Organized chaos.
That is about the only way to describe the pandemonium that is the reality of living in Moore Haus. Last semester there were 57 of us students, plus two faculty who called Moore Haus home. Fifty-nine people living under one roof! As an only child, it was quite a change from the relaxed life I left back in California.
I soon learned that there is no such thing as quiet time or personal space in the Haus. Although I consider myself an extrovert, I don’t need people screaming and yelling at all hours of the day. I just don’t. As first semester dwindled to a close, I began to anxiously look forward to returning to the peace and quiet at home in the States. But a few days after I returned home, I noticed that something wasn’t sitting quite right with me.
I missed the insanity that was Moore Haus.
Now, I began to appreciate all of the small things about living with some of my closest friends that I didn’t know I was going to miss. I really missed walking into my best friend’s room at any hour of the day so we could eat Haribo gummies and complain about rude Germans. I missed constantly walking into the breakfast room to find someone making avocado toast (it happened constantly). I missed having to share only two toilets with 15 girls. Okay I’m lying… I appreciate having a bathroom all to myself at home.
In my boredom of flying from Barcelona to Stuttgart before returning to Heidelberg, I compiled a list of things I have missed about Heidelberg and things that I have not missed.
THINGS I HAVE MISSED ABOUT HEIDELBERG:
- Cheap food. Apparently Germans are not allowed to spend more than 15% of their income on food, so the food prices are regulated by the government. That means that I get to benefit from cheap food, so there is no complaining on my part!
- Döner Kebaps. Basically the best food known to mankind. They’re cheap, delicious, and God’s gift to the world. Seriously.
- Living in a mansion down the street from a castle. Telling people that I live by a castle never gets old and it never should. I’m proud of my Moore Haus.
- Speaking German. It is a very difficult language but I enjoy speaking it and trying to learn as much of it as I can. There is nothing more satisfying than communicating with a native entirely in German and not having to use English at all!
- Vetters, Kulturbraurei, and Heidelberger Dunkel. ‘Nuff said.
THINGS I HAVE NOT MISSED ABOUT HEIDELBERG:
- Having to walk 30 minutes from the house to get anywhere important. Want food? You have to walk. Want to get back to the house? You have to hike and get sweaty by the time you get home. I unfortunately didn’t have a car when I came home for Christmas so I soon began to appreciate how I could walk everywhere in Germany. But I was still thankful for cars and the ability to drive them.
- I am so tired of eating nothing but bread for breakfast and lunch. I don’t know how the Germans are so skinny since their diet consists solely of bread and pretzels.
- Living far away from my friends. Half of my friends were now on the other side of the country, my best friend was a 20 minute drive, and my boyfriend was a 6 minute drive away. Alright, maybe the last one is actually pretty close, but when you’re used to having so many people living with you, even the smallest distances seem far.
- Speaking German. Sometimes it’s just so nice to speak English and not have to worry about translating things in your head before saying them. Although going to Spain and Portugal on a cruise didn’t help my languages. I then had four languages floating around in my brain but couldn’t form a coherent sentence in any of them. Danke schön for my problemas.
- THINGS ARE OPEN ON SUNDAYS! Except Hobby Lobby and Chick-Fil-A, but it’s an improvement.
But more than anything, I missed the experience of living with some amazing people in one of my favorite places on earth. Some of us had created wonderful friendships that will last forever. Ava Marie and Laura, this is a shout out to you two for being am besten last semester. Can’t wait to see you guys back home in Heidel!
