** German Chat ** Alle sind willkommen. ** Frühling läßt sein blaues Band ...

[MmeLindt]

...
Wieder flattern durch die Lüfte
Süße, wohlbekannte Düfte
Streifen ahnungsvoll das Land
Veilchen träumen schon,
Wollen balde kommen
Horch, von fern ein leiser Harfenton!
Frühling, ja du bist's!
Dich hab ich vernommen!

*

Für Deutsche und nicht-Deutsche, Goethe-fans und Gottschalk-fans, für Herzschmerz, Heimweh und Heimatgefühle.

Alle sind willkommen.

but you don't have an income of your own, so what does he think you pay for all these extras with? Or he just doesn't think about it at all maybe.

Listen, how difficult is it to make a basic curry? Do I need a whole pile of ingredients? We really love bhatura and I was wondering too if you can buy those and they puff up nicely in the oven or if you have to make them from scratch yourself.

watch manjula on youtube, she does simple but authentic Indian vegetarian cooking. I usually buy those breads ready made (frozen) but I make plain bread in the pan (Manjula shows that too I think)

Honestly, I'm sick of curry but watching manjula makes me hungry as I like vegetarian and her recipes are always so good!

Thanks admylin, I'll have a look!

I like her, seh's lovely. Thanks. Wondering what on earth fenugreek leaves are though, never heard of them before. I've added it to my favourites but I don't have much time to look at her site today.

All you really need is a list of the basic spices and you get them all in one of the Asian shops in bags.

The basic spice collection would be turmeric, cumin seeds, coriander powder or seeds, chilli powder and curry leaves or fenugreek leaves (or powder) then usually fresh ginger and garlic and I use red onions. That's the basic that I throw into every curry nearly.

that sounds reasonably straight-forward but I am not a confident cook at all admylin.Hate cooking tbh. i really need an idiot-proof recipe. You know, so much of this and so much of that etc. Maybe I'll find a step by step cooking curry guide if I ever find the time to browse in a book-store.

Bet you're looking forward to your trip. Who are you flying with, which airline?

oh more talk of curries!! yum yum!!

going to ring that woman when ds2 is asleep at lunchtime - otherwise he'll shout loads - he seems to know the second i use the phone and he comes running!! little monkey!!

just want some female company - i had 2 great friends in wigan and we were forever in and out of each others houses after school and helping each other out!! i miss loads of friends from the UK but i miss those 2 the most!!

This woman's dh also works in a similar area to i did in the UK so i'd be keen to see if he would know how i would go about finding a job in the future!! i'm not loving this SAHM thing - only worked 19 hours in the UK but still liked that bit of freedom and adult company that it gave me!! oh and liked having my own money - dh and I aren't quite used to him being the only earner in the house!!

so admylin i kind of get whats happening in your house!! hope its just that your dh has no idea how much things cost - if you ask him for the money tonight wil he give it to you?? are you going back to the lake district when you fly on sun??

Flying with TuiFly - they are the cheapest flying to Newcastle so it's not too far to drive home. In Berlin EasyJet flew then they stopped it so we had to fly to Manchester which is quite a drive back up home.

Bremen had really cheap flights with Ryan air but when you added all the extras they weren't cheap at all. By teh way another 4 in maths for ds - no idea what is going on in his head. He always had 1's in primary.

Canella, yes straight back to The Lake District, fresh air, hills and peace (atleast I hope so ,in summer it's totally over run by tousrtists)

Going back to work is something I dream about these days. The dc are getting to an age where i can leave them for a few hours and I could imagine working. Trouble is up to now h wasn't prepared to help with child care so it wasn't an option for me to work - even when they were smaller I couldn't stand the thought of them being in German KG all day 'til 5pm. I think the last time he watched them was a few years ago when I had to go to the dentist and once when I was ill in bed he was present but he didn't really do anything (one Sunday) and he managed to bring them back from school on the Monday and drop them at the downstairs door (we live don 3rd floor).

oops tourists!

i have wondered how women work here - my dd is due home today at 11.45 - would she just be home alone if i was at work or are there childminders?? would really need a job that was every morning but i'm sure thats what every woman wants!!

My dh isnt great deal of use either - he asked me to phone about something in the Uk at the kids bedtime yest - i'd just brought them all upstairs to get ready for bed - i was downstairs for about 10 mins - went back upstairs and none of them were even slightly undressed - he was fiddling with the tv in the bedroom!! when i asked him he said he'd just got in from work (he had only been in 15 mins but only cause he's been to a teaching thing) and he wasnt in the mood to deal with the kids!! what should i say - i'm quite often not in the mood but i've no choice!!

we're both not dealing so well with me being at home - i think he should still help in the eve but he thinks its all my responsibility now i'm a SAHM!! we had 8 weeks before i moved when he was here and i was still in wigan so i think we're just taking some time to adjust to a whole new life!! but me speaking more german so i can get some kind of job will do us all the world of good!!

