Last 3 weeks - week one.

Ok, I got a few comments requesting more info of whats going on over here so I am trying to do that now. It jut seems like I "wake" up every so often and go...what day is it? What am I doing? Why are my feet cold? Then I remember we have been here for 8-9 months! Its Berlin, its November.

Here is the story of our last 3 weeks broken down.
Week 1:
Start the tiny Violin.....
We walked into our house to see our sink was overflowing.
So I thought, ok no big deal, I'll just get a plunger and were good to go!
Well... I bought a plunger..... and after about an hour of plunging I thought ....hmmm maybe something bigger? So I asked the hardware guy and he said to get this water shooter thing. Looks like a big water gun with the plunger thing on the end.........no workie........so at this point we leave for lunch (since our pans and dishes are all contaminated) and when we come back we see our sink had overflowed with our washing machine water, which we had started before we left for lunch. Again Im thinking no big deal, I just need a roto rooter thing and were good to go. Back to the hardware store I go. They have 1m 5m and 10m long ones. Im already upset about spending like 20eu on the other things so I get the 5m long one. Well...nothing happens.
It is at this time we notice our sink is filling up with water and we have nothing turned on!.....Aha! Its the water from the upstairs apartments! All their washing machine and sink water is flowing into my silverware drawer. Its not my pipe, its the main pipe backing up in my sink! So up we go to ask everyone to please stop using their kitchens and washing machines until we can get the maintenance guy here to fix it. Our neighbors help us make the calls needed and promised to stop using their water. We put notes on everyones doors to warn them. And then it was night.
The next day I wake up to the sounds of water....I think......Kates in the shower.....then I think...maybe not? “Kate, are you in the shower?” “No!” Crud....I jump up and grab the bucket and go at it again..and again...... I had to stand guard with a bucket to run back and forth to the toilet until the guy got here.
Well, he finally shows around 4 I think. Of course he shows up and trys everything I did (they always do that). Then he gets out his POWERED roto rooter....pause...nothing. So he looks at me and I tell him I think its not my sink thats clogged, its down in the big pipes. So down we go to the cellar to find the mysterious pipe....ok so an hour later and many trips to the cellar we figure out which line it is and that there is no way to get into it. Its all giant metal pipes. I asked him can we try one more time under the sink? Well we did and this time he gave it that extra push and Victory! So we had no water for 2 days and the kitchen smelled like sewage for a while and we had to rewash everything but we survived.

Things I learned: I learned a lot about plumbing. Our neighbors are nice. Its best to live on the top floor. Apt insurance is a good idea.