In general, Germans are not good at small talk. Most think it's superficial and say if you don't have something valuable to contribute to the conversation, you shouldn't say anything at all (especially to a stranger). They think it's funny that Americans who call their office always ask, "So, how's the weather in Germany?"
In fact, many Germans view Americans as superficial, not really wanting to build a true relationship, but instead just get the sale (in business anyway). So I have to teach my students (CEOs and the like) how to small talk comfortably, without laughing. I'm not kidding.
A student told me an interesting story yesterday that was a great teaching tool for me. He was in Chicago for a big conference and was waiting for a taxi, as most other conference attendees were also doing. A bunch of folks were hollering out their destination so they could share rides. He heard someone say "anyone going downtown?" so he jumped into a stretch limo with this guy and a few of his colleagues. They immediately started asking where he worked, where he lived and how the weather was there. At first, he was a little taken aback my their intrusion, but he answered and followed along with their stories about being stationed in Germany decades ago and having a grandmother who came to America from Germany. He said the folks just kept talking, asked lots of questions, made jokes and laughed a lot. He finished his story by smiling and saying, "I had never seen the guy before and have never seen him since, but we exchanged business cards hoping to work together someday."
After he told me the story, I asked if he still thought small talk was such a bad thing. He had changed his mind and said he really enjoyed that limo trip downtown, even if no business came from it. He finally understood that small talk has its place.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Should I Say "You" or "You?"
In some languages, there are two different words for "you." Spanish, for example, has "tu" and "usted," and it's sometimes hard for English speakers to know when to use which "you." Unfortunately for me, the German language also has two, "du" (the informal) and "Sie" (the formal - notice the capitalization!).
Relationship distance is very important in German business and colleagues are not encouraged to be friends, so most offices stick with "Sie" when addressing one another, even if they are at an equal status. Who knows, one person may get promoted down the road and become the boss of the other, and you can't switch back to the formal "Sie" after you've made the decision to use the informal "du." That's where it gets weird!
As I learn more German, I must remember both forms, but when I practice my German, it's always with Alfons, friends, children in the neighborhood or in my class where we always use "du." I know the "Sie" form, but my brain immediately goes to the informal when I'm trying to form sentences or questions.
So one day, just before Christmas, I was shopping in a kitchen store with Alfons. We were searching for a nice can opener for his mom. I didn't know the word for can opener, so Alfons told me and I agreed to ask someone working in the shop. So I found an older lady and asked "Hast du ein Dosenöffner?" BAD CARA!!! The lady didn't answer my question and immediately raised her voice back at me saying things I couldn't understand...but Alfons could. He jumped in front of me and started talking back to her in German. I really had no idea what was going on (at the time).
When we left the store, I asked Alfons what just happened and he said, "She was really pissed at you because you used "du" instead of "Sie." I thought that was ridiculous since I'm just learning German and she should have known that by my horrible pronunciation. He said that to the woman (during her rant) and she responded, "Well, she needs to tell people her German is bad before she just calls people 'du!'" I couldn't believe she got so upset with me.
A few other bad things had happened that day, so this was the last straw for me and I broke down and cried, right in the mall. I was TRYING to practice my German in a real situation and I thought that was a good thing. I NEVER intended to offend anyone or get yelled at for asking if the store sells can openers.
In fact, I had said "Hast du..." a few times at other places, but the people didn't care. My friends would say "use 'Sie,' Cara," but the person always said it was no big deal and they would praise my elementary German skills. There are still some people who are very traditional, and that mentality includes a social hierarchy where you still speak to your elders more politely than to those your own age.
Well, now I know better and won't make that mistake again. Maybe if they new English, they'd understand there's only one 'you' and I'm not being disrespectful. I'm just learning!
Relationship distance is very important in German business and colleagues are not encouraged to be friends, so most offices stick with "Sie" when addressing one another, even if they are at an equal status. Who knows, one person may get promoted down the road and become the boss of the other, and you can't switch back to the formal "Sie" after you've made the decision to use the informal "du." That's where it gets weird!
As I learn more German, I must remember both forms, but when I practice my German, it's always with Alfons, friends, children in the neighborhood or in my class where we always use "du." I know the "Sie" form, but my brain immediately goes to the informal when I'm trying to form sentences or questions.
So one day, just before Christmas, I was shopping in a kitchen store with Alfons. We were searching for a nice can opener for his mom. I didn't know the word for can opener, so Alfons told me and I agreed to ask someone working in the shop. So I found an older lady and asked "Hast du ein Dosenöffner?" BAD CARA!!! The lady didn't answer my question and immediately raised her voice back at me saying things I couldn't understand...but Alfons could. He jumped in front of me and started talking back to her in German. I really had no idea what was going on (at the time).
When we left the store, I asked Alfons what just happened and he said, "She was really pissed at you because you used "du" instead of "Sie." I thought that was ridiculous since I'm just learning German and she should have known that by my horrible pronunciation. He said that to the woman (during her rant) and she responded, "Well, she needs to tell people her German is bad before she just calls people 'du!'" I couldn't believe she got so upset with me.
A few other bad things had happened that day, so this was the last straw for me and I broke down and cried, right in the mall. I was TRYING to practice my German in a real situation and I thought that was a good thing. I NEVER intended to offend anyone or get yelled at for asking if the store sells can openers.
In fact, I had said "Hast du..." a few times at other places, but the people didn't care. My friends would say "use 'Sie,' Cara," but the person always said it was no big deal and they would praise my elementary German skills. There are still some people who are very traditional, and that mentality includes a social hierarchy where you still speak to your elders more politely than to those your own age.
Well, now I know better and won't make that mistake again. Maybe if they new English, they'd understand there's only one 'you' and I'm not being disrespectful. I'm just learning!
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Eight Months and Counting
Perhaps I should elaborate a bit more on my last post. To be honest, I was so busy that day I didn't have time to sit and put all my thoughts on paper, but I wanted to say something so I wouldn't forget the feeling I had that day.
When I moved from southern Indiana to Indianapolis at age 17, I called Louisville "home." After college, I got a job in Indianapolis and when I bought my house there in 2005, I called Indianapolis "home." While I don't know where life will take me in the future or how long exactly I'll be in Germany, I'm so happy to finally feel more "at home" here...after eight months.
When we landed in Stuttgart eight months ago, I was exhausted from the flight, from all the packing, and from saying goodbye to my dearest friends and family. Arriving in May was both exciting and unbelievably scary at the same time. I was glad to finally make it, but uncertain of what the near future would bring. I had sold my house, my car, my furniture and all but 15 boxes of memories stored in my mom's garage, and I really had no idea what this experience would be like, but I knew it was going to be an adventure!
When we landed in Stuttgart two weeks ago, after a wonderful trip back the Indiana to visit "home," I had a new feeling of comfort, relief and pride. I thought about how far I had come in my first eight months. No, I still don't really speak German, but now I know how to read the settings on the washing machine, I understand where I am allowed to park and for how long, and I have some German friends who like to speak English with me and love when I practice the new German words I learned in my class the night before. These may be little things, but they caused a lot of stress and loneliness in the beginning. Finally, things are falling into place and I'm feeling more "at home" in Germany, which is important since I plan to stay for a while!
I won't lie and say this journey's been easy, but it's really nice to feel so much more comfort and accomplishment now versus when I started this adventure. I still have a long way to go to feel comfortable in new situations and surroundings, but at least my daily routines aren't scary anymore. That's a huge step!
When I moved from southern Indiana to Indianapolis at age 17, I called Louisville "home." After college, I got a job in Indianapolis and when I bought my house there in 2005, I called Indianapolis "home." While I don't know where life will take me in the future or how long exactly I'll be in Germany, I'm so happy to finally feel more "at home" here...after eight months.
When we landed in Stuttgart eight months ago, I was exhausted from the flight, from all the packing, and from saying goodbye to my dearest friends and family. Arriving in May was both exciting and unbelievably scary at the same time. I was glad to finally make it, but uncertain of what the near future would bring. I had sold my house, my car, my furniture and all but 15 boxes of memories stored in my mom's garage, and I really had no idea what this experience would be like, but I knew it was going to be an adventure!
When we landed in Stuttgart two weeks ago, after a wonderful trip back the Indiana to visit "home," I had a new feeling of comfort, relief and pride. I thought about how far I had come in my first eight months. No, I still don't really speak German, but now I know how to read the settings on the washing machine, I understand where I am allowed to park and for how long, and I have some German friends who like to speak English with me and love when I practice the new German words I learned in my class the night before. These may be little things, but they caused a lot of stress and loneliness in the beginning. Finally, things are falling into place and I'm feeling more "at home" in Germany, which is important since I plan to stay for a while!
I won't lie and say this journey's been easy, but it's really nice to feel so much more comfort and accomplishment now versus when I started this adventure. I still have a long way to go to feel comfortable in new situations and surroundings, but at least my daily routines aren't scary anymore. That's a huge step!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Home Sweet Home
This may sound strange, but after going "home" for the holidays, I now have a more comfortable, "at home" feeling in Germany. It's nice to have lots of places to call "home."
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Stupid Jet Lag!
We fly from Indy to Boston from 12:30pm to 3-ish on Friday. We were supposed to leave Boston in route to Paris at 5:20pm, but the plane was delayed two hours to start and then eventually departed about three hours late due to the de-icing process and who knows what. That meant we would be way late for our morning flight from Paris to Stuttgart, which we knew in Boston so they went ahead and booked us on the next flight to Stuttgart at noon (in place of our original 7am flight).
I must remind you that on your way TO the US from Europe you gain six hours, which is no biggie because you fly during the day, watch some movies on the plane, nap a little, then you're excited to arrive so staying up late is no big deal. Flying BACK to Europe from the US is a whole different ballgame. During our three flights, I was expected to get a full night's sleep AND lose six hours of my day.
While sleeping on a plane is typically no trouble for me, this 6 1/2-hour flight from Boston to Paris (where I was supposed to sneak in a long nap) was different.
1. I was tired when we first got on the plane, but I knew they were serving dinner about an hour after take-off AND the movie Toy Story 3 was on, so I felt compelled to stay up and watch it since I had been wanting to see that movie since it premiered. (My mistake!)
2. Then, there was a baby (later learned she was 3-ish) crying for hours a few rows back and while Alfons had fancy noise-canceling headphones on, my foam earphones were not enough to mask the terror.
3. Behind me on the plane was a big guy who every time he wanted to get up or adjust himself in his seat, he would grab my seat and use it to pull himself up! Alfons said I was too nice in not saying something to the guy, but he only did it about once an hour (coincidentally just before I was about to fall asleep), plus the guy spoke Spanish, so I wasn't sure if I should address him in English, German or body language only. I chose none of the above.
4. Finally, I know lots of people think Restless Leg Syndrome is a made-up disease, but my grandma had it, my mom has it once in a while, and I have it...but only on very rare occasions. About two or three times a year, I have this horrible feeling in my legs that is not painful, but ridiculously annoying. It's the feeling that I cannot get comfortable no matter what position I sit or lie in. My feet and legs were not really tingling or throbbing, but there was this strange sensation that kept telling my my brain, "move your legs!"
With all these distractions, sleeping on the Transatlantic flight just wasn't an option. So I slept on a cafe bench in the Paris airport for a while once we arrived.
Unfortunately, it's now Tuesday evening and last night I didn't fall asleep until 4am. I watched TV until 12:30, then tossed and turned in bed all night!!! I suppose the nap on Monday wasn't a good idea, but I'm not feeling so well and didn't have the strength to do anything else yesterday after I taught from 7:30am to noon.
Here's hoping for a good night's sleep tonight...no napping today!
