Kur FAQs

OK, at this point my two devoted blog readers are like, "hey Paige, weren't you supposed to go away for three weeks to work on your parenting skills, and not spend the whole time blogging?" Technically yes, but I would say writing is helpful for processing. Also, if you are considering doing a Kur, and this information helps you, then you're welcome. With that last point in mind, I'm going to do a little FAQs:

I'm still confused, what is a Kur (specifically Mutter-Kind Kur)?

The idea of going to the mountains or sea to recover from illness or a rough patch is nothing new. I read somewhere, but can't seem to fact check now, that the mother-child Kur became more popular after WW2 to give war widows a much needed break. Most Kurs are 3 weeks long.

Our Kur went from a Tuesday to a Tuesday. It seems like kind of a weird time to start, but it worked well because the first short week was kind of crazy with paperwork and getting oriented. After meeting with a psychologist, doctor, and physical therapist some scheduling angels did some magic to give us a schedule for Day 4-11 and then Day 12 -22. As I mentioned before, my schedule was lighter because I skipped the parenting round tables and only exercised once a day because I needed the extra energy for these guys:

Seen here unsuccessfully catching clams. Wrong tools perhaps?

Our second attempt at catching clams was also unsuccessful but we did eat some yummy fish.

In a way it's like you have two weeks where you're in the groove. The final Monday is to meet with the administrators to give an update and feedback. I think the timing makes sense as I read about a study in Finland that showed that vacation enjoyment peaked on Day 8. I also tried to fact check that, but instead found this which reminded me yet again why we live in Europe.

Here's the most important thing you should know...there is childcare here. Most days it runs from 8:30-4:00. Some parents are here to spend more time with their kids, but I was here to work on me, so I used the Kita to its full extent. I did pick-up softball a few days early before the rest of the kids for some Kur scheduled one-on-one "interaction" time and also unofficial one-on-one time. I am so so thankful that the kids were healthy enough to go every day because otherwise it would have been tricky because almost everything is closed here in winter.

Where did you go exactly?

Zingst is a little town on the Baltic Sea, 3.5 hours drive from Berlin, that every German I know has been to at least once. However, none of them or anyone else is here in winter, especially a corona winter. Their claim to fame is this cool water observation thing that goes down in the water and looks cool when out of the water.

It was closed because confined spaces = not smart. But, I walked out to check it out without the kids because it was windy and those gaps in the railing are big.

The Kur was about 300 meters/yards from the beach and 1.5 km/ 1 mile from the "city center".

Ok, so your health insurance sent you on vacation?

Yes and No. Yes because childcare is provided. If you need to relax, you need childcare. Also, the childcare is top notch here, they have so many kids every three weeks but manage to keep kids happy. Also, the school age kids have homework help for 1.5 hours a day. I'll be catching Crosby up with his missed assignments when we're back in Berlin while he's quarantining in our friend Val's apartment during his winter break. (Unfortunately, we didn't get that second vaccine in time to skip the AZ and Berlin quarantine.) But no it's not vacation, in that we came here with the purpose of me getting my whits about me (see previous posts).

How is the food?

Good. We had a designated table and meal times to keep the crowds down at the buffets. The kids had to wait at the tables while the parents got food to "avoid little fingers in the liverwurst". We got a cozy little booth.

Yes, we are the only people who have at least one kid on our laps at every meal. We take our snuggles where we can get them.

Because a lot of folks are trying to get "healthier", there was always a salad bar. Because it's Germany, there were always cold cuts for breakfast and dinner. Dinner was "Abendbrot" which means basically bread with meat and cheese. Sometimes the Kitchen would add a soup or sausages but in general PB^2 were still hungry afterwards. Lunch was a hot meal - an adult omnivore version of Kita food. Also, lots of fish which was thematic and delicious. There was sometimes dessert, especially cake on Sunday lunch with to-go plates for afternoon coffee and cake. 

Chocolate pudding = always good. It is even better when I did nothing to prepare it or clean-up after.

How are the accommodations? 

Because we have a "big" family, we got a sweet set-up with one bunk room, one parent room, and TWO bathrooms. During non-corona times there are shared kitchens and some common spaces, but alas we were mostly in our rooms or outside when not doing Kur activities. The cleaning ladies are on point, its cleaner than many "nice" hotels we've stayed in. The Kur director said they got a big grant to upgrade the buildings but corona has made that tricky.

The packing list suggested bringing pillows, but our car did not allow. Wow, if someone says maybe you should bring a pillow - bring a pillow. These bags of cotton balls took what could be a 4 star (maybe generous) to a 3. But hey, not a vacation right? 

Who can come with you?

This Kur allowed you to bring an adult to accompany you. I would say the make-up was 1/5 parents with their twins, 1/5 one parent with twins, 1/5 two parents with kids, 1/5 one parent with an only child, and 1/5 one parent with one child (the other children stayed at home with a partner). It was really nice to have Paul here at the beginning but thankfully we also had people we could hang with once he left.

Hugo's highlight: Pizza party adventure with his Kur Kita friend Paul (who I think looks like my Paul as a kid)

What were the corona rules?

We had to get a PCR test 48 hours before arrival and quarantine overnight until we got the results in the morning. We had to take a rapid test before leaving our house to drive here, and then another rapid test once we arrived. Ten days in we all had appointments at the "nurses station" for corona tests. Every morning we would get our temperature tested and get our new mask, and throw away our old, for the day. The masks were the standard medical mask which aren't as safe as a KN95 but you can also breath while exercising.

When can you do it again?

You can apply for a Kur every four years. If you have two German speaking parents you could just accompany the other person and do it every two. But, if you don't speak German, this would be of much less value, even though they have brochures here about the facility in other languages. 

How do I sign-up?

I first went to my doctor who then sent me to a Kur consultant. The consultant gave me some paperwork to fill out (shocker) that described why we wanted to go on a Kur. I then gave this paperwork to our GP (because he didn't really know us that well so it was helpful context). We met with the GP to get blood work and then he gave us a "prescription". We then submitted the completed application and prescription to our Kur consultant who sent it to our insurance. 

A few weeks later we got a letter in the mail from our health insurance saying my application was approved by Paul's was denied. (Which worked out just fine in the end.) I poked around on the internet looking at Kur locations but in the end we just jumped on this one when our Kur consultant called us. The whole process took three months because we had a lot going on and I'm a very slow essay writer in German.

How do I know if a Kur is right for me?

How could it not be right for you? I think on every application you could just write "Surviving Corona" and everyone knows we all need a break.