Trick or Treat

On Thursday the 29th, I as usual, was running late and as a result missed the bus. Sadly this has been happening quiet frequently as of late. As I stood around waiting for the next bus I was approached by three boys. Then he said "Trick or Treat!"  I responded "Excuse me, what?" After which they said "Trick or Treat".  After I realised what they said and that they wanted candy I informed that since I was waiting for the bus I had none on me. To which they told me they would accept money. Of course I said I wasn't giving them money.  These fresh boys then informed me they have eggs. To which I said "oh eggs okay?" Finally they gave up talking to me. One of them said "Let's go, and forget about her."  I told them that it wasn't even Halloween. One of them responded, "yes it is Halloween is today and tomorrow". I again said, "no it's not, it's on Saturday the thirtyfirst, I would know because I'm from America." Then one of them wanted to know what it's like in America. Of course his friends were like let's go forget about her.

On Halloween my doorbell rung three times which is triple as many times as it would be rung in the states. Of course, I didn't open the door because I was a scrooge and didn't buy any candy.

Workin' on my fitness

I decided to join a gym.

I've been a member of a gym in the past, and thought this might be a way to meet more people and to exercise consistently and continually, something that on my own I'm not successful at.

The gym I found is close enough that I can walk there if I choose. So far I've taken the bus to get there. It's a small gym but it's 24 hours, has a exercise room just for women and also has classes 6 days a week, all which made it very appealing for me.

 The first day there I decided to do the fitness test program on the treadmill. I thought this was really cool since I've never seen a fitness test program on other treadmills.  I've never done well on  fitness challenges. When we had the presidential mile in school I was always at the tail end of those finishing. In fact, I could never run a mile better than 10:42. Luckily my good genes have kept me thin, and my periodic exercising and running has also helped me. However, I already knew, pressing the fitness test program, that I would not get the best results.

For the ten minutes the program ran, the speed was periodically changed, but never accelerated enough for me to run, so that I could very easily keep my hands on the strips that recorded my heart rate. When the program was over I received my grade of sehr schlecht (very bad).  How appalling! Here I was, thinking I was decently in shape  for my age given what my diet is comprised of and the fact that I exercise every once in a while. Well jokes on me it would seem. Apparently by German standards I am no where near where I should be for my age. But the positive thing about receiving these rules is it proves to me I need to do more exercise. So good thing I joined the gym!

Surprise Movie!

I've been going to meet up groups not only to meet people but also to learn more about the city and events that take place here. At one Sunday night meetup groups an acquaintance told me that every Monday night at one of the local movie theatres there is a surprise movie. For half the price of a regular movie you're able to a movie that has yet to be released in Germany. The only catch is, walking into the movie you have no idea what it is, and if it will be good.  He's had great experiences with the movies, and equally shitty experiences but he said it is always a good way to spend your Monday night.

Since I have 2 weeks off for Herbstferien I decided to see what this wold be like. My friend was kind enough to get the tickets, since as usual, I was running late. What I forgot about in Germany is that you have assigned seating in the movie theatres, which in cases, such as this actually works out because it was packed! We also were lucky in that we got an extra wide aisle and the couples seat for our 5.50.

After watching about 30 minutes of commericals and previews the movie finally began. There was no title displayed only the credits, which began with the director Danny Boyle and then the actors, Michael Fassbender, Kate Winselt, Seth Rogen, Jeff Daniels and so on. Based on that, and the first few minutes of the movie we figured out it was the Steve Jobs film.

I was really impressed with the acting and thought the movie was cut and put together very well. The whole movie is based around three launch dates of products that Steve Jobs worked on. Through these launches we see how he treats friends and family alike. At the same time,  there's also flashbacks to give us the background on characters and help the audience to see the character development.

The only downside was since the film started at 9:30 I didn't get home to 1:00 am so while it was really fun night and a great film I doubt I'll be able to attend any other surprise movies when school is back in session.

It's been a while...

It would seem that since work began I haven't updated. While there's not a good reason for that, it's been very hard for me to put into words everything that I've been experiencing at work. Schools here in Germany are so different from what the 'typical' American school is like which makes it hard for me to explain. It's also hard since most of my work experiences have been in public schools in the US and now I'm working in a private school in Germany.

But the most important thing is that I love it. I've really lucked out.

Woolworths

It always surprises me how much I learn about America while in Germany. For instance I went into Woolworths to get some household items because they are very reasonably priced here. Since I am trying, sometimes not too successfully, to buy only necessary items at the moment, I didn't end up getting that things. However, while waiting to pay I noticed there was a huge sign behind the checkout telling all about the Woolworth building in NYC. To be honest, I didn't even realize there was a Woolworths building! As I stood there, I learned that the building was completed in 1913 and known as the tallest building of its time. According to the sign, Frank Woolworth, who commissioned the building, paid everyone who worked on the building in cash. It's time like these that I don't feel well educated for someone who's been to New York City multiple times and loves architecture and history.

Sidenote: How is it that there are still Woolworths abroad when all of them in the US went bankrupt years ago?

Of course, I came home and immediately went on wikipedia to read about the building. When it was built it cost 13.5 million which is amazing considering what an average person made and spent during the 1910s. Even more impressive was the President, Woodrow Wilson, turned on the lights from Washington D.C. with a press of a button.