I must remind you that on your way TO the US from Europe you gain six hours, which is no biggie because you fly during the day, watch some movies on the plane, nap a little, then you're excited to arrive so staying up late is no big deal. Flying BACK to Europe from the US is a whole different ballgame. During our three flights, I was expected to get a full night's sleep AND lose six hours of my day.
While sleeping on a plane is typically no trouble for me, this 6 1/2-hour flight from Boston to Paris (where I was supposed to sneak in a long nap) was different.
1. I was tired when we first got on the plane, but I knew they were serving dinner about an hour after take-off AND the movie Toy Story 3 was on, so I felt compelled to stay up and watch it since I had been wanting to see that movie since it premiered. (My mistake!)
2. Then, there was a baby (later learned she was 3-ish) crying for hours a few rows back and while Alfons had fancy noise-canceling headphones on, my foam earphones were not enough to mask the terror.
3. Behind me on the plane was a big guy who every time he wanted to get up or adjust himself in his seat, he would grab my seat and use it to pull himself up! Alfons said I was too nice in not saying something to the guy, but he only did it about once an hour (coincidentally just before I was about to fall asleep), plus the guy spoke Spanish, so I wasn't sure if I should address him in English, German or body language only. I chose none of the above.
4. Finally, I know lots of people think Restless Leg Syndrome is a made-up disease, but my grandma had it, my mom has it once in a while, and I have it...but only on very rare occasions. About two or three times a year, I have this horrible feeling in my legs that is not painful, but ridiculously annoying. It's the feeling that I cannot get comfortable no matter what position I sit or lie in. My feet and legs were not really tingling or throbbing, but there was this strange sensation that kept telling my my brain, "move your legs!"
With all these distractions, sleeping on the Transatlantic flight just wasn't an option. So I slept on a cafe bench in the Paris airport for a while once we arrived.
Unfortunately, it's now Tuesday evening and last night I didn't fall asleep until 4am. I watched TV until 12:30, then tossed and turned in bed all night!!! I suppose the nap on Monday wasn't a good idea, but I'm not feeling so well and didn't have the strength to do anything else yesterday after I taught from 7:30am to noon.
Here's hoping for a good night's sleep tonight...no napping today!
Friday, January 7, 2011
Reverse Culture Shock
In Germany, I can't eavesdrop because my German isn't good enough to understand people. Over time, I've adjusted to quit trying to understand them, so the background conversations became more like white noise to me. But when we arrived in Atlanta's airport for our trip home for the holidays, I could understand every conversation around me and it was like information overload for my brain!
When I am in Germany and I hear English, it jumps out at me and I think, "Americans!" so in Atlanta, my brain kept saying, "Americans, Americans, Americans!!!" It was crazy and took me about two days to adjust back to normal where I didn't really notice background conversations anymore.
When I am in Germany and I hear English, it jumps out at me and I think, "Americans!" so in Atlanta, my brain kept saying, "Americans, Americans, Americans!!!" It was crazy and took me about two days to adjust back to normal where I didn't really notice background conversations anymore.
Monday, December 20, 2010
A Gift from My Students
Today was my last teaching day before the holidays and I was so pleased that one student brought me a chocolate St. Nick and another handed me a small box wrapped with shiny green paper and a nice gold bow on top. The wrapping job wasn't so great, but it was from an older guy so I figured his wife does the wrapping at home and he probably doesn't get much practice. :-)
I must take a minute to tell you that all of my students are VERY different from one another. Some are quiet, others are boisterous. Some are technical, others are artsy. Some are very serious, others are class clowns! Well, the wrapped gift came from one of my jokester students, so before I opened it, I asked, "Is anything going to pop out at me?" He laughed and then said, "no" as if I was accusing him of not being genuine in his gift-giving motive.
So I slowly took off the bow and untaped the gift wrap on the sides to unveil a small cardboard box about 6 inches on each side. There was a lid on top taped shut, so I carefully pulled back the tape to peak inside...and IMMEDIATELY closed the box and taped it shut again! My heart was pounding, after I discovered a live mouse starring back at me with his two beady little eyes!! All I could think was, "Thank goodness I didn't drop the box when I saw him!"
Another girl in class asked what was in the box, so I slid it to her and said, "open it carefully." She had no idea what was in it, but opened the box and wasn't frightened at all. She started talking to the little guy saying how cute he was!
I never forget that the culture here is different from home, so while I assumed the gift was a joke, I couldn't be too sure! The student who gave the mouse to me then told me he had found the mouse this morning, so he decided to catch it and give it to me as a gift (only as a joke I had finally figured out). He asked if I wanted to take the little guy home or if he should let the mouse go outside. I opted for the latter, but took one more look at the little guy before we parted ways.
Oh, how I love my students!!!
I must take a minute to tell you that all of my students are VERY different from one another. Some are quiet, others are boisterous. Some are technical, others are artsy. Some are very serious, others are class clowns! Well, the wrapped gift came from one of my jokester students, so before I opened it, I asked, "Is anything going to pop out at me?" He laughed and then said, "no" as if I was accusing him of not being genuine in his gift-giving motive.
So I slowly took off the bow and untaped the gift wrap on the sides to unveil a small cardboard box about 6 inches on each side. There was a lid on top taped shut, so I carefully pulled back the tape to peak inside...and IMMEDIATELY closed the box and taped it shut again! My heart was pounding, after I discovered a live mouse starring back at me with his two beady little eyes!! All I could think was, "Thank goodness I didn't drop the box when I saw him!"
Another girl in class asked what was in the box, so I slid it to her and said, "open it carefully." She had no idea what was in it, but opened the box and wasn't frightened at all. She started talking to the little guy saying how cute he was!
I never forget that the culture here is different from home, so while I assumed the gift was a joke, I couldn't be too sure! The student who gave the mouse to me then told me he had found the mouse this morning, so he decided to catch it and give it to me as a gift (only as a joke I had finally figured out). He asked if I wanted to take the little guy home or if he should let the mouse go outside. I opted for the latter, but took one more look at the little guy before we parted ways.
Oh, how I love my students!!!
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Could You Open the Window?
We have below freezing temperatures here and yet every day we still open the windows in the morning!
There are very strict construction rules for building houses here in Germany and builders must use the most energy efficient methods and materials possible. Their walls and windows are so thick that nothing, and I mean nothing, can escape through them. That means the humidity in the house is trapped, which is why every day for about 5-10 minutes, we have to open the windows in each room to let the moisture out or else it collects on the window sills in little puddles.
I think America must have the opposite problem because all the homes I lived in there were super dry in the winter. We needed humidifiers and lots of chapstick to make it through the dry months!
It was quite strange adjusting to opening the windows in freezing weather here, but I've learned to throw on a sweater and just get it over with early!
There are very strict construction rules for building houses here in Germany and builders must use the most energy efficient methods and materials possible. Their walls and windows are so thick that nothing, and I mean nothing, can escape through them. That means the humidity in the house is trapped, which is why every day for about 5-10 minutes, we have to open the windows in each room to let the moisture out or else it collects on the window sills in little puddles.
I think America must have the opposite problem because all the homes I lived in there were super dry in the winter. We needed humidifiers and lots of chapstick to make it through the dry months!
It was quite strange adjusting to opening the windows in freezing weather here, but I've learned to throw on a sweater and just get it over with early!
Monday, December 13, 2010
Little Ice Cubes
The Christmas markets are amazing here, but it's been below freezing these past two weeks! Every time we go to one, we stay for two or three hours and by the time we pack up to leave, my toes are like little ice cubes. After the first day of only wearing two little cotton pairs of socks with some leather boots (intended for fall, not winter), I learned to steal Alfons' wool socks when we planned on freezing our butts (and toes) off at another Christmas market. I also invested in some decent, but not outstanding, snow boots that are fuzzy on the inside to help keep my little tootsies warmer. These boots are far better than the other ones at least.
So far, we've been to our little village market, plus bigger ones in Heidelberg, Stuttgart, Tubingen and Herrenberg. We still plan to hit Ludwigsberg and Esslingen before they close too, so I'd better invest in more warm socks and start saving my coins for the hot Kinderpunsch (kid's punch) since I'm not a huge fan of the Gluwein (hot spiced wine) here. (I liked Gluwein in the States, but I think they secretly added sugar!)
Most of the markets here sell the same things in every village (ornaments, gloves, hats, wooden Santas, candles, carved bowls, etc), but we were pleasantly surprised when we visited Tubingen yesterday. It's a college town and is one of our favorite places because the history is amazing and beautiful. It's a very earth friendly place too...lots of bikes, dreadlocks and artists. The booths were awesome with tons of homemade decorations, jewelry and clothes. It was great to finally see some unique gifts and goodies for the house.
And the food is great at EVERY market. The waffles, pretzels, sugar-coated almonds, sauerkraut, wurst, kasespaetzle (cheese noodles), chocolate-covered fruit on a stick, maultauschen (meat ravioli), chili, pumpkin soup...I could go on and on...it's all delicious!
I have an idea!!! Next year, you should come visit in December for the Christmas markets! They're like nothing else in the world and you would love it!
So far, we've been to our little village market, plus bigger ones in Heidelberg, Stuttgart, Tubingen and Herrenberg. We still plan to hit Ludwigsberg and Esslingen before they close too, so I'd better invest in more warm socks and start saving my coins for the hot Kinderpunsch (kid's punch) since I'm not a huge fan of the Gluwein (hot spiced wine) here. (I liked Gluwein in the States, but I think they secretly added sugar!)
Most of the markets here sell the same things in every village (ornaments, gloves, hats, wooden Santas, candles, carved bowls, etc), but we were pleasantly surprised when we visited Tubingen yesterday. It's a college town and is one of our favorite places because the history is amazing and beautiful. It's a very earth friendly place too...lots of bikes, dreadlocks and artists. The booths were awesome with tons of homemade decorations, jewelry and clothes. It was great to finally see some unique gifts and goodies for the house.
And the food is great at EVERY market. The waffles, pretzels, sugar-coated almonds, sauerkraut, wurst, kasespaetzle (cheese noodles), chocolate-covered fruit on a stick, maultauschen (meat ravioli), chili, pumpkin soup...I could go on and on...it's all delicious!
I have an idea!!! Next year, you should come visit in December for the Christmas markets! They're like nothing else in the world and you would love it!
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Weihnachtsmarkt Zeit (Christmas Market Time)
This is the first weekend for most Christmas markets in our area and our tiny little village was having their one-day event today. I wanted to go at 11am to see the kindergarten kids sing songs together and then buy a few small things to support the local schools and sports clubs who had booths at the event. After nearly 50 euros escaped our pockets as we circled the 20 booths about eight times, we decided it was time to go!
Alfons was laughing at me as we walked home because I was SOOOO cold. We had been there nearly two and a half hours in near-freezing weather, so I had to jog slowly in order to feel my toes. I explained to him that Americans have Christmas bizarres, but that they are INDOOR events. Most Americans wouldn't stand for this "outdoor shopping in the snow" thing...not in my area of America anyway!
I'm sure some of you might be thinking, "but the hot spiced wine they serve would help you stay warm." It does, but only for a few minutes. Holding the hot mug in your hands is nice, but after the wine is gone, you have to stand in line again (in the cold) to get another cup and they never serve people fast enough to keep everybody warm!
Alfons was laughing at me as we walked home because I was SOOOO cold. We had been there nearly two and a half hours in near-freezing weather, so I had to jog slowly in order to feel my toes. I explained to him that Americans have Christmas bizarres, but that they are INDOOR events. Most Americans wouldn't stand for this "outdoor shopping in the snow" thing...not in my area of America anyway!
