This is my au pair family: Anette, Jonathan, Ann-Katrin, and Ralf (in order)
That way, you will have a face to go with the name! (:
Showing posts with label Germany. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Germany. Show all posts
Friday, September 5, 2008
I'm Here!
I am now in Germany and kinda, sorta settled. The house is great and has a very Danish/Scandanavian/German style because Anette is actually Danish. I have my own little apartment in the basement that looks like a page in the Ikea catalog! It has it's own bathroom and even a little kitchen, although I wont be using it much because I eat upstairs with the whole family. It also has a seperate entrance with a little porch and chairs. Pretty neat for them to have all those things for their au pair. If I can figure out how, I will post pictures up here soon! (;
The kids are rather cute. I feel bad because I don't really know what to say to them though. By the time that I look up a word or two to make a sentence or ask them a question, the opportunity has passed and they are onto something else (that I also don't know how to say in German!) I can understand some of what their German Grandma says; at least enough to say ja or nein in response. She's staying here to look after the kids so that I can get situated and until they start school again next week. I can also understand some of what the children say, but Jonathan, the almost 5 year old boy, slurs alot and uses his pouty voice...which if there was any hope of me understanding him before, it goes completely out the window when he is pouting. He is upset that mostly the children on the block are Ann-Katrin, his 9 year old sister's, age and therefore are not interested in playing with him for very long. He's totally okay with playing with them because he just wants the company, but, of course, they want to do big-kid things without him. Ann-Katrin is sweet and sort of a little-mini teenager. She say's that things are "cool" all the time and it's very cute. Hopefully I will be able to manage them better when they are in school. They have lots of activities during the week and Jonathan is at school almost all day, so that should make it easier. Plus, he'll be happier when he has school friends to play with again. Hooray for kindergarten!
I have wanted to give up pretty much all day, everyday. I have no idea what I was thinking in choosing to do this. I feel bad that they are spending so much time, energy, and money on someone who can't even speak to their children! I'm excited to learn German because I think that will be a very helpful skill to have later in life for travel, business, and what have you, but I don't know how I am going to be helpful to them when I can't figure out how to communicate. I am really hoping that it will get better when I am a little bit more adjusted to the time change. Right now though, I am very tired and I am finding it very hard to stay awake for a whole day! I got up a little earlier today but now all I want to do is sleep.....where is my Starbucks when I need it so bad?! Haha. Cross your fingers for me that I can stay awake till dinner!
I had my first little shopping trip today. I walked with Jonathan and Oma to the grocery store right after breakfast, but all I did was look around. I will figure out how to talk to people at the grocery store....at a later date.....I hope. (: After that though, I walked, all by myself I must add, to the little toiletries store in the area. It wasn't too bad, although, I must have stared at what I believe was the aisle of shampoo for 30 minutes before I chose one. Hopefully I did okay! They had pretty much everything I needed (And Daddy, they had several different kinds of Q-Tips, a little expensive, but they had them nonetheless! And, in a cute little container!! (: ) They didn't have any make-up powder, but perhaps I can get that in Stuttgart tomorrow. Tomorrow we are going to get Ann-Katrin's new guitar for her lessens that start on Monday. We are also going to go to this fancy shop that I read about online, Merz und Benzing http://www.merz-benzing.de/ and go to the book store to buy my German book for my German lessens that start the 25th of September. (Oh yeah, did I mention that I tested into the 2nd level of German? I'm not a complete idiot I guess!)
Anyway, that was probably more than any of you ever wanted to know and I am going to have a cappuccino with Oma! I will write more very soon!
Cori
The kids are rather cute. I feel bad because I don't really know what to say to them though. By the time that I look up a word or two to make a sentence or ask them a question, the opportunity has passed and they are onto something else (that I also don't know how to say in German!) I can understand some of what their German Grandma says; at least enough to say ja or nein in response. She's staying here to look after the kids so that I can get situated and until they start school again next week. I can also understand some of what the children say, but Jonathan, the almost 5 year old boy, slurs alot and uses his pouty voice...which if there was any hope of me understanding him before, it goes completely out the window when he is pouting. He is upset that mostly the children on the block are Ann-Katrin, his 9 year old sister's, age and therefore are not interested in playing with him for very long. He's totally okay with playing with them because he just wants the company, but, of course, they want to do big-kid things without him. Ann-Katrin is sweet and sort of a little-mini teenager. She say's that things are "cool" all the time and it's very cute. Hopefully I will be able to manage them better when they are in school. They have lots of activities during the week and Jonathan is at school almost all day, so that should make it easier. Plus, he'll be happier when he has school friends to play with again. Hooray for kindergarten!
