Mission Accomplished

1. Went to an interview for a job as a Business English Trainer (they gave me some tips on where to go for my intensive course and told me to come back in 4 months when I speak German)
2. Signed the lease for the new apartment (the rental agency gave us a free bottle of wine as a welcome gift! Can you imagine a landlord in the bay area doing something like that?)
3. Decided on a health insurance plan (which is actually pretty cheap if paid in USD as the conversion rate is not up to date- awesome)
4. Went grocery shopping at the Turkish Market- 1 euro each for bay leaves, chili, and other necessary spices. Not to mention: I love the Italian pasta guy. $4.50 for a ton of handmade pasta with truffle filling? Also: decided to get a pint of the freshly made hummus. That stuff goes fast.
5. Reserved a spot for both Carlos and I in the VHS intensive course. I think this will do just fine as for getting us our student visa. The instructor said so herself, and a few others have mentioned it would be okay.

A Trip To Tropical Islands & The Emergency Room

Carlos had an accident at Tropical Islands yesterday (this water fun park outside of Berlin) on one of the water slides. The slide malfunctioned and he was stranded on the slide for 10 seconds when two guys came down behind him, hitting him in the back. They took him to the emergency room to see if he had any broken bones or anything, but luckily it turned out to be damage to muscle tissue, not bone. The whole ordeal was awful- the ambulance, seeing him in a stretcher, not being able to make out what the medics or park personnel were saying... And the whole process was delayed at several points because they kept shoving paperwork in our faces- paperwork we couldn't read but had to sign before they would help him. This was supposed to be our chance to relax after all this craziness with visas and house hunting. Instead it turned out to be a nightmare. I'm so glad he's okay. He could have been seriously injured, and I'm very lucky (we're both lucky) that he's alright. Today we're trying to take it easy and relax, but it's not easy. I can't believe that little kids are going on these slides where there are no lifeguards present and there are no medical emergency personnel on site. I also can't believe that the park isn't going to cover any of it (which is what the manager said to us point blank before they loaded Carlos into the ambulance). Hopefully Carlos's insurance will cover most of it and the bills won't add even more to the stressful situation. I suppose these things happen to us when our number is up. I know many of you have had even worse things to deal with this year. I can't imagine what I would be like right now if it had been anything worse... I'm on edge enough right now as it is, but so so happy it isn't worse.