Work
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I began working at the DAI Tübingen in October. At first, I substituted for a couple classes and did private lessons, helping prepare students who were studying for big English exams like the TOEFL and IELTS. In November I took over a beginner class that meets on Tuesday and Thursday nights. The students are three middle-aged ladies who are very sweet and lots of fun. The class comes to an end this week. I wasn't given a regular class to teach for the following semester, but I'm slated to teach an intensive course for 11th / 12th grade kids the first week in January, which will be very fun.
At the end of October, Claire recommended me to the Deutsch-Amerikanisch Zentrum in Stuttgart, and they promptly asked me to come meet them. They had had an emergency with a teacher and needed to replace her instantly for an upcoming intensive class for 11 / 12th grade kids, so I took the job and got to travel to Stuttgart every day for a week to teach the course. That age of student is one of my favorites, and we worked on lots of fun projects, ranging from speeches to short plays to interpreting Emo music (thanks for the help, Green Day). The kids had a great time with me and I was invited to teach a similar intensive in February of next year, and again in April, both of which I graciously accepted.
The folks at the DAZ are some of the nicest and most welcoming people that I've ever encountered, and I am very lucky to have fallen into that job. Along with the intensive courses, they're also launching a series of public speeches for high school groups, a couple of which I'll be able to do.
I was also taken on by another language school in Stuttgart called Arenalingua. They send "trainers" out to companies across Germany to teach Business English courses. I didn't expect to get much work from them, but before I was even done with orientation they had offered me a job teaching at a machinery firm in a village called Hailfingen, which is about 20 minutes from Tübingen by car. So for the next four months, every Monday and Friday morning I wake up very early and go teach for several hours there. I have three different classes, ranging from complete beginners to upper intermediate students. We talk about effective business communication, telephone and email skills, and lots of grammar (natürlich). It's a nice, consistent job.
So I'm working! It's still not enough - the DAI and DAZ are both too sporadic to help me consistently pay rent and bills, but when I find a few more private students, I'll be in a good place. Also, the work that I've already gotten was enough to secure my visa, so I'm legally able to stay here!
German
I took intensive German courses for three months, and finished in the end of November. My language has much improved since my arrival, but three months does not a fluent speaker make, and the more I learn the more I realize I don't know. I try to use German as much as possible in daily life, with my roommates, in stores, and with friends, but I get stuck quite often.
It's clear that I need to really develop a plan of how to work by myself - between a mix of reading lots of German books, using computer programs, drilling vocabulary with flash cards, and forcing usage in as many situations as I can.
Living
The lease for my original apartment ended at the end of October, so I had to look for another apartment, as did my roommates. Unfortunately, we were searching at a terrible time, as the semester was just beginning and many students were also looking for places. Also, although we knew we might have to split up, we really had become friends the last four months and wanted to stay together if at all possible.
And it was possible. We finally found a flat in Lustnau, a neighborhood northeast of the city center. The flat is beautiful, it has lots of space, and it's perfect for four people. The downside was the price - in addition to the rent and security deposit, we had to pay a "Finder's Fee" to the real estate which was to the tune of 2,000 euros - at our current exchange rate, that's three grand, of which I had to pay a fourth. It was the financial equivalent of Ajax throwing himself upon his own sword, except without the honor gained. But some things are worth more than money, and I was very lucky to have found the roommates that I did, and I'm very happy to be living here.
Want to see my new Wohnung?
Exterior - I live above a bakery and a Chinese restaurant.
We live on the fourth floor, at the very top. (In Germany we call this the third floor, because the bottom one doesn't count)
Here are some interior shots:
The actual apartment is two floors, with the upstairs housing Gregor and Phillip, and the bottom has Anne and me, as well as our kitchen and dining room.
Speaking of that, here's our nice little dining room:
We often have family dinners:
From left to right, me, Phillip, Gregor, Sabine (Anne's friend), and Anne. This night I had cooked Putenschnitzel for everyone (fried turkey cutlets).
And here are some views from the apartment - both of these are from my bedroom window.
If you'd like to see the apartment for yourself, and you don't mind traveling to Germany, why don't you come to our housewarming party this Saturday night?
From left to right, me, a skeleton, Phillip, and Anne. (Not pictured: Gregor)
I've got plenty more to tell you about - my Theater activity since arriving in Germany is a whole blog on its own (and it's very exciting, at least for me), so I'll try to update again in the next couple days. Also, my mom came to visit me here and spent the last ten days here (she left yesterday morning) and we did a lot of exciting things, so that's coming as well.
Sorry to lose touch - I'm doing great and can't wait to tell more.
I guess what's the most interesting change for me is that I feel like Tübingen really feels like my home now. I have no yearning to go running back to the United States, I'm over that, and I'm just really comfortable here.
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