Today was the last day of my German language class.Despite it being the last day Meggi was trying to cajole us into revising the the lessons of our Tangram German book. I was however madly clicking photos and surreptitiously video taping Meggi while she animatedly discussed the grammatical points.Now Grammar is vital but its the most boring part of learning a language.With German having a gender for all the nouns,it is indeed a daunting task if your grammar is weak.On any other day I would have been my attentive self taking notes but not today.I had different things running in my mind..
All these people in my class are so lovable and I knew that I might never see them again.Sixty year old Maria ,oldest student of our class was unusually quiet today.Despite having moved to Germany she remains a Brazilian at heart. She loves showing us photos of her fruit farms and family in Brazil and talking about them in Spanish.Though I can't understand Spanish I listen to her nonetheless!
Then there's Jovi a sweet eighteen year old exchange student from Equador.Like me she too was busy with her camera.Jovi,an aspiring architect,is one of the boldest girls I have met and her artwork has inspired me to be more creative.As a parting gift she gave me a pair of beautiful silver earrings ,something I will always cherish.
Meggi having sensed the mood of the class declared an early break time.Soon we were all exchanging email addresses and sampling Maria's fruit cake.Its funny how people
become warmer when they realize it may be the last time they will be meeting someone!As I promised Carla,Aisha and the the others to keep in touch via Email,I realised that these six months of classes had fostered a bond of friendship.Was it because we all were 'foreigners'in a strange country?Was it because we had a common goal of learning a language? seeing each other everyday and had found it comforting?Or was it perhaps just a human emotion ,a need for companionship?Most importantly were we really going to be in touch with each other when the common denominators were removed!Only time will tell..
Im sure we all have made friends at different stages of life.Eventually perspectives and priorities change.The relevance of the friendship becomes vague.With time we lose touch and come to a stage where we are unable to relate with them anymore.Much as we might like to revive such a friendship,sadly it never feels quite the same.{when the desire isn't mutual}So it is perhaps wise to be grateful for the happy moments and emotions you shared ,make peace with the past and move on;for we live in an age where time is money and money is life and no one has time to spare..Its not a place for fools like me who consider friends as 'the extended family you get to choose'..
Childhood friendships are different.To this day I treasure them and try my best to keep in touch.The friends we make during childhood are forever special because they were made at an age of innocence.When we expected nothing from our friends..when we shared the joy of freedom ..shared our silly secrets..and trusted without a second thought.When we took for granted that friends would be elated with our success and luck as if their own.That they would solve our problems without a complaint. Friends who never let you feel lonely..Perhaps the blissful memories of the carefree days keeps us going back to our childhood friends.
But today ..this very day,how many of us can confide our worst fears with our friends..how many of us have friends who celebrate our success as if their own.How many of us have friends we can consider as 'family'?Have we lost our ability to trust or is it that we view friendship as an over rated emotion?Have we become so self sufficient that we can do without them?Do we really have friends or are the people in our Orkut friends list or Face book account there just to show that you are 'popular'?To satiate our ego perhaps or to fill a lacuna in life?No..?Why is it then that some of us feel so lonely and lost despite having hundreds of 'friends'?why are we so impoverished?
Perhaps we have answers we rather not be vocal about..perhaps the relationship of friends has gotten so diluted it's become rhetoric and soon will be obsolete.Perhaps we have forgotten to be human..
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Friday, January 18, 2008
Life in Germany
I was never too keen about visiting Germany. Germany for me was always associated with war,violence and cruelty .It was as if I could not shake off the Nazi tag eternally linked to this country.Since my husband had a work contract in Germany I was emotionally blackmailed to stay in this country I so detested! All that ,was to change the moment I landed in Frankfurt airport.It was the first time I was traveling alone, out of country, but I did not face any problems.I had been warned that Germans did not speak English and things in that order but to my delight I found everyone from the taxi driver to the shopkeepers speak fairly good English!
Looking out of the taxi window on my way to the apartment, what struck me most were the vast green forests flanking both sides of the highway.The cityscape of Hannovar looked like a dream.It looked very much like a modern city but somehow had managed to retain the peace and quiet of a village.I for one have not seen such a delicate balance.Having lived all my life in Bangalore,India; this was a pleasant shock for me.That the traffic and road problems in Bangalore are 'nightmarish',would be an understatement!
