One of the first things I learned about living in Germany is that it isn't the United States! This may seem obvious at first; street signs are different, many buildings were constructed hundreds of years ago, and no one seems to speak English! The problem is, these are the only changes I was anticipating when I first got off the plane. What I wasn't ready for was the small differences that exist in all the places I hadn't thought of. For example, all of the products in the grocery store are a little different or nothing like what I had back at Hannaford in New York. Peanut butter is a lot creamier and sweeter, apple juice is actually the chunky squeezed juice of apples, and my favorite ice cream, Ben & Jerry's, is nowhere to be found.
While this may not seem all that bad, at the end of a long day of trying to speak a different language and adapt to those big changes, the only thing I wanted to do is sit in bed and relax with a pint of Chunky Monkey. However, the process of adapting and dealing with change existed everywhere, from the words coming out of my mouth to the attempt to try and order coffee.
I was exhausted.
