Berlin!

Well.
I went to Berlin over the weekend! I decided to met up with erica, who is traveling europe right now and catherine, who lives here! It was great to be talking to americans that i know in person and it was like being with a tiny piece of home! I didn't see much of Berlin though. I saw the brandenburger Tor. it was pretty astounding. I wasn't really trying to see everything thought. I will be going back to berlin atleast once. Il be going with AFS where we will see everything! But i think ill go back again to, with some exchange students... I also might go back to meet with a person who works in the Bundestag. He is a friend of the Leimbachs. Anywayyyy....

I have been here in germany almost 7 months... I can't believe it! I have a little over 3 months left and its kind of hard to comprehend! I cant put into words what im feeling at this point but...yeah. its some type of feeling.

video!

Sorry if you have seen this video already!




how would you all like seeing a video of me thats just for this blog?
I could answer questions and stuff like that! COMMENT!PLEASE

Cologne!

I went to Bonn for the entirety of last week with my exchange group AFS. It was the mid-stay for the CBYX scholarship winners. There were 19 other americans there and 5 or 6 Betreuers...i cant remeber the word for that because even when we spoke in englisch, we said Betreuer...but its meens the person who was in charge.

I got up at 8 on Tuesday morning and took a 3 and half hour train ride to Hannover. There i met up with 2 other amerikaners. We ended up finding 2 other, but they had reserved seating on the train. We just kinda camped out by the door. In hannover, i had to talk to a couple of differnt germans about trains and how they were changing. My german worked out and i figured everything out. Our train going from hannover to Bonn ended up delaying itself. We evertualy figured everything out and got into Bonn. The first night we spent speaking a suprising amount of german. It was interesting to see how everyone elses German had progressed and all the differnt akzents. After the first night, we pretty much switched to englisch though because it was just easier. WE also spoke alot of Denglisch.

On wednesday, we went to Bonncity and went to the national german history museum. I understood alot and also didnt understand alot. Nevertheless, it was interesting. I dont have anypictures because i totaled my camera the first night. Awesome. Perfect. Nice.
It also consisted of doing workshops and talking in groups. I dont remember what the workshops were about, so i guess they werent that effective/important.

On thursday, we went to an art museum and walked aorund Bonn. It was alot of fun. Once again, i regret not having my camera.

Friday was the day that we went to Koeln (Cologne)! It was really cool! We saw this huge church, the Dome. It was the biggest church i have ever seen. You could fit about 7 saint Patricks in there. It was insainly huge. We climbed 505 steps to the top. My thighs wanted to explode, to say the least. The rest of the day was spent exploring cologne. It was fun just talking with all the other exhcnage students about germany. That night, afs brought us to a Brewerie. It was alot of fun.

Saturday was a liesure day. It was amazing outside and we played alot of hockey and basketball. It was about 70 degress out. It hard to explain the feeling that you get when you dont have anything to worry about and everything is going good. but it was that kind of day.

We all went home sunday morning. Of course, a couple of trains were late but it all worked out in the end. This week was so much fun. I really cant want to see all of these people again. We're going in MAy to Berlin. Except it will be all 50 kids from Washington Dc. I cant wait!

Ill try and post some pictures from the week. I need to get them from people.

Language

So i came to germany with no german language skills at all. So i have been learning pretty much on my own since i got here. I had a month long language school in my first month, but it didn't really help to much. Of course it benefited me a little, but i think i would have learned faster/better if i would have began school when i first got in germany.

But i have gotten better since i got here! Ive been here a little longer than 5 months and i can understand most things... i want to say that i understand alot, but i also dont understand alot. When people talk directly, i can understand alot. But when people are talking in groups, its alot harder. For example, in class, its extremely hard to understand. Like history. She talks the entire class, and i dont have enough vocab to understand. That being said.. sometimes i understand and sometimes i dont. Its hit and miss. One good thing that i can do now is that when i dont understand a word in a sentence, i can ask a person to explain it to me in german so i dont have to speak englisch. Most of the time, i can figure out what they meen! It feels good to figure it out like that.

Im "conversational"...
somewhat.


Dreaming in german. I dont really dream that much. I think i have about one dream every month. I had a short one last night and it was in german. I wish that i would dream more (or remember them) so i could practice my german while ill sleep! PLus that would meen that im understand the language more!


