Day 50 of 330: The 'what I thought was the 6 week mark, but is in fact the 7 week mark' day

Day 49
I got up early today and went to register for classes. First I met Catherine and Julia in the altstadt to eat breakfast at our favorite bakery, Das Kaffeehaus. This place is awesome, all the accents are yellow and inside the places to sit range from cusions on the floor to couple tables with plugs for laptops to a lounge with a TV to regular tables for groups. I think it might be my study place once classes get underway. I love their pastry selection and, of course, my life's addiction: coffee, that comes in giant mugs; which just makes me plain happy :). Then Julia and I went to the Burgeramt to re-register with the city and get our resident permits.

I am now an official legal student resident of Germany. My life is so cool. I can't help opening my passport and just looking at it. The picture sucks, but it's still a cool thing. It's really exciting for me to see all the stamps my passport is accumulating over time. What an experience, although, even after getting my permit/visa, I still can't get it through my head that I actually live here. "True story." ~Jenna Sapp.

After registering, we went to the office for international students and registered for classes. I am taking 4 classes this semester, all for my German major. I'm taking Spiegelschrift, which is a creative writing class, Aufbaukurs, which is intensive grammar, Quasselkurs, which is intense conversation, and Kinder- und Jungenbücher, which I think is a childrens literature class for foreign students.

My schedule is as follows:
Beginning Oktober 28th: Wednesdays: 10:15-11:45 Quasselkurs and 12:15-13:35 Spielgelschrift
Beginning Nov.2nd Ending Dez. 15th: Mondays, Tuesdays & Thursdays: Aufbaukurs

After registering for classes I went to the hair salon and FINALLY got my hair cut. Nothing too drastic, just a trim and a style slightly more 'European.' After that I went to Müller, bought hair dye, and dyed my hair brown. It's too expensive for me too keep up the blonde highlights here, so I decided to go all one color. It's not too brown, more of a dark ash blonde. But it's definately a change. I needed something dramatic that I could control. I think I might go darker in a few weeks. ;)

Went to kareoke as usual, it gets more and more crowded every week. I might quit going, you can't even move in there after 9:30.

Day 50
I woke up this morning thinking that I've been here 6 weeks today. But, alas, I have investigated my calender and I have, in fact, been here 7 weeks. Where in the heck did that other week go??? I must have been waiting for a bus.

The girls and I met at the Bahnhof and took the train to Metzingen to shop at the outlet mall. Julia missed the train! So we had to wait for her at the Metzingen bahnhof, but of course we had fun acting like fools. Metzingen is a neat little town, but the mall was full of designer stores and it was a little too expensive for me.

The weather is Fabulous here! The temperature in the past week has been in the teens, but it was kinda warm today...mid 30s. It usually snows here the first week of November (so I've heard) and I can't wait. I'm so excited to have a REAL winter for the first time!

Kendra