makes all the difference for me. I'll try to find out where there's a teacher that teaches in the method I like, and I'll see how much it costs. But even if it's gonna be paying money that I don't have- I'm going back to doing Yoga... Until I find a good Yoga teacher- I'll try to go to the gym at least...
I'm stressed about not having a job in Germany yet, I keep using the money I don't have (my savings...) and I really don't like this feeling. I haven't worked in a year, and it feels so useless... I really need to know that I'm making money, and not just spending it.
I'll write more in the next few days, I'm going to have lunch with my mom now (who bought so much food for me for the time she's gone- it's amazing).
Friday, August 03, 2007
In the middle
Today was the middle of my German course- and I wanna apologize for not writing since the first day there! I still have a lot of fun there, it reminded me again that I love studying and especially learning languages... I found myself doing the homework every day and telling my teacher it's not enough for me- since I don't have much to do in the afternoons (especially when Rob's studying for exams) and asking her for extra exercises... My teacher is SO nice, funny and cool, I found myself talking to her about just anything- on the way to and from school coz we take the same Tram. I also got really friendly with Ceci the Mexican girl, who I really like. We got 3 more ppl in the class, a Korean young woman, an Australian guy (who's here coz his girlfriend it from here) and a Romanian girl- who no one knows a lot about coz she hardly speaks anything else but Romanian- and she's not really catching up on the German like the rest of us.
I went to the bakery alone for the first time since I'm here- to buy me something for breakfast, and that's one result of me learning German... Here you can't go to the bakery if you don't know what to say- and since bread is one of the most important ingredients in the German diet- it's pretty important to be able to buy it! I always send Rob to buy bread- but maybe from now on I will feel ok to go there myself...
It feels really good having something to do in the mornings every day, not being bored for a second anymore, it gives such a sense of capability, of efficiency.
Today it was the middle of our 4 week course, and our teacher and the teacher of the other group took us to this really nice beer garden on the Elbe, next to the Blue Bridge (I'll look up it's story and let you guys know all about it) and it was really nice. The purpose was to celebrate being in the middle and also trying to order something on your own- in German... It was a really nice gesture of them.
Other than that not much is new- Rob still has one more exam to go- and in the next weekend his parents are coming for a visit- which is really nice coz I haven't seen them since I got here.
I'll finish up saying that I have a really good time here now, and that I hope that next year will look the same... I'm never sick of being a student...
I went to the bakery alone for the first time since I'm here- to buy me something for breakfast, and that's one result of me learning German... Here you can't go to the bakery if you don't know what to say- and since bread is one of the most important ingredients in the German diet- it's pretty important to be able to buy it! I always send Rob to buy bread- but maybe from now on I will feel ok to go there myself...
It feels really good having something to do in the mornings every day, not being bored for a second anymore, it gives such a sense of capability, of efficiency.
Today it was the middle of our 4 week course, and our teacher and the teacher of the other group took us to this really nice beer garden on the Elbe, next to the Blue Bridge (I'll look up it's story and let you guys know all about it) and it was really nice. The purpose was to celebrate being in the middle and also trying to order something on your own- in German... It was a really nice gesture of them.
Other than that not much is new- Rob still has one more exam to go- and in the next weekend his parents are coming for a visit- which is really nice coz I haven't seen them since I got here.
I'll finish up saying that I have a really good time here now, and that I hope that next year will look the same... I'm never sick of being a student...
Friday, July 06, 2007
Back in Dresden
Just a quick post to let you guys know that I'm back in Dresden. Got here last night, and must say that it didn't feel like going away to Germany, but rather coming back. Back in my own apartment, with Rob!
Have lots to do, like open a bank account, get my own phone number, and register to a million things like for German studies, and for the students visa itself. Have to get used to not understanding ppl again though... Will try to learn as much as I can even before I start my first German course in 2 and a half week...
That's it for now- more updates- when I'll have some...
Have lots to do, like open a bank account, get my own phone number, and register to a million things like for German studies, and for the students visa itself. Have to get used to not understanding ppl again though... Will try to learn as much as I can even before I start my first German course in 2 and a half week...
That's it for now- more updates- when I'll have some...
Saturday, June 16, 2007
27
That's it. Yesterday I turned 27. Was a normal birthday, lunch with mom and my sis and aunt and Goni (had a really good burger!!!), and went out with my friends at night (drank a whole bottle of wine almost by myself...) and got the nicest present from Rob: tickets to the Arctic Monkeys concert!!! it's gonna be in Dresden and we're gonna go together!!! I was so touched... He wanted to give me something that I wouldn't have to carry back and forth between Germany and Israel- that's brilliant!!! I loved loved loved it, and I can't wait to go...
***
Have a ticket to Germany: July 5th, dad gave me miles to use, so I only had to pay for the taxes (which are pretty much, but a lot less than a whole ticket...) so it saves me a lot of money...
Everybody keeps asking me how I feel about going there, if I can't wait, or I kinda wanna stay here a bit more, and I must say, and that's what I answer: I can't wait. I'm gonna be back in Israel on August 20th, and I hope Rob gets a ticket to come here soon after that, we're planning on spending September here.
***
Charles and Ana left on Tuesday, I went to say bye and spent the whole day in Tel-Aviv with them. Was obviously so much fun! Beach, rest, restaurant... Hope to see them again soon, wouldn't mind doing that in Spain! ;-)
***
Have a ticket to Germany: July 5th, dad gave me miles to use, so I only had to pay for the taxes (which are pretty much, but a lot less than a whole ticket...) so it saves me a lot of money...
Everybody keeps asking me how I feel about going there, if I can't wait, or I kinda wanna stay here a bit more, and I must say, and that's what I answer: I can't wait. I'm gonna be back in Israel on August 20th, and I hope Rob gets a ticket to come here soon after that, we're planning on spending September here.
***
Charles and Ana left on Tuesday, I went to say bye and spent the whole day in Tel-Aviv with them. Was obviously so much fun! Beach, rest, restaurant... Hope to see them again soon, wouldn't mind doing that in Spain! ;-)
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Back in Israel
Wow... I have so much to tell... And I had no time until now... So... I'll start with the last weekend- at Rob's parents' house. We got there on Friday afternoon, after picking up his cousin Vivica who came from
The next day was my last day in Germany, we all had a big breakfast together (I helped Rob's mom bake Pita bread and make Tehina and Humus) and then slowly slowly all the cousins scattered away. I spent a few more hours with Rob (I miss you...) and then his big brother took me to the airport on his way home. We got there a bit too early (3 and a half hours before my flight) so I had a lot of time to kill, but it passed and I realized that I'm gonna see my sister soon... After a year and 8 months I haven't seen her at all... Slept about half of the flight, and then landed... Didn't recognize my sis (lost a lot of weight and got a new haircut) she had to wave so I know it's her... She looks great! I missed her so much... I used to dream about meeting her- every week since I went away...
