From time to time I would take pictures of German grammar in action, as if to prove to myself that it was for real.

When I arrived in Germany, I had not formally studied the language since my senior year of college.  (And let’s just say that wasn’t yesterday.)  I thought having two solid years of university level Deutsch under my belt was going to make slipping into the language pretty easy.  Not so much, as it turns out. 

There are real differences between how students at the same skill level talk amongst themselves in a classroom, and how the language is used by native speakers.  This seems incredibly obvious as I write it, but my senior year German class felt pretty confident that we knew how to speak some Deutsch.  Then I got off the plan at Tegel and wondered if I had ever heard the language before at all.

Here are a few things that I discovered over the last three months that I think you should know before you deplane:

German 101: Yes and No

No one says “Ja” or “Nein.” If you say them, people will know what you mean. But from what I can tell Deutscher only use them when they’re being very emphatic about something. “Ne” will suffice for no. And you should definitely say “Genau” if you mean yes.  “Stimmt” will also work.  But I can’t recall at time I ever heard a native speaker say “Ja” to me.

What is a thing?

Americans love the cognate “ein Ding” which means ‘a thing’ and is very useful if you’re trying to describe something you don’t know how to translate.  But guess what?  The Germans are much, much more likely to say “eine Sache,” - which also means “a thing.”  You will hear it constantly, so be ready.

Look it up

Another thing you will hear all the time is the verb “gucken” which means too look. This is used for everything, from “look over here” to “look it up.” Unfortunately, it is pronounced with a very sharp initial “g” so that it sounds a whole lot like “Kuchen.” I would like to spare you the enormous amount of time I spent during my first two weeks, deeply confused by everyone’s obsession with cake.

Fluchen

One evening toward the end of my stay in Berlin, I took a casual crash course swearing (“fluchen”).  I found it surprisingly revealing.  When you’re in the process of learning a language and listening to someone speak, the words your recognize snap into focus and ones you don’t are like fuzz.  I could not believe how much it took the static out of bar chat and casual conversation when I recognized a few of the many ways to call someone a dumbass, and handful of the infinite uses of “Scheiβe.” Seriously.  That hour was time well spent!

Christmas Markets:  one of the things that Germany does best!

Fortunately for me, I stayed in Germany just long enough to see the opening of its Weihnachtsmarkts during my last week there. 

These markets are as much for shopping as they are for hanging out:  there are rides and activities for children, with Glühwein and traditional foods for adults.  I visited the markets in Lübeck, Hamburg and four separate markets in Berlin.  My casual analysis is: the smaller the town is, the more charming its market!

Lübeck’s market was set up in front of it’s Rathaus in the town square and could not have been more adorable.  Hamburg’s market was the best for shopping with vendors from all the surrounding provinces.  Berlin’s markets ranged from the super-posh Gendarmenmarkt with its high-end vendors and ongoing stage shows to the tacky Alexanderplatz market, while at Marienkirche there is an ice rink, ferris wheel, pony rides, and lots of room for people to hang out, eating and drink for hours on end.  In every city there was a great feeling of making merry and taking time to meet with friends and family.

Doesn’t it seem appropriate that the sculpture in front of the Deutsche Bundesbank in Hamburg looks like a pipeline leading from it to the outside world?  Further proof of the artist as visionary.

I may not have done many of the traditional sightseer activities while I was in Germany for the last three months. And sometimes I think maybe I missed out.

But in all honesty, I feel like the many people who come and go without making time for handmade Knödel and freshly mulled Glühwein at the market are the ones who are really missing out on getting a taste of Deutschland.

Since arriving in September, I have spent a lot of time wandering Berlin’s streets looking at the art pasted and painted to its walls. This is city where the gallery is all around you. There are artists with recognizable style, motifs and messages.

One of my favorites, that I noticed early on, was a series of modern “Saint” prints pasted by door and onto walls. These are very thoughtful pieces: serious cultural criticism, executed beautifully with careful details. I had done some searching on the web and found that the pieces are created by a team calling themselves Various & Gould. They call the works the “Sankt Nimmerlein” and that they would be displaying them for the first time as a complete set at the end of the month in Hamburg.

Since Hamburg was already on my radar for quick getaway, I decided that exhibit would be my destination. As it turns out, I had misread the date of the opening which is not until today - too late for me see it since I have an audition in Berlin.

But on the train to Hamburg I was walking back to my seat from a trip to the WC and noticed a guy cutting out colorful screenprints. It was so obviously the same workstyle as the Saints I had been photographing around Kreuzberg. So I just stopped and asked if he was the artist. He said that yes, he and the woman sitting next to him were the team known as Various & Gould. I told them that one of the reasons I was going to Hamburg was to see their show there. At which point they told me there was a preview party that night and they would see me there!

I did track down the party later, but I couldn’t find them or their work so possibly I found the wrong fancy art party. (And by the way, my party crashing skills are totally undiminished abroad.) Nonetheless, it was quite thrilling to get to meet the creators of one of my favorite things in Berlin. It also seems indicative of the vibrancy and accessibility of art and the people who make it in this city.

