Home Sweet Home

Wow, what a journey I’ve had.

Finally, it was the weekend I had been waiting for even before I left for my stay in Germany. The nights and days leading up to that weekend, I was incredibly anxious. Sitting still was nearly impossible, I had the constant urge to dance around happily but also cry because it’s sad that its all over.

Goodbyes are hard, no matter how much--or little--you know a person. Saying goodbye to people at the stable and to the family I was staying with was hard. I’m always terrible at them. I never know the right things to say and when to say them. I really hope to come back and visit all these wonderful people someday.

Jill picked me up on Friday to take me touring Holland. It was a blast--short but sweet. It started out in the most hilarious way, too. We stopped for gas before we hit the road. Jill and Dave had a rental car. Jill and I went to get some coffee and to go to the bathroom while Dave filled up gas. While we got our coffees and paid, Dave paid also and left. We walked out of the gas station building and towards the fuel pump Dave was at. We were talking about something and were a bit distracted. I opened up the car door and sat down in the back seat, already fumbling for the seatbelt. Jill was looking for a cup holder for her coffee and noticed that there were two when there was only one in the rental car. Suddenly a voice in a German accent said “SORRY?!” Jill and I were shocked as we saw the driver was in fact not Dave and ran out of the car, laughing, and we found the real Dave sitting in the real car shaking his head. Only Jill and I would do something so stupid but hilarious as that. Whatever nice thoughts that man had about Americans are probably gone now!

We drove through the beautiful Netherlands countryside and eventually found ourselves  at an amazingly delicious pannekoekenhuis. Pannekoekens are a bit like crepés except Dutch and better. You can put anything you want on them and they are awesome.

After, we drove to Jill’s friend’s house, where we stayed the night. In the morning we got up early and went onto the extremely crowded train to Amsterdam.

Amsterdam was not what I was expecting. I have seen so many beautiful pictures of the city and thought that it would be picturesque around every corner, which wasn’t necessarily the case. Amsterdam's center is very beautiful, with many tall, old houses and the canals were wonderful to ride the boat on, but the center of Amsterdam is somewhat smaller than I imagined. Then again, I was only there for one day and didn’t get to see the whole city. But I think you might get my point.

Anyway, I had the opportunity to go to the Van Gogh Museum and the Anne Frank Huis. Both were awesome. The Van Gogh Museum really captures the timeline of Van Gogh’s life by showing his paintings in chronological order. The Anne Frank Huis was something, too, but I was expecting it to be less of a museum. It was cool to see the things I had read and studied about in grade school but walking through the house, it no longer looked like a house to me. I had difficulty imagining anyone living there. Another misconception I had was that the place they lived in was small and cramped, but in fact is wasn’t nearly as claustrophobic as I had imagined. I suppose that is because in the plays and books I had read about Anne Frank and her family, it was described that way. Don’t get me wrong, living like they did for so long must have been very hard. But for whatever reason, I thought it was cramped living on top of everything else. 

Later, we ate dinner at a really nice café. Jill and I had great cream of tomato soup and a lecker vegetarian pie.

Then it was time to look for a train to head back home. We found one, sat down, and thought we’d have a normal train ride. Boy, were we wrong.

It started out because Jill and I were chatting in English about horses (naturally). There was a guy sitting alone on the other side of the car. He struck up a conversation by asking us where we were from, and we told him. Nothing out of the ordinary. Then we asked him where he was from and he answered southern Turkey. All of a sudden he went into the strangest rant about how many Jack Daniels he had had and how he was once in a drug cartel and he was in the navy and how he doesn’t believe in genocide. After that I didn’t understand much, but both Jill and I were laughing hysterically. He just went on and on and then he pulled out a cigarette. We told him that he couldn’t smoke on the train and he should just get off for a smoke and catch the next train to wherever he was going. We hoped he would follow our advice because at this point he was starting to get annoying with all of his weird made-up stories. He decided this was a good idea and disappeared for a while at a stop, but strangely came back again, this time with a Indian guy who we figured out spoke little English and most likely no Dutch. But this guy sat him down and talked to him all the same. The poor Indian guy just stared at us wide eyed and nodded and shook his head every once in a while. I wasn’t really paying much attention to what the conversation was between them, but at one point the “Turkish” insane/drunk/high/or a combination thereof guy pulled out his ID and handed it to the complete stranger. He left himself completely vulnerable. Then he got bored of the Indian and went to talk to some boorish French people, then disappeared again for awhile. He came back a little while later and we asked him where he was going. He said he had no idea, then proceeded to try to hit on me, got rejected, walked off, and disappeared from our lives. Meanwhile, while this was all happening, the people sitting behind me were dressed in bright green party outfits, including green felt shorts, playing German karnival music, and laughing and drinking, which seemed pretty fitting while all the conundrum with the “Turkish” guy was going on.