Got home saw my mom, saw my dog (cute and old!), and met my best friends (except for Yifat- she's still not here- studying hard for her exams- I'll see her in 10 days), and tomorrow I guess I'll go see my grandparents and my dad and brothers.
That's it. Oh yeah- I already ate Humus!!! today... It was great!
Not much more to say,
Oh- Today is my sister's birthday!!!
Happy Birth Day Nitzan!!! Love ya!!!
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Some updates and some thoughts
What should I begin with? the update or the thoughts? hmmm...
update- coz it's not gonna be very long... Tonight is my last night in this apartment (I should be saying my apartment, or maybe I should even say: our apartment) before I go back to Israel. Tomorrow we're going to Rob's parents' for the weekend and my flight back is on Sunday night. We're gonna meet about 15 members of his family- all gonna stay at his parents' house (yes, it's gonna be like camp or something). They are all coming for a special occasion called "Landkreislauf"= the Landkreis (= district) race. Every year there's a relay race in that region, there's usually about 200 groups, each has 11 runners. The big prize is winning the race, and everyone gets a T-shirt of that year (every year it's a different color...). This year Rob's family decided to celebrate his grandma's 85 birthday in a special way: 11 of her 19 grand kids are gonna form into a group and run for her in the race. They even got matching T-shirts with "85" in the front, and in the back it says: "Elfriedes Enkel" = meaning "Elfriede's grandchildren". I specifically wanted to see this race- and that's one of the reasons I stayed in Germany until now... They are all coming from Austria except for Rob, his sister and brother and one cousin. I already know I'm gonna hear a lot of German, even more than I did so far here in Germany, and I'm gonna be "the girlfriend from Israel"... I already met about 4 of his cousins, and they were super nice. So I still have hope to have fun this weekend... lol... I volunteered to be the photographer of the occasion- hope I get to take as many pictures of the ppl running as possible...
and now:
some thoughts.
well. I was watching the half finale of the Eurovision contest (until I was too bored with the poor quality of the songs) online (the internet is the best invention ever!), and a few thoughts popped out in my head. Especially the language issue. I used to love this contest when I was young, used to wait for it every year, maybe because it was a contest with Europe that Israel was a part of, maybe because I was allowed to stay up until it's over (which was really late for what I was usually allowed) and maybe because I like music (but that couldn't be a reason coz the music there was never my taste really). But I think that the main reason was the intentionality of the contest, and above it all- all the different languages I could hear. It was an introduction to other cultures and other languages- served on a silver plate. You didn't have to open the encyclopedia (back then we used real books- there was no internet and no Wikipedia!), you didn't have to ask a million questions when your cousin came back from abroad- you just had to turn your TV on once a year for a couple of hours and watch this contest. They even used to show short flicks about each country and their views and customs. But today it's all different. Today most of the countries send pop songs that all sound the same, they sing mostly in English- and if it's a good song it's nice- coz then I understand the lyrics, but if it's a bad one- it's terrible, for example: "You don't know how much I love you, you don't know how much I need you" in bad eastern European accent, they dress up really badly (or should I say dress down? they hardly wear anything on their bodies!) and they mix different cultures in one song- which usually I'm really not against culture mixing, I mean- just look at me and Rob and you'll say the opposite, but god, when a song starts with a man dressed in a 1001 nights costume, and plays the violin, and then another man dressed the same is banging a gong that looks Chinese and has a Chinese character on it, and then the singer (from Malta) sings in English- I say enough!
So the contests these years are a bit dull (if not very), un-educating in the cultural manner (which was the whole point) and generally lost it's flare...
But a habit is a habit- and it's hard to kick a habit- so I watched the half finale a bit, and hopefully the Israelis will make it to the finals...
Hope to write again soon, I'm not sure when I'll have time, there's a good chance it'll already be in Israel!
update- coz it's not gonna be very long... Tonight is my last night in this apartment (I should be saying my apartment, or maybe I should even say: our apartment) before I go back to Israel. Tomorrow we're going to Rob's parents' for the weekend and my flight back is on Sunday night. We're gonna meet about 15 members of his family- all gonna stay at his parents' house (yes, it's gonna be like camp or something). They are all coming for a special occasion called "Landkreislauf"= the Landkreis (= district) race. Every year there's a relay race in that region, there's usually about 200 groups, each has 11 runners. The big prize is winning the race, and everyone gets a T-shirt of that year (every year it's a different color...). This year Rob's family decided to celebrate his grandma's 85 birthday in a special way: 11 of her 19 grand kids are gonna form into a group and run for her in the race. They even got matching T-shirts with "85" in the front, and in the back it says: "Elfriedes Enkel" = meaning "Elfriede's grandchildren". I specifically wanted to see this race- and that's one of the reasons I stayed in Germany until now... They are all coming from Austria except for Rob, his sister and brother and one cousin. I already know I'm gonna hear a lot of German, even more than I did so far here in Germany, and I'm gonna be "the girlfriend from Israel"... I already met about 4 of his cousins, and they were super nice. So I still have hope to have fun this weekend... lol... I volunteered to be the photographer of the occasion- hope I get to take as many pictures of the ppl running as possible...
and now:
some thoughts.
well. I was watching the half finale of the Eurovision contest (until I was too bored with the poor quality of the songs) online (the internet is the best invention ever!), and a few thoughts popped out in my head. Especially the language issue. I used to love this contest when I was young, used to wait for it every year, maybe because it was a contest with Europe that Israel was a part of, maybe because I was allowed to stay up until it's over (which was really late for what I was usually allowed) and maybe because I like music (but that couldn't be a reason coz the music there was never my taste really). But I think that the main reason was the intentionality of the contest, and above it all- all the different languages I could hear. It was an introduction to other cultures and other languages- served on a silver plate. You didn't have to open the encyclopedia (back then we used real books- there was no internet and no Wikipedia!), you didn't have to ask a million questions when your cousin came back from abroad- you just had to turn your TV on once a year for a couple of hours and watch this contest. They even used to show short flicks about each country and their views and customs. But today it's all different. Today most of the countries send pop songs that all sound the same, they sing mostly in English- and if it's a good song it's nice- coz then I understand the lyrics, but if it's a bad one- it's terrible, for example: "You don't know how much I love you, you don't know how much I need you" in bad eastern European accent, they dress up really badly (or should I say dress down? they hardly wear anything on their bodies!) and they mix different cultures in one song- which usually I'm really not against culture mixing, I mean- just look at me and Rob and you'll say the opposite, but god, when a song starts with a man dressed in a 1001 nights costume, and plays the violin, and then another man dressed the same is banging a gong that looks Chinese and has a Chinese character on it, and then the singer (from Malta) sings in English- I say enough!
