Times I Spoke German Today

I spent a lazy Saturday wandering around Freiburg and exploring the town a little better. This entailed speaking German several times:

1. I went to the bakery down the road for some fresh Brӧtchen and some coffee. I had to say, "Zwei Brӧtchen und ein Kaffee, bitte." I got my bread, but the coffee machine was broken. A trip to bakery number two was in order...

2. Bakery number two had a line out the door and a working coffee machine. While waiting in line, an older German man tried to convince me to buy a copy of Badische Zeitung, which is a regional newspaper. I started with "Wiederholen Sie bitte," which means, "Please repeat that", and finished with "Ich lese nicht Deutsch," which means "I don't read German." He then nodded and said, "Ah! Alles klar. Schӧnes Wochenende," which basically means "Oh, I see. Have a good weekend!" Then I ordered my coffee, specified large or small, and left. The German large coffee is smaller than most medium coffees in the U.S.

3. I walked around town for a while and ended up at the Münster again. It was a bit late to get fruit and vegetables since people were breaking down the food stalls. The Münster plaza has at least six different permanent hot food stands, and at least five are for different varieties of Wurst. Literally EVERYONE I saw was eating Wurst - people just get them and eat while walking. The typical way it's served is on a hamburger bun with the sausage sticking out a few inches on either end. You can then choose to get it with onions, sauerkraut, mustard, etc. I considered getting one, but I didn't really know which kind I wanted. I ended up ordering a crepe "mit Zimt und Zucker" (cinnamon and sugar) instead. It was delicious. It cost two Euros, which was the same price as the Wurst.

4. I was accosted on the street by some young activist trying to get me to sign something. I had to interrupt him to say, "Aber ich kann nicht Deutsch!", meaning, "I can't speak German." He then told me that his presentation would be too complicated and wished me a nice day.

5. I finally spoke to two of my flatmates, Max and Simon. It's amazing how far a simple "Wie geht's?" will get you with Germans. I talked to Max for about half an hour (mostly in English, though) while we cooked our separate dinners, and Simon for a few minutes. They both seem more than happy to listen to my bad German. I talked to Max about the German health care system (Gesundheitswesen), which he said he really likes. I could've guessed that, but it was still cool to compare the U.S. "system" with Germany's. He also explained the recycling system a little better to me. I think it will still be a while before I catch on, but at least I know how it works inside the flat for now.

Now, I'm just hanging out until I meet some of the Americans to go to a party held by one of the IES housing tutors (which is like an RA). It should be pretty fun, but it's a bit far and we're worried about getting lost. I'm sure it will be fine in a group, especially since we're on the tram for a good part of the time anyway. Tschüss!