Many of you have asked me about church in Germany.  It is hard not to giggle when I think about what  I thought church would be like before we moved to Germany.  The church website listed an english speaking ward which is common in big cities around the world.  For example Istanbul and Kiev  have their own English speaking ward full of embassy families and business men.  So imagine my surprise when I showed up 10 minutes late on the first Sunday (We had to walk and it took longer than we though, keep in mind no car :)  To find out not only was Relief Society first which I had to walk late into, but it was also ALL IN GERMAN!  Apparently, English speaking ward means English speaking services.  So . . . this is how it works.  RS and Priesthood are in German. There is someone from the ward who volunteers to translate (usually a missionary) and they speak into a  tiny microphone and the translation is sent to into an earpiece that I wear. Sunday school is split into English and German speaking.  There are only 5 of us who attend English speaking Sunday School.  Sacrament meeting is in German and translated via an earpiece.  Sharing time is in German but our kids have English speaking teachers that sit next to them  and translate for them. Primary class is done in English.


So what if you have to give a talk?  Well the ward has someone assigned to translate for you. So if I were to give a talk I would say one sentence in English and then wait while it is translated into German. It is annoying but if you think about it to deliver a 20 minute talk you really only need to prepare 10 minutes of material.


What is the translation like?  Annoying! A lot gets lost in translation. Everything is really basic, and often times the translation is scratchy and so it is hard to hear.  I have really learned to appreciate the basics of the gospel, and for the first time in my life I have learned to love Sunday school (remember it is in English).  The kids don't even bother listening to the translation in sacrament meeting, and I don't blame them. So they get to look at church magazines, and scriptures during sacrament meeting. Chris is lucky because he doesn't need translation.


How does Primary Actvities work?  Hallie is so awesome because she is the only english speaking girl in activity days.  Keep in mind that none of the girls speak any English, and Hallie doesn't speak any german.  There is one leader who speaks German and some English (English is her 3rd language).  She is really good about telling Hallie what is going on.  The first time Hallie went to activity days the girls had to bring in their favorite story book and then listen as they were read in German.  I was waiting in the foyer and had decided that if she hated it she didn't have to go back.  I felt like it was too much to ask.  She has now been lots of times and has never complained once.  I am proud of her!


How Does RS Activites Work?  RS activities are in German. I feel bad making someone translate for me and so I usually only go if it is an activity where we make something.


What about Callings?  My favorite quote of all time came from our Bishop.  I hope he is not mad that I am posting it on my blog. When asked about callings in the ward his response was "Do you think that I feel comfortable or adequate to be Bishop.  No I don't so why should you?  He was laughing while he said it, so he may have been joking. But the bottom line is that German speaking or not they don't care and will find a way to make a calling work.  So right now we have an English speaking Primary President who relies on her counselors to translate for her. American Elders quorum president and first counselor, etc. I made the mistake of mentioning to the Bishop that the worst calling in the ward is Sunday school teacher, a few weeks later guess what I was called to . . .Sunday school teacher.  I am beginning to think that maybe the bishop wasn't joking :)


What about everything else?  It is funny because we tend to not know what is going on a lot.  For instance we missed tithing settlement because we had not heard that it was going on.  They do it a bit differently.  We missed our cleaning assignment because we didn't know that it was on the ward bulletin board (in German). We signed up to feed the missionaries but didn't realize that you were to feed them lunch (the biggest meal of the day in Germany) instead of dinner until the day of . . . that was fun!  But we are lucky because our Bishop speaks perfect English and is really interested in making church more comfortable for us english speakers. So I think things will get better!
All in all I love our ward.  Everyone is SO NICE, and a lot of the adults speak some English.  It really does feel like home :)

 Our beautiful building.  It is lovely but really quirky,  it has a tiny foyer, and lots of winding staircases that lead to random rooms and hallways. I swear I find a new room or hallway every time I go to church.  It was recently outfitted with an elevator, and all the children love to ride it up and down after church and between class.  It also has a soccer field in the back and a fire pit.  

Brooklyn got some fairy jewels, a note, and some Euros.

The Chicken and Rooster House

It took me a few minutes to realize that they goat on top of the hill was real.  He was holding so still.

There was also a petting zoo, and a really cool playground

The Giraffe House

So . . . getting the kids signed up for school was traumatic enough. It is forever far away.  It takes 2 buses plus a 20 minute walk just to get there.  And the week before school we dragged our jet lagged bodies there 3 days in a row, for school tours, back to school nights, and new student orientation.  It was the afternoon before school started and I thought I was good to go. The school bus could transport the kids to the school and I could sit and relax.  WRONG!!  I was informed by my neighbor that there was a Einschulung ceremony for Brooklyn in the morning.  Which is a HUGE deal.  1st grade is like Kindergarten in Germany.  So to mark the

entrance into 12 years of school there is a Einshulung ceremony, and at this ceremony the parents must present the children with a tute. A tute is a massive cone filled with toys, candy, and school supplies.

