Wow! The time has come for us to wrap our four weeks here in Germany. Today was our last day of school. The kids are all--I hope--packing up and getting ready for our 6:00am departure for Berlin-Tegel airport tomorrow.
Today I got to be a teacher: Frau Schott, one of the history teachers, invited me to come to two of her classes and discuss two pretty hot topics: The use of the atomic bomb in WW II on Japan, and American public opinion on the War in Iraq. Mostly I summarized as well as I could the history of each and asked for their questions. Just like at Judge it took a while before some of the students asked questions. I was glad to have the opportunity to be in front of a class again, if only as a "guest speaker."
This will probably be my last posting before we leave. See you at the airport tomorrow evening at 8:20PM.
On Wednesday the German class will drive by bus to Berlin to catch their departing flight back home to the USA.
The time has flown by; whether you are at home or abroad. Many enjoyable memories have been made. Touring the brewery; and seeing how the true beer is made with only four ingrediants.
Standing shoulder to shoulder in the heart of the city watching football, and enduring the emotional rollercoaster that the WM had to offer was thrilling. Hugging a neighbor that you had never before met when Deutschland scored a goal, or crying with the defeat of Deutschland in the Halbfinale against Italien are all memories I will take back with me to the states.
The students were able to do different things with their exchange parterners based on the plans they made. While many people, did many different things, it is my general understanding that everyone had a positive experience here in Germany; and all have improved their knowledge of the German language and culture drastically.
Paul Fischer
After a disappointing semifinal Germany beat Portugal in the "Consolation" game. This means Germany has the 3rd place, but the reaction of the fans and the Chancelor, Angela Merkel, acted as though it were the #1 spot. I don't know much about Fußball, but I have definitely seen more games this most four weeks than I have seen in my whole life. The Football Fever reigns still in Germany.
A lot of the kids have taken trips to Dresden, the state capital of Saxony, where Cheminitz is located. I wen there today, so I thought that I would share with you what I saw.
First, the old part of Dresden was devasted by the fire bombings of February 13/14, 1945. The city was a Baroque jewel of German cities. It had long been the residential city of the kings of Saxony up until the end of World World I, when the German Empire was dissolved.
Most of it was rebuilt and restored under the Communist Regime, but much was not. The German Democratic Republic did have a lot of money at its disposal. After the unification of Germany in 1989, more has been done.
The most spectacular has been the reconstruction of the Frauenkirche (the Church of Our Lady), the largest Protestant, in this case Lutheran, church in Dresden. The reconstruction was a grass roots effort, all the money raised through donations. It has only been open for about a year after a 15 year process. The lines to go inside to visit the church have been incredibly long since it opened. Luckily for me, it was overcast and rainy this morning, so that cut down some of the traffic and I was in line for only about 15 minutes.
Another building completely rebuilt is the architectural masterpiece of the Semper Opera House. It too had to be rebuilt after the War, but was done by the 1960s. However, the huge flood in Dresden a couple of years ago flooded the basement where a significant amount of the sets, costumes, etc. were ruined. It had to restored again.
semper-opera-house-in-dresden.jpeg
The central architectural ensemble is the Zwinger a set of royal buildings for the Elector/King of Saxony--who at times managed to be the King of Poland as well in the 17th & 18th centuries.
zwinger-dresden.jpeg
It contains a number of museums, the most famous, perhaps, is the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister (The painting gallery of the old masters). It was begun in the 16th century and really began acquisitions in the 19th. It is here that you find Raphael's Sistine Madonna. If the painting doesn't come right to mind, if you seen--you can hardly have missed them--the pair of cherubs facing each other any time you see pictures of angels, you'd recognize it. I can't include a picture, since photos are permitted.
Just a taste of what your sons and daughters have been seeing while they are here in Saxony.
As much fun as we´ve all been having, I deffinitly think that 30 days is an awfully long time to be away. We leave in 4 days and although i love Anna and her family has been unbelievably wonderful, i´m ready to be home. Mr. Holder´s been the best of all of us keeping you updated as to what all we´ve been doing here.
i have to admitt though, the most irritating thing about being here and going to school and everything is that all the german kids have been anticipating us and they all stare at us American kids but never talk to us unless they´re there talking to our partner (with a few exceptions, Thank you Max!). I think that it´s because they think they have to speak english to us, but we are here to work on our german.
Anyway, not much time but hopefully the other kids have been having more luck with the shy german kids than i have been. Tsüchie!
-Alexa McF.h
Wednesday Frau Junghans arranged for the art teacher at the Gymnasium, Herr Pinkert, to prepare a special class for our students. The goal was to allow them to produce something that they could take home with them. They each drew their own print and made an imprint so that they could experience print-making, as an artist does it, firsthand. They should get their final product on Friday.
Today we visited the Braustolz Brewery, a local Chemnitz brewery, that was returned to the family from it had been appropriated by the German Democratic Republic, after the unification of Germany. Our guide told us about Germany's Reinheitsgebot that came about in the early 1500's. It stipulates that beer may have only 4 ingrediants: malt, water, hops, and yeast. These guidelines are still in effect in Germany today.
brewery-tour-1.jpegdscn1101.jpg.jpeg
Many most students gave their presentation today to several classes at the school. I was very proud of the way they handled themselves. It is not easy to give presentation in English before a group of students you know. How much more stress to give in German to a group of stranges. A job wel done.