Thinking in german/translating. I wouldnt say that i "think" in german yet... i think that i think in the language of the hour. When im speaking englisch.. i think in english. But when im speaking in english, i dont have to think....it just comes out. When i speak german, i dont think of the english sentence, and then translate it. I just simply say it. It not like i think.. tree. oh thats Baum... Baum is just simply tree. And when people speak german to me, i dont translate their sentences into english as its coming into my brain. It just simply is what it is. This is hard to explain.

As you all can probably see by reading this post, my englisch skills are deteriorating. I cant spell or use proper grammar anymore. I also forget words constantly. I can always picture the object in my head, but not what its called. It can be extremely frustrating.. especially when i know it in german!

It was difficult to articulate what i was trying to say in this post. Mainly the thinking in german thing. If any of you out there speak another language, how do you think? Post in the comments!

Ill be gone next week. So i wont be posting at all.

Comments

so i do enjoy reading everybodys comments on my posts..and i think you all should do it more often.  So i just went back through all my posts and reread the comments...  Now im going to answer all the questions that you all asked.... and i also figured out that there were not to many questions... ASK MORE! Give me something to write about.

It's foosball you goofball. Still remember what that means? Is that Leo with you in one of the pics? He went to the camp too? How many kids were there? - Myan

So that whole foosball thing... i completly forget what it was called..and even after getting the answer.. i still didn't quite believe it.  It sounds like such a wierd name.   Yes that was leo in the pictures.. he came to the camp too because hes going with AFS to panama next year.   There were 6 kids there including me.  Genix(france) Bjarni(Iceland) Maeve, (USA), Ariel(USA) Leo(dland) and me.


Is it easier to write this, or say it? Dad

That was for my german post.  And it definetly easier to say all of that.. because with speaking, i can get away with saying the wrong article...because all i have to say is Duh... und not die,das,der... as long as i mumble a little and say duh, it comes out perfectly. But its the easiest to understand everything. by far


that's very strange about the tv shows.. don't they have german actors? so do they have the office with german voiceovers? Molly

They do have german actors but the majority of the shows are american with voiceovers.  I acutally have not seen the office on TV in germany.  But its not on very often apparently.  the germans dont find it funny


The butter thing sounds good, I thought butter came salted and un-salted.
Is it richer or lighter than American butter? Dad

It comes in tons of differnt ways.  Fresch Butter, Cheese Butter, Krauter cheese butter. Normal butter. Margerine.   there are really way more..but i cant remeber them all.


that's cool so they're not even really grading you? you just get an A for effort? Myan

Im getting grades now...and it seems that all my classees got double difficulter because its the second half year.....difficulter is not a word... atleast I dont think it is but im using it anyway.


it's good that you're taking a politics class..that should be interesting i think..physics sounds rough for a sophomore..do you like any of your classes? Molly?

Some of my classes are...ok. and some, I hate. I really hate history because the teacher talks the entire class. And never writes anything down on the board.. I dont have enough vocab to understand what shes saying. Bio ist ok and so is englisch. I understood chemistry yesterday. Physics isn't horrbile. Sometimes I understand whats going on. But not all the time. Politics is also difficult. we just changed themes so ill let you all know how it turns on.


how is the german coming?

Hmm. The german is coming. Thats the only way to put it.
Ill write a post about the language soon... maybe today depending when I finish my german AFS report thing.

ALPs

LEDERHOSEN!

I went to the Alps from the 31st of january until the 7 th of February! It was only a 6 hour ride from aschersleben to the house in austria I find it crazy how small germany actually is! because if you drive in any one direction for a couple of hours, you could have gone through a couple of differnt countrys!

We skieed there for a week. I skied everyday, atleast half the day. Most of the time, i skied most of the day. It was pretty exhausting. But i havent skiied all winter and i really missed it! it felt really good to be back on the hill. and the hills were awesome! its hard to compare jackfrost to a place like the alps. its so big! You could take a couple of gandalas. and then ski down the other side of the hill, and be in a completly differnt town. Its quite easy to get lost.

If you all dont know already, and cant see by the pictures... i bought some lederhosen. it was so worth it.

On Tuesday the 24th (hmm..24...something interesting about that numberr) im taking a train to bonn! AFS is having a midstay camp fur the other congressbundestag exchange students. I will be gone for a week and im sure it will be fun. I think ill write a little bit about if when i get back. im sure there will be plently of pictures.

If you interested in hearing my spoken german! Check out my latest video at Amikinder!
I talk with another german about Fasching or Karnival!



http://www.youtube.com/user/amikinder

I havent put any subtitles in yet. sorry!
I might make a video thats just for this blog. If you all have any questions that you would like to be answerd, post it in the comments! give me something to talk about.