I have wanted to give up pretty much all day, everyday. I have no idea what I was thinking in choosing to do this. I feel bad that they are spending so much time, energy, and money on someone who can't even speak to their children! I'm excited to learn German because I think that will be a very helpful skill to have later in life for travel, business, and what have you, but I don't know how I am going to be helpful to them when I can't figure out how to communicate. I am really hoping that it will get better when I am a little bit more adjusted to the time change. Right now though, I am very tired and I am finding it very hard to stay awake for a whole day! I got up a little earlier today but now all I want to do is sleep.....where is my Starbucks when I need it so bad?! Haha. Cross your fingers for me that I can stay awake till dinner!
I had my first little shopping trip today. I walked with Jonathan and Oma to the grocery store right after breakfast, but all I did was look around. I will figure out how to talk to people at the grocery store....at a later date.....I hope. (: After that though, I walked, all by myself I must add, to the little toiletries store in the area. It wasn't too bad, although, I must have stared at what I believe was the aisle of shampoo for 30 minutes before I chose one. Hopefully I did okay! They had pretty much everything I needed (And Daddy, they had several different kinds of Q-Tips, a little expensive, but they had them nonetheless! And, in a cute little container!! (: ) They didn't have any make-up powder, but perhaps I can get that in Stuttgart tomorrow. Tomorrow we are going to get Ann-Katrin's new guitar for her lessens that start on Monday. We are also going to go to this fancy shop that I read about online, Merz und Benzing http://www.merz-benzing.de/ and go to the book store to buy my German book for my German lessens that start the 25th of September. (Oh yeah, did I mention that I tested into the 2nd level of German? I'm not a complete idiot I guess!)
Anyway, that was probably more than any of you ever wanted to know and I am going to have a cappuccino with Oma! I will write more very soon!
Cori
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Almost a Week
I have been in Germany almost a week, but both Lena and I agree, it feels like I have been here forever! It's nice here. I'm getting to the point that I feel comfortable walking away from Lena in a store. We can look at different things and areas without making me sooo nervous. I'm still a little nervous. I can't understand all what people say. I can understand body language and hand gestures....that's good! But like today, I was in a shop by myself and I went to the dressing room to try on clothing. No big deal, I just grabbed one when I women got done right? Well, I happened to grab the one that also contained the door to the store's backroom and it also happened to be the time that the saleswomen needed to get in there. She started talking to me soooo fast, there was no way for me to grasp all the words. I just don't have enough German vocab to have complete conservations....I mean, I've only had one quarter at college so far! But I am starting to not be so nervous to try. I can say "Ich spreche Englisch." and such, no problem. So I get by okay....sometimes.
Luckily enough the lady was very nice and made enough gestures that I knew to move out of her way. Hooray for coming from a family that talks completely with their hands! I truly mean it! I said a whole German sentence yesterday to Lena and she was so proud. She actually replied in German and then stopped, apologized, and spoke in English. She said that it sounded so correct, she forgot to reply in English anyway! Just a proud moment....made me smile.
So, yesterday. Yesterday we went to Munich for the day for shopping. When we left the train we happened across a natural store and finally got some aloe vera gel for my sunburn. (It finally is feeling a little better today! Yay Aloe Vera!) Then we proceeded on our way to my first trip on the German subway system. The student summer holiday train pass, that we convinced Die Bahn to let me purchase even as an American, works on the main subway system in Munich, as well as all the trains in Bavaria. (What a fantastic buy that was!!) We went shopping all day! Almost too much shopping for me even. (Can you imagine?!) Anyway, I got to see the huge Gothic style building in the center of town that holds the largest Glokenspiel in the world. Unfortunately, the tower containing it is under renovation to make repairs and such so I didn't get to see the actual Glokenspiel yet. In a couple weeks, maybe. From there we wandered to the old open-air market. It was really nice. I got to purchase some hand made items there at the market and had lunch at the Original Beer Garden in the very center. I also bought my first dirndl.......to wear to the upcoming festivals. It's black with roses on it. Very simple, but quite lovely. As we did our last shopping and headed to the main station in Munich a storm came our way fast. It poured! It was almost hysterical, Lena and me, runninng to the station in the huge rain drops of a thunder storm. Quite refreshing actually! I liked it. We were in the very center of the storm.....I couldn't even count the seconds between the lightening and the thunder! The day kinda ended there and we relaxed...
