Ostalgie
Many moons ago, Izzie found herself asking the question "Is it better to take a chance and be disappointed than to play safe and spend the rest of your life wondering "What if...? or even worse "If only...."?"
The boring job Izzie had back then in 1988 had a shelf life of 12 months and after that, it would be time to go looking for another one. But while at this job, a letter came from a cultural exchange program where you could get a 12 month work placement in Germany. Accomodation would be provided and the jobs would be fairly unskilled with house elf wages. It was not necessary to be fluent in German to apply for such jobs because the whole point of the exercise was to live and work in a foreign country and pick up the language at the same time.
But like the job Izzie previously had, it would be valid for only 12 months as the purpose was to then give another newbie a chance.
Iz had always been a shy and ever so unadventurous little mouse and this sounded all a bit too out of the Izzie comfort zone. But at the same time, Iz always had imagined how wonderful it would be to live in a foreign country as a resident rather than a tourist. In the end, Iz resorted to one of her favorite decision making devices - asking the question "How will you feel about your decision ten years from now?"
So Iz packed up her bags and in February 1989 arrived alone and friendless in D'land to be met by the couple who had organized and arranged this particular job placement which was in a nursing home run by the local church in a little town about an hour's drive west of Hamburg.
Iz knew nothing about them except their names and address but it was so so strange. Iz felt instantly at home with them. She was from Scotland so it was nice to have some one to speak English with. Iz soon began to regard this lady as her fairy Godmother and it was this wicked woman who corrupted Izzie into reading the adventures of a certain pagan Godless wizard boy! This was years later of course - we were keeping in contact by letter and phone. It was so so uncanny their resemblence to the Weasleys and it was not just the Izzie who noticed the amazing similarities.
The Izzie sister who was working as an au pair in Paris came over to visit in the summer. Iz managed to get a week off work and suggested going to Berlin but the Izzie sister said she could only afford it if we hitch hiked. No way was Izzie interested in that particular mode of transport so we just stuck to catching trains to local places like Hamburg and Bremen.
Then in October, Iz had been in the job for just over six months and had requested three weeks holiday so that an old friend from the last job could come over and visit and we would do the grand European tour together.
Once again, Iz suggested Berlin but in those days if you wanted to go east you had to spend a ridiculously high amount per day at outrageous exchange rates. Aside from that, you would get there and return and had to go through lots of red tape to stop anywhere east of the border so it was all too much hassle. In the end we decided to go to Munich instead and visited Bremen, Hannover, Heidelberg and Hamelin (of Pied Piper fame) along the way.
That was late October 1989 and that was when Iz realized how low her house elf wages really were. We had a wonderful time but there was so much month left at the end of the money.
Came back and went to the airport to say goodbye to this girl and then returned home to the prospect of one more week of holidays but not a silver single sickle left. Well - one or two. So Iz moped around and had herself a grand pity party. By then it was the second week of November. After months and months of news stories of Czech and Hungarian people escaping over the borders in hot air balloons and numerous novel ways, suddenly the unexpected happened and the DDR Government decided to open the Wall for a day. Little did they know just how long that day would last.
So there was Izzie living about eight hours away from where it was all happening and too broke to be able to get a bus or train to join in the party.
It was pretty annoying but I then thought - Now imagine if you had played it safe and not gone to Germany. You would be spending the rest of your life in regret thinking "If only. If only"
While not actually being able to get to Berlin until the following November (and visiting this Satanic City five times since)Iz had been in Germany long enough to be able to follow all the news stories and to realize just how significant the whole thing was.
Iz did find another job before the end of the twelve months but because of the Wall and the massive immigration from both East Germany and the rest of Eastern Europe and Yugoslavia, the cost of housing had simply gone through the roof and become totally unaffordable for unskilled workers such as Iz. So we had to get one of those nasty house elf jobs where accomodation is provided and where you invariably get screwed by the boss which is exactly what happened. But that is another story altogether.
Iz did leave Heil Hilde's hell hole in Hamburg and returned to the little town where she had been before and got a job as a kitchen elf. All in all, ended up staying just under five years in Germany. There was no future there for the likes of Iz so we decided to pack up the bags and head off down under to be re-united with Ma and Pa Dursley.
Iz is getting all slushy and nostalgic because it was Friday 12 November 1993 when she said goodbye to her Fairy Godparents and Germany. It may be 11 years ago but we can still remember it as if it were yesterday.
The ma keeps saying that going to Germany was the worst and stupidest thing that the Izzie ever did in her life time and that nothing good came out of it. Iz did have some horrid times there but learnt stuff that she never could have learnt any other way and was there at a most amazing time. It was truly amazing visiting all those places in the East such as Quedlinburg and Wittenberge and even the utterly awful Dresden and Leipzig. This was all before the Wessis took over and turned some of them into tourist traps and they still looked like movie sets from the 1940's. It truly was like living in a time warp.
Iz especially loved the Brocken, Quedlinberg and Thale and could easily imagine just why these places had a a reputation for magic and mystery and plain old witchery. The Quedlinbergers were quite happy to have broomsticks, cats and cauldrons in the shop windows but were not too keen to admit that this place had one of the worst reputations in all of Europe for witch burnings. Iz knew this stuff because she had read all about it in her flobberworm days and it was one of many reasons to visit the place.
Another being the castle which used to be rather important during the days of the First Reich (The Holy Roman Empire) and had acquired a reputation as a favorite lurking place for some rather unsavoury characters from the Third Reich.
It is hard to believe that it is now 15 years ago since the Wall came down. It's hard to believe now that it even existed. And Iz is happy to say that she is glad she didn't play safe and have to spend the last few days thinking "I could have been there too"
Although it is now 11 years since last seeing Molly and co, they will always have a special spot in this serpent's heart. They have had an influence on the Iz that they can only begin to imagine.
