Once a week at lunch a couple of small groups gather to have conversation in languages other than English. For the moment there are a Spanish table and a German table. While members of the community speak other languages, these are the two most spoken, and the German table is definitely the smaller of the two.
The German group met for the first time today. It's been a long time since I've had the opportunity to speak German conversationally, and I'm pretty rusty. However, of the four languages other than English that I have some knowledge of, my spoken German comes back the quickest when I get the chance to use it. And these informal situations are great for that.
When I was at Moorehead State in Minnesota, Fraulein Nobel hosted an weekly Stammtisch at a local bar. I remember those afternoon gatherings as being relaxed and fun. Conversation rambled through a wide variety of topics that were pretty much the same ones we had in English in other settings. I missed it when I transferred to Rockford College.
At Rockford we had a weekly gathering of all the foreign language students in one of the large lounges. No group was static, as many of the students spoke more than one language. The professors tried to keep the conversations as informal as possible, but they were never the same as the Stammtisch.
Over the years I've had opportunities to use one or another of my languages in a variety of settings. I'm no longer fluent in any of them, but I can get by. This is the first time in a long time that I've had a place to converse in German, and I'm enjoying it immensely.
... and the horizon continues to expand. You are certainly in a good place. Enjoy!
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