German easy words and tips for remembering

 

German - English

Massage - massage

Die Massage - the massage

How do I remember it is die, not das? I think, because  some people would die for a massage.

Die Natur - nature

Rat - advice (not a rat, but I remember the memory aid I have just devised, he likes advice like a rat. We have a rat. We need advice. When a German says rat, he does not have a rat, he needs advice.)

Rathaus - town hall (That's British English. Americans say City Hall.)

Wo ist das Rathaus? - where is the town hall?

Gibt es dort ein Restaurant - does it have a restaurant (literally gives it there, dort is means is there ...? or are there ...?)

dort - there

All over Germany, when we were touring, we saw signs to the Rathaus in the city centre. The Rathaus was the town hall. It usually had a sensibly priced restaurant or cafeteria in the basement, a historic cellar with antiques, serving local food, promoting local specialities. The perfect place for a tourist to take photos.

The same word, Rathaus is used in Austria and the German speaking cantons of Switzerland.

However, they sometimes use the word 

Gemeindeverwatung - town hall 

English -  German

Remember to use capitals for German nouns.

massage - Massage

town hall - Rathaus

Gib mir

Geben Sie mir

Gebt mir

I asked Ask Gemini and got this result.

AI referred me to a You tube video on the subect. On first listening to it I was confused. However, I think if you listen to the video several times it will become clear and help to remember what you have just been taught. To remember anything in a foreign language, as with remembering anything else, such as somebody's name, say it three times, from English to German and fro German to English.

Gib mir deinen Pass (informal singular: give me your passport) Geben Sie mir Ihren Pass (formal: give me your passport) Gebt mir euren Pass (informal plural: give me your passport)

For plural ("passports"): Gib mir deine Pässe (informal singular) Geben Sie mir Ihre Pässe (formal) Gebt mir eure Pässe (informal plural).

My name is Angela - Mein Name ist Angela / Ich heiße Angela

Wie heißt das? (informal / general)  

Wie nennt man das? - What does one call that? (literally what calls one that) 

Ask Gemini explains in more detail in response to my question

Useful Resouces for Learning German

Duolingo.com

Translate Google 

Wikivoyage phrasebook German

AI - Ask Gemini

More details in the next post.

Taxi Drivers, Telling Troubles And Asking For Advice

Problems
1 If you tell others your problems they don't sympathise but offer advice.
2 But when you want practical advice they merely sympathise.
3 The reverse applies when they talk. Sometimes your advice annoys them. They reply, "I know what to do." Or,they retort, "I'm not short of suggestions".
4 How can I be more like mother who just listens, until asked for practical help.

Answers
The answer lies in the problem. The speaker has to make it clear whether they want sympathy or advice. Usually if they want advice, they will ask for it, "What should I do?"

Even then, they often answer their own question: "I know I need to take the motorway, but I prefer the scenic route."
Sympathy is called for.

Story
Once, on my way to the airport in the USA, I started telling my troubles to a taxi driver.
He cut me short: "Lady, I've got troubles of my own!"
Nowadays I'm always bright and cheery to taxi drivers. If it's sunny, I say, "Lovely sunny day!"
If it's raining, I say: "Rain - is it good for you? Does that mean lots of customers?"

Tip
Start cheerful if you want a cheerful conversation. Stay silent if the other person wants to pour out their troubles. You may gain insight.

Story
I once spent the first half of the dinner trying to make conversations with somebody who had no interest in any of my cultural pursuits. I tried writing, art, music, visiting far away places, London. Blank looks. Silences. I asked if he travelled on holiday. He'd never left the UK, only went up mountains in Wales and Scotland, leading his school's scout troupe.

I asked what precautions you needed to take in advance. The moment I'd asked, I thought, that was a mistake, "Oh, dear. I'm being negative."

However, he immediately launched into an account of how he planned his trip, the numbers of adults needed per ten children, what equipment was needed, the weather forecast, and so on." I hardly needed to say more than uh huh and nod for the remaining, last half hour.

I went home thinking, "What a disaster. Nothing in common. He must have hated the meal and me."

I was astonished when he rang to say, "What a delightful meal .. I did enjoy your company, what a wonderful evening, we must do that again."

I made my excuses and left - the country.

The moral was, when I stopped talking about myself and trying to find a mutual interest, and simply listened to his favourite subject, I was 'a good listener' and he was delighted.

