I'm writing en route to the Venice airport; we're headed to Germany finally! It's been a nice two weeks in Italy, but I'm ready to get settled in our new home.
Speaking of our new home; we got an apartment, but I probably didn't mention that Paolo didn't look at it before signing a contract. Rookie mistake. He went to look afterward, and told me it's awful. However, there were 6 people living in this 50 square meter, 1 bedroom apartment. He reported it to the landlord ( the condition, not the people) and they promised to do renovations before we move in. My expectations have been set very low, so hopefully I will be pleasantly surprised.
Many people asked me before I left the US if I was scared to move here. I find that to be a strange question in general. It's actually quite a rush; I get to come to a whole new place with the people I love and start a new adventure! What a privilege! I feel so blessed that I have been able to have so many adventures over the past few years; the US will always be home, but I enjoy taking little pieces from everywhere I live, and learning new things all the time. It's not that one place is better than another, but there is good and bad to each culture, and I can take away what I want to.
Above all, I trust that God will guide me and use each experience for His glory. Even in the times I have been afraid, things have always turned out better than I expected, so there's no reason to fear. The only point where I do feel some apprehension is our job situation. Paolo's job is a 3 month internship; according to the company, he should have a job at the end, but you never know on these things.. I am looking now for a job, but haven't officially received my work permit, and furthermore, don't speak German. There are English speaking jobs available, but most require more experience or a different skill set than I have (engineers, you are welcome in Stuttgart). I'm trying to be patient and trust that it will work out, but sometimes I do worry about that.
Anyways, we are officially off to Germany! Here's to hoping for a nice apartment!
Ciao for now,
Kathleen
