Berliner Platz - New Text and Materials for German 10A/B

The German 10 series (conversation) will be using a new textbook in Spring 2013: Berliner Platz Neu 1. Click here for more details. You can order the student pack of textbook, workbook, 2 audio cd's, a DVD, but wait! there's more: a Landeskundeheft and all for $59.95. However, you will find Berliner Platz Neu 1 (which is what you will be using, at a much better price on Amazon, though without the DVD.  Here's a preview of the DVD, which you will view in class:  

Transcripts, online exercises, and answer keys are also available here. So register for German 10A/10B (Mission Center, Mondays, 6:00 - 9:20 p.m.) and have some fun learning practical German you can take along with you on your travels next summer. 

Silent Night, Holy Night - Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht

Silent Night, Holy Night is one of the world's best known Christmas carols. The words were written in 1816 by Joseph Mohr, a young priest in Mariapfarr in Lungau. Franz Xaver Gruber, a teacher and organist in the village of Arnsdorf, put the poem to music before Christmas in 1818. The two premiered the Christmas carol on 24 December 1818 in St Nicolas Church in Oberndorf near Salzburg. The carol became so well known when the organ builder Mauracher from Fügen in the Zillertal performed it with other musicians from Tirol in Leipzig. The audience was entranced by the melody. From there, Silent Night, Holy Night blazed a trail across Germany and the whole world. By now, the carol has been translated into 300 different languages and dialects.

How to Make a German Advent Wreath

Part of the German tradition is the Advent wreath.  4 candles, each signifying a Sunday before Christmas, burn in a wreath of greens.  It's a beautiful sight.  Here's how:

German Christmas Markets and a Digital Advent Calendar

Christmas in Germany is a big deal. A favorite pastime for Germans and tourists alike is savoring the winter holiday season at a local Christmas market. The colorful fairs spring up in most towns and cities for the four-week Advent season leading up to Christmas Eve. The scents of roasted almonds, gingerbread cookies and savory and sweet snacks mingle with the steam rising from mugs of hot spiced mulled wine as people stroll through rows of wooden booths and stalls. Shoppers find regional handicrafts—nutcrackers, wooden figurines, straw stars, smokers, textiles, cards, cookie tins, glass balls, toys, and tree ornaments. Each Christmas market is unique with its own flavor and traditions. Here is a just a small sampling of Germany's Christmas markets. Click here to read about and view Christmas markets (der Christkindlmarkt) around Germany.

Another German tradition is the Advent calendar, something like the 12 days of Christmas, except it's 25 days! Click here to go to Germany Info's Advent Calendar and visit each day to reveal a new window. Along the way, discover German music, recipes, stories and crafts that will bring a touch of German Christmas tradition to your holiday season. Enjoy! In real life, though, you would be treated with a piece of chocolate. Is there an app for that?