German Culture - A Week of the Arts!

This week has definitely been a week of  Culture for myself. I have done things this week that I would normally never choose to do, but have had the opportunity through school, as it was free.

On Tuesdays, I work with the teacher that organizes the theater trips for the students. The German government is pretty supportive of culture, so if you apply, you can get tickets (costing usually about EUR50) for just 5, which includes train travel!

Well, as staff, I go for free (if invited) so when I was, I grabbed the opportunity to with both hands, Using three excuses
1) When in Rome..
2) Its free!
3) Gets me out of the flat for a free night out!

My week's Tickets!

Both productions are in the same place,so im pretty well practiced at getting to the theater now! Which is a nice place:

Frankfurt Shauspielhaus

Thursday was "Faust",


Before the performance , we made use of the time and headed to the Staedel Museum to see "Schwarze Romantic", which is an art exhibition of paintings depicting the dark side of romance. Again, never my first choice (in fact, ever) but it was interesting to see them all. The Museum also plays host to Goethe's most famous painting (which all I know about it, is that he has 2 left feet!)

Goethe in the Roman Campagna

"Faust" is a very old German play, which tells the story of a man who sells his soul to the devil in order to gain ultimate knowledge but renders him eternally dammed. (in sort)
It is all spoken in INCREDIBLY old German, making it difficult for , not just me but also the students to follow..  all in all though, it was a good performance.
I found it tough to keep up..  so much so that I tended to zone out at times and just watch with the background noise!

Friday this week , I worked.   Not that it was a bother, but one of the members of staff were off, and I offered to go in to her older groups and do something useful instead of leaving them trusted.. (cause it never works!)

It was a good day, and I made use of the free coffee in the staff room! :D    It gets me out of the flat for an hour or so and  get some fresh air!

Saturday was the day of the Opera.   I had never been before, so m expectations were all over the place. Those of you that had seen my Facebook will know that I put the status"

"ooohh. Opera tomorrow - a very cultural week.. cant wait for the fat viking lady to show her lungs off! :D"

Well, It wasn't like that. It was different .. the tickets that we had got us brilliant seats, that normally cost about EUR70, without the train..  (not my picture, but definitely taken from where we were sat!)

Frankfurt Opera House

It was, however, a typical Opera.   

Man meets Woman
Woman meets Man
They fall in love

She spends 25 minutes dying...

Standard

I enjoyed it - there were German over titles to translate the Italian, s which made it easier to understand!  So from a language point of view, pretty good!

Saturday was , before the Opera,  a day to rest. I was tired this week, more so than usual - but I think its because I am settled in, enjoying it, and grabbing opportunities Left, right and center!


Aside from that - I hear that the UK is once again enjoying the joys of the weather there..  If you need a swimming kit - there is a spare one at my house- help yourself..  I don't need it here ! :D

Auf Englisch, "Buggered"

Also, I would like to use this opportunity to shout out to the 3 German police officers who gave me 3 hours of entertainment last Monday.  The two for crashing the car into the ditch (baring in mind I live on a dead end I i don't know what they were doing, let alone with the blues on...:/)


So that was my week!!   
Pretty different, Id say...

Till Next time

Mike

Looking ahead, by looking backwards

Exactly this time last month, I was at work, helping children to dip candles, having the prospect of moving to a new country in 3 days weighing me down for the entire shift.

They say that "a lot can happen in a month". Personally, I do not need any more proof that this saying is true.

I personally believe that I haven't been this happy for a fair time - and that's not to say I haven't been happy, just not this happy!  (:D smiley face to prove the point...)

Though it hasn't been long since I last updated my Blog, I thought I would update it today anyway!

Last week at school was brilliant! I think it was because I have found my feet, know where everything is , I have visited all of my classes now and I am beginning to have friends that I don't think I will ever lose contact with.

Monday was the same old - I have 2 lessons on a Monday - and one of them is with the teacher I stayed with for the few days, so it is always good! The other is with the 9th Grade - who are MENTAL - but in a good way!

Tuesday, my busiest day is always good - there is one lesson particularly that I look forward to, for no other reason but there is one lesson that is always a learning experience!  its mental - and the other staff that I am friendly always laugh (both hysterically and awkwardly) when I tell them about it - but I think it is great - because it is always different! (both meanings of the word!)
Wednesdays are good to - I have my own class that i teach - they don't know it yet but we are watching the Simpsons in English next week!

I enjoy Thursdays because I teach the FCE class - who tend to be very good, but lack confidence! - so i bribe them to talk with sweets!
This Thursday in particular enjoyed too - I went to a colleagues' house for a bit of a social night - we had a few beers, played some games and had a great chat!!   I had a brilliant night - and it was a great chance to learn more about the school and the systems in Germany!

