Remember how lucky you are, cherish everything and everyone

Today I haven't quite been myself. My boyfriend went back to the UK yesterday and I've found it hard to be alone again. But something happened today, just about an hour ago, that really made me realise how lucky I am, and how I really have very little reason to be "depressed".


Today an a girl I know, she's a friend of a friend...well she was riding on the same bus as me. Me and my friend went over to sit with her and her friends (sorry for the repetition of the f word, I'm still a little shakey from all this). Well the girl received a phone call, we didn't think anything of it, we carried on talking. Then we noticed her voice had gone odd, we looked over and her mouth was wide open. She burst into tears and cried "my brother is dead". We all went white. I almost started crying myself. 


Her Brother had been in some sort of accident before Christmas, but everything was looking up. He had moved back home and was making tonnes of progress. She wasn't expecting him to....die...not now. I wanted to say something, I wanted to hug her, I wanted to tell her it was all a lie and that of course he's fine. 
I can still hear her begging "daddy this isn't real is it?"


I feel so selfish, for my behaviour today. Everyone I love, although they are not here with me in Germany, are still here for me. For that I should be grateful. And I truly am. I do not know what real lose feels like. I wish this was all a nightmare, for her sake. She's such a lovely girl, she didn't deserve this. Not now, not when she is so far away from home. All of my thoughts right now are with her and her family, and I ask dear readers that yours are too. 

My Laptop is getting there (hopefully) and recap of my week

It's been over a week now since my laptop decided to die on me. Surprisingly I haven't missed it too much. I've been fortunately quite busy this week so I haven't had much time to waste trolling around on the internet. 
I've really missed blogging though :(


I've managed to get it work to some extent now, so I'm hoping by tomorrow everything will be loaded back on.


This weekend of the second part of my lost weekend saga. The content of this weekend's block seminar was more useful than last week's, but the long days took there toll on me and I really could not be bothered with them. Nevertheless, being the goody-two-shoes that I am, I didn't skip class. I did observe some randomness that I feel are blog worthy. 
a. On Saturday I chose the vegetarian option at the Mensa for lunch. It was a plate of vegetables! The cheek of it. To make things worse, it wasn't even a god selection of veg, I had a plate consisting of cauliflower and potatoes. 
b. The toilets adjacent to our classroom were out of order so we had to use the ones on the floor above. There were only two cubicles but one was permanently locked with a large sign on the door saying "Personal". Now I don't know if this means that someone has bagged the cubicle for themselves and won't share, or if the university think that it should be used by staff only (Personal can also mean Personnel), but I did find it funny. 


I haven't made much progress work-wise this week. My boyfriend came to visit for a week on Sunday so I'm trying my best to keep him entertained. We went to Dusseldorf yesterday which was nice. I'm really going to need to pick up the pace next week though. The deadlines and my departure are getting very very close. 


Tomorrow is my 21st Birthday and I don't really feel like doing my celebrating. I think being away from my family for such a special day is really putting a downer on it. I'm hoping I can fit in a skyping session with my parents at some point during the day and me and my Boyfriend are going to go to a very nice cafe in Marburg for some fancy cake. 


So next type I blog I will be a whole year older and a whole lot wiser. 

Word of the Day 21/01/11

Today’s word of the day:die Fehlermeldung

Direct translation: The mistake report

English translation: Bluescreen

Example: Mein Laptop bekam eine Fehlermeldung und ist jetyt kaput.

~ HATE technology ~

HATE the blue screen of death!

My laptop is dead!

Around midday on Wednesday I restarted my laptop and when it tried to reload the blue screen appeared and now it is well and truely KAPUT. 

My dad is going to send me some disks so that I can attempt to wipe the hard drive and reload the software. If not then I will have to send the laptop home for him to sort out.

So God knows when I'm going to have a portable computer again!

So please bare with me, obviously I won't be able to blog as frequently as before and also forgive any spelling mistakes in my posts, you know I have difficulties with these German keyboards and there is no English spellchecker on these things. 

I guess on the plus side at least I'll get more work done now.

Baskets not Bags

One thing that always makes me say "awwww" in my head, is when I'm out and about in town and I see someone, man or woman, carrying a little wicker basket.

It's something that I've never seen at home. It's rare enough to see people with their own carrier bags, let alone carrying a basket or Korb as they call them here.
They are just so sweet. They always remind me of fairytales like Little Red Riding Hood. I really had no idea that people actually use such things. Marburg is by no means an urban jungle like Frankfurt, but it is also no traditional, sound of music style utopia like Baveria and Austria. 
I'm really tempted to buy one and use it to collect my green clubcard points next time I'm in Tesco. In fact I think it'd look great with my Dirndl. :)

Oh Gott, I just google Körbchen to find an image of a basket but ended up with a page of breasts...supposidly Körbchen not only means small basket but also a woman's cupsize. You have been warned.  

The lost weekend part one

I’ve been unfortunate enough to have had lessons both yesterday (Saturday) and today. Not just one lesson, but 7 and a half hours of lessons with just one hour break for lunch.

Whoever came up with this time table is a mean, mean person. AND I missed a party at the Schloss because of it! Probably my only chance to party up there has been snatched away from me by my geekiness.

The class is called Wissenschaftliches Schreiben. It’s an intensive course to prepare foreign students for giving presentations and writing Hausarbeit (long academic essays). The class is really helpful but it also takes a lot out of you.

Luckily the class only runs from this week until next Sunday so this time next week I will be free.

I am ridiculously tired out though. I need to do some work but all my body wants to do is sleep. Its only 18.54 here. That’s a little early don’t you think?

I cannot wait for my day off on Wednesday.

Word of the Day 15/01/2011

Today’s word of the day:der Streber

Direct translation: The ambitious person

English translation: Geek/Nerd

Example: Mensch! Es gibt immer so viele Sterber in der Bib.

~ This weekend I will be the Streberin ~

The German Justin Bieber

So this week the German equivalent of Pop Idol, Deutschland sucht den Superstar, began. I missed the first episode, but I managed to wake episode too on the internet.

The hot topic at the moment is contestant 16 year old Heiko Faller  from Bonndorf, which is the the Blackforest supposedly. He walks into the audition room and the judges immediately remarked on his likeliness to JB. Then, purely by coincidence (yeah right), he sang Baby.

Personally I do not see any resemblance between them apart from them both being adolescent males with…ummm hair. Also vocally there was little similarity and to be frank I didn’t think he was THAT GOOD.

But nevertheless Germany needs a Biebs and he got through. The Bild was quick to write about the Justin Bieber “Doppelgänger”  and how the girls are going to love him, which if DSDS is anything like xfactor in the UK, then thats a sure sign that he’s going to get further.

Check out the link, let me know what you think. Can you see the resemblance? Does the world need another Justin Bieber? Does  Heiko know what the word German means? Happy reading. :)

http://www.bild.de/BILD/dsds/2011/01/13/justin-bieber-double/heiko-faller-aus-dem-schwarzwald.html

Doh!

I woke up this morning at 10am. I jumped out of bed and made myself presentable and ran for the bus. I had no time to go to the toilet, have breakfast, make lunch, nothing.

I then speed walk to my classroom, accidently run up the stairs to the third floor instead of the first, run back down open the classroom door…urgh who are these people?

I shut the door, look at my watch…huh?

11:15? My class isn’t until 12:15…are you kidding me!

Can’t believe I did that.

To make matters worse, the teacher of the class before mine was also my teacher for the 12:15 class!

Obviously I haven’t readjusted to my weekly routine.

Word of the Day 13/01/2011

Today’s word of the day:Igitt!

English translation: Yuck!

Example: Igiit! Diese Pfannekuchen schmeckt scheußlich

~ Reminds me of the sounds a frog makes ~

Marburg’s missing castle!

Read all about it, the Marburger Schloss has been stolen!

The castle, which used to stand prominent in the middle of the city disappeared sometime in the early hours of this morning.

There is no news yet of the suspected whereabouts of our dear castle but the council are already in talks of what will replace our much beloved landmark.

I’m thinking something like this:

 What do you think? ;)

.
 

Word of the Day 12/01/2011

Today’s word of the day:Träume Süß!

English translation: Sweet dreams

Example: Schlafe Gut und träume Süß

~ For all you sleepy heads out there :) ~

Fail!

I was walking towards Hauptwache in Frankfurt and I noticed this “racist” lighting fail.

I don’t know whether it was a deliberate joke or a tragic coincidence.

I’m not sure if this is offensive in Germany? Could you imagine the uproar, if this had happened in the UK?

Hoppla!

Word of the Day 11/01/2011

Today’s word of the day: wie eh und je

English translation: as always

Example: Ich bin so neidisch. Laura sieht so schön wie eh und je aus. 

~ this one is fun to say ~

My first ever Klausur

Today was the day of my Englische Geschichte im 16. Jahrhundert Klausur. (A Klausur is a fancy German word for a test/exam).

The test was compulsory but didn’t count towards anything, nor did it relate to 16th century English history. Instead it was a test about sources, referencing, presentations and essay structure.

The test wasn’t too hard, wasn’t too easy. There were a few questions on things that I hadn’t bothered to revise and a few on things that I thought I had but obviously I didn’t revise them enough.

All in all I don’t think it went too bad. I managed to understand all but one of the questions (without a dictionary :D ). Fingers crossed for at least passing, if not then not to worry, I’ll work harder next time.   

The punishment for committing the cardinal sin of eating British chocolate in Germany

I bought back a collection of home comforts aka chocolate chocolate chocolate. Since I’m noting going to be back in the UK now until July, I included a packed of Cadbury’s Mini Eggs and some Creme Eggs.

I’ve been sat on my bed all evening, revising for tomorrows test and scoffing my face full of chocolate. I finally stand up and notice a very brown and lumpy stain on my bed sheets! I’d only gone and sat on a mini egg (or two). The stain is well and truly stuck there and I’m unfortunately it resembles something a lot worse. Yes, it looks like I did a poo in my bed! What is the Wirtschafterin going to think when I hand her my bed sheet on Friday.

Its payback isn’t it. Its my punishment for enjoying the soft creamy delight of Cadbury’s echolocate instead of Rittersport, Milka, Lindt, Kinder etc etc etc.

Dear Germany, I have learnt my lesson. 

Poo or Chocolate? :S

Word of the Day 10/01/2011

Today’s word of the day: der Zeitraum

Direct translation: time room

English translation: period of time

Example: Ich mache in einem Zeitraum von zwei Wochen einen Sprachkurs 

~ My new years resolution is to post word of the days more frequently :/ ~

Ich bin wieder da, but feeling a little sensitive tonight.

Well I’m back in Marburg. I arrived this evening.

My time in England was short (2 weeks and 2 days to be exact) but while I was there it felt like I’d never left. The last 3 and a half months disappeared. I had an amazing Christmas and New Year. It was lovely seeing old friends again. Part of me missed Marburg. I missed my friends here a lot.

My last two days at home were different though. The house seemed very quiet. We all knew that we didn’t have much time left together and we knew there was nothing we could do about it.

I burst into tears when we approached the security area of Heathrow airport. I felt so guilty seeing my younger brother and sister cry. They just kept saying “please don’t go” “I don’t want you to go” “why do you have to go?”. They are too young to understand that this is compulsory for me. I wish with all my heart that I could stay with them. I’m not leaving them out of choice.

I’ve really come to reassess my role as a big sister. I want to be there for them. I’ve never felt closer to them as I have done this last year and to now be ripped away from them until the end of June…well, it’s really eating me up inside.

Coming back to my bedroom here was odd. It no longer seemed as happy and friendly as it had done when I left it in December. It now just reminds me of my solitude here in Germany. The room is eerily quiet. When you live with a 8 and 11 year old you get accustom to the shouting and laughter, bumps and bangs, etc.

In a way I’m happy that I’m not going home now between Germany and Italy. Saying goodbye is too hard and it was a relief to no that this would be the last time that I have say goodbye to them like this. I need to be a strong and brave young lady now. I know that they love me and that they want me to make the most of my time here. Time in Germany is running out and if Italy flies by just as quickly then I’ll be back home before I know it. In the meantime the end of June seems really far away. :(