So the contests these years are a bit dull (if not very), un-educating in the cultural manner (which was the whole point) and generally lost it's flare...
But a habit is a habit- and it's hard to kick a habit- so I watched the half finale a bit, and hopefully the Israelis will make it to the finals...
Hope to write again soon, I'm not sure when I'll have time, there's a good chance it'll already be in Israel!
Friday, April 27, 2007
Facing the wall
In the last 4 days I've been a slave to the new apartment. We put all the lights up (Rob was the main driller, and I was the one who told him how straight things are), and I wanted to paint some walls too. As I told you guys before- Rob's mom gave me some colors and paint, and I was intending to use them- coz they seemed really nice colors. I wanted to paint one wall in the living room in something that looked like a shade of terracotta, so I started mixing the powder with the white paint. But oh my god- it turned out to be pink. At the end- the shade of pink wasn't too bad, and Rob himself said that it's actually nice. So we painted the wall in a shade of pink that we call "antique pink" in Hebrew. The day after that I took some leaves from outside - and made a pattern on the wall with them (Pictures soon), so it actually looks alright now. Needless to say that the moment I realized the wall was going to be pink- I panicked a bit- just like I can panic. The next day I painted the bedroom, only two stripes of two walls, parallel to each other. It looks cool. We went everywhere to look for a cheap but not ugly kitchen, and we found one place that offered what we want. We're still gonna try to get one for cheaper on ebay, and if we don't get it for the price we want- we'll buy the new one.
***
Sometimes I feel a bit mute here. When I walk in the streets alone, I feel as if I can't say anything- coz I don't speak the language. You're probably wondering what's the big deal- coz I've lived in China for a year of my life, and I should have felt the same there, but it's not the case. In China it was obvious to the Chinese that I'm a foreigner. It made things so much easier. It sounds funny that being different on the outside makes things easier- but it's true. This way no one tried to approach me in Chinese, and the fact that I spoke Chinese to them at some point made them appreciate it coz it's so obvious I'm not from there. They would try harder to make me understand (most of the time, obviously there were the annoying ppl that didn't make any effort) from the first moment they saw me. Here it's different. I look like someone that can speak German, just like anyone else here. I've been approached twice already, in the first time I asked the person in German- if he speaks English, he said yes, and that was that, but in the second time, it was when Rob was just next to me, and a girl approached me to ask a question. I had a confused look on my face, and pointed at Rob coz he was just there next to me- luckily she was an intelligent girl and she turned to him and asked him the question, understanding that I don't understand... So this whole situation makes me feel mute. And if you know me just a bit you know that mute just ain't my thing. I depend on language, language is my thing, my strength, the thing that gives me confidence, makes me better than others sometimes. I'm a person of words, words are my best friends, comparing meanings in different languages is my small hobby- and being mute takes all this away. Without being able to express myself I'm not me, I'm not the same person anymore, I can't show ppl exactly who I am. And yes, it gives me motivation to learn the language, but it also makes me feel as if I'm facing a wall. From all sides- there's a wall- a transparent wall I need to break as soon as I can.
***
Tomorrow we're going to Rob's parents' again, and on Monday we're renting a big car to take the rest of the big stuff back here. We're gonna pack it up in the evening and head back here on Tuesday morning. My back already really hurts, gone back to the terrible pain I had last time I came back from China, and this morning I started doing a little bit of Yoga again, and it helped a bit -so I guess I'll do that every morning from now on. In the bag I gave my dad was my Yoga book- and now I kinda wish it was here... But in 2 and a half weeks I'll be in Israel again and I'll try to get in shape again, at least for the sake of my back.
I miss Israel, I've said that here before, but now as time comes to leave here soon, I start understanding that I'll miss Rob very soon after I get there. Haven't decided when I'll come back here yet- but I'm definitely gonna check the flights as soon as I get there, if not coz I'm gonna miss him, then coz of the prices...
Hope to write here soon, peace to you all, and a late happy Independence day to Israel!
***
Sometimes I feel a bit mute here. When I walk in the streets alone, I feel as if I can't say anything- coz I don't speak the language. You're probably wondering what's the big deal- coz I've lived in China for a year of my life, and I should have felt the same there, but it's not the case. In China it was obvious to the Chinese that I'm a foreigner. It made things so much easier. It sounds funny that being different on the outside makes things easier- but it's true. This way no one tried to approach me in Chinese, and the fact that I spoke Chinese to them at some point made them appreciate it coz it's so obvious I'm not from there. They would try harder to make me understand (most of the time, obviously there were the annoying ppl that didn't make any effort) from the first moment they saw me. Here it's different. I look like someone that can speak German, just like anyone else here. I've been approached twice already, in the first time I asked the person in German- if he speaks English, he said yes, and that was that, but in the second time, it was when Rob was just next to me, and a girl approached me to ask a question. I had a confused look on my face, and pointed at Rob coz he was just there next to me- luckily she was an intelligent girl and she turned to him and asked him the question, understanding that I don't understand... So this whole situation makes me feel mute. And if you know me just a bit you know that mute just ain't my thing. I depend on language, language is my thing, my strength, the thing that gives me confidence, makes me better than others sometimes. I'm a person of words, words are my best friends, comparing meanings in different languages is my small hobby- and being mute takes all this away. Without being able to express myself I'm not me, I'm not the same person anymore, I can't show ppl exactly who I am. And yes, it gives me motivation to learn the language, but it also makes me feel as if I'm facing a wall. From all sides- there's a wall- a transparent wall I need to break as soon as I can.
