The Second Apartment
That first apartment was on Kirche Strasse, (Church Street) and my nearest American neighbor was Patty. We spent quite a lot of those early days together. But, I never got to know her husband and the four of us never got together. I don't know why. They were short timers and went back to Rhode Island before I'd been there long. They had a car and Patty was the only Ameriacan woman I met who had an international drivers license. Her husband took the car to work most days, but occasionally she took him to work so she could go shopping in the city. I've never met another woman as young as Patty who had that kind of self confidence. She wasn't afraid to try anything. She had friends all over the village, and I had to take my turn on her shopping trips. She would be the one I'd have expected to learn the language, but she fell into the same trap. She could understand quite a bit, but never tried to speak much. I was disappointed that we didn't have more time together.
My pregnancy was progressing and I was looking for another apartment. I couldn't see any way I could take care of a baby when I had to draw water from a bathroom sink and heat it. I wanted a kitchen with hot water available. And, that simple requirement was proving to be a hurdle. We were too far from any kind of laundromat. G could take our laundry to a cleaner on the base and pick it up on the way home. But, I didn't think that would work with diapers and baby things. Disposable diapers were not available back then, or at least not over there.
We finally found somthing I could live with, on the other side of Siegelbach, where new construction was expanding the village toward Vogelweh. It was in one of the new buildings built to hold four families. Our first landlady was disappointed when I told her we were leaving. She had been all excited about having a baby in the house. She just drooped when I got her to understand we would be leaving. Do you suppose part of that was the idea of breaking in another young foreign couple.
The new landlords were Herr and Frau Reiss and their daughter, Segroine. (I can find nothing anywhere to help me spell her name. That is how it was pronounced.) They lived downstairs. The other two homes were entered by a separate front door which made their half of the building completely seperate from our side. This building was considered very modern. It had a buzzer and intercom at the front door so the occupant could speak to a visitor before buzing them in. The front door led down a very short hall to the Reiss's front door or up the stairs to our apartment. But, we didn't have a door upstairs. I had to give up that security in exchange for my kitchen. The top of the stairs were open to another hall. Immediately on the right was our bedroom. Again no closet, just a wardrobe and a bed. The room was narrow and not very big, with one window looking out the back of the house. On the left, across from the bedroom was a half bath. We had a stool and a sink, but once again the tub was downstairs and shared with the Reiss's. They heated the water when they wanted and if we weren't home or didn't take our bath when they told us it was ready, we had to wait till the next week. Beside the bedroom was the living room. A nice big room with a small coal burning stove for heat. There was a glass door leading to a very small balcony and one big square window. The windows, every one in the apartment, and the door to the balcony had a metal shutter that folded and rolled down to completely seal us in. Like a blackout. When those shutters were down, no light came in or got out. Across from the living room and beside the bathroom was my small galley like kitchen. With a 10 liter hot water tank hanging on the wall over the sink. There was my required hot water. 10 liters at a time, and it dropped into a real single basin sink. We had a nice cupboard. Not built in, it was a piece of furnature, but it was larger and held enough. Across from the sink was the usual counter high fridge. The top of which was my only counter space. Beside the fridge was a marval of a stove. It was a combination gas and wood burning stove with a flue that I had to learn how and when to open and close. It was a lovely enamaled green. It had three burners and one deep well that heated water or soup. This adjoined the oven and got it's heat by heating the oven. I never did quite manage to master that stove, but I did well enough to keep us fed, and I rather enjoyed the experience. There was also another window with it's shutter and a view to the front of the house. So I could see the street and watch for G's car to come home.
At the end of our hall, between the kitchen and living room was a locked door. It was Segroine's bedroom. And, the reason we didn't have a front door to lock. She could come and go as she pleased. Segroine was a 10 year old when we moved in. Actually I don't believe she spent more than a dozen nights in her room during the approx. one and a half years we lived there. But, she did a lot of coming and going during the day. And, I enjoyed her company. She had been studying English in school and already spoke pretty well, but was tickled when I could help her with her homework. She was learning quickly and had a million questions about the United States. I wouldn't be at all surprised if she eventually married a G.I. and moved here.
