Events & New Courses for January . . . . . . . . . .

10th to 29th January: “Temples” An Exhibition of paintings and sculptures by Mary Grech

Starting Monday, 17th January at 6.30p.m.: Short Course - “Die Elbmetropole Dresden”
A Landeskunde course conducted by Waltraud Wolff on four consecutive Mondays. Each session is of 90 minutes. Intended for students and members with a good knowledge of German and for German speaking persons. Course fee: LM8.00 payable even on the first day of the course. Course will not be held unless a minimum of 5 applications are received.

Starting Wednesday, 19th January at 6.30p.m.: Short Course – “German for Business”
Ideal for those working in an office, factory, hotel, bank and similar places where they encounter technical terms in German or have to read and write business German. A short course of just 10 lessons of 90 minutes each (on Wednesdays) conducted by Olaf Rieck, Diplom Volkswirt, Diplom Sozialökonom. Emphasis on the spoken and written language. Course fee: LM25. Not for Beginners! Course will not be held unless a minimum of 10 applications are received.

Starting Friday, 21st January at 6.30p.m.: Learning German for Fun
No textbooks, no examinations, no particular emphasis on grammar!!
A course of 13 lessons of 90 minutes each every Friday at 6.30p.m. Conducted by Marianne Azzopardi. Emphasis on the spoken everyday language aimed at those who just want to know “some” German quickly for traveling, communicating in German, place of work, etc. Course aimed at Beginners or at those who have started our courses and had to drop for one reason or other. Booking open from our office. Course fee: LM25. Book early to avoid disappointment. Course will not be held unless a minimum of 10 applications are received.

Info . . . . . .

Second Term: Students are reminded that the lessons for the second term of the 2004-2005 Language Courses will recommence after the Christmas and New Year holidays as from Thursday, 6th January.
Certificates: Members who have applied for their German language Certificate and have not yet collected it, are reminded that they are to do so from the office as soon as possible. In the meantime photographs taken during the Ceremony held last month are also available from the office.
Scholarships: The Executive Committee has nominated Nathalie Attard and Zoya Denysyuk for the 2005 four-week language scholarships offered by the Goethe Institute to two of our best students in our German language courses.
Examination Time Table: This can be seen on the Circle’s Noticeboard. Students are to check the dates of the examination/s concerning them and to inform the office by the 31st January should they envisage or encounter any problems with these dates. The examination dates will NOT be changed and neither will separate sessions be arranged after this date. Moreover students are reminded that no one will be allowed to sit for an examination unless a minimum overall attendance of 60% of the total number of lessons held during the year is reached.

Mit dem ADAC als Veranstalter machten wir im Sommer dieses Jahres eine Bahnreise von Ost nach West. - Als zweitgrößtes Land der Erde ist Kanada mit 30 Millionen Einwohnern bekanntlich dünn besiedelt. Der größte Teil der Bevölkerung lebt in den großen Städten. Das trägt mit dazu bei, dass es außerhalb der Städte viel Ursprüngliches gibt. Nach wie vor verfügt das Land über große Rohstoffreserven, unter ihnen Öl- und Gas. Steigende Energiepreise werden in den Förderländern, anders als bei uns, positiv gesehen. Sie sind hilfreich bei der Reduzierung der Staatsschulden und der Finanzierung von Investitionen. Was Verbrauchern und Teilen der Wirtschaft wegen höherer Kosten Sorgen macht, löst hier eher Freude aus.

Für die Erschließung Kanadas war die Fertigstellung der Ost - West Eisenbahnverbindung im Jahre 1886 von großer Bedeutung. Sie war Grundlage für wirtschaftliches Wachstum und die Weiterentwicklung des Landes. Noch heute erfüllen die Schienennetze eine wichtige wirtschaftliche Funktion. Wir konnten das gut nachvollziehen, sahen wir doch viele Züge mit über 120 Waggons, beladen mit den verschiedensten Roh- und Fertigprodukten. Unser Zug der „Canadian-National“ musste das Vorrecht der Güterzüge respektieren, aber Eilige fahren ohnehin nicht mit der Eisenbahn! Wir konnten auch nachempfinden, welche enormen Schwierigkeiten der Bau der Schienenstränge gemacht haben muss, fehlten doch die technischen Hilfsmittel, die Muskelkraft heute oft entbehrlich machen. Es war eine gewaltige Ingenieur- und Pionierleistung, die die beteiligten Menschen Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts vollbrachten. Wären da nicht die vielen genügsamen und fleißigen Chinesen gewesen, die man extra ins Land holte, wäre der Westen wohl noch lange „eine Zone der Ruhe“ geblieben. In tagelanger Bahnfahrt erlebten wir unwegsames Gelände, Sümpfe, Wälder, steinige Flusstäler und Gebirge, die große Hindernisse dargestellt haben. Für uns war die Landschaft faszinierend, für die Schienenbauer muss sie ein Horror gewesen sein!

