I was a bit distressed to find out he had a big conference that week that seemed to spring up at the last minute. So it left me alone most of the time I was there. Which was fine with me, I had a bunch of exciting things lined up to do. As the days went by I grew increasingly frustrated by my limited knowledge of the German language. My communications with the local people were short and impersonal. I found myself listening to their dialogue and only grasping a small amount of content. While some of the words were familiar, I couldn't piece together what most of it meant. Which made me feel like a dumb tourist who hadn't put any effort into actually learning German.

Although I still had a great time while I was there, there were some regrets. After spilling how it felt to my friend in Berlin, he told me how he learned to speak the German language with ease. A couple of months before he traveled on his business trip, he did some online research and found a great interactive German course. It didn't take him very long at all before he was speaking German fluently. Having told me that it was relatively easy and fun, I was immediately interested.

The course is called Rocket German. I have only been using it for a short period, but I am thoroughly impressed with what is covered and how quickly I have been picking up the language. I look forward to returning to Germany with a better understanding and working knowledge of the language and dialect. Knowing that the next time will provide me with far more meaningful experiences, I have already started to plan my next visit.