Learning When to Simply Agree

My efforts seemed to have backfired.  She was obviously frustrated, definitely misinterpreted what I had said, and continued to overemphasize the stress involved.  We were about halfway through the morning deliveries, and the cab of the van was suddenly tense.  I backpedaled as quickly as possible, and conceded to her viewpoint: being a Baker is not fun.

The “internship” was in its third week.  One can get accustomed to the early mornings, but they are still early mornings often fueled by pots of coffee.  In order to show my appreciation for allowing me to participate in their work, I intentionally arrived each morning with positivity around the work to be done.  When asked, I always responded, “no, this is not boring; it is interesting work” and “yes, I am learning something new each day”.  I think where I went wrong was the peppy references to the “fun” we were having.  This seemed to have rubbed them the wrong way.

With the exception of days I needed to go to the visa office and a short trip to the Czech Republic, I spent each morning at the bakery.  My role was to load up trays of brötchen, roll out child-sized versions, and monitor and make the Pfannekuchen and other fried pastries.  I had many opportunities to probe as to why the processes were the way they were (too little time in oil and the pastry collapses; too much flour and the roll is too chewy).  I also gained insights: When I asked if they would consider switching ingredients or adding other flavors, they clarified that they do not deviate from what they have always made.  After the baking is complete, I always take the opportunity to jump in the van to join in the morning deliveries (at 6:30 AM).  It is in these rides that I have a great conversation with the pastry chef about how her business is run, how it differed from times in the GDR, and our personal philosophies (only so far as my German language abilities will allow me to delve).  It was on one of these rides that my error was made known.

The topic of working as a baker was again discussed, and I agreed that it was a lot of work but was not an occupation for me. “It was on one of these rides that my error was made known.” While I am pretty confident in the grammar I used, she interpreted it as if I said I did not consider being a baker an occupation.  This led into a long discussion on the hours involved between baking the bread, selling the bread, cleaning the bakery, organizing the financials, and caring for a family.  This schedule left her little to no time for sleep; in no way was running a bakery easy or “fun”.  While it was truly my intention to provide a change of pace and perhaps a reminder that they feed a village (i.e., the importance of their work), my efforts obviously failed miserably.  I will simply have to form a new tactic.

Liberec, Czech Republic

Last weekend, I found myself in northern Czech Republic in the city of Liberec.  I have been there a couple of times before; the exchange rate with the Krone keeps me coming back.  There is some great hiking in the area and some excellent local food.  There is a soup called “Kulajda”, which is heavily garlic based.  I highly recommend this soup if you ever run across it.  I may have been slightly under the weather during this trip, but that should discount the deliciousness of this soup, which contains bits of ham, cheese, and croutons.  One night, our party found ourselves in a local establishment call the “Chicago Grill”.  The menu mainly consisted of burgers and steaks, and the wait staff was impressively proficient in English.  As the meal continued, I slowly realized there was no pizza, no hotdogs, no sports memorabilia to be seen; while the owner claimed to be from Chicago, the missing details left me second-guessing…

On the four-hour journey back, we stopped in Poland at a roadside market.  One of the shops had some hand-crafted ceramic pots.  The pots were traditional fermentation vessels for sauerkraut and pickles used in Eastern Germany and Western Poland.  The construct could easily be used in fermenting beer or storing feta; similar vessels would be appropriate for kombucha or vinegar.  I grabbed a three liter one for some trial and error.  And I am now in conversations with local potters who may be able to make some gallon-sized pots with my company’s logo on it (more on that company to come).  Awesome coincidence!

But the best news, and quite a relief, is that the local visa office has accepted my application for permanent residency through March 2018.  I visited the office immediately prior to the Czech trip anticipating another discussion.  Surprisingly, I was asked some final questions for the visa (including my eye color and height (which I did not know in meters)) and provided them a passport photo.  I look forward to picking up my official visa in a couple weeks.  I also cannot thank the Gotha Ausländerbehörde enough for granting me this opportunity.

The adventure fortunately continues!