Unsere erste Etappe begann in Toronto, einer modernen Großstadt mit Charme in herrlicher Lage am großen Ontario-See. Architekten haben Akzente gesetzt, die in sich ruhen und das Stadtbild bei der Außen- wie Innengestaltung modern und harmonisch erscheinen lassen. Zu den Besonderheiten gehören unterirdische, großzügige und ansprechend gestaltete shopping malls. In der Architektur wurde Altes gekonnt mit Modernem verbunden und eindrucksvoll integriert. - Ein Ausflug zu den Niagara-Falls gehörte mit zu unserem Programm. Der touristische Trubel hat sich über die Jahre verstärkt, die Fälle selbst haben aber nichts von ihrer Attraktivität verloren. Ein mit Touristen vollgestopftes Boot brachte uns der geballten Wasserkraft sehr nahe. Die tosenden Wassermassen sind immer wieder ein großartiges, wenn auch etwas feuchtes Erlebnis. – Unsere Bahnreise ging zunächst von Toronto nach Jasper, sie dauerte drei Tage und zwei Nächte. Ein kleines Abteil diente als Wohn- und Schlafzimmer. Da der Zug Aussichts-, Speise- und Salonwagen mit sich führte und die Landschaft überwiegend vielseitig war, verging die Zeit schneller als erwartet. Wir ließen die ruhige, in Ontario wasserreiche Landschaft an uns vorüberziehen, über lange Strecken war sie menschenleer. Hin und wieder hielt der Zug auf freier Strecke, um Passagiere aus- oder zusteigen zu lassen. Es waren in der Regel Jäger und Angler, die ihrem Hobby nachgehen und der Zivilisation vorübergehend entfliehen. Da der Zug nur 3 x in der Woche fährt sind die, die die Auszeit wollen, mit sich und der Welt allein. Nachdem wir Winnipeg hinter uns gelassen hatten, kamen die großen Ebenen mit riesigen Getreide-, Mais- und Kartoffelfeldern.

Nach Edmonton sahen wir häufiger Weiden mit Kühen, Rinder- und Pferdeherden. In Jasper erreichten wir unser zweites Etappenziel, die Rocky Mountains. Mit dem Bus ging es zwei Tage durch die schönsten Gegenden, die zum Teil an Österreich, die Schweiz und Norwegen erinnerten, nur ist es in Kanada weniger eng, die Weiten sind wohltuend. - In Banff begann unsere 3. Etappe mit der zweitägigen Bahnfahrt nach Vancouver. Der „Rocky Mountaineer“ der „Pacific Railways“ war “a real treat”! Alle normalen Maßstäbe für Qualität und guten Service wurden weit übertroffen. Panoramawagen und offene Plattformen machten den direkten Kontakt zur Natur möglich, wieder ging es durch abwechslungsreiche Landschaften. Wir erreichten Vancouver quasi durch die Hintertür und erlebten eine pulsierende Metropole voller Glanzlichter in traumhafter Lage. Vorn der Pazifik, hinten hohe Berge, Gebirgsseen und Gletscher, Freizeitmöglichkeiten im Sommer und Winter vor der Haustür, eine Stadt mit Flair und hohem Freizeitwert. Wir machten auch einen Ausflug nach Vancouver Island und Victoria, der Hauptstadt British Columbias. Auch dieses Fleckchen Erde mit dem liebevoll angelegten „Butchard Garden“, dem Stanley Park, der beeindruckend langen „Capilano suspension bridge“ und der attraktiven Innenstadt mit britischem Flair war und ist ein touristisches Juwel. - Neben den Sehenswürdigkeiten beeindruckten die Freundlichkeit der Menschen, die Disziplin im täglichen Leben, die positive Einstellung und die Höflichkeit, die das Zusammenleben um vieles leichter machen.