This morning we went to Chemnitz rather new Industrie-Museum where Frau Junghans had arranged a tour in English. The guide was from the local university and did a great job of involving the students in lots of handson activities in the museum. According to the guide the museum has recently won a European award for its set up.
Rather than divide things in a chronological order, the museum is divided into themes: Family, Textiles, Vehicles, Freetime, etc. It is located in an former foundry, saved from the dymamites blasts at the last minute, when two beautiful mural were discovered in one of the machine rooms. They display the workers filling the molds with molten steel. The kids enjoyed the museum so much we extended our stay an extra half-hour so that everyone cound spend a little more time at exhibits that they were interested in.
Postscript
On Friday, as I was on my way to the Mosel valley, the students had a backstage tour of the Chemnitzer Oper. Emily and Lauren were especailly taken with the tour. Emily was almost ready to start working there.
This morning the kids did a Stadtralley, a kind of treasure hunt. Instead of looking for items, they try to get information about the city of Chemnitz. They had a list of 20+ questions that had to answer. I divided them into three teams, each set out every 15 minutes so they would run into each other. They had to go to certain places downtown and usually the information has to be gotten by asking strangers on the street. I think everyone had a good time practicing their German in a different, yet real way. One of the German students is in charge of evaluating the answers and deciding who wins. The results will have to wait until Monday when Frau Junghans and I return.
Tomorrow they will have a backstage tour of the Opera House, along with a chance to see a dress rehearsal. Several students are going to a performance tonight (Thursday) "Falco meets Amadeus". Falco is a (dead) Austrian rock star and Amadeus is, of course, Mozart (also long dead!) There is kind of contest between the two. Frau Junghans has seen it and says it's something the kids will like. No fear of Wagnerian operas of indeterminant length.
Tonight we all went bowling, including Frau Junghans and me. I hadn't bowled since the last time I was in Chemnitz--in 2000! I didn't do well, but it was fun. The kids all went to eat at a Greek restaurant afterwards. I came home to try to catch up on the blog. I have been busy the last couple days helping the kids get their presentations in shape.
bowling.jpeg
In fact, Erika and Liam gave the first of them today. Erika will be leaving us tomorrow: her parents are here in Germany and will stop by Chemnitz to take her back to SLC earlier. So you can see why she had to do it today. I think it went well. They presented to Frau Junghans' AP English class, but did it nevertheless in German. I am proud of composed they were, even with the technical difficulties (we had to get a second overhead projector, since the first one could be focused properely).
The weather changed suddenly yesterday afternoon. We had a major storm: thunder, lightening, hail and lots of rain. It did cool things off quite a lot, and by evening it was sunny again, but still cool. Today was mostly overcast and cooler. This should change soon, with a warm "summerly" weekend.
Frau Junghans and I will be traveling to a small town on th Mosel River, Treis-Karden, just south of Bonn and east of Koblenz--in the western part of Germany. GAPP hosts a weekend conference for the American and German partner teachers during the summer every year. It's to give us a break and to help us learn more about German culture today. Part of the weekiend includes a wine tasting. The Mosel is one of Germany's more famous wine-producing areas.
Don't worry: The kids can still reach me by my cell phone and Frau Junghans has arranged for another English teacher to be on call here should the need arise. I gave everyone her phone number this morning and made sure that they wrote it down.
We've already begun our 3rd week here in Germany, our 2nd in Chemnitz. The time flies. Soon we'll be back home and the kids should have lots of their own photos to show you, judging by the number of camera and flashes I've seen.
Today we had a special tour of the old and new Rathaus (townhall) with the Türmer (town crier). He gave the tour wearing his traditional garb and hat. He showed us the new Glockenspiel (a mechanical show of various figures, which come out on a little stage from one of the towers of the Rathaus).
He depicts the history of Chemnitz though various figures: a monk (the city began as the site of a monastery), a tradesman, a woman spinner of flax, etc. The idea was to show that Chemnitz attained its status through the hard work of its citizens and its tradesmen, not from the largesse of a nobleman or lord.
We then climed the bell tower, where several kids got a chance to hit one of the many ton bells as hard as possible. dscn0990.jpg.jpeg
We then went to the top, which afforded a wonderful panoramic view of old and new Chemnitz.
We down again and entered the various official rooms of the town hall, the many meeting rooms of the mayor and his deputies, and later the town council room.
The Türmer was amusing and spoke slowly, and asked me from time to time to translate some parts that he felt the stuents might not get.
[url=emily-plays-mayor.jpeg]Emily plays mayor[/url]
Lastly he took us into the town church next store which in the process--still--of being restored from the bombings of WW II. Chemnitz being an industrial city was severly bombed during the war.
We then returned to school, when the students up to the 10th grade had hitzefrei, i.e. school got out early due to the heat. Actually it was only in the low 80s. Our kids were envious, to say the least. The upperclassmen had to stay because they cannot afford to miss classes that prepare them for the Abitur an intensive final exam they take at the end of their 12 years of school, and which determines whether they can study at university.
-dresden.jpeg){kind=link}