Once moved into my modern new house, I thought I was ready to have my baby. But, being pregnant thousands of miles from my Mother, and in the Army, and in a foreign country and with a husband who wasn't always home and due in the dead of winter was going to be a "whole nother" experience.
My pregnancy was progressing and I was looking for another apartment. I couldn't see any way I could take care of a baby when I had to draw water from a bathroom sink and heat it. I wanted a kitchen with hot water available. And, that simple requirement was proving to be a hurdle. We were too far from any kind of laundromat. G could take our laundry to a cleaner on the base and pick it up on the way home. But, I didn't think that would work with diapers and baby things. Disposable diapers were not available back then, or at least not over there.
We finally found somthing I could live with, on the other side of Siegelbach, where new construction was expanding the village toward Vogelweh. It was in one of the new buildings built to hold four families. Our first landlady was disappointed when I told her we were leaving. She had been all excited about having a baby in the house. She just drooped when I got her to understand we would be leaving. Do you suppose part of that was the idea of breaking in another young foreign couple.
The new landlords were Herr and Frau Reiss and their daughter, Segroine. (I can find nothing anywhere to help me spell her name. That is how it was pronounced.) They lived downstairs. The other two homes were entered by a separate front door which made their half of the building completely seperate from our side. This building was considered very modern. It had a buzzer and intercom at the front door so the occupant could speak to a visitor before buzing them in. The front door led down a very short hall to the Reiss's front door or up the stairs to our apartment. But, we didn't have a door upstairs. I had to give up that security in exchange for my kitchen. The top of the stairs were open to another hall. Immediately on the right was our bedroom. Again no closet, just a wardrobe and a bed. The room was narrow and not very big, with one window looking out the back of the house. On the left, across from the bedroom was a half bath. We had a stool and a sink, but once again the tub was downstairs and shared with the Reiss's. They heated the water when they wanted and if we weren't home or didn't take our bath when they told us it was ready, we had to wait till the next week. Beside the bedroom was the living room. A nice big room with a small coal burning stove for heat. There was a glass door leading to a very small balcony and one big square window. The windows, every one in the apartment, and the door to the balcony had a metal shutter that folded and rolled down to completely seal us in. Like a blackout. When those shutters were down, no light came in or got out. Across from the living room and beside the bathroom was my small galley like kitchen. With a 10 liter hot water tank hanging on the wall over the sink. There was my required hot water. 10 liters at a time, and it dropped into a real single basin sink. We had a nice cupboard. Not built in, it was a piece of furnature, but it was larger and held enough. Across from the sink was the usual counter high fridge. The top of which was my only counter space. Beside the fridge was a marval of a stove. It was a combination gas and wood burning stove with a flue that I had to learn how and when to open and close. It was a lovely enamaled green. It had three burners and one deep well that heated water or soup. This adjoined the oven and got it's heat by heating the oven. I never did quite manage to master that stove, but I did well enough to keep us fed, and I rather enjoyed the experience. There was also another window with it's shutter and a view to the front of the house. So I could see the street and watch for G's car to come home.
At the end of our hall, between the kitchen and living room was a locked door. It was Segroine's bedroom. And, the reason we didn't have a front door to lock. She could come and go as she pleased. Segroine was a 10 year old when we moved in. Actually I don't believe she spent more than a dozen nights in her room during the approx. one and a half years we lived there. But, she did a lot of coming and going during the day. And, I enjoyed her company. She had been studying English in school and already spoke pretty well, but was tickled when I could help her with her homework. She was learning quickly and had a million questions about the United States. I wouldn't be at all surprised if she eventually married a G.I. and moved here.
Once moved into my modern new house, I thought I was ready to have my baby. But, being pregnant thousands of miles from my Mother, and in the Army, and in a foreign country and with a husband who wasn't always home and due in the dead of winter was going to be a "whole nother" experience.
posted by LeeAnn | 11:10 AM
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