I guess you could say it was a pretty wild ride home.

On top of it all, we got home late when we all needed to get up early the next morning. It was my last night of my six-month adventure in Europe. Dave drove me the next morning to the Düsseldorf airport, where I got a little panicky when I was checking my bags and going through security. I was anxious. It was, after all, the first time I had ever  gone through an airport and flown on an airplane by myself. It was hard to sit still and every time someone spoke to me they got annoyed because I needed them to repeat what they said to me many times until I understood. Someone would speak to me and I would do the appropriate thing and look them in the eye and look like was listening but I wouldn’t hear a thing that came out of their mouth. It was like they were mouthing whatever they wanted to communicate to me instead of speaking. This always happened to me when I get worked up and nervous. It happened so many times with this one woman that she even asked, “Do you really speak English?” Story of my life.

Anyway. From Düsseldorf, I went to Amsterdam. I had calmed down quite a bit in the plane, which was good because immigration officers pulled me aside when I went through security in Amsterdam because I had been in Europe longer than I was supposed to be without a visa.. I calmly told them that I had no idea about that law and that it was my first time to Europe. They let me go without reporting me (which would have resulted in me not allowed to go to Europe for 5 years!). I was super lucky.

I bought some lunch and chocolate and found the terminal that would take me to Minneapolis. I couldn’t help but notice how drab looking Minnesotans were compared to anyone else in the airport. I even knew that it was the right terminal before I looked at the sign because Minnesotans are so easy to pick out of an international crowd. Well, for me, anyway. I suppose that is because I grew up there. But still. It humored me.

The plane ride itself was fine. It was better than the one to Germany. The one to Germany was hard because it was an overnight flight and I didn’t sleep one wit. That flight was a daytime one and I had no problem lazing around and reading for 8+ hours without really losing any sleep.

When I finally made my way home, I looked out the window and saw how drab MN looks compared to Amsterdam. Europe is such a beautiful place to live.

My mom came and picked me up and we got Chinese food. It was the first time I had eaten tofu and vegetables in general in 3 months. It tasted great, but I was exhausted and went to sleep that night without a problem.

The next day, I went to visit Blackshire and rode Zorro.

The day after, I was going to surprise Chris by showing up at his front door. I hadn’t told him when I was coming home. Just as I was about to leave, I saw that Chelsea and Chase were walking to the barn to see their mare and Chris was behind them! I couldn’t believe it! I went out and the look on his face was hilarious. I had a great rest of the day with him.

The rest of the week, I went to work at Blackshire and hung out with friends. Noelle came home. Needless to say, it’s been great to be back, though I do miss Germany. Home is different than I remember. I have changed. So has home. Time goes on.

This experience was irreplaceable. I would do it all over again if I could. I’ll go back and visit someday, I’m sure. Till then, I’ll hang around close to home and ride and maybe go to school part time.

And don’t worry, this blog ain’t going nowhere.

This has been a post

Time has flown. It seems like just a few weeks ago that I had walked off the plane and arrived at the Schleypen’s to begin my journey. And somehow it’s almost a month until it’s time for me to go back home. The irony of it all is that I am not so homesick anymore. Of course I miss home but I am content where I am. I’ve discovered that home isn’t just a place but a sense of belonging.

If anyone were to ask if it was all worth it, I would say without hesitation YES! I have learned and gained so much from this experience. One, my riding has improved. I feel more secure in the saddle and have a better understanding of dressage theory. I also have grown as a person living in another country by myself and seeing how other people live. I have a better understanding of how a different corner of the world works. I encourage anyone and everyone to live overseas at least once, no excuses. It doesn’t matter how old you are or how little time there is or how much money you have or how scary it is. Find a way. Get out there and live. Don’t stay too comfortable.

I have, for the most part, been doing the same old things. I ride some pretty awesome horses and as the weather warms I feel myself become lighter in my boots (figuratively and literally--less clothing to wear) and people and horses alike are smiling more. I love that feeling of spring fever. Its as if the world shakes the dust.