That applies in social life, business and your taxi to and from the airport.

Quotation
Laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer, author, speaker.
I have compiled two books of quotations. See Amazon.com and Lulu.com

How To Take Better Photos

I was reading the rules for entering the competition for photos of monuments for Wikipedia when I clicked through to their advice page on taking photos. I knew several of the basics, including:

1 Make sure your picture is horizontal
2 Or correct it later
3 Ensure the autofocus is on the main subject of the photo.

Photographing People
Regarding autofocus, I know that when you are taking a picture of two people, you have to ensure that the camera is not focused on the wall behind and between them, in the centre of the picture.

Focus Fix
On some cameras which focus on whatever is in the middle of the box shape frame or cross in the middle of the picture, you can focus on the person, one of the people, press something to hold that focus, and then move back to correct layout. I have never mastered this. Also it causes delay. I prefer to move one of the people into the middle and have the other person behind looking over their shoulder.

What Wikipedia adds is how the camera might focus on the foreground, such as a lamp post, which is incidental, whilst the main subject of the photo, the cathedral in the middle distance, is out of focus.

The Wikipedia article handily shows several photos of the same scene.

Before And After
I have always wanted to do a before and after photo guide, or a wrong or right guide. Every time I delete a bad picture I think, maybe I should have kept that as an example of what goes wrong and how to correct it. I probably will do so eventually.

Meanwhile, enjoy the useful Wikipedia article, which is clear and not over technical which is the fault of many books on how to improve your photographs.

http://www.wikilovesmonuments.org.uk/category/common-photo-errors#11

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

The plants you left at home - Six Secrets About Plants

When I am travelling one of my biggest worries is what will happen to my plants. I want to tell you six secrets about plants.

1 Plants are simple - and easy to please.
I won't go so far as to call them stupid. But they are simple. Easily pleased. You don't need to buy them alcoholic drinks. Just give them a glass of water and they are really pleased. They perk up. They are grateful. They thrive. Just plain old tap water.

2 Plants are simple. Honest souls.
They don't lie. If they need water they sag. They flag and droop. They look miserable. Their leaves flop and drop. Feed them a little water and they straighten up. They look proud and pleased. Just like a dog wags its tail when you offer it a drink.

3 Plants are simple. Survive on very little.
They don't need much to survive. Some plants are survivors. When you deprive them of food and water they play dead. Their flowers fall off. But so long as their roots are living they will recover.

4 Plants are simple. They don't say much.
If you want a good chat, they will listen. They don't interrupt. However, like most people, their favourite subject is themselves.

Talk to them. Say, 'How are you doing?' Which country do you come from? How do you like our weather?

Do you like my house? Are you thirsty? Have some water. It's no trouble.

Are you too hot - shall I give you a blanket to protect you from the frost? Too cold? Is this corner draughty for you?

Would you like to move to a bigger pot? You don't need to buy them fancy pots. You don't need anything. stand up straight, dear.  I'll give you a little stick and tie you to it to help you stand up straight.Are you drowning in water? You want to go to the toilet - you have a wet nappy - all smelly - let me make a hole in  the pot and let out the surplus water.

5 Check up on your plant's background.
Be suspicious of foreign plants. Actually most of them are quite civilised and will thrive. But do a few background checks. Read the label. Their mothers (the shop) will tell you a lot. If you have no label, no information from their friends or previous owners (who gave you a cutting), do your own research. The internet tells you everything you need to know. Is the plant poisonous to you or children or cats. Can you eat or drink any part of it?

6 Plants are friendly.
Plants are like cats. They will often fend for themselves if you put them outdoors. Frankly, you may think the plant is your personal friend, but it likes anybody who feeds it.

7 Be Kind to plants.
Plants give you pleasure day after day. It's mean to let them die if you are on holiday or in hospital or are sick or terminally ill. Give your favourite plant as a loan to somebody else until you feel better and can claim it back. If it's a plant which makes cuttings, give cuttings to all your friends. Then, if you ever move house or are away and lose your original plant, you can get back a clone from the cutting. Worst case scenario, after you are dead your plant will live on in the home of your friend or family member or acquaintance and the new owner will remember you (and your generosity) every time they look at the plant.

8 People are a mix of stupid and clever.
Put labels on your plants. Write large and on a coloured pretty card. Give the plant's name and what it likes (shade or sun) how much it drinks and how often.If you give your plant to a family, chances are that even if one person is to busy, another will look after it.

