Belgium

Bonjour! Over the weekend Enno and I went to Brussels. They speak french there so I got to practice my french skills. I was able to order coffee and french fries like the natives. The city is a little over an hour west of Aachen. It was a quick drive and I enjoyed the scenery of Belgium. In Brussels we saw the Grand Palace, Mannekin Pis, the big market, and some other important things. Mannekin Pis is of course my favorite thing. If you don't know, its a little boy peeing into a fountain. Its basically the national symbol of Belgium.... Other than that, there wasn't much else to see there. The city is lovely. I'll put some pictures at the bottom. In other crazy news, I bought some mousse for my hair. It turns out that Heidi Klum uses the same mousse! It also works really well.

Yesterday, Germany had an election for their new chancellor. Enno took me with him to the polls. It was pretty interesting. Afterwards we went to a party for the FDP party. They have formed a coalition with the CDU, that is Angela Merkel's party. Everyone was very happy for the election results. We got to meet a local politician from Aachen who won a seat in their congress. She was heading to Berlin today because they change power in 3o days. All in all it was a pretty exciting weekend.

Miss you all,

Courtney

Kohlrouladen

Hallo Leute!

A new grocery store opened up down the street from Enno a couple of weeks ago. They put coupons for a free bottle of orange juice on our door knob so we decided to check it out. Now, back in Cincinnati you can buy a rotisserie chicken at Costco. This is not only a favorite of mine but Enno loves them as well. Sure enough at this new grocery store, Rewe, you can purchase a whole rotisserie chicken for only 4 euros. This is pretty exciting for us. However, they were sold out of chickens so we had to take a rain check on that deliciousness. Instead, Enno opted to buy a can of Kohlrouladen. It is a can with two pieces of sausage rolled up in cabbage with brown sauce. I know what you're thinking, sick right? Well it looks even worse coming out of the can. Anyways, it was one of the best things I've tried over here. And I took pictures to document this occasion. Yeah, the disgusting looking thing tastes pretty awesome.

In other news, I weaseled my way into a club for foreigners here in Aachen. Its only for European students but Enno knows someone on the inside. We all thought it would be hilarious if we went bowling. Well, actually I just got an email inviting me to go bowling with the foreigners. Other than that, we have no big plans for the weekend. I'm looking forward to an Ohio State victory on Saturday!

Liebe Grüße,

Courtney

Heartbroken

While I don't want to complain about my fabulous life in Germany, I've come across some incredibly disheartening news. While on a pleasant stroll through the streets of Aachen, I popped my head into the local Starbucks. I wasn't going to get anything. I just wanted to make sure that they, like their American counterparts, were selling Pumpkin Spice Lattes... Much to my chagrin they do not sell them in Germany. I began to panic. I ran to find Enno to tell him the horrible news. He was devastated. We returned to the Starbucks to inquire if it would ever be possible to acquire a Pumpkin Spice Latte at their location. They said no oder NEIN! I suppose I'll have to find something else I love as much as Pumpkin Spice Lattes.

Cheap German Beer > Cheap American Beer

Hello all,

The .33 € beer was not bad at all. It was much better than Nati light. I was able to watch the buckeyes defeat the terrible Toledo rockets on Saturday. Unfortunately, the cable I bought to hook up my computer to the TV didn't work so I had to watch it on my laptop, Klaus. It wasn't so bad though. Enno made buffalo chicken pizza and it was awesome. I was a bit surprised to hear that all of the bars in Aachen would not be showing the Ohio State game. Instead they show this crazy sport called soccer. Before I came here I was under the impression that everyone in Germany loved Ohio State football as much as I do. Sadly, I was mistaken. I now must make it my mission to spread the buckeye football season cheer to the delightful people of Germany. GO BUCKS.

All my love,

Courtney

Wilkommen in Deutschland!

Dear Friends and Family,

Here is my first blog entry in Germany! I arrived at 7:00 am yesterday morning. I was lucky enough to see Ghosts of Girlfriends past on the flight and it was amazing... or BANANAS.. The food was equally awesome. I sat next to an American who had acquired a German accent. (Don't worry everyone, I will never be that big of a douche bag to fake a german accent after living here.) Enno and I reunited at the baggage claim. Tres romantique! The first thing I did when we got back to the apartment was shower. Next, Enno and I backpacked across western Europe to IKEA. We got a dresser for my clothes and a coffee table. The best part was carrying these new pieces of furniture up the 6 flights of stairs to Enno's apartment. After about 8 hours of setting up the furniture I fell asleep on the couch. Today was equally wild and crazy. We went to the grocery store. There I found the American essentials, cream cheese, pasta, ranch dressing and beer. We found awesome wheat beer that is .33 € a bottle. Enno says its the Nati light of weizen. I can't wait to try it! I hope everyone is having a good time back in Ohio, Texas, and Canada. I miss you all! Below are pictures of the new furniture and room.

Love, Courtney