I'm sure some of you might be thinking, "but the hot spiced wine they serve would help you stay warm." It does, but only for a few minutes. Holding the hot mug in your hands is nice, but after the wine is gone, you have to stand in line again (in the cold) to get another cup and they never serve people fast enough to keep everybody warm!
Saturday, November 20, 2010
My 6-Month Check-In
Tuesday, Nov 16 was my 6-month anniversary of arriving in Germany! I thought it would be a good time to share some memories and general thoughts of the transition.
In the beginning, grocery shopping by myself was scary since I didn't know the words for any foods. At least most packaging shows the pictures, right? That was a lifesaver! However, I have lost about 13 pounds since I arrived in May. That's partially because I walk more here...partially because there's no fast food in our village or nearby villages...partially because I'm eating more healthier, fresher foods...partially because the portions aren't ridiculously big here...partially because I live close enough to walk to the grocery and can get fresh stuff every two-three days...partially because Alfons is a good cook so we don't need to go out to eat often...and partially because I decided not to buy ANY crappy food like frozen dinners, meals-in-a-can, and microwave-ready things like I lived on in the States. I usually eat small things throughout the whole day, like applesauce, cheese and crackers, pickles, grapes, or anything else I can find in the pantry. But I haven't given up ice cream! Alfons jokes that my middle name is "ice cream." :-)
Learning to drive was so stressful. I made LOTS of mistakes in the beginning, but thank goodness for other people's defensive driving (and walking)! I drove though some lights I shouldn't have, drove past some pedestrian crosswalks I shouldn't have, and parked in places that weren't allowed. I'm pretty lucky that nothing bad happened those first couple months. Now that I have my official German license and have learned the rules, the roads near our village are much safer for other people!
My German is still not any good, but I can do what I have to do. A couple weeks ago I needed to change a doctor's appointment, so I called and made the change in German! Then, I had to go to the doctor's appointment by myself to get some shots. I was so proud that I went through the process alone and used what little German I knew to get through the situation. That was a pretty big milestone for me!
I can now talk to the little kids in the neighborhood pretty well too. I can at least ask how their day is, if they are having fun, what they're eating for lunch or dinner, what's wrong if they're crying, etc. When I first moved here, all the neighbor kids just looked at me funny when I couldn't understand their German. The moms told them I spoke English, but that's pretty hard to grasp for a 2- or 4-year old, I think. Now they're used to me asking them to repeat things, but I can pick up most of it or just play along, once I know they're telling me about a firetruck they saw or a big tractor that drove past! (I know the words for firetruck and tractor, which helps!)
So, now I'll open the floor for questions. Anyone want to post something they'd like to ask about? :-)
In the beginning, grocery shopping by myself was scary since I didn't know the words for any foods. At least most packaging shows the pictures, right? That was a lifesaver! However, I have lost about 13 pounds since I arrived in May. That's partially because I walk more here...partially because there's no fast food in our village or nearby villages...partially because I'm eating more healthier, fresher foods...partially because the portions aren't ridiculously big here...partially because I live close enough to walk to the grocery and can get fresh stuff every two-three days...partially because Alfons is a good cook so we don't need to go out to eat often...and partially because I decided not to buy ANY crappy food like frozen dinners, meals-in-a-can, and microwave-ready things like I lived on in the States. I usually eat small things throughout the whole day, like applesauce, cheese and crackers, pickles, grapes, or anything else I can find in the pantry. But I haven't given up ice cream! Alfons jokes that my middle name is "ice cream." :-)
Learning to drive was so stressful. I made LOTS of mistakes in the beginning, but thank goodness for other people's defensive driving (and walking)! I drove though some lights I shouldn't have, drove past some pedestrian crosswalks I shouldn't have, and parked in places that weren't allowed. I'm pretty lucky that nothing bad happened those first couple months. Now that I have my official German license and have learned the rules, the roads near our village are much safer for other people!
My German is still not any good, but I can do what I have to do. A couple weeks ago I needed to change a doctor's appointment, so I called and made the change in German! Then, I had to go to the doctor's appointment by myself to get some shots. I was so proud that I went through the process alone and used what little German I knew to get through the situation. That was a pretty big milestone for me!
I can now talk to the little kids in the neighborhood pretty well too. I can at least ask how their day is, if they are having fun, what they're eating for lunch or dinner, what's wrong if they're crying, etc. When I first moved here, all the neighbor kids just looked at me funny when I couldn't understand their German. The moms told them I spoke English, but that's pretty hard to grasp for a 2- or 4-year old, I think. Now they're used to me asking them to repeat things, but I can pick up most of it or just play along, once I know they're telling me about a firetruck they saw or a big tractor that drove past! (I know the words for firetruck and tractor, which helps!)
So, now I'll open the floor for questions. Anyone want to post something they'd like to ask about? :-)
Monday, November 15, 2010
German Driving License Update
My day began with an alarm at 6am, so I could make it to my 7:30 English class, which was 30 minutes away. Because I had my driving test later in the day, I asked to cancel the last of my three classes at that company. Unfortunately, when one student got the message that his 10:30am English class was cancelled, he told ALL my students, so only one person showed up at 7:30. That student said he was very busy at the office anyway, so he suggested I go home and get ready for my one o'clock driving test instead of teaching him that morning. So I did just that.
And by "get ready," I assumed he meant take a nap so you are well-rested for the test, which is what I did. THEN, I got up and studied my 11 pages of notes for a bit and took one last practice test (#16) before driving to the testing center.
Oh, a driving test isn't so hard, you say??? You try learning all the differences of driving in Germany and then tell me it's easy!!!
1) There are no stop signs in villages, so the "right before left" rule ALWAYS applies.
2) There are different parking rules inside of villages vs. outside of villages.
3) Most speed limits here aren't posted, but everyone knows them based on other signs (like when you enter a village, you can't go more than 50km/hr).
4) Germans are extremely environmentally conscious so some of the questions ask how to minimize pollution, decrease fuel consumption and maintain your exhaust system properly.
5) In general, Germans like to judge people. In fact, the answer for some questions concerning someone's behavior is "it creates doubt about his/her character."
6) All Germans are engineers (ok...maybe not all...but many), so there are lots of technical questions about the vehicle's shock absorbers, brakes, wheel suspension-springs, steering axle, transmission (manual and automatic), catalytic converter, etc. And that's all new to me!!!
7) There are lots of traffic signs that are in German with no pictures, so I had to learn differences between a Liefer (delivery) and an Anlieger (resident).
Unfortunately, when I started the test, I didn't know the answer to the first question. My heart sunk! So I "marked" it and moved on to the next question since I could come back later. Thank goodness the second question was in my memory bank and so were the next few. At the end of the 30 questions, I had marked four to return to for a second look. (Note: You can miss up to 10 points, but each question is worth a different number of points from 2-5.) So I counted up the points for the ones I was guessing and if I missed more than two of them, I would fail. But I gave it my best shot and hit the submit button. Out of the 11 people in the room taking the test, I was dead last to finish, but that was okay by me. When the instructor told me to hit the next button on my screen to see my score, I took a deep breathe and said a little prayer. The whole screen was green, which meant I didn't miss ANY!!! WOO HOO!!!!
After the test, I drove straight to the county driving office with my form saying I passed the test and a nice letter Alfons wrote the day before. It said (in German), "I just passed my driving test and tomorrow's the last day I can drive with my American driving license. I would be grateful if you could process this paperwork as quickly as possible so I can get my German driving license soon. Thank you very much." I had been told during my last visit to the county office that the processing would take at least 2-3 days. The lady at the county office read the letter, asked for my passport, then went to the back to get some papers. She came back out and asked me to sign here and here, then asked for my Indiana license. I handed it to her and she handed me my German license. I was in shock! I stuttered, "Uh, can I take this today?" She smiled and said yes. I jumped up and down and said, "Danke, danke, danke, danke!!!!"
And thus, the driving license adventure has come to an end. Thank goodness!
And by "get ready," I assumed he meant take a nap so you are well-rested for the test, which is what I did. THEN, I got up and studied my 11 pages of notes for a bit and took one last practice test (#16) before driving to the testing center.
Oh, a driving test isn't so hard, you say??? You try learning all the differences of driving in Germany and then tell me it's easy!!!
1) There are no stop signs in villages, so the "right before left" rule ALWAYS applies.
2) There are different parking rules inside of villages vs. outside of villages.
3) Most speed limits here aren't posted, but everyone knows them based on other signs (like when you enter a village, you can't go more than 50km/hr).
4) Germans are extremely environmentally conscious so some of the questions ask how to minimize pollution, decrease fuel consumption and maintain your exhaust system properly.
5) In general, Germans like to judge people. In fact, the answer for some questions concerning someone's behavior is "it creates doubt about his/her character."
6) All Germans are engineers (ok...maybe not all...but many), so there are lots of technical questions about the vehicle's shock absorbers, brakes, wheel suspension-springs, steering axle, transmission (manual and automatic), catalytic converter, etc. And that's all new to me!!!
7) There are lots of traffic signs that are in German with no pictures, so I had to learn differences between a Liefer (delivery) and an Anlieger (resident).
Unfortunately, when I started the test, I didn't know the answer to the first question. My heart sunk! So I "marked" it and moved on to the next question since I could come back later. Thank goodness the second question was in my memory bank and so were the next few. At the end of the 30 questions, I had marked four to return to for a second look. (Note: You can miss up to 10 points, but each question is worth a different number of points from 2-5.) So I counted up the points for the ones I was guessing and if I missed more than two of them, I would fail. But I gave it my best shot and hit the submit button. Out of the 11 people in the room taking the test, I was dead last to finish, but that was okay by me. When the instructor told me to hit the next button on my screen to see my score, I took a deep breathe and said a little prayer. The whole screen was green, which meant I didn't miss ANY!!! WOO HOO!!!!
After the test, I drove straight to the county driving office with my form saying I passed the test and a nice letter Alfons wrote the day before. It said (in German), "I just passed my driving test and tomorrow's the last day I can drive with my American driving license. I would be grateful if you could process this paperwork as quickly as possible so I can get my German driving license soon. Thank you very much." I had been told during my last visit to the county office that the processing would take at least 2-3 days. The lady at the county office read the letter, asked for my passport, then went to the back to get some papers. She came back out and asked me to sign here and here, then asked for my Indiana license. I handed it to her and she handed me my German license. I was in shock! I stuttered, "Uh, can I take this today?" She smiled and said yes. I jumped up and down and said, "Danke, danke, danke, danke!!!!"
And thus, the driving license adventure has come to an end. Thank goodness!
Monday, November 8, 2010
My Sister's Birthday Wishes
Thank God for my sister!!!
This past weekend was horrible with tax paperwork problems, a back problem that wouldn't let me walk straight, having to say goodbye to a friend leaving Germany to go back home to the States, and the day I have to give up my US driving license is fast approaching. UGH!
BUT...today's my sister's Birthday and she MUST have sent some of her good wishes my way, because today everything turned around!
I had no back pain when I woke up, my morning classes went very well, and then this afternoon I got some new information about my taxes that may straighten all the weekend problems out! I got all my lesson plan preparations done for Tuesday and Wednesday (way ahead of schedule), and my evening class went great with a student telling me during the break that he really enjoys my teaching style! Then when I got home, I had a message saying my driving license paperwork had been approved (after only 3 weeks) and now I can schedule my written test for Monday (hopefully)! YAY!!!
My license expires on the 16th, so if I pass the test on the first try I can probably get my license by the end of the month, which is way better than closer to Christmas (or worse...after Christmas), which is what I was expecting. This means I may only need the city buses for a few weeks!
