Today my Uncle picked me up from my Aunt’s
house at 9am (ouch >_<). He stayed for about two hours just chatting to
my Aunt which was really nice because they have never met before, being from
different sides of my families, and I really didn’t know what to expect when
they met.
We were driven to my Uncle’s house because
I had so much luggage (oops). We were going to go sight seeing but the weather
was miserable so we decided just to hang out at his flat. His flat is pretty
nice, a little small but cute and definitely big enough for one person. He had
a whole wall full of CD’s, floor to ceiling! We just chatted for a bit about
teaching and life in general.
We took public transport to the place I’m
staying in Berlin, which is called Treptow. It was a bit of a hassle carrying
all that stuff so far, I would probably advise against travelling with heavy
luggage on public transport.
I was so nervous! What would she be like?
What would the flat be like? Would I get on with them? This was totally out of
my comfort zone. I didn’t know what to expect.
When we arrived the woman I’m staying with,
A, was so welcoming. She showed us around her AMAZING flat, and when I
say amazing I mean amazing. It’s so modern, light and spacious, massive too.
There’s a huge balcony A says we could eat on when the weather is nice.
There is also a huge community garden at the back with a beach volleyball court
and everything. AMAZING.
We sat with A for a while and
chatted. Well, S and A chatted and I listened. Then S. I was all alone! Eek!
It was really not as bad as I thought! We
talked a bit and I taught her how to say “I can’t be bothered” (clearly a good
influence here ;) ). She needed to get bread from the shop and asked if I
wanted to go too. At first I was going to say no, so I could unpack and settle
into my room but then I decided maybe I should, it would be good to get to know
her better and to see the area and where the shops are. This is something I
would really advise, taking any bonding opportunity that comes up. It’s a
mistake I made when I started uni and had to live in a flat with five other
people. I went off and did my own thing on the first day there, and missed out
on the time my flatmates all bonded together. The flat was awkward ever since,
and although that very well mightn’t have been the main reason, I will always
think that it could have helped.
We got home, had tea (which wasn’t exactly
to my taste but I’m far too polite to say!) and I headed to my room to unpack,
though really I ended up just lying on my bed watching Big Bang Theory and
trying not to fall asleep.
At 10pm A’s husband, E, came
home from work. He’s a business man and had been in Paris for the day for work!
He went upstairs and I could hear them talking. Now I should point something
out about myself. I’m not amazing in social situations. I get anxious and
stressed and worried, I often chicken out of them. But, this trip is for
growth, so eventually after a long mental argument with myself, and standing
half way up the staircase for at least five minutes, I made myself go
upstairs.
I introduced myself to E and he was
really nice! A immediately cleared a seat for me on the sofa and we
watched a film called Control, about Joy Division. It was OK, though even I
struggled with understanding it (they all had very 80’s Mancunian accents) so I
have no idea how A managed. E’s English is very good as he uses it
for work, so I think he was OK.
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