The First Weeks of Frankfurt

Frankfurt is amazing! The first time I hit my foot on this city for a living feels right. I never witnessed such an international city in Germany like Frankfurt before. Of course, people may mention Berlin or Munich but it is about the air that feels different. One of the Frankfurt districts is full of skyscrapers similar to Hong Kong, Jakarta, or Singapore. It is the only city in Germany that is so well-connected by planes and trains. Not surprising that it is also a financial district of Europe.

I visited Frankfurt several times in the past. One time I was visiting European Central Bank. Now I live less than one kilometer away from it! Life has nice surprises in store sometimes. But don't worry, I am still with my good employer despite my move. It feels nice to be closer to a financial and banking district like Frankfurt. I get the vibes instantly!

Matthias is also very happy with his new employer. He learns a lot of things in the past weeks. He also speaks a lot of English on his job. He manages international projects from all over the world. His horizon, his teammates, and his new offices are such an upgrade in comparison to what he experienced in Rheinland. I am totally happy for him.

Despite the joy and jolly of our new beloved city, I came here with heavy baggage.

Moving is not always easy and a lot of unfinished business that I have in Dormagen complicates everything. Personally, I also have several health issues that I want to be over with. COVID-19 eroded our health, relationship, and our sense of community. I was and am still struggling in maintaining my health and well-being. Too much internet, too much work, too little physical contact with my beloved friends and family are killing me. I am born naturally extrovert, I get good energy from the people around me. It doesn't seem to bother Matthias as much, but the COVID-19 restrictions are definitely draining my mental battery.

On the other hand, we just got our dream house as well. Matthias and I are committed to settling somewhere. Renting forever is not an option for us, especially when the rental is sky-high like Frankfurt. Like I wrote in the previous post, we would like to live somewhere suburb and the universe has been so kind to us to grant this wish. We have our house in Bad Vilbel. The house is only a few kilometers away from the regional train station. It is a new building complex with spacious green areas and very modern equipment. What is even jollier is that we are the first tenant to move into this apartment. We are renting again this time, to see if we like the location before committing to buying a piece of land here. Of course, the rent is quite an increase in comparison to our little Dormagen home, but we also have a bigger space and better income. At the end of the day, the most important thing for us is our life quality and our happiness.

My wifey instinct when we calculate our cash flow is either to limit our other spending as much as possible or to find a way to increase our income. I still don't know how to balance the commute, the spending, and the extra time I will lose due to commuting but one thing that I know for sure: we made the right decision despite all the hurdles we faced this year. So my feeling right now is quite a mix between hopeful, sad, and happy. Hopeful because it is a new beginning. Sad because I am leaving my life in the previous cities. And happy because my husband got what he wanted. Because of this stress, I also lose some kilos which is a bonus.

So, I simply don't know what the future may hold for both of us. I do my best every day and I pray every day for this little family. Here are some pictures from our first days in Frankfurt!

This is a nice cafe located in the center of Old Frankfurt City

This is a famous statue. Lena told me that Heide lived here. I still need to discover what she means by that :)

This is the famous Markpaltz in Frankfurt. The place is so pretty but the sky that day was not so spectacular

I took this picture from the Ziel (shopping district) in Frankfurt. I think Frankfurt has a good mixture of modernity and oldies

This is the view from our balcony. Don't ask me what kind of ugly building is on the right-hand side. I have no idea.

This is the famous European Central Bank!! I wonder if I could have a chance to visit it again someday!

This is me in Bad Vilbel. The river Nieder as background.

This is what the green area around our housing complex will look like. It will be maintained professionally by the housing agency

This is the building where we will live. Such a modern complex surrounded by nature!

That's all the update and I wish you nice and pleasant days ahead.

Hugs from Frankfurt,

Nadia