Weekend before last I got to participate in something called Carnival. In Germany, especially Düsseldorf and Köln, Carnival is a time where people dress up in weird costumes and go out to party. For the kids, there is a parade.

I went with my friend, Claudia, from the stable and some other people who ride from around the area. Some of the people I met told me they read my blog (Hi!), which was surprising! I saw in my stats that over 70 people read my last post! This blog was intended to keep a public journal of my life in Germany and it’s been great to see how many people read what I write. Anyway...

Of course, I had no costume. I could have gone out in regular clothing but in the spirit of Carnival, I was dressed in a short-skirted sailor dress. I probably looked hilarious, with my white as snow legs, scratches and bruises from getting beaten on by horses, and the front of the dress sagging where big boobs are supposed to be, but I didn’t care.

We set out into the night, off to a barn that was holding a Carnival party. It was somewhat big, and I was glad I was in costume because I would have looked weird if I wasn’t. Everyone was dressed up with a drink or two in hand. There were bees, pirates, hippies, whatever. You name it, it was there. Carnival has a special type of music that they were playing. Its in German very upbeat, and the lyrics are pointless. The music is purely for noise to dance to.

We got some drinks and danced a little bit but some people from our group soon got bored and so we moved to the skiihalle, where the party was packed full of sweaty, stinky, half-drunk bodies. We danced some but soon got tired and went home.

I slept at Claudia’s house and the next day I spent with them at the zoo. I hadn’t been a zoo in awhile, so it was a lot of fun. I felt like a kid all over again, seeing all of the different animals. We even stayed to see the dolphin show. :)

Last weekend was Winterfest, a party for the horseback riders around the area. I got to dress up and dance with friends, as well as meet people from the area. It was a lot of fun!

It’s been a good time here in Germany and I can’t wait until Jill comes (4 weeks)!

Ponies and Adventures

Monday the 6th marks one month I have been working at the new stable. It has been a nice improvement as far as work goes. I have been given a steady flow of 4 or 5 horses a day and Martin gives me a tip or two everyday.

One of Martin’s assistants had a broken foot but it is all healed up now, so last week she returned back to work and it has been easier getting all of the horses done.

The horses I usually ride are named Liechian, Laura, Devine, Emilio, and Sue.

Leichan is a 7 year old bay mare. She knows up to 3rd level and is a nice ride. She has taught me a lot about straightness because she likes to lean on her outside shoulder. Blackshire people--she looks a lot like Luccia. She left on Friday to her new home, however, so I won’t be riding her anymore.

Laura is a pretty 8 year old bay mare that is schooling 4th level movements. She is a jackhammer to sit because of her big gaits and long legs. I get a big abdominal workout whenever I ride her. She also left to her new owner’s so I won’t be riding her anymore, either.

Devine is a 5 year old chestnut mare that only knows 1st level. Her breeder told Martin that she thought Devine was only 3 so we were taking it easy on her by riding her lightly and lounging lots. But we get her papers and it turns out she is 5 years old. This explains why she is far behind in her training. She can be difficult to ride some days because she is heavy in the bridle and likes to go fast; my least favorite combination. She also sometimes decides that she would rather kick at my leg than yield to it. But I feel that she is getting better as I ride her more often and don’t take it so easy on her.

Emilio is a 10 year old bay gelding who knows 4th level. He has problems with his legs so I can’t ride him very hard. The girl who came back to work usually rides him now since he is an easy ride.

My favorite horse to ride is named Sue. She is a 7 year old mare whose sire is Sir Donnerhall. She’s kind of small for a warmblood but beautiful and black with no chrome.  She moves beautifully. Of course, every favorite horse of mine always has a weird thing about them. Her quirk is that she likes to passage. Every time I ask her to do something in the trot, she tries to do it in passage. She’s a blast to ride, though a bit on the crazy side.

Since a lot of the horses I have been regularly riding this past month are going, I will be curious to see what horses I will be able to ride next. I like the new place and I am happy that I changed. It’s been nice to have company, too, at home. The family I live with has been great. They are all such nice people and I can’t thank them enough for their kindness and hospitality.

I have recently gone on many different adventures. I have gone to two stallion shows and they’re interesting to watch. I have learned a lot about bloodlines and what to look for in a stallion. I think about what Dr. Deb Bennett looks for in a horse confirmation-wise and decide what I like and don’t like in a stallion. I find that I am very picky. I know no horse is perfect, but when it comes to breeding, horses need to be as close to perfect as possible.

