polar bear!

ahoy, friends and family!
news #1: i finally (after much waiting and some panicking) have a job!
i went to an interview about two weeks ago for a job in a bilingual kindergarten (which translates to something more like a preschool/kindergarten- german public schools start at 1st grade). i was invited to be a hospitant (trial teacher) for three days at the kindergarten (this is what they do here to see if you are good). this particular kindergarten is actually divided into two groups in two different buildings in the same neighborhood. the first group is small kids (aged 1-3) and the other group is the 3-6 year olds. the group i visited first was the younger group. all of the kids were so cute! they are all very good and everyone that works there is very nice. i did two days in the younger group, and on friday i went to the older kindergarten. however, after about thirty minutes, the younger kindergarten called and asked if i could come back (they had a few teachers out sick). this was buena-buena for me, because i liked the smaller kids, and the older group was a little more disorganized (the group i was with there is missing their lead teacher (she is really sick and has been for quite some time) so they are sort of mixed up a little at the moment. i went back to the small kids and at the end of the day, i spoke to the lady who owns the kindergarten, and she offered me a job!

the group i am with has a really wonderful lead teacher (who is german), a very good second teacher (also german), and two pratikants, which are sort of like interns- people who are studying to be kindergarten teachers have to do three or four internships before they can recieve their certification. there are fifteen kids in the group, although a lot of them are out sick this week (it is cold and rainy again, which is perfect sick weather). they are all between one and a half and not-quite-three. i will be working as a paid intern until the first of march, and then i will be paid normally. it isn't a lot of money (well, in dollars it is about as much as i made when i first started teaching in charlotte) but it is nice to know that i have a job!

other news: we have internet at home!!! eventually we'll also get a telephone, although i am sort of sad that we still won't be able to talk to people with cell phones in the states (ridiculously expensive). we actually have the service, but we have to find a telephone. we might go to a flea market this weekend and see what we can find. i should be back in the states next week (mondaeish?) for the Trial, which is part awesome and part not really that neat, but we will see. we still haven't received any flight info yet, so i am not sure exactly what is going to happen.

well, that is all for now!!! pictures soon!!!
xoxoxoxoxoxoxo