***
Tomorrow we're going to Rob's parents' again, and on Monday we're renting a big car to take the rest of the big stuff back here. We're gonna pack it up in the evening and head back here on Tuesday morning. My back already really hurts, gone back to the terrible pain I had last time I came back from China, and this morning I started doing a little bit of Yoga again, and it helped a bit -so I guess I'll do that every morning from now on. In the bag I gave my dad was my Yoga book- and now I kinda wish it was here... But in 2 and a half weeks I'll be in Israel again and I'll try to get in shape again, at least for the sake of my back.
I miss Israel, I've said that here before, but now as time comes to leave here soon, I start understanding that I'll miss Rob very soon after I get there. Haven't decided when I'll come back here yet- but I'm definitely gonna check the flights as soon as I get there, if not coz I'm gonna miss him, then coz of the prices...
Hope to write here soon, peace to you all, and a late happy Independence day to Israel!
Monday, April 23, 2007
New apartment in Dresden
We were at Rob's parents for the weekend, un-assembling his furniture so we can take it next weekend with a big car, and packing boxes to take with us today. We actually took most of what we wanted to take, except for the big stuff. The weather is so nice here now (knock on wood!!!), and over the weekend we took a few drives out in the country side. I wish we had more time to actually go there and have a walk or just take a bicycle and wonder around. The highlight drive was with Rob's dad old Mercedes - a 1964 Mercedes - SO COOL!!! After that nice break- we kept going with the packing, which I obviously didn't really like- especially coz of all the dusty things we took out of Rob's closet- that made me itch and scratch all day.
So today we drove up to Dresden with a full car (there isn't room for another penny in that car now- and it's not a small one), and went to see another apartment, it was nice- but the kitchen and the bathroom were with no windows, and coz we already saw something nicer we decided to go for the other one. So we went to the office of the company who owns the apartment we want (it used to be owned by the government - in east Germany, but they sold these kind of old communist buildings to outer companies- who renovated them and they're renting it out to ppl) and we signed the contract for our apartment. I'm so happy about it!!! It's on the second floor, all full of light, and has a really nice bathroom. The kitchen, as I mentioned before, we'll have to buy, but we already started looking for things both in stores and on ebay. We got loads of stuff from Rob's mom who took our move as a project for her, and I can't wait until I paint some walls in it with the beautiful colors she gave me, and put everything as we like. I also can't wait to come back here after Israel- and bring here all the nice stuff I have to put in the apartment- so I'll feel at home...
So that's it for now,
Oh- and tomorrow, or as soon as I have time again- I'll obey The Big Guy's meme...
So today we drove up to Dresden with a full car (there isn't room for another penny in that car now- and it's not a small one), and went to see another apartment, it was nice- but the kitchen and the bathroom were with no windows, and coz we already saw something nicer we decided to go for the other one. So we went to the office of the company who owns the apartment we want (it used to be owned by the government - in east Germany, but they sold these kind of old communist buildings to outer companies- who renovated them and they're renting it out to ppl) and we signed the contract for our apartment. I'm so happy about it!!! It's on the second floor, all full of light, and has a really nice bathroom. The kitchen, as I mentioned before, we'll have to buy, but we already started looking for things both in stores and on ebay. We got loads of stuff from Rob's mom who took our move as a project for her, and I can't wait until I paint some walls in it with the beautiful colors she gave me, and put everything as we like. I also can't wait to come back here after Israel- and bring here all the nice stuff I have to put in the apartment- so I'll feel at home...
So that's it for now,
Oh- and tomorrow, or as soon as I have time again- I'll obey The Big Guy's meme...
Friday, April 20, 2007
First days in dresden
We got here 2 days ago, and rented out a small apartment, to have a place to stay. This place is a one room apartment- that is so full of stuff it's a bit disturbing. It looks like the woman renting it out - still lives there some times, it's her personal place, and when ppl come to stay there- she just goes to her boyfriends house... She's Russian and it totally looks like a Russian grandma's house. Lots of little stuff everywhere, you can hardly see the walls. But the place is rather comfortable, it's close to uni and all so it was useful. The first day, Wednesday- we saw 2 apartments: one was in the center of town, where all the pubs are, in a really old building, with lots of character. But- this place was not renovated since the 1930's probably, and that's how it looked like. The bath was in the kitchen, right across from the sink... Very weird. The second apartment was a bit far away for us, but not terrible, and it was lovely. It had a full kitchen in it (in Germany the apartments are usually totally empty- and you need to buy the whole kitchen including the cupboards and everything), and big nice rooms. The building was a really nice European building, but the price of the apartment was a bit too high. We were both really tired that day, I was a bit overwhelmed with coming here after China, it's very weird to move- and not to where you know. It's all new to me here, and it's a bit confusing for me. I'm still dealing with the language barrier, and with the unfamiliarity of the city. All that adds up to the fact I was almost 7 months in China, and that I haven't been to Israel for that whole time. I miss Israel, especially my family and friends, and even though I'm happy I came here- I know myself well enough to know that it's gonna take time until I get used to this. The problem was to explain to Rob exactly how I felt. He understands me on the one hand, but on the other- I think he just really wants me to feel good here, and get along, and I felt as if he's pushing me to do things I'm not ready to do yet. Thursday was a bit better, I came here (I'm at Rob's uni now) and read a bit online, walked here alone a bit, and started getting used to the language around me. Still I need time, and as always- there will be a certain point where I'll be more independent, and try to do things on my own. We saw another apartment yesterday, was in a nice building, and nicely renovated- but it was very small, and the kitchen- was just tiny. It was also on the 4th floor- in the attic, which was a lot of stairs to climb- but had a special something about it- coz it was under the roof. But we said we'll keep on looking and that's what we did today. We saw 4 more places this morning- 3 of them in the same area- and they look the same, just different buildings, they were perfect. Big, a lot of light, renovated, and there's 2 of them on the 2nd floor. We're probably gonna end up taking one of them, just that we have 2 more to see today, and 2 more on Monday- so we still have some choices. Now, for the time being, we're a bit more relaxed about it- coz we know we already saw something that will easily suit us.
***
I found out that I accidentally put my papers from learning German in summer in the bag I gave my dad. So that means I'll have to learn that again online- but that might actually be a good thing, coz I don't really remember most of it- and it'll be a good occupation for me until I go back to Israel. It's so nice that the sky is blue most of the time, and even if there are clouds- you still feel that the air is clean, and the streets are clean, and the ppl are normal! LOL China is so different than here.
