One of my main concerns is that I'm not going to be allowed to work. Americans are very, very strict with work permits and I only do have a visa to come with Michael. (Michael calls it a coattail visa). In case I got a job offer there, the employer would have to show proof that I wouldn't take the job from any American, which means I'd have to hire a lawyer to obtain a work permit. It is questionable if any organisation would the spend time and resources necessary, as the social area isn't exactly known for swimming in money. That's why I decided to do some voluntary internships, which is legal, of course.

Sure enough, it's hard for me to quit my job, above all, having been in a supervisor position in that institution. Saying goodbye is even harder because I'm quite attached to the kids I teach. Well, you can't have it all. Ultimately, I don't think I'm going to waste away as a housewife, that's not the way I am.

Certainly, Michael and I will use the time to experience a lot of the landscape, since California has a lot to offer. I'm absolutely looking forward to the ocean that will be literally in our backyard over there.

By the way, Michael already flew to San Francisco on Nov 9th, because he's been working over there since Nov 11th. I'm going to join on Dec 30th, after having spent Christmas in Oldenburg with my parents. It's a strange feeling, to stay without Michael, but it's only for another two weeks and we'll see each other.

By the way, Michael has already found an appartment in San Francisco. Accomodations in the city are pretty expensive but nevertheless we made the decision to live where something's going on. If we'd moved to the suburbs, we would have needed two cars for sure and I might've been very isolated since I don't work. In America another problem is that you have to pay for your safety. That means that appartments in safer areas are consequently more expensive. For sure, that's a more common problem in cities than it is in rural areas.

In order to give you an idea how our appartment looks like, I briefly quote Michael when he wrote a letter:

Plenty of young people are living in the house, some of them I already got to know, and they're quite nice people. The view out of the window is breathtaking: I'm on the third floor and have a view all over San Francisco, including parts of the skyline: You can see all these Victorian buildings, really awesome.

The surrounding is better than Berkeley and anything I've seen so far from San Francisco: Inumerable small shops for jewellery, clothes and groceries, a large supermarket that has open from 6am till 12pm, hair salons and of course 20 restaurants at least, among them Japanese as well as Italian. I was really kind of moved when I went around the corner for the first time. And it's all just a block away! Despite that, the appartment is absolutely quiet, it faces the back. You can't top that, I guess!

Noe Valley, how the neighborhood is called, is totally safe. Noe Valley is equivalent to Schwabing, just the American version of it.

The appartment's kitchen is type of a darkish-brown-American style, kind of ugly but usable."

I hope these descriptions make you want to visit us soon.

Not to forget, we'll live in a two-bedroom appartment (three bedrooms are not affordable) that has a monthly rent of $ 1100.

Finally, I'm telling you about our storage boxes: On December 23rd, most of our stuff is going to be stored on the big attic of Michael's uncle who lives close to Augsburg. For the U.S., we have shipped a container, which is approximately 200 cubic feet in size. It's mostly books, dishes, clothes and some personal stuff. Plus, our bed and the good, old IKEA shelves from former student times have been included. The container was loaded last week and will presumably arrive in San Francisco in four weeks.