The Zeltlager Series: rolled r's and tongue twisters

I might have mentioned a few times on das Blog how much I enjoy the German language. Well get ready for a whole post about it.

One more thing I love that hasn't yet been mentioned in The Zeltlager Series, is the way German just combines any and every word it sees sitting around. It really is all about the compound words in this language.
 
For example, this was an animal created during one of the games in the Zeltlager, and even though it's a made up word, it's a completely legitimate use of compounding words in the German language. Where as in English we might call this merely the "green dot snake hunter" in German it's the "Greendotsnakehunter." This is also how we get real life words like my job title. In English: Foreign [fremd] - Language [sprachen] - Assistent [assistentin]. in German: Fremdsprachenassistentin. Way cooler. 

Right, so what does all this have to do with the Zeltlager? Along with the trip being a fun getaway in the middle of my break, it was also pretty much an intensive German course. For 5 days I didn't didn't speak any English (ok, except for a few words when we were discussing differences, or a couple tongue twisters). For the week, I got to wake up speaking German, spend the day speaking German, and go to bed speaking German. It even got to the point when I was alone and talking to myself (I definitely get that from my mom) that I would speak in German. And I loved it. It was pretty much what I imagined every year abroad would be like. Even within a mere 5 days I could tell how much I had learned, or how much more easily the right words came to my head.
 
And everyone was jumping on the "Emily, please speak better German" bandwagon. If I pronounced a word insanely wrong, I had to stop, listen to everyone else say it, then say it a million times till it got better or I just gave up.  One afternoon, we practiced saying the word "sorry" so many times it didn't even sound like a word anymore (fun fact: Sorry is basically an international word, it's just all in the pronunciation). I taught everyone how to swallow their r's and make it sound American, and they taught me how to bring the German r back to the front of my mouth. 
 
One major problem we ran into was my complete inability to roll r's. Bet you didn't know that Germans roll their r's did you! Well, I guess it depends a lot on the region and dialect, but it's true. While in the US it's pretty normal that some people can roll their r's and some people can't (it's not like we ever actually use it in the English language), in Germany (or in Franken) everyone really seemed to be in disbelief that I just completely lacked the capacity to create this sound. One night while playing Prost, Oberbürgermeister! a rule was made that instead of #6 you had to roll your r's. I counterattacked with saying the word "the" at #5.
 
On the last night around the campfire, we spent some time trading tongue twisters. I taught them "Peter Piper picked a pack of pickled peppers" and "She sells sea shells by the sea shore" and my favorite "how much wood would a wood chuck chuck if a wood chuck could chuck wood." And they taught me "Blaukraut bleibt Blaukraut und Brautkleid bleibt Brautkleid" (which I really struggle with), "Fischer Fritz fischt frische Fische, frische Fische fischt fischer Fritz" (which basically all sounds like the same word when I say it), and "Zehn zahme Ziegen ziehen zehn zentner Zucker zum Züricher Zoo" (which I'm actually pretty good at!).
 
So I'll leave you with that. Please practice before we meet again.

The Zeltlager Series: Prost Oberbürgermeister [and other games]

You've heard a lot about the Zeltlager at this point. But if you're any good at math, you may have noticed that the time spent singing songs, baking bread in the campfire, and one night of initiation can't really fill up an entire week. So what did we do with the other 17 hours of the day that we weren't singing, baking or sleeping? 

The answer is simple: we played games. After breakfast we played card games. After lunch we played big group games. After dinner we played drinking games certain games you would only legally be allowed to play after the age of 21 in the US.

The morning games were really a come and go as you please sort of deal. You just had to find other people who wanted to play with you. For the first couple days we basically only played Tick, so I was pretty proud to pass that on so successfully! We also played some old favorites like Phase 10, Uno and Yahtzee (called "Kniffel" in German). 

of course, if we ever got tired of playing card games, we just played with the actual cards themselves...

The afternoon games could really be described as organized activities for the whole group. One day we did a sort of marathon of games including trying to untie a human knot and balloon soccer. Another time we split into about 5 groups and had to go on a little hike stopping at different stations along the way to complete various tasks. One of these stations was to name and stamp as many different body parts as you could that started with the letters N, S, B and A. As you can imagine I was at a slight disadvantage. However, I had learned a new word literally the day before, so I was super excited to contribute Speiseröhre (it means esophagus). I wore my S stamp proudly for the rest of the day. On the last afternoon we split into 4 different groups: one for singing, one for dancing, one for fashion, and one for acting. Each group had the afternoon to create a song, dance, fashion show and play respectively. I was in the dance group. We decided to do a ribbon dance to the Circle of Life. And since I'm, well, me, I had the part of the person who danced like an idiot in the middle of everyone else. Representin' America, what can I say. 

