Last week before school

 We are getting settled in and learning to get around our neighborhood of Zehlendorf. We are SW of the city center. It takes about an hour to get to my cousin Gretchen's place.  We have not really explored the history of Berlin yet, but are looking forward to doing that soon. Feeling like we need a routine. Excited for school to start. The new kids have an orientation on Friday, then everyone starts on Monday the 17th, masks will be required in the passing period, but not in the classroom. I am so thankful they are going to in-person school and hopefully it continues.  There is always talk of it not going too long, but who really knows.  We have been learning new things and going to new places. We learn that in the summer brewers have a Radler which is beer and lemonade and quite refreshing. This one is  .76 and you get .25 back when you take the can back. So, beer is most definitely cheaper than water.

We worked on Jeff's classroom to clean it out. It was a bit gross, expired food from 3 years ago, dust everywhere, not sure when there was anyone in it before.....

  I'll post an after picture sometime.  I did take photos of the kids at the school since parents are not allowed on campus once school starts.

The kids think the bear is a bit creepy. 

We have played some games, lounged in the hammock at home, while waiting for deliveries, we finally got out shoes from home that have been stuck in customs! Yay

Milo had a great time at the sports camp a couple weeks ago. They sent him home with a couple photos.

It has been hot here. It is not so bad when you are just sitting, but when you are biking, you feel the humidity more than in Colorado. Not even close to how much it is in NE.  We went to Schlachetnsee, which is a 20-30 minute ride. It was nice to be in the cool water. It got super busy as the day went on. People would put their blanket right next to you, it was different than what we are used to. Usually wanting to be away from people, here, no so much. We did not move here for the same, we moved here for different, so embracing all the difference. These photos were taken prior to the crazy of people everywhere. We hung out with some new friends and it was a good time. 

Jeff had an issue with his visa, so we headed to the immigration office to get it all worked out. This trip we took a double-decker bus, which was cool, I would not want to be the bus driver!

It is BRIGHT, can you tell

Lots of cobblestone roads. They are not too fun to ride your bike on. I remember my grandpa Jim saying he felt like a sack of potatoes when he road on his Vespa. This has the same feeling I had and if your phone is in your front basket it will fly out!

Lexa and I went to breakfast and shopping. She was so excited to find her Boba tea here next to the fun Asian market! Of course, a shopping day would not be complete without at least one prom dress tried on. 

Walking around neighborhoods and seeing the different architecture is fun. This building also had someone who died during the holocaust. I am looking forward to learning more about the history here.

SO EXCITED!!! Yes, this is a trashcan. It is soooo much better than what we had. I had 3 about the size of the little food scrap one there. It was hard to get all the trash sorted in such a small space. This is fantastic. Who knew....

We went to church on Sunday and really enjoy it, it was our 3rd weekend there. From there we biked through a beautiful forest to the bier garten at Wansee. We took a different route on the way home, and it is a bike path in the middle of a large road. It was a bit crazy.  I should have taken a photo of the forest as it was a nice change. I did learn that I am not good at talking to Jeff behind me when riding, as I scraped my arm against a concrete wall. My goal is to turn around and still go straight,. I'll let you know if I improve. 

This is the park North of the school. (hard for me to know directions with no mountains!) It is interesting, it is more like an unmaintained natural area. It is nice to have a reprieve from the concrete, but it is not what we are used to when we think of a park. 

This is our community garden in the back of our house, I think I will try to take advantage of this when I can. It is taken care of by the residents here, but again, just different than we would see a yard back home. I appreciate the flowers that I recognize. The neighbor below said I can help or give any suggestions. I am excited to participate with them. I would pull weeds, but not really sure which ones those are. 

Bikes are everywhere. The biking lanes here are amazing, makes it so easy to get around and it is FLAT. I do think I probably should have thought through what bike I got instead of going for the cute color, but it is working great, despite only having 3 gears....

I am enjoying Zehlendorf, and appreciating all the differences. Trying to go with it and not get frustrated. My comfort will come in time. We have been so blessed to be connected with so many people already. God is good all the time. We have a short time here, so want to engage with people soon, as we do not have much time. Wondering what God's plan is for us here. We will wait and see.