A Special Guest for Prague and Munich
It had been about 2 years since I had seen her for real. In the flesh. And now, I had had the chance to see her again. The friend I had missed and mentor I wanted advice from. My au pair who had done nothing but take care of me and fulfill my every need. Carolin.
The day of her arrival I was all nerves. I would finally get to see her again!! I mean, I had seen her many times over Google Hangouts, but seeing her in person would be totally different. I would be able to talk to her without the static and the delays when we had a bad connection, and I would be able to touch her, to hug her, without it being pretend. No longer would there be a hole in my heart, from the fateful day Carolin had left to return to Germany. Of course, she wouldn’t be staying with us forever. Only a slight portion of our trip – 6 nights. Still, 6 was better than none and I was REALLY excited.
The plan was to split up. That night in Prague, Dad, Tommy, Kaitlin, and I would attend a ballet performance with some old friends of my parents, and Mom would stay and wait for Carolin. When Mom got Carolin settled in, they would join us at the show, hopefully by intermission. Just the thought of having to wait, even for only a half hour more, made me sad. I wanted so badly to see Carolin!!
A couple hours before Carolin’s arrival, I realized that I was different from the person I was 2 years ago. I felt more mature, more serious than I had, and I wasn’t sure if the change was good. Would Carolin like me? Like me how I was now? And what if she had never liked me and was just pretending the whole time? Doubt flooded me. What if she was different too? Would I still recognize her, still see the twinkle of kindness in her eye? Is she still the Hufflepuff that I had admired? I tried to keep my worry at bay, because Carolin is one of the most amazing people I know, incapable of a bad deed. Instead, my head filled with excitement and anticipation as I waited for her.
Soon, Dad, Tommy, Kaitlin, and I were inside the famous theater (known because Mozart performed his music there), waiting for the ballet to begin. I was so nervous I could barely admire the amazing theater and its architecture. Throughout the show, I would sneak peeks at the place I thought Carolin and Mom would come in from. The theater had many private boxes that sat 2-3 people. Carolin and Mom were supposed to arrive in one of them. The first part of the ballet was really good and professional looking, but none of that mattered except the box destined to hold Mom and Carolin. Finally, when intermission was about to be called, I saw one of the box’s door open, and two people slip in. And there they were. There she was! Carolin.
As soon as we were released for the intermission, all three of us kids rushed towards the lobby, where Carolin was waiting. Instantly, all three of us were wrapped in her warm embrace. All the doubt about being different left my mind, gone for good. Carolin was really there! After all this time, she was really there!! One of the ushers working at the theater made our family go outside because we were so loud, but no one seemed to care. All of us started shooting questions at her and telling her all about our trip and a million other random things. To my surprise, I am taller than her, by at least an inch. An achievement in most ways, except that I want Carolin to remain taller than me. Too bad.
The rest of the night passed in a blur. One second I was enjoying the Snow White ballet while whispering a comment to Carolin, and the next thing I know, it’s almost midnight and I’m in a room shared with Carolin. All of us wanted to sleep in that room with 2 beds, so we could stay up late talking to Carolin, so each of us got one night, and I was first. Sadly, both Carolin and I were too tired to talk much, so we went straight to bed. At least, she did. I lay awake for a while, thinking of how amazing it was to get to see her again. She is like a blanket, always warm and cozy, and making me feel safe. The two years of no blanket have left me cold, but in some ways stronger. I learned to be independent. But, I love getting my blanket back, just like a hard-working adult would love a vacation, or just like a blind man would love to see again (Okay, that is a really bad metaphor!). Basically, Carolin is like a 3rd parent to me, except she is “cooler” than the usual Mom and Dad (I’m saying this because my Mom and Dad are definitely cool), more like an aunt. A kind aunt, a funny aunt, sort of like my real aunt Didi (who is a fantastic aunt), and yet is still uniquely her own. As I went to sleep, my last thought was of how lucky I am to have such an amazing family, and such a wonderful friend sleeping only a bed away from me. I am certainly blessed.
I woke up the next morning to find Carolin still sleeping in her bed. So, I decided to wake her up, forgetting how much she likes to sleep. It took me about an hour to actually get her out of her bed. But, it was worth it, and I was happy to play around with her, trying to get her up and running for the day. Clearly, she is not as eager to get up as I am.