The night games, although mostly spontaneous, were probably some of the most fun. The first night we played a simple German game that involved a level of colloquial German that I'm just not at yet. But suffice it to say, I learned a lot of vocab you definitely don't get in school. The next time we happened to start up some night games, I got the chance to teach them an American game. It was one I've actually only played once before, but I have been dying to play again ever since. In English it's called "Cheers, Governor!" (in a British accent, so really more of a "Cheeyas, Govnah!"). I translated it roughly* to "Prost, Oberbürgermeister!" (I know that Oberbürgermeister isn't the exact translation, but it's by far the most fun German political position to say). 

The game is very simple: you count around in your group up to 21. The first rule is that 7 and 14 are switched (6, 14, 8, 9... 13, 7, 15, 16, etc.). When you reach 21 instead of saying the number everyone raises their glass, says "Cheers, Governor!" and drinks. The person who was then #21 gets to make up a new rule for a number. Sometimes it's just to say something in place of a number ("Frauen - komma - sind anders - punkt" instead of 9), sometimes it's a direction change, sometimes it's a category (instead of saying 13, you have to name a cocktail), or sometimes you had to do something (at number 4 you have to run around the bench). Each time you reach 21 you add a new rule, but every time there is a mistake, you start back over at 1. Simple, elegant, and so much fun. It was such a hit, we even played this past weekend at a party. 

And that was the much longer-winded than I originally intended explanation of how we enjoyed the majority of our time at the Zeltlager

*I later learned that another meaning of the word "Governor" in British English is the barkeep, 

more likely the correct meaning in this game. Oops.

The Zeltlager Series: Stockbrot

A few nights around the Lagerfeuer, we got to enjoy the occasional campfire treat. One night they had chocolate bananas (wrap it in tinfoil and stick it in the fire for a few minutes, delightful!), on the last night we we had Glühwein (a sort of Christmas in July August treat since it's a typical Christmas season drink). But my favorite of these probably had to be the Stockbrot. 

Again, another example of why I love the German language so much. It is almost comically literal. Stock = stick, brot = bread. Thus, Stockbrot is bread on a stick that you cook in the campfire. 

Stockbrot was quite delicious, but that wasn't really the reason I loved it so much. It really had to do with the fact that it was so quintessentially German. Ask any American who has been to Germany for an extended time, heck, ask any German that has left the country for an extended time: they have some pretty damn good bread here. Seriously, they are all about the bread. None of that mass-produced, wonderbread stuff most of us grew up making our lunch sandwiches with. No, we're talking about fresh, hot off the shelf, straight from the bakery German bread. It is no coincidence that bakeries seem to be the only places open 7 days a week in Germany. So, naturally, I thought it was wildly appropriate that the typical cook-in-the-campfire treat here is bread. 

And yes, I made my own stockbrot as well.

I think you can tell a lot about a country by what kind of food it cooks in its campfires. In America, every kid sits around campfire roasting marshmallows and sticking them between two graham crackers with a piece of chocolate. There is nothing like the roasted sugar with more sugar between two sugary crackers goodness that is S'mores to an American kid. In Germany they wrap some dough around a stick and cook bread in the campfire. I'll let you draw your own conclusions... 

The Zeltlager Series: Ode to the Wespen

oh Wespen, 

That means wasps in English

well actually it's yellow jackets 
in American English,

but I digress.

oh Wespen,

I hate you.

How you were the only bad part of the Zeltlager,

and you annoy me,

and sting people.

oh Wespen,

I just wanted to put some Nutella on my bread,

and drink some Apfelschorle,

and enjoy my kaiserschmarrn.

but no,

you always attacked.

oh Wespen,

I've seriously never seen so many of you in one place

it was kind of gross

and a little frightening

and I hear buzzing all the time

even when you're not there.

oh Wespen,

you would drown in our drinks 

and land in our hair

and follow us when we ran

the most fun I had with you 

was watching the boys beat you with a hammer.

oh Wespen.

The Zeltlager Series: am Lagerfeuer

Lagerfeuer is one of those words I love because it is a compound word where both parts translate exactly to the same parts of the compound word in English. Lager = camp and Feuer = fire. And thus we had our campfire.

Aside from being a very likable word, the Lagerfeuer was pretty much the place to be every day after sundown. At our particular campsite the campfire was in a covered area with stacked benches built in around it, which made it particularly nice the first couple nights when it rained.
 
Early in the night there was usually a game or two for the entire group. After that most people sat and chatted or played games in smaller groups. 

If anyone fell asleep around the campfire they would get drawn on. But the rule was that they could only be drawn on by members of the same section. I got to partake in this ritual hazing on the second night when one of the younger horn players fell asleep pretty early in the night. 

