Yesterday we arrived in Doolin, County Clare. Doolin is mostly here because it's close to some beautiful sights - so basically for tourism, or for the tourists that make it all the way out here. That's because the coast is too rough for fishing, and the land is too rocky for farming. There are some cattle and dairy cows and sheep, a lot of open land, and a lot of tourists driving around lost in their rental cars (sometimes on the wrong side of the road).
Unlike Dingle, which had a ton of restaurants and pubs and shops, there are four places to eat in Doolin. It looks like more places are open during the summer, but this is low season and choices are more limited. So we ate twice at two pubs, had drinks at another, and walked into the last one and decided to leave. The place we are staying here is a normal B and B outside of town, not as cushy as the guest house in Dingle. There are cows across the street and it's so dark that we decided driving to town is safer than walking there at night.
Today we rented bikes and tried riding out to the Burren. There's a route to follow but we took a couple of wrong turns and missed part of it. The roads go up and down past sheep and cow pastures, a few old churches, some little houses with clothes hanging out on the line, and some great views. We were definitely off the beaten path - so much so that when we got way out there and weren't sure where to go, it started to rain and turn colder, and suddenly the road only went uphill. There were some miserable moments. We found our way back though, the rain stopped, and we decided that 20 or 30 miles on a rented squeaky hybrid bike is a lot harder than the same distance on our road bikes with the right gear and flatter roads.
After lunch and a hot shower we drove out to the Cliffs of Moher. They are breathtaking and huge drop-offs to the sea, but also the most touristy place we have been on this trip. With a half full parking lot and a few busloads of tourists in October, I can't imagine how crowded it gets in the summer! I think I heard about five languages just walking around.
We then drove out to the Burren to find what we missed on the bike ride. When you get there, all vegetation ends and it's just rocks all the way down to the water. The rocks go down in stripes like they are made of some giant building blocks and the whole place feels like you've gone to another planet, or at least the moon. Since the road out there is called Corkscrew Road, and with good reason, we felt better about not getting there by bike and then having to climb back up again.
So tomorrow we drive to Dublin in the morning and fly back to Hamburg. It's been a good trip. We met a lot of travelers who were doing one night in each town and driving every day, trying to see the whole country. We much prefer spending more time in fewer places and getting to know them a little better, even if it means having lunch in the same place two days in a row.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Monday, October 24, 2011
Sometimes Ireland just happens to you
It rained all day yesterday in Dingle. Sometimes hard, sometimes light, but always wet. Between the weather and our hangovers, Brian and I decided that it was not the best day for the bike riding adventure we had planned. In part we felt a little guilty for wanting to stay in and be cozy - there were things we should be out seeing, maybe. But we got over that and decided cozy would be ok.
After Mass in English and a little sitting around and staring at the bay through our hotel window, we wandered into town to look in some shops. We had seen a place that said "haberdashery" in the window and seemed to have all sorts of cool man things like pipes and ships in bottles and such, so we decided to check it out. We wandered in and realized that it was actually a pub, which was also a shoe store at one time. It was old and creaky and had rubber boots up on the shelves that might have been there for 50 years. Even though we weren't planning on having a pint, we couldn't exactly turn around and leave. So we stayed for a little while, talking to a bunch of New Zealand All Blacks fans celebrating the world cup rugby victory from that morning, to a Bolivian woman and her German boyfriend, and to an Irish guy who looked liked Christian Bale and talked like Dave Katz (you Como Park people should know what I mean). There were a few times we thought of leaving, but then we looked out at the rain and decided to wait. Then an American couple came in and asked, "is this where the band is starting at 5:30?" We knew nothing about it, but it was like 5:15 so we stuck around. Then the band started to play, more people came in, and one thing lead to another. There were locals, and tourists, a couple of families, and an old guy snoring in the corner. All of a sudden it was 9:00.
As Brian put it, sometimes Ireland just happens to you like that. The day unfolds and it's better than you would have planned even if you could have.
