Bridging the Language Barrier
As mentioned earlier, my mother-in-law’s neighbors, Thomas, Candita, and their kids, are from Austria. We played miniature golf with them in celebration of said Inlaw’s birthday this past weekend. I was talking with Candita and finally gathered up enough nerve to try speaking her language. I answered one of her questions in German.
Ja
And that’s all I had to say. She recognized my attempt at speaking her language and asked me in German if I could understand her. I answered her as well as I could in German, fighting the urge to respond in Spanish (hey – they’re both foreign to me…that counts, right?). She said, “Very good. You have good pronunciation. Most Americans stick out very quickly because they have a thick accent. Yours is very good.”
Ah, Frau French (yes, the last name of one of my German teachers French… no wonder I’m all confused!) and Frau Blice would be so proud.
Latest posts by Matt Todd (see all)
- Recapping the NASA Social Europa Clipper launch event - October 18, 2024
- Greetings from (partly) sunny Space Coast, Florida - October 12, 2024
- I’m going to Kennedy Space Center to watch the Europa Clipper launch (hopefully) - October 5, 2024