Fruehlingszeit in the German Corner - chat continues here

[SSSandy2]

"Deutsch or English
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From Brezeln to Bier

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Sssandy
I asked our French teacher about that and he said that the Swiss French speakers speak very slowly and clearly. As if the you have put a 45 record on at 33 speed.

So, should be good for us learning.

I have never been to the French speaking area of Switzerland, just to the German/Italian area.

How sweet that they speak more slowly! I do like that! Would other French speakers think you were maybe a bit dense if you spoke in that tempo or would they click that you spoke Swiss-style I wonder?

Cadmum moved to Geneva from Vienna, remember, and she seems quite happy there. Your dc will be real little Europeans if you do go and they end up speaking French too, won't they?

I had this Swiss German neighbour when I was working in London yonks back and I was a bit more avantgarde than I am these days. He was telling me NO-ONE in Switzerland looked like me and that I was very much a London girl and he seemed a bit shocked at the idea of me ever going to Switzerland. I wasn't that flamboyant mind so I don't know how ragey/hip that place is generally.

Milk should be good though I'd imagine.

Lol. From what I have heard, Switzerland is generally not thought of as a hip/trendy place, although Geneva is a very international town as far as I know. There are loads of international companies there so I guess it is perhaps a bit different to rural CH.

I remember when we visited London in 1999, we stood around Canary Wharf gazing at all the people walking past. They were a lot of people wearing glasses with black plastic frames, long before they became popular here. They were definately about 2 years ahead of the Germans style-wise.

What do you mean about the milk? Do they have special milk in CH? Because of all the cows?

no not special milk (not that I know of anyway), just have an image of happy Swiss cows high up on a mountain enjoying a great view and a blue sky overhead. Can't help thinking they'd produce good milk.

Geneva would be nice. I'd try it. OK, we'll let you go if you promise not to spend too much time on that gabby French thread and pop back in here now and again.

Actually Munich might be nice too. We're getting quite a crowd there. How do you feel about moving?

Well, it is far from settled if we are even moving so at the moment it is very hypothetical. DH is keen to move on in his career and as the job here is a regional office, the next job would be somewhere else.

I am a bit unsure about moving. The area where we live is pleasant, I love Düsseldorf and Köln. We have great neighbours and I have a few good friends here. DD is starting school this year so probably the earlier the move the better.

At the end of the day, I know that we are not going to be here forever otherwise DH would be incredibly frustrated (his current job is good, but is getting a bit boring)

Munich would not be so good financially, as the house prices are . We would have to spend at least twice as much to rent a house similar to our present one. In Geneva the company would provide a flat.

yes I had the impression that you're quite happy living where you are. Difficult to contemplate uprooting yourself and the family when that's the case.

Germany vs Turkey on Wednesday. Will you be watching it?

Yes, the footie will be on here of course. I do hope that Germany win but I would be happy for the Turks to win too.

Did you happen to see the Bild today? "Die Türken werden am Donnerstag weinen" Bloody Bild Zeitung. There is going to be some tension anyway, especially in the schools. do they really have to fan the flames.

Well, that is Italy out now.

yes saw a lot of very tired looking kids outside the Spanish-German bilingual school this morning. They'd obviuosly been up all night watching the game and celebrating. Didn't think Italy would be out of it so early - or the Netherlands either for that matter.

So Deutschland vor?!

Own up now, who is supporting Turkey on Wednesday?

I offered to get my 2 a flag for their bikes with a choice of 4 countries left but they were for Holland so they didn't want any! We're just a few streets away from the fan mile at Brandenburger Tor so it'll be loud on Tuesday!

The kids are all for Holland, aren't they? Wonder why. Maybe they've heard they were the favourites and they wanted to support the likely winners?

is it Tuesday or Wednesday Germany is playing then? Dh said Wednesday.

Wednesday they play.

We have 2 flags, but DH is a snob and wont put them on the car, much to the DC's disgust. I have promised them that I will take them out on Wednesday for a drive with flags.

We have had them on their bikes though.

No idea, just heard that the fan mile is open on Tuesday so might be a game on. Thank goodness we get to bed early tonight, a night off! I couldn't wait last night when Spain-Italy went into over time, I had to go to bed I was so tired. Wasn't it hot? I thought I was having a heat wave and yipee the menopause is starting but then heard on the radio that it wasn't just me!

LOL admylin, I thought it was menopause too, like hot flushes until I went outdoors and realised WHAM it was an horrendous heat wave.

Wednesday it is then. So will we all have Bockwurst and Kartoffelsalad and go really native with it?

You know I met this lovely GErman dad on the way to school (we almost always meet up) with his 3 football mad half-English boys. The boys are all for Turkey. Then we were joined by this girl from Irak who is also for Turkey and the kids asked me then, SSSandy who do you want to win? I said Turkey too and you should have seen the poor dad's face, it just crumpled.

I felt so sorry for him that I'm reconsidering now. PErhaps if everyone is for Turkey, I'll support Germany after all!

Don't worry there'll be plenty of people supporting Germany! Most dc are for Turkey at our school too! H has a really nice Turkish (good looking but married) post-doc colleague so I'll go for Turkey too. He's so sweet!

yes that's a good way of choosing your favourite. Dh's colleagues are nothing much to look at.

Isn't it funny how men take football so personally though? I was standing on the street gassing away to a neighbour yesterday, saying that if Germany ended up playing against Russia, I thought Russia would win because they're so much younger and the German team is really quite old. There were some guys fixing a pipe in the street and you could see they were really unhappy about me saying that, wounded them to the quick.

Funny thing is I know nothing about football anyway and haven't even seen any of the games yet so my opinion is totally meaningless

H has some really dishy colleagues, his boss isn't bad and a couple of his post doc co workers are really tasty. Wonder if that's why he never takes me along to after work drinks.

maybe he fancies them himself!

Only kidding admylin. Could you wangle me an invite maybe?

lol, you will be getting deported Sssandy for slagging off the German team.

I would quite like to see Turkey win, but I don't think they will. They have been incredibly lucky to get this far. Spain-Germany final would be good, I think that Germany could beat Spain easier than Russia.

Oh, God. We are talking about football. Quick, someone start a rant about schools.

Sad isn't it, I stood talking about football this morning at school gate too! Oh well it's the olympics soon!

SSSandy I'm not sure what would be worse, if he left m efor the 20 year younger secretary or the dishy male doctor!

he should defo take the secretary and leave you the dishy doctor!

I might not be fighting that deportation all the way you know.

I think I'll be boycotting the olympics this year, not that anyone will know or notice mind you

Have any countries backed out yet? You would think there would be a bit more in the way of protests but they seem to have kept it all quiet, infact haven't heard a thing about the up coming games at all in the past weeks. Read somewhere that the torch was in China or something but no big reports or anything.

CHina is such a huge market, no one really wants to rock the boat IYAM but I have those images of Buddhist monks being beaten up in my mind and those public executions etc and although I do feel quite attracted to what I think of as Chinese culture , I am sickened by this type of thing

I mailed you back by the way, thanks for the last email. My computer kept crashing in the heat or I don't know why but today it's behaving and is staying on.

Yes, chinese culture but not the present government. Isn't it typical though, they can infact do what they like because of the huge market potential they have the rest of the world won't bat and eye lid the same as the Saudis can carry on with their barbaric sharia laws but still be best friends with the rest of the world. Wait 'til their oil runs out..