The Certificate Giving Ceremony which was held in Messina Palace last December turned out to be a very successful evening during which more than 100 students who attended our 2003-2004 German language courses were presented with their certificates and book prizes. The picture here shows Christine-Ann Mercieca receiving her certificate from Mr Anthony Degiovanni, Director responsible for Adult Education & Further Studies at the Department of Education. Also present was the German Ambassador, Mr Georg Merten, Mr Albert Friggieri, the Circle’s President and Mrs Kerstin Platsch, the Cultural Attaché at the German Embassy. A Concert with the participation of Simone Attard (Piano), Joseph Vella (Saxaphone) and Paul Busuttil (Trumpet) preceded the Ceremony which was concluded by a small reception for all those attending.

It was Father John Sammut, a well known promoter of Maltese-German friendship, (the priest in charge of the German Catholic parish in Malta) and former teacher of the German language at the German-Maltese Circle, who telephoned me one day in order to introduce me to Dr. Wolf-Dieter Barz. He explained to me that Dr. Barz visited Malta every year for the past thirty years, and, so he continued: “As a frequent visitor to the German-Maltese Circle he deserves an introduction to the readers of the German-Maltese Circle Newsletter”. Consequently while he was visiting Malta again recently, he came to share with me his enthusiasm about our island. He was accompanied by his two children, who incidentally were baptised with Maltese seawater; both have Maltese godparents, and his daughter Uta’s very first word was the Maltese habib – friend! While his son Peer-Niklas sports the Maltese Maritime Authority’s flag on his bed post.

Dr. Barz is a specialist in constitutional law - by conviction as well as by education – in fact that’s what brought him to Malta in 1977, though some years earlier he had been here on a ‘fact finding mission’ as a young scout. And here is his story:

He was born near Bonn in Germany, as son of Pomeranian parents from Greifswald (in the north-east of the present-day Federal Republic, formerly in East Germany), a city he came to love later in life, when visiting friends there became easier. However, he spent the nicest part of his childhood in Denmark on the Isle of Als. After school he studied law in Münster, majoring in legal history, international and constitutional law, graduating as Dr. jur. (LLD) at the end of the 1980’s. A comparison of the first promulgated municipal Code of Law of Rhodes of the beginning of the fourteenth century with one of the first printed Codes of Law of Malta (the Codice Verdala) of the sixteenth century was the subject of his thesis. The aim for this particular choice was to view the different starting modalities of the rule of the Order of St. John in the two respective countries.

Naturally, I asked, where his Maltese infatuation originated from decades ago. He replied that he received his first strong inspirations during his visit to Malta as a member of the German Rescue Corps “Malteser Hilfsdienst” of the German Catholic Order of St. John. Being a protestant, Wolf-Dieter Barz later joined the Protestant Johanniterorden. I might add here that since 1999 he is a Knight of Honour (Ehrenritter) of the Johanniterorden (full name: Balley Brandenburg des Ritterlichen Ordens St. Johannis vom Spital zu Jerusalem). When he and his wife Ulrike moved to Malta in 1980, they stayed for nearly a year in Mosta; while the young Wolf-Dieter carried out researches for his thesis, Ulrike studied medicine as a ‘guest student’ at the University of Malta. However, due to the prevailing regulations for foreign students at the time, they had to leave Malta, Mosta and a great number of friends, and continued their studies in Marburg, Germany. There he completed a two-year post graduate course in scientific librarianship, dealing amongst others with judicial literature and sources. Since 1986 Dr. Barz has been holding the position of Law Librarian at the German Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe.

Dr. Barz has published some books and written many articles mostly on subjects concerning Malta. He has often cooperated with Michael Galea, and worked on subjects like numismatics, heraldry, history of the university, as well as military and medical history of Malta. Articles on various aspects of the intricacies of Maltese history were published in professional scientific magazines, as well as in an issue of the periodical Id-Dritt in Malta (1990). Some of his works are available from the German-Maltese Circle’s Library. Dr. Barz is also known for his contributions on the judicial international contract between the State of Malta and the Order of St. John concerning Fort St. Angelo, as well as the compilation of the Maltese Constitution of 1974. He told me that he is very much involved in research on Malta in Germany, citing for example his studies about the “Malteserstadt Heitersheim” (Heitersheim – the “City of the Knights of Malta” near Freiburg in South Germany). This city and its surroundings were a “Johanniter-Fürstentum” (Princedom), where the oath of subservience (Untertaneneid) was abolished only in the nineteenth century. He writes reviews on books on Malta, including one on Thomas Freller’s “Malta: The Epitome of Europe”. Where ever there is a possibility of delving into Maltese history, particularly century-old links with Central European countries, Dr. Barz applies himself with meticulous emphasis. “Intellectually I feel at home in Malta”, he told me reflectively, and that is also one of the reasons, why he brings his children often to Malta – carrying out his own personal cultural exchange.