The next few days I made many happy memories with Carolin, doing fun things. We started a Words With Friends game in German (which I don’t know how to speak) after I convinced her to download the app to her phone. We tried to recreate the song “Do Re Mi” on the gardens it was filmed on, failing miserably but having a great time. We sat together on the long train rides to and from Austria, playing the board game LIFE on Carolin’s phone. We walked with each other through the Jewish Quarter. We saw the many wonders of the Residenz, a royal palace in Munich, and listened to the audio guides explaining the many treasures within. We ate gelato, each of us trying each other’s flavors, where I discovered a love for lemon gelato. We played on a small teeter-totter at a park, way too tiny for us, and bounced on it for fun, pretending to be kids. We raced each other up a rope structure in another playground, and swung on a pair of swings. We sang “Happy Birthday” to Carolin’s boyfriend Kristoff (on his birthday) with some help from Kaitlin and Tommy. We helped Mom order and collect the food for our lunch at a beer garden. We played Crazy Eights with everyone except Tommy at another beer garden the same day, and laughed at the bad pictures of the food menu I had attempted to take for us. We even fooled around (with Tommy too) with an app on her phone that placed special effects on our faces, making us look different in some weird way. All of this was SO fun, and I cherished every moment, knowing the reunion would soon be over.
Soon, the last morning with Carolin approached. At 6:30 all of us were awakened by the alarm that I had set so Kaitlin could go to Neuschweinstein Castle with Dad. Only Mom, Tommy, and I were going to see Carolin off. Carolin and I played Words With Friends for a while, until Tommy, the sleepy head, had woken up and was ready to go to breakfast. Breakfast was breakfast as usual. It was served at the hotel, and had a nice selection of breakfast items. The four of us talked, about random things, until Mom asked what we should do next. Should we try and see one last historic landmark with Carolin, or should we just hang out together? We decided to stay at the hotel (Hotel Grunswald) on a backyard patio we had found. The rest of the morning was then spent playing Yahtzee, Crazy Eights, and War. I won Yahtzee twice, something I had not done this whole trip. Carolin came in last both times. When we played Crazy Eights, Carolin never won. And when Carolin and I played War, I won. Mom said that it was a sign that Carolin should stay with us instead of heading back home. I wished that that were true. Finally, it was time for us to board a train that would take us to the Central Station, where we would say goodbye to Carolin. Hopefully, this farewell would not be as tearful as the last, since we knew that we would be seeing each other again soon, when she and Kristoff visit us in California this October.
On the train, Mom and Carolin talked, and I tried to listen, but my mind drifted elsewhere. I was thinking about Carolin, and the fun times we just had. I was thinking about the future fun that we would have when she visits us in October. And I was thinking, as I usually do when something truly amazing is about to end, is how time flies. And it really does. It felt like the fun days we had shared were merely hours. Of course they weren’t. But I was just confused. In that moment, everything seemed perfect, but that would not last forever. I hugged Carolin when I thought of that, not even fully aware of what I was was doing, as I usually am when I am deep in thought. I start asking her random questions, randomness a constant theme. I know that soon I will miss this voice, so I listen. Then, one comment that Carolin says sticks out from the rest. She said something like “And once I saw you guys again, it was like I had never left”. I saw the truth in those words. Thinking about it, it was so true yet so far from truth. Everyone had changed between the two year time lapse, but yet we still shared the same love for Carolin. We still wanted her back in our lives. When we saw her again, we quickly started where we had left off, filling in the gaps. She will always be a part of our family. I remember, when she was still our au pair, how I used to daydream about either hiding her in our attic/basement or getting her to marry Tommy, so she could stay with us forever. Now, I realize how childish and immature those daydreams were, but I still want Carolin to stay with us as a part of my family. Sadly, that won’t happen, but that doesn’t mean we can’t visit each other.
One stop before the one we needed to get off at, the train lurched to a complete stop. An announcement was made, saying that our train would be delayed for at least 10 minutes, because a person was thought to be on the train tracks. Just our luck. Maybe it was another sign telling us that Carolin should stay with us. We hopped off the train and called a taxi, getting to the Central Station to say good bye to Carolin. I still felt like I wasn’t ready, like there was so much I wanted to do. I realized I didn’t really have any pictures of her and I together, so we took a selfie together. It’s a great picture, in my opinion. I gave her a big bear hug one last time, before stepping away and watched as she got swallowed by the rampaging crowd all around us. Every so often, we catch a glimpse of her, and I would wave to her, seeing her wave back. Good bye, 3rd parent. See you next time.
Soon, Mom, Tommy, and I had left the train station, the many memories of Carolin, our amazing au pair and dear friend, still swirling in our heads.
Hello! I'm Potter. I am 13 years old and I LOVE anything and everything to do with Harry Potter. I'm a Ravenclaw, and I really enjoy school, especially math, language arts, and history. In my free time (or anytime I’m not doing something), I'm a voracious reader. Anything from fantasy to historical fiction and everything in between. In addition, I'm passionate about acting, singing, and dancing. I can’t WAIT to explore Europe, and try new things with a smile on my face!
2 thoughts on “Reuniting with Carolin”
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I love that you are documenting your trip, especially your feelings about family, friends, and your new adventures.
You are so sweet Mason Angelina!!! So glad Carolin got to join you guys! I wish I could magically fly there and join you too!