Today we were feeling much more peppy and the rain stopped for about half the day, so we did rent the bikes. We got them at a place called Foxy John's, which is part hardware store, part pub, and part bikes for hire. It was a beautiful ride around the rugged coast line of Dingle peninsula. We intended to make a loop on Slea Head Drive, but had to turn around halfway around the route because the road was flooded and there was construction going on. Sometimes Ireland happens to you like that too.
After Mass in English and a little sitting around and staring at the bay through our hotel window, we wandered into town to look in some shops. We had seen a place that said "haberdashery" in the window and seemed to have all sorts of cool man things like pipes and ships in bottles and such, so we decided to check it out. We wandered in and realized that it was actually a pub, which was also a shoe store at one time. It was old and creaky and had rubber boots up on the shelves that might have been there for 50 years. Even though we weren't planning on having a pint, we couldn't exactly turn around and leave. So we stayed for a little while, talking to a bunch of New Zealand All Blacks fans celebrating the world cup rugby victory from that morning, to a Bolivian woman and her German boyfriend, and to an Irish guy who looked liked Christian Bale and talked like Dave Katz (you Como Park people should know what I mean). There were a few times we thought of leaving, but then we looked out at the rain and decided to wait. Then an American couple came in and asked, "is this where the band is starting at 5:30?" We knew nothing about it, but it was like 5:15 so we stuck around. Then the band started to play, more people came in, and one thing lead to another. There were locals, and tourists, a couple of families, and an old guy snoring in the corner. All of a sudden it was 9:00.
As Brian put it, sometimes Ireland just happens to you like that. The day unfolds and it's better than you would have planned even if you could have.
Today we were feeling much more peppy and the rain stopped for about half the day, so we did rent the bikes. We got them at a place called Foxy John's, which is part hardware store, part pub, and part bikes for hire. It was a beautiful ride around the rugged coast line of Dingle peninsula. We intended to make a loop on Slea Head Drive, but had to turn around halfway around the route because the road was flooded and there was construction going on. Sometimes Ireland happens to you like that too.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Ireland trip - first two days
We are here in Ireland now, enjoying our trip to the southwest. We rented a car and drove about an hour outside of Dublin, spending Friday night in Port Laoise, in a hotel that was sort of like the Irish version of Comfort Inn. We were so tired it seemed wonderful to us.
Luckily Brian is driving. But don't tell Enterprise rent-a-car because, in our flurry to get out the door as and deal with the movers on Friday, I didn't pack Brian's wallet. I had the cash and credit card, so the only useful thing in it was his drivers license. So the car is rented under my name, even though I can't drive stick shift and am terrified of driving on the left.
Yesterday we checked out the Rock of Dunamaise on our way toward County Kerry. We got lost a few times but made it there. It's an old ruined castle from the 1100s. The cool thing about being here in the off-season was that we were the only ones up there. You could see all the countryside below and the wind just about blew us down the hill. I will post some pictures next week for you to see.
Then we drove on to Dingle. It's a cool town on the coast - right on Dingle Bay. Yesterday was our 6th wedding anniversary, so we had a really nice dinner to celebrate and went out to a couple of pubs afterward. We are still recovering from the night out and it's pouring rain, so we are laying low in preparation for some live music tonight and a sightseeing bike ride tomorrow. We splurged a little on the hotel here, and it's really worth it.
Being in Ireland is a great English-speaking break for us. I am really excited to ask directions when we get lost driving (only twice so far) because they understand me, and we can watch so many channels on TV! It's a little like home too - people are friendly and you get free water at restaurants. And of course it's really pretty, they pour good Guinness, and people have cooler accents.
Luckily Brian is driving. But don't tell Enterprise rent-a-car because, in our flurry to get out the door as and deal with the movers on Friday, I didn't pack Brian's wallet. I had the cash and credit card, so the only useful thing in it was his drivers license. So the car is rented under my name, even though I can't drive stick shift and am terrified of driving on the left.
