It's no secret that since I came back to Europe in February and even some of the time before I left for Christmas, I was/am having a hard time changing up my schedule every day so I don't get in a rut, having a hard time forcing myself to fill my days with positive activities (and just not veg all the time), and having a hard time avoiding loneliness since I don't know many people, don't speak the language, and DJ is at work and/or out of town a lot. It's not that I'm bored necessarily. I have plenty to do, really! It would take every day for three years, 10-12 hours a day, just to make a dent in the almost 37 years of scrapbooking and family history writing I need to do. It would take that long to learn the German language. I brought lots of books to read and projects besides, but there's a limit as to how much time one can sit at a desk and do the same types of things over and over. Normally, I could get into decorating our home, but this is an apartment and there are limits as to what I can do. Besides, who wants to invest a lot of money and time into something that's not ours, not permanent. Ordinarily, if I had down time, I would sit and play the piano for an hour or two, but I don't have a piano! I could go on, but in the end, there's also a limit as to how much time you can spend by yourself and still like yourself!
I would never say that I hate it here, because I don't; and even if I hated the place, there have been so many blessings that have come from taking this assignment that I would be ungrateful to complain. We have seen growth in our children. We have seen strengthened relationships with and between some of our children as we all strive to write and skype---absence makes the heart grow stronger. We really enjoy being together as a family when we can. We appreciate blessings we took for granted before. DJ and I have enjoyed some couple time. We've seen some wonderful places in Europe and have experienced some incredible things. We're better off financially. I've had time to read like never before and write parts of our family's story. Good things are happening. Just doesn't mean it's always easy, but hard is good, right? That's how we grow.
Anyway, here's my list of things I love about living in Basel:
- The water! It comes out of the tap, cold and clear, and doesn't taste like chemicals, mildew, or swamp water!
- The cool breeze that comes through the window at least seven months of the year (I'll let you know about the rest of the year later---DJ said July was pretty nasty---no AC)!
- The garbage (or at least what they do with it)---another post on that sometime!
- The public transportation---I don't need to drive anywhere---so I haven't!
- The cleanliness of the River Rhein (Rhine River); you can stand on the banks and see the rocks on the bottom!
- The history in this place.
- The art museum.
- The architecture of the older buildings.
- The proximity to France and Germany and other Europen countries.
- The mix of ethnic groups---makes me not miss Houston so much!
- The produce and meat---by law the farmers can't use pesticides, preservatives, and growth hormones like they do in the states---things are very fresh, very natural.
- The church bells.
- Tankless toilets
- Radiant heat in the floors.
- The days that the sky is blue (because it's so rainy and gray during the winter, that blue is WONDERFUL)!
- The mountains that can be reached within an hour or so in multiple directions---incredible!
- The community gardens.
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