Sunday, June 29, 2008

Que Triste, Vienna Calling

We lost. After beating Turkey, Portugal and Poland we (and by "we" I mean, Germans, which means the people I live near but don't really talk to) lost the Euro 2008 to Spain.

Boring 'ol Spain.

Que triste. Maybe if this was 1492 or 1936, I'd be thinking "whoa, Spain, watch out," but instead I was snoozing. The game was neither political nor all that tense and I wish Schweinsteiger or Podolski had saved some of their sparkle for the later games. Oh well.

We watched the last two games of the tournament underneath a bridge on the Main. A beer garden with a white screen, benches, and a drinks hut was set up over abandoned train tracks. It was a great public viewing crowd: not too rowdy but ready to cheer at appropriate times. For both Wednesday's game and tonight's game the weather was a perfect 80 degrees and sunny, and looking out onto the river I felt so lucky to be able to live in a country with open bottle laws.

So no more soccer. This will be a big hole in my life. For the last three weeks there was always something to talk to strangers about, something to watch on TV, something to drink to. Sports are the great equalizers, the great national conversations. Tonight, Frau Merkel, or as I call her, Angie, was cheering in the stadium in Vienna, surely not more than 50 yards away from someone with their chest in grease paint and a German flag-colored afro. Soccer is enjoyed by both presidents and plebeians.

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Childless Europe

The NYTimes magazine is on a role for me. Last week, Mad Men, and this week, "No Babies?" exploring the "lowest-low fertility rates" in modern Europe. This topic never fails to intrigue me...

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/29/magazine/29Birth-t.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Mediocre at best

Yesterday, my favorite student, the one who I have three times per week kept saying "childs" instead of "children," and all I could think is, "I have failed you."

I have been teaching for over 5 months, living here for over 6, and sometimes I feel like I am not improving my language acquisition or the language acquisition of others. I feel like things are a bit stagnant and I wonder if I have officially left my honeymoon period with Germany. Sure, football (big game Wednesday!) still keeps the flame burning, but maybe Germany and I need to work harder on our relationship. Maybe the problem is summer, or the fact that the charm of living in an apartment without an oven has worn off.

I've been trying to liven up my lesson plans, making my own Taboo cards (try to get people to say "Titanic" without using "ship," 'iceberg," "accident," "Leo," or "movie") and using provocative National Geographic photos (young Asian women with guns! Snow Leopards!) to work on description and vocab, but I'm afraid it's a losing battle. My students still say "become" when they mean "get" and "meaning" when the mean "opinion."* And my own German is poop. I've reached a plateau where I can understand 80% more than what I can speak and I can never remember the verb I need in a conversation.

But for all the bloggy complaints there are some major improvements in my life. Namely, we got a coffee maker, and I've resumed a regimen of arm-pumping fitness walking with my friend Courtney. Today we walked by what was clearly a "males only" section on the banks of the Main river. I saw a 65 year-old man in a red thong bikini bottom. He was lying about on his stomach, waving his feet in the air like a little coquette. It was my daily high.

I am EAGERLY awaiting Season 2 of "Mad Men." OH MY GOD PEGGY!!!!

* These are what we call "false friends" in the language world. In German, the verb to get/receive is bekommen, so when Germans often say "become" when they mean "get." Same goes for the German word meinung, which means "opinion" but sounds like "meaning." Tricky business.

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Germany in the Final Four!

Goddamn I love the drama of sports! In fact, I haven't felt so jazzed about a game since my senior year of high school when the Twins were in the pennant race...

Anyway, Germany played a marvelous 3-2 game against Portugal on Thursday and it was so thrilling. The Portuguese players are such Lacy Lovelaces: Rolling around on the ground when a German brushed up against them, covering their mouths in agony at the mere appearance of a cleat, etc. Thank goodness the Germans weren't distracted, they finally played a cohesive game. Then last night the game to determine our halb-finale partner was played: Turkey vs. Croatia. It was an utterly boring game, no score after 90 mins, but then Croatia scored, then Turkey scored, and then they had to go into a shoot out. Turkey won, and it was one of the more exciting victories I have ever seen! There are over 8 million Turks living in Germany and thus the street celebrations after the game were insane: Fireworks, flags, drums, Mediterranean pubescents with beer.