9 Don't fret about dead plants
You can usually buy or borrow or take a cutting of another.

10 Always say hello and goodbye to plants
That way you can keep them happy and check on them and remember to water them.

11 Plants aren't fussy
They will live in broken crockery, on saucers with a chip turned away so nobody can see it. They grow in gardens in odd corner.

12 Every country has a few 'bad apples' - Clean up.
Watch out for weeds that breed. You might want to turn an old house or cemetery into a jungle so it is forgotten and lies undistributed for centuries hidden by plants. But some plants seed and breed and you will consider them weeds.

13 Make Big Problems Small Ones
A plant grown too large can often be cut down into a matching pair, mother and baby, or an avenue.
As with any other problem you have three choices:
a)  Spring Clean. Blitz - new year and spring clean. Once a year throw out what's dead; and buy in new.
b)  Daily Routine.
Just check everything for one minute a day so it's never a burden, easy to remember, and takes little time.
c)  Delegate.
Find out what to do but don't do it yourself. Employ somebody else (friend, family member, maid, friend, gardener, and check what they are doing, praise them, thank them, tell them they have green fingers.

14 Money Talks
If all else fails, invest in a watering system. Every garden centre will have suggestions. If they don't, you can cut up a plastic bottle and make a small hole at the bottom to drip feed and a large hole at the top to fill.

15 Free Advice
If your plants won't talk to you, visit a gardening club, or chat to anybody who owns or looks after a grand garden. Start by praising the garden. Then ask how they manage it.Ask where you can buy or order one of their plants. They will probably tell you. They might even give you a cutting.  If nobody is around, take a photo, and while you are there or later search the internet for a match.

16 Persuade People to Water Plants
I made a mistake. I never taught my toddler son to water plants. Now he is in his thirties it is a long battle to get him to water plants when I am away. If I get grandchildren I will train them to water plants and people. I will say, give your visitors a glass of water. Now give the plant some water. (Only if it wants the water.)

17 Invest in Self-Watering Or Hardy Plants
If you are out at work all day, or away weeks at a time, you need somebody to look after your children, animals, and plants. Some plants will last longer without attention. Buy plants which need little attention.

Did I say six secrets? Like a plant, my blog grew.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

What is your travel blog doing for you?

A travel blog can do these things for you:

Are you writing daily for fun, for pleasure or profit, and could you do more of less of one and more or less of the other? Are you buying, keeping a record of travel and tours you bought, doing PR for others and yourself, paid or unpaid (if a paid advertisement or PR you must declare your interest/bias), or selling a place or product or experience for money?

You can make money by selling items for pennies to millions of people. Alternatively sell an item costing millions to one person.

Not sure? Use a blog to test the market. Use three websites or blog posts try all and see which is most successful.

(If not successful, or not willing to do all this work, admit you are retired and doing it for pleasure. If so, at least you have a positive answer for those business people who ask - are you making any money out of this?)

1 Personal:
 Help you keep a record of your travels. For your own use. Just in case you ever need it. Write a book for your family or descendants. Fill in your c.v. Prove from pictures of your passport and suitcase where you lost an item you are claiming on insurance and give the brand name.

2 Public or semi-public:
Enable you to share your records - with friends; and/or family; and/or acquaintances and/or colleagues. Just in case you ever need it. (Go into travel business. Start a new travel business. Start a new career. Write a book for the public.

3 PR:
Retired or interrupted career due to change of job, country, divorce, retirement, enable to show you are still in the know.

4 Focus:
Enable you or others to see your unique focus to start a business or book. Find out which posts get most readers and from which countries. I get most readers on
1) Where I am expert because I was there first -
for example restaurants in my local high street in London, or other countries.
2) Researched and tried and tested consumer advice
For example, travel advice on wider interest subjects such as travel suitcases attracts readers worldwide but two to one from the USA
3) Wild and wacky or unusual restaurants/theme parks/attractions
For example a botanical garden in Singapore with great photos gets readers from a range of countries.
4) Newsletter:
Gather readers or followers as you draft a newsletter. Send out through scheduling. Spend less time on blogging or use blog to direct readers to newsletter and link blog posts to other blog posts.

Angela Lansbury, author (books); photojournalist (travel/consumer shopping) and speaker (serious and humorous).