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Hello from Germany!
My teaching is going well. I started out slowly, but now have a full schedule, which is 10 classes a week, each
averaging 90 minutes and about 5 students. Plus I have 9 hours of one-on-one teaching (called intensives) each
week, divided between two students who are relocating to Atlanta, Georgia and Pretoria, South Africa, and who quickly
need major upgrading on their English.
My students are business people... secretaries, engineers, sales people, managers and bosses, etc. They are quite
keen to learn English, as that skill can create significant job opportunities and advancements. The region of Germany
I am in, Baden-Württenberg, is home to Porsche and Mercedes Benz and much of the local economy is driven by
the car industry (sorry, but that is just the best way to say it!). This area is probably the most prosperous part
of the country, that is also probably the strongest economically in the European Union. Demand is high for English
teachers here, and especially for Americans, which was suprising to me.
I spend about five hours a week in lesson preparation, as most lessons can be used more than once, and the support
I get from my company is excellent. They allow me to create my own lessons from whatever texts I choose, and whenever
I need something, it arrives in the mail within a couple of days! The hardest part of teaching is getting up in
the morning quite early (sometimes 5 AM) , and the traveling, as I only teach at the companies, and often make
around 10 connections a day on public transport... the record so far is 14. But I have deciphered the maze consisting
of the U-bahn, S-bahn, R-bahn and buses, and fortunately the public transport here is superb! You can literally
set your watch off of the trains! And I get a lot of reading done (6 books so far), and the people watching is
unparalled anywhere.
Recommended book - "This I Know To Be True", by Wally Lamb
So far, so good here in Germany. The biggest problem overall has been that I occasionally feel quite isolated and
a bit lonely, due to the language challenge. A week or two ago, it was bothering me much more, and I found myself
feeling very irritable... a result of struggling to understand others, to get information I could actually comprehend,
to just find companionship at times. But recently, I found the English Shop, a store catering to Anglos, and the
bulletin board there revealed a treasure of contacts, some of which I have taken advantage of. For instance, I
found a theatre that shows movies in English. And I met Ken, a jazz musician from Scotland who met up with me in
Esslingen (another wonderful older village near Stuttgart) to experience a jazz concert in an old church there.
And over this last weekend I went bowling (!) with about a dozen members of a group called the Anglo-Stuttgart
Society, mostly a mix of Brits and Germans who like to socialize in English. I found the group to be an oasis in
Deutschland! And I bowled 246! (In two games.)
Some of you have asked me how long I plan to stay here. Well, plans are funny things. Sometimes, I think, they
are more trouble than they are worth. But having said that, I do plan on being here at least a year; to work on
my teaching skills, to build up my resume (C.V.), to save some money, to travel around this part of Europe, and
also to have the experience of "living abroad" in one place for awhile. After here, who knows... Eastern
Europe, Oman, the U.A.E., or some other place in the Middle East, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, South America... we will see?
One step at a time...here and now!
Some of you have asked about the teaching I am doing, and how to get certified, etc. I am providing a list of websites
for TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language), if you want to explore. I am also enclosing some other sites...
my favorites. But be forwarned: this information could radically alter your life!
- TEFL:
- Working:
- Travel:
- Expatriot (these are really dangerous!):
In my next On the Road, I will share will you my impressions of Stuttgart and the people here. My preview in a
word... interesting!
Lonely people, crowded walks
Strolling, striding onwards
Missing each other
 Peace and love
-------------Fast Eddie
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