What Did I Get Myself Into?!

First, and foremost, I made it safely to Germany and to my hotel.  I am SO grateful that I rented a European GPS to bring with me.  I would be completely lost without it.  Today I started in Rome, Italy and ended it in Frankfurt, Germany.  I loaded my luggage up and carried a VERY heavy carryon throughout three different airports.

At the Rome Airport, the check-in desk that was listed for Vienna was wrong!  It was not 246, but 218-220.  Instead of fixing it on the screen, employees came by asking if people were in line for Vienna.  To make it even more confusing, my reservations were through AirBerlin, but I flew with Niki.  Did they change their name?  My luggage was 0.9kg over the 23kg limit, but I was not charged.  Whew!  I'm also glad they did not weigh my carryon.  That was extremely heavy.  At least I'll have a 2 carryon allowance on my trip back to the States.

After arriving in Vienna, there was a wonderful sight from America . . . Starbucks.  There's a picture on Facebook.  I had about a 2.5 hour layover there and just took my time.  About an hour before take off, I noticed people standing in line to check in already.  So, I bought a bottle of water and a sandwich; stuffed them in my bag and stood in line.  We had to go through security again.  I found out after going through the metal detector that my water had to be empty because (1) it was not in a bag and (2) it was more than 100ml.  I was completely confused because I bought the water at the airport and it was sealed.  I was told I could sit there and drink it all or they can dump it out and give me the bottle back.  I decided to drink some of it, but then had them pour the rest out since there was no way I could drink all of that water.

The flight to Frankfurt was smooth.  While waiting to get off the plane, I met a woman from Oregon who was returning to Germany to fly back to the states.  She has relatives here.  Nice lady.  As I was waiting at baggage claim, I prayed that my luggage would make it . . . which it did. :)  I got my luggage and proceeded to go towards the car rental desk but was thwarted by a police tape blocking half of the concourse area for some reason.  This is where I met Kevin.  Kevin has lived in Kaiserslaturn for aout 10 years all together.  He is originally from Salem, Ohio but now claims Texas as home.  He was waiting to pick up friends coming from London.  They were blocked on the other side . . . at least that's what were guessing.  Kevin and I had a good conversation and he gave me advice on driving.  Which was helpful.  After about 20 minutes waiting, the police tape was removed and we could move about the cabin (hehe).  I have a Ford Fiesta.  How ironic that I go to another country known for car manufacturing and I am renting a Ford.

I got to the hotel and dilly-dallied for about an hour or so.  Then, I asked the wonderful lady at the desk for a restaurant recommendation.  She gave me an excellent one and I went on my way.  I ordered leg of pork with sauerkraut, and fried potatoes.  I'll admit that I was not expecting an actual leg of pork, but it was great!  After eating, I sat at the bar for a little bit and attempted to speak some German to one of the customers and the waitress.  This conversation, along with the conversations at the hotel, does not calm my worries on talking with Germans. Most of the towns I'm planning on going to are small and I suspect not many people there speak English.  I hope I am brave enough to complete my mission and not just lock myself in my hotel room for the next three days.

If you have any advice for me, I am completely open.  Wish me luck tomorrow!