Feng Shui

According to Feng Shui, sleeping under a slanted ceiling is not good. It puts a downward pressure on you when you sleep, which can manifest itself as tension in other areas of your life.

I slept under my slanted ceiling for 3 nights, just to see. 2 nights I slept with my head right under the low part, and last night I slept with my head at the foot of the bed. I had a better sleep last night than the first 2 nights.

Whether you believe in Feng Shui or not, it’s just no fun having a wall bear down on your face when you sleep. I kept waking up throughout the night irritated and uncomfortable because of this. You know when you close your eyes and someone puts their hands close to your face, and without touching you, you can still feel them? It’s the same premise here.

So, I decided to Feng Shui my room today. I rearranged everything and love it. It flows better and there are distinct sections – not just a hodge podge of furniture thrown into one room, dictated by the electrical outlets and an overbearing ceiling slant.

This is my new entertainment nook, where my bed used to be!

It may not look like it in the picture, but this is a really cozy space. Before the TV and the couch were disconnected completely, which bothered me because I was using neither. Although Feng Shui principles advise to not spend much time under a slanted ceiling, I don’t watch a lot of TV anyway. Also, the light and energy from the TV will uplift the depressed energy of the slant, giving the dead-space a not so dead feel.

Then I moved my bed to where my dining table used to be. Here are 2 perspectives of the new bedroom area.

Right when you walk in…

…and a corner view:

It’s not my favourite spot because I don’t like climbing over the bed to open the window, nor do I like my bed as the focal point when I first open the front door (this creates a kind of lazy feel, at least for me!). But I can already tell that sleeping-wise, this will be more ideal.

My desk is also in a better spot. I like it being near my bed, for easy access to my laptop. It’s also not in direct opposition with the window, which made the sun distort my screen.

Since I spend a lot of time at my desk and bed, it’s also nice that I now have a direct view of the front door. From a security standpoint, I already feel more at ease. My door lets in sounds from outside, which freaked me out a bit when I didn’t have a good view/wasn’t in good earshot. Now I know it’s just one of my neighbours getting in and out of their unit, and can easily glance over just to make sure.

Finally, here is my dining room area:

My mini-kitchen is on the other side of that wall, making it easier to move food back and forth between the 2 points. I don’t have to walk across the room like I did before, which was inconvenient since my dining table also doubles as food prep station (I have ZERO counter space in my kitchen). Now I have no excuse to burn food!

I’m really liking this new layout! It’s way more functional and maximizes every corner. I’m very happy with the results. What do you think?

My Cute Boy is coming over tonight. He probably won’t read this before he gets here, so it will be a surprise for him to see. I hope he likes it. Even if he doesn’t, who cares because *I* live here! hehe.

My new European life

The Bürgerbüro was closed. I got there at 1:35pm, 35 minutes after closing because it’s Wednesday! I don’t know why Wednesday is so special, but I will go back tomorrow.

I took some more pictures to share with y’all! (Click for bigger)

It was a simple but fun day. Although I didn’t get much done, I got to explore my neighbourhood and even went shopping for some essentials.

My next purchase will be an electric toothbrush, so I can keep up my oral hygiene without visiting the dentist this year. This will be an investment, but will be worth it to keep my teef healthy.

I feel a little weird spending so much money all at once, but that’s just the way it is, especially at the beginning. I expect next month to be just rent, food, transportation, and internet!

Everything in its place

Hey, I thought I would show you how I’ve organized everything in my new apartment. (Click for bigger)

I took more pictures of different corners of the space, but I’ll spare you all from posting it. keke. I actually just sent them all to my Mom, because I like showing her EVERYTHING, accompanied by long drawn out emails that I write every other day (if not everyday).

So today is Day 2 in my new place and I still love it! Last night I took a walk around the neighbourhood to see if I would feel comfortable coming home late at night by myself. Turns out: Yes I am!

Today I’m going to do more exploring and will try to register myself at the city hall, and then get my bank account papers rolling.

