Danke Party

What a nice mix of German and English! Danke means thanks and party is international

I went to one yesterday afternoon. It was held at my local AWO. If you remember, this is a German national organisation of local community centres which host and promote social activities.

My AWO supports lots of activities and the party yesterday was to say thanks to all who lead them and provide services. I went last year and really enjoyed it as I did yesterday. The party is based on people meeting up, food, drink and being entertained by the Dance Class and a singer/musician.

The food, dancing and music is 'multi-cultural' as are all of the participants. As we started, a German class for Refugees was underway and when it ended they were asked to join the party. It was nice to see the pleasure on their faces as they enjoyed the food and even joined in the dancing!

My week is as per usual. Yesterday evening Daniel came for a session. We worked on a text for a presentation he has to give in English today. It was about robot/machine - human relationships.

On Saturday Neil will be in Berlin so we are meeting up for lunch. I'm sure I shall share more about this with you later. I'm also organising a meeting with Angelika next week. Looking forward to both.

Klausurtagung

My Silsdeners are surely wondering what that is. It means a closed door/session meeting. I went to one yesterday. It was a two day event organised by my local SPD. We have this event each year at the Bildungszentrum in Erkner. What's that and where is Erkner - I can hear you asking yourself!

Erkner is a very nice small(ish) town east of Berlin. It is also the end station on my local S-Bahn line and I can be there in 22 minutes. I have always enjoyed going there. It has a couple of nice lakes plus river and streams. In summer I go there to start bicycle rides to explore local villages and countryside. You can also pick up regional trains to the Polish border. I really like going there for lunch!

Bildungszentrum means a training centre. It is part of a larger hotel-restaurant complex. It is only 10 minutes walk from the S-Bahn/Train station and close to a lake. A very nice, quiet and restful area. I registered for the main session on Saturday. Many delegates/members had booked for the Friday evening meetings. This included a session with Berlin's Mayor, who just happens to be a SPD member!

I arrived in time to have breakfast with members of my local branch before we all settled into a conference room. A Berlin government senator was present and noted all the members comments about the recent bad election results and how the party should react. After lunch there were two sessions for members to propose changes and generally give their views about how to expand membership and win back voters.

I got home late, had a couple of nice telephone calls, nodded off watching the news on TV then 'hit the sack'. I slept late this morning and woke to a blue sky and sunshine. I decided to go on a bicycle ride, but then the weather changed so I did exciting things like ironing the washing. As I did that I turned on BBC Radio 3 and was surprised at what I heard.

A 6 hour programme called 'Sacred River'. Here is some of the blurb I picked up on the website. It is a presenter less celebration of the spiritual side of life encountered through music, regardless of faith or tradition. A 'slow radio' flow. Music spans all periods and concepts, such as the following.

Creation and the cosmos, darkness and light, nature, the concept of love, ritual, contemplation and meditation, the joyous and ecstatic, life - death - eternity, mortality and beliefs about the world to come. Phew, but is that a range! I'm sure Alan and Lynne will have tuned in when they returned from church in Casland and are enjoying it, just as I am while writing these words :-))

Another nice present

Last Saturday I told you I went to a town in the east of Berlin to collect lots of presents for 'The Family'. Bro1 showed off his new winter coat thanks to I&B in Ozland.

We then talked to Bro2 about the same kind of coat for him. It is called a Parka and popular with 'younger' gentlemen! He said he didn't know what style or colour he wanted.

His parents told me that was not new and we should just have to wait until he made up his mind.

I invited The Family to my place for Kaffee und Kuchen last Wednesday. A really nice evening. Bro2 whispered in my ear that he would like a coat like Bro1, but a darker colour.  He and sister were very playful as you can see in a couple of photos.

They left with lots of bags containing clothes, knives, forks, spoons, cutlery, cooking pots and women's clothes. They were so happy to see all the things and pack them into bags to take home. We agreed to meet next day to buy a Parka for Bro2..

Next day I went to the store and met The Family minus Bro1. Bro2 had already found a coat before I arrived but it was size L. He said he wanted a size M. The salesman called other stores to find out if they had size M. Most said no but could deliver one in three days. I talked to his parents and they said he should get size L for in the near future he would grow and not be smaller!

I liked that logic and nodded my head in agreement. And so Bro2 get a Parka size L to grow into and colour black. Here are a couple of photos of him posing in front of a Christmas tree in the store. Another happy young man thanks to I&B in Ozland. I hope you both can see how happy Boy2 was to get such a nice present. BIG thanks to both of you :-)

More Presents

I had a really nice weekend. Yesterday afternoon I went to my AWO for an afternoon of ' Day of the Vietnamese Family' in the company of two nice ladies. How the kids sing and dance and smile is just great and would melt the hardest heart.