The Berlin Bear is everywhere.  While I don’t know its exact origin, I’m sure it was selected as the city’s symbol in order to inspire fear and respect.  But I just find it adorable. 

Many thanks for all the good wishes for my auditions.  It’s been an interesting process and my double audition day last Monday was a strange one!  It had all the regular audition day challenges (showing up at an unknown location in a new city, looking good and ready to sing) but also – as expected – it was a serious adventure in communication.  Most of the confusion revolved around my audition for a certain major Berlin opera company.

Almost all of my communication with opera companies in Germany has been by e-mail.  The single exception was a response by phone to an e-mail request I had sent for chorus auditions to Berlin’s three major opera companies:  Deutsche Oper Berlin, Komische Oper Berlin and Staatsoper Berlin.

As anyone who has ever lived abroad knows, communicating with people face to face has a number of challenges, but talking on the phone is an altogether different skill level.  So naturally, the first phone conversation that I ever have auf Deutsch is from the one of these major companies about a job I would really like to have:  just after 9pm on a Wednesday night I get a call from a company whose title includes the words “Oper” and “Berlin” about coming in to sing.  The chorus director introduces himself and after hearing my surprise, asks in English if I speak German.  I am so eager to prove that I can work in Germany that I insist on continuing the conversation in German.  After hacking my way through the brief conversation, I am so adrenalized that in the end I don’t know whether he has said he will call me next week about coming in to sing or if I am supposed to call him when I get back to Germany in the spring.  I send a follow up e-mail the next day to the Deutsche Oper Berlin to thank them for their call and clarify some of the things I had attempted to communicate by phone.

A week and half later, the director calls again to ask me about coming in.  This time I make sure that the call is not over until he has promised me an e-mail confirmation! 

The night before my appointment, I reread the e-mail confirmation and realize that it the Staatsoper Berlin - not the Deutsche Oper - that had been calling me.  Even though I had written down “Schiller Theater” in my notes from the phone conversation, it had just gotten stuck in my head as Deutsche Oper. 

So last Monday, with one audition done, I went home to take a quick break and reset myself for the next round. Feeling refreshed and ready to go, I made my way across town to the theater. I found the stage door at the back and made my way to the chorus room. There was one other new mezzo hanging around by the door, and when the chorus director arrived, he instructed us to join the alto section in their rehearsal for an upcoming concert. It was an usual process, but I had been told that choristers are auditioned at rehearsals before the existing chorus, so I took it in stride and waited for whenever the designated audition time would be.  Two hours of chorus rehearsal went by with no audition time. When it was over, I talked to the director (in German!) about the group and it turns out that I had been invited to join the Staatsoper Berlin Konzertchor, a volunteer group that performs a few concerts per year in the city. No audition necessary - no pay offered. And while there certainly are advantages to sitting in on any kind musical rehearsals in German, their first concert is not until two weeks after my flight back to the States. I explained that I would happily stay in Berlin longer if I found a job here, but since my visa is on the verge of expiration, I would otherwise have to leave at the end of November.  He said there were unfortunately no positions currently available in the regular Staatsoper chorus, but I would be welcome get in touch with him in the spring. 

Obviously my phone skills leave a lot to be desired since I missed out some pretty key elements of what that invitation was all about!

The following day, I was certainly disappointed that the audition I had the most hope for was not an audition at all.  But after taking a few hours to mope around, I was surprised at how quickly I saw the comedy of the situation.  I am also glad to have had the experience of stretching and extending my language usage in what was ultimately a low-risk situation:  on the phone, in a music rehearsal and backstage at the opera house. Next time a major opera company calls me on the phone, I will be that much more prepared.

You never know where you’ll find a little guy like this peeking out to wish you a “Schönen Tag!”

Fewer updates and picture this week, as I have spent the last ten days in an intensive blitz of opera business.  Here are some highlights of the process:

- 36 audition requests sent
- Three auditions scheduled
- Two incoming phone calls auf Deutsch (From the Staatsoper Berlin!)
- One cover letter translated into French

I have been frustrated that I have not been offered as many auditions as I would like.  On the other hand, one of the three auditions I have confirmed is with the Staatsoper Berlin.**  Picking up up some work there would be great, so please “drückt mir die Daumen” on Monday when I go in to sing for them!* 

I’m much more nervous about having to speak with them in German before and after the audition that I am about the actual singing.  As a result I have instituted a NO ENGLISH weekend policy:  all German, all the time for Saturday and Sunday!  We’ll see how it goes!

* This literally means to “press your thumbs” for someone, and is the Deutsch  way of wishing someone good luck!

** You may have read a previous version that said Deutsche Oper rather than Staatsoper Berlin.  This acutally an even better audition opportunity - but thank God I asked the chorusmaster to send me an e-mail confirmation! 

Long, dark nights got you spooked?  Maybe you just need a garlic wreath for your door.  (Taken at the bi-weekly Maybachufer Market.)