Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Germany

Tomorrow morning I leave for Germany, to teach the fall semester at the University of Leipzig. My next posts will be from there.

The last few days have thus been a whirlwind of preparation and questions. Do I really have the assigned readings in the right order? Will Red Mars be too difficult for students who have English as a second language? Do German professors call students by their first names, like Americans, or their last, like Brits, or with "Fraulein" and "Herr"? Is there a German equivalent of "Ms."? Do German teachers dress up to conduct class? Should I bring a scissors? What should go in my carry-on, in case all my checked luggage mysteriously disappears? What if no one meets me at the airport? What will my apartment be like? Can I get the BBC or CNN on the TV that I've been told is in the apartment, so I can follow the election news and the daily financial crises? What else is or isn't in the apartment besides a TV? Is there wireless?

The last time I lived abroad for a period of many months, I was 21. It was different then. Throw a suitcase worth of jeans and sweatshirts into the handiest suitcase, and you're off. Not so now. Undoubtedly all these questions will be answered, and undoubtedly I can live with whatever the answers are. After all, I can now say, "The check, please" in four languages. What else could I need?

4 comments:

TheOFloinn said...

Sauwohl! Und gute Reise.

cd said...

Bring your copy of "Waiting for Godot."

g d townshende said...

Haben eine gute Reise und genießen Sie!

I go to Europe every year, but it's been a long time since I lived there. The last time I was in Europe as a resident was 1974-1977, when I was in high school, in England.

Frank Böhmert said...

Hi, Nancy!

I love your blog and just tagged you for the love-your-blog-award. Well, you could call it a chain letter also ... I got it from the british thriller author mg harris.

Look here, if you're curious; I've written it in English, too.

http://frankboehmert.blogspot.com/2008/10/ein-kettenbrief-der-mir-gefllt.html

Best wishes, especially for your time in Germany
Frank from Berlin