German guys

[emperoral]

Hi guys planning a trip to Germany in December to visit a Xmas market (well the wife is) looking at flights and things the best options are:
Frankfurt
Stuttgart
Dusseldorf
Hanover

Any ideas which might be best to visit :?:

[huGGy]

The most famos Xmas market is in Nürnberg. Düsseldorf is nice, because the City is interesting (lot's of bars) and you can easily go to cologne for a sight-seeing tour. Frankfurt could be a choice, if you are interested in own. Don't know about the Xmas market there, though. Stuttgart or Hannover, meh, no idea (though Hannover isn't far from my hometown - Oldenburg).

[Kaiser_von_Nuben]

Hmmm, I spend most of my time in Berlin and that city is not really known as a traditional "German" spot with a quaint Xmas market, church tower, old buildings, etc. I'm sure they have good markets, but I would advise going somewhere in southern Germany for a better, more "traditional German-feeling" destination. Munich comes to mind, or maybe Dresden (which has been completely rebuilt and is quite beautiful again). I think you could land in one city then use the excellent German rail service to see a few more spots. Viel Glueck!

[Shizle]

My favorite is in Munich. And, you could go to the Hofbrauhouse too which is a nice little bonus. In fact, if your negotiation skills are finely honed, you could end up there, with your wife at the Xmas market.

[Kaiser_von_Nuben]

[quote=""Shizle""]My favorite is in Munich. And, you could go to the Hofbrauhouse too which is a nice little bonus. In fact, if your negotiation skills are finely honed, you could end up there, with your wife at the Xmas market.[/quote]

Haha, that's a good one! Let the missus shop for ornaments while you hoist a Loewenbraeu liter while singing "Alte Kamaraden" with the oom-pah band lol !

[emperoral]

Thnks guys some good info esp the Hofbrauhouse!!

[Heyco]

The 3 biggest cities aren't bad. Berlin, Hamburg and Munich (München). You won't do anything wrong if you visit them. Otherwise Frankfurt is quite nice. But i don't know anything about Xmasmarkets....

Do u speak german? :roll:

[emperoral]

Well lucky for me my wife can speak French, German and Japanese guess she is the clever one! Oh almost forgot she can speak the great mother tongue Queens English something the American guys can never take of us lol

[Kaiser_von_Nuben]

[quote=""emperoral""]Well lucky for me my wife can speak French, German and Japanese guess she is the clever one! Oh almost forgot she can speak the great mother tongue Queens English something the American guys can never take of us lol[/quote]

True! Americans think they are speaking English, but there are so many differences between the languages. Defence is not defense, nor is honour honor. A lorry is not a truck, nor is a bonnet the hood of a car. And Americans think the phrase "Oh, b*gger it!" is a just a quaint "British" remark, when in fact it is highly vulgar :-P

What I find really interesting is that in Germany, students in school have a choice when learning foreign languages. They can learn Spanish, French, English or American! The two languages are so distinct learning one or the other is a very different enterprise.

Anyway, Al, sounds like your wife has the language situation under control. In the Fatherland you won't have much trouble without speaking German. The Germans are pretty well-versed in English, generally speaking, although the older generations have some trouble with it.

Just as an interesting note, and speaking of England, I found out during a visit home this weekend that some of my father's ancestors emigrated to the U.S. from a place call Wakefield, England, near Leeds, way back in 1630. Any Brits out there know what that place is like?

[Heyco]

[quote=""Kaiser_von_Nuben""][quote=""emperoral""]Well lucky for me my wife can speak French, German and Japanese guess she is the clever one! Oh almost forgot she can speak the great mother tongue Queens English something the American guys can never take of us lol[/quote]

True! Americans think they are speaking English, but there are so many differences between the languages. Defence is not defense, nor is honour honor. A lorry is not a truck, nor is a bonnet the hood of a car. And Americans think the phrase "Oh, b*gger it!" is a just a quaint "British" remark, when in fact it is highly vulgar :-P

What I find really interesting is that in Germany, students in school have a choice when learning foreign languages. They can learn Spanish, French, English or American! The two languages are so distinct learning one or the other is a very different enterprise.

Anyway, Al, sounds like your wife has the language situation under control. In the Fatherland you won't have much trouble without speaking German. The Germans are pretty well-versed in English, generally speaking, although the older generations have some trouble with it.

Just as an interesting note, and speaking of England, I found out during a visit home this weekend that some of my father's ancestors emigrated to the U.S. from a place call Wakefield, England, near Leeds, way back in 1630. Any Brits out there know what that place is like?[/quote]

Yes, we Germans can learn English, French and Spanish, but American? No, we learn British English (BE). Only some words are American. But then there's a mark on the side (AE) ...

