Archive for 'Culture'
I Liab Di: Bavarian Love Posted by Constanze on Aug 24, 2014
Let’s face it, nobody thinks that German is a romantic language. I’m sure you’ve seen the cartoons and videos showing the phrase “I love you” in different languages, which suggests that everything sounds angry in German. It goes something like this: English: I love you French: Je t’aime Italian: Ti amo Spanish: Te quiero German…
Sayings + Expressions 6: The Ground and the Sun Posted by Sten on Aug 19, 2014
Liebe Leser, Today again a saying and an expression. If you are down, because something struck you, and you do not know how life is supposed to be nice again… Remember the saying and expression below! Auf Regen folgt Sonnenschein Rainfall is followed by sunshine (every cloud has a silver lining) This one is based on…
Don’t take things so literally! … Unless you’re speaking German. Posted by Constanze on Aug 13, 2014
You can learn a lot about Germany from its language. There are many nouns in the German language that have very literal meanings to them. Their pattern is that they are made up of two or more separate words put together to form a new word. These are called compound nouns. Some examples are: Das…
Words and signs you might encounter in deepest Bavaria Posted by Constanze on Aug 10, 2014
If you visit Bavaria (especially if it’s a little place out in the depths of the Bayerischer Wald), you are likely to encounter the Bavarian language in one form or another. Spoken Bavarian probably sounds incomprehensible as a non-native German speaker, even if your Hochdeutsch is of a good standard. But when it comes to…
Sayings + Expressions 5 – The Beauty and the Ball Posted by Sten on Aug 8, 2014
Hi there! This week we have another two: a saying, and an expression. The saying concerns beauty, and the expression discipline and endurance – which you need to achieve beauty, right? Let’s go, first the saying! Wer schön sein will, muss leiden Who wants to be beautiful, has to suffer (beauty knows no pain) The origin…
Sayings + Expressions 4 – The Master and Cloud 7 Posted by Sten on Jul 31, 2014
Today it is all about the bright blue above us: the sky! Even though the saying and the expression do not have much in common in meaning. Let’s start with the saying! Es ist noch kein Meister vom Himmel gefallen No master has fallen from heaven yet (practice makes perfect) This saying means that…
Mülltrennung – How the Germans Separate Their Waste Posted by Sten on Jul 29, 2014
It is probably something that is not talked about much – but different in every country. In Germany, we separate our waste generally in Restmüll (residual waste), Bioabfall (biowaste), Gartenabfall (garden waste), Altpapier (paper waste), Altglas (glass waste), and Grüner Punkt (Green Dot) waste. The Grüner Punkt labels the so-called Leichtstoffverpackungen (LVP) (Lightweight Packaging). This LVP is already enough prepared by the producer for recycling that it does not have to be taken back…