Yesterday we checked out the Rock of Dunamaise on our way toward County Kerry. We got lost a few times but made it there. It's an old ruined castle from the 1100s. The cool thing about being here in the off-season was that we were the only ones up there. You could see all the countryside below and the wind just about blew us down the hill. I will post some pictures next week for you to see.
Then we drove on to Dingle. It's a cool town on the coast - right on Dingle Bay. Yesterday was our 6th wedding anniversary, so we had a really nice dinner to celebrate and went out to a couple of pubs afterward. We are still recovering from the night out and it's pouring rain, so we are laying low in preparation for some live music tonight and a sightseeing bike ride tomorrow. We splurged a little on the hotel here, and it's really worth it.
Being in Ireland is a great English-speaking break for us. I am really excited to ask directions when we get lost driving (only twice so far) because they understand me, and we can watch so many channels on TV! It's a little like home too - people are friendly and you get free water at restaurants. And of course it's really pretty, they pour good Guinness, and people have cooler accents.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Our stuff finally comes, and we leave.
For those of you who have not heard the agonizing details of our shipping saga, here is the condensed version:
We shipped our things through Beltmann (don't use them) movers on July 21st. They told us we would receive them in Germany in 35-45 days. Then they said it would take more like 60 days, we argued, tried to get refunds, and got nowhere. Our things ended up in England for like 3 weeks, went through customs there, we had to pay extra to get them delivered up to our 4th floor apartment since there is no elevator, and learned that we had to arrange for our own parking permit so that the truck could park outside our building. We couldn't do that until we had a delivery date, which took about 2 weeks to get.
What I left out is a lot of frustration, emails back and forth, phone calls, analyzing contracts, etc.
I have never daydreamed about having bathrobes and bowls and rain boots before, but for the past month or so, that's what I did in my spare time.
Anyway, yesterday, Oct 21, three months to the day since the movers packed up our things in St Paul, the shipment arrived. The company in England (Beltmann has stopped communicating with us) told us this date about a week and two days ago, so that we could arrange for a parking permit. That, of course, was not covered in the fee that we paid to Beltmann. Philippa, our lovely school secretary, did some research on how to get a permit. She found out the we could either do the paperwork, pick up the signs, and the weights for the signs, set them up, then return them ourselves the next day, or we could hire a company to do the same thing. She offered to arrange the permit with the company and confirmed with us on Monday that it was all set.
Meanwhile, Brian's school is on fall break for two weeks and we have planned a vacation to Ireland for six days, leaving (of course) on Oct 21st. Brian's friend Andy agreed to let the movers in if they came while we were gone, and we gave them Andy's phone number. The movers were supposed to call at least an hour before arriving.
We started to get nervous when there were still no signs up to block the street on Wednesday, or Thursday, or Friday morning. Brian was convinced our things would not come. I was sure it would all work out somehow. So we went ahead and packed all the warm things we had to take to Ireland with us, even though we secretly hoped we might get our stuff before we had to catch the train to the Hamburg airport around noon.
At 10:30 the doorbell rang. "Pearson's removal" said a very English accent through the intercom and I sort of jumped. They hadn't called us, or Andy. I went downstairs to find the huge truck - about 60 feet long, sitting in the middle of our busy city street. Of course, there were cars parked in front of our building and nowhere for it to go, since the parking permit people had never shown up. Our pal from the truck and I looked for spots on side streets, then he told me he'd go talk to the driver and they would come back. So Brian came down and stood in the handicapped parking spots on the street, ready to fend off any disabled drivers who might try to park there, and we hoped that possibly the other cars would leave. Andy and his wife Anne showed up too, and the four of us stood around for an hour, waiting for the moving truck to come back. Finally I went upstairs and called the company in England to find out if they knew what was going on. They told us that the driver's copilot had called (the driver couldn't since he is mute and only communicated through some made-up sign language), and that they had tried to park in several places and been moved on by the police. This was fishy since we hadn't seen the truck anywhere and it was almost lunch time. The guy from the shipping company said that if they couldn't park then we would have to find them an alternate location to leave our stuff.
