Advent Calendar Day 2
Day 2 of our Advent Calendar has been written by Robert. Thank you, Robert!
Warum lerne ich Deutsch?
I started learning German in school many moons ago. The lessons only lasted a year. I nonetheless had a taste for the language. My wife speaks German fluently having lived in Germany when she started school. Her sister lives in Germany and we were invited to visit. I decided then that it would be great to be able to converse in German whilst out there so looked for ways to do it. I started with self-learning tools like Teach Yourself German! As a result I found the first visit a bit of a trial as my skills with German were poor. Fortunately our hosts speak excellent English, as do most Germans in the major cities. This makes it difficult to learn while on a short holiday.
So, the search was on for a German Tutor. I asked on Twitter as I was having no success searching the Internet to find a tutor locally. Angelika responded and also attempted to find a local tutor. None being found we agreed to give it a try using Skype. It worked! I’ve been working with Angelika for three years or so. It has paid dividends.
On the last visit to Germany, in March this year to attend a wedding, we stayed in a hotel. This was more like it! No hosts to help I had to manage, supported by my wife, using my limited German. Having to ask for things in German and answer questions asked in German improved my skills no end!
Was I always looking forward to my lessons with Angelika? No. In those early days when Angelika was teaching me German grammar I sometimes would have liked to have let it go. I persevered, as did Angelika and I am now slowly getting better.
Did I mention that Angelika’s a brilliant tutor? No. Well, let me just emphasise that: if you are looking for a German tutor Angelika’s brilliant!!
Wer bin ich?
Mein Name ist Robert.
Ich bin ein Mehrwertsteuerberater.
Sie können meine Website hier www.vatark.co.uk finden.
Meine Website ist in Englisch!
Thanks for the compliment, Robert – having a good student helps 🙂
I learned a new German expression today: Backpfeifengesicht. I think, literally, it means “back whistling face” but the expression could be more accurately translated as “a face in need of a punch”. An arsehole, maybe? This is nothing to do with you, Robert, or Angelika, I hasten to add! Just my modest German education (ongoing).
Kudos to Robert for persevering! We’re never too old to learn new skills.
And if I decided to commit to learning German, Angelika is the person I’d hire!
Thank you, Mary x