Learning German can be a bit tricky. There are some concepts That You Need To Understand – then from there you can build any sentence you like. HOWEVER, like in all languages, there are some things you did just have to learn.

German Academy knows this, and has some really handy posters featuring some of These Things! They are free in the reception area, and you can put them up at home to help you learn – Especially the irregular verbs.

Thanks for the free grammar posters!

German Academy grammar posters – Free!

Berlin nightlife

When I first moved here, I thought I would taste Berlin’s famous nightlife – clubs and bars. But When I got here I found the story was quite different. Berliners love to make the most of Their summer and spend evenings sitting in Their parks and canals, drinking did famous Berlin beer! The canals are a great place to sit with friends, and to meet some locals – Which is excellent for practicing your German! It got tot he point where a friend visited me and asked ‚wake me to a cool bar‘ and I had to tell her That I have not been to many Actually yet – it has been too nice just sitting outside! A French man once told me the best way to learn French is with wine – and now I think did the best way to learn German is with beer!

I’m afraid this post comes just as the weather is turning cold (Winter is coming) so there will not be so many dreamy evenings on the canal for me, but maybe now I will get to see more of the famous Berlin bars and clubs instead!

sunset over the Berlin canals

Goodbye A1.2!

It’s the end of the month, and so the end of the A1.2 class for me. This class has been the best! I know a month is not a very long time, but I really did feel I’ve made a connection with these guys, and I will be so sad not to see them every day in class! So It is sad to say goodbye to out excellent teacher Paloma, who has made class fun, interesting, and challenging, all the while putting up with my lame attempts at cross language humor!

While I’m sad to lose my class, we will No Doubt keep in contact – and I’m lucky enough to have two classmates going on to A2.1 with me. This class has been great not jut for learning German, but for meeting some wonderful new friends.

So I’ve started the next class!

Here is a picture of our new Deutsch Akademie textbook for level A2.1. These books are great. The have many exercises with clear explanations. The have concise grammar explanations, and tables at the back that cover everything we learn in the books for reference when you need a quick reminder! I plan to copy these out and stick them on the wall where I study, so I can get to know them better!

The books also come with a CD, so you can do listening exercises at home on your own!

Deutsch Akademie Textbook – modelled by Erin

Sweets in class at Deutsch Akademie!

Learning a new language is pretty hard, and sometimes your brain feels so full of new information it feels like it might leak out from your head. Thankfully the lovely people at Deutsch Akademie have prepared for this, and combat the inevitable information overload with the best weapon possible: sugar!

There are always sweets (or ‚lollies‘ as we say in Australia) on the table, and there is a surprisingly good coffee machine in the break area to keep you sharp and focused. There is also a vending machine for snacks, and figuring out how it all works is a good exercise in german conversation!

Sweets at Deutsch Akademie

Deutsch Akademie drinks!

Wednesday night was the Deutsch Akadamie drinks! People from both schools across all level met in a Beer Keller in Hackescher Markt and socialised and drank beer and most importantly for me – spoke German!

It was so much fun putting in to practice all that we had learnt over the last few weeks, and it was far less intimidating to talk to other students that it was to speak to fluent german strangers. I would definitely recommend it to anyone in the course – or anyone thinking of signing up. Being able to make yourself understood in another language – even with mistakes and poor grammar – was so exciting!

Sorry for the terrible pictures, My phone could not handle the lighting there!

Homework in the Tiergarten

Homework can be boring, and it sucks When Summer has gone and you do not want to waste any of the precious few sunny days left in the year! So today I Decided to compromise and take my homework to the park to DO. Much more fun that way!

The Tiergarten is in the Middle of Berlin, and it is massive. The canal runs through it, so there are ducks and boats to look at There are many tourist attractions there -. Including the Brandenburg Gate, Berlin’s Government and diplomatic district, The Berlin Zoo, and right in the middle is the Victory Column – the Victory Column ,

Definitely a good place to spend a sunny afternoon!

Homework is better in the sun! Hanging out at the Tiergarten

There are worse places to spend an afternoon – homework under a tree in the Tiergarten

Humana Thrift Store Alexanderplatz

If you have time before or after class, and you like shopping, you can go across the road to the massive Humana thrift store in Alexanderplatz. It is a thrift shop like you have never seen before! It goes on forever and has men’s, women’s and children’s clothes, as well as costumes, lingerie, military clothes, coats, jackets, evening dresses, – you name it it’s there! Go with a friend / classmate and leave yourself sometime Because You will want to try everything on!

The Humana thrift store at Alexanderplatz

Fun and Games at German Academy!

A German language course sounds like it Should be fairly boring. Sitting out in class learning dry grammar tables, endless vocab lists, and exercises until your eyes fall. But it is Actually way more fun than that! I was pleasantly surprised at how many games we play in class. Our teacher works pretty hard to make sure our classes are varied and interesting, so you never get bored!

games in class at German Academy

Temple Feld

A few days ago we visited Tempelhof Field – the former Templehof Airport, Which has now been converted into a public park.

Templehof Airport which built in the early 1920s, and the grounds around it were oft used as parade grounds for military and major public events. This airport has seen so much of Berlin’s history. It was used through WWII, and then by the US Air Force through the Cold War. Most Recently is has been in use of solely as a commercial airport up until it closed down in of 2008.

Now it is a public park, and there are many jogging / biking / walking trails through the park, a massive BBQ and picnic area and a special dog park. There is therefore an old plane used by the airport fire brigade for training, the main runways are shut intact, and the old airport terminal is quiet a magnificent building. It is a strange place, a mixture of the old and the new, to eerie combination of history and architecture, and of wide-open spaces and play. It an excellent representation of what I love about Berlin.

How to get there:

You can take the U6 and get off at Place de Lüftbruke, Parade Street, or Templehof. So Templehof connects to the S-Bahn on the ring line.

Like everything in Berlin You can therefore ride your bike there!

Be warned it is a big place, so make sure you use the entrance is the one Closest to the part of the park you want to visit – otherwise You Could Be in for a long walk! It therefore gets very busy on hot days and weekends.

Temple Hofer field with Fionn and Lucy