Saturday, September 18, 2010

Printable Short Stories: Rhine Country Germany, Song of the Lorelei and More.


 See here.

8 comments:

Eva said...

This is great. We'll be doing European geography this year. There's a famous poem about the "Loreley" by Heinrich Heine, which is also a folk song. Your story will complement this song. I used to live on the Rhine (I was actually born in Bonn, which is on the Rhine), and it's still my favorite river. Now one of my brothers lives there.

Alexandra said...

It's a beautiful city! We lived in the suburbs of Frankfurt in Sachsenhausen when I was in elementary school. We did a lot of traveling throughout Germany and France. I remember the Cologne cathedral well - so beautiful.

My MIL is from Berlin, and two sets of great, great, great grandparents come from Mainz and the Strasburg area.

Eva said...

What a coincidence. Is your husband German? Do you speak German?

Alexandra said...

My husband was born in Lundstuhl, but is a U.S. citizen. I used to speak German, but I'm afraid I've lost a lot of it. The rest of the family(on my side and husband's side) are much better at languages than I! They are all tri-lingual or bi-lingual. I'm not sure what happened to me(giggle). I don't pick it up as quickly or as easily.

Your English is beautiful. What a gift it is to be able to understand and speak other languages well.

Eva said...

Thank you for the compliment, Alexandra. Does your husband still use his German? Do you teach your children any foreign languages?

Alexandra said...

He's better at picking up languages by immersion and knows some Greek(he lived in Crete for a while) and German, but not fluently. My SIL is bilingual. Her degree is in German languages and literature.

I speak a little Spanish(beg. intermediate), so we are planning to teach Spanish. It's a practical language for living in the U.S. as so many people here speak the language. I would love to teach German, or rather learn along with the children.

My SIL and BIL are headed to Oberammergau in October for the Passion Play. I wish we could go! My parents go to Germany for vacation every year, usually in April. My MIL just came back as well. She has some cousins in Berlin.

Eva said...

I've never been to Oberammergau, I'm not really a southern German person, although I lived in Würzburg for a year. I hope they'll have a great time.

Alexandra said...

Thanks:) I like both the north and the south. Two different atmospheres - one more formal, and the other more relaxed. Someday we'll all get passports and visit again. It will be first for my children.