Musing on Languages

Carolyn Schott

I recently started wondering how much language audio lessons reflect the culture of that language. I’m not an accomplished linguist, but whenever I travel, I do like to learn a few words of the local language to help smooth my way. Although I’ve always been told that “please,” “thank you,” and “Where’s the bathroom?” are…

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The Borders Are Closed

Carolyn Schott

I was in Germany on 9/11. While my friends and family started their day with the news of the attack, I didn’t learn about it until evening. For Americans in the U.S., it was a day filled with unfolding horror. For me, it was a day filled with sightseeing in Hannover with my cousin David,…

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A Tiny Slice of Travel

Carolyn Schott

One thing I like about travel is that it takes you out of your own space—home, culture, daily routine—so you can look at your life through the lens of a new environment. This always gives me a fresh, more objective view of my life. Some of my best life decisions have been made while traveling—like…

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Off the Tourist Track

Carolyn Schott

Castles, cathedrals, Oktoberfest, cruising the Rhine River—these are the things most people go to Germany to experience. But my itinerary was one you wouldn’t find in a tour book: the local museum in a small town, the village church and cemetery, and the small Kunst im Kuhstall (Art in the Cowstall) art gallery. I was visiting Ober-Gleen,…

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