The Language

The language courses in the Goethe institute have 12 levels. A11, A12, A21, A22, then B, then C.
I took the A21 course in Israel before I came here, but before that I studied at the university for a year, where I learned much more grammar than they teach here in equivalent courses. So I was expecting to start my course in a A22 level, but after the first day, in which we had a written and oral exam, they put me in B11, which is intermediate.
After the first day in B11 the teacher suggested that I advance to B12.
However, the B12 course (and upwards) is in the afternoon, which I realy don’t like. When I signed up to this course I specifically asked which level I could expect to advance to, and whether that was in the afternoon or in the morning... Oh well.
So now I'm still in B11. I decided to stay because morning classes are much much better, and the difference between the levels is not so big anyway.
You really learn to open your mouth quickly here and speak the language. Some of the students don't know English at all and so you have to communicate in German. It's also more comfortable to speak the language when you know that the other person also makes mistakes, like you, and that it really doesn't matter.
Now, in order to not get bored too much with my class, I’m doing some extra-curricular homework: I'm translating texts from English to German, from Douglas Adams' "The restaurant at the end of the universe". It's a very good exercise for me, very challanging. British humor is not easily translatable to German.. Sometimes the German grammar just kills the joke alltogether. It takes me like two hours to translate one paragraph (yes...), but it's fun.

Attached are two pictures: one, of the Koeln Dom (The Dome in Cologne, for you English speakers), and the other of a few of the students together in Kennenlernen Abend ('Get to know' evening).