Of course it would go this way - so close and we might never get our stuff!
So we decided to take them to the school where we could leave the boxes for a week and use the school van to bring them home after we get back to town. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking and we have already missed the 11:40 train. So Brian got in the big truck with the movers, apparently checking out their empty beer bottles, nudie magazines, and the shipment they were hauling to Sweden next, and guided them to the school.
I frantically finished packing his things and got in the car with Anne and Andy (thank goodness for friends with cars) and our bags to go to the school. They unloaded our stuff and Brian and the mute driver moved them into the lobby, only after I fished out Brian's raincoat and hat, my hiking boots, and (hooray) my big yellow rain boots. Then we hopped in the car, Andy dropped us off at the train station, we paid an extra 60 euros to catch the express train, and we made it to Hamburg on time to catch the flight.
So our things are in Hannover, even though we are not. Of course the saga has not ended yet since they still have to get to our building and up the 5 flights to our apartment. Then we can wear bathrobes and rainboots and eat soup out of our bowls all day long.
We shipped our things through Beltmann (don't use them) movers on July 21st. They told us we would receive them in Germany in 35-45 days. Then they said it would take more like 60 days, we argued, tried to get refunds, and got nowhere. Our things ended up in England for like 3 weeks, went through customs there, we had to pay extra to get them delivered up to our 4th floor apartment since there is no elevator, and learned that we had to arrange for our own parking permit so that the truck could park outside our building. We couldn't do that until we had a delivery date, which took about 2 weeks to get.
What I left out is a lot of frustration, emails back and forth, phone calls, analyzing contracts, etc.
I have never daydreamed about having bathrobes and bowls and rain boots before, but for the past month or so, that's what I did in my spare time.
Anyway, yesterday, Oct 21, three months to the day since the movers packed up our things in St Paul, the shipment arrived. The company in England (Beltmann has stopped communicating with us) told us this date about a week and two days ago, so that we could arrange for a parking permit. That, of course, was not covered in the fee that we paid to Beltmann. Philippa, our lovely school secretary, did some research on how to get a permit. She found out the we could either do the paperwork, pick up the signs, and the weights for the signs, set them up, then return them ourselves the next day, or we could hire a company to do the same thing. She offered to arrange the permit with the company and confirmed with us on Monday that it was all set.
Meanwhile, Brian's school is on fall break for two weeks and we have planned a vacation to Ireland for six days, leaving (of course) on Oct 21st. Brian's friend Andy agreed to let the movers in if they came while we were gone, and we gave them Andy's phone number. The movers were supposed to call at least an hour before arriving.
We started to get nervous when there were still no signs up to block the street on Wednesday, or Thursday, or Friday morning. Brian was convinced our things would not come. I was sure it would all work out somehow. So we went ahead and packed all the warm things we had to take to Ireland with us, even though we secretly hoped we might get our stuff before we had to catch the train to the Hamburg airport around noon.
At 10:30 the doorbell rang. "Pearson's removal" said a very English accent through the intercom and I sort of jumped. They hadn't called us, or Andy. I went downstairs to find the huge truck - about 60 feet long, sitting in the middle of our busy city street. Of course, there were cars parked in front of our building and nowhere for it to go, since the parking permit people had never shown up. Our pal from the truck and I looked for spots on side streets, then he told me he'd go talk to the driver and they would come back. So Brian came down and stood in the handicapped parking spots on the street, ready to fend off any disabled drivers who might try to park there, and we hoped that possibly the other cars would leave. Andy and his wife Anne showed up too, and the four of us stood around for an hour, waiting for the moving truck to come back. Finally I went upstairs and called the company in England to find out if they knew what was going on. They told us that the driver's copilot had called (the driver couldn't since he is mute and only communicated through some made-up sign language), and that they had tried to park in several places and been moved on by the police. This was fishy since we hadn't seen the truck anywhere and it was almost lunch time. The guy from the shipping company said that if they couldn't park then we would have to find them an alternate location to leave our stuff.
