My current schedule is learning "the awful German language". The language is interesting but learning it is onerous because of its complex grammatical structure. I have heard from a friend that if one knows Sanskrit, learning German is easy. I have had no prior schooling in Sanskrit & am yet to verify the legitimacy of the comment. Up until now, I find German intriguing and romantic at times. To give you an example, the letter 'R' is pronounced as 'eRR' and 'U' as 'oo'. :) Of course, it is too funny most of the times, because I feel I am learning English backwards.
My class comprises of students of various nationalities: Brazil, Mexico, Bulgaria, Africa, Greece, Russia and India! Each of us has his own pronounciation for a word. Yes, we have a hard time understanding each other and also have the nerve to correct the other on his pronounciation. Everyday I must attend class at 8:30 a.m and have earned a reputation for presenting myself a wee bit late; you see the Germans are known for their punctuality. The first week of class went over my head since the course of instruction was entirely in German & any new words were explained with the aid of hand and body gestures by Neno, my teacher with an extremely heavy German accent. She also has an inclination to burden us with 'Hausaufgabe'( homework, you see what I mean - backward English) after 6-7 hours of classes everyday!
My weekends are spent on touring the cities in and around Kaiserslautern, courtesy of the University - they escorted us to the various historical towns and cities, Heidelberg, Trier, Trifels & Bewerstain Castles. I am yet to visit the bigger cities in Germany. So far, the scenes and stories in these places have more or less been the same - a rich foolhardy king with his inept administration leading to bloody battles and death. I am yet to be impressed.
But the journey with my fellow students has been of great interest. It has and continues to expose me to the different cultures that exist and gives me an opportunity to introspect my life and beliefs. I realise that we are so limited to the world that we grow up in and a majority of us believe that it is the only best way to lead a life. The world is huge and having a final opinion on something seems absurd.
With each passing day, I am getting more acclimatized to this new World.
My class comprises of students of various nationalities: Brazil, Mexico, Bulgaria, Africa, Greece, Russia and India! Each of us has his own pronounciation for a word. Yes, we have a hard time understanding each other and also have the nerve to correct the other on his pronounciation. Everyday I must attend class at 8:30 a.m and have earned a reputation for presenting myself a wee bit late; you see the Germans are known for their punctuality. The first week of class went over my head since the course of instruction was entirely in German & any new words were explained with the aid of hand and body gestures by Neno, my teacher with an extremely heavy German accent. She also has an inclination to burden us with 'Hausaufgabe'( homework, you see what I mean - backward English) after 6-7 hours of classes everyday!
My weekends are spent on touring the cities in and around Kaiserslautern, courtesy of the University - they escorted us to the various historical towns and cities, Heidelberg, Trier, Trifels & Bewerstain Castles. I am yet to visit the bigger cities in Germany. So far, the scenes and stories in these places have more or less been the same - a rich foolhardy king with his inept administration leading to bloody battles and death. I am yet to be impressed.
But the journey with my fellow students has been of great interest. It has and continues to expose me to the different cultures that exist and gives me an opportunity to introspect my life and beliefs. I realise that we are so limited to the world that we grow up in and a majority of us believe that it is the only best way to lead a life. The world is huge and having a final opinion on something seems absurd.
With each passing day, I am getting more acclimatized to this new World.
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