I understand more now, what it’s like to be an immigrant. Especially in a land where you look different and don’t speak the dominant language. This is [part of] what it was like for my parents, my grandparents, and my great grandparents when they immigrated to Canada.

It’s tough, and was tougher on them than it is for me. For me I’m just here for fun. There is no pressure – I can go back to a nice home in Toronto anytime. I also speak English, am educated, and not as poor as my earlier immigrant generations were when they made the leap to a foreign land.

Sometimes I am timid to approach things, as I don’t know the language and am not used to how things work here (especially not on a bureaucratic-level).

I am grateful to experience this anyway, because I can only learn from it. It will make me a more gracious and understanding person, that’s for sure. Wish me luck!

New Digs

Finally, I landed a flat in Düsseldorf!!!!!!

I moved in yesterday and have been cleaning, unpacking, and getting myself set up ever since.

Here are some pics. Click for bigger and excuse the mess!

It’s a studio apartment with a mini kitchen and a bathroom. The bathroom is normal but not all flats here come with kitchens, so I’m relieved to have one and not have to figure out what to do about it.

Last night Cute Boy and I made dinner here and had a romantic dinner setting (candlelight & wine) in celebration of my new place!

I feel very comfortable and at home here. The location is mainly residential, but also has amenities near by and is on major transit lines. The flat comes furnished, so all I had to do was move in.

Eeee, this is wonderful. I’m very happy!!

La cité für mich

Paris was TONS of fun!!

Here’s my favourite picture of us on Champs-Élysées, trying to pose with the Arc de Triomphe. My aim is so bad and it’s all just so silly:

I have more posted to my Facebook album, for those of you who don’t have facebook/aren’t my Facebook friend.

I loveLoveLOVE it in Paris. It has everything I want in a city – gorgeous architecture, friendly & social atmosphere, excellent public transit, major connections to other cities and the world, great food, fashion, culture… *sigh*

Maybe I am shallow but that’s all I want and need!

Every time I visit Paris I leave it vowing to live there one day. Honestly, if it wasn’t for my Cute Boy being so cute here in Germany (!), I would take off to live in Paris and learn me some French.

Speaking French was pretty easy too, especially compared to speaking German. All those years of French class were not a waste after all (!); I have the foundation for a basic vocabulary and can string together a sentence. I always thought my French was crappy (which it certainly is!) but now I have a new language to function even crappier in ^_^.

Funny thing is, I kept accidentally using German words instead of French, and Monica (who is living in Spain) kept injecting Spanish into her French. It was a great drunken time even though in those moments, we weren’t drunk at all! keke

Living in such a central part of Europe is encouraging me to take more side trips. We’ll see where I go next!

Big cities and their big connections

Woo hoo, yesterday I finished my research contract!

Now I feel like I have all the time in the world to focus on my life here in Germany.

I’ve decided to extend my flat-search back to Köln. Since Düsseldorf isn’t working out, maybe Köln is the place for me afterall. Both cities are fine, but I actually feel more comfortable in Köln. I’m just not as used to Düsseldorf yet because we always go there to flat-hunt and then leave because we are so tired. In Köln we have actually spent time hanging out so I know it a little better.

I’m excited to go back to Köln. Tonight we’re heading over to see 2 apartments, and then tomorrow I’m going back to catch a train to Paris.

It’s always a big plus when a city has direct routes to Paris.

I love living in Europe!

Sweets for my Sweets

Valentine’s Day (as a commercial holiday) is not that popular in Germany, which is a relief because I didn’t see red hearts and teddy bears everywhere. I ended up having the best time with My Sweetie though!

We decided to nix flat-hunting in the city, and opted to spend some quality time together instead.

It started off with my Cute Boy waking up early (not common on non-work days!) and sneaking out to buy us fresh buns from the bakery. He also brought me back a rose from the market, which was definitely a nice touch!

Hefty Bank Fees in Germany

To shop for the right account for me, I visited all the banks in the downtown area the other day. All meaning 4 (at least that’s all I could find on foot!).