For the first day or two, and maybe even now a little bit- I felt a bit misplaced, as if someone took me as a little doll and picked me up and put me in a different country again, not my own. It's a weird feeling, that makes me very unfocused - it makes it hard to understand where I am and hard to learn the streets and how to get from one place to another. I'm still a bit shocked by the move, and I'm still very jet-lagged. Every morning I wake up early- as if it's the middle of the day, but when the afternoon comes- I feel so tired, and the fact that there's a lot of light (until almost 21:00!!!) makes me even more confused. Usually I love it that the sun goes down so late, but now it's making me feel like the day is so long, and I just feel more tired.
***
We're gonna go back to Rob's parents' place tonight, for the weekend coz we don't have anywhere to stay in Dresden in anyway, and we have no plans here for this time. We're gonna come back here early on Monday morning to see the other 2 apartments, and then we will be able to decide for sure- which one we wanna take. We already took a lot of our stuff here in the car, and we'll leave most of it with one of Rob's friends here- and this way next time we can bring even more stuff to put in our new apartment as we move.
***
I found out that I accidentally put my papers from learning German in summer in the bag I gave my dad. So that means I'll have to learn that again online- but that might actually be a good thing, coz I don't really remember most of it- and it'll be a good occupation for me until I go back to Israel. It's so nice that the sky is blue most of the time, and even if there are clouds- you still feel that the air is clean, and the streets are clean, and the ppl are normal! LOL China is so different than here.
For the first day or two, and maybe even now a little bit- I felt a bit misplaced, as if someone took me as a little doll and picked me up and put me in a different country again, not my own. It's a weird feeling, that makes me very unfocused - it makes it hard to understand where I am and hard to learn the streets and how to get from one place to another. I'm still a bit shocked by the move, and I'm still very jet-lagged. Every morning I wake up early- as if it's the middle of the day, but when the afternoon comes- I feel so tired, and the fact that there's a lot of light (until almost 21:00!!!) makes me even more confused. Usually I love it that the sun goes down so late, but now it's making me feel like the day is so long, and I just feel more tired.
***
We're gonna go back to Rob's parents' place tonight, for the weekend coz we don't have anywhere to stay in Dresden in anyway, and we have no plans here for this time. We're gonna come back here early on Monday morning to see the other 2 apartments, and then we will be able to decide for sure- which one we wanna take. We already took a lot of our stuff here in the car, and we'll leave most of it with one of Rob's friends here- and this way next time we can bring even more stuff to put in our new apartment as we move.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
A post from a plane
This post was written on the airplane between Shanghai and Frankfurt:
After packing our suitcases we were sure we each have more than the 20kg limit. The problem was that I really had nothing I could throw away or leave behind anymore, in my suitcase were my clothes and shoes and that's it. Even after sending boxes to Germany, and giving my dad a very heavy bad of mainly books and presents, I still had lots of clothes I wanted to have with me in Germany now, and I just could not dispose any of them. So after sitting on our suitcases to make them close and taking all of our heavy things on our backs we left Andrew's place at 09:00am and headed to the airport. It was raining and cold, perfect weather to not make you want to stay another day.We called a taxi from upstairs already- but coz of the time (rush hour) and the rain we ended up waiting for 30 minutes. We were already thinking about taking the subway, when a taxi arrived. There was a lot of traffic, but we still made it for Rob's check-in- which was first. We separated, I went to my check in counter and stood in line. Rob was done first, and came to meet me- he told me that he had 29kg but they let him through with no prob. Probably coz with British Airways the new regulations don't allow you to take a big carry on so they're more understanding about weight. It was my turn and I went to the desk. They weighed my suitcase and it was 28kg. Then- the mean insensitive Chinese guy in front of me said: "you have overweight". I asked how much, and he replied: "8kg. You're only allowed to take 20kg." FUCK. I asked and begged and tried to reason with him (even though I knew that there's no reasoning with Chinese ppl), but still this SOB kept on saying the words: "8kg" "overweight" "I can't help you" "regulations". The tears started coming out of my eyes, and I got really annoyed. By that time Rob took my suitcase aside and opened it to see what I can take out of it. I kept saying that there's nothing more to take out, and in the end we put my other coat and hiking shoes outside, and tied them to my backpack. We took 2 other things out, things I can try to get in Germany again, and put my suitcase on the scale. It showed 25kg. I was so annoyed and upset I kept telling the ppl behind the counter that coming here i was allowed to take 26kg, and that only in China I see this kind of thing. Rob convinced the guy to "only" charge me for 4 extra kg and the guy let us put the 2 thing I was about to throw- back in the suitcase (I still think he's and SOB). You're prob wondering why I was so upset with the overweight issue to begin with. So I'll give you a few reasons:
1. It costs 30€ per kg!!! That is about: 300RMB, 45$, 180NIS. PER KG!!! Wankers.
2. All the stuff I took out of my suitcase ended up on the airplane anyway. So why does it matter where???
3. My carry on baggage consists of one backpack with my laptop and huge camera, one small backpack with lots of books , one small bag with my wallet, passport etc. one "The north face" Jacket attached to my bigger backpack, and a pair of hiking boots- dangling from it too. This sucks!!! And it's very heavy. Very. And I have to carry it through a connection in Frankfurt.
Anyway, for the time being the last few hours in China left me with no will to return...
***
On the airplane now... It's different to take a morning flight, the scenery is beautiful, I could see Beijing, and the deserts beyond, places that I would prob never reach. The one road on the ground was so alone, it was so easy to spot. Big factories in the middle of no-where, maybe nuclear plants, who knows.
***
I'm listening to some Chinese music I downloaded from Andrew. Mostly things from the last few years. The idea was to bring some Chinese pop songs to my mom and sis, who showed an interest in how it would sound like. So now I'm listening to the Albums so I can tell later on what's a better representative for Chinese kitch cheesy love songs.
***
I fell asleep for like 10 minutes with departure, but then I woke up when they handed us the flight menu and a snack. It was little pretzels (Beigale- as we call it in Hebrew) something I missed and dreamed of for months now. Funny to fulfil my dreams on a plane...
***
I just asked the old lady sitting next to me how to read the name of the Chinese album on my i-pod (she's Chinese). I could read the first 3 characters but the forth was a mystery. I think she was a bit impressed. LOL
***
I just talked to her a bit (in Chinese). She's going to Spain, coz she works there for the past more than 20 years.