So now it's time to study, study, study, because I can't afford to lose two or three weeks due to failing the driving test. There are more than 900 questions to learn and the rules in Germany are not so similar to those in the States. There are no stop signs here, so the car coming from the right always has the right-of-way unless you're on a "priority road." Try retraining your brain for that stuff...no fun!
Anyway...so thanks to my sister for sharing her Birthday wishes with me this year! I hope she received much more than I did today!!! I love you, sis!
This past weekend was horrible with tax paperwork problems, a back problem that wouldn't let me walk straight, having to say goodbye to a friend leaving Germany to go back home to the States, and the day I have to give up my US driving license is fast approaching. UGH!
BUT...today's my sister's Birthday and she MUST have sent some of her good wishes my way, because today everything turned around!
I had no back pain when I woke up, my morning classes went very well, and then this afternoon I got some new information about my taxes that may straighten all the weekend problems out! I got all my lesson plan preparations done for Tuesday and Wednesday (way ahead of schedule), and my evening class went great with a student telling me during the break that he really enjoys my teaching style! Then when I got home, I had a message saying my driving license paperwork had been approved (after only 3 weeks) and now I can schedule my written test for Monday (hopefully)! YAY!!!
My license expires on the 16th, so if I pass the test on the first try I can probably get my license by the end of the month, which is way better than closer to Christmas (or worse...after Christmas), which is what I was expecting. This means I may only need the city buses for a few weeks!
So now it's time to study, study, study, because I can't afford to lose two or three weeks due to failing the driving test. There are more than 900 questions to learn and the rules in Germany are not so similar to those in the States. There are no stop signs here, so the car coming from the right always has the right-of-way unless you're on a "priority road." Try retraining your brain for that stuff...no fun!
Anyway...so thanks to my sister for sharing her Birthday wishes with me this year! I hope she received much more than I did today!!! I love you, sis!
Thursday, November 4, 2010
A Constant Anxiety
Lately I've been feeling a constant, low level of anxiety that won't go away. It's hard to put my finger on exactly where it comes from and why it won't go away, but it's a general sensation of feeling out of my element here in Germany.
Unfortunately, I still haven't learned enough of the language yet to feel confident talking to strangers, whether it's the gas station attendant (no outside credit card pumps), grocery store cashier, clerk at a mall store, or anywhere else. And while I thought the anxiety level would lessen over time, it's actually gotten worse because at first I could just act like a tourist, but now I feel compelled to say as much as I can in German and explain that I am still learning (and not fast enough I might add).
So I mentioned this nagging anxiety to a friend from Ireland and she emailed me some great links about the real definition and diagnosis of culture shock. While most people think of a spontaneous, quick event when they hear the word "shock," this type is actually an ongoing condition and it has multiple phases. It seems I'm through the "honeymoon" or "tourist" phase where everything is fun because it's new and exciting. Now I'm in the "negotiation" phase where "that sense of excitement eventually gives way to new and unpleasant feelings of frustration and anger as I continue to have unfavorable encounters."
I've been here almost six months now and I hope to reach the "adjustment" phase very soon, which typically occurs between the six- and twelve-month time period. For some things, I have reached this level where I feel like the German behavior or expectations are "normal," but for the most part I'm stuck in that previous phase where things are very strange and sometimes offensive.
A big challenge for me is the directness of the German culture. As you know, I'm an overly friendly person and I smile a lot. I would never say "give me that pen." I, like most Americans, am more indirect and say, "If you wouldn't mind, could I please borrow your pen if you're not using it?" That drives the Germans crazy because they think I'm using too many words (and too much time) to request something simple. They aren't offended if you say "give me that pen." That's the norm here, but for me it's still very strange.
So after I read the great articles online about culture shock, I felt much better the rest of the day. I even drove to a friend's house this evening and could feel the difference in my stress level when I was driving. I think driving is when I feel the most anxiety, because I'm still not confident about the driving rules and signs. Maybe after I get my German driving license, that will assure me that I know enough to be safe on the road. We'll see if there's a change at that point.
There are more phases in the culture shock continuum, but maybe I'll come back to those in a few months when I get closer to reaching them. If you're interested in reading a bit more about true culture shock, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_shock.
Unfortunately, I still haven't learned enough of the language yet to feel confident talking to strangers, whether it's the gas station attendant (no outside credit card pumps), grocery store cashier, clerk at a mall store, or anywhere else. And while I thought the anxiety level would lessen over time, it's actually gotten worse because at first I could just act like a tourist, but now I feel compelled to say as much as I can in German and explain that I am still learning (and not fast enough I might add).
So I mentioned this nagging anxiety to a friend from Ireland and she emailed me some great links about the real definition and diagnosis of culture shock. While most people think of a spontaneous, quick event when they hear the word "shock," this type is actually an ongoing condition and it has multiple phases. It seems I'm through the "honeymoon" or "tourist" phase where everything is fun because it's new and exciting. Now I'm in the "negotiation" phase where "that sense of excitement eventually gives way to new and unpleasant feelings of frustration and anger as I continue to have unfavorable encounters."
I've been here almost six months now and I hope to reach the "adjustment" phase very soon, which typically occurs between the six- and twelve-month time period. For some things, I have reached this level where I feel like the German behavior or expectations are "normal," but for the most part I'm stuck in that previous phase where things are very strange and sometimes offensive.
A big challenge for me is the directness of the German culture. As you know, I'm an overly friendly person and I smile a lot. I would never say "give me that pen." I, like most Americans, am more indirect and say, "If you wouldn't mind, could I please borrow your pen if you're not using it?" That drives the Germans crazy because they think I'm using too many words (and too much time) to request something simple. They aren't offended if you say "give me that pen." That's the norm here, but for me it's still very strange.
So after I read the great articles online about culture shock, I felt much better the rest of the day. I even drove to a friend's house this evening and could feel the difference in my stress level when I was driving. I think driving is when I feel the most anxiety, because I'm still not confident about the driving rules and signs. Maybe after I get my German driving license, that will assure me that I know enough to be safe on the road. We'll see if there's a change at that point.
There are more phases in the culture shock continuum, but maybe I'll come back to those in a few months when I get closer to reaching them. If you're interested in reading a bit more about true culture shock, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_shock.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Weekend in Strasbourg France
No time to blog today, but I feel bad that I haven't written anything in a while! I haven't put the photos on my computer yet, but here's a little info about our quick trip to France.
This weekend we went to Strasbourg France, which is just on the other side of the French/German border. That area was part of Germany many years ago and it's a great blend of both cultures. The architecture was beautiful with mostly half-timbered houses that most Americans would mistake for the "English Tudor" style homes. If you google both, you'll see the difference.
The food was amazing! We had great French wine, their version of pizza with no red sauce called Tarte Flambee (the Germans call it flammkuchen), a Cordon Bleu sandwich, crepes, croissants, french bread baguettes, riesling-covered chicken, and more! And while I claim my favorite food is cheese, I now need to add a disclaimer to that, because when we ordered a lovely cheese plate at the first restaurant, I couldn't eat three out of the five cheeses on the plate. They were all soft and I've now learned I'm not such a big fan of most of those.
This weekend we went to Strasbourg France, which is just on the other side of the French/German border. That area was part of Germany many years ago and it's a great blend of both cultures. The architecture was beautiful with mostly half-timbered houses that most Americans would mistake for the "English Tudor" style homes. If you google both, you'll see the difference.
The food was amazing! We had great French wine, their version of pizza with no red sauce called Tarte Flambee (the Germans call it flammkuchen), a Cordon Bleu sandwich, crepes, croissants, french bread baguettes, riesling-covered chicken, and more! And while I claim my favorite food is cheese, I now need to add a disclaimer to that, because when we ordered a lovely cheese plate at the first restaurant, I couldn't eat three out of the five cheeses on the plate. They were all soft and I've now learned I'm not such a big fan of most of those.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
And the Stress Builds
While some people have commented that I'm "leaving a dream" here in Germany, some days are actually a nightmare. I absolutely love being here, but this week has not been so grand and the stress continues to build!
1. You may have read my driving license post last week and here's an update. While I have done everything I could so far to get the needed materials completed as quickly as possible, I found out on Friday morning that there really is NO WAY I'm going to get my license by my November 16 deadline. That means I'm going to have to beg for rides from friends and figure out a way to get around this rural area of SW Germany via public transportation. The local driving office said they have all my materials, but they have to send it to an office in Northern Germany for approval, which takes 3-4 weeks. I heard from someone else that it usually takes 6-8 weeks, and there's nothing I can do to expedite it. I just have to wait!!! To top that off, I heard that 30% of people fail the test the first time, so I'm freaking out because if I don't pass it, I'll have to go at least another 2-3 weeks with no license.
2. I'm starting some new Business English classes soon and one language school I work for has said I'm one of their top trainers right now and they are choosing only the very important clients for me. Sounds good, right? Sure, except I found out on Friday that newest group, which I'm meeting on Tuesday, has had English training for a few years, but they weren't happy with the quality anymore, so now they've hired my language school to take over. I thought that wasn't a big deal, but since the company has always hired their own trainers directly (not through a language school), the HR Manager at the company asked for the training profile of each new trainer. NOT THE RESUME, JUST THE TRAINING PROFILE. I've only been training for four weeks and I have no official certifications for it! My manager said, "We know you're a great trainer, but the HR Manager at the company is very skeptical of your skills because you aren't certified and you don't have much experience. She's going to be in your first class, so please do a really good job and prove her wrong." No pressure there!!! "Oh, and by the way," my manager says, "don't use the books on the first day because we don't want students to write in them in case they want to switch classes, so just do a lesson with no book that day." Lovely.
3. It's getting cold here...very cold...and we're already seeing ice on the cars and roads. Thursday morning there were several accidents in our area due to black ice, which if you didn't already know, scares the crap out of me, because in March 2008, I hit a patch of black ice in Indianapolis and ran into a guard rail. My car and I weren't in too bad of shape, but my nerves when driving in cold weather are totally out of whack now. Every time I see a guard rail, I can picture myself slamming into it! I'm uncontrollably nervous when I have to drive on slightly wet roads and I'm also nervous when I'm riding with other people in those conditions. It's so stupid that I can't get past the anxiety, but it won't go away and I almost feel like it's worse here in Germany because I'm not familiar with my car's handling capabilities and I still have basic nerves every time I drive due to the different driving rules and my assumption that I'm going to do something wrong and have an accident. Plus, since I'm driving Alfons' Yaris, I have the added stress of damaging someone ELSE'S car and not just my own! He assures me that German cars are the best and that we won't slide off the road, but soon after saying that he reminds me to be very careful in the mornings when the temperatures are near freezing. I know I should always be careful when I'm driving, but how am I supposed to not worry? It's an impossible balancing act!!!
4. While it's not a big deal for most people in the States, the Euro/US Dollar currency exchange rate is going crazy and that's a VERY big deal for me right now. Since I'm earning euros here in Germany, it's nice that the exchange rate is high at 1.39 (that means it costs $1.39 to buy 1 euro). But until I get my paychecks, it's not a good thing! This summer the rate was as low at 1.19, which was great because I was living off the US dollars I brought with me from the States. Exchanging those dollars for euros wasn't SO expensive, but now I'm paying a crazy amount for the same one euro! The stress I have today regarding this currency exchange rate is that since I didn't start working until Sept 20, my paychecks in October are very small, so I have to keep pulling money out of my US bank account for expenses. One school I work for pays on the 12th of the next month, but the other school doesn't pay until the 26th of the next month. Today's the 23rd, so I haven't even received my September check from the second school yet and it will only be for two weeks of training anyway! So while I'm working my tail off this month, I'll get a little check (from school #1) on November12th, but my main check (from school #2) won't come until NOVEMBER 26th!!! I thought since I started working in September that the currency exchange rate hike wouldn't be a big deal, but it's a huge deal since I am forced to exchange money until I can get caught up in a month or so.
