My father once told me he had to translate between two Germans just after WWII in Italy. Today high German is the national language. Yet not in 1945. 🙃
@bijouxbroussard It's similar to Dutch. It's why I understand a little bit of Dutch. Because my parents could speak high German and low German (platt being "flat"). Bavarian German is high country, Hamburg is flat country.
@bijouxbroussard Well, I can't say that I learned it very well growing up. All my siblings spoke it fluently. Yet they were so much older than me, that they were not around me very much.
The next youngest was my half brother at sixteen years older than me.
That didn't give mom much opportunity to speak any languages around me. And she was as well fluent in Romanian, which only my eldest sister could speak.
Mom sometimes used that language barrier against me. Speaking to me in English, yet speaking German or Romanian when my other siblings were around.
This of course frustrated me enough that in junior high I took German classes as a elective in the seventh grade. And kept it up throughout highschool.
If there was a book on how to not raise a kid, that would be my life story.
Remember that I was sent to Germany at 14 by myself. With only those two years of learning German. It was a real head pounding learning experience quite literally. I actually had headaches because of the lack of understanding German.
LOL - well its a common thing for people trying to do a Welsh/Indian accent to end up sounding Indian/Welsh so I found myself laughing out loud at that one. Bore da Bijouxbroussard. Mwynha !
@bijouxbroussard Wow Maori, so next thing you’ll be doing is turning me upside down and crashing me into the rugby pitch breaking my collar bone and putting me out of the Lions tour (that’s a ruggby reference to the events of the last lions tour down to “cheatsville" in 2005 - something we brits will never forgive, Umaga and Mealamu will never be forgiven for, even in a ruffians sport played by gentlemen where a bit of caculated cheating is considered “part of the game” - or at least was until it was professionalised). We were going to lose that tour anyway - nearly ending our only decent three-quarters career was not necessary and in the words of one article "the incident tarnished All Blacks’ brilliant series win”. Too right it did. They were deservedly booed on their return to the northern hemisphere that autumn. That doesn’t often happen in Rugby 0 but did twice, The first time was Grant Batty who was being booed for previous match thruggery when he kicked the ball forward that led to the greatest ever try on a rugby field (by popular agreement). If it was refereed today using the rules and vidoe replayes two all blacks would have been sin binned for head high tackles in that move alone and the try would have been disallowed for a forward pass, but that’s life isn’t it.
@Captain Not sure where you got Maori from, Bijoux was doing her best Welsh 'hello there'. And as for the Lions tour, that's hardly the worst assault to happen to them in the southern hemisphere, let's get over it and cheer the Llewod on this weekend. Only one Welsh man left standing and despite some impressive displays, he hasn't made the team for Saturday, I'll still be cheering them on.
@Mindfulness I agree, its the straight arm tackle on Phil Bennet by De Villiers that stands out the most. Imagine how the game has changed. Phil Bennet was knocked out by that and yet got up and had to play on because no substitutes were allowed. De Viiliers excuse was that he sidestepped him with his head and eyes, but then that is how the great man played. You are right of course, the game has moved on, and for me the professional era has made it better. I didn’t like the head on head rule solely blaming the tackler though. In the first few weeks it was reduced I saw so many head on heads including one awarded against my own Tigers and I swear Id never seen one before. I did wonder straight away of attackers were “:playing for it” and thought surely not but it carried on. What finally convinced me was the Irish full back knocking on a pass right infront of the referee (that South African article). and deliberately diving after the ball colliding with a decelerating Steward and drew a red card. I still think we get more head on heads than we used to - I think if they really wanted to make things safer they should bring in helmets - no more cauliflower ears - but I imagine that would really upset you - and you have the issue of periferal vision as well. Obviously the penalty for pretending to contest a ball in the air you clearly cant win is a big hit with me - I think association football should bring that in as well - I remember the Belgian Castineigne getting his cheek bone shattered when we descended form a header into a Russian who was allegedly jumping up to try and make it But yes, looking forwards to it - how many minutes into game two before the loosing Australians start a punch up ??
