German Integration Course

To extend my residency visa beyond the end of this year, there were a couple of requirements. One was to improve my German. This is a fairly new thing in Germany, From what I've read, Germany started offering German Integration Courses in 2005 for people seeking a residence visa. These courses consist of 645 hours of classes (945 for people who are illiterate). 600 hours are German language classes designed to bring the person to the B1 level. The meaning of B1 is as follows:

"Can understand the main points of clear standard input on familiar matters regularly encountered in work, school, leisure, etc. Can deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is spoken. Can produce simple connected text on topics which are familiar or of personal interest. Can describe experiences and events, dreams, hopes & ambitions and briefly give reasons and explanations for opinions and plans."

These 600 hour are divided in to 6 modules of 100 hours. According to a test that I took, I needed to start at module 3.

The last 45 hours creates final module about German culture.

The cost of these classes are minimal for the student, as the program is state supported, 1 euro per class hour. At the end of the course, the student takes a test to see if he/she has attained proficiency. If the student is able to pass this test within 2 years, the state actually refund 50% of the tuition.

So I now find myself spending some of my Saturday mornings (as in "every day is a Saturday" when you retire) in a German Integration course improving my German. The course meets every weekday morning for 4 hours.  There are about 16 people in the class. Over a third come from Iraq. Others come from Hungary, Spain, India, Georgia, Uruguay, Brazil, Kosovo  and the Philippines. I'm the only American.

So far, the class has been enjoyable. Although I, personally, would like to see the class move a little faster. I have noticed a improvement in what I understand and can express in German after only 7 classes. I'm pretty happy with the idea of spending a good part of this year studying German.

What happens after this year? I understand the the city will support additional classes to help people reach the C1 level (i.e. relatively fluent). That's the point I should be able to achieve a dream I've had since 1991 when I first went to Germany. That is to read Hesse's Siddhartha in its original language.

Returning Home from Home

Things get a little surreal on a trans-Atlantic flight and sometimes your mind wanders. I mean if you really thought about the fact that you are sitting in a aluminum can that is 7 miles above the ground and traveling nearly 600 miles per hour, it could drive you a little crazy. So there I was traveling "home" to Germany, where Magda (and Frannie) where. But just a few weeks earlier, I was in a similar plane going the other direction, traveling 'home" to the USA.

That started me thinking where I consider to be "home". Yes, I know, "Home is where the heart is". But just what puts your heart in one place or another.

I'm willing to accept that "home" is a relative term. When I'm in Hilton Head, I might say "I'm ready to go home" after an evening out, meaning I'm ready to go back to our condo. But I don't consider a trip to Hilton Head to be a trip "home".

There needs to be some strong connection to a place that makes you call it “home”. I still have a strong connection to Columbus, but maybe a bit weaker than it was 6 months ago. With my house, the financial connections are still there. More importantly, there are friends and family there that I enjoy seeing and talking to. Finally there is a comfort level associated with a place that I lived for 49 of my 57 years. But work is no longer a part of this connection. Plus Magda and Frannie are now in Germany, forming the primary connection that I have to Koblenz.

Time will tell if the connections to one place supersedes the connections to the other. For the time being, I guess I have two homes.

Riding a New Wave

Magda, Frannie, and I took a quick trip to Mettlach this week. Mettlach is the home of Villeroy & Boch, the porcelain manufacturer. In addition to a museum dedicated to Villeroy & Boch, the town has several factory outlet stores. Lands End and Birkenstock have outlets there. And of course, there are 3 stores devoted to Villeroy & Boch.

We went there thinking it was time for new china. Magda's set is several years old and was no longer in production. Since several pieces had been broken over the years, It was getting more difficult to have china for a party of 10. We didn't have a pattern in mind, but felt that we should be able to find something in Mettlach. We were looking for something that could be used everyday as well as in a formal or casual dinner party. Also something in current production that would give us time to collect what we want.

The problem is that going to a Villeroy & Boch store without knowing what you want feels a bit like being a donkey placed between about 20 bails of hay. Which one do you choose.

We settled on New Wave. It is a bit modern, even though it has been around for a few years now and has become one of Villeroy & Bosh's best selling patterns. I guess you could call it a modern classic. They will be making it for a few more years, that will give us time to collect what we want and handle those future dinner parties. Looks good in the lunch for the two of us. We think it will do the trick at our next dinner party

Silvester - a Night of Craziness

There are a couple of days every year were Germans go a little crazy. New Years Eve (Silvester) is one of those days. It's not that every Silvester custom is crazy or that everyone participates in the craziness, but enough do that it is noteworthy.

Silvester is not a holiday. Stores and offices are open until about 2pm. At 5pm, the Berliner Philharmonic plays on national television. The Prime Minister give a speech broadly outlining accomplishments and goal of the government. The Minister President of Rhineland-Pfalz gives a similar speech on regional television. All of this fits within the definition of normal.

The craziness begins a little later, around 8 or 9pm, small groups begin to test out the fire crackers and rockets that they had purchased earlier in the week. The stores began selling fireworks on Tuesday this year. People streamed to the stores to fill their shopping carts from the several tables of fireworks offered. The sound from the fireworks did slowed down from 9 to 11:55. Then just before midnight, a larger portion of the community heads out to the street and the fireworks really begin. This year the crescendo was continuous until 12:40, then it dwindled down to sporadic explosions or rocket blasts for another 20 or 30 minutes. Frannie found a spot between Magda and I and managed to make it through the noise, but she was not trilled with this unexpected change.

The next day, the streets were littered with the paper/plastic from the fireworks and their packaging.