5. And finally, there's little to no sugar coating here in Germany. As you probably know, most Germans are very direct and that's something that's hard for me to get used to. When I have these stressful situations and my mom's not here to say, "it'll be okay," I have to hear, "that's the way it works here," from my German friends. There's not a lot of, "you can do it" or "hang in there" talk, which is extremely detrimental to my self-confidence right now.
I'm trying to keep a positive attitude and I keep reminding myself that in January, I'll look back and all of these stories will be laughable. Let's hope so anyway...
Note: I am totally aware that many people have far more stress in their lives than I have right now and that I have it REALLY good here in my dream land. But those who follow my blog have said they want to hear the ups and downs of this adventure, and I like use this blog as therapy sometimes as well. :-) So thanks for reading and send some good thoughts my way this week if you have a minute or two.
1. You may have read my driving license post last week and here's an update. While I have done everything I could so far to get the needed materials completed as quickly as possible, I found out on Friday morning that there really is NO WAY I'm going to get my license by my November 16 deadline. That means I'm going to have to beg for rides from friends and figure out a way to get around this rural area of SW Germany via public transportation. The local driving office said they have all my materials, but they have to send it to an office in Northern Germany for approval, which takes 3-4 weeks. I heard from someone else that it usually takes 6-8 weeks, and there's nothing I can do to expedite it. I just have to wait!!! To top that off, I heard that 30% of people fail the test the first time, so I'm freaking out because if I don't pass it, I'll have to go at least another 2-3 weeks with no license.
2. I'm starting some new Business English classes soon and one language school I work for has said I'm one of their top trainers right now and they are choosing only the very important clients for me. Sounds good, right? Sure, except I found out on Friday that newest group, which I'm meeting on Tuesday, has had English training for a few years, but they weren't happy with the quality anymore, so now they've hired my language school to take over. I thought that wasn't a big deal, but since the company has always hired their own trainers directly (not through a language school), the HR Manager at the company asked for the training profile of each new trainer. NOT THE RESUME, JUST THE TRAINING PROFILE. I've only been training for four weeks and I have no official certifications for it! My manager said, "We know you're a great trainer, but the HR Manager at the company is very skeptical of your skills because you aren't certified and you don't have much experience. She's going to be in your first class, so please do a really good job and prove her wrong." No pressure there!!! "Oh, and by the way," my manager says, "don't use the books on the first day because we don't want students to write in them in case they want to switch classes, so just do a lesson with no book that day." Lovely.
3. It's getting cold here...very cold...and we're already seeing ice on the cars and roads. Thursday morning there were several accidents in our area due to black ice, which if you didn't already know, scares the crap out of me, because in March 2008, I hit a patch of black ice in Indianapolis and ran into a guard rail. My car and I weren't in too bad of shape, but my nerves when driving in cold weather are totally out of whack now. Every time I see a guard rail, I can picture myself slamming into it! I'm uncontrollably nervous when I have to drive on slightly wet roads and I'm also nervous when I'm riding with other people in those conditions. It's so stupid that I can't get past the anxiety, but it won't go away and I almost feel like it's worse here in Germany because I'm not familiar with my car's handling capabilities and I still have basic nerves every time I drive due to the different driving rules and my assumption that I'm going to do something wrong and have an accident. Plus, since I'm driving Alfons' Yaris, I have the added stress of damaging someone ELSE'S car and not just my own! He assures me that German cars are the best and that we won't slide off the road, but soon after saying that he reminds me to be very careful in the mornings when the temperatures are near freezing. I know I should always be careful when I'm driving, but how am I supposed to not worry? It's an impossible balancing act!!!
4. While it's not a big deal for most people in the States, the Euro/US Dollar currency exchange rate is going crazy and that's a VERY big deal for me right now. Since I'm earning euros here in Germany, it's nice that the exchange rate is high at 1.39 (that means it costs $1.39 to buy 1 euro). But until I get my paychecks, it's not a good thing! This summer the rate was as low at 1.19, which was great because I was living off the US dollars I brought with me from the States. Exchanging those dollars for euros wasn't SO expensive, but now I'm paying a crazy amount for the same one euro! The stress I have today regarding this currency exchange rate is that since I didn't start working until Sept 20, my paychecks in October are very small, so I have to keep pulling money out of my US bank account for expenses. One school I work for pays on the 12th of the next month, but the other school doesn't pay until the 26th of the next month. Today's the 23rd, so I haven't even received my September check from the second school yet and it will only be for two weeks of training anyway! So while I'm working my tail off this month, I'll get a little check (from school #1) on November12th, but my main check (from school #2) won't come until NOVEMBER 26th!!! I thought since I started working in September that the currency exchange rate hike wouldn't be a big deal, but it's a huge deal since I am forced to exchange money until I can get caught up in a month or so.
5. And finally, there's little to no sugar coating here in Germany. As you probably know, most Germans are very direct and that's something that's hard for me to get used to. When I have these stressful situations and my mom's not here to say, "it'll be okay," I have to hear, "that's the way it works here," from my German friends. There's not a lot of, "you can do it" or "hang in there" talk, which is extremely detrimental to my self-confidence right now.
I'm trying to keep a positive attitude and I keep reminding myself that in January, I'll look back and all of these stories will be laughable. Let's hope so anyway...
Note: I am totally aware that many people have far more stress in their lives than I have right now and that I have it REALLY good here in my dream land. But those who follow my blog have said they want to hear the ups and downs of this adventure, and I like use this blog as therapy sometimes as well. :-) So thanks for reading and send some good thoughts my way this week if you have a minute or two.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Homesick?
I wouldn't call it homesick just yet, but I MISS MY MOM!!!!!!!!
While I wasn't working this summer, I had the luxury of talking to my family (and particularly my mom) nearly anytime I wanted. With my helpful US-based Skype phone number, I can talk to everyone at home for free from 4,500 miles away...nice! The problem is, now I'm working and trying to catch people in the States with this 6-hour time difference is a nightmare!
When I get up in the mornings, everyone's sleeping at home. Then I have to go to work and by the time I get home from work, everyone else is at THEIR work. If I'm lucky, I can catch people at 4 or 5 o'clock their time, just before I go to bed and just after they leave work. But that only happens once or twice a week and some people are still impossible to catch.
Why not call people on the weekends, you ask? Since Alfons works outside Germany during the week, I only have the weekends to spend time with him. I would love to chat with people on Saturdays and Sundays, but usually Alfons and I are out and about, and when we're home, I don't want to spend too much time sitting at my laptop, when I know he'll be gone again on Monday morning!
We just booked our tickets to the States for the holidays and Christmas can't get here soon enough...I need a mother-daughter hug!!!
Important Note: I also miss my dad, sister, niece, extended family and friends....but it's a girl thing to cry for mommy first! :-)
While I wasn't working this summer, I had the luxury of talking to my family (and particularly my mom) nearly anytime I wanted. With my helpful US-based Skype phone number, I can talk to everyone at home for free from 4,500 miles away...nice! The problem is, now I'm working and trying to catch people in the States with this 6-hour time difference is a nightmare!
When I get up in the mornings, everyone's sleeping at home. Then I have to go to work and by the time I get home from work, everyone else is at THEIR work. If I'm lucky, I can catch people at 4 or 5 o'clock their time, just before I go to bed and just after they leave work. But that only happens once or twice a week and some people are still impossible to catch.
Why not call people on the weekends, you ask? Since Alfons works outside Germany during the week, I only have the weekends to spend time with him. I would love to chat with people on Saturdays and Sundays, but usually Alfons and I are out and about, and when we're home, I don't want to spend too much time sitting at my laptop, when I know he'll be gone again on Monday morning!
We just booked our tickets to the States for the holidays and Christmas can't get here soon enough...I need a mother-daughter hug!!!
Important Note: I also miss my dad, sister, niece, extended family and friends....but it's a girl thing to cry for mommy first! :-)
Monday, October 18, 2010
A Few More Things
Here are few more things that take some getting used to here...
Light switches are upside down.
Toilets are tankless and don't touch the ground.
Stoplights turn yellow before going red AND before going green.
Keyboards have the @ symbol on the Q key, not the 2 key.
There are no 4-way stops. Instead the person coming from the right has right-of-way.
Light switches are upside down.
Toilets are tankless and don't touch the ground.
Stoplights turn yellow before going red AND before going green.
Keyboards have the @ symbol on the Q key, not the 2 key.
There are no 4-way stops. Instead the person coming from the right has right-of-way.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
To Drive or Not to Drive
I knew I had six months to transfer my drivers license from an American one to a German one, but until now, I've had more important priorities. I thought it was silly to switch my license before I got my permission to work, because if I wasn't able to work, I would have to go back to the States and wouldn't need a German drivers license. Once I got my permission to work, I was so busy planning the lessons for my 30 hours of teaching each week, that I didn't have time to worry about much else.
Knowing that Nov 16 (my six-month mark) wasn't too far off, Alfons suggested I start studying for the driving test in early September. (My Indiana license only exempts me from the practical, on-road driving test, but not the written one. Thank goodness they offer the written test in English, although I still have to be able to read the German road signs.) So I bought a training CD in mid-September and started to go through the 900+ questions I have to master for the test. I thought studying would be the most time-intensive part, so that's where I stopped...for a bit.
Last week, Alfons suggested I go to the local county driving office to find out how the license transfer process works since he couldn't get any answers online or over the phone. So his sister and I went to the driving office (similar to the BMV) at 7am on Thursday when they opened. Luckily, we were the first ones in line, so we only had to wait a few minutes for the staff to get ready for business, then his sister explained my situation to the worker. While I couldn't understand what they were saying in German, I knew it wasn't good because their body language was not what I wanted to see. After a few minutes of wondering what was happening, his sister finally turned to me and said, there's a lot to do and the lady doesn't think you can get it done in four weeks by Nov 16. :-(
It turned out there were several steps including;
1) Get a paper stamped by the foreign office where I got my residence permit
2) Have my American drivers license translated by a certified translator
3) Return those items to the driving office to wait for an approval to take the written test
4) Schedule the written test (after approval)
5) Take the written test
6) Wait for the results to be returned to the driving office
7) Wait for the driving office to process the results and make my license
8) Pick up license!
The worker at the driving office said each step averages two weeks, and that it would be VERY unlikely that I get my license by the Nov 16 deadline.
While we knew the probable outcome, we wanted to get the process started as soon as we left the driving office that day, so we went across the street to the foreign office, but of course they didn't open until 8:30 and it was only 7:20. Alfons' sister needed to get to work, so she couldn't wait any longer. I suggested we knock on the door just to see if anyone was working early and sure enough, there was someone!!! She wasn't quick to help us, but once we explained that all we needed was a little stamp and five minutes of her time, she obliged. Step 1 complete!!!
Then Alfons' sister called the local auto club that does translations (since the driving office suggested this route), but they said it really would take nearly two weeks to get the translation. About the same time she made that call, I remembered a friend of mine in Stuttgart works for a translation company. Surely they have a "certified translator" for official government documents, I thought. So I contacted my friend that day (Thursday) and she said she could get me what I needed by Wednesday. Hallelujah!!! Step 2 in the works!!!
Sorry to end the story here, but that's as far as we've gotten...
I'm cautiously optimistic that we can expedite this process, although I'm already researching back-up ways to get to my training classes if I don't have a license for a few weeks. While I can work hard to speed up the first few steps of the process, I have no control over the length of time needed for the last few steps and will be at the mercy of the testing place and driving office.
