Ok, so technically the call came from Preston, England, and not London. But hey, when else could I use that line?
I got my travel information in the mail yesterday. I should be going to the Missionary Training Center next week. I looked at the envelope, and noticed I'd be there for six weeks. Apparently they now have a six week course for people learning German. Um, guys, I'm not exactly a beginner when it comes to Deutsch. In my opinion, the class for natives would suit me better. I've had three years in high school, two in college, and a year in Germany.
So I sent the MTC people an email about that. They got back to me rather promptly, given the five-hour time difference. They sent me an email last night asking for my phone number so we could have a little German Exam. I replied about half an hour ago, saying that my mornings are free, and hopped in the shower. What I didn't know is that they were going to call me right after getting that email. I tried calling back, but my phone plan isn't good enough to call the UK.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ten minutes later
~~~~~~~~~~~~
I just got off the phone with the German teacher at the MTC and the coordinator. They got my explanatory email and called me right away.
They've decided I definitely don't need the language course. The teacher even said I sound like a German! *major confidence booster* The thing is, the native course doesn't start for another month. And there's one other sister missionary who will have to be by herself. They've had that before though, so it's not to be a major factor in my decision. I would like to have the extra month to get ready, study, and *hopefully* get some sort of employment. I think it's time to pray a lot. Thank goodness God answers prayers.
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Thursday, August 22, 2013
And bein' apart ain't easy
Sorry to get out of chronological order here, but I need to.
Yesterday we dropped my sister off at college.
I cried like a baby.
Ok, maybe not as loudly. Maybe as often as one, though. I cried more than our momma.
We've been nigh inseparable lately. Best buds.
My Grandpa also decided to come down Tuesday from Colorado. He'll be here until just before my mission. I'm the only one who doesn't have school or work in the day, so it falls to me to hang out with him. I also have a whole lot of stuff to do. Speaking of which... I ought to call about getting police clearance for my visa.
Yesterday she told us, "Hey, you're just losing one person, and I'm losing my whole family!" Excuse me! You will still be able to call and text and skype. In less than two weeks, my only contact will be email and snail mail.
I want my sister back.
Yesterday we dropped my sister off at college.
I cried like a baby.
Ok, maybe not as loudly. Maybe as often as one, though. I cried more than our momma.
We've been nigh inseparable lately. Best buds.
My Grandpa also decided to come down Tuesday from Colorado. He'll be here until just before my mission. I'm the only one who doesn't have school or work in the day, so it falls to me to hang out with him. I also have a whole lot of stuff to do. Speaking of which... I ought to call about getting police clearance for my visa.
Yesterday she told us, "Hey, you're just losing one person, and I'm losing my whole family!" Excuse me! You will still be able to call and text and skype. In less than two weeks, my only contact will be email and snail mail.
I want my sister back.
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Took my chances on a big jet plane
My next big adventure was not even a week after my Frankfurt trip.
The name of the game is Flying into Atlanta on Stand-By in Summer.
Anyone who's tried to fly with a Delta Buddy Pass knows what a joy it can be. On one hand, I saved a ton of money. On the other hand, well, you're about to hear about that.
It just so happens that the two closest Buddy Pass approved airports are about four hours away. And so instead of making me take the train, my host family decided it would just be easier for me to go with them to Frankfurt on a little church trip so that if I didn't get on a flight, I could still have some place to stay.
Day 1.
My sweet host family drove me to the Frankfurt Flughafen, about half an hour away from where we were. I got checked in, sent my two ever-so-slightly overweight suitcases to wherever they send them and went up to security. Nobody was optimistic about me making the flight. And when I got to the terminal, I saw why. When it was time to rebook for the next attempt at getting home, the lady at the desk was beyond pessimistic. I didn't stand a chance of getting home until mid-August. I could try for New York, but as I know nobody there whom I could call upon for shelter, I decided against it. So I called up my family and they came to my rescue (after a couple hours when they were done with whatever they were doing). Poor Dana had cried bitterly and inconsolably when they dropped me off. And so I got another day in Germany.
