Frankfurt Hotels
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cutest nephew ever
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After a lengthy train ride through what I suppose was great scenery (it was an overnight train) in a cramped six person sleeper cabin we arrived in Frankfurt, Germany. Luckily for our arms and backs we had Kim, my sister's husband, there to meet us with a car. We headed straight to my sister's, and after a happy reunion I finally got to see my nephew Julian, sleeping peacefully on the floor, for the first time. He definitely lived up to his expected cuteness from the pictures I had seen... he is a very calm and happy baby, rarely makes a lot of fuss for long, and smiles all the time when not serenely contemplating the new world around him. He is already holding his head up and therefore has some protection against my fumbling inexperience with babies.
He doesn't like getting dressed to go outside but really enjoys his daily walks in his carriage, and is a joy to bring around town and to meals, since he rarely screams or cries for very long- much to the chagrin of my mother who still remembers how fussy my sister was when she was little (no revenge on this round, sorry!).
We didn't do much sightseeing around Frankfurt, mainly due to the crappy weather. For my whole trip I have been pretty lucky to have mostly warm, sunny days with little rain... When we went to the mountains, it snowed (as expected) and was then sunny... but we get to Frankfurt and in the first 24 hours we were there we had snow (which was pretty but in April!?), rain, AND hail- yes, hail. It was cloudy and cold everyday and the sun rarely made an appearance.
Which probably explains why Frankfurt people are so surly and the concept of customer service is nonexistent. My sister has been complaining about that for years and I finally saw it firsthand. The first thing a cab driver said to us was a complaint that he had to leave downtown to come to the suburbs and give us a ride. A postal worker was exceptionally rude, yelling at us in German, to which we apologized in English for not understanding- then with my sister there to translate later she said she knew English but that we didn't respond to her! I guess their attitude reflects the weather- surly, gray, and rarely improved.
We did explore the small town where my sister worked, with some shopping and a visit to a mathematics museum. I know I am a closet nerd and things like mathematics museums may sound like torture to some, but it was very hands on and designed to be fun, with puzzles and various concept demonstrations that were challenging but enjoyable. Most of the time we relaxed and stayed at the house playing with my nephew and watching episodes of Heroes. My parents arrived on Caroline's last day and we spent the day with them. The next morning I said a fond farewell as Caroline began her gruelling 25 hour return flight to sun, warmth, and smiling people, certain she would not be visiting Frankfurt again anytime soon.
Upon returning to the house I was immediately put to work packing the entire house and 10 years of accumulated crap for their move to England. Having moved frequently, I have been able to slim down a lot of the stuff I own to what is really wanted or needed- of course being single has helped also- but not so for these two.
With a new baby they haven't had much time to go through things and organize, so we spent the next four days packing books and clothes, taking furniture apart, watching Julian, reading, and in my case, procrastinating on preparations for my return to real life. Finally the movers came and we could let them take over the rest.
Book: About a Boy by Nick Hornby. Entertaining book, now a movie. Probably a good one.
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