Of course it would go this way - so close and we might never get our stuff!
So we decided to take them to the school where we could leave the boxes for a week and use the school van to bring them home after we get back to town. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking and we have already missed the 11:40 train. So Brian got in the big truck with the movers, apparently checking out their empty beer bottles, nudie magazines, and the shipment they were hauling to Sweden next, and guided them to the school.
I frantically finished packing his things and got in the car with Anne and Andy (thank goodness for friends with cars) and our bags to go to the school. They unloaded our stuff and Brian and the mute driver moved them into the lobby, only after I fished out Brian's raincoat and hat, my hiking boots, and (hooray) my big yellow rain boots. Then we hopped in the car, Andy dropped us off at the train station, we paid an extra 60 euros to catch the express train, and we made it to Hamburg on time to catch the flight.
So our things are in Hannover, even though we are not. Of course the saga has not ended yet since they still have to get to our building and up the 5 flights to our apartment. Then we can wear bathrobes and rainboots and eat soup out of our bowls all day long.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Hannover Indians hockey
On Friday night we went to the Hannover Indians game with some of Brian's teacher pals. One of them is a former player and coach for the Indians (he's Canadian). Hannover has three professional hockey teams, the Scorpions, the Indians, and the Braves.
We had been to the Scorpions game about a month ago because Brian got some free tickets from a coworker (she got them because she opened a new checking account). The Scorpions play at Tui Arena, which is a big stadium near the expo center. It's large and clean and has plush seats and bright lights, and the concourse feels a little like an airport. The arena was a little over half full.We had a good time there and didn't really know any better.
Then we went to the Indians game. They play in an arena that has a roof and two walls but is open on either side. It's all standing room except for about a hundred seats. The place was smaller, packed, loud, a little dirty and the beer was cheap. Way more fun.
A lot of the players on both the Scorpions and Indians are either ex-NHL players or former college hockey players that didn't quite get into the NHL. Others, of course, are from various places in Europe. I am sure that once I learn more about hockey I can tell you how the quality of play is. It's on my list of things to learn about, in addition to the German language, the Hannover bus system, more European history, how to make my own tortillas, and what are good substitutes for crisco and chocolate chips. Here are some photos from the game:
We had been to the Scorpions game about a month ago because Brian got some free tickets from a coworker (she got them because she opened a new checking account). The Scorpions play at Tui Arena, which is a big stadium near the expo center. It's large and clean and has plush seats and bright lights, and the concourse feels a little like an airport. The arena was a little over half full.We had a good time there and didn't really know any better.
Then we went to the Indians game. They play in an arena that has a roof and two walls but is open on either side. It's all standing room except for about a hundred seats. The place was smaller, packed, loud, a little dirty and the beer was cheap. Way more fun.
A lot of the players on both the Scorpions and Indians are either ex-NHL players or former college hockey players that didn't quite get into the NHL. Others, of course, are from various places in Europe. I am sure that once I learn more about hockey I can tell you how the quality of play is. It's on my list of things to learn about, in addition to the German language, the Hannover bus system, more European history, how to make my own tortillas, and what are good substitutes for crisco and chocolate chips. Here are some photos from the game:
Monday, October 17, 2011
I'm almost a C- list celebrity!
Yesterday I met up at the Maschsee (the big lake in Hannover) with new-found friends Kaska, Renee, and Renee's little dog Finnegan. It was a sunny fall day and we took a stroll down one side of the lake, then stopped at a little snack bar to have something warm to drink. Then this attractive guy with a camera approached us and started talking to us in German (to Kaska really, she is the only one that understood). I caught something about it being a beautiful Sunday but didn't really know what he was talking about. When Kaska started telling us in English that he was from the paper and wanted to take our photo by the water, he chimed in with perfect English and proceeded to tell us that he had lived for five years in Sioux City. Sioux City, I asked? I am used to people saying they had visited New York or Miami but this was a new one. "That's real America," I told him.
