RELOCATION PART I: THE NEWS

I guess those who follow my blog regularly have noticed that I am not updating regularly. I have been under a lot of stress in the past couple of months. All efforts are culminating to one point. Yes, I am relocating shortly to a European country for approx three years.

Many things happened in between. After disclosing that I am departing in short notice my employer panicked and hastily arranged a replacement. I had a dreadful time training my replacement and transferring my responsibilities.

There are many checklists before you relocate to another place for a longer time. Besides arranging flights (and then reschedule it), there are local bank accounts and credit cards to be closed; certificates to be collected and kept ready and the toughest part of it is to attend invitations by the nearest and dearest. All of a sudden you have another schedule book to manage invitations and you have someday when you have three invitations from breakfast to dinner in three different places. Like it or not this is part of the hospitable culture you possess and the custom is not to decline it claiming that your stomach is upset because the host will miss treating you for a long time. I did not know that we were that popular!

We will be living on our own for the first time as we have stayed with my parents after our marriage for five long years. There are some typical frustrations for a wife in joint family (although she was happy living with my parents) and the yearning to live separately. So she especially is looking forward to it. I and my wife had to purchase and ship loads of household goods and clothes at least a month early. I am amazed by her thoughts of the little details like how our dining table will be decorated.

These past months were so eventful and we are experiencing one important transitional phase in our lives.

Related:
RELOCATION PART II: THE BACKGROUND
RELOCATION PART III: WHY GERMANY
RELOCATION PART IV: THE SACRIFICE
RELOCATION PART V: THE CHALLENGE