Well, it is a bit later than 6 months after our arrival, but later is better than never, right? Also, a couple of weeks ago we promised to talk about the things that we miss since we live here, and I think this can also be part of the recapitulation of the first semester. So here it goes.
The first thing we have to mention is where we find the most differences in our daily lives, in comparison with our way of living back in Germany. And there is a lot to talk about in that aspect. We can start with something we have mentioned before: the big spaces. US is very wide, everything is far apart, and the car is something that you have to get used to. Since January, we have only taken public transportation when we were in NYC. Other than that, we took cabs a couple of times in San Francisco, but that's about it. Do we miss public transportation? I would say we mostly miss it during the week. It is clear that on the weekend we want to drive somewhere else, to the beach (like we did yesterday) or just downtown... But Mo. -Fr. I wouldn't mind having a bus get me to work, to be honest. This is not one of the things we miss the most, though... I guess the most important takeaway here is how important it is to have a car in the country you live. In Europe, you can have no car and still get to work, do your shopping and go to the cinema. All these things are much harder in the US, if not impossible. So the car becomes a requirement.
Another difference here are the seasons. Here, contrary to Germany, you can identify clearly 4 different seasons in the year. The fall is incredible here (although I have been just 2 weeks last year, and Andres a bit more), the colors of the trees are beautifully changing from green to orange, brown and really bright red (we will document this when the time has come). Temperatures are mild. Then the winter is of course the hardest (at least in my opinion), with snow, rain, coldness, ... But it eventually ends, the snow melts and leaves uncovered a beautiful green grass. With the spring, trees and flowers start to blossom. And after spring comes what we are experimenting now, the temperatures vary between 20 up to 35 degC. It reminds me of Seville, only not so hot :) But it can stay sunny for days, and yes, we also have summer storms like in Germany, but before one comes we have enjoyed several days of sun and warmth. So yes, that is different. I am actually getting my tan back (the one I lost in the 6 years in Germany :))
Here you see Andres bathing in the waters of the Michigan see, where we were yesterday. It is very odd because it seems like the sea, with the waves and the long beaches,... But the water is not salty, and you can walk a lot and it doesn't get deep!
Our everyday life is however not very different in terms of hours and activities. We still have to:
- be in the office 8 to 5 (we miss the time when the extra hours counted for free time or were payed :S )
- do the groceries once a week (before this was several times a week, here is more concentrated)
- clean the house and garden once a week (it takes longer than in Germany, and it is also harder)...
- exercise a couple of times a week, this is much better now; since we have several state parks (like small forests) around us we can really exercise in the forest, which makes it more interesting. In Stuttgart we lived in the center, with no parks nearby. We could of course drive to the outer ring and find a park, but the problem was finding a parking spot afterwards. Here you hardly ever have problems to park, like I said, they have so much space :)
One thing we reaally miss is the vacation days. This is very hard for people that come abroad for a limited time and want to visit as many places as possible. We almost have planned the trips for all 3 years already! And there's still so many spots that we might leave out, just because we don't have time! Also, it is very far away from the family! I remember taking a flight and in a couple of hours, we were in Spain. Now we can't go those 2 or 3 times per year, and that is hard sometimes. The long distances, high flight ticket prices and fewer vacation days is a bad combination to stay in touch with family and friends, and that s*cks.
In terms of food, in US we must say we find a lot of things that we used to have regularly, so we can't complain much. They even have pretty good oil (of course "from Italy"), and the big supermarkets also have a shelf with international products (in which, by the way, Germans can find their Spaetzle :)). In fact, sometimes there is TOO much choice of products, so it is very hard to decide! Our normal choosing procedure is, we look at them all, and after 30 minutes we take one at random. If we like it, we stick to it. If we don't, we need 30 minutes the next time to choose :)
However, we miss things like Spanish chorizo, here the chorizo is a Mexican version, it is also a sausage, but it has not been cured. It is not the same. Serrano ham is also nowhere to find. And alcohol is much more expensive!! But there is a big variety of wines, also some from Spain (not the best, though). On the other side, meat is so much cheaper! We are using the BBQ several times a week :)
Another thing that I miss is the (lack of) dressing code at work. I don't like to think every day what I am going to be doing or who I am meeting. I guess it is not only the dress code itself, but also that the kind of work here has much more to do with the customer. I miss wearing jeans to work, as I used to do almost every day in Stuttgart. I think Andres doesn't miss it so much (probably because he looks so goo in his suit pants and shirt :)), but sometimes when we needs to work near the vehicles, it is also annoying for him because he has to be very careful not to get dirty.
In general at work, there is a lot of differences, the treat with the coworkers differ from our former experience, the way of working is more relaxed... Sometimes we get desperate at our meetings because people talk in circles without getting to any conclusion (Germany has taught us that, I guess).
So, in summary, the first 6 months have been a great experience and we have made out of this country our temporary home. Nevertheless, knowing that the situation back in Spain is bad and is not getting better, being away from our family and friends, makes us realize even more how lucky we are to have taken this opportunity.
Lots of love
Lita&Andres
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