So we walked over to this pier where he had us sit and pose like we were having a picnic. Of course this was the one day (ok maybe not the only day) that I hadn't showered or done my hair and until recently was wearing a baseball cap. Oh well. As the photographer was crouching down at the other side of the pier to take the photo, PLOP - his car keys fell into the lake. He proceeded to swear up a storm in both English and German, and send his reporter sidekick into the rowing club to find a net. The Maschsee is not very deep, but I wasn't sure the net would work. Anyway, he took the photo and told us we could go. Maybe he didn't want to have spectators as he attempted to fish the keys out of the water.
The good-looking photographer emailed Kaska the photo and told her that he had to jump in the water (brrr) to get the keys out!
The photo is on page 3 of Bild, which is sort of like the daily tabloid paper. It's in a little blurb about how yesterday was a frosty morning followed by a warm afternoon.
So far no one has stopped me on the street to say that they recognized me...
So we walked over to this pier where he had us sit and pose like we were having a picnic. Of course this was the one day (ok maybe not the only day) that I hadn't showered or done my hair and until recently was wearing a baseball cap. Oh well. As the photographer was crouching down at the other side of the pier to take the photo, PLOP - his car keys fell into the lake. He proceeded to swear up a storm in both English and German, and send his reporter sidekick into the rowing club to find a net. The Maschsee is not very deep, but I wasn't sure the net would work. Anyway, he took the photo and told us we could go. Maybe he didn't want to have spectators as he attempted to fish the keys out of the water.
The good-looking photographer emailed Kaska the photo and told her that he had to jump in the water (brrr) to get the keys out!
The photo is on page 3 of Bild, which is sort of like the daily tabloid paper. It's in a little blurb about how yesterday was a frosty morning followed by a warm afternoon.
So far no one has stopped me on the street to say that they recognized me...
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Insurance
I know, it sounds really dull, talking about insurance. If you want to skip this one, go ahead. It won't hurt my feelings. Some of you are interested in this sort of thing, though, so read on:
Since we moved here, at least three people we trust have told us we need to get insurance for our property and liability. So I asked our trusted school secretary, Philippa (you might remember her from the story about the neighbors), who recommended I go to the bank to sign up for insurance. It seemed funny to get it through the bank, but they speak English there and have all of our info already, so I went ahead and made an appointment.
Before I went there, I looked up the word for appointment in my dictionary and was able to successfully say, "I have an appointment with Ms. Thaden" to the lady at the info desk. Hooray! Then I spent an hour with the banker (Ms. Thaden) and her coworker who is licensed to sell insurance. They were very patient and we even had to look up some insurance terms on Google translate. The insurance happens to be through Zurich (makes me think of Aunt Sue and Mike), and not Deutsche Bank.
Anyway, things you are supposed to get insurance for in Germany are:
Personal property - this is like renter's insurance, so it made sense to me. If you get the basic policy it doesn't cover anything that is lost or damaged because it was your own fault. Needless to say, I went for the top level policy that will cover it if I lose or damage things. So now we are covered if our bikes are stolen or if some really determined thief decides to climb the five flights of stairs, break into our apartment, and steal some Ikea furniture.
Personal liability - this covers you in case you hurt someone else, or damage someone else's property and they want you to pay for it. Germans consider this very important, so I guess these things must happen. They asked what we have in the U.S. for this situation, and didn't believe me when we I told them we don't. "What would you do then if you damaged someone else's things?" Well, I said, they could ask you to pay for them, and if you don't they could take you to court, but if you don't have the money, they just don't get paid.
Accident insurance - this covers you in case you are injured in an accident and can't work. It kicks in after your employer has paid you for 6 weeks and your health insurance has paid you for a while. I didn't buy this one.
