Cheat-sheet of people mentioned most often

Cheat-sheet of people mentioned most often, for you poor confused people following along at home:

Monika and Jurgen: Monika is Oma's niece. We're staying at their house. They speak very little English.

Heiko and Angelika and Mareike: Heiko is Monika's son, Angelika is his wife. They're both 30-ish and speak very good English and speak it mostly with me. Mareike is their 1 year old daughter (this makes her my second cousin once removed). She only speaks baby.

Bianca and Norman: Bianca is Monika's daughter, Norman is her husband. Bianca is 27. Bianca has better English than she thinks and is great to talk with. Norman doesn't have very much English, but he tries to communicate with me.

Sarah and Chris: Sarah is Oma's great niece, I think. She's 21. Chris is her boyfriend. Sarah understands English but doesn't speak it much. She'll speak slow German with me, too. I've only met Chris once, but he spoke a bit of English at least.

Julia and Daniel: Julia is Sarah's older sister, 6 months older than me. Daniel is her husband. They live in Stuttgart (everyone else I listed lives here in Engelsbrand). They speak very good English, too, and were surprised when I'd say things in German.

Roswitha and Heinz: Sarah and Julia's parents. Heinz is Oma's nephew and Monika's brother. I think they live here in Engelsbrand. Heinz has some English, but Roswitha not very much.

Tante Lisa: Oma's sister, lives across the back yard from Monika and Jurgen. Monika & Heinz (& several other people)'s mother. Only speaks dialect.


Lily: Lived down the hall from me at Smith! She spent the past year in Bremen teaching English on a fellowship program.