I am trying to learn German

[Avalon1984]

mom'sfolly :

I lived in Germany for a year as an exchange student. Unfortunately all I can remember is dialect, which is what everyone around me spoke, and I can't remember much of that. The dialect is much softer and drops some sounds....so

I ka Schwabisch schwatze....sort of. Which means Ich kann Schwabisch sprechen.
Krombeira = kartoffel = potatoes

I can still read some German though.

I ka Schwabisch schwatze- so you were a "Schwaeble"?

Not sure about the potato thing. We had a different word but I must ask my grandma when I call her on Friday.​

 

[mom'sfolly]

Yep, can't remember much German, but what I can remember is all Schwabish. I lived near Ulm, in the heart of Schwaben.

 

[mandelyn]

When my husband and I lived in Germany for 3 years, the best thing that ever happened to me was meeting my friend Dajana (diana). She spoke in a really pretty sing-song sort of way, not harsh at all. Then she would accent the words in a way that I could pick them apart and know what she was saying. I took 4 years of Latin, and the only thing I retained from that was breaking down words. I had a quick "Welcome to Deustchland" class for a week and that was it. Dajana I met at a bar and we became fast friends. She started using half German to talk to me, just random German words thrown in, and then I'd respond the same way without even knowing it. Once in the car, she was like "Mandy, you just spoke German!"... I didn't even know I had done it.

Now, 3 years after being there... sprecken klein deustch. Or something like that. Never did learn to write it.

It's a neat language, but I couldn't imagine learning "High German" in class or book form, and then going to a bar in Bavaria in some little bitty town and trying to stumble through those accents. I got to learn on the fly with a local accent. Didn't take long for my own accent to come out and then people started assuming I was German! Hilarious... I'd get half way into a conversation and then snap out of it over one word and be all like an American with "Huh?"

 

[tnchickenut]

Good luck. My mother told me I was bilingual until 3 years old when I told her "German was a ugly language" and she (typical German) to this day won't teach me a word of it anymore. I'm 30 and she's been holding to it for 27 years.

I got Resetta Stone and she told me the way they are teaching you to say things is so wrong you would just offend people. I spent time living with my grandmother in Bavaria and learned more then. I guess alot of things came back to me from when I was little, but to this day I can't just start talking it. If my mother is talking to someone on the phone over there, I can easedrop to a extent but repeating it back is another story. Especially when you have a American accent and only get made fun of for trying. (yes, I'm complaining a bit)

 

[Avalon1984]

I think it is almost the same everywhere. I have found that my fellow countrymen are always appreciative of Americans trying to speak German. One must not be perfect, the try is what counts. I have a semi heavy East German accent that is now getting mixed with an American/Michigander accent. My Germans are telling me I have a US accent, Americans say I have a German/Michigander accent. You just can’t win no matter where you are

Careful on those translating softwares. I have found they use people with the funkiest local accents and use the words they use as “high German” which it is not. The best way I have found to learn a language is watching the news. The international news usually cover topics you are already aware of just in a different language, so it is easier to pick up words and how they are pronounced in the specific county. Music helps too. You can start by listening to “Schlager” which is anything between melodic older type music and the “umphta” music you hear at the Oktoberfest. Kastelruther Spatzen are very easy to listen to. Good luck

 

[country lady]

I took two semesters at the university but can't speak it. I love languages and had great teachers. The problem that I see is that the U.S. is so big and so far from other countries that even when learning a language we often never have a chance to use it. I hear criticism all the time that Americans can't/won't speak a 2nd language, but I cut us some slack for that reason. It's not like we can be in several different countries within a couple of hours.

 

[Forrest_Flock]

Quote:

I am pretty much the opposite
I can read and write quite well
I get the grammar
but I am absolutely hopeless when it comes to speaking
if I ever go to Germany, I will have to pose as a mute

 

[Forrest_Flock]

Quote:
I suppose we are not as lucky as the Brits, no
I travel an awful lot though
and plan on making it over to Europe next year or thereabouts

 

[Forrest_Flock]

Thank you all for all your stories, I did not know we had so many people with German backgrounds here!
eh, I might try to watch the German news, I will let you know how that goes

 

[Forrest_Flock]

Quote:
You'd be amazed how much of the country is actually countryside. It is a beautiful country and I miss it dearly. You are right though, you need to drive a few hours from whichever airport you arrive at to start seeing the "real" Germany. Here is my village www.kleinschmalkalden.de

Kleinschmalkalden liegt in 450-550m über NN am Südwesthang des Thüringer Waldes und ist Heimat für knapp 1500 Einwohner. Die bewaldeten Berge rings um den Ort erreichen Höhen zwischen 600 und 800 m. Der "Hausberg" der Kleinschmalkalder ist die Hohe Warte , der mit seinem Aussichtsturm in einem Teil des Ortswappens abgebildet ist. Die Lage im engen Kerbtal der Schmalkalde mit ihren Nebentälern verleiht Kleinschmalkalden seinen ganz besonderen Reiz. Die landschaftliche Schönheit der Umgebung ist wie geschaffen für ruhige und erholsame Ferien.
Die Hohe Warte - das Wahrzeichen
von Kleinschmalkalden
Hier wird Landschaft zum Erlebnis !

Die längste Sehenswürdigkeit Thüringens, der Rennsteig, führt in einem Bogen in ca. 5km Entfernung am Ort vorbei. Ein wahres Paradies für Natur- und Wanderfreunde tut sich auf, über 85 km gut beschilderte Wege führen durch Wald und Flur.

I did not get a word of that