A Sushi Thanksgiving in Celle
Saturday was a rather enjoyable day, as the Trio from Hannover paid Maryle and me a visit for a sort of late Thanksgiving sushi lunch and a tour of Celle. Everything went quite well, barring bus confusion and walking from the Bahnhof to the Altstadt (which is not a bad jaunt at all), and I think Bill, Patrick, and Sara enjoyed my quaint little town. I feel like a bad friend, though, since this was the first time I had been to Maryle's place, but she was a gracious hostess and a good sushi cook, so it evened out. After sampling some Feuerzangenbowle (a holiday drink much like Gluehwein, but with a sugar lump soaked in rum and set aflame above the mixing bowl) and roaming the streets of the Weihnachtsmarkt, the Trio of Hannover departed.
A small digression, which is actually quite wonderful in its awfulness: To start off, I had forgotten to mention that when Maryle and I had our first Gluehwein of the season, we were carded. Do you know what the legal drinking age is here? Sixteen. Yes. So, imagine this scenario this last Saturday: on our search for a not-under ripe avocado for sushi, we encountered a Weihnachtsmann, or Santa Claus, handing out little treats to the children at the Frischmarkt. He bumped into me and offered up his bag. Thinking that he was selling something and not used to the tradition, I politely declined, but he just looked at me like I was crazy and grunted, "Kostenlos!" So, I took a bag of free cookies and got out of the way, and all the while Maryle was giggling. I looked down at the bag. Why, yes--the cookies were indeed for children.
...I do not look like a child. No, I don't. Shut up. Besides, I got cookies, so I'm not complaining too much. Did YOU get cookies? I thought not.
Here, have a picture.
Nikolaustag Surprise
Nikolaustag Surprise
Sunday, as you may know from my previous post, was Nikolaustag, and I had been invited by the host family/landlords to their breakfast. I had thought that, being true to form, this would be an occasion to include more people than their renter, and I had also thought that this would be an opportunity to be awkward once again. But, the morning set off to a good start, for when I opened my door, I discovered--to my surprise, admittedly--a bag of goodies. I had received a sweet little Christmas set, so to say: a holiday mug, some Oriental hot chocolate, Marzipan, liqueur, small candies, and Weihnachtstee. Grateful, though still suspicious, I got ready for breakfast.
Because the guests were late, Tjark, Andrea, and I had a chance to chat, which is a rare occurrence nowadays (because I remained holed up in my room working on lessons or surfing the Net). I discovered that Tjark is changing jobs next year, and though he won't be paid as much as a professor, he'll have more time for his family. We had gotten into a discussion (in German, naturally) about the American school system when the doorbell rang. As Tjark went to answer the door, he turned back and told me in English, "You must speak English today."
Let's establish that I had not known who the guests were to be, and both Tjark and Andrea seemed satisfied that I did not know. I was also wondering why Andrea had placed me between Tjark and Meerit and across from the main guest. Something was up.
And something was, surprisingly enough. It turned out that Tjark had invited a couple of his American coworkers, along with one's wife and child, and that Tjark speaks really good English. Of course. Anyway, I met Limon, Jocelyn, Bryan, and Sammy, Limon and Jocelyn's three year-old son. It was kind of surreal to hear so much English (and American English!) in this particular house, and it was actually...quite nice to chat with complete strangers whose one unifying factor is that we're all from the southern U.S. Tjark did manage to get a little jab in edgewise, of course, saying that while my German is good, I need to speak it more. Which, I readily admit, is true.
As our guests left, I thanked Tjark and Andrea for their surprise. They told me that they "wanted to bring a piece of America to me." So, Happy St. Nicholas Day.
Christmastime at Grundschule Klein Hehlen
Tuesday brought about the English conference at our school, which means I was at the school from before 9:00 to about 6:00 in the evening. Though I didn't really need to be there at all, I managed to draw 22 identical reindeer masks that I had forgotten to do but was for today's lesson in 1a. That was fun, only not really. But, suffice to say, today's lesson in 1a went really well. Everyone liked the masks I had made, but let's just say that when you have 22 high-pitched voices shouting for help the entire period, one can barely think well enough to attach the string to said masks. But, having just been told the story of Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer in English, Nils saw fit to tell me about the "Schneemonster" and when Rudolph and his family got trapped in the monster's cave, etc., etc...all in garbled German, of course. It was a tiresome lesson, but I will admit that it was kind of awesome seeing the kids prance around and wearing their masks.
Afterward, I had my lesson with 2a, but instead of English, they were working on their Christmas play. Their lesson is right after the second Pause of the day, and they were waiting outside for Frau Doehrmann and me. So, as we exited the main building to go over to the other building with the second graders, the entirety of 2a started waving and shouting, "Jenni!" (Is this getting old, yet? Tough shit.), and Jenny broke away from the crowd to give the obligatory hug. The surprising thing of all this was that Dylan also gave me a hug and a big smile. But, it was interesting, to say the least, observing their rehearsal, and it took me back to the days when I had to go through the grueling process of student plays...