***
That's it- that's what I wrote on the airplane. I'm in Dresden now, Germany, and I'm sitting in Rob's uni, using his log-in to connect to the wireless internet. He's gonna come here in about 30 minutes, to meet me after class, and we'll continue the hunt for an apartment. Tomorrow I hope to write again here- I have lots to say about only one day in Dresden...
After packing our suitcases we were sure we each have more than the 20kg limit. The problem was that I really had nothing I could throw away or leave behind anymore, in my suitcase were my clothes and shoes and that's it. Even after sending boxes to Germany, and giving my dad a very heavy bad of mainly books and presents, I still had lots of clothes I wanted to have with me in Germany now, and I just could not dispose any of them. So after sitting on our suitcases to make them close and taking all of our heavy things on our backs we left Andrew's place at 09:00am and headed to the airport. It was raining and cold, perfect weather to not make you want to stay another day.We called a taxi from upstairs already- but coz of the time (rush hour) and the rain we ended up waiting for 30 minutes. We were already thinking about taking the subway, when a taxi arrived. There was a lot of traffic, but we still made it for Rob's check-in- which was first. We separated, I went to my check in counter and stood in line. Rob was done first, and came to meet me- he told me that he had 29kg but they let him through with no prob. Probably coz with British Airways the new regulations don't allow you to take a big carry on so they're more understanding about weight. It was my turn and I went to the desk. They weighed my suitcase and it was 28kg. Then- the mean insensitive Chinese guy in front of me said: "you have overweight". I asked how much, and he replied: "8kg. You're only allowed to take 20kg." FUCK. I asked and begged and tried to reason with him (even though I knew that there's no reasoning with Chinese ppl), but still this SOB kept on saying the words: "8kg" "overweight" "I can't help you" "regulations". The tears started coming out of my eyes, and I got really annoyed. By that time Rob took my suitcase aside and opened it to see what I can take out of it. I kept saying that there's nothing more to take out, and in the end we put my other coat and hiking shoes outside, and tied them to my backpack. We took 2 other things out, things I can try to get in Germany again, and put my suitcase on the scale. It showed 25kg. I was so annoyed and upset I kept telling the ppl behind the counter that coming here i was allowed to take 26kg, and that only in China I see this kind of thing. Rob convinced the guy to "only" charge me for 4 extra kg and the guy let us put the 2 thing I was about to throw- back in the suitcase (I still think he's and SOB). You're prob wondering why I was so upset with the overweight issue to begin with. So I'll give you a few reasons:
1. It costs 30€ per kg!!! That is about: 300RMB, 45$, 180NIS. PER KG!!! Wankers.
2. All the stuff I took out of my suitcase ended up on the airplane anyway. So why does it matter where???
3. My carry on baggage consists of one backpack with my laptop and huge camera, one small backpack with lots of books , one small bag with my wallet, passport etc. one "The north face" Jacket attached to my bigger backpack, and a pair of hiking boots- dangling from it too. This sucks!!! And it's very heavy. Very. And I have to carry it through a connection in Frankfurt.
Anyway, for the time being the last few hours in China left me with no will to return...
***
On the airplane now... It's different to take a morning flight, the scenery is beautiful, I could see Beijing, and the deserts beyond, places that I would prob never reach. The one road on the ground was so alone, it was so easy to spot. Big factories in the middle of no-where, maybe nuclear plants, who knows.
***
I'm listening to some Chinese music I downloaded from Andrew. Mostly things from the last few years. The idea was to bring some Chinese pop songs to my mom and sis, who showed an interest in how it would sound like. So now I'm listening to the Albums so I can tell later on what's a better representative for Chinese kitch cheesy love songs.
***
I fell asleep for like 10 minutes with departure, but then I woke up when they handed us the flight menu and a snack. It was little pretzels (Beigale- as we call it in Hebrew) something I missed and dreamed of for months now. Funny to fulfil my dreams on a plane...
***
I just asked the old lady sitting next to me how to read the name of the Chinese album on my i-pod (she's Chinese). I could read the first 3 characters but the forth was a mystery. I think she was a bit impressed. LOL
***
I just talked to her a bit (in Chinese). She's going to Spain, coz she works there for the past more than 20 years.
***
That's it- that's what I wrote on the airplane. I'm in Dresden now, Germany, and I'm sitting in Rob's uni, using his log-in to connect to the wireless internet. He's gonna come here in about 30 minutes, to meet me after class, and we'll continue the hunt for an apartment. Tomorrow I hope to write again here- I have lots to say about only one day in Dresden...
Monday, April 16, 2007
Last day in Shanghai
Qingcheng hou Shan (Qingcheng back mountain)On the way up
Lazy and sweetPanda.
Lots of waterfalls and fresh airIt took us about 3-4 hours to climb to the first village, and since it was already getting late, we decided to stay there the night and go down the mountain the next day from the other side. The village was obviously for tourists, most of them come there just to have lunch and then they continue going down. The room we took cost us 80 Yuan a night, which was the price after negotiating… It wasn't a nice room and it was cold there all evening (we slept with the sleeping bag on us and 2 more blankets to be warm) but we referred to it as just a place to sleep in and leave first thing in the morning. We had an expensive dinner as well, but at least it was quiet there and we were the only tourists there at night so it was nice. The next day we woke up (I already fell asleep at 20:00, and slept all the way to 08:00!!!) had breakfast and headed up to the top of the mountain- so we can go down the other side.
The bridge might look like it's made of wood,But it's made of concrete.
Still- it's nice work.
At the bottom of Qingcheng Hou ShanWe got back to Chengdu on Tuesday evening after trying to get there the shortest and fastest
way- but obviously in China that doesn't work, in the end you find yourself sleeping on a van for an hour- just to find out that the driver doesn't have enough ppl to go to Chengdu with, so you get off, after wasting so much time, and take the normal bus through the bus station, that brakes down in the middle of the highway, the driver goes to the back of the bus, with a screwdriver, does whatever he has to do, and keeps on going…
The last two days in
We spent the last few days here at Andrew's place, which is great – coz it feels so homey. My dad was here for a really short visit yesterday, he made so much effort to be able to be here while I'm still here, that he took a flight that goes through
Tomorrow's our flights to Germany, I can't believe I have less 24 hours left here, I haven't left China in about 7 months and it feels weird to leave now- and leaving to Germany, not to Israel yet…
I'll try to get connected to the internet in
OK that’s it for now, hope to write here again soon!
