And now for news from Berlin! Every month, I’m reporting on what we’ve been up to, both to preserve my own memories and also to keep in touch with loved ones afar.
COVID Update
As I’ve reported for the last few months, Germany is still largely locked down. 7-day case counts have fluctuated between 120 and 160 this month. The government is continually in talks to figure out how to allow non-essential businesses to conduct their business without putting people at risk, but there’s no easy answer for that.
Happily, rollout of the vaccine is (finally) starting to pick up. Daily vaccinations in Berlin have gone from ~11,000 to ~20,000, largely thanks to vaccines being released to doctor’s offices for distribution. The EU is expecting several large shipments of vaccines in the next couple of weeks, so that number should continue increasing. The government’s consistent message is that anybody who wants a vaccine will be able to get their first dose by the end of June and the full population should be fully vaccinated by the end of September.
The AstraZeneca vaccine has given us a bit of a wild ride. Thanks to reports of deadly brain clots, Germany first halted distribution of it, then started only giving it to the 65+ population, and has now opened it to anybody over the age of 16 who wants it.
All in all, I’m hoping that next month’s update is going to have much better news on this topic!
Zack’s Birthday
Zack turned 30 this month! It wasn’t particularly exciting, but he got his choice of dinner and I made him a carrot cake (Claire Saffitz’s carrot and pecan cake). We’re anticipating more exciting celebrations in the future, so we spent the time musing over our summer travel plans (we’re hoping we can at least travel within Germany by August…).
Terrace
We’ve been slowly getting our outdoor space ready for the summer, including getting fruit-bearing plants planted and building furniture. The weather hasn’t been particularly cooperative – we couldn’t put our plants outside permanently until a couple weeks ago due to freezing temperatures – but we’re getting the space prepped for use once it gets above 60 degrees…
Dog
Before you get super excited: we don’t have a dog yet. But we might by the end of the week! Our original plan was to start the adoption process back in September, with an aim to have a dog by November. But COVID thwarted those plans – it would have been easiest to just show up to the shelter to check out dogs, but that wasn’t an option. We could only set up an appointment if we had a specific dog in mind, and their website wasn’t reliably up-to-date…so we basically had made no progress on getting a furry friend.
Until two weeks ago.
Zack found a post on the shelter’s website, seeking applicants for a “documentary on adopting a dog”. They would provide support with the adoption process and we would allow them to film the process. We applied, noting that our German wasn’t particularly strong. “There’s no way they choose us,” we told each other.
They called us that day.
The next Monday, we had a video call with a casting guy from the production company. The interview was entirely in German, and he recorded most of the call. We sent them photos of us as a couple and a video walkthrough of our apartment, and they cut together an intro trailer of us for the dog shelter.
That Friday, we had a video call with the shelter to discuss what kind of dog we want.
Last week, there were a handful of calls and emails exchanged, a contract signed and sent back, and Zack took the first step toward getting an off-leash license.
Tomorrow, we’re going to the shelter to meet the dog and be filmed. Wednesday, we bring the dog home.
For the record, the show is a knock-off of the UK show Dog House. So they’ll film us meeting the dog and then follow up in a couple weeks to film how the dog is settling in.
Currently, we’re both very nervous about being on film in German. I can get my point across in German, but I sound like a blathering idiot. Zack is not keen on being on-camera at all. But we’re going to try and get a recording of it an have a viewing party, so let me know if you want in on that!
We’re hoping that April is the last month of waiting for COVID to end, and that May will break the ice on whatever post-COVID life looks like. But more likely than not, our lives will be much more interesting by the end of this coming month – with a four-legged furry friend!
Oh my goodness how exciting!!!! Is there a way to watch this in the states?!?!
I’m not sure! It’s for a German channel – ZDF – and they post a decent amount of clips on YouTube. But we’re hoping to get a recording of it to share. Stay tuned for a potential zoom watch party!