Friday, I do nothing usually. Its my day off, so I normally use it to prepare for the week ahead , because then I have the weekend free! I went to get my bank card and PIN though this week - and since then keep repeating my pin under my breath so I don't forget it when I got o change it! (cause I will!)

Then, Yesterday...   Yesterday!
Its the start of the Oktoberfest season here - so everything turn Bayerisch for the period - EVERYTHING!
typical Bayerisch music, typical Bayerisch food and of course, Typical Bayerisch Beer!*

*German beer is deceptive - the bottle may say 5%, yes - but its a German 5% - which can be anything up to 3x the strength of the UK 5%, depending on which beer you buy!

I was in Fulda during the day with 2 other FSAs - we had a nice day just walking around - and I appreciated the time to speak English! - After that, I met up with 4 other of the Younger Colleagues from school, for a night that was described as "a few drinks"

well - first - they taught me about German beer - not that I am complaining - it was really interesting, and now i know what I will be ordering , and can sample some of the other wears here - instead of "eine Flasche Becks, bitte!"  I started with a bottle of becks and one of the members of staff looked at me , apused and shook his head.  He said "Eugh, you're definitely English aren't you!"(in a jokey way)  and then declared it was his round...



OH..  Dear...

It was the size of my Face and it could, on hot days, be used as a swimming pool!

and to give you the full picture...

This was that member of staff!

For someone who doesn't drink much this was an adventure...and remember the point about percentages..  this was a , quote from the bar lady:- "Timid"  12% - by German standards!   FAIL!

The other great thing was that these members of staff did not teach English, so I had to go the whole night Speaking German - and as EVERY person learning a language will know  - its always "better"  (NOT)  when you have had a few ...  

Finally - we ended up in a nightclub in Schlüchtern. - yes, there is a nightclub here..

If you can define it as that - its a basement club with about 2 lights that flash alternately, and the DJ is one of the bar staff that has nothing to do - quite good though, you can order a pint and a song!

We were the only people really dancing. and we only really danced to the English songs so DJ barlady was playing to our liking!!  awesome!

One thing that hit me though is that - not a single person seemed drunk- which was nice!  sure - everyone had  had a bevvy or two - but nothing like the collapsing sacks of shit you get in the English night clubs - no vomit to slip in , nothing!


So the last week has been great - and if the last few weeks set the tone for the entire trip - I really will have a great year this year!

got to head off now though - im off to top my week off with a daily dose for Formula 1!

Typical Tourism!

Moin Moin!

Well, I thought I would update you all since the last few days have been pretty busy!

Well, Friday I was invited on a school trip with the 7th Grade to Frankfurt Zoo!   It is the second oldest Zoo in Germany and has a serious breeding program for rare and endangered animals.

There are some odd things about it..     1st - it is right slap bang in the middle of the city center. it is really odd looking at a rare frog or flamingo and finding that the ICE train to Berlin is flying past next to you! the second is that - there are very few fences!  some animals obviously need it - bird etc - but for most, they just have a moat between you and them - weird!!

The animals all seem happy though and they interact with the guests really well, like these little guys...

The monkey chasing a finger

The new Baby seal playing against the window

The zoo was a really good day - German children are the most difficult to understand because they talk fast, and with loads of colloquial words in their language too...it meant that I could really get to know the class - and everyday German!!     it ended up with the German kids telling me the words in German, and then me telling them in English!!
apart from that - it gave me the chance to see Frankfurt - and it is BIG.

But that was Friday - Saturday i got up and decided to go to Fulda on a day trip.  Armed with my camera I left at 9:30 and was there for 10 - I had a look around, took 3 pics and was on the train back to Frankfurt by 13:30.   I had decided to go and scope the place out - having enjoyed it on Friday - and it is HUGE!

I walked down the main shopping street - which if you don't know what you are looking for and where it is can take you about 3 days anyway! or a full calendar month for ladies!
I found (but didn't do this time) a skyscraper with a viewing platform at 200 Storys - so , one for the future.

Frankfurt has the label of being a very financial and ugly city, but it is very much a city of two halves..
I went see the Rathaus - which is really nice - it is like walking from a massive modern city into a typical German town. all around one square, umpa band, leather trousers..you know the drill..  the Rathaus is impressive anyhow...

Rathaus Frankfurt

The Rathaus is in a square, near to loads of churches and a cathedral.  Its actually a really great place and there are loads of resteurants around it with outdoor seating too!

German Band, Leather Trouders!

Having eaten an Ice cream and loved the Umpa band, I headed towards a shopping center that had a viewing gallery...   didn't want shopping, just wanted this...

Frankfurt Skyline

 Its pretty Special..
So it pretty much has everything.

The highlight of the day for me came at about 5:30PM, when i bit the bullet and went on the boat trip.