Keep your fingers crossed for me and I'll be sure to post an updated story once the license is in-hand!
Knowing that Nov 16 (my six-month mark) wasn't too far off, Alfons suggested I start studying for the driving test in early September. (My Indiana license only exempts me from the practical, on-road driving test, but not the written one. Thank goodness they offer the written test in English, although I still have to be able to read the German road signs.) So I bought a training CD in mid-September and started to go through the 900+ questions I have to master for the test. I thought studying would be the most time-intensive part, so that's where I stopped...for a bit.
Last week, Alfons suggested I go to the local county driving office to find out how the license transfer process works since he couldn't get any answers online or over the phone. So his sister and I went to the driving office (similar to the BMV) at 7am on Thursday when they opened. Luckily, we were the first ones in line, so we only had to wait a few minutes for the staff to get ready for business, then his sister explained my situation to the worker. While I couldn't understand what they were saying in German, I knew it wasn't good because their body language was not what I wanted to see. After a few minutes of wondering what was happening, his sister finally turned to me and said, there's a lot to do and the lady doesn't think you can get it done in four weeks by Nov 16. :-(
It turned out there were several steps including;
1) Get a paper stamped by the foreign office where I got my residence permit
2) Have my American drivers license translated by a certified translator
3) Return those items to the driving office to wait for an approval to take the written test
4) Schedule the written test (after approval)
5) Take the written test
6) Wait for the results to be returned to the driving office
7) Wait for the driving office to process the results and make my license
8) Pick up license!
The worker at the driving office said each step averages two weeks, and that it would be VERY unlikely that I get my license by the Nov 16 deadline.
While we knew the probable outcome, we wanted to get the process started as soon as we left the driving office that day, so we went across the street to the foreign office, but of course they didn't open until 8:30 and it was only 7:20. Alfons' sister needed to get to work, so she couldn't wait any longer. I suggested we knock on the door just to see if anyone was working early and sure enough, there was someone!!! She wasn't quick to help us, but once we explained that all we needed was a little stamp and five minutes of her time, she obliged. Step 1 complete!!!
Then Alfons' sister called the local auto club that does translations (since the driving office suggested this route), but they said it really would take nearly two weeks to get the translation. About the same time she made that call, I remembered a friend of mine in Stuttgart works for a translation company. Surely they have a "certified translator" for official government documents, I thought. So I contacted my friend that day (Thursday) and she said she could get me what I needed by Wednesday. Hallelujah!!! Step 2 in the works!!!
Sorry to end the story here, but that's as far as we've gotten...
I'm cautiously optimistic that we can expedite this process, although I'm already researching back-up ways to get to my training classes if I don't have a license for a few weeks. While I can work hard to speed up the first few steps of the process, I have no control over the length of time needed for the last few steps and will be at the mercy of the testing place and driving office.
Keep your fingers crossed for me and I'll be sure to post an updated story once the license is in-hand!
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
The Blood Drive
I've always wanted to donate blood, but figured it wasn't going to happen, because whenever I've had simple blood tests done at the doctor (where he only needs a little tube), I've always gotten lightheaded and nearly passed out. I assumed giving a big ol' bag would just do me in!
Alfons, on the other hand, is a pro at giving blood and since he was doing it last week, I thought I should give it a try too. Plus, I had some added motivation because my sister needed blood a couple years ago after a birthing complication and so I felt even more compelled to at least give it a try!
So...last Friday, Alfons and I went to a little community building in a nearby village that was having a Red Cross Blood Drive (or Blood Spend as they say in Germany). I was nervous on the way there thinking of the few times I'd been lightheaded when I gave little bits of blood in the past, so I warned Alfons that I wasn't 100% sure I could do it.
When we arrived, we got the paperwork to sign in (in German of course, which always makes me stressed), then we sat in a hallway where the doctors had little temporary offices to talk one-on-one to each patient. As we sat and waited, I began to recall the event two years ago when my sister needed blood after giving birth to my perfect little niece. Those emotions welled up in me and I couldn't hold back a tear or two. Alfons had no idea why I was crying and just said, "you don't have to give blood if you don't want." I answered, "I WANT to, but it's so scary!"
Alfons and I assumed we could go in to talk to one doctor together (so he could translate), but when the first available doctor said "next," she said only one person could go in at a time. That doctor said she didn't speak English very well, but assumed one of the other doctors would, so Alfons went with her and left me in the hall by myself! My stress level continued to rise as I didn't know what this doctor was going to ask me or even if he/she would speak English very well.
So the next door opened and I went in slowly. "Sprechen Sie Englisch?" I asked. "Oh, a little bit. Come on in and sit down," he said. It turned out that his English was excellent and he had a son living in Boston. He told me all about his son's triplets who are seven and how his son can't visit Europe so much since he only gets a few weeks of vacation time per year (silly Americans!). My visit with that doctor ended up just fine, but I was still super nervous and we hadn't even gone to the room where all the needles and empty bags were!
So Alfons was waiting for me outside and we walked upstairs together. The doctor had told me to drink some Coke before I gave blood because I hadn't drank enough that day yet, so Alfons and I went to the little drink station, poured me a big glass of Coke and sat down for a break. Unfortunately, I don't drink Coke very often and the bubbles made my stomach hurt. That didn't help my nerves any.
After I finished my soda, we walked into the donation room and there were lots of people laying on little cots giving blood and other people over at a table reading the newspaper with their arms held above their heads. I tried not to look at any of the people laying down just in case it would make me woozy, so I walked with Alfons straight over to the nursing table to get my finger pricked. Again, I thought Alfons and I could do that part together so he could translate, but they separated us and the lady who pricked my finger didn't speak English. I didn't mind the prick, but she started talking to me in German, which I couldn't understand, and when I looked over for Alfons' help translating, he was too far away to hear me.
At that moment, I couldn't play strong anymore. I started crying (quietly) and another nurse came over to me and said (in English), "It's okay. You don't have to give blood today. Come back another time." I told them I just needed a few minutes to calm down because I REALLY wanted to give blood, but by that time, they had taken my paperwork away and told Alfons I couldn't give blood because I was too upset. Alfons said they don't want anyone to feel forced to do it, and I understand that, but I just wanted a few minutes to get hold of my nerves and then try again. Unfortunately, that wasn't an option at that point.
Alfons still wanted to give blood while we were there, so the English-speaking nurse suggested I go with him and watch so I know how it works. She showed me how they measure the amount and calculate the time, then let me sit on her nursing stool. That was good, because going through the motions this time will surely ease my nerves for the next try.
After seven and a half minutes, Alfons was done and we walked over to the newspaper reading table. I noticed it was mostly guys and just one girl. I assumed more girls gave blood than guys, but now that I've been through it, I suppose guys do it more because they're stronger. But Alfons said I'm the strongest chicken he knows! :-)
Next time, I'm GOING to give blood...and I'm going to get a sticker too!!!
Monday, October 11, 2010
Entschuldigung, Wiederholen, Bitte?
While I felt like my German was improving so fast the first few months I was here, that has taken a nose-dive!
I can finally communicate basic things with the children playing outside and I can order food at a restaurant, but if someone starts talking to me in German, I have NO IDEA what they're saying. I know just enough vocabulary to ask for what I need, but it's not enough to understand other people when they respond.
Plus, the Germans I meet don't know which words I have learned and which words I haven't. For example, when I order something at the bakery, if the lady says, "Is that all?" in German, I understand it and can say, "Yes, thank you." But if she says the equivalent of, "Do you need anything else?" or "Will that be it for you today?" I have no idea what she said and have to tell her that my German is bad, ask her to please repeat it more slowly, blah, blah, blah...it's a huge hassle!
Lucky for me, no one knows I'm not German until I open my mouth, so if I go through the grocery store and don't talk to anyone, I'm just fine. But on the other hand, since no one knows I'm not German until I open my mouth, they usually talk fast and use slang when they do talk to me. Then I have to look like an idiot and say I can't understand them.
One day at the grocery store, the package of sliced ham I was buying didn't have a bar code on it (because the sticker fell off), so the guy at the register called a service person on their phone system (and I couldn't translate it), said something to me (which I didn't understand), set the ham aside, finished ringing up the rest of my things, took my money, and then started ringing up the next person. I had no idea if I was supposed to get another package of ham myself, wait for someone to bring me another package of ham, or walk away with no ham. I had no idea! I stood there for a minute (thinking the person from his phone call would bring me a new ham), but I tried to look busy so people didn't think I was standing there for no reason in case no one was bringing me a ham! Thank the Lord, my neighbor came to the rescue. She was a few people behind me in line and so I went to her, asked if she could translate (since the cashier didn't speak English), and then she figured out that I should go get another package of ham myself, but I didn't have to pay for it since I was inconvenienced. Whew!
PS: Here are the definitions of the words in the title, which I use OFTEN:
Enschuldigung = Excuse me
Weiderholen = Repeat
Bitte? = Huh? (or please)
Thursday, October 7, 2010
For Every Season...
Maybe we have the same trees in the States and maybe we don't, but I truly believe the autumn colors here are more beautiful than at home!
We live near a small forest, so I'm blessed to get to drive past the variety of trees almost daily. And at the train station the other day, I noticed some amazing leaves changing colors that were so pretty, they looked fake! I actually went up and touched the leaves just to check, even though I knew I had parked under those trees all summer long.
I hope the train station doesn't mind, but I brought a nice red one home as a keepsake. :-)
We live near a small forest, so I'm blessed to get to drive past the variety of trees almost daily. And at the train station the other day, I noticed some amazing leaves changing colors that were so pretty, they looked fake! I actually went up and touched the leaves just to check, even though I knew I had parked under those trees all summer long.
I hope the train station doesn't mind, but I brought a nice red one home as a keepsake. :-)
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Stuttgart Cannstatter Volksfest
While most people know about the Oktoberfest celebrations in Munich, Germany, few people realize that the Stuttgart Cannstatter Volksfest is actually the oldest celebration of that kind. Alfons and I, along with some friends from an English-speaking expat group, went last Saturday night for great beer, great food, great music and great fun!! See for yourself...
Ready to get our Volksfest on!!!
Yummy chickens!!!
Dancing on the benches
Proof that Alfons was on the benches too!!!
Can you spot the lederhosen???
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Explaining English
If you haven't noticed, it's been a while since my last blog. That's because I'm finally teaching! Once I have my lessons planned, I hope to blog more regularly again, but for now, I'm brushing up on my grammar skills from way back when!
It's much harder than I thought it would be to explain the language I've been speaking for nearly 30 years. Below are some things my students have asked me in my first two weeks. YOU try to explain them!!!
What's the difference between "rise" and "raise?"
Why can't I put "ing" on the word "need?"
Why doesn't the word "funny" describe something that is "fun?"
Why does "clothes" sound like "close?"
Can I describe scenery for a movie as "cute?"
Are the job titles "accounter" and "musicist" right?
Can I ask "How many luggage are you taking?"
Why do "pear" and "pair" sound the same?
It's much harder than I thought it would be to explain the language I've been speaking for nearly 30 years. Below are some things my students have asked me in my first two weeks. YOU try to explain them!!!
What's the difference between "rise" and "raise?"
Why can't I put "ing" on the word "need?"
Why doesn't the word "funny" describe something that is "fun?"
Why does "clothes" sound like "close?"
Can I describe scenery for a movie as "cute?"
Are the job titles "accounter" and "musicist" right?
Can I ask "How many luggage are you taking?"
Why do "pear" and "pair" sound the same?
Monday, September 20, 2010
My First Day of School
I started teaching English today. What a day!!!