Other news pales in comparison to soccer, but we had a visitor in my mother this week. It was so good to have family here, but the weather was scheisse and there's only so much to do in the 'Furt. We went to the gorgeous botanical gardens, the Palmengarten. Unfortunately, this trip was made after seeing "The Happening." I am so afraid of plants.

My other highlight of the week was going to an art opening with Katie We were so out of place, seeing that our main goal was to sample every free dessert and appetizer they were offering. The event was for a new modern photography exhibit at the Staedel called "Warhol malt night," (Warhol doesn't paint). The photos were great but what was even better was the entertainment. A dashing man in a black suit and jaunty white hat played the piano. He sang really cheesy songs, like "Night Fever," in this jazzy, sexy way. I piked up his card after the event, and his name was printed as "Dr. Feelgood Jr." I kid you not.

Katie left for NYC today, I am too sad to write anymore.

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Warning: dirty article

Germany is so racy. I see this book in the store everyday and I like its Band-Aid on the cover. My friend Kerry sent me this link because it uses my favorite phrase, "national conversation." Yes!

Read this:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/06/world/europe/06taboo.html?scp=10&sq=wetlands&st=nyt

EM Fever

I thought I didn't like soccer. Or rather, I never gave soccer a chance because I assumed that it was a sport only to be enjoyed by those who at one time or another experienced a political dictatorship. But I'm wrong, I do like soccer, and even I wouldn't call Jesse "The Body" a diktator.

On Saturday the European Championship begin. Europe's 16 best national teams play each other in brackets of 4 over the course of 3 weeks, winnowing down to a final game. So far, there are two games (each bracket) played per night.

I am rooting for Germany, but only marginally. The Swedish fans wear very funny little hats with blue feathers, and I feel my loyalties pulling me northward. Anyway, what I like about these games is what I like about the Olympics or the World Series: They contribute to a national conversation, nay, a continental conversation that takes place on the streets. On Sunday I was alone at home during the Germany game and before I turned on the TV I heard my entire neighborhood burst into cheer. The Germans had scored, and a mere open street-facing window told me that! How great.

Besides soccer, this past week has been exciting because my great friends Ben and Megan came to visit us in the 'Furt. They were the easiest guests to have, and not only did they bring up Oreos and Real Simple magazine, they brought Cribbage. I am walking around saying "15 for 2."


Must go watch soccer.

Thursday, June 5, 2008

Feist and MFAs

Summer is officially here in Frankfurt and the city is hopping, well, in a Frankfurt-y sort of way. the Fressgasse, the main "eat street" of the 'Furt is having a food and wine fest all week with bands, outdoor seating, etc. I went there this weekend and had some delicious strawberiies in Appelwoi and listened to a really, really, heavily accented German sing "Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay." Please Germans, leave soul music alone.

On Sunday I saw Feist at the Jarhuderthalle concert hall with all of four of my friends. It was a good concert. feist was weird as ever, dressed like Stevie Nicks, white fringe and all. Her voice sounded great and she amused the crowd with some anecdotes about her years living in Berlin. One hilaroius/distracting/too-cute-for-indie-words note: Feist's version of a pyrotechnic show was to have some girls finger paint on a large projector behind the stage. They finger painted waves and hearts. It was something a two-year old could do, but my friend Courtney was probably right when she whispered to me, "These girls probably have MFAs." Their poor parents.


Obama crazy here this morning, he is on the cover of every German newspaper and all over the news screens in the train stations. I'm so glad that he's won the nomination because I cannot explain to my students anymore about the difference between primaries and caucuses.

I have visitors this week! More updates soon.