Sadly, according to wikipedia, since Sept 11, you can no longer see the lobby which contained mosaics, murals, and stain-glassed ceiling lights and bronze fixtures. But you can book a tour of the lobby! https://woolworthtours.com

Museumsuferfest

This past weekend was the annual Museumsuferfest in Frankfurt. From Friday to Sunday you pay 7 Euros to receive a button that allows you to get into all the museums. So if you're smart and really spend time planning you could potentially go into around 20 museums for only 7 Euros.  Apparently 2 million people attend this event.

This is the second time I've been to this festival. The last time was a very hot day in August as well. From my past experience I knew it can get really crowded. However, I didn't apply this logic to this situation. Instead of going early Friday, when it was in the 60s and most people are at work, I decided to on Saturday afternoon. When it was close to, if not in the 90s. Remember that Germany, like many European countries, does't have air conditioning, so it was very hot. 

But the time I got to the Historisches Museum Frankfurt I was already hot and tired. Luckily since this museum was in part of the old city wall/tower it was pretty cool inside. I got a great view from the tower windows of the Main river outside. And all the people. 

I also was able to go through the museum pretty quickly because everything was in English and German. Not only did I get to learn about the city life and how it's changed over the years, there was very interesting special exhibit on the top floor. It was one of those exhibits where I always think "this person gets paid for this and is famous for this?" Karsten Bott has collected and categorized different boxes, wrappers, and everyday items for many years and has created an exhibit out of these artifacts. To me, it looks as if he's gone into someone's basement and taken junk out and called it art.  

There was also an Indonesian event going on the first floor of the museum. You could hear the drums being played from all over the museum. I only watched part of the dance from the doorway. Partly because I didn't pay the entrance fees but also because there were so many people in the room I figured it must be really hot in there.  They were also selling Indonesian food and drinks in the foyer of one of the halls when you came in. 

After visiting the Historisches Museum Frankfurt I went to the Archaelogisches Museum. This museum had a really great interactive center for those who had little kids with them. The rest of the museum contained artifacts from all different time periods. By this point I didn't read all the signs throughout the museum only ones periodically because it was all in German. It's incredible to see  how heavily the Greeks and Romans influenced other cultures. While this museum also was lacking air conditioning it was in a church so it wasn't hot.  The whole day reminded me of when I was in Salzburg a few years ago and ended up going into 10 churches the weekend I was there because it was so freaking hot out yet very cool in the churches.

After the two museums it was 8ish and I decided to get food. Since this event is built around the museums which line the Main, all different types of stands are set-up along the riverbank. You can get any type of food you'd like, beers to wash down the food, and enjoy music as you eat. There is traditional German foods such as brats, and my favorite Flammkuchen, or you can get Chinese, African, or even cupcakes. Basically whatever strikes your fancy. Sometimes you can also buy a beverage at the same stand you get your food at, and if not, not to worry about every 30 yards is another beer stand. Of course, the beer at the event is about 2 Euros more than a typical beer from the grocery store, so many will just bring their own beverages.Germany doesn't have any open container policies so it's very typical to see people walking around drinking their beer. There were many people walking around with 6 packs and full bottles of wine which they were enjoying.

I spent probably 2 hours walking along the banks of the Main. What I can't stress enough is how many people there were. After a while it wasn't any fun because you couldn't move until the person upfront started moving. You were just stuck in the crowd. I just kept hoping no one would get injured or faint. If that would have happened the police and emergency people probably wouldn't be able to get through the crowds to that person for at least 10 minutes.  Luckily that didn't happen while I was there.

Volkshochschule

Today I spent 6 HOURS at the Volkshochschule. I arrived at 12:20 and filled out the forms and just waited around until my number was called. I There were people form all over there. There were people form Syria and Serbia and then some who could speak German but couldn't write it because they didn't know the alphabet. I felt so bad for the man who was working there. I had seen him on the previous two days I had come by, and he was so patient despite having to say the same thing over and over again. 

I finally went to speak with someone at 2:30 (thank god I went and bought a newspaper to help me pass the time) and told him that I had previously taken the C1 exam and that I thought maybe I should start at that level since I only passed with a 71. He then had me take a test. I had to write a complaint letter to which he pointed out that I made some elementary mistakes in my German (I had to use a variety of sentence structure and made my common mistake of not using the correct article and forgetting to conjugate the verb). On that part I only got a 9 out of 15. Then I had to take another part which was very similar to the B2 test. I was given 3 passages and had to fill in the blanks. The first passage I had a choice of which words. The second I had to change verbs (into different tenses and conjugation). The third I had to fill in the blanks myself. Although I didn't find it tough, I only did okay. Overall I got 24.5 out of 30. 

It ended up being determined that I should go into the B2.2 class. Which is annoying because that's where I started 5 years ago. But at the same time I haven't written much German in the last 5 years, and especially not with the proper grammar function. The bad part of this is that the only B2.2 classes are offered during the day in Hoechst and the only night classes are at the main   Volkshochschule in Frankfurt.  The class is Montag, Mittwoch, Donnerstag at 6 pm. So I would basically have to leave right after school to get there in time. The cost is 320 Euros plus book fees. There were only two sections one starts the first week of school, while the other starts  end of September. Both of them are 25 hours in total. Th second section was filled up but I put myself on the waiting list because I want to first see how the school year is before I sign up for anything.  If I did the second section it would end late November and then there's no classes until February because they're redoing their computer systems.

I don't know if I should be annoyed that my German level is where it was when I arrived here 6 years ago(when I began as an aupair), or if I should be impressed that I have not regressed further. At the same time, this test validates what I have said before, my ability has reached a proficiency level which is very hard to advance from. Unless I talk and read, and think in German I'm not able to progress further.