My School

Part of my school: Klostergebau

Part of my contract with the Kulturministerkonferenz Deutschlands prevents me from writing about the goings-on in my school without permission, but I will say that I enjoy my school quite a bit. I'm at a Gymnasium, which is a sort-of academically-oriented secondary school in theory. In practice however it's all the regular students lumped in together instead of the übermenschen that the German state expects to enroll in Gymnasium, because no one wants the social stigma of having been to a Realschule or a Berufsschule (schools with a more vocational-oriented curriculum).

My Gymnasium has students from the 5th Year until the 13th Year, with English being pretty standard as a taught language, usually the first - if only we could do the same thing in Canada with French, or with more regionally specific languages. English-teaching here is at such a level that 6th or 7th Year students here are speaking at the same level that I was in French in grade 11 after learning the language for five or six years, and by the 11th and 12th classes the students are discussing sociology and Shakespeare at levels that our grade 12s could only dream. Pretty remarkable, at least in my opinion.

I have a variety of tasks in different classes: in some I take on entire lessons, while in others I take out small groups of students for discussions and debates, and in some I take on the honoured position of living-dictionary. Actually teaching is one of my favourite parts, especially when I can get the students interacting. Usually the younger ones are more fun to teach as they haven't had their creativity and their will to answer and ask questions beaten out of them by the education system (not that we're blameless - we do the same thing). They also can't say my name, so it's always "Taylor! Taylor!" especially when they see me in the street - they run over to give me knucks or handshakes.

I've gotta say though, I'm getting a bit tired of answering the question, "Is it dangerous in Canada because of the bears?"

View of the Dom from the Neubau, the other campus of my school

Trierer Weihnachtsmarkt

Weihnachtsmärkte (Christmas Markets) are pretty common throughout Germany, but it seems to me that they're even more popular in southernly areas (that is to say, Catholic regions).

Trier's Weihnachtsmarkt is particularly famous and large for a city of Trier's size and location, and it draws in so many tourists that - to borrow a metaphor once used by a friend to describe Paris - they are like pigeons: they coo unintelligently, bump into everyone, and poop everywhere.

Well, maybe not poop everywhere.


It's pretty annoying during the day since I have to walk through the Markt on my way to school, and there're so many tourists bumbling around. At night the place is usually even more crowded, with everyone huddling up together under the awnings or umbrellas if it's raining, and there's a general haze rising up from the crowd (a combination of breath, cigarette smoke, and Glühwein fumes).

Glühwein is a pretty standard part of the Weihnachtsmarkt, over all in Germany. Usually it's a mulled red wine with a mixture of herbs and fruit thrown in, though you can also find white wine varieties with a nice hint of clove, etc. You also get the wine in a little mug with an imprint of Trier's skyline, that says "Trierer Weihnachtsmarkt". If you want you can keep the mug, but you pay €2 Pfand (deposit) for it.


Meanwhile, the Dom rises up, noble and majestic as always, above the turbid masses below. I really wish I could adequatly describe the might of the Dom as it looms there, but I'm afraid I - and my photos - fail to do that justice.

The Dom is also stuffed with tourists at this point, including screeching children running around and using the pews as a Kinderspielplatz. Not appropriate.

One of the most important Weihnachtsmarkt traditions:
Bratwurst made by surly Polish immigrants
(And yes, I need a haircut, but I'm
waiting until I go to England again -
I don't trust German haircutters)

A Day Trip to Saarbrücken

22 November
Saturday
Saarbrücken

"Was so lazy yesterday around the WG that I resolved to actually go somewhere today. Unfortunately due to Trier's distance from absolutely anything of interest and the short notice with which I commited to a day's travel, I was stuck with only two real options: Koblenz and Saarbrücken. Having already been in Koblenz twice, I opted for Saarbrücken. Emailed one of the assistants who lives in Saarbrücken, but she didn't get back to me in time so I'm exploring the city alone."

Saarbrücken, capital of the Bundesländ Saarland, is a pretty lack luster place, as it ain't got nothing going for it. A hour long train ride from Trier, Saarbrücken is one of the last bastions of Germany before you stumble into France, and because of that (and partly because of France's possession of the economically important Saarland following WW1) there are supposedly many French influences in the city and state. I didn't particularly notice these, but then I'm not a German, and many of these influences probably apply in western Rheinland-Pfalz as well.

Altrathaus (Old Town Hall)

I doubt it would have been that much more exciting if I had a tourguide.

"This city reminds me a bit of Victoria, though there is no happiness, no driving life-force here (as hippy-ish as that sounds).
I've been searching around and around for Saarbruecken postcards, but so far with no success - why should it be so hard? Is Saarbruecken really that unused to tourists? I've already gone to investigate the Schloss (manor-castle) that overlooks the Saar River and the older part of the town, but it was fairly uninteresting, and the actual Manor itself was taken over today for a blood drive. Signs keep telling me that you can do tours of the crypts beneath the city, but the starting point is nowhere to be found."

The Saar River