On Falmouth & Exeter University’s campuses, Cornish isn’t the only foreign language being spoken. In fact, if you happen to pass by the Sustainability Café on a Wednesday afternoon you might just hear the beautiful sounds of the German language floating across the chatter.  

Over the past academic year, up to fifteen students have been gathering once a month to speak German, and it’s not just Germans who are present. Titled German Language Café, the group is open to everyone, from beginners to native speakers, with the aim to practice speaking German.  Among the diverse and international group is Nicole, a third year Marine Biology student who secured a Student Project Fund in order to set up the group and cover the costs of drinks and snacks. Born and raised in London, Nicole completed her schooling at a German-speaking school in Turkey before returning to the UK for her higher education, only to discover that her German speaking skills were deteriorating due to lack of use. “I wanted a space where I could revive my German and have chats in this language,” she explains, “and I started to meet other people who for one reason or another were in a similar situation and wanted to talk German more”. The first meeting took place in October and it has steadily grown from there.  

I joined for my first German Language Café meet up in March and absolutely loved the immediate sense of community found in our shared love of the language. I, Isobel, have just completed my first year at Falmouth University studying Dance and Choreography and, although I am British, I have always had strong ties with Germany and so the country feels like a second home to me. The desire to learn the language came about when my family and I visited close family friends in a village outside of Stuttgart and the grandparents couldn’t speak English. I decided there and then, as a child, that I would learn the language in order to overcome the language barrier and connect with others on a deeper level. The first step towards achieving this goal was to study German GCSE, and then German A Level. Perhaps it would have made logical sense to go on to study German at university, but the creative subjects were my main passion. Instead, I did a year-long placement at a school near Dresden, in the east of Germany, and increased my fluency that way. Transitioning, without much of a gap between, from life in Germany to uni life was difficult and I missed the language, the culture, and the friends I’d made there. Therefore, German Language Café has served brilliantly as a home away from home to ease the heartache, and I can’t wait to continue deepening the friendships made with fellow attendees as we hopefully continue to meet up in the new academic year. 

If you’re interested in speaking German in a relaxed setting, either as a beginner, a native speaker, or anything in between, do keep your eyes peeled for any updates on meet ups in September, either via the SU webpage or via posters around campus. Wir freuen uns darauf, Dich kennenzulernen!