Today.....today was fun and kinda quiet. We kinda got up and ready slowly, while I wrote a bunch of post cards. Eventually we headed for Rosenheim, Germany. It's a town a little bigger than Prien, but no where near as big as Munich. They are having their season sales there that Lena's mother Tina told us about. (She lives there.) So we headed over and got a few things. I actually found clothing that worked for me and wasn't toooo expensive (like everything else is here...). I got a kind of dress that is really popular here right now. Now I'm hip in European terms...well, maybe. (; It was a nice day out and her grandma made Apfelstreudel for us while we were out. My first, real, German-made streudel.
Tomorrow is going to be a spontaneous day. We don't have much planned except for maybe finishing my post cards and if the weather is nice, I might talk her into a trip to the castle on the island. Who knows what we'll do! Thanks to all you who have been reading my little blog here. I'm so very glad that I get to share this whole experience with my friends and family back home.
Liebe,
Cori
Luckily enough the lady was very nice and made enough gestures that I knew to move out of her way. Hooray for coming from a family that talks completely with their hands! I truly mean it! I said a whole German sentence yesterday to Lena and she was so proud. She actually replied in German and then stopped, apologized, and spoke in English. She said that it sounded so correct, she forgot to reply in English anyway! Just a proud moment....made me smile.
So, yesterday. Yesterday we went to Munich for the day for shopping. When we left the train we happened across a natural store and finally got some aloe vera gel for my sunburn. (It finally is feeling a little better today! Yay Aloe Vera!) Then we proceeded on our way to my first trip on the German subway system. The student summer holiday train pass, that we convinced Die Bahn to let me purchase even as an American, works on the main subway system in Munich, as well as all the trains in Bavaria. (What a fantastic buy that was!!) We went shopping all day! Almost too much shopping for me even. (Can you imagine?!) Anyway, I got to see the huge Gothic style building in the center of town that holds the largest Glokenspiel in the world. Unfortunately, the tower containing it is under renovation to make repairs and such so I didn't get to see the actual Glokenspiel yet. In a couple weeks, maybe. From there we wandered to the old open-air market. It was really nice. I got to purchase some hand made items there at the market and had lunch at the Original Beer Garden in the very center. I also bought my first dirndl.......to wear to the upcoming festivals. It's black with roses on it. Very simple, but quite lovely. As we did our last shopping and headed to the main station in Munich a storm came our way fast. It poured! It was almost hysterical, Lena and me, runninng to the station in the huge rain drops of a thunder storm. Quite refreshing actually! I liked it. We were in the very center of the storm.....I couldn't even count the seconds between the lightening and the thunder! The day kinda ended there and we relaxed...
Today.....today was fun and kinda quiet. We kinda got up and ready slowly, while I wrote a bunch of post cards. Eventually we headed for Rosenheim, Germany. It's a town a little bigger than Prien, but no where near as big as Munich. They are having their season sales there that Lena's mother Tina told us about. (She lives there.) So we headed over and got a few things. I actually found clothing that worked for me and wasn't toooo expensive (like everything else is here...). I got a kind of dress that is really popular here right now. Now I'm hip in European terms...well, maybe. (; It was a nice day out and her grandma made Apfelstreudel for us while we were out. My first, real, German-made streudel.
Tomorrow is going to be a spontaneous day. We don't have much planned except for maybe finishing my post cards and if the weather is nice, I might talk her into a trip to the castle on the island. Who knows what we'll do! Thanks to all you who have been reading my little blog here. I'm so very glad that I get to share this whole experience with my friends and family back home.
Liebe,
Cori
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