EUR 6 for 50 mins,  EUR 8 for 100mins..  cheap as chips!
the 100 mins wasn't running, due to the time of day, but the 50 mins I has were brilliant!

It gives you an opportunity to see the city from the river, and get pictures like this...

The Frankfurt Skyline and a Setting Sun

 yeah, im pretty impressed with that photo!
these were also boats like these (left)  they are like dinghies but they have an umbrella, a small motor and a BBQ in the middle - you can rent them!

I want one!!  :D





on the way home I bumped into an Irish bad - I 'Fell' inside and had a nice chat with an Irish bloke Called Anthony - cheers for the Pint, mate!

So - that was my weekend!!  awesome!!

today I have spend chilling, and eating eggy soldiers !
Bliss!!

anyway...

In a bit, Beef!

Where did the weeks go... ?

I have now been in Germany for nearly 2 weeks!

It is flying by!

I have had a great week this week. I have been teaching and chilling on an almost perfect balance! :D
some of the lessons weren't running because they pupils were away on a trip, so I got to relax in the staff room and learn the ropes of the Cambridge English exams!

It is easy to tell that I both new and only here for a year. Some of the staff have take to me to bitch about others and tell me all the staff room secrets!      Im never going to repeat them, but my god some of them are funny!  
There are some lovely members of staff, constantly looking for a way to help me or and excuse to take me to the next restaurant. I sometimes feel a bit odd though - cause they always sneak off and pay, and when i offer them my part of the bill they run off..!!   it does mean i have eaten some seriously nice food though!

Monday was an interesting day too. My first full day in the school and I was invited to Lehrersport.  I think i have mentioned this before... but to summarize and emphasize - it was odd.  I went along for a nice chilled game of volleyball...  it WASN'T   it was waaay too serious..   I t was almost like the games we played were world cup qualifiers!  they even kept saying "i saw this move in the Olympics, so i want to try"   or /"i saw that in the Olympics, its wrong!"    I watched the Volleyball in the olympics too..  but it was brasil vs spain in the womens.. and somehow.. the game wasn't the most important thing in my life! :D     don't think that argument would work here!!

This is now a banned sport

to prove to you how bad it was - i didn't serve properly the first time (it didn't make the net) and i was MADE to practice against the wall for 10 minutes..

NO VOLLEYBALL NEXT WEEK!

Today though.. today is a good day..
apart from mulling over an invitation to go skiing in January with the school, I am really excited - because my TV guide comes into date today!
I bought the thing last week - got it home and then realized that it is was for the next week..   so that is one amazing feature of today!
The other is that i am going to head into Schlüchtern and get some snaps to show the 'rents back home.  its a nice place, but there are no tourists really..  so i cant buy a bloody postcard anywhere!!   it been impossible!

Apart from that - it is F1 day!!  (free to view - unlike the UK!)    and tomorrow I am off to a birthday party!
not the type of birthday party that i can go have a beer at though - its a 8th Birthday party!        when I stayed at the collegues house last week, the lad made me promise that i would go..  so Im going..   Its in a forest, so for a scout, no bother!

Speaking of Scouts - im beginning to miss Monday night madness!!    The nearest registered scout group near here is about 1/2 hour away by train..    which is a little bit too far and too expensive for me to do...     so im gonna leave it!

The beer garden on Schlüchtern High Street

This weekend is 28 deg. C   .. so im going to go sit in the pub's beer garden and enjoy the sun!

turrah all!!

Schlüchtern, and all that comes with it!

The school building in Schlüchtern

So ...
I have been here now for a fair few days.I know my way around and its becoming more like home!
the weather is awesome at the moment, and I would love to go the the Freibad (or outdoor pool) but i still need to get some decent swimming shorts!

Anyway - as i said - im now in my accommodation. Its best described as "everything I need"     not that it is bad  its clean, tidy and quiet .   It is typical German 'its meant for living in and nothing else'   so i have added a few things and I can now happily call it home! :D

Working at the school is great. My classes are all easy and all seem to think quite highly of me - with one quote from a boy yesterday being "you and your lessons are way better than our boring ones!"   which was nice - I have however so far managed to do 12 lessons of introducing myself, explaining what i do and where i am from and why i am in Germany...

Never mind!

I asked an 8th grade class what the best thing to do in Schlüchtern would be.

Well - according to the course it would be difficult to get some classes to talk -i hadn't had this problem until i asked this question - when they all looked at each other, paused and almost simultaneously shrugged their shoulders.   Then a lad perked up some courage and said

 "if you get the 95 bus there is a Mcdonalds"

My response was "thank you for the suggestion!"   which i though was a suitably subtle and very British was of saying .. "no"

The staff are of mixed sorts.
some are really friendly- they help in any way possible
some are not friendly - and don't even say hello!