German... I tried so hard, went to courses, studied at home and every time I write a letter I need it corrected and when I went to a Frauenbeauftragte for advice on working she looked at my CV and cover letter that I had written and she said oh I see a few mistakes in this short cv so you should go and improve your German first. I try again, same story. Now I've given up, I will never grasp German perfectly enough to work in any decent jobs. I can't teach English, no qualifications and no idea where to start explaining grammar.

By the way school dc go to Hort after school, sometimes attached to the school other times they have to walk there. It's not too expensive either but you have to accept the quality of Hort care isn't always that great and when you think they are there from 12 to 5 or 6 some times it's a big difference to a couple of hours after school club in UK.

small dc can really wear you out. I think men who are at work all day underestimate how much they drain you and think you have a totally cushy option. I don't much like this I am the main earner thus I do nothing at home, even with the dc thing. I bet that's really hard to change once you go back to work. Dh is a lazy sod at home, always has been. If I coerce ask him to do anything, he generally does a crap job of it to ensure I won't ask him again. I'm onto his game though.

I just wish he wasn't so sloppy on top of it. I can have the place clean and tidy, dd tucked in bed and then he comes home late, clomps about letting things fall here and there, strews a trail of crumbs through the kitchen, has a bath and leaves the bath full of suds, towels on the floor.

Honestly it's worse than cleaning up after a dc and it is so much unnecessary extra work IYAM. He hasn't done a single thing at home since dd was born. Really nothing in the way of housework but he does do a big shop at the weekends which I hate and he spends a lot of tiem at the weekends taking dd out and about.

ZZZen taking dd out and about and doing a big weekend shop excuses alot of things! Wish mine would do that because he does all the negative things (crumbs, suds, trail of empty glasses, etc) too.

ah well ok, just felt like a moan. He is in Argentina anyway at the moment and then onto Chile. Wondering if there is anything I should ask him to bring back. Can't think of anything really - giant turtle maybe

Moan away, it helps! I just don't get how one person can make such a mess.

I should start sorting out what to pack really. Suitcases are in the cellar and I hate going down there so I will wait and get ds to come with me just incase a mutant massive spider attacks me down there.

have to get to the bank and then take dd to another course thing. Have decided to drop her off and run for it, last week I got stuck with this right looney of a mother for an hour and a half. Don't fancy repeating it.

Mind you she may well be thinking the same!

Hello! Can I butt in a moment.. just wondering if I'm in the right place..18 weeks pregnant in Berlin, arrived last weekend, wanted to ask if anyone had any advice about antenatal treatment, classes and stuff. Are you all in Germany?

Hi peachyfox, I have just moved away from Berlin to Hanover - we lived in Mitte near the Charite. Can't help much with antenatel etc as my 2 are 9 and 10 years old. My friends all went to Charite to give birth but I guess that's because they all lived near to it.

Where are you in Berlin?

hi admylin we're in Kreuzberg but right on the border with Mitte. I've been recommended a Frauartzin by the local doctor. I don't know what Charite is though, is it a hospital?

Yes, it's a big hospital in Mitte! How are you liking it?

Hi peachyfox - I'm 31 weeks gone and this is also my first German birth, last one was back in the UK. Lots of things are different; you can choose your hospital, you have to hire your own midwife, there will be more frequent appointments and sonograms, the frauenartz will examine you internally every time you go (not a single soul did that in the UK!), a lot of hospitals do free water aerobics for expectant mums, they are a bit more thorough about downs syndrome tests, diabetes tests, blood tests, etc... Is there anything in particular that you'd like to know?

Hello peachyfox! welcome - i'm fairly new myself - i've only moved to bayern 3 weeks ago! why have you moved to berlin? must be daunting having a baby in a different country!! Or maybe your german already - sorry!!

dh is in an even worse mood tonight - he's just back from the garage - the bill for the car was 1200 euros!! think he's about to have a heart attack!! he refused to pay it today cause the computer was down so they couldnt give him an itemised bill - bloody hate garages!!! never know if they are ripping you off or not!!

so i'll spend the night trying to make him in a better mood when i think i'll be better just to leave him in the office on his own!! moam moan!! sorry!