The big family reunion is over!

On Saturday, my bf and I travelled to a big family reunion in the middle of Germany. It was my mother's side of the family: her cousin was celebrating his birthday and had successfully managed to get the whole family together in that in/restaurant run by some of the family members in that tiny village near where my grandmother and my uncle live.

We travelled with the regional trains which was really exhausting: changin trains three times, about six hours of travelling, but it was cheap and my parents paid. One of my youngest sister's trains was late, though which made her two hours late because she couldn't get the trains in the other places where she had to change, either. That happens quite oftne with the "Deutsche Bahn" even though the tickets are extremely expensive.

In some way, I felt like a freak at first. I used to be lively and outgoing as a child, but these days, I become so shy I just don't dare to walk up to someone and start talking to them - neither does my dad or my bf. Actually, my whole family is a little more quiet and only my youngest sister can just walk up to people and talk to them. And then the younger relatives came in, our 2nd degree cousins. Two young women, one 27, one 29, and later two other young women, 17 and 21 and the 17-year old's brother, 21 as well. They walked in there, lively, loud, getting everyone's attention, everyone's interest. My bf and I were almost ignored at first and just kept sitting there and I think two of my sisters and my one sister's fiancé were not doing much better. We're not like that, we're not people who walk into a room and get everyone's attention. I'm quite happy to be left alone, too many people just stress me out and I get confused and anxious and basically just want to leave. Plus, there were two male dogs: my family's dog and another male dog which belongs to my mother's cousin and her family and they were barking at each other like mad.

Later, the young people walked the dogs to a nearby garden where my 27-year old cousing started talking to us and asking us questions which made things a little easier. My bf didn't talk much, though. They tried guessing his age later (early 30s they said), but didn't really say much when it turned out he's 43. They might have been a little freaked-out at the fact that I'm 26 and together with a 43-year old - which, honestly, I don't care about at all. Later they were drinking shots which my sisters, my bf and I were not participating in, either. I like wine and a cocktail every now and then, but I hate drinking shots of liquor. Especially when my parents are watching! ;)

It was past midnight when my parents and two of my sisters and my one sister's fiancé left and it was even later when my uncle drove my grandmother, my youngest sister, my bf and me home to where they live and where we were going to spend the night. At seven in the morning we were woken up by the church bells - the church is next to my grandparents' house. We didn't sleep much and frankly, I was quite glad when we were sitting on the train (25 minutes late - again) which took us north again. My sister got off in the next big city where she had to change trains, my bf and I came home an hour later, completely exhausted and sleep-deprived.

In the end, it was good to see all these people again after years and years, but I'm also glad this family reunion is over. There has never been that much contact, especially between my sisters and me and the young maternal relatives. I don't even know why, maybe lack of interest on both sides. But I don't need to get together again with that many people at once any time soon!