I keep remembering a boy at the front of a dance group who had problems remembering the next steps and how he kept looking at others to quickly follow their moves - and all done with a big smile, of course! The music was rather loud but the food and hospitality were first class.

The day before I went with Father and Bros 1 and 2 to Hoppegarten. This is a small town to the east of Berlin and lies in Land Brandenburg. We had been invited to Oldie H's family house to select things they were giving away. This included clothes, cutlery, cooking pots and pans and a nice radio-DVD player with external loudspeakers. The Boyz went straight for that!

We also had a nice tea break before making the final selections. The Father and Boyz packed seven bags and rucksacks and I had two bags and things in my rucksack. The local S-Bahn station is only a short walk from the house so we managed to carry all the things and take the S-Bahn back to Berlin.

I didn't have my camera but Father took a few shots with the camera in his smartphone. Here are a couple so you can see how happy Bro1 was with all the presents and showing off his new Parka winter coat. I like the shot of him at the window seat trying to ignore my silly faces :-))

 Papa and Mama are coming to my place on Wednesday afternoon to take what they want from the things I brought back from my first visit. What they don't want I shall give to a group of refugees who now live near me.

Father only speaks English with me and asked me not to speak German with his sons. He asked me to only speak English for they need to improve their English at school. The Boyz did not smile at hearing Papa's words spoken in English - but they understood him!

Presents

Hello Silsdeners and other readers. You know I, and a small group of people, have 'adopted' a refugee family. On my blog I refer to them as 'The Family' and I do not give their names. For example. the two boys in the family are called Bro1 and Bro2.

You also know that my good friend Oldie Hermann died recently and I went to his funeral. It is all on my blog. His family recently called me to say they were clearing out his flat and had collected a number of things that may be of use for The Family. They now live in a smaller refugee home but at least have two rooms and access to a kitchen and launderette.

I took the S-Bahn east to meet Hermann's family. They picked me up at the station and we landed at their nice home and garden in time for late morning coffee. After that they showed me some of the items they had collected. I was surprised at the quantity. We went through the things and packed some into large bags for me to carry.

The main things were cutlery and plates of all kinds. You can see them hidden in the newspapers used to protect them on the journey to my place. I really like(d) the eggcups with faces. I had never seen them before in Oldie H's kitchen. The kids will love them :-) I also packed a lot of autumn/winter woolen tops for women. A present from Oldie H's daughter-in-law. You can see some in the photo. At least The Mother will enjoy having presents just for her.

We had lunch then decided I should return with The Father to sort out and pack what remained. There are lots of glasses, cooking pots and pans in addition to more clothes and towels. I called The Father and we are meeting on Saturday afternoon to pick up the rest of the presents. Perhaps The Boyz will be there to help carry the things.

I've had a nice week so far and the weekend also looks good. Hope things are fine with you at your end of the planet!

Last Week

I wonder what your last week was like. Mine was interesting and full of different things. On Monday I went to the AWO as usual and taught my English group.

I then went to a meeting of members of my housing association where a police officer gave advice about Security and Seniors. It was really interesting. I was surprised, and disappointed, to hear what some people do to cheat and steal from seniors in Berlin.

Next day I had my Spanish class then taught two English groups before returning home and meeting Bro2 to help him with English school homework. On Wednesday evening I went to my local SPD meeting. Lots of discussion about the last election and what the party should do to win back voters.

I also got a very nice e-mail from Frau Dr. P. She is teaching in St. Petersburg University. I helped her with the application in English some time ago and told you about it. She is really happy there and having a great time teaching students to use German.

 I used to work with her and have very happy memories of classes at her school. Here is a photo of her posing with a 'local animal' and playing an accordion. I look forward to more summer parties in her family garden.

On Thursday I went for Kaffee und Kuchen with a couple of Oldies. Lots of chats as well.  At home later, I turned my computer on to join the first Labour Party Online Meeting in Germany. I am a member of the Berlin branch. An interesting event and I enjoyed meeting many interesting people online and taking part in discussions to expand the organisation.

Friday started with Kerstin and the Oldie Fitness Gang followed by my Photoshop Gang and then an English session with Daniel. The day ended with me watching a friendly football match from Wembley Stadium. Germany against England. The teams were made up of new players. The result was 0:0. I was surprised at how well the new English team played!

Yesterday was spent with The Bros as you can read in my last post. Finally, I picked up more books  to share with friends. Here you can see the eight books for us to read as the winter advances and the snow falls. Happy reading to all who still open books!

Smile Time

I saw a lot of smiles yesterday. It started when The Bros arrived late morning for help with school English. I smiled when they took off their hats to show new haircuts. Really nice, particularly Bro2. He said his classmates made fun of the new style but I  told him to ignore them. I told him I liked it so we all smiled again!

