Resident Registration Form, Munich, Germany, 20th November 1990

 Resident Registration Form, Munich, Germany, 20th November 1990

Back of form

Commentary, 4th January 2012: I'm not positive, but I think this form is the form I had to fill out to de-register as a resident... either that or I had to re-register as a resident again... my German fails almost as much as my memory.

Application for a Work Permit (Extension), Munich, Germany, 2nd November 1990

Application for a Work Permit (Extension), Munich, Germany, 2nd November 1990

Back side

4th January 2012: So I liked Germany so much, and was enjoying my work as a cleaning lady at a hospital so much, that I requested an extension of my work visa.  Okay, truthfully, the money was good and really needed for my further travels - the Deutschmark had risen quite a bit in value against the dollar, in reaction to Iraq invading Kuwait in August, 1990, so my DMs went a lot farther than my dwindling supply of US dollars.  So I went to the local authorities and requested my student work permit be extended for another three months.  This was met with some resistance, as they couldn't understand why I wanted to work when I should be attending classes - it was the Fall term, after all! To be honest, I'm still not entirely sure how I convinced them to extend my work permit, but the new company I was working for (Die Münchner Heinzelmännchen) did some magic and got me approved.

Postcard, Prague, Czechoslovakia, 10th September 1990

Postcard from me to my family, Prague, Czechoslovakia, dated 10th September 1990, postmarked Prague 11th September, 1990

Transcription:
10 Sept. 90
Back to Munich on the 12th - I'll call you then
Prague has some of the most beautiful buildings I've ever seen! It was not bombed during WW I & II, so has stayed intact far better than other European cities. Everything here is real cheap - but not much selection! That's Eastern Europe for you!
Love, Laura

Hand-stamped Leather Billfold, Budapest, Hungary, 1990

Hand-stamped leather billfold from Budapest, Hungary, 1990.

3rd January 2012: This little billfold is one of my all-time favorite souvenirs, in that it is one of those rarities: a souvenir that can be used in day-to-day life, not one that simply gathers dust on a shelf somewhere! I used this billfold daily from when I purchased it from a street-vendor near the Magrit Bridge for the equivalent of US$1.00 up until late 2009, when I finally retired it to my scrapbooks.

Postcard, Budapest, Hungary, 6th September 1990

Postcard from me to my family, from Budapest, Hungary. Dated 6th September 1990. Postmark unreadable, but pretty sure I mailed it from Budapest within day or so of writing it.

Transcription:
6 Sept. 90
Hello Gang! Greetings from Budapest, Hungary! What a cheap country! 3-course meal in fancy restaurant $4! This bridge is across the Danube river - real pretty - we're eating out & shopping every day - went to a neat laser-light show -
Love, Laura

Postcard, Vienna, Austria, 2nd September 1990

Postcard, Vienna, Austria, written 2nd September 1990, postmarked in Prague, Czechoslovakia 

Transcription:
2 Sept. 90 (Austria)
I (heart) Vienna!!!!
Unfortunately it's very expensive! But we (me & 2 Irish girls) are only here for 2 days! Saw a wonderful monument to Mozart - next visit here I'll go to the horses, we don't have time this visit -
Love Laura

Commentary, 2nd January 2012: The horses I refer to here are the Lipizzaner Stallions, which my father highly recommended I see - he really enjoyed them when he was in Europe in 1980.  The reason this postcard was mailed from Czechoslovakia is because thanks to the exchange rate, postage was MUCH cheaper there than in Austria (or most any other Western European country at the time).  

Application for a Work Permit, Munich, Germany, 24th July 1990

Application for a Work Permit, Munich, Germany, 24th July 1990

4th January 2012: Some of the friends I'd made during my travels in Europe informed me that as long as I was age 26 or under, I could get a seasonal student work visa in Germany.  Typically these work permits were intended for students to work during the summer months; as I had the STA student travel card and was under student "age," that qualified me to receive a work visa.  Of course, I had to have a job first - ya, real fun, gotta have a job to apply for a work permit, but can't get a job without a work permit!  Through the traveling crowd's grapevine, however, I did find that a local cleaning company (Central Reinigungs Anstalt) hired transients err students and would provide the necessary paperwork for acquiring the work permit.  In other words, they sponsored people for work permits willing to work at rates far lower than the locals for jobs nobody wanted... sound familiar? I got the job and was assigned to a hospital, where I mopped floors and cleaned the nurse's station and break rooms, for 11.58DM an hour (DM = Deutschmark, at the time, about US$7.14 an hour - which when you take into consideration inflation etc., is equivalent to around $12.40 an hour in 2012.  I'm such a geek...)

Resident Registration Form, Munich, Germany, 16th July 1990

 Resident Registration Form, Munich, Germany, 16th July 1990

Back of form

Commentary, 4th January 2012: Of course, it's not enough that I had to find a job, get a work visa, get a health certificate, I also have to register as a resident with the local town authorities...basically a form that says who I am and that I live here.  Back side of form basically says that within two weeks, the resident authorities will send confirmation to my employer that I live here.

New Employee Paperwork, Munich, Germany, July 1990

New Employee Questionnaire, Central Reinigungs Anstalt, Munich, Germany, July 1990

Employment Agreement, Central Reinigungs Anstalt. Love the "Liebe Mitarbelter" line - "We love our employees" is what it basically translates to! July, 1990

Of course, I had to go to the local health authority to get tested for TB and basic general health before I could work in the hospital or the kitchens.  CRA paid the 113.80DM for the TB test. July, 1990

4th January 2012: Of course, as is true of any new job, you've got lots of forms to fill out and employment agreements to sign...

The Famed "Nessie" passing Castle Urouhart
Postcard mailed from Edinburgh, Scotland, postmarked 13 June 1990

Postcard from me to my family, sent from Edinburgh, Scotland, written 10th June 1990, postmarked 13th June, 1990

Transcription:

18 Eglington Crescent

Edinburgh, Scotland

EH12 5DD

10 June 1990

Hello! This hostel I'm at is so much fun - the people are nuts! We've been doing crazy things like wood sword-fighting on the roof & chair "bagpipe" concerts - also touristy stuff like going to the castle here, & museums. My "boss" is 19 years going on 6 - also 2 Australians a French & Canadian girl - too! & me - we're all progressively reducing our behavior in age! But its so fun! 

Lots of love,

Laura

P.S. I'll be here until the end of June - then Ireland or France haven't decided yet!

Diary: Overton, United Kingdom, 1st May 1990

Rode to Winchester
May 1
Neat old mill house w/river going under it! Warden actually came into the rooms ringing a school bell saying "8 AM - time to get up!"
Suzanne - Canadian girl, spent 3 months in Israel - very cool girl! Tall, brunette - pretty & fun.
Colin - Aussie - 30 years old - I liked him! He was neat, too!
Richard S - Was living in Fishguard, Wales - graduate of Cambridge

Diary: Overton, United Kingdom, 30 April 1990

Day spent in Overton
April 30
Nice! Fed ducks at the riverside, a pint at Red Lion Inn/Pub.
Warden let me back into Hostel at 4 PM
While working on attempting to fix rear wheel (out of true) I met John & Mike Sietz - 2 Americans riding around for 2 weeks
Also, French couple, + 2 Englishmen
John & I went to Pub (Red Lion) told me about sheet metal shop he works in, etc.