All of the English staff that i have encountered though are great.
Friendly , helpful and always willing to help me with my German as well as the students with their English.
I have played Simon says, talked about football in Germany and practically understood to kill a mockingbird! brilliant!
I go to Lehrsport - which is basically sport for teachers - its in the evening and it helps to make friends and get to know people

My German is definitely improving..  i can hold incredibly long conversations now before i have to ask a word or i am corrected- which is great . the TV has loads of English programs with a voice over . There is also an annoying burger king advert ..     its just..  annoying!     but for those of you in Germany - its the one where it goes   "mit großen Pommes und großen soft drink"       argh!

anyway - enough babbling for now!

Turrah!

Here , and Loving it!

Well – I have now been In Germany for (about) 5 days. I can’t remember the exact number, because I have been too excited and too busy to pay too much attention!

First – the course…

Well – as a course on the whole, not too amazing.

On a personal level, and as someone who has some teaching practice, it was very much teaching a granny to suck eggs. But for those who had never done anything like this, I can imagine that it was pretty useful!

The two full days basically went along the lines of

-          Wake up at about 7:30

-          Have a cheese sandwich for breakfast (continental breakfasts are weird!)

-          Lessons ‘till 12:30, when you have your main meal

-          Lessons till 6:30, when you have what we would normally have for lunch in the UK

-          Then , a piss up*

*we were staying in a former monastery that is attached to a cathedral. Normally alcohol is not allowed on the premises at all, but they make an exception for the British council Fremdsprachassistanten, so that they can (and I quote) “get a taste of German life”

Not only did they provide beer that was strong enough to put hairs on your teeth, but they also put a break in the day at 3PM, for coffee and cake – so not too German then!

the pictures show the building we were in, and the cathedral - to show you that i ws actually a really nice place!

 

The course has another side to it though – the ability to meet new people. Everyone’s in the same boat. And (though I can’t speak for previous years) there was not a single bad person there. Not a single person that you wanted to keep away from.  The tutors are exactly the same – not all of it is in English – they are more pissed than the ‘students’ and they really do want what is best for you.

I do have to put in a shout for a guy called Günter Jakob. He is the ‘big cheese’ (much like the majority of my breakfast) but he really is a sound guy – a good sense of humour , but definitely there to make Germany your home for the next few months – absolutely great fella!

the last day was interesting though – we HAD to be awake at 5:50 pünktlich, which for those who don’t speak German, means “exactly” or “on the dot”. We had to tidy the rooms, get sorted, have breakfast and somehow (after the 3 days of being hammered) get to a bus that would leave Altenberg at 7:30 – tough going!

We were dropped off at Köln HBF (the main station in cologne) and told to make our way to our schools. 

I had about 4 hours travelling in total – and was very impressed when the train I was on said that it was cruising at a somewhat ‘unimpressive’ 300KPH!   I got to Frankfurt which is well qualified in “ways to get a tourist lost” the boarded the regional train for Bad Sondern Samünster. Where I would be staying with a colleague for the next 2 nights.   She has a Husband as well as 2 girls and one boy, ranging in ages from 3-10. (the kids, that is!)

Well – they are lovely!   A really nice family that have made me feel INCREDIBLY welcome!  We have been shopping, played in the yard and I have even helped one of them with their English homework! (would be pretty bad of me not to!)    The place they live is a lovely little town that seems very close-nit. All of the locals have said hello and they don’t seem in anyway perturbed by the presence of me (which is nice!)

With the children being young I can almost feel my German get better!     I have learnt new words from helping with the English homework, as it was revision for a vocab test – and I can understand almost all of the TV!  (For those who are interested, there is a guy on ZDF who has really wonky eyes!

On Friday, we went to the school – it’s an old monastery that has (obviously) been converted into a Gymnasium (or school for the brighter german teenagers)    I was introduced to the staff and was shown around briefly. I went to three lessons, those being a german class (which is the equivalent to our English classes and 2 english lessons – one older and one younger.    When I asked one group what you can do in Schlüchtern, they all replied , with not a single moment for thought ; “Mcdonalds” I loved that !

Then – I was given.. THE KEY!    In this particular school, the staff room is always locked and teachers need a key each to get in!  I have mine now and its weird being staff in a school! 

Then, the boy from the family that I’m staying with got good grades at school , we went out for a german version of the donner Kebab, called a Dönner (pronounced ‘dunner’) it was lovely!   The beer was too!

I moved into my flat today  - its very nice , but more about that later!  ...

As you can probably tell, I love it here at the moment – I have a but on contact with dad which is enough to keep me from being homesick without me being pestered (partially because – its dad) It still hasn’t hit me that I am in Germany yet – but I’m sure it will come! – the thing I have to come to terms with now Is the time I start work …

7:30!! 

A long one, but I think I got everything from the last few days!

Tschüss