I was freaking out.  I had no way of getting to the school, the stores in Germany close at 5:30, and the stores around here are just small shops.  There is no such thing as one stop shopping. So with only a  few hours to buy and fill a tute I took the bus to a place called Mcpaper and the Eurostore (dollar store) and. . . . $80 later we have a tute!  Plus my sweet neighbor arranged a ride for me.  It was with a single dad that I had never met before but desperate times call for desperate measures!

My 4th Grader.  AAaaaah she is so old!! And so darn cute! Her teacher is from England.  Hallie is determined to have a British accent by the time we leave Germany.  She wasn't kidding either it is driving us all nuts :)

My Cutie Pie's at the bus stop.  Hallie was allowed to take the bus on the first day, but Brooklyn wasn't able to take the bus until the second day. Apparently Einshulung isn't considered a regular school day.

Boo was extremely excited about getting her own locker.

Brooklyn in her class waiting for the ceremony.

All the Tute's before the big event

Boo and her Tute. Just yesterday she had never heard of it, now suddenly she is walking off with a massive cone full of toys and candy.  Lets just say she was pretty happy.

Brooklyn felt pretty cool after her ceremony. It was very cute! See that Tute was huge! It took a lot to fill it.

Brooklyn with some of her Tute loot. Even  though it was really stressful I am so glad that we were able to take part in the Einschulung Ceremony.  Cultural experiences like this was the reason why we wanted to move overseas.  It was fun to be able to participate so soon after getting here.

Getting the kids signed up for school was a little crazy.  School started 5 days after we got here and we still hadn't signed them up, or decided which one.  It came down to the exclusive german public school that was german immersion (1/2 day English, 1/2 day German) that wasn't too far away. Or the affluent english speaking private international school that was about a 35 minute drive away. In the end we decided to go with the private school, and I think we made the right decision.

It is called the Berlin Brandenburg International School.  It is in a town called Kleinmachnow which is between Berlin and Potsdam.  It is set back into the trees and has a lot of history.  It used to be Hitler's Secret Weapon Testing Headquarters (kind of creepy, but kind of cool).  It is protected as a landmark and so it still has the original marble floors, stone walls, etc. but it has been transformed into a beautiful school. There are 4 houses (buildings), and grades preK-12 are all spread out between the 4.  Each building is connected with semi underground gothic tunnels.  The kids think that it looks like Hogwart's so they love it.  Apparently there are also a bunch of secret tunnels that run well below the school.  They give tours occasionally, I really want to go on one.

The gymnasium is a new building across campus.  It is stunning, and it where Berlin's pro basketball team practices in the evenings and weekends.

BBIS is an IB / PYP program.  Which is awesome.  They do not believe in timed testing, teach to the test, or homework.  Homework is optional and only given to teach the kids how to work independently at home (Which outside of reading at home they have several studies that show that homework is not productive) YAY!!!!!!!  All of the things that I hated about the school in Leesburg. Their program is similar to montessori in that they believe in playing while learning, hands on learning, and ensuring that learning is fun. (and somehow they still manage to have successful graduates :) Okay enough of my snarky comments:)  The girls get german instruction for an hour everyday, which they love!

Here is the campus.  The school owns the lake (also where Hitler tested weapons, shudder) as well as the surrounding forest.  The 3 buildings that are to the far right are the "houses" they are where all students have their classes.  The other 3 buildings are the boarding school and offices.

This is part of the playground.  They have several playground teachers that are there to play with the kids. It is great! One of the teachers sat and ate Brooklyn's sand pie's throughout the entire recess.  Also there are real toys like bikes, wagons, scooters, you name it.  The only thing I don't like is the sand which is why the kids have  "house shoes" shoes that are only worn inside.  They change their shoes before and after recess.

This is the cafeteria where they have catered meals that are fresh and amazing!  The only downside is that the German diet is very potato heavy and so Brooklyn has to take a lunch from home.

The only other difference in schools here is that there are no crazy rules.  If it is your birthday you can bring in cake, ice cream you name it.  They encourage parents to come in classroom as often as they want. They also encourage parents to come in and teach about different religious holidays, and cultures, including food. Which I really like. They allow friends to come to school with you for  few days, if you would like (so come visit and bring your kids)  And they have snack time 2 times a day, and they aren't just crackers.  Kids bring in sandwiches,  cinnamon rolls, etc. As you can imagine Brooklyn and Hallie loved this idea:)

Since we were all really, really, jet lagged we decided to eat out. This little gem is right next to our house.  The food was AMAZING, but really expensive.  It is nice because the outdoor seating area was in the back of the restaurant and went straight into the grunewald forest.  There were a bunch of families eating there and so while the adults ate and visited the kids played soccer/ran around in the forest.  It made for a really relaxing dinner.