They offer pretty crappy packages in my opinion. Every girokonto (chequing account) gives 0% interest, and they all charge expensive fees of 4.90€ to 6.50€ per month. That’s like $6-11 Canadian dollars per month for an account that is mainly online!

2 of the banks will waive the monthly fee if I carry a 1200€ balance, but if I go under even 1 euro, then a hefty monthly fee of 7.90€ (or more!) will be charged for the months that I am under. Talk about pressure!

I guess it’s not so bad but I am used to having free accounts WITH interest and no minimum balance.

Keeping a minimum balance, while not so hard in Toronto, will be hard for me here in Germany. My work is freelance so my income will be hard to predict, and I’m not sure if I will find any other work (especially since I haven’t a place in the city yet). Basically, I’m expecting money to be tight this year, so I have to figure out which account will make more sense for my situation.

It’s hard because I hate paying bank fees! But I also need to use money to survive, and it doesn’t make sense to draw from my Canadian account just to keep a balance in my German account.

Oh the joys of being young and trying to survive.

Sunday’s Adventures

My Sweetie and I spent most of this lazy Sunday checking out eBay for a bike for me. We revolved part of our day around when the auctions would end, taking a walk in between.

And yes, we ended up winning a bike in a nearby town (!). We drove over to pick it up, and on our way back to celebrate, we stopped for dinner at a Chinese restaurant.

Too bad it’s not much to celebrate because the bike is too small! Unfortunately, genius’ that we are, we only noticed the size description right before we left to pick it up. Silly us.

The bike is really cool though.

It was only 20 euros and we’ll try to re-sell it or give it to a children’s charity if there is one nearby. While I have it, I might ride it around only at night (so people don’t notice I’m riding a girls’ bike instead of an adult bike, keke).

Here’s a picture with Cute Boy to show you how small the bike really is:

He was fixing it up. Muah!

Ass-Crack & Rat Hole

Yesterday my Sweetie and I went to Ddorf to look at 2 new flats. We’ve had to start the hunt over again, because our other leads did not work out. I am beyond being disappointed – rejection and/or getting shafted is now the norm.

Both flats from yesterday are fine, but one in particular we are really hoping to get and are putting in serious effort to follow up on the process. *fingers crossed*

I refer to this flat affectionately as the “Ass-crack in the wall”. Cute Boy initially called it “Rat Hole” and didn’t want to bother seeing it. I insisted we go because it was the cheapest rent I have ever seen, and maybe this is just the real estate nerd in me, but I wanted to see for myself what the cheapest rent could buy me in Düsseldorf . Plus, in my heart of hearts, I had already included this flat as a contender (pending okay conditions).

Poor Cute Boy! But kudos to him for playing into my desires. He is good!

Anyway, turns out that Ass-crack in the wall/Rat Hole is now our favourite flat!

It’s 1 room out of a row of 3 small rooms (all with plumbing) that are not attached to the actual apartment building, but located in the small contained area in the back courtyard. To access this area, you need to walk through the basement of the building and then out the back door.

It seems more like a cottage than an apartment in the city. And the bonus is that no one will live above me, and when I walk out the door, I’ll be immediately outside.

Unfortunately, the bathroom SUCKS. By that I mean there is a room with a toilet and nothing else. Then around the corner in the kitchen there is a freestanding shower. WTF! Talk about lack of privacy when you have guests over!

But the landlord wants to renovate it and told Cute Boy that it won’t be ready until mid-March. This is okay, because really that bathroom had the capacity to make me cry! I would accept it anyway because I just want a place to live and this place is cheap. Then I could afford a gym membership and take showers there instead, lol.

Another downfall is that the previous tenant used to smoke indoors - A LOT. But a search on the internet tells me that using vinegar and baking soda can rid the smell. My sweet Sweetie wants to get all handy and strip off the dry wall paper entirely (?) to replace it. I think that is too much work, and want to give the vinegar a try first.

So, we’re pretty excited about landing this place. It’s small and unconventional, but there’s something special about it. There is a big chance that I won’t get it, but I’m still hopeful and am excited about it anyway. As I always say, I have a good feeling about this one…