At midnight every night we sang songs (I mean, it is a music club). It always started with the same three: the song for Franken, the song for Bavaria, and then the German national anthem. There were words and music for the first two, but the national anthem they said "you all know it from memory"... so I just hummed along after the only three words I knew ("einigkeit und recht und freiheit"). At least I knew the melody. And, unfortunately for everyone else that was present, on the first night 

they had me sing the Star Spangled Banner. Alone. I mean, it was pretty bad (probably on par with the usual sorostitute that sings at the Basketball games), but at least I didn't forget the words! Thankfully, I only had to do it that once (I'm sure they decided they didn't want to have to suffer through it again). After the standard songs, we would sometimes sing for a little while longer, either well-known German songs or old pop songs (Hey Jude came up a few times). 

More often, however, we sang my favorite kind of songs. For lack of better word, I will call them the prost songs (prost means cheers). I don't know whether to love it because it's such a German thing to always cheers while drinking, or to love it because it's such a music nerd thing to have songs for it. Musicians are the same all over the 

world, for the record. 

So I will leave you now to reflect on the Lagerfeuer with a Zeltlager recording of "Ein Prost mit harmonischem Klangen" ("A cheers with harmony")

The Zeltlager Series: Taufen

Every year, the people on their first Zeltlager have to take part in a little event known as Taufen. Taufe literally means baptism in English, and is basically the initiation for new Zeltlager participants. 

Once I knew I'd be able to join for the Zeltlager, people started feeding me horror stories about the Taufe. Most of them had to do with having to eat some horrible combination of food. Even after I realized that most the other people taking part in the taufe were under 12 years old, I still couldn't help my imagination getting the best of me (think American frat/sorority hazing, except all in German). 

So on the first night, all the first years marched down to meet early before the Taufe and find what fate awaited us. 

In the end, it turned out to be pretty tame. We all got giant sheets of paper that we had to decorate with, who I'll refer to as(sticking with the theme of American frats/sororities) our big brothers/sisters. We decided to decorate mine with German/American stereotypes, which resulted in the following hamburger and flag for America, and bratwurst, Lederhosen/Dirndl, and beer for Germany.

After we all decorated our sheets (which were worn as shirts), we went up in groups of 4 or so the campfire where the rest of the campers sat waiting for us. In each group we had to introduce ourselves (name, age, instrument) and answer a different question each. Mine was something like what was the closest city to where I was born - nothing bad, really! 

Finally, we each got a piece of paper with an animal on it. We had to act out the animal while our bigs drew what they thought we were on our backs (on the paper, of course). So we only had to make fools of ourselves for about 2 minutes (which, if you know me, isn't really anything new). 



After surviving the Taufe, I was then ready for the next 4 days of camping as a full-fledged Zeltlager participant! 

The Zeltlager Series: An overview

Last week was one of the most fun weeks I've had since moving to Forchheim. As you may recall, it was just over a week ago that I packed up and headed out on my first real camping trip, if not ever, than definitely in at least 15 years.  And since this seemingly quick 5 day adventure has spawned at least a week's worth of posts (Seriously, Imade a list), I thought it would be good to prepare you, my faithful readers, with a little overview of just what happened and what you might be able to expect in the coming posts. 

We left on Saturday for the Musikverein's annual camping trip (in German: Zeltlager). Until the following Thursday we (about 60 or so members, I think) stayed on a camp site in a small town called Fornbach, which was described as having more cows than people (how often have I used that exact description for Watkinsville?). 

With the exception of having a main house offering a few of the usual amenities of civilization (a full kitchen, showers, toilets, etc), it was a legit camping, as far as I'm concerned. We slept in tents, no computers, no telephones (except in choice spots with occasional reception), no electricity (I mean, for the most part), a campfire every night, and lots of annoying tiny animals. But more on all that later. 

We woke up every morning at 8:30 for breakfast and sometimes didn't get to bed till after 4am (needless to say, I slept for over 12 hours the night we got back). 

We spent our days outside playing games...

 

laying on blankets in the sun...

going on small hikes... 

and making up ribbon dances.

You know, just the usual camping stuff. 

Like I said at the beginning, this post is just an overview. So it will really be the following posts in The Zeltlager Series that will hopefully give you a little more detail and better idea of just what made this one of my favorite weeks in Germany. 

Try to contain your excitement! 

in the wilderness...

Tomorrow I'm going on a camping trip.

It's not my first one ever... I don't think.

The last time I slept in a tent was in high school in a friend's back yard. 

I don't remember the last time I actually went camping. But I'm sure it has happened.... probably.

It is the annual band camping trip with the musikverein and I'll be roughin' it from Saturday to Thursday.

I'm pretty excited - I'll be sure to let you know how it goes.

But for now, let's just hope I packed everything I need!