Long-term disability - so if you had some medical condition that kept you from working, "you won't have anything", said the banker. I asked her to explain because I wasn't sure that was true. She drew me a graph. First, you get 6 weeks of full pay from your employer. Then your health insurance would pay two-thirds of your salary for a maximum of 72 weeks. But really, she said, it's usually less than one year. Then the state would pay you 342 euros a month. Not bad. They really wanted me to buy this one, but I decided that if either of us was permanently disabled we would move back home and apply for Social Security Disability, because I actually understand how that works.
Legal defense insurance - If we need to hire a lawyer for any reason, we just have a deductible of 150 euros and then it's covered. Since two of the few people we know in Hannover are involved in legal disputes now, and because of the mess with our shipping situation, I decided to buy this one.
So now we are covered, like good German residents. And if anyone hikes up to our place to steal our things, we can just go to Ikea and buy new ones.
Since we moved here, at least three people we trust have told us we need to get insurance for our property and liability. So I asked our trusted school secretary, Philippa (you might remember her from the story about the neighbors), who recommended I go to the bank to sign up for insurance. It seemed funny to get it through the bank, but they speak English there and have all of our info already, so I went ahead and made an appointment.
Before I went there, I looked up the word for appointment in my dictionary and was able to successfully say, "I have an appointment with Ms. Thaden" to the lady at the info desk. Hooray! Then I spent an hour with the banker (Ms. Thaden) and her coworker who is licensed to sell insurance. They were very patient and we even had to look up some insurance terms on Google translate. The insurance happens to be through Zurich (makes me think of Aunt Sue and Mike), and not Deutsche Bank.
Anyway, things you are supposed to get insurance for in Germany are:
Personal property - this is like renter's insurance, so it made sense to me. If you get the basic policy it doesn't cover anything that is lost or damaged because it was your own fault. Needless to say, I went for the top level policy that will cover it if I lose or damage things. So now we are covered if our bikes are stolen or if some really determined thief decides to climb the five flights of stairs, break into our apartment, and steal some Ikea furniture.
Personal liability - this covers you in case you hurt someone else, or damage someone else's property and they want you to pay for it. Germans consider this very important, so I guess these things must happen. They asked what we have in the U.S. for this situation, and didn't believe me when we I told them we don't. "What would you do then if you damaged someone else's things?" Well, I said, they could ask you to pay for them, and if you don't they could take you to court, but if you don't have the money, they just don't get paid.
Accident insurance - this covers you in case you are injured in an accident and can't work. It kicks in after your employer has paid you for 6 weeks and your health insurance has paid you for a while. I didn't buy this one.
Long-term disability - so if you had some medical condition that kept you from working, "you won't have anything", said the banker. I asked her to explain because I wasn't sure that was true. She drew me a graph. First, you get 6 weeks of full pay from your employer. Then your health insurance would pay two-thirds of your salary for a maximum of 72 weeks. But really, she said, it's usually less than one year. Then the state would pay you 342 euros a month. Not bad. They really wanted me to buy this one, but I decided that if either of us was permanently disabled we would move back home and apply for Social Security Disability, because I actually understand how that works.
Legal defense insurance - If we need to hire a lawyer for any reason, we just have a deductible of 150 euros and then it's covered. Since two of the few people we know in Hannover are involved in legal disputes now, and because of the mess with our shipping situation, I decided to buy this one.
So now we are covered, like good German residents. And if anyone hikes up to our place to steal our things, we can just go to Ikea and buy new ones.
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About Me
- Julia
- Thanks for coming to my blog. It started as a way to keep in touch with family and friends, and now has become an ongoing project. I'm an American living in Germany and trying to travel whenever I can. I write about my experiences as an expatriate (the interesting ones and the embarrassing ones), and about my travels. There are some recurring characters in this blog, particularly my husband Brian and several of our friends. The title comes from the idea that living in a foreign country means making a lot of mistakes. So the things you used to do easily you now have to try over and over again. Hopefully, like me, you can laugh at how idiotic it feels. If you have happened upon my blog, then welcome. Knowing that people are reading what I write makes me keep going. Feel free to write comments or suggestions for future posts.