Living in Germany: Wunderbar! (pt.1)

Living in Germany is GREAT.

I come from Indonesia and I have been living here for nearly 3 months now. Sure, it's a huge helping factor that I live a super smooth married life with a dreamboat husband I never thought I would ever be lucky enough to find - but him aside, it has still been such a wonderful experience to live here.

I live in a small town, which is a HUGE change from where I used to live. All my life I had been living in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, with near to 10 million other human beings. My current town, Rödermark, has the population of less than 30 thousand. So I guess it brings me to my first favourite thing about living here...

So much nature!

The citizens of Jakarta are so used to going to the mall in their spare time. You can do and find just about anything in Jakarta malls - shop, eat, socialise, watch films, bring your kids to play... anything. Also it can get pretty hot and polluted outside, so air-conditioned malls are the most convenient option for most people. Another plus is that a mall is like a self-sustained world with its own security guards and public toilets - which makes them even more alluring.

As a veteran citizen of Jakarta, it's also embedded in me to gravitate towards the malls for any leisure and social activities. It was the norm for me; so when I arrived here, it was one of the biggest culture shock for me to realise that my town doesn't have any malls.

My husband doesn't get this mall obsession at all and takes me out in the nature instead, which surrounds us in its seemingly limitless glory.

I'm really glad he does!

First of all, the quality of air here is AMAZING. When you come from a concrete jungle with a few trees here and there, you can really feel the difference in air quality once you move to a small town surrounded by forests. It even feels better when you are out walking in the forest.

In just 3 months, I evolved from someone who was always reluctant to go outside to someone who enjoys outdoor walks a lot. Even more than he does!

He looked on in amusement as I stopped to look at every flower and insect we encountered. "You are such a city girl," he remarked at one point. And it's true! Of course I'd squeal at the sight of an actual squirrel hopping across our path. Of course I'd take pictures of flowers and berries growing wild and free on our left and right. Of course I'd take a second look at the slugs and frogs around our feet. This is all so very new for me.

And this is one of the many reasons of why I think living in Germany is just wonderful.

Now you don't see this everyday in Jakarta!