P.S please see the pictures I added to the last post
Thursday, November 23, 2006
It's rainning.... grrr...
Oof it's been raining for the last few days and it doesn't look like it's ever gonna stop... grrr... and BRRRRR... every time I go outside with pants that accidentally touch the ground I get home wet to my knees- coz there's puddles everywhere. It's like there's no sewage here- and the water keeps piling up in huge quantities- just for me to get wet... I understand now why Chinese ppl always wear pants that are narrow in the end- not touching the ground. It's really hard to find a Chinese person wearing bell bottoms or anything that is even remotely close to that. Now I know why!
***
My dad was here last weekend- it was so much fun! I really enjoyed his stay here... We went to the Tennis Masters Cup Final together- with Rob. It was between Roger Federer and James Blake. Federer won- and it looked like he didn't even try hard- he was just standing there most of the time letting nature do what it's supposed to do- WIN... Blake is a new comer to this contest (it's a tournament between the 8 best players in the world and 8 best couples in the world) and I think he gave a good performance regarding his short past in these kind of contests. Well anyway- it was really nice to spend time like this with my dad- especially coz I know how much he likes watching Tennis.
***
School... hmmm... I really like the classes... I think that a student like me should get more classes everyday- rather than have to work at home. When I get home- all I can think of is doing nothing special. At least once a week I do something after school with my Spanish friend Lia- and then when I get home I really don't feel like studying. Big problemo! Next week I have another exam- and this time the teacher said it's gonna be all in Chinese characters... OOF! Not ready for that at all... I hope I'll sit on my ass and study some more this week. The rain outside should do the job but it just does the opposite- makes me wanna stay under the blanket!
***
Bought the second season of "Veronica Mars"... I know I know- I'm not a teenage girl- but I just love this TV show... it's so unreal but so clever and never ever boring... so of course I saw the whole season in 3 days (22 chapters) - couldn't resist!!!
***
Rob's going home for x-mas. I've decided to not join him. He's going for about 10 days- and I know he's going on a family marathon. I love his family- They were all so nice to me, but most don't speak enough English to communicate with me for more than 5 minutes and I figured that it wouldn't be so much fun... Plus- I don't feel comfortable getting in to the family x-mas eve- being Jewish I've never been to one- and I don't think that coming from China for 10 days - having nowhere to go to after that evening - is the good time to start. I guess that when we'll live there and coming for the holidays will be just coming from a few hours away by train- it will feel different. I'll have more freedom then- not like in this case- where I know that I'll be dependant on Rob and what he's doing- like I was in every visit in Germany in the last 18 months. To make things short- I'm gonna stay in Shanghai ALONE!!! for about 10 days... But I made him come back here on the 31st- so I wont be alone on new years eve (not that I care about the evening it self- just here- I don't feel like being alone when everyone is coupling up and going out to parties... I guess that in Israel I really wouldn't have minded...)
***
Can read here again in China- cross your fingers it'll last... Have been reading Dorian's blog so fast- afraid that any moment the connection will fall LOL I'm getting Paranoid...
***
My dad was here last weekend- it was so much fun! I really enjoyed his stay here... We went to the Tennis Masters Cup Final together- with Rob. It was between Roger Federer and James Blake. Federer won- and it looked like he didn't even try hard- he was just standing there most of the time letting nature do what it's supposed to do- WIN... Blake is a new comer to this contest (it's a tournament between the 8 best players in the world and 8 best couples in the world) and I think he gave a good performance regarding his short past in these kind of contests. Well anyway- it was really nice to spend time like this with my dad- especially coz I know how much he likes watching Tennis.
***
School... hmmm... I really like the classes... I think that a student like me should get more classes everyday- rather than have to work at home. When I get home- all I can think of is doing nothing special. At least once a week I do something after school with my Spanish friend Lia- and then when I get home I really don't feel like studying. Big problemo! Next week I have another exam- and this time the teacher said it's gonna be all in Chinese characters... OOF! Not ready for that at all... I hope I'll sit on my ass and study some more this week. The rain outside should do the job but it just does the opposite- makes me wanna stay under the blanket!
***
Bought the second season of "Veronica Mars"... I know I know- I'm not a teenage girl- but I just love this TV show... it's so unreal but so clever and never ever boring... so of course I saw the whole season in 3 days (22 chapters) - couldn't resist!!!
***
Rob's going home for x-mas. I've decided to not join him. He's going for about 10 days- and I know he's going on a family marathon. I love his family- They were all so nice to me, but most don't speak enough English to communicate with me for more than 5 minutes and I figured that it wouldn't be so much fun... Plus- I don't feel comfortable getting in to the family x-mas eve- being Jewish I've never been to one- and I don't think that coming from China for 10 days - having nowhere to go to after that evening - is the good time to start. I guess that when we'll live there and coming for the holidays will be just coming from a few hours away by train- it will feel different. I'll have more freedom then- not like in this case- where I know that I'll be dependant on Rob and what he's doing- like I was in every visit in Germany in the last 18 months. To make things short- I'm gonna stay in Shanghai ALONE!!! for about 10 days... But I made him come back here on the 31st- so I wont be alone on new years eve (not that I care about the evening it self- just here- I don't feel like being alone when everyone is coupling up and going out to parties... I guess that in Israel I really wouldn't have minded...)
***
Can read here again in China- cross your fingers it'll last... Have been reading Dorian's blog so fast- afraid that any moment the connection will fall LOL I'm getting Paranoid...
Sunday, October 22, 2006
No privacy
Literally: NO PRIVACY. There's no such word as "privacy" in Chinese. REALLY. They have no word for it.
The girlfriend of Rob's best friend is Chinese. When she went to Germany last year- the first thing she told her boyfriend was: "where are all the people in the streets?". When she showed her father the pictures from Germany the first thing he said was: "Meiyou ren!" this means in Chinese- "no people!".
When you walk in the streets of Shanghai, there's so many people around you- no matter the time of the day. Well, in the middle of the night or really early in the morning there are less, but still- there's a lot of ppl, compared to any other country I've ever been to (well... Maybe in Thailand its almost as crowded in the big cities). This is very overwhelming and energy draining. There's lots of noise and you get touched all the time- by ppl you don't know, and lots of times- by ppl you don't wanna touch... The subway is so full you hardly get a seat, and most of the time you stand between dozens of ppl in each car.
