Getting Settled

I just landed here in Stuttgart, and man, are things different.  The guy at the passport-check kept asking me if I was in the Army.  He did let me through, though.  I have stamp #1 on my passport.  Sweet.  All of my bags made it.  I didn’t think they would.  My host-sister, Ally, and her boyfriend Ron picked me up from the airport, along with my house-mate Matt, from Purdue.  We hopped on the freeway, and all these German automobiles were cruising around following traffic signs that I couldn’t comprehend.  Of course, there were still McDonalds.  There are always McDonalds.

My host-family lives in a building, similar to an apartment complex, that houses many families in large, 4-bedroom setups.  It is very nice, but minimalist.  Conservation is a huge here, and in my host family we work to conserve and handle electricity, water, and waste as efficiently as possible.  I have my own room, and Matt and I share a bathroom.  It is quite nice, but homey.  Super clean.  I’ll need to pick up after myself.   There are a number of house rules, but I have no problem with that.  I just hope I can remember them.  I’m terrible at short-term memory stuff like that.
Tonight, we’re going out, maybe to a Mexican place.  That was the original plan, but we’re trying to figure out the reservation.
I hope I can just chill for the first few days, maybe get a lay of the land here in Stuttgart, and go from there.  I’m pumped to be riding the bus and the subway all over the place.  School starts on Tuesday, with a welcome-gathering sometime on Sunday, I think.  Well, that’s all I know.  It’s not much.