[50] Days of Germany

As of today I only have fifty days left in Germany. That's right. Fifty days. Like what? Where did the time go? I'm not sure, but if you find it, please tell it to SLOW DOWN! or SPEED UP! depending on the day and my current view on the situation. 

I don't even know where to begin with how I feel. Because first off, I'm so excited to see my family and friends and american food again! But then again, I'm so devastated to leave my family and friends and german food here. It's like I'm torn in two, half of me just wants to be home, and the other half never wants to leave. 

I read a quote the other day, and I'm going to change it a bit to make it more accurate for my situation, but it went a little like this:

I built a life for 17 years and left it for 10 months; then I built a life for 10 months and left it forever.Which was harder? 

I'm gonna guess the second. Even at my hardest times in Germany, when I was missing America, I knew that in a matter of months I would be going back home. Back home where I know how everything works and I can talk without having to plan it all out beforehand and I don't have to rely on other people to explain everything to me. But when I get back to America, and I start missing Germany, I won't have the knowledge of one day being home again to comfort me. I will never again get to experience this life fully. Even if I come back to Germany, I won't be able to see all of my friends again. I won't get the chance to get into a daily routine with my host family again. It just won't be the same.
And that is why I am choosing to focus on the "I never want to leave" feelings right now. Instead of counting the days down to when I get to go home, I'm keeping track of the days I have left. I'm making to most of the next 49 days. And there will be plenty of time for my "I just want to be home" feelings when I get home. It's okay to look forward to things in the future, but you can't forget to make the most of things today.

A German Easter

Despite the fact the America is a more religious nation than Germany, I found that easter in Germany was actually a pretty big deal.

It started on Green Thursday with communion and a short church service. People get out of school and work Friday and Monday for the holiday. On Good Friday it's actually against the law in Germany to dance, but many youth have parties or go to clubs anyway. My host family went to a church service instead. Then on Saturday I went to REfresh, which is a service just for teenagers. The topic was where am I going after I die. It was really cool and I loved the atmosphere. Then on Sunday everyone in the church met early to eat breakfast together. Afterwards we had our normal service. Then we went to my host grandmother's house for lunch. The easter bunny brought lots of candy and goodies this year. After lunch I took a nap and then we all went on a short walk to a park nearby with ducks. Then on Monday we went to my host great grandmother's house to celebrate with the other side of the family. Another day full of good food and family.

So all in all, the easter celebration was about 5 days long. Of course, for the majority in Germany it's just an opportunity to miss a little school, get some presents, and eat food. But I guess for many Americans it's just an opportunity to buy a new dress or suit, eat, and buy cheap candy the next few days.

I hope that everyone had a wonderful easter and kept in mind the real reason to celebrate!

The Heltons Take on Germany! Day 9

Today my family flew back home. I was really really worried that after they left I would be incredibly homesick and wish I could of gone with them, but it turns I was just incredibly sick and wished I didn't have to go anywhere. I woke up a few hours before my parents had to catch their flight (so around like 4) and ended up getting really sick. I wasn't able to catch my train as planned and everyone was pretty stressed about how I was going to get home. I got in touch with my wonderful host family, who then drove all the way to Frankfurt, brought me medicine, and got me back home. My parents had to leave before my host family got there, but at least they knew someone was on the way. Being sick did help take some of the focus off of my family leaving and I ended up not being too terribly sad. I was feeling better by the end of the day, and just had to get my strength back. Tuesday is already April, then in April I have 2 weeks of spring break. After that it's already May, and we get another few days off of school. In May I'm going to Berlin with my exchange program, and then it's basically June and I've only got a two weeks until I'm going home. Time won't slow down and before I know it my 10 months in Germany are gonna be over. Let's make the most of the time we have left.

The Heltons Take on Germany! Day 8

Kaylee and me at Linderhof <3

Today was my last full day with my family. We seperated from my host family after breakfasted and headed to Frankfurt, while they headed back home. We stopped to see the Linderhof palace and a few churches. We didn't make it to Frankfurt until late, and we were all worn out from the day in the car. My parents turned in their rental car, checked into the hotel room, and made sure all of the bags were ready for the flight tomorrow. I can't really believe they're already about to leave when they just go here, but it was such a wonderful experience to show my parents around my new home and new life.

The Heltons Take on Germany! Day 7

Today is Friday and it's our first full day in Bayern. We enjoyed a lovely breakfast in our hotel and then left to go see Schloss Neuschwanstein, which is probably the most famous castle in Germany. This is the castle that Disney World used as inspiration for their Cinderella castle. After a lot of waiting and frustration and ticket changes, we finally made it to the top and were able to go on our tour. It was disappointingly short and we didn't really have a tour guide, just headphones, but the castle really was beautiful. Afterwards my family spent a pretty chill evening in the hotel room. We found a really cool place to eat at, but they were unfortunately too busy and we ended up at McDonalds. Tomorrow will be my last full day with my parents, and that's pretty sad. This week feels like it just began.

Carriage ride to the castle(:

The Heltons Take on Germany! Day 6

Car rides make us sleepy

Today is Thursday and we left this morning to drive down to Bayern. We stopped for lunch in Munich and ate at the Hofbrauhaus, an old german restaurant, and finished it off with some yummy ice cream we enjoyed while walking through town. We then made it to Garmisch Partenkirchen, which is a town in the alps where we were staying. The view was absolutely amazing! (I'll add some pictures to my posts when my parents finally upload them *cough, cough*) We took some time to walk around the town and then decided to eat american for dinner and had pizza hut. Today went by even faster than usual because most of it was spent in the car. Only 2 more days with my family and then they're flying back. :'(

The Heltons Take on Germany! Day 5

Today is Wednesday and it's our last day in Ronshausen. I headed off to school in the morning and my family went to visit a concentration camp nearby. They came back a little early so that I could show them around the school and introduce them to my class. It was cool to get to show everybody at school a little bit more from my background and where I come from and my parents a little bit more about where I am now. Afterwards I finally got to take a nap (I've been deprived of my daily naptime the past few days because we've been so busy). Afterwards we all (I mean all as in both sides of the host family plus my family, so like 13 people) got together to eat schnitzel at a restaurant in Ronshausen. It was already time for my family to say goodbye to everybody. Despite how short the time together was, we were all already family and it was hard to see everyone have to go. Here's a picture of almost all of us together: