Culture Talks

I realize that it’s been a while since I updated here, but apparently having a ‘real’ job keeps one pretty busy.  I’ve been working at Berlitz for about a week and a half now, so my impressions are more or less formed.  It’s difficult, but I’m really enjoying the challenge.  It’s amazing what different levels I’ve had to teach, and people’s different ways of understanding the same thing.  Sometimes it’s incredibly frustrating, and it all just comes down to exaggerated facial expressions and big arm movements to get the point across.  I think the most difficult part is to stop the students from translating everything from German into English- sometimes you have to be tough (which I’m not always so good at).  But I’m learning a lot about myself and about interacting with others- I still have a little ways to go though.

Tomorrow I do my first out-of-school lesson.  I’m teaching a doctor and his 9 year-old son at their house!  The man’s wife (also a doctor) ordered just a couple of lessons to see how it would go- they are both at level one, so we might just stick to ‘My name is…’ and counting to 10.  I’m excited though- I think it should be fun to work with a family (as long as neither has any weird power issues where one always has to be better than the other… I’m sure not though).

So far the last couple of weekends have been spent in Graz just relaxing, however last weekend Andreas had a shift working at what I call the ‘microphone job’.  This is an on-call job with a furniture (Ikea-like) company called XXX-Lutz (XXX doesn’t mean the same thing here- it just means extra, extra good).  On this day he has to run a sort of game-show type game where ‘prizes’ (junk the store couldn’t sell) are hidden in different drawers and every half an hour a new game is played and the contestants win a drawer prize.  Sometimes a 5 or 10 Euro gift-certificate is won, but mostly candles and puzzles and key rings…  Anyway, Andreas has to stand on the gound floor with a microphone, enticing people to come down and play, as well as reading various advertisements from the Lutz flyer.  By the way, the money at the end of the day really does make it worth it. 

And in more exciting news, my mom and sister will be coming to visit me soon!  The date is set for April 26th, so will book some time off work and we will travel around the Austrian countryside (driven by Andreas, of course…I’m not really friends with the stick shift yet). 

Andreas at his microphone job

His lovely assistant

Well, things are still movin’ and shakin’ here in Austria.  My training is officially done and now I’m apparently ready to be a real teacher.  I’m not too sure about that… it’s all quite daunting at the moment, especially having seen how good the experienced teachers at Berlitz are.  I get to sit in on one lesson, and then they throw me into the lion’s den soon after.  It will be the first ‘real’ job I’ve ever had though, and it will be kind of fun to tell people that I’m a teacher.

Otherwise things have been ok.  The training has been great for meeting other English-speakers, even though it feels weird to be speaking so much English in a German-speaking country.  Still though, it’s a relief.  Andreas and I have hung out with a couple (an American & an Austrian) who also just moved to Graz, and in our neighbourhood, actually.  They are planning a wedding (nothing fancy though, ie: no guests) in the next couple of days so that he can legally work here.  I’m sure that’s not the only reason, but if you’re not an EU citizen, you really don’t have many other options.

A guy from my Berlitz training, Richard (from South Africa), was highly critical of the meatiness of Austrian meals, especially at restaurants.  Last night at a Chinese food restaurant with Andreas, I ordered a chicken stir-fry, but what I got was tons of chicken surrounded by some bean sprouts and a few carrot-slices and some green beans (not even any broccoli!!).  It’s just so tempting to stick with the delicious meat here, so I’m trying to make a concious effort to involve the veggie contingent more in my new life here.

Things are mostly good here- In some ways easier than I expected, but in other ways harder.  I’m still learning how to be a girlfriend and a partner and a roommate all at the same time… that might just be the last piece of the puzzle to fall in place.  It’s exciting and scary all at once, but worth it I think.

Well, I’m not going to lie, it’s been a big week.  On Wednesday I started my Berlitz training with 5 other native-speakers (from the US, South-Africa, Austria, and Ireland).  It’s pretty intensive, and the days are long, but I also am finding it pretty stimulating… I’m pretty sure that by the end of next week I’ll feel ready to start teaching.  I’ve met some other really interesting people both from Salzburg and Graz- it feels good to be making some connections. 

Andreas and I just spent the weekend back in Bad St. Leonhard and are headed to Graz tonight.  It’s been kind of a whirlwind trip- yesterday at 8:30 am was Andreas’ band practice, followed by his sister Petra’s graduation at 2, uncle Sepp’s 40th birthday party at 6, then best friend Armin’s 30th birthday party at 7:30.  So as you can imagine, yesterday was chock full of a lot of eating, drinking, and socializing.  Although the English was scant at Sepp’s party, quite a few people spoke English at Armin’s, which was a lot more comfortable.  But I’m learning German, I swear!
Anyway, next week will be mostly training for me, and Andreas is getting back into his Physics program at school, so things are starting to settle into one of those routines that I love so much.  And on a side note, I got my first cell phone!  Here it’s called a Handy, and it is just that.

Me & Andreas at the party

Horn-playing at the party

Living room

Living room (2)

Living room (3)

Kitchen

Kitchen(2)

Bedroom (not finished yet)

Bedroom (still not finished yet)

Bathroom