My husband was waiting anxiously for me by the apartment parking lot and I was on cloud nine as I was meeting him after two long months.The taxi ride costed us a bomb {I always convert to Indian rupees}but the driver insisted he has discounted the price as he loved Indian films!Hmm...Im not so sure.
The apartment arranged for our stay by my husband's office was a pretty one.It had a balcony with views to the garden below and the hills beyond the apartment complex.The next couple of weeks went into exploring the city and I was delighted with the shopping street 'schuh strassa' which literally translates to 'shoe street'.After several bouts of shopping and the after effects,as in guilt..I decided to channelize my energy constructively and so joined German language classes.I had learnt the basics of German from my father-in-law and so was looking forward to the course.
That was indeed the best decision I took as it opened up a whole new side of Germany to me.My German language instructor Meggi is someone very lovable and within no time she won our hearts with her wit and humour.Our class has Chinese,Spanish, ,Malaysian,Arab and Indian students.The language class is fun as we initially had no way of communicating with the people whose English was not strong and we had to mime a lot.These days we have gotten really close and dread the last day of our course.This experience has given me a chance to know the German education system to an extent and I really enjoyed their method of teaching.Meggi has made learning so much fun,something my Indian teachers lacked skills in.
I have always feared racial discrimination but people here seem quite tolerant .Of course there are a few bad apples ..mostly young uneducated men who feel threatened about the idea that 'foreigners take over their jobs'.But then again the government seems to be taking measures to remedy this.Perhaps its a global phenomenon but most Germans try hard to make people comfortable and are quite friendly once they get to know you.Its an open fact that they are ashamed of their violent past and this became apparent when I spoke to a few Germans.I was touched when they said they wanted to be seen as a peace loving nation.However when I happen to meet some of my neighbours who are retired generals of the Nazi era I shiver.These men are well into their eighties and seem lonely and enjoy talking about their achievements with anyone who cares to listen!
However the people in my flat are young professionals who keep to themselves. Ocassionally when we bump into each other its customary to wish 'guten tag 'with a smile and I do it religiously as its a taboo if you dont !My husband ever smiling as he is ,happened to oneday get lost in thought and forgot to wish a fellow neighbour.He was asked what had upset him so much as to make him forget basic courtesy!
The Germans by and large are a hard working lot and some of the best technology is German.I have noticed that they get to work at 5.30 in the mornings even on the coldest wintery day.However they do not neglect work-life balance and come back home early and do things they enjoy like gardening and practicing music.This quality of maintaining balance in life is something we all must emulate.
The weather in Germany is another thing I like .It seems to change by the hour like my mood!So we have to dress in layers which is fun .However of late its been getting cold and the Germans enjoy traveling to sunnier pastures . Infact they spend almost two months a year traveling and their workplaces grants leaves just for traveling!
The Germans believe that experience gained through travel expands the horizons of the mind and equate it to a learning session.I couldn't but agree more with this and set off to Swiss,Italy and France with my husband.It was indeed an experience of a lifetime.Right from planning the places of visit ,booking flights and hotels to managing expenditure ,all helped me grow as a person.Perhaps the best part about living in Germany is the chance to explore the surrounding countries inexpensively!Living in Germany has made it possible not just to 'visit'places but experience the places of visit..
I feel my stay in Germany has enabled me to sample Europe beyond the touristy attractions but more so in in terms of the simple pleasures of day to day life.The choice of over fifty varieties of freshly baked bread ...cheeses of delicate flavours ...chocolates made in heaven ..immaculately tailored clothes ..buses with comfortable seats every ten minutes...lush green parks and lakes filled with swans..clean roads ...fresh air laced with the scent of blossoms and peaceful silence despite me living near a busy street.Some times great happiness can be ours if we only give new experiences a chance and not be baised.In retrospect Im glad I gave Germany a chance and it has not let me down..
