Overdue for an Update

I've been horribly lax, and I even have quite a bit to talk (er, type) about. Lustig, wie das geht. In this entry, I shall talk about the most immediate story that comes to mind, and then I will backtrack from there with the results of my parents' visit. To make your lovely reading experience easier to digest, I shall chop this up into small morsels--because, damn, this is a long post.


Herding Small Children

As I walked into the teacher's lounge this morning, I noticed some of the teachers buzzing about because of a class trip to the Schlosstheater. I had earlier gleaned from the bulletin board that 2a and 2c were going to see Sinbad, der kleine Seefahrer, and I thought little more of it. As I was going over animals in 1b, Frau Doehrmann stepped in and asked to talk with me outside. She told me that one of the students was ill and unable to go to the play, and she asked me if I would like to accompany them to the theatre. Vaguely suspecting that this actually meant, "I need another hand to herd these small children to the theatre," I readily consented.

As has become the norm, the children from both classes were very glad to discover that I was going with them and proceeded to climb all over me to be my "partner" for the walk to the Schloss (which takes about half an hour when acting as Child Shepherd). I ended up walking between the two classes, right in front of Dylan (Minion #2) and Thorben, and I had to hold Dylan's hand almost the entire time because I knew that he was going to trip over his untied shoelaces. I will, by the way, profile Dylan quite soon. Regardless, we made it to the theatre in one piece, with only one fall.

The play itself was cute, and the actors did quite well. Since it is aimed for children, the humor is thus downgraded to suit a child's fancy, but the play was charming for adults, too. With these expectations in mind, I really have no complaints except for the one actress I couldn't hear whenever she came out during scene changes. But, being in the audience with the children, there may have been no other way around it. I am, however, quite impressed with the actors' versatility, as the secondary characters played multiple parts with definite success. I also got to sit in the same box as Julia, a child in 2a whom I haven't seen in ages. Maybe she just doesn't have English, but she was quite excited to see me again. And I her, actually.

After our return to the school, with three quite exhausted teachers, I walked Meerit home, since Andrea had to work today (since Niclas had been sick the other day). It was quite nice talking with Meerit, as I don't really interact too much with the family. Mainly, we talked about instruments, but it was nice to see her show a bit of concern for her brother's health. She's a good kid.

Overall, today has been good. I was surprised that a few of the 4c-ers asked whether I'd be in class today, as I missed last week to walk my parents to the bus stop. I wasn't there today, either, since I saw the play. Maybe they're not such a "bad" class, after all.


The Statons Pay a Visit, Part I: My Ability to Boil Water

As aforementioned (tee-hee, I love that word), my parents visited me the 6th-16th of November. I am glad to say that they have made it safely to the States and are relaxing in their home. However, their visit was very nice...though, it being typical November weather in Germany, it rained almost the entire time. Way to go, weather. Way to go.

Still, my parents enjoyed their stay in Celle. We didn't do too terribly much, mainly because they wanted to relax and I had to work. On Monday, I showed them my grocery store, Neukauf, which doesn't sound like much unless you've never seen a non-American grocery store...which still isn't saying much. Afterward, though, we walked to my flat, chatted, and I cooked a dinner of prepared tortellini and grilled vegetables tomato sauce. Hooray for my stellar ability of boiling water! Overall, I think my parents were impressed by my living arrangements, which put them at ease about my stay here in general...even though I'd been saying that life here is pretty damn good.


The Statons Pay a Visit, Part II: 2a Remains Awesome

Wednesday was the most important day for me, since my parents came to my school. I managed to take the bus to the Altstadt and back during my break between classes, and we waited in the teacher's lounge before my class with 2a. During this time, Silke and Barco talked with us (in English, which they had never done with me) about Niedersachsen and German schools, and Susanne, peppery as always, showed us her remedial math class and talked to us about such programs here (which was very interesting, not least because of the way these students are talked about...). I recognized all of the students (there were only five), all in the third class, and Susanne mentioned that these students came from lower class families... I'll just end it by saying that I didn't find the class itself unusual, but...the reasons behind why there were in this class. I'm certain this makes sense.

Anyway, after the Pause, my parents observed me at my finest: TA-ing the ickle 2a-ers. This went off without a hitch, honestly. The kids were very well behaved and performed their parts perfectly, starting with the barrage of hugs and squeals, then with me reading Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me by Eric Carle, playing the "Hokey Kokey" (rather than "Hokey Pokey" in American English), and ending with Dad and me handing out space ice cream from NASA that Dad had brought with him (which the children LOVED and almost attacked me for more). (I don't remember whether I told the parents this, but Emily saved some for her brother.) I really can't thank Frau Doehrmann enough for her hospitality.