As a new teacher, it's tough to know how long activities will take in class, especially when you don't know the language level of your students before you arrive. While I made tentative schedules to follow for each class, I had to make adjustments and improvise throughout the day. Luckily, I'm fairly good at thinking on my feet when I need to!!!
The biggest adjustment was at my last class from 5-8pm. I arrived WAY early and talked to the students who walked in a few minutes before 5, but didn't notice until just after 5 that none of the students had books, so I had to make copies...quickly! I thought they'd take it out on me for not having their materials ready (which I had nothing to do with), but they didn't mind once I handed them the copies. We actually had a great three-hour class and I was able to share my MBA knowledge to teach them about entrepreneurs and venture capitalists.
The language levels here are as follows from the least amount of knowledge to native speaker: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2. My classes range from A2 to B2, so there's quite a difference in the vocabulary they know and the grammar rules they are familiar with. It's tough to switch from one class to another in the mornings when I have a B2 group from 8-9:30, an A2 group from 9:30-11 and an A1 group from 11-12:30. I have to slow down my pace as the day goes, which is harder than getting faster as the day progresses.
Another tough thing is that some students learn faster than others. As the teacher, it's important for me to keep the faster learners from getting bored, while not overwhelming the students who need more time. That's my objective for two of my classes, as the knowledge gap is quite large from one student to another.
Finally, I have always known that a lot of work goes on behind the scenes with teachers, but never realized how difficult it truly is to prepare for classes and be ready to take any questions that are likely to arise. As the "expert" in the room, I feel like I should be able to answer any question, but today an A2 students asked "what's the difference between 'do you have some money' and 'do you have any money?'" I know when to use each one, but it's hard to explain on the spot! I know experience will help me with this one!
Almost forgot...the icing on the cake of the day was when I pulled out of the last company (it was dark), I thought the two lanes were for left turns and right turns. WRONG! It was for travel going in two different directions, so I was sitting in the lane of oncoming traffic. Luckily no one was turning into the company since it was late, but all my students saw me pull into an imaginary lane trying to turn where I wasn't supposed to. I hope they forget that happened before our next class on Monday!!!
As a new teacher, it's tough to know how long activities will take in class, especially when you don't know the language level of your students before you arrive. While I made tentative schedules to follow for each class, I had to make adjustments and improvise throughout the day. Luckily, I'm fairly good at thinking on my feet when I need to!!!
The biggest adjustment was at my last class from 5-8pm. I arrived WAY early and talked to the students who walked in a few minutes before 5, but didn't notice until just after 5 that none of the students had books, so I had to make copies...quickly! I thought they'd take it out on me for not having their materials ready (which I had nothing to do with), but they didn't mind once I handed them the copies. We actually had a great three-hour class and I was able to share my MBA knowledge to teach them about entrepreneurs and venture capitalists.
The language levels here are as follows from the least amount of knowledge to native speaker: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2. My classes range from A2 to B2, so there's quite a difference in the vocabulary they know and the grammar rules they are familiar with. It's tough to switch from one class to another in the mornings when I have a B2 group from 8-9:30, an A2 group from 9:30-11 and an A1 group from 11-12:30. I have to slow down my pace as the day goes, which is harder than getting faster as the day progresses.
Another tough thing is that some students learn faster than others. As the teacher, it's important for me to keep the faster learners from getting bored, while not overwhelming the students who need more time. That's my objective for two of my classes, as the knowledge gap is quite large from one student to another.
Finally, I have always known that a lot of work goes on behind the scenes with teachers, but never realized how difficult it truly is to prepare for classes and be ready to take any questions that are likely to arise. As the "expert" in the room, I feel like I should be able to answer any question, but today an A2 students asked "what's the difference between 'do you have some money' and 'do you have any money?'" I know when to use each one, but it's hard to explain on the spot! I know experience will help me with this one!
Almost forgot...the icing on the cake of the day was when I pulled out of the last company (it was dark), I thought the two lanes were for left turns and right turns. WRONG! It was for travel going in two different directions, so I was sitting in the lane of oncoming traffic. Luckily no one was turning into the company since it was late, but all my students saw me pull into an imaginary lane trying to turn where I wasn't supposed to. I hope they forget that happened before our next class on Monday!!!
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Bringing Back the Mustache
The Wilhelma Zoo & Botanical Gardens is one of the top attractions in Stuttgart. It has amazing animals and plants of all kinds. While we saw lots of typical zoo animals like giraffes, elephants and tigers, these were my favorite!!!
(Background noise on video is loud...sorry!)
And here are some gorgeous shots of the gardens...
What Goes Up - Must Come Down
There's an old elevator open to the public in the Rathaus (Townhall) in downtown Stuttgart. Dad and I visited it during his trip! It's called a Paternoster. You can see more information about the mechanics and remaining locations around the world at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paternoster.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Do you like THIS blue or THIS blue?
Alfons said I could redecorate some things at the condo, so I've been spending some of my free time looking for inspiration for each room. I try not to pick things that are too girly and luckily he and I like most of the same colors and designs. We haven't painted any walls yet, but here's our progress so far...
BEDROOM BEFORE
BEDROOM AFTER
SMALL BATHROOM BEFORE
SMALL BATHROOM AFTER
(those are seashells on the wall)
TERRACE BEFORE
TERRACE AFTER
(we built this new door and the bench is gone now too)
Monday, September 6, 2010
One Potato, Two Potato
Our friends are hobby farmers and several weeks back they asked if we would help harvest their potatoes since it takes at least three extra people. I didn't know what exactly we were signing up for, but we said, "sure!"
So Saturday morning we got the call that it was potato harvesting day and that we should meet them at the field at 4pm. It was a gorgeous day outside, so we put on our work clothes that afternoon and headed about 5 miles away to their field.
We arrived just as the potato machine was pulling up. I had no idea how this thing worked, but I was about to get my first lesson. There were three conveyor belts on the machine: one big one in the middle and a smaller one on each side of that. There was enough room for three people to stand on each side of the machine, and thank goodness for that, because it took all the hands we could get. This crazy machine dug up the dirt where the potatoes were growing and put the potatoes and dirt on the conveyor belts. It took the small clumps (assuming they were dirt) and shoved them to the small outside belts, while the larger clumps (assuming they were potatoes) were shoved down the big middle belt where they landed in a large bin that would be transferred to a truck later.
Our job was to get the dirt out of the middle belt and put it on the outside belts, while also checking the small outside belt on our side for little potatoes that should be on the middle belt. For both jobs, we had to watch our fingers so they didn't get caught in either belt. The belts were only made of little metal bars going across about every inch (so dirt could fall through), so it was easy to get yourself stuck in between the bars.
You'd think with six people at one time that this task wouldn't be so difficult, but sometimes we'd have to yell at the man driving the tractor to stop for a minute, because there were more clumps of dirt than we could fish out in time! It was crazy!
I asked if anyone knew about "I Love Lucy" and her time spent at the chocolate factory. (Unfortunately, they didn't.) That's exactly how I felt! The conveyor belt was going so fast and we couldn't keep up watching both belts....dirt here...potatoes there! I kept yelling to the other side, "save the little ones," because I could see them falling off their side when they were too busy getting the dirt out of the middle.
There were eight rows of potatoes to harvest and each row took about 15 or 20 minutes on the machine. After the 4th row was done, our shift replacements arrived so a couple people could take a break. We told the replacements how fast we had to work and sure enough, their first row was a piece of cake with very little dirt on the main belt. They thought we were crazy, until they experienced the madness during their second row.
After our evening of harvesting, our friends made dinner for all six of their helpers. It was delicious, but I want to know when I'm getting my free potatoes!!! Hahahaha!!!
(Sorry I didn't get any pictures of this. I forgot my camera that day.)
So Saturday morning we got the call that it was potato harvesting day and that we should meet them at the field at 4pm. It was a gorgeous day outside, so we put on our work clothes that afternoon and headed about 5 miles away to their field.
We arrived just as the potato machine was pulling up. I had no idea how this thing worked, but I was about to get my first lesson. There were three conveyor belts on the machine: one big one in the middle and a smaller one on each side of that. There was enough room for three people to stand on each side of the machine, and thank goodness for that, because it took all the hands we could get. This crazy machine dug up the dirt where the potatoes were growing and put the potatoes and dirt on the conveyor belts. It took the small clumps (assuming they were dirt) and shoved them to the small outside belts, while the larger clumps (assuming they were potatoes) were shoved down the big middle belt where they landed in a large bin that would be transferred to a truck later.
Our job was to get the dirt out of the middle belt and put it on the outside belts, while also checking the small outside belt on our side for little potatoes that should be on the middle belt. For both jobs, we had to watch our fingers so they didn't get caught in either belt. The belts were only made of little metal bars going across about every inch (so dirt could fall through), so it was easy to get yourself stuck in between the bars.
You'd think with six people at one time that this task wouldn't be so difficult, but sometimes we'd have to yell at the man driving the tractor to stop for a minute, because there were more clumps of dirt than we could fish out in time! It was crazy!
I asked if anyone knew about "I Love Lucy" and her time spent at the chocolate factory. (Unfortunately, they didn't.) That's exactly how I felt! The conveyor belt was going so fast and we couldn't keep up watching both belts....dirt here...potatoes there! I kept yelling to the other side, "save the little ones," because I could see them falling off their side when they were too busy getting the dirt out of the middle.
There were eight rows of potatoes to harvest and each row took about 15 or 20 minutes on the machine. After the 4th row was done, our shift replacements arrived so a couple people could take a break. We told the replacements how fast we had to work and sure enough, their first row was a piece of cake with very little dirt on the main belt. They thought we were crazy, until they experienced the madness during their second row.
After our evening of harvesting, our friends made dinner for all six of their helpers. It was delicious, but I want to know when I'm getting my free potatoes!!! Hahahaha!!!
(Sorry I didn't get any pictures of this. I forgot my camera that day.)
Sunday, September 5, 2010
The Work Story
I knew the process to get permission to work in Germany wasn't going to be a breeze, but I had no idea what I was in store for. Here are all the juicy details (that I still remember) that I can finally share with you!
I knew I wanted to teach English to business professionals as my first job here, so I began applying to language schools in the Stuttgart area about a month before I left the States. Before I arrived in Germany, I had one interview scheduled and they offered me a freelance opportunity at my interview, but they said I needed to get another school to also hire me as a freelancer before I would be able to obtain working permission, since the government wants to be sure you'll be able to support yourself financially. So I continued applying to more schools and within two weeks, I had another letter of intent for freelance work from a second school. That's when I submitted my paperwork at Office #1 on June 4.
Office #1 then added some items regarding my residency in our small village and sent it to Office #2 to be processed. Office #2 said they needed approval from Office #3 to prove that these companies and my freelance contracts were legitimate, so they faxed the information to Office #3 on June 17. For full-time employees (not freelancers), Office #3 has to process these items, but as soon as they saw the application was for freelance work, they shoved it to the side thinking it was sent by mistake (or so we think). So Office #2 (and we) waited for 8 weeks to hear back from Office #3, not knowing they had no intention to process my paperwork.
Along the way, Alfons tried to call Office #2 and Office #3 every week for a status update (since they claimed they didn't speak English when I called). He got more and more frustrated as time passed because one person was on vacation, then another would be out for surgery, then when the first came back from vacation she said she's not the person responsible for my paperwork, etc. The worst part was never knowing if we were even leaving messages on the right answering machines since we got tossed from one person to another. Most of our messages fell on deaf ears and few people returned our calls.
When Alfons reached someone on the phone at Office #3 by accident in early August, the guy checked his system and said my name wasn't even in there. So Alfons called Office #2 and had them fax the paperwork to Office #3 again since it had been "misplaced."
