lesson 7.3

I know this very likely has something to do with cases. 

​"In einer ​Stunde, okay?"

I understand that things change, but I can't see why it is “einer” and not “eine”

I also understand that “in” changes things and it can be a double preposition. 

If someone could steer me into where I would find an explanation, that would be great

Have a good weekend

Maxie

Hi Maxi, Lingoni on youtube has several videos on prepositions.

There is a short one on two way prepostions:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHrRIzh_z18&ab_channel=lingoniGERMAN

And a long live steam:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgzkMrn4UqY&ab_channel=lingoniGERMAN

There are lots of good free grammar videos on the Lingoni channel

Simon

Hi Simon

Thank you. Will look at those. I am concentrating mostly on vocabulary as well as paying attention to changes due to cases. I use Rocket for fluency of conversation too. 

Seedlang has improved my higher level vocabulary.  Their review bit is really good. Comes up with reminders and one can then choose how often that word comes up for review. Some stick others seem to take longer to remember. 

I just need to remember that all bits help and being consistent is key

Have a good evening

Sharon

Hi Maxie

I have looked at Seedlang, but only the free content which wasn't really helpful for me. I wonder if you are using the paid version? At the moment I am spending my German money on conversation practice with iTalki. I do half hour sessions. I think I would struggle to hold down a conversation for an hour. :-) We just do general chat about things I have been doing, visitors, going out etc and also trying to decribe the plot af a book I have read or movie/TV show I've seen. That can be quite a challenge.

Hi Simon

I have subscribed. I decided to try the 2 week free subscription and then decided to keep it. 

Even if I use it for a year the 59 Euros were worth it to me.

I now know what a pavement is or even an ironing board, not to mention lots of other weird words. Probably never use them in conversation, but I like the words. 

Not even sure if I will get to Germany again, but cycling from Passau to Vienna is still on my bucket list.

Intended going back now in September to do that, but gor informed a week ago that I am to become a Canadian citizen on Tuesday this week. Then I need to apply for a Canadian passport.

So now I will use my Canadian passport to come back and my EU passport to go into Europe. 

So may as well keep up the weird vocabulary. Never know when I may need to ask for an ironing board (LOL)

Sharon

Find language learning quite time consuming, but good for my brain

I wonder which EU country you are from? We lost our EU membership with Brexit which has made a lot of things more difficult and doesn't seem to have brought any visible benefits so far.

Sending packages to Germany has become very expensive with lots of paperwork. We are supposed to be able to send low value gifts without customs duty but they seem to charge it anyway. Also a lot of products from the EU are no longer in the shops as it's not worth the paperwork for small businesses.

Simon

Hi Simon

I have a Portuguese Passport. Philip is Portuguese and when we got married registered our marriage at the Portuguese consulate. We got married at the beginning of 1980, at the end of 1980 they changed the law. I would have had to jump through all sorts of hoops to get a Portuguese passport. Kids automatically get EU status. 

I gather that Brexit has not been great. 

I sent a parcel to my German friend. It was knitted and home made. By stating that it was a gift, homemade, the taxes she paid were minimal. A few Euros. 

Here in Canada it is more and more difficult to get European products. We hadan amazing German deli here. 3 generations ran it. The lady has closed down, they made it more and more difflicult for her to inport from Europe. Some agreement with the U.S.A Infuriated us, as the E.U is so much stricter on food additives etc than North America. 

C'est la vie

Sharon

Your experience with parcels is similar to American friends. But for us in the UK, there are a lot of administrative charges for the courier and then admin and duty for the recipient even for items of no commercial value. And even letters can take 10 days. It feels as though the UK has been singled out for special treatmenet since Brexit.

I have thought about trying to get German citizenship as my partner is German but I haven't done anything about it.  I have a German grandfather and I can still remember he had a slight German accent although he came to the UK aged 10.

Simon

Hi Simon

I was surprised when I heard that in Germany you have to give up your citizenship from other nations. Many years in S.A it was illegal to have another passport, now you have to get a special letter allowing you to have another passport. I didn't apply, as I can't see myself ever living there again. My daughter applied, as you know know what may change. That is not going to be in my lifetime. Makes me sad, as it is such an amazing place, but it has become so disfunctional and the crime out of control. Yet when I have gone back, the people are amazing and it still feels like home.

I decided to get a Canadian one, as we have been here for 15 years. I want to be able to vote and going to the U.S.A or even flying over their airspace one needs a visa. Not difficult with an EU passport, but at border crossings you are treated as a pariah and a criminal. Not a comfortable feeling. The U.S.A and some of its policies make me uncomfortable and in some ways horrifies us a family.

Have a good evening

Sharon

Hallo Maxie and Simon, 

As you have already correclty identified, in is a two-way preposition meaning it can either take the dative or accusative case. Often you can work out which one is needed by identifying a static position (dative) or movement (accusative). When it comes to time though, things are a little different. When a period of time is mentioned and something happens or happend after or within this period of time, you'll need the dative case:

“In einer Stunde gehe ich nach Hause.” - “In an hour I'm going home.”

"In diesem Sommer hat es viel regnet." - “This summer it rained a lot.”

Here, the focus is more on what happend (going home, it rained) within or after that period of time.

When the focus in on the specific period of time however rather than what happens or happend within/after that period of time, you'll use the accusative case. Note that this is often combined with bis which is an accusative preposition.

“Er war so müde, dass er bis in den frühen Nachmittag schlief.” - “He was so tired that he slept until the early afternoon.” 

Here, the focus is on the period of time (afternoon) rather than what happend (he slept).

Hope this helps!

Julia

Julia thanks for that explanation, especially about accusative and dative when talking about time.

Maxie, yes Germany is very fussy about dual nationality. My partner's daughter had dual German/American nationality when she was a child as she has an American father.  But when she came of age, they wanted her to choose between the two. It was only after considerable effort that the authorities let her keep both.

Simon

Guten Morgen Julia

Danke. Das War sehr kompliziert.

There is so much to remember and to get staight.

In all languages one learns and then comes colloquil and slang into it too. 

Now I will look out for that kind of construction.

Thank once again for explaining that so well. Always helps to put it onto perspective.

I subscribe to the DW newsletter (Recommendation from Simon) and am absolutely thrilled that I can now get an understanding of a lot of their publishings and videos. Before I could only understand a word here and there and had no idea what they were talking about

Nogmals danke

SHaron