“The three stable points in my somewhat restless life are Greifswald, the isle of Als and the island of Malta,” he said. And conscious of Malta’s long and chequered history, Dr. Barz last remark before we concluded our conversation was: “Whenever I am in Malta, the stones start talking to me - fangen die Steine an zu sprechen”.

Dieter Windisch one of the Circle’s Supporting Members who hails from Berlin has been visiting Malta on a regular basis in his capacity as General Manager of eviga e.V. (evangelischer Verein zur Förderung der Initiativen gegen Arbeitslosigkeit e.V.) with the scope of establishing the necessary framework for a partnership leading towards the introduction of theoretical and practical training courses for unskilled and/or semi-skilled persons who wish to qualify as social helpers. During his visit to Malta last October Mr Windisch obtained the support of the Ministry of Health to implement in Malta such programmes based on the experience which was gained in similar concepts in the occupational qualification for work in the social area of unskilled or semi-skilled persons, which concepts had been developed and tested in Berlin since the last five years. This is something new for Malta and it is planned that Maltese persons could get the necessary basic qualification after following a training unit of 350 hours.

The successful persons can then offer service to persons who need personal assistance due to their age, their health condition or due to their need for home service. Elderly people or persons living alone can easily be left to fend for themselves whenever family members, neighbours or friends cannot for some reason or other be available for any period of time. This is where the trained social helper can be called in. With his/her professional assistance stays in a hospital or in a home for the elderly can be reduced and in some cases even avoided. The costs saved for everyone concerned including the State can be substantial. Persons who acquire these basic qualifications following the training course prepared by eviga e.V., are able to work in the non-medical social sector and therefore in most cases can release the medical trained personnel to give their services in other more pressing cases.

Mrs. Helen d’Amato, Parliamentary Secretary for the Elderly & Community Care in the Ministry of Health, in a talk with Mr. Windisch and in the presence of experts from the Ministry and the Management personnel from the Employment & Training Corporation who are responsible for the implementation of the model phase in Malta, emphasised her agreement to the project which could lead to new ways of domestic care for persons living alone. Two courses for unemployed persons and for those who want to orientate themselves afresh in this profession have started last November. It is expected that the newly qualified social helpers will end their course in February 2005. Mr. Windisch will this month return to Malta in order to assess the progress being registered and in order to prepare for a complete evaluation of the project in Malta.

Mrs Kerstin Platsch, Cultural Attaché at the German Embassy last month hosted a lunch at the Corinthia San Gorg for teachers of German serving in State, Private and Church Schools in Malta and in Gozo and at the German-Maltese Circle. In all more than 40 teachers attended to this entertaining event which was much appreciated by everyone and which served to promote a sense of unity and cooperation and of encouragement towards the provision of a better and more motivated service to all children and adults who are studying German or who wish to start learning the language.

Members of the German-Maltese Circle are herewith notified that the Annual General Meeting will be convened at the Circle's premises on WEDNESDAY, 26th January 2004 at 6.30p.m. in accordance with Article 29 of our Articles of Association. The Meeting will commence half an hour later with the members present in the absence of a quorum.

AGENDA:  
(a) Reading of minutes of the previous Annual General Meeting (AGM);
(b) Address by the President;
(c) General Secretary's Annual Administrative Report;
(d) Treasurer's Statement of Accounts for 2003-2004;
(e) Election of Committee for 2005;
(f) Motions;
(g) Election of Corporate Members’ representative.

Nominations - on forms obtainable from the Secretary - of eligible members willing to contest the election for the posts of President, Secretary, Treasurer, Committee Member or Corporate Members’ Representative are to reach the Secretary by not later than 6.30p.m. of Wednesday, 19th January.

Motions for discussion during the AGM, duly signed by the proposer and a seconder are also to reach the Secretary by the above-mentioned date and time. All motions received will be displayed on the Circle’s Noticeboard.

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