You Win Some, You Lose Some
What a week- filled with highs, lows, laughter, and tears.
First of all, we got a German bank account. On the first try. Without any issues. (Say what?!) It was a shock to both of us as we walked out of the bank and realized that something actually went right on the first try. We had all the paperwork we needed, we knew what we wanted, and we were able to accomplish something without setting up a return appointment. Hallelujah! God knew we needed a win to keep us going!
Second, we found a church! We haven’t heard many good things about churches in Germany and it adds a whole new challenge to find one in English. So through a series of Google searches, we came across a church in Erlangen, one city over from Furth. There was a total of about 20 people there, much different than what we’re used to. Regardless, it was really nice to meet new people and have some social interaction. Because it’s an English church, we found that most everyone there has been through the exact same experiences we’re going through. They transferred for work, had to uproot their lives, and have settled into new homes in Germany. It was great talking with people there, as they had a ton of advice about how they managed all the logistics that come with an international move to Germany.
Then Monday came and the week got tough. We finally got to tour our new apartment and we realized it was not at all what we had in mind. First of all, it will be about an hour trip on public transportation for Taylor to get to work. He doesn’t seem to mind, but I hate that. Then, the landlord told us it won’t be available for us to move in until July 1st. That’s 14 days after we have to be out of our current place and 16 days after they had originally told us we could move in. Cool. Plus, did you know that a lot of German apartments do not come with kitchens? I mean, no sink, no stove, no oven, not even cupboards. We knew that, but we thought this one had a kitchen. It didn’t. Not to mention, it’s not in the greatest part of town. So as we’re leaving and Taylor’s co-worker is telling us about all the college parties he attended in the area and I’m thinking of how expensive a kitchen installation is going to be after we’re homeless for 2 weeks. Que panic.
The second we got home, we started looking for new apartments just to find that apartments in the area are more expensive than we thought. They’re not outlandish. Comparable to the Portland area. But that’s not what we budgeted. We budgeted for travelling and that’s not something we want to sacrifice. At this point, we’re frantically searching for an apartment within our price range that will allow us to move in before June 17th, when we get kicked out of our current place.
We continue to look back at all of the things that have perfectly fallen into place to get us here and we’re confident that the right place will come up just in time. Wish us luck!
In 2016, our founder, Bailey Smith, finagled her way into moving abroad with her husband. In their off time, they were able to travel all around Europe. Many of Bailey's travel experiences during those two years have shaped Indie Travel Design into what it is today. Follow along with their story of negotiating jobs, applying for visas, and living in Germany.