[Kaiser_von_Nuben]

[quote=""Heyco""][quote=""Kaiser_von_Nuben""][quote=""emperoral""]Well lucky for me my wife can speak French, German and Japanese guess she is the clever one! Oh almost forgot she can speak the great mother tongue Queens English something the American guys can never take of us lol[/quote]

True! Americans think they are speaking English, but there are so many differences between the languages. Defence is not defense, nor is honour honor. A lorry is not a truck, nor is a bonnet the hood of a car. And Americans think the phrase "Oh, b*gger it!" is a just a quaint "British" remark, when in fact it is highly vulgar :-P

What I find really interesting is that in Germany, students in school have a choice when learning foreign languages. They can learn Spanish, French, English or American! The two languages are so distinct learning one or the other is a very different enterprise.

Anyway, Al, sounds like your wife has the language situation under control. In the Fatherland you won't have much trouble without speaking German. The Germans are pretty well-versed in English, generally speaking, although the older generations have some trouble with it.

Just as an interesting note, and speaking of England, I found out during a visit home this weekend that some of my father's ancestors emigrated to the U.S. from a place call Wakefield, England, near Leeds, way back in 1630. Any Brits out there know what that place is like?[/quote]

Yes, we Germans can learn English, French and Spanish, but American? No, we learn British English (BE). Only some words are American. But then there's a mark on the side (AE) ...[/quote]

Aren't there some schools where "American" is taught separately? Last time I was in Berlin I went to the bookstore and found that you can buy 2 separate "Sprachkursen" : (1) Englisch; or (2) Amerikanisch. I didn't go to primary school in Germany, so I'm just speculating on this point. Nonetheless, as a student of English history, it doesn't surprise me to hear that foreigners find the "Sound" of English to be extremely different from American. For example, every German I've spoken to says that it's easier to understand a Brit than an American... and almost impossible to understand an African-American.

[Heyco]

[quote=""Kaiser_von_Nuben""][quote=""Heyco""][quote=""Kaiser_von_Nuben""][quote=""emperoral""]Well lucky for me my wife can speak French, German and Japanese guess she is the clever one! Oh almost forgot she can speak the great mother tongue Queens English something the American guys can never take of us lol[/quote]

True! Americans think they are speaking English, but there are so many differences between the languages. Defence is not defense, nor is honour honor. A lorry is not a truck, nor is a bonnet the hood of a car. And Americans think the phrase "Oh, b*gger it!" is a just a quaint "British" remark, when in fact it is highly vulgar :-P

What I find really interesting is that in Germany, students in school have a choice when learning foreign languages. They can learn Spanish, French, English or American! The two languages are so distinct learning one or the other is a very different enterprise.

Anyway, Al, sounds like your wife has the language situation under control. In the Fatherland you won't have much trouble without speaking German. The Germans are pretty well-versed in English, generally speaking, although the older generations have some trouble with it.

Just as an interesting note, and speaking of England, I found out during a visit home this weekend that some of my father's ancestors emigrated to the U.S. from a place call Wakefield, England, near Leeds, way back in 1630. Any Brits out there know what that place is like?[/quote]

Yes, we Germans can learn English, French and Spanish, but American? No, we learn British English (BE). Only some words are American. But then there's a mark on the side (AE) ...[/quote]

Aren't there some schools where "American" is taught separately? Last time I was in Berlin I went to the bookstore and found that you can buy 2 separate "Sprachkursen" : (1) Englisch; or (2) Amerikanisch. I didn't go to primary school in Germany, so I'm just speculating on this point. Nonetheless, as a student of English history, it doesn't surprise me to hear that foreigners find the "Sound" of English to be extremely different from American. For example, every German I've spoken to says that it's easier to understand a Brit than an American... and almost impossible to understand an African-American.[/quote]

Yes, American is much more difficult to understand. But why should American be taught? It's almost the same like Britisch English. Only the pronounciation is maybe different... I never heard of that... The "Sprachkurse" weren't for school!? Don't think so... Pupils at school learn BE and a little bit AE. And the book we've got now is about America. So we also listen to American people on a CD or so...

Now young people at the age of 6 already learn English at school. I started learning English at school at the age of 10...

[emperoral]

Sorry to say Wakefield is well in plain English lol a dump but come to think of it

a) It might of been a nice place then or
b) yep is was a dump then as well and the only way forward was to emigrate to a better place or so they thought. lol

[Kaiser_von_Nuben]

[quote=""emperoral""]Sorry to say Wakefield is well in plain English lol a dump but come to think of it

a) It might of been a nice place then or
b) yep is was a dump then as well and the only way forward was to emigrate to a better place or so they thought. lol[/quote]

Haha, I think my forefathers avoided the problem. They left Wakefield for London around 1550, then headed for the colonies around 1630.