The new place

Today is the official move-in day. We checked out of the hotel this morning and drove over to our new house to greet the quick-ship movers and the FMO guys (furniture permanently loaned from military--like washer/dryer, etc.). Later we decided to go for a walk in our new town. There are many walking/biking trails from our house. We didn't know where any of them led, so we took off and soon came to this: I couldn't believe it. Acres upon acres just like this! I wanted a picture of both of us in the flowers, but they were so thick and long, it was a chore to get out there. Jeremiah opted for a photo on the trail instead (smart guy):
We found a cemetery. It is a fairly new cemetery with the oldest grave (that I saw) from someone born in the 1890s. They plot their graves differently than I'm used to. Each plot has a garden on top. It's quite beautiful and makes for very different styles. The family members are in charge of the gardening/upkeep of the plot. All in all, we walked at least 5K today. It was good exercise and a good way to see our town. We live on a huge hill, so the walk back up was invigorating to say the least! By the time we got home we were very hungry so we decided to go investigate more of the town by car. The thing I like about the towns here in Germany is that there are little restaurants all over the place! They hide in the old buildings you would normally never notice (because many are residences), but after only a few weeks we are developing a keen eye for spotting them. We haven't had a bad meal here yet, and this place did not disappoint. I would even venture to say it is my new favorite restaurant!
As we were leaving, a man at a table made a comment to me, which I did not understand. So, I said in German "a little slower, please". I guess I have an American accent because the whole table had an immediate understanding, even though there aren't a lot of military living this far from base. They were the most pleasant people! Many Germans can speak English--at least a little bit--but these folks did not. For the first time, I had a fun conversation in German with locals! It was not stressful for me, trying to remember words, or trying to convey something important, but was light and happy. We talked for about 7-8 minutes then paid our bill and left. I have found that as I try to communicate in German to people, they are very warm and inviting to me--even when I don't know the words. We have felt very welcomed here and think we'll enjoy our new home.