We thought about going to Suzhou today- a small city- which has lots of canals and water around- suppose to be beautiful. In the end we obviously slept in a bit, and until we actually left the house- it was 11:30. We got to the train station after 45 minutes, and found out that the next sitting tickets are at 14:00 and there are no tickets to go back from there tonight. So we decided to stay in Shanghai, and go to the Shanghai Museum. As students it cost us 5 RMB (0.50 Euro) and there are a few different galleries inside- spread out on 4 floors. It all has something to do with Chinese art and culture. The problem with Chinese museums is that they don't have a lot of information about the displays. Rob really doesn't like that- Me? I don't really care. I just like looking at the nice stuff!!! LOL!!!
after the museum we met this 14 year old Chinesee girl outside- she approached us and asked us if she can practice her English with us. We said sure- and we talked to her for 45 minutes... Apparently as a Chinese school student she studies Mondays to Fridays 7:20-16:50, then goes with her mom to her grandma- then goes home does her homework and only then she has a very short time to herself- and then to bed.On Saturdays she wakes up at 7:30 (AM!!!) cleans, has breakfast (this girl was very informative) plays on the computer for about an hour, then goes to a math class for about 2 hours (her school decided she has to take it every Saturday coz of her grades or whatever) then she goes to English class (which she actually enjoys- its in her teachers house- with anotherr 6 kids). On Sundays she would wake up at 8:00-8:30 (I already said- she's VERY informative...) go to The English Corner (apparentlyy there is one) in People's square in Shanghai (some Chinesee ppl meeting up to practice their English) and then have some Chinesee snacks for lunch and then her mom would come and encourage her to approach foreigners like us to practice her English with. She said that when her mom told her to maybe approach us she told her mom: "but they look so much in love... I don't wanna interrupt them..." LOL. Anyway- if there are any young ppl not from china reading this- how do you imagine a life like this??? This is not an exception!!!They all live like this: work work work, study study study!
I would have moved to a different country a long long time ago if I had been born in china...
The girlfriend of Rob's best friend is Chinese. When she went to Germany last year- the first thing she told her boyfriend was: "where are all the people in the streets?". When she showed her father the pictures from Germany the first thing he said was: "Meiyou ren!" this means in Chinese- "no people!".
When you walk in the streets of Shanghai, there's so many people around you- no matter the time of the day. Well, in the middle of the night or really early in the morning there are less, but still- there's a lot of ppl, compared to any other country I've ever been to (well... Maybe in Thailand its almost as crowded in the big cities). This is very overwhelming and energy draining. There's lots of noise and you get touched all the time- by ppl you don't know, and lots of times- by ppl you don't wanna touch... The subway is so full you hardly get a seat, and most of the time you stand between dozens of ppl in each car.
We thought about going to Suzhou today- a small city- which has lots of canals and water around- suppose to be beautiful. In the end we obviously slept in a bit, and until we actually left the house- it was 11:30. We got to the train station after 45 minutes, and found out that the next sitting tickets are at 14:00 and there are no tickets to go back from there tonight. So we decided to stay in Shanghai, and go to the Shanghai Museum. As students it cost us 5 RMB (0.50 Euro) and there are a few different galleries inside- spread out on 4 floors. It all has something to do with Chinese art and culture. The problem with Chinese museums is that they don't have a lot of information about the displays. Rob really doesn't like that- Me? I don't really care. I just like looking at the nice stuff!!! LOL!!!
after the museum we met this 14 year old Chinesee girl outside- she approached us and asked us if she can practice her English with us. We said sure- and we talked to her for 45 minutes... Apparently as a Chinese school student she studies Mondays to Fridays 7:20-16:50, then goes with her mom to her grandma- then goes home does her homework and only then she has a very short time to herself- and then to bed.On Saturdays she wakes up at 7:30 (AM!!!) cleans, has breakfast (this girl was very informative) plays on the computer for about an hour, then goes to a math class for about 2 hours (her school decided she has to take it every Saturday coz of her grades or whatever) then she goes to English class (which she actually enjoys- its in her teachers house- with anotherr 6 kids). On Sundays she would wake up at 8:00-8:30 (I already said- she's VERY informative...) go to The English Corner (apparentlyy there is one) in People's square in Shanghai (some Chinesee ppl meeting up to practice their English) and then have some Chinesee snacks for lunch and then her mom would come and encourage her to approach foreigners like us to practice her English with. She said that when her mom told her to maybe approach us she told her mom: "but they look so much in love... I don't wanna interrupt them..." LOL. Anyway- if there are any young ppl not from china reading this- how do you imagine a life like this??? This is not an exception!!!They all live like this: work work work, study study study!
I would have moved to a different country a long long time ago if I had been born in china...
Friday, September 08, 2006
"Is he Jewish?"
That's the first question that people ask me after I tell them my boyfriend's from Germany. Well not entirely true- it actually goes a bit more like this: (after we've established the fact that my boyfriend is not from Israel):
- "Where is he from?"
- "Germany"
_ "......... (weird awkward face followed by a forced smile) ...... Is he Jewish???"
- "Nop"
- (now there's another awkward face followed with another forced smile)
"... Where does he live now? In Germany?"
- " Yep"
- "Isn't it hard? A long distance relationship?"
- "Well, we got used to it, and we know it's temporary"
That's just a short part of the conversations I usually have with all the "Neshume Tehorot" (Pure souls- from Yiddish - obviously sarcastic) that hear about my relationship.
You get used to it. To the faces, and the questions.
Next time I might give you a taste of the questions we've been asked in the airport, by the security people. It's even more invasive than this!!!
- "Where is he from?"
- "Germany"
_ "......... (weird awkward face followed by a forced smile) ...... Is he Jewish???"
- "Nop"
- (now there's another awkward face followed with another forced smile)
"... Where does he live now? In Germany?"
- " Yep"
- "Isn't it hard? A long distance relationship?"
- "Well, we got used to it, and we know it's temporary"
That's just a short part of the conversations I usually have with all the "Neshume Tehorot" (Pure souls- from Yiddish - obviously sarcastic) that hear about my relationship.
You get used to it. To the faces, and the questions.
Next time I might give you a taste of the questions we've been asked in the airport, by the security people. It's even more invasive than this!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)