Side note: Most gov't offices here are only open in the mornings and most gov't employees only work two or three days per week since many are stay-at-home moms. That made it even tougher to reach people since their answering machine messages and reply emails did not say their schedules.
On Friday, August 20, Alfons finally reached someone on the phone again at Office #3 who said her office did not need to process the paperwork since it was for a freelancer. He explained to her that Office #2 said Office #3 only had to APPROVE the companies, not PROCESS the paperwork. That's when she realized what was going on and said that their office COULD do that. By the end of the phone conversation, Alfons assumed that she would take care of that approval. WRONG!
Another side note: Americans are allowed to visit Germany for 90 days with no visa. And as long as your paperwork for a visa or residence permit is in process, you can stay beyond that time, but you need a letter from a gov't office stating you are still waiting for your confirmation.
So as my 90th day drew closer and I still had nothing saying I had permission to stay, we decided to go straight to Office #2 on August 23, a day we knew our contact would be there (because we had figured out her schedule by then). The woman was very pleasant and sorry that the process had taken so long. She couldn't believe her office hadn't heard back from Office #3 after Alfons told the woman what she need to do, so our contact at Office #2 started by calling the woman Alfons talked to the previous Friday at Office #3. Thank goodness the woman answered the phone, but when our woman at Office #2 asked for the approval of the companies, the lady said that wasn't her job! She didn't tell Alfons that on Friday! And she didn't tell us we needed to contact someone else to take care of it!
The Office #2 woman in front of us was appalled and asked who she should contact to get the approval asap. The woman on the phone passed her along to another woman at Office #3 and within 90 minutes Office #2 faxed the paperwork to Office #3 (for a third time), Office #3 sent an approval letter back to Office #2, Office #2 printed out my residence permit with permission to work, and we left!
Whew!!!
I knew I wanted to teach English to business professionals as my first job here, so I began applying to language schools in the Stuttgart area about a month before I left the States. Before I arrived in Germany, I had one interview scheduled and they offered me a freelance opportunity at my interview, but they said I needed to get another school to also hire me as a freelancer before I would be able to obtain working permission, since the government wants to be sure you'll be able to support yourself financially. So I continued applying to more schools and within two weeks, I had another letter of intent for freelance work from a second school. That's when I submitted my paperwork at Office #1 on June 4.
Office #1 then added some items regarding my residency in our small village and sent it to Office #2 to be processed. Office #2 said they needed approval from Office #3 to prove that these companies and my freelance contracts were legitimate, so they faxed the information to Office #3 on June 17. For full-time employees (not freelancers), Office #3 has to process these items, but as soon as they saw the application was for freelance work, they shoved it to the side thinking it was sent by mistake (or so we think). So Office #2 (and we) waited for 8 weeks to hear back from Office #3, not knowing they had no intention to process my paperwork.
Along the way, Alfons tried to call Office #2 and Office #3 every week for a status update (since they claimed they didn't speak English when I called). He got more and more frustrated as time passed because one person was on vacation, then another would be out for surgery, then when the first came back from vacation she said she's not the person responsible for my paperwork, etc. The worst part was never knowing if we were even leaving messages on the right answering machines since we got tossed from one person to another. Most of our messages fell on deaf ears and few people returned our calls.
When Alfons reached someone on the phone at Office #3 by accident in early August, the guy checked his system and said my name wasn't even in there. So Alfons called Office #2 and had them fax the paperwork to Office #3 again since it had been "misplaced."
Side note: Most gov't offices here are only open in the mornings and most gov't employees only work two or three days per week since many are stay-at-home moms. That made it even tougher to reach people since their answering machine messages and reply emails did not say their schedules.
On Friday, August 20, Alfons finally reached someone on the phone again at Office #3 who said her office did not need to process the paperwork since it was for a freelancer. He explained to her that Office #2 said Office #3 only had to APPROVE the companies, not PROCESS the paperwork. That's when she realized what was going on and said that their office COULD do that. By the end of the phone conversation, Alfons assumed that she would take care of that approval. WRONG!
Another side note: Americans are allowed to visit Germany for 90 days with no visa. And as long as your paperwork for a visa or residence permit is in process, you can stay beyond that time, but you need a letter from a gov't office stating you are still waiting for your confirmation.
So as my 90th day drew closer and I still had nothing saying I had permission to stay, we decided to go straight to Office #2 on August 23, a day we knew our contact would be there (because we had figured out her schedule by then). The woman was very pleasant and sorry that the process had taken so long. She couldn't believe her office hadn't heard back from Office #3 after Alfons told the woman what she need to do, so our contact at Office #2 started by calling the woman Alfons talked to the previous Friday at Office #3. Thank goodness the woman answered the phone, but when our woman at Office #2 asked for the approval of the companies, the lady said that wasn't her job! She didn't tell Alfons that on Friday! And she didn't tell us we needed to contact someone else to take care of it!
The Office #2 woman in front of us was appalled and asked who she should contact to get the approval asap. The woman on the phone passed her along to another woman at Office #3 and within 90 minutes Office #2 faxed the paperwork to Office #3 (for a third time), Office #3 sent an approval letter back to Office #2, Office #2 printed out my residence permit with permission to work, and we left!
Whew!!!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Festivals Galore!
Germany is known for its great festivals and I recently had the pleasure to attend these!
Wine Fest (Weindorf) in Stuttgart
Restaurants from the area bring their cooks and servers downtown to offer great food and great wine outside. We had small portions of different German food to try several things and, of course, ordered a few bottles of wine for the table! Don't worry...I took the train home!
This was a beautiful fountain with restaurants all around.
These were the musicians at our tent who had the whole place singing!
Summer Night Fest (Sommernachtsfest)
This is a great evening event held in Schwabisch Hall, which is about an hour outside Stuttgart. There were thousands of candles in small cups all around the park that lit up the pathways and made shapes in the grass. There were lots of stages with different bands, big fireworks after dark, and there was a neat traditional show with a marching band, dancers, gunmen, cannons and more!
Here are the paths lined by candles throughout the park.
I love seeing the traditional dresses, dances and music!
(Sorry for the random light in the middle.)
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
My Apology
I owe some friends an apology for a true culture and personality gap. I honestly thought my perspective was more appropriate than someone else's and I was wrong.
Here in Germany, personal privacy is a big deal. The thought of having full-body scanners at the airports is an absolute joke and sending your resume to companies without asking first if the position is still available is seen as revealing your information to more people than necessary. In the States, many people think their airplane is more safe with more scanners and that you should get your resume onto as many desks as possible.
And to top off the typical American view of not needing so much privacy, I am an extremely open person in general. In fact, I've had new people I meet say, "Wow. I've learned more about your life in this first 10 minutes than you'll probably ever know about mine." And many people have asked if I have any secrets...I don't. I'll answer any question you ask and often times I'll share personal information without being drilled for it.
I knew this would be an adjustment for me, because my German friends told me before moving here that I tell way more about myself than anyone in Germany does. I actually have to hold myself back when talking to new friends, because I'm afraid I will push people away if I share too many details too quickly. While some people like my openness, lots of people here think it's really strange!
So here's the story that deserves my apology: While I was visiting Germany at Christmas time last year, I took lots of fun photos and put them on Facebook. Once I arrived here in May, I learned that many people in Germany are not a fan of Facebook because they want to keep their private lives private. While I understand that nothing is 100% secure from hackers, I do have my Facebook settings set to where only my "friends" can see my information and photos. I thought that was private enough that my German friends wouldn't mind being in the photos since it's just for my "friends" in the States to learn about my German adventures. WRONG! My German friends recently found out I had posted pictures of them online and were very upset!
To be honest, my first reaction was that they are too conservative and since my privacy settings are as strict as they can be on Facebook, it shouldn't be a big deal. I thought maybe they didn't understand that it's not on the open Internet, but instead just in a place where my friends can see the photos. I also (selfishly) didn't want to take the photos down because they were great shots of what I'm experiencing here and I didn't have good photos of those locations without the people in them. But the more I thought about their perspective, I realized that I should have respected their wishes and taken the Christmas photos down as soon as they mentioned in May that they didn't want to be on the Internet. That comment, as surprising as it was to me, should have triggered me to go back to the album and delete the photos immediately. But I didn't. And I'm sorry.
So I've learned there are many cultural differences here, some which I agree with wholeheartedly and some which I don't. Understanding these differences, however, does encourage me to do better at respecting others' wishes and perspectives.
Here in Germany, personal privacy is a big deal. The thought of having full-body scanners at the airports is an absolute joke and sending your resume to companies without asking first if the position is still available is seen as revealing your information to more people than necessary. In the States, many people think their airplane is more safe with more scanners and that you should get your resume onto as many desks as possible.
And to top off the typical American view of not needing so much privacy, I am an extremely open person in general. In fact, I've had new people I meet say, "Wow. I've learned more about your life in this first 10 minutes than you'll probably ever know about mine." And many people have asked if I have any secrets...I don't. I'll answer any question you ask and often times I'll share personal information without being drilled for it.
I knew this would be an adjustment for me, because my German friends told me before moving here that I tell way more about myself than anyone in Germany does. I actually have to hold myself back when talking to new friends, because I'm afraid I will push people away if I share too many details too quickly. While some people like my openness, lots of people here think it's really strange!
So here's the story that deserves my apology: While I was visiting Germany at Christmas time last year, I took lots of fun photos and put them on Facebook. Once I arrived here in May, I learned that many people in Germany are not a fan of Facebook because they want to keep their private lives private. While I understand that nothing is 100% secure from hackers, I do have my Facebook settings set to where only my "friends" can see my information and photos. I thought that was private enough that my German friends wouldn't mind being in the photos since it's just for my "friends" in the States to learn about my German adventures. WRONG! My German friends recently found out I had posted pictures of them online and were very upset!
To be honest, my first reaction was that they are too conservative and since my privacy settings are as strict as they can be on Facebook, it shouldn't be a big deal. I thought maybe they didn't understand that it's not on the open Internet, but instead just in a place where my friends can see the photos. I also (selfishly) didn't want to take the photos down because they were great shots of what I'm experiencing here and I didn't have good photos of those locations without the people in them. But the more I thought about their perspective, I realized that I should have respected their wishes and taken the Christmas photos down as soon as they mentioned in May that they didn't want to be on the Internet. That comment, as surprising as it was to me, should have triggered me to go back to the album and delete the photos immediately. But I didn't. And I'm sorry.
So I've learned there are many cultural differences here, some which I agree with wholeheartedly and some which I don't. Understanding these differences, however, does encourage me to do better at respecting others' wishes and perspectives.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Everyone's Connected to Germany
I didn't hear much about Germany before 2009. I had never been to Germany or known anyone close to me who had traveled there in recent years, but as I told people about my plans to move this spring, stories came out of the woodwork.
One person would say, "Oh, my family was stationed there when I was a kid." Another would say, "I was an exchange student there in college." Then I'd hear, "My uncle married a woman from Germany." And last, but not least, someone would add, "My ancestors were German. I'd love to trace back to where they lived."
While no one ever mentioned German roots to me before 2009, now I feel like nearly every person, or at least every family, has a connection to this great country. And while I found a few stories online about some women (military wives in particular) who did not like living in Germany and wanted to return to the States, every person I know who's been to, or lived in, Germany loved every minute of it and would love to go back again someday. It's just different enough to be exciting, but still similar enough to our US culture that it's not too scary.
Recently, I've even learned that some folks reading this blog have a special connection to Germany, which is why a friend sent them the link. So now I know there are people I've never met who read this blog and I'm glad it brings back good memories for them! I love the idea of making people smile as they remember their own adventures in Germany and the similar transition stories they experienced.
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