I was going to help out at a show last weekend but unfortunately it was cancelled because the footing was as hard as concrete it was so cold. It has been colder here than in MN! In the mornings it is usually -8° C, which is about 17° F for you folks back home. It’s cold for this part of Germany. And I dislike it very much.

A shout out to a friend at home who broke her arm sliding off a horse because the girth was loose. Matana, I wish you a speedy recovery and am thinking of you every day.

I want to know who is reading my blog. So if you’d like, comment below with your name and maybe even tell me what I should do to improve my blog or ask me a question. Whatever you want. Even if I don’t know you, introduce yourself!

Well, that’s all I can think of for now. I know I have only been posting about once a month but it’s better than nothing. To tell the truth, I’m not much of a blog writer. I enjoy poetry, which I haven’t been able to do much of lately, either. Horses eat up my whole life.

Anyhow, ciao for now!

On the move again...

Hey there, stranger. Hope you had a great xmas and new year. I certainly did! :) My mom and Noelle came on xmas eve and we hung out and cooked. Then the rest of the week we traveled to nearby cities--Neuss, Dusseldorf, and Köln. All three were a blast to see with them. Dusseldorf was our favorite, though. It has an amazing old town. There were little shops in old buildings. We even went up in one of those sky tower things to see the city from the birds point of view. Köln is bigger, but we didn't like it as much for some reason. Except the cathedral there is amazing. Anyone who likes exploring old churches ought to see that one.

Later that week, it was time to fly out to Madrid for new years. We packed our bags and went onto our journey.

When we arrived to Madrid, my first impression was that it was not a whole lot different than Germany. The buildings and streets looked similar but as we kept walking, differences became stronger. Spain had a different atmosphere. It craved pieces of battiness. For example, you rarely see a German jaywalk whereas in Spain, that’s just what people do. Spanish people are more open and don’t give a rats ass about what others think of them for the most part. In Germany, people are so reserved. I had never seen a place like Spain.

After settling into our hotel, we went for dinner to my mom’s friends house. We ate a large, delicious dinner with all sorts of Spanish food. There were Tapas, Tortilla Española, Manchego cheese, insalada, piscado, etc.. It was a great home cooked meal.

We then set out to get ourselves situated at the Puerto del Sol to celebrate our new year. It was insanely crowded and people were shouting and laughing and spraying everyone with champagne. When the clock struck midnight, we ate 12 grapes and drank champagne straight from the bottle. The crowed whooped and hollered and did the same. Then everyone dispersed to either go home or start partying.

Madrid is also the only place I have been to where is is absolutely okay to drink in public. As in, out on the downtown streets. When we got home at 3:00am the party was far from done. There was still racket outside and people were making their way to their favorite discoteca.

The next couple of days, we explored Madrid’s streets and saw some amazing sights. We went to an outdoor market that happens every Sunday where they sell anything and everything. We got a lot of late xmas gifts there. We also saw the king and queen of Spain’s castle. As you can imagine, that was amazing. Then we saw a great view from in a lift that stretched across the Casa del Campo area of Madrid. It seemed no matter what view you looked at Madrid, it was always beautiful.

And just as we were starting to think about moving to Madrid, it was time to go back to quaint Germany. No parties there. Noelle had to leave the next day so she could get ready for her next trip to Florida. But my mom stayed until the 6th.

In other news, I am no longer at the Schleypen’s. Long story short, I decided to move to a different barn because Reinhard said he didn’t have any horses for me to ride, which is a bummer. I will miss that place but I hope to visit before I go back to the states. So as of Sunday, I have moved into a house of another working student (or Bereiter) of Martin Sander. His stable is just 15 minutes from the Schleypen’s. My first day of work was on Monday and I ended up riding 5 beautiful and talented horses! Martin gave me lots of advice whenever he was nearby. I feel like I can learn a lot at this new barn. The people and atmosphere is very positive, which I like a lot. It’s a bit like Blackshire (but not the same, of course! Nothing could ever replace Blackshire). I like this new place a lot, but I am still very homesick. There is no wireless connection at the house I am living in, which means I have to use their computer. I can’t talk to people as much as I used to and it also means  even less blogging. Sorry! I sure wish I could have more computer time. At least there is only 3 months left.

I haven’t heard much from people back home besides what’s on Facebook. I’ll assume no news is good news. :)

Hasta Mañana!