Differences

So as I was capturing images of our village the other day I thought, "Why not capture the inside living too!" My friend Traci did a post similar to this and I thought it was such a good idea so I'm copying! So here are some images of the house that are a little different than what we were used to.

This is the type of heating in our home. There are several throughout the house, one in each room. Typically it is best in the winter to shut all doors so that the heat generated in one room, stays in one room, more energy/cost efficient. It works with water and is fueled by gas. That is the extent of my knowledge. I do know that my 3 year old likes to turn the dial and a few times we have found it cranked to 5 and can literally feel the change pouring out of our bank account.

During the summer the heaters are completely shut down and there is no air conditioning system in Europe. Which is why these fantastically engineered windows are my favorite thing! Not only do they have the rolladens which I spoke about here, but they have several options for opening. The first is to vent just a little as you can see the top of the window is open but still attached at the bottom, or you can fully vent by swinging it wide open. We also have 3 large window doors that work the same way.

This is what the electrical sockets and light switches look like.

Of course the input plug is totally different and so we have to use these . . .

transformers throughout the house which enable us to continue to use our us 110v electronics with out blowing them up. You need different sizes depending on the amount of wattage required. They are loud with an annoying humming sound, so we keep them off when not in use.

While house hunting we were surprised to find out that an "American" sized refrigerator would be provided to us to use during our stay. Why would they do that??? Well because most of the German fridges are like this, cute but not nearly big enough for our big American appetites. =) Plus I don't like to go grocery shopping every other day. I do like how it blends in with the rest of the kitchen cupboards. It really has become the beverage (a.k.a. diet coke) chiller. I put the things that we use multiple times during the day into this one and that allows me to leave the big one closed as much as possible with the thermo turned way down. One more way to try to save those pennies.

I had always wanted to buy Bailey a loft bed so when I came across this one in the thrift store for $20 bucks it went into the house with out a thought. THEN we realized it is a German loft bed, not a twin size loft bed. So our $20 treasure became a bit more pricey as a new mattress and bedding had to be acquired. The bed sizes are different and here is a picture of what we would consider a box springs. Pretty ingenious as each slat is movable from the next to "give a little" to your every curve and turn. The binding down the center has give but makes it more stable and the little blue spots on the sides, not the edge, of the slats are rubber and allow more give.


German homes are built differently too. They come with walls and that is about it. After you purchase your home you then design and install your kitchen, light fixtures and closet system. So a home is not sold with storage at all, you have to add that in after. Most of the German homes have shrunks like this one that is basically a box that opens like a closet. This one is very plain and I have seen ones that are very elaborate and beautiful.


So that gives you a little look at the differences, most of them I wish I could take back with me. The thing I can't wait to give back are the transformers. You cannot hide them and they are so ugly and bulky. Has anyone out there figured out how to hide them????