The boring job Izzie had back then in 1988 had a shelf life of 12 months and after that, it would be time to go looking for another one. But while at this job, a letter came from a cultural exchange program where you could get a 12 month work placement in Germany. Accomodation would be provided and the jobs would be fairly unskilled with house elf wages. It was not necessary to be fluent in German to apply for such jobs because the whole point of the exercise was to live and work in a foreign country and pick up the language at the same time.
But like the job Izzie previously had, it would be valid for only 12 months as the purpose was to then give another newbie a chance.
Iz had always been a shy and ever so unadventurous little mouse and this sounded all a bit too out of the Izzie comfort zone. But at the same time, Iz always had imagined how wonderful it would be to live in a foreign country as a resident rather than a tourist. In the end, Iz resorted to one of her favorite decision making devices - asking the question "How will you feel about your decision ten years from now?"
So Iz packed up her bags and in February 1989 arrived alone and friendless in D'land to be met by the couple who had organized and arranged this particular job placement which was in a nursing home run by the local church in a little town about an hour's drive west of Hamburg.
Iz knew nothing about them except their names and address but it was so so strange. Iz felt instantly at home with them. She was from Scotland so it was nice to have some one to speak English with. Iz soon began to regard this lady as her fairy Godmother and it was this wicked woman who corrupted Izzie into reading the adventures of a certain pagan Godless wizard boy! This was years later of course - we were keeping in contact by letter and phone. It was so so uncanny their resemblence to the Weasleys and it was not just the Izzie who noticed the amazing similarities.
The Izzie sister who was working as an au pair in Paris came over to visit in the summer. Iz managed to get a week off work and suggested going to Berlin but the Izzie sister said she could only afford it if we hitch hiked. No way was Izzie interested in that particular mode of transport so we just stuck to catching trains to local places like Hamburg and Bremen.
Then in October, Iz had been in the job for just over six months and had requested three weeks holiday so that an old friend from the last job could come over and visit and we would do the grand European tour together.
Once again, Iz suggested Berlin but in those days if you wanted to go east you had to spend a ridiculously high amount per day at outrageous exchange rates. Aside from that, you would get there and return and had to go through lots of red tape to stop anywhere east of the border so it was all too much hassle. In the end we decided to go to Munich instead and visited Bremen, Hannover, Heidelberg and Hamelin (of Pied Piper fame) along the way.
That was late October 1989 and that was when Iz realized how low her house elf wages really were. We had a wonderful time but there was so much month left at the end of the money.
Came back and went to the airport to say goodbye to this girl and then returned home to the prospect of one more week of holidays but not a silver single sickle left. Well - one or two. So Iz moped around and had herself a grand pity party. By then it was the second week of November. After months and months of news stories of Czech and Hungarian people escaping over the borders in hot air balloons and numerous novel ways, suddenly the unexpected happened and the DDR Government decided to open the Wall for a day. Little did they know just how long that day would last.
So there was Izzie living about eight hours away from where it was all happening and too broke to be able to get a bus or train to join in the party.
It was pretty annoying but I then thought - Now imagine if you had played it safe and not gone to Germany. You would be spending the rest of your life in regret thinking "If only. If only"
While not actually being able to get to Berlin until the following November (and visiting this Satanic City five times since)Iz had been in Germany long enough to be able to follow all the news stories and to realize just how significant the whole thing was.
Iz did find another job before the end of the twelve months but because of the Wall and the massive immigration from both East Germany and the rest of Eastern Europe and Yugoslavia, the cost of housing had simply gone through the roof and become totally unaffordable for unskilled workers such as Iz. So we had to get one of those nasty house elf jobs where accomodation is provided and where you invariably get screwed by the boss which is exactly what happened. But that is another story altogether.
Iz did leave Heil Hilde's hell hole in Hamburg and returned to the little town where she had been before and got a job as a kitchen elf. All in all, ended up staying just under five years in Germany. There was no future there for the likes of Iz so we decided to pack up the bags and head off down under to be re-united with Ma and Pa Dursley.
Iz is getting all slushy and nostalgic because it was Friday 12 November 1993 when she said goodbye to her Fairy Godparents and Germany. It may be 11 years ago but we can still remember it as if it were yesterday.
The ma keeps saying that going to Germany was the worst and stupidest thing that the Izzie ever did in her life time and that nothing good came out of it. Iz did have some horrid times there but learnt stuff that she never could have learnt any other way and was there at a most amazing time. It was truly amazing visiting all those places in the East such as Quedlinburg and Wittenberge and even the utterly awful Dresden and Leipzig. This was all before the Wessis took over and turned some of them into tourist traps and they still looked like movie sets from the 1940's. It truly was like living in a time warp.
Iz especially loved the Brocken, Quedlinberg and Thale and could easily imagine just why these places had a a reputation for magic and mystery and plain old witchery. The Quedlinbergers were quite happy to have broomsticks, cats and cauldrons in the shop windows but were not too keen to admit that this place had one of the worst reputations in all of Europe for witch burnings. Iz knew this stuff because she had read all about it in her flobberworm days and it was one of many reasons to visit the place.
Another being the castle which used to be rather important during the days of the First Reich (The Holy Roman Empire) and had acquired a reputation as a favorite lurking place for some rather unsavoury characters from the Third Reich.
It is hard to believe that it is now 15 years ago since the Wall came down. It's hard to believe now that it even existed. And Iz is happy to say that she is glad she didn't play safe and have to spend the last few days thinking "I could have been there too"
Although it is now 11 years since last seeing Molly and co, they will always have a special spot in this serpent's heart. They have had an influence on the Iz that they can only begin to imagine.