By Peter Elijah Lim
Staff Writer
Students got the chance to learn basic phrases in German at the German Club’s inaugural crash course on April 21 in the Language Learning Cafe on the second floor of Egan Hall.
Freshman and club president Sean Wagner taught the crash course, beginning with German introductions, prayers and basic phrases to be used while travelling. Participants were also given handouts with these vocabulary terms on them.
Some of the vocanilary taught included “flughafen” (airport), “bahnhof” (train station), “tesche” (bag), “geld” (money) and “handy” (phone). Students also learned how to read and pronounce numbers and how to tell time in German.
Snacks and drinks including pretzels, almonds, water, and coke were provided for participants. In addition, the room was decorated with German flags.
The event concluded with a showing of the German YouTube meme video “Rhabarberbarbara.”
Wagner said, “It (the club) is not geared towards people who already speak German, although we do cater to those people. It is more so for people who are interested in German, whether you know any German or not.”
Freshman Henry Sanders, another member of the club, added, “Our goal as the German club is to just up people’s interest in German. We see a huge potential for education in German language and culture because of the special asset that we have in the Austria program. It’s unique that our study abroad program is in a German-speaking country and it seems to me that our club can provide a service for people going to Austria.”
Wagner added that German memes are guaranteed for those who participate in club events.
Anyone interested in learning German or participating in the German Club’s events is encouraged to join the club’s GroupMe.