Day 2.
My host family did not have the time to drive me to the airport, so they stuck me on a train with my two HUGE suitcases, each weighing 52 pounds, my carry on, which probably weighed too much, and a backpack packed to nearly overflowing. So many people helped me! When I got to the train station at the airport, I found that all of the escalators were either off or not working. Great. So I lugged the suitcases one-by-one up half the stairs until some nice people helped. The situation at the gate wasn't any different. As I was waiting for my baggage, one of the workers gave me a hint: try Detroit.
So I left my baggage at the airport baggage place for a few Euros. I was already getting callouses and there was NO WAY I was going to lug those things across Frankfurt two more times.
Day 3.
Things were getting desperate. If I didn't get a flight by the end of the week, I'd have a whole new set of problems, like where to sleep for starts, and maybe even visa problems if it lasted too much longer.
I did try for Detroit, which looked as bad as the Atlanta flights, and did not get on. Then I counseled with the gate agent again. There was the New York flight, but it would be delayed. Well, when flights are delayed four hours, people tend to get angry and fly on other airlines. Hello empty seats! When they finally called my name to get on, I really did start crying tears of pure joy. All thirty-something of us buddy pass people got on, which is a miracle.
The delay meant that there would be no more connecting flights to Atlanta or anywhere else, though. I had to get from JFK to La Guardia for my morning connecting flight to DC. This is where I "slept" for a few hours. Turns out the luggage carts are more comfortable than the chairs behind said cart, where I first tried to sleep. Add jet lag, and BINGO. A nap. Sorta. Every time I finally fell asleep, some employee pushed a huge floor cleaner across the floor. The floor didn't look a bit better for it either.
I still wasn't home, but hey, at least I was finally in the proper country. That's the hardest part- getting across the pond.
The name of the game is Flying into Atlanta on Stand-By in Summer.
Anyone who's tried to fly with a Delta Buddy Pass knows what a joy it can be. On one hand, I saved a ton of money. On the other hand, well, you're about to hear about that.
It just so happens that the two closest Buddy Pass approved airports are about four hours away. And so instead of making me take the train, my host family decided it would just be easier for me to go with them to Frankfurt on a little church trip so that if I didn't get on a flight, I could still have some place to stay.
Day 1.
My sweet host family drove me to the Frankfurt Flughafen, about half an hour away from where we were. I got checked in, sent my two ever-so-slightly overweight suitcases to wherever they send them and went up to security. Nobody was optimistic about me making the flight. And when I got to the terminal, I saw why. When it was time to rebook for the next attempt at getting home, the lady at the desk was beyond pessimistic. I didn't stand a chance of getting home until mid-August. I could try for New York, but as I know nobody there whom I could call upon for shelter, I decided against it. So I called up my family and they came to my rescue (after a couple hours when they were done with whatever they were doing). Poor Dana had cried bitterly and inconsolably when they dropped me off. And so I got another day in Germany.
Day 2.
My host family did not have the time to drive me to the airport, so they stuck me on a train with my two HUGE suitcases, each weighing 52 pounds, my carry on, which probably weighed too much, and a backpack packed to nearly overflowing. So many people helped me! When I got to the train station at the airport, I found that all of the escalators were either off or not working. Great. So I lugged the suitcases one-by-one up half the stairs until some nice people helped. The situation at the gate wasn't any different. As I was waiting for my baggage, one of the workers gave me a hint: try Detroit.
So I left my baggage at the airport baggage place for a few Euros. I was already getting callouses and there was NO WAY I was going to lug those things across Frankfurt two more times.
Day 3.
Things were getting desperate. If I didn't get a flight by the end of the week, I'd have a whole new set of problems, like where to sleep for starts, and maybe even visa problems if it lasted too much longer.