Today was also interesting in the fact that Susanne wanted me to read a Christmas story to the "bad" class, 4c. Prep time? None. During the second Pause, Susanne showed me the book that she wanted me to read, and asked if I could do it today. However, I couldn't read through it completely before my class with 2a, and 4c comes immediately thereafter. Being confident in my powers of improvisation and thinking that it couldn't be a complete train wreck in the making, I consented, and it went well. I wish I could have made flash cards or planned out an activity to do afterward, as it really was too short, but the kids enjoyed it well enough and behaved themselves. So, all in all, not bad.
Tomorrow, I get to herd small children again, but this time to the Bahnhof. Why? We're going to see Hansel und Gretel in Hannover, and Elisabeth and Frau Meier wanted an extra adult. Again, why? Because one of the sections is...4c. This is a disaster waiting to happen, but at least it balances out in the fact that I'm going to see an opera. So, I'm definitely not complaining.
Oh, and the one thing to really, really look forward to in less than a week? That's right: Heather is coming to Germany this Monday. I'm totally not excited. Not one bit.
Sigh. So much to do, but take a deep breath. Ready? Steady? Go!
Because the guests were late, Tjark, Andrea, and I had a chance to chat, which is a rare occurrence nowadays (because I remained holed up in my room working on lessons or surfing the Net). I discovered that Tjark is changing jobs next year, and though he won't be paid as much as a professor, he'll have more time for his family. We had gotten into a discussion (in German, naturally) about the American school system when the doorbell rang. As Tjark went to answer the door, he turned back and told me in English, "You must speak English today."
Let's establish that I had not known who the guests were to be, and both Tjark and Andrea seemed satisfied that I did not know. I was also wondering why Andrea had placed me between Tjark and Meerit and across from the main guest. Something was up.
And something was, surprisingly enough. It turned out that Tjark had invited a couple of his American coworkers, along with one's wife and child, and that Tjark speaks really good English. Of course. Anyway, I met Limon, Jocelyn, Bryan, and Sammy, Limon and Jocelyn's three year-old son. It was kind of surreal to hear so much English (and American English!) in this particular house, and it was actually...quite nice to chat with complete strangers whose one unifying factor is that we're all from the southern U.S. Tjark did manage to get a little jab in edgewise, of course, saying that while my German is good, I need to speak it more. Which, I readily admit, is true.
As our guests left, I thanked Tjark and Andrea for their surprise. They told me that they "wanted to bring a piece of America to me." So, Happy St. Nicholas Day.
Christmastime at Grundschule Klein Hehlen
Tuesday brought about the English conference at our school, which means I was at the school from before 9:00 to about 6:00 in the evening. Though I didn't really need to be there at all, I managed to draw 22 identical reindeer masks that I had forgotten to do but was for today's lesson in 1a. That was fun, only not really. But, suffice to say, today's lesson in 1a went really well. Everyone liked the masks I had made, but let's just say that when you have 22 high-pitched voices shouting for help the entire period, one can barely think well enough to attach the string to said masks. But, having just been told the story of Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer in English, Nils saw fit to tell me about the "Schneemonster" and when Rudolph and his family got trapped in the monster's cave, etc., etc...all in garbled German, of course. It was a tiresome lesson, but I will admit that it was kind of awesome seeing the kids prance around and wearing their masks.
Afterward, I had my lesson with 2a, but instead of English, they were working on their Christmas play. Their lesson is right after the second Pause of the day, and they were waiting outside for Frau Doehrmann and me. So, as we exited the main building to go over to the other building with the second graders, the entirety of 2a started waving and shouting, "Jenni!" (Is this getting old, yet? Tough shit.), and Jenny broke away from the crowd to give the obligatory hug. The surprising thing of all this was that Dylan also gave me a hug and a big smile. But, it was interesting, to say the least, observing their rehearsal, and it took me back to the days when I had to go through the grueling process of student plays...
Today was also interesting in the fact that Susanne wanted me to read a Christmas story to the "bad" class, 4c. Prep time? None. During the second Pause, Susanne showed me the book that she wanted me to read, and asked if I could do it today. However, I couldn't read through it completely before my class with 2a, and 4c comes immediately thereafter. Being confident in my powers of improvisation and thinking that it couldn't be a complete train wreck in the making, I consented, and it went well. I wish I could have made flash cards or planned out an activity to do afterward, as it really was too short, but the kids enjoyed it well enough and behaved themselves. So, all in all, not bad.
Tomorrow, I get to herd small children again, but this time to the Bahnhof. Why? We're going to see Hansel und Gretel in Hannover, and Elisabeth and Frau Meier wanted an extra adult. Again, why? Because one of the sections is...4c. This is a disaster waiting to happen, but at least it balances out in the fact that I'm going to see an opera. So, I'm definitely not complaining.
Oh, and the one thing to really, really look forward to in less than a week? That's right: Heather is coming to Germany this Monday. I'm totally not excited. Not one bit.
Sigh. So much to do, but take a deep breath. Ready? Steady? Go!
Hahahaha, awwwwwww, the owes of being carded! ):
ReplyDeleteHeh heh. Heather should pinch your ickle cheeks for all of us once she gets there. Is she there yet, btw? Oh, and I've seen the references to 4c in your blog, but I don't think you've ever explained this thoroughly: why is 4c the "bad" class?
ReplyDelete