It was an unbelievably boring weekend. With the majority of my friends busy/out of town, etc I embarked on a self-imposed exile to my apartment with only brief periods of recess permitted.
However, Friday evening did begin with an amazing dinner cooked by yours truly. "Wildpilz Risotto" or better known to the non-Germans as Wild Mushroom Risotto was on the menu Friday evening at Cafe Pechvogel. My guest, my colleague Petra, throughly enjoyed the meal and it was a success. I used the recipe from a Tuscan cookbook I picked up at the bookstore here months ago (in German). I did have some difficulty with units of measurement as I am not a native Metric user. It must have been rather interesting to watch me say "oh, that looks about right." But the best cooks never use measurements exactly. :) The risotto was a huge success (and led to me discovering new cheeses!!!) and I was glad to have the time with Petra.
Saturday was gym and shopping day. I purchased new clothes for myself as spring is here and summer will be just around the corner no doubt. Many sales going on with 20-30% discounts so I was quite encouraged! This is exciting in and of itself because clothes shopping is ridiculously overpriced here in Germany. The average pair of jeans will set you back €100 easily. I was able to find several shirts, socks and a new rain jacket for a respectable price. The exile continued well in Sunday pausing only for a walk with my friend Isabella and her friend. We enjoyed ice cream at Aachen's best ice cream parlor (alleged) and then a stroll through the Westpark, it was quite enjoyable. Home early enough though so that I could prepare for the week. Inevitably, its me looking at my schedule forgetting what I did the week before with the class or not sure what to do with them this week.
I had another conclusion today. I don't think I'll ever be 100% with where I live. Maybe I am just in this strange period of my life but whether I'm in the United States or in Europe there will always be something missing. I remember when I was living in Florida, I couldn't WAIT to get back to Germany. Anything negative about Germany I simply put aside. Now that I've been living here seven months I want to go back to Florida. Okay, I don't really want to go back to Florida but I do miss things from the States that I didn't think I would. When in the States, I miss the sweeping market places and cafes and general attitude of the Europeans. When in Europe, I miss the simplicity of life, ease of shopping among other things. I don't know that I'll ever be happy wherever I am. This bothers me.
This weekend I'm meeting with member of the FSU colony in Würzbrug! It'll be amazing, I'm looking for some time away with great friends of mine, some of which I haven't seen in almost a year. I'm looking forward to time away from Aachen, period. I hope the weather stays as nice as it has been the past few days.
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