The Parents Pay a Visit, Part III: The St. Marienkirche Tower of DOOM

Thursday was an interesting day, to say the least. I once again headed to the Altstadt to meet the parents after work, and I suggested, it being merely overcast and not raining, that we venture up the St. Marienkirche tower. My coworkers had insisted that we climb this, since at the top one can see the entire Altstadt. We three proceeded to climb this seemingly innocent tower, but poor Mum had to stop after the second flight of spiraling stairs. It is understandable why, too; one particular flight of stairs wound around in a very open space, making looking down somewhat frightening. So, Dad and I continued on (...I almost typed "weiter"), stopping at each landing only to reach more spiraling stairs. And more. And...more. If this wasn't a bonding experience, then dammit, I don't know what would be.

However, my coworkers were right: the view from atop really is beautiful. We saw the beautiful red-tiled rooftops of the buildings and took many pictures as proof that we made it past the awkward submarine capsule-esque doorway to the top of the church tower.

Did I mention the bells? Yeah, the bells ring every fifteen minutes. I know this because Dad asked me to translate a sign that stated that very thing as we were descending...right as we approached the bells. So, just so you know, the bells ring every fifteen minutes.


The Statons Pay a Visit, Part IV: The Very Friendly Hannover Taxi Driver

So, during this time I was nauseous. On Friday morning, I just couldn't bring myself to go to work, 1.) because I was sick and 2.) because I was stressed enough as it was because my parents and I were traveling to Hannover that day. So, with an unstable stomach and a bundle of nerves, I set off with Mum and Dad to that city of Hannover, whereupon we took a taxi (I know, I know) from the Hauptbahnhof to the medical district, where our hotel was.

(Side note: S-bahns become crowded on Friday afternoons.)

As I am the only one of the three who speaks decent German, I sat in the front seat with the taxi driver. This was a middle-aged man, tall, just-above shoulder length brown hair, and light eyes. He appeared friendly enough just from his demeanor and the fact that he actually smiled. But, hey, guess what? I had a fifteen-minute conversation with this man, in German, about Niedersachsen, what I'm doing here, the condition of Hannover, and other places to go in Germany. The really awesome thing about all of this? I hardly messed up. You don't know how frickin' awesome this is. I think I also confounded my parents with this awesomeness, from the looks they gave me. I can impress laymen!

Anyway, the taxi driver got us to the hotel Mercure without cheating us too much, which thus concluded our arrival to Hannover.


The Statons Pay a Visit, Part V: Hannover, Conclusion, and Carpel Tunnel Syndrome for Our Narrator

My weekend in Hannover with the parents was generally quite enjoyable. On Saturday, I gave them a semi-random tour of the major parts of the city, including the Marktkirche. Outside the church was a bookcase full of, what d'you know, books, and I ventured there to have a look as my parents were busy being good tourists and taking pictures. Some random woman shoved books into my hands, saying that this particular author was spectacular, and so was this one, usw. Evidently, these bookcases are scattered about Hannover, and one can take and give books at will and at no cost. I deemed this quite awesome and stowed away the books that the woman forced upon me.

Upon entering the Marktkirche, I wandered about as Mum and Dad took pictures and spotted a small gathering of people around the candles. They were placing lit candles either on the stand or at the foot of it, and there were also flowers placed on the ground. It was a memorial to Robert Enke, the German soccer player who had committed suicide. It was very interesting to see how people were emotionally involved in this.

After leaving the Martkirche, I took the 'rents to the Flohmarkt, viewed the Nannas by Nikki St. de Phalle, toured the Neues Rathaus, and went to the Landesmuseum so that they could say that they've seen a Rubens (and Monet, and Renoir, etc., etc.). Yay for culture-fying my parents!

Sunday was much of the same, only we went to the Sprengel Museum of modern art. While I like only the modern art before 1960 and was thus disappointed with the first exhibit, I very much enjoyed the downstairs gallery, with such works by Picasso (naturally), Dix, Mueller, Kirchner (how I love thee), and Marc. I was impressed by its Blaue Reiter collection and was thrilled that I managed to view those works. Sigh, art museums...you are my weakness.

After a jaunt through the park right behind the Neues Rathaus, a dinner of pumpkin risotto at Mowenpick, and a walk with accordion accompaniment, we trekked back to the hotel to pack. And, on Monday morning, I bade farewell to my parents and returned to Celle...to sleep.

I'm proud of my parents for traveling an ocean away from their home to visit me. I know it shouldn't be surprising, but it is. Yay for visitors!

Okay, I'm tired now. Time for a break.


Addendum: List of minions to describe in later posts:
Nils - 1a
Dylan - 2a
Celia - 2c
Lara - 1b
Martha, Lila, Lea--oh Hell, the entire class of 2a
Kubra - 4c
Nicole - 1b
Vivian - 4a
Julia - 2a
Little red-haired boy in 2b (edit: Jan)
Bennett - 4c