Date: Thurs, 25 Jun 1998 11:58:18
hi Jill
It's Maren. Julie is still asleep at home, and I had to do some stuff at home. It's so great that she's finally here with me.

Later on today we'll go down to Stuttgart and I'll show her around a little. I hope she'll like it . Tomorrow morning I'll be in school again, and I hope Julie will come with me. So maybe we could try that thing with the chatroom. We'll just send you an email first, so keep on looking for them, ok.

Well i better go home now, or Julie will be awake before I get back .
talk to you later.
Love Maren
p.s. Thanks for all the neat little gifts. we just loved them, and especially the nice letter.

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"Herr Diddl - die Springmaus"

Date: Fri, 26 Jun 1998 08:51:29
Hallo Mom!
how are you? I can't type on this keyboard because the letters are different than at home!! I am having a great time and I've finally caught up on my sleep. Yeah!!

Yesterday we went to Stuttgart and spent part of the day shopping in the German mall. :) I bought a key chain that has a little mouse called Diddle. Diddle is the German equivallent to Tweety Bird maybe. My Diddle is peeking out of a little purple suitcase. He is very cute! I also got one for Maren that has one BIG Diddle hugging a little Diddle and I told her the big one was me and the little one was her.

We also stopped at a church that is the oldest church in Stuttgart. I tried to draw it although I was not very successful. Oh well. I will have to get better.

Ich liebe dich! Say hello to Dad for me and tell him I miss him too.
Julie

Hi!
This is Maren. I was thinking you could maybe stay awake a little longer tonight to talk to us in the chatroom, so if you are still awake get back to us fast please. it's so cool that Julie is here. We are having a wonderful time so far!!

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Date: Sat, 27 Jun 1998 13:52:17
Hello Mom!!
How are you? This is so weird because the "y" and the "z" on the keyboard are in each others places. And the apostrophe is on the two key. I keep typing the wrong things but I'm getting better. So, when I get home I will no longer be able to type on our keyboards. Oh Well. My English is getting worse but my German is getting better. I'm having to talk slowly and use simple words to talk to Maren's family and to Marie. It takes me a while to get the right words so they will understand me. Her mom is actually doing very well with her english. She teaches me the most German because she will speak slowly to me and use both German and English in the same sentences. And she likes to practice her english with me too. We went to the market, just me and Marita, and I learned all the names of the foods in German and I told her all the names in English. The computer program helped me alot!! I'm so glad you and Dad found it for me. Now I have to learn more words that will help form sentences.

Yesterday, Marie and I went to town while Maren was at school working on the Abi-ball. We took the train- I think it is just a local train. I had not been to the actual town before, so it was nice to get to see it. The stores all look the same, but the houses are more like apartments. They are built more vertical than horizontal to save space, that is why Maren's house is five stories high. Everything is REALLY green and there are a lot of trees I have never learned before. I wish Dad were here to help me figure out what they are. I'm going to look for a book that will tell me the names in english. There is one tree that I thought was a sycamore, because it has whiteish yellow bark and it has a leaf like a big maple leaf, but it has a round fruit with little "pokers" all over it. It is similar to the fruit on the tree that used to be in G-ma Alma's front yard beside the willow. If you have any ideas, please tell me.

Maren's mother keeps offering me coffee in the morning and at night, so I didn't want to be rude and refuse. So, I drink coffee with them in the morning and sometimes at night. They make it really strong, so she makes mine with half water and half coffee.
And then I pour milk and sugar in to make it taste better. :) I don't mind the taste, I just don't really like drinking something warm for breakfast. oh well. Her mother made a kuchen oder a cake yesterday. It looked exactly like a halla? How do you spell that? You know, the thing zou make at Chanukah? It was made with fresh yeast that came in little squares wrapped in foil. It didn't look like the dry yeast that we use. It smelled like yeast though. Yum! Then, after they let the dough rise, they separated it into three pieces and braided it. Then they put it into a round pan and baked it. Her mom is really excited because she just got a new oven about two days ago. She didn't know how to use it though. It has an electric flat burner on the top like grandma Alma's.

I'm glad that Marie and I went to the store yesterday because we finally got to talk. She speaks French almost all the time and she knows how to speak German, but she doesn't like to. She also knows a little bit of English, but it is really hard for her to come up with the words to say what she wants to say. We weren't really fond of each other at the beginning. It was like when I was little and I'd go to a friends house to spend the night and there were three girls there. It just doesn't work out well with three people. And both of us could basically only speak to Maren because she is the only one who speaks good French and English. But after we went out, just me and Marie, I think we got to know each other a little better. It was a bonding experience, because we had to buy things and find stores and sometimes she was as lost as I was, so it was funny for both of us to try to figure out where to go and what to say. Now I need to study directions more because I know how to ask where something is, but I don't understand the other person's directions.

Guess what? To my surprise I'm actually loosing weight! I have dropped from 85.2 to 83.4 since Wednesday! I don't know how many pounds that is. Maren was so amazed that I figured out how to use the scale, but it is operated exactly the same as the one at home upstairs. I'm loosing weight because we usually eat something light for breakfast and then nothing until dinner. And her mom usually makes something healthy for dinner. And I've been dragging Maren out for walks and even some running so I can see the town more often. How is your diet going? Will I recognize you when I get home?

The guys sitting next to me on the computer are playing a Star Trek game on the computer. It speaks both in German and in English. Thez just brought a tv into the room and they are watching the movie now. I don't know why. I think they are doing a skit for the Abiball on Star Trek so they are using the movie to make up a script. The movie is dubbed over in german, but they are speaking in english. I will have to learn to read lips. Maren wants to go to the movies tonight, so we may go see Sechs Tag und Sieben Nachts or Six days and Seven Nights with Harrison Ford. I want to see it in german, but maren thinks I will only understand and therefore enjoy it in engish. I'm trying to explain to her that I can watch it in english at home, but I can never watch it in german there.

I'm writing so much because I'm here at the school waiting for Maren to return. She needed to go to the store to get a present for one of her teachers. she is working too hard on all the preparations for the Abi-ball and it is causing her too much stress. Everyone is telling her to go do things and then when she does them, they say it is all wrong. So, she was getting upset and she said that everyone kept arguing and yelling at one another. So I told her she should kill them with kindness. She thought that was great! So, now when they tell her something is horrible, she is going to say something nice back to them and see how they react. I'm trying to be her comic relief I guess. I think it is helping her to relax a little.

We are still not sure when we can go visit Shelly. It definitly will not be this weekend or next week because her Abi-ball stuff lasts until not this monday, but the following monday. So, I don't know how soon it will be before I get in touch with him, but if you think it would be helpful to let him know that please do so for me. I'm going to sit down with her tonight and try to pick a good time to go visit him. We are also waiting to see if Fabio's parents find a car that they want to buy because if they don't we will take the train to get there. Maren says it takes a few days by train and it will cost about $100. So, I will let you and Shelly know what is going on when I figure it out myself. Well, I'm going to go now. Say hello to Dad for me and tell him "Ich liebe dich!" Oh, and I love you toooo!!!! Maren says "Hallo!!"

Bye,
Love you!
Julie

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