There's just something comforting about your native language. While I always flirt with the idea of attempting to speak a foreign language when I'm visiting a foreign country, I always get in a situation where I feel... stupid.
Therefore, I've been saying, "Ich spreche kein Deutsch. Sprechen-sie Englisch?" a lot since I've arrived. (My apologies to the Germans for not spelling things correctly.)
On the other hand, it's comforting to be able to be on a military installation where English is spoken, I see Chevys and Fords in the driveways, and everything is written in English.
We have ventured outside the gate, though. We went into the charming downtown Nuremburg and had a wonderful schnitzel meal. It was fun to eat at an outdoor cafe, looking at the Europeans busily walking to their destinations, and gazing at the old church. What was a bit disconcerting was that we were picked out as the American tourists quickly, and a panhandler and her young daughter approached us for a donation. Guess the polo shirts were not the best choice that day. (Or was it my fabulous Vera Bradley bag?)
The zoo (tiergarten) was a nice non-language activity. It was interesting to go to the same zoo that had the whole polar bear cub brouhaha. (Turns out that my nephew got to see one.)
Yesterday was ribs, pasta salad, and corn on the cob day.
Like I said before, I think that part of our enjoyment so far is that we are taking some short incursions into Germany and then returning to our American enclave.
Hello to everyone. We miss you, and wish that you were here with us! (And we have already had Bitburger over here, A. and E.!)
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1 comment:
So glad to have an update about your trip! Sounds like things are going well, and you are adjusting to the non-English thing. I know that would cause major breakdowns for me. (excuse any typos here-- the little one is squirming on my lap throwing Cheerios at the laptop...) Enjoy that German corn on the cob! We cant wait to see you guys when you get back... I can already tell it's going to be a LONG spring break!
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