Looking out of the taxi window on my way to the apartment, what struck me most were the vast green forests flanking both sides of the highway.The cityscape of Hannovar looked like a dream.It looked very much like a modern city but somehow had managed to retain the peace and quiet of a village.I for one have not seen such a delicate balance.Having lived all my life in Bangalore,India; this was a pleasant shock for me.That the traffic and road problems in Bangalore are 'nightmarish',would be an understatement!
My husband was waiting anxiously for me by the apartment parking lot and I was on cloud nine as I was meeting him after two long months.The taxi ride costed us a bomb {I always convert to Indian rupees}but the driver insisted he has discounted the price as he loved Indian films!Hmm...Im not so sure.
The apartment arranged for our stay by my husband's office was a pretty one.It had a balcony with views to the garden below and the hills beyond the apartment complex.The next couple of weeks went into exploring the city and I was delighted with the shopping street 'schuh strassa' which literally translates to 'shoe street'.After several bouts of shopping and the after effects,as in guilt..I decided to channelize my energy constructively and so joined German language classes.I had learnt the basics of German from my father-in-law and so was looking forward to the course.
That was indeed the best decision I took as it opened up a whole new side of Germany to me.My German language instructor Meggi is someone very lovable and within no time she won our hearts with her wit and humour.Our class has Chinese,Spanish, ,Malaysian,Arab and Indian students.The language class is fun as we initially had no way of communicating with the people whose English was not strong and we had to mime a lot.These days we have gotten really close and dread the last day of our course.This experience has given me a chance to know the German education system to an extent and I really enjoyed their method of teaching.Meggi has made learning so much fun,something my Indian teachers lacked skills in.
I have always feared racial discrimination but people here seem quite tolerant .Of course there are a few bad apples ..mostly young uneducated men who feel threatened about the idea that 'foreigners take over their jobs'.But then again the government seems to be taking measures to remedy this.Perhaps its a global phenomenon but most Germans try hard to make people comfortable and are quite friendly once they get to know you.Its an open fact that they are ashamed of their violent past and this became apparent when I spoke to a few Germans.I was touched when they said they wanted to be seen as a peace loving nation.However when I happen to meet some of my neighbours who are retired generals of the Nazi era I shiver.These men are well into their eighties and seem lonely and enjoy talking about their achievements with anyone who cares to listen!
However the people in my flat are young professionals who keep to themselves. Ocassionally when we bump into each other its customary to wish 'guten tag 'with a smile and I do it religiously as its a taboo if you dont !My husband ever smiling as he is ,happened to oneday get lost in thought and forgot to wish a fellow neighbour.He was asked what had upset him so much as to make him forget basic courtesy!
The Germans by and large are a hard working lot and some of the best technology is German.I have noticed that they get to work at 5.30 in the mornings even on the coldest wintery day.However they do not neglect work-life balance and come back home early and do things they enjoy like gardening and practicing music.This quality of maintaining balance in life is something we all must emulate.
The weather in Germany is another thing I like .It seems to change by the hour like my mood!So we have to dress in layers which is fun .However of late its been getting cold and the Germans enjoy traveling to sunnier pastures . Infact they spend almost two months a year traveling and their workplaces grants leaves just for traveling!
The Germans believe that experience gained through travel expands the horizons of the mind and equate it to a learning session.I couldn't but agree more with this and set off to Swiss,Italy and France with my husband.It was indeed an experience of a lifetime.Right from planning the places of visit ,booking flights and hotels to managing expenditure ,all helped me grow as a person.Perhaps the best part about living in Germany is the chance to explore the surrounding countries inexpensively!Living in Germany has made it possible not just to 'visit'places but experience the places of visit..
I feel my stay in Germany has enabled me to sample Europe beyond the touristy attractions but more so in in terms of the simple pleasures of day to day life.The choice of over fifty varieties of freshly baked bread ...cheeses of delicate flavours ...chocolates made in heaven ..immaculately tailored clothes ..buses with comfortable seats every ten minutes...lush green parks and lakes filled with swans..clean roads ...fresh air laced with the scent of blossoms and peaceful silence despite me living near a busy street.Some times great happiness can be ours if we only give new experiences a chance and not be baised.In retrospect Im glad I gave Germany a chance and it has not let me down..
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