Its Official Im here

If the packing, preparing, leaving my house,  saying goodbye to my parents at the airport, or getting on the planes and trains didn’t make all this real, getting here did. I am surrounded by mountains, trees, and incredible beauty. This place is incredible, so much so I have no idea how to describe it except as incredible.

My flight to Atlanta was fine. I had the window and my neighbor was passed out the entire flight, just the way I like ‘em. The guy in the aisle seat… he he... I shouldn’t laugh, but I have never seen someone so nervous. He kept shaking his right leg, but especially during take-off, rough patches of air, and landing: this fidgeting shook his whole body. Either he hates flying or sitting, I don’t know, but it was impressive and he must do it a lot since his legs were just so darn skinny! The flight to Munich was long. After we shut off our electrical devices the safety procedure movie was interrupted with our pilot saying that we would have a brief 5 minute delay to get some updated flight paperwork. An hour and a half later we were finally able to get on the runway. It wouldn’t have been so bad, but my phone wouldn’t get any reception and I would have really liked talk a bit longer while I was still in “Sprint land.” I am a terrible plane sleeper, located in the middle seat, and wasn’t given enough movie options to watch. But eventually the flight ended and I was able to roll my little bags around the airport and remind my legs what it means to be legs.

My first cup of coffee here was smooth, strong, and not watered down. No sugar or cream needed or desired: just sip and enjoy.  The train system here is amazing. I think I would take a train everyday if I could. Everything is pretty self-explanatory, of course I still asked a couple people to make sure I was on the right ones, but everything was neatly displayed and on time. I was sitting on the right side enjoying the view of cows, fields, and farms until I looked to the left and saw the mountains. Once again please allow me to re-use the same antonym: Incredible!  Oh, and one other word: green.  I only wish I slept better on the plane so I could have enjoyed the ride more. It is hard to take it all in when all you want to do is curl up and sleep. But no sleeping on trains (as my mother firmly instructed me before I left J).

When I arrived the Chef was there to greet me and take over the rolling of the bags. It was a short drive to the hotel. Sonnenalp is sooooo much bigger than the pictures I’ve seen. It holds 550 guest ( about 400 workers) and it has 5-6 stores inside, several restaurants (one of which has a Michelin Star), and, once again, an incredible view. The chef showed me the kitchen and introduced me to several of the staff I‘ll be working with. I wish I was better with names… I think I could still remember two of them! He showed me to the cafeteria where I can eat three times a day and then he gave me a quick walk through of the hotel. There are so many rooms and halls and everything. It is warmly decorated with soft fabrics and wood. Every corner is comfortable and inviting… and has an incredible viewJ .

A short one or two minute walk away is the apartment building for all the workers. My home for the next 3 months. My apartment reminds me of one of the really cute white, black, and red themed set ups in IKEA. It has a bathroom, mini-kitchen (with a sink and fridge), a bedroom / living room area, and a really big closet.  My little pile of clothes looks so tiny in comparison. I’ll need to find some things to fill the shelvesJ. Best part: it is all mine… After living in dorms for the last two years, this is a luxury I wasn’t expecting.

Then the Chef left me, and I was officially here. I unpacked, showered, and got dressed to go eat…. but then looked at my bed. A quick nap wouldn’t do any harm… I woke up a few hours later to change into pjs and another time at 3 AM to remind myself where I was, but quickly fell back into much needed sleep. It is a good thing I had an alarm set or I would probably still be asleep. I had breakfast (rye bread with cheese and slices of tomato J) My Finnish phone isn’t working like I hoped it would here in Germany. I will go into the city soon and hopefully get some way of having internet in my room, or I’ll need to go to the office to send things. Hopefully by the end of this day I’ll be able to post this from my room. There is an office in the hotel where I went to I write home let family know I am still alive, but the German Facebook wouldn’t let me on. L It may be silly, but I really want access to Facebook. I don’t need it, but it is a small piece of home I would really like to have while I am here… eek while I’m here…. It is definitely official.