First I had to print out three letters of application for Bro2. He is looking for a position as a trainee for a few weeks. Bro1 did this a few weeks ago but was rejected by all he applied to. We are looking for new companies for him. After that, time for Kaffee und Kuchen before attacking the English homework.

They completed all the tasks so I told them to get ready for shopping. They asked why? I told them some nice people had donated money for a winter coat for Bro1. See my third last post.You should have seen the wide smiles on hearing that! Off we went to the department store. I asked if I could take photos and was told it was okay. I was worried that my camera might set off alarms.

Bro1 tried on different sizes and colours. He settled on the one you can see in the photo. A shop assistant said he had chosen the right colour for his age. Dark colours are for older men, he said. More smiles at that. I paid and smiled when I saw Bro1 proudly holding the bag containing the winter coat. His first!

I had to then leave to get ready for an evening of verse and music, so we said our goodbyes. Bro1 still looked happily surprised and asked me to give Big Thanks to Ian and Birgit in Ozland who had made it all possible.  Thanks to both and sent with a wide happy smile from Bro1!

A Good Read

There is a programme on BBC Radio 4 called 'A Good Read'. I listen when possible and like to hear guest comments on a number of books they are asked to read. This morning I received a book to add to my own version of  'A Good Read'. I left the house just as Ms Postie arrived to deliver a letter and a small parcel.

Inside the latter was a book sent by Ian in Ozland. You can read the title and what it is about here. Ian regularly sends me web-links to articles, comments and speeches covering a wide range of topics. One recent one was an article by this academic. Who is he? The blurb tells me he is a social and cultural psychologist, has written two other books and lectures in two universities in the USA.

The book begins with a list of comments by a number of journalists, politicians, commentators and academics all  saying positive things. No surprise there. I am on the last chapter of a book about Edmund Burke so shall move onto the new one as soon as I conclude that book.

Many of my family and friends are religious but are unable to talk about their religious beliefs. They just go through the motions and give money to the church. Hello all of you......how about buying and reading this book? Would be nice to discuss the author's findings when we next meet.

Special Birthday

When someone reaches 18 years of age in many countries they are considered an adult and legally responsible for what they do - or do not do! So is it in Germany. As I moved through my teens, the key birthday was 21. That was when you were legally an adult. When I was 21, I lived in Nottingham, bought myself a nice new blue Ford Anglia and later set out to discover more of the world.

Daniel was 21 last Thursday. He came for help with a presentation in English he has to give. He also had a special wish. To open a very nice looking bottle of 'something' I bought in Beijing Airport a number of years ago. He is allowed to be curious for his 21st birthday!

He did just that and sampled the content. I think it was what in English we call, 'Rice Wine' although I am sure it is more a spirit than a wine. I found the taste rather strange and cannot put it in the Top Ten of the things I want to drink! Daniel found it okay and even had another glass. I am going to take the rest to my Photoshop Gang for they like tasting new liquids.

I was with that Gang yesterday afternoon. I was pleased to be with them, share conversation and not be alone. Earlier I had been to Oldie Hermann's funeral. It was a new experience for me in Germany. A small group of elderly people made up of family and friends said their goodbyes to him. I am glad I did not have to go home and sit alone.

Phone Cameras

These days you buy a smartphone, if you have the money and can pay for the monthly connection costs. I am told the new ones have very good and powerful cameras. I have heard some can even challenge the quality of modern reflex cameras.

My mobile is just that. I call it my Un-smart-phone. It has a 1.3 megapixel camera. I tested it yesterday. Why and where? I met The Family just before 4.00pm at the Ring Centre 2 on Frankfurter Allee. Some of my non-Berliner readers might have been there. Ma and Pa came from attending an Integration Course at a nearby college.

Their children joined us shortly after and we had a gallop through a department store. The eldest boy needs a winter coat and we found a nice one but it cost €90. Forget it. I'll have to see if I can collect the money from my gang of generous donators. He has a birthday just before Christmas so perhaps I can raise the money by then. Even so, he needs it now. It's getting cold.

I bought a large porcelain teapot which was reduced to €15 - and made in England! We took the U-Bahn to Tierpark near my place. The Bros and Sis then wailed they were hungry and wanted to eat in a Donar Kebab Imbiss there. I agreed and said I would finance it as a present for all to remember Sister's 9th Birthday.

I have never eaten a Donar Kebab and never will, but that is another story. They tucked in and The Bros were so hungry they ordered another one each. I just had to have a photo of both 'stuffing their faces'. Sadly I only had the camera in my mobile. The results would never win me a prize, even after I improved the images in my Photoshop programme. There is a limit to what it can do.

After that, they all came to my place. They relaxed and watched Lord of the Rings - Film 1. They have no TV or internet connections where they live so they really enjoyed the evening. I added fruit juice and snacks to the event before I gave sister her birthday presents. They left happy and smiling. What a nice time together.