I did try for Detroit, which looked as bad as the Atlanta flights, and did not get on. Then I counseled with the gate agent again. There was the New York flight, but it would be delayed. Well, when flights are delayed four hours, people tend to get angry and fly on other airlines. Hello empty seats! When they finally called my name to get on, I really did start crying tears of pure joy. All thirty-something of us buddy pass people got on, which is a miracle.The delay meant that there would be no more connecting flights to Atlanta or anywhere else, though. I had to get from JFK to La Guardia for my morning connecting flight to DC. This is where I "slept" for a few hours. Turns out the luggage carts are more comfortable than the chairs behind said cart, where I first tried to sleep. Add jet lag, and BINGO. A nap. Sorta. Every time I finally fell asleep, some employee pushed a huge floor cleaner across the floor. The floor didn't look a bit better for it either.
I still wasn't home, but hey, at least I was finally in the proper country. That's the hardest part- getting across the pond.
Day 4: So I woke up waaay too early. We're talking hours before the place even opens. But I did make the wide-open flight to DC, where there are hourly flights to Atlanta. I didn't get on the first three or four flights. But then, lo and behold, there was a plane with an hour delay. I love delays. Delays get you where you need to go. At least on buddy passes, that is.
And so I arrived home, feeling as if I had accompanied Frodo to Mount Doom. Ok, that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but it sure felt like it took that long.
Monday, August 19, 2013
Happened just the other day...
Hello friends! Good news! My computer is finally working again! The bad news is that it totally and completely died along with everything on it, including my list of potential blog titles. I mean lyrics... And I have more than a month to catch up on- a month full of adventures. Oh man. This is going to be fun...
Not to mention I have a bunch of stuff to do right now that's way more important than blogging.
Frankfurt. I'm thinking this will be easier if I just post photos. Aight. Here goes Frankfurt.
So I carpooled to Frankfurt. The other people in the car were actually very nice- no creepers, crooks, criminals or anything of the sort. They were just some nice, normal people. I got to the Hauptbahnhof where I was greeted by four friends plus two I hadn't met yet. My four friends were now... officially two couples. Ary introduced me to her friend, Anna, who was visiting from Alaska, and Jeanette introduced me to her sister. And I said "Hi! I'm still Shelby and I'm... still single." They all just kinda laughed. Let's just say that Anna and I were very grateful for each other's presence, or else there would have been a whole lot of third-wheeling and occasional fifth-wheeling.
I'll spare you the minutia and cut straight to the exciting things- otherwise known as a choice selection of pictures from the trip.
Not to mention I have a bunch of stuff to do right now that's way more important than blogging.
Frankfurt. I'm thinking this will be easier if I just post photos. Aight. Here goes Frankfurt.
So I carpooled to Frankfurt. The other people in the car were actually very nice- no creepers, crooks, criminals or anything of the sort. They were just some nice, normal people. I got to the Hauptbahnhof where I was greeted by four friends plus two I hadn't met yet. My four friends were now... officially two couples. Ary introduced me to her friend, Anna, who was visiting from Alaska, and Jeanette introduced me to her sister. And I said "Hi! I'm still Shelby and I'm... still single." They all just kinda laughed. Let's just say that Anna and I were very grateful for each other's presence, or else there would have been a whole lot of third-wheeling and occasional fifth-wheeling.
I'll spare you the minutia and cut straight to the exciting things- otherwise known as a choice selection of pictures from the trip.
The Main
Altstadt
This escalator went up about five floors.
A skyline! Basically the only one in Germany.
This was outside. Beats me why balloons aren't allowed.
Inside the Dom (cathedral)
Some couples fun... I shall refrain from further comments.
Burg Münzenberg. It's been deserted for about 400 years.
I've been waiting since childhood to see something like this.
A rebuilt Roman Fortress! How cool is that?!?
Standing on the Limes- the German version of Hadrian's Wall.
Currywurst. One of my favorite things.
Botanical Gardens
Kaiser Wilhelm 'stache
The craziest fishies ever. Just look at their mouths!
Goin' Home
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