Weekend activities

A couple of weekends ago all of the Newcastle language students who are on their year abroad in Germany met up for a weekend in the lovely city of Bamberg in Bavaria. Quite handy for me as it's only 3 hours away from here but not so for those in the north, some of whom travelled 6-8 hours to get there! We had a great time and it was fun catching up with everyone. This year has been really good at helping me get to know the other people on my course :)


Last weekend I went skiing with one of the teachers from school and her husband, and it was FAB! We went cross-country skiing which, at first, I was a bit bummed about cos I really wanted to try downhill but we had so much fun! We went to a place called Schöneck which translates as Beautiful Corner, and it really was! It was so stunning, like a winter wonderland! (pictures to follow next post) I managed to only fall twice - a case of crossed skies on both occasions - but i thought that was ok for a first attempt! And I learnt a new word, Muskelkater, cos I was seriously suffering from it the following day! (translation: aches and pains in the muscles!)

On Saturday we had an open day here at school for both primary school pupils and families of existing pupils to come and look around. It was a bit manic! I was dancing with the dance group (country and western style, complete with hats), and my 10th graders from the english club did an english play, and they were great!

Christmas continues

Christmas has been and gone, New Year has done likewise, and it's been a week since I arrived back in Glauchau. I had such a fab at home over the holidays and it was weird to be back in Germany at first, but now it feels like I've been here forever! Last week I taught a lesson on Ireland to a class I'd never met before and this week I'm teaching them Irish Dancing! and yes, this class does incluude 10 15 year old boys - watch this space! On Sunday I went with Frau Stoll and her family to Seiffen, which is the cutest town I've seen! It's in the mountains and is really famous for Christmassy things! A lot of decorations are made there, and during Advent it has a popular Christmas market. We had such a nice afternoon but the best bit was when it was getting dark, all the lights in the town came on, all the Christmas decorations were still up and there was a whole lot of snow on the ground - it was so pretty!
Actually, the Christmas decorations here in Glauchau are only just being taken down today, and some houses near me still have theirs up! Christmas lasts a long time here! I don't think i put it in the last post but if you ask a German what date Christmas is on they'll say 24th December as they celebrate it on our Christmas Eve! I didn't know that before but they get to open their presents a day before us!