It's getting pretty chilly here in Germany at the moment, so I'm writing this whilst trying to get as close as possible to the radiator. I've been told that the winters here are really cold so I'd better 'man up' and get used to it - It's certainly not going to be getting warmer any time soon.
So another week has passed but I'm still having a great time. I've been pretty tired this week, as I still haven't quite recovered from our fantastic trip to Vienna. I'm beginning to play a more active role within my schools, as both teachers and pupils begin to start trusting the 'Engländer'. 'Engländer' is a term (for which the translation should be obvious) that I have overheard quite a lot whilst walking down the corridors at school. 'Er ist Engländer' whisper the pupils to one another as I pass - I'm not sure if its excitement, curiosity or indeed fear that I sense in the tone of these hushed whispers as I wander to wherever I may be next. Saying this, the pupils remain really enthusiastic and are often pleased see me. I even got cheers and round of a applause as I entered a year 7 class the other day! Furthermore, one teacher told me how disappointed her class was in learning that I was unable to attend their lesson due to a clash in my timetable. It really is nice to know that my presence is valued, not only by the teachers, but especially by the pupils. I've really enjoyed talking to the pupils as well, whether it be just after lesson, after school in the playground or sometimes even in town during the evening/weekends. One particular keen pupil, is showing his appreciation of me teaching him English by trying to teach me 'Bayerisch' (Bavarian Dialect) whenever he sees me. This week I received a little note with some new vocabulary for me to learn. I had better revise them tonight, I would hate to disappoint him when he questions me about them this week!
As I said, I've been playing a more active role in the schools this week. Monday began with me helping out in the year 10 conversation class. We did a speed dating exercise, which was effective in that it got everybody talking and it ensured everybody spoke with every other member of the class. It's definitely an exercise I will remember and hopefully use in other classes. On Tuesday it was time to play 'Who Am I?' (That old chestnut which involves sticking a post it note on your forehead, with the name of a famous person written on it - you don't know 'who you are' so you have to ask questions which only have Yes / No answers, like "Am I a singer?" "Am I American?" "Am I over 50?" ...you get the picture) I wrote 'Queen Elizabeth' on my post it note and stuck it on the forehead of one of the German boys in our group. A post it note was then stuck on my head and the game began. As the rest of the group slowly figured out who they all were, that's right, I was the only one left with a post it note stuck on his forehead. I wasn't getting anywhere and I just had no clue who I could be, so I agreed to give up. I peeled it slowly off my forehead and read the name "Dieter Bohlen" - Now, unless you have access to German TV channel RTL or are an avid watcher of 'Das Supertalent', you, like me, will have absolutely no clue who Dieter Bohlen is. The students didn't seem to realise that German TV isn't quite as popular in England as it is in Germany, but hey, who would've guessed!? Anyway I explained that I had no clue who this person was and following the gasps of horror, I was told that he's a judge on the German version of 'Britains Got Talent'. The Simon Cowell of Germany is probably a good analogy. We swapped groups and the next game was a little more successful. O.K, it turned out I was Barney the big purple dinosaur, but at least I guessed it! I knew all those hours sat in front on the TV as a child, watching Barney & Friends (Barneys Musical Castle is a must see, by the way) would pay off at some point in my life.
On Wednesday I gave an introductory presentation to the year 10 class on Australia. This involved a quick quiz (Australia has more Kangaroos than it does people, don't you know!?) and a brief history of Australia that I had prepared. They got involved and laughed at the right bits, so I felt it was a success. On Wednesday evening I went and played Basketball with the teachers at one of my schools. I'm not usually a Basketball player, but this was as a result of my 'Say-Yes-To-Everything' policy that I'm trying to follow throughout my Year Abroad. It was good fun and I was told that I had improved throughout the evening, which I'm sure is just a polite way of saying "you were really rubbish, but now you're just rubbish", but hey, maybe by the end of the year I will be good! Thursday was a quieter day for me at school, as the teacher I should have been with was ill. Unbelievably, I'm finding that even though I'm barely working 12 hours per week, I still can't wait for the weekends! So a slightly earlier finish on Thursday was a pleasant surprise.
Lois arrived on Thursday evening and then Friday was a miserable and rainy day spent around Regensburg. However, as Saturday was going to be nicer we had decided that we would visit Salzburg. The 'Bayern-Ticket' allows unlimited travel within Bavaria for a whole day on trains and other public transport. It costs 13Euros per person when two people are travelling together. So we can go to so many cool places including Munich and Nuremburg and back for just 13Euros each. Furthermore you can also go to Salzburg using this ticket!
"Hang on!" I hear you cry. "Salzburg isn't in Bavaria, it's not even in Germany! It's in Austria!" You are, of course, correct. But it's actually only several Kilometres over the border and since it's so close to Bavaria, you can use this ticket. Not bad, eh!
We set off nice and early and got to Salzburg just before lunch time. We soon found ourselves in Salzburg centre and explored the small alleys and admired the beautiful buildings. It looked lovely in the sunlight and you could see the Alps in the distance. It's a very pretty city. We climbed up to the fortress and viewed the city from above. It was bustling with tourists and street markets and it had a very nice atmosphere. We visited the 'Volksgarten' which was equally as beautiful. Salzburg is of course the birthplace of Mozart and also the filming location of 'The Sound Of Music', so it's a very 'musical' history. So this being said, we found that there wasn't much else there. For those with a passion for Classical Music, you could spend a lot of time in Salzburg, visiting Museums etc., but for everyone else, a day trip is long enough. Like I said, it's a beautiful city and certainly worth seeing and we both really enjoyed our day out. As we left Salzburg slightly earlier than planned, we ended our day with a pizza in Regensburg. We dined in a really nice Pizzeria in the Innenstadt, that was actually visited by Penelope Cruz a few years back when she was in Regensburg. I think it's fair to say that as a result, we're almost famous.
It's a little odd to think that we went to another country for a day trip, but at the same time it's really cool! We both really appreciate the fortunate position we are in, when we can visit such iconic places so easily. I'm so pleased to be placed in Bavaria, as it's such a good location, not only for exploring Germany, but also for exploring other countries as well. We certainly have ambitions to make the most of our fortunate location. 
That's everything for now. Thanks for reading!
Liebe Grüße aus Deutschland!
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