CaliforniaGermans

All Things German In California

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GASA’s Summer Camp 2020 – German Adventure for Kids

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Southern California’s German-American School Association, short GASA, has its overnight German Immersion Summer Camp scheduled for June 2020.

I think we all can use a little cheering up these days. So, let’s look at summer and the potential of all the beautiful things you can do here in Southern California. If you have children and don’t plan on traveling overseas, you might be looking for something fun and entertaining for them. GASA’s German Immersion Camp offers all that and more!

Planned for June 14th-June 20th, 2020 the overnight German Immersion Camp will take place at the Irvine Ranch Outdoor Recreation Center in Orange, CA. The camp is geared towards kids, ages 8-16 years.

During the 7 days and 6 nights of adventure, kids will have plenty of fun with special activities like zip-lining, wall climbing, and swimming. They will learn about the Germanic people and their struggle to remain free with “The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest” and they’ll learn useful skills in a planned Hye Katch Do art of self-defense class. On top, fun activities such as nature hikes, dancing, singing, crafting, campfire, baking, sports, games and fishing round up the German camp experience. All activities will be conducted in German.

Ready to enroll? Check out the link: http://germanschool4kids.org/camps/

Image: ©GASA

Travel As a Dual Citizen. Do You Know Which Passport to Use When?

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It’s only February, but if you are planning to go overseas this summer you are likely looking into booking flights and hotels already now. At least, you should. Usually, six months before starting a trip is a good time to take advantage of some good prices before they will rise, the closer you get to your chosen travel date.

As a dual citizen you have the privilege of owning passports from two different countries; as a CaliforniaGermans, you likely have one passport from Germany and another from the United States. 

You probably are already aware of the fact that you should always have both passports with you when going on a trip to a foreign country, but are you equally sure about, in what situation you need to use one passport over the other?

How about when you book your flight? Does it matter what passport you use or will you risk getting in trouble with customs later?

We spoke with Petra Korn, owner of pKorn Law, who specializes in Immigration Law, e.g. dual citizenship, re-gaining German citizenship, other US immigration issues, and assists with immigration to Germany as well. She has offices in both, California and Germany. 

CaliforniaGermans – Petra, are there any particular rules that I, as a dual citizen, must follow when going through passport control upon entering Germany? Can I use either customs line, the one for European citizens or the one for foreigners? 

Petra – That is a very good question. First of all, one should travel with both passports. You leave the US with the US passport. 

As a German citizen, it is actually the law that you have to enter Germany with the German passport. Otherwise, it would be considered a so-called “Ordnungswidrigkeit.” 

When returning to the US, you probably need to show both passports as you don’t get a stamp in your US passport and thus, the customs office will know that you hold another passport. I always show both passports. 

CaliforniaGermans – What about traveling from the US to France, Italy or any other county in the European Union. Does the same “passport rule” apply to a German-American dual citizen, as if he/she was entering Germany or is there a difference? Which passport does one best use in that scenario? 

Petra – Whenever traveling to/entering a EU country, I would use the German passport, so the same advice as mentioned before applies. 

CaliforniaGermans – What about traveling to other non-European Union countries. What’s the deal there? 

Petra – When traveling to a country that’s not within the European Union, it is important to familiarize oneself with the respective policy for entering that country and the possible need to obtain a Visa. 

One should do some research about the respective Visa regulations for the country one intends to visit with sufficient time to obtain a Visa, if needed. Depending on the country, decide which passport to use, meaning which one makes it easier to enter the country. 

CaliforniaGermans – When booking a flight to Europe you are asked to give your passport information at some point. Which passport do I need to use when booking a flight? Is there a preference? Will choosing one over the other get me in trouble with the airline at check-in later on? 

Petra – When booking a flight to Germany, for example, I enter my German passport information. At check-in, the airline will then also ask me for Visa/passport information since I usually have a return flight to the US and thus, you need to have a Visa, Green Card or Passport to re-enter the US. 

Thank you, Petra, for taking the time to clarify some pressing travel questions for us!

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Do you have a specific dual citizen question, contact us and we might have Petra address your question on our blog next. Get in contact with Petra Korn:

pKornLaw – A Professional Corporation:

11620 Wilshire Blvd., 9th Floor – Los Angeles, CA 90025 – Phone: +1-(310) 361-8582 – Email: pkorn@germanamericanlawyer.com

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pKorn Law – advises domestic and international clients mainly in the fields of German Law, Business Law (company formation, drafting and revising contracts), and Immigration Law, for example, dual citizenship, re-gaining German citizenship, and U.S. citizenship. PKornLaw has over 18 years of expertise in the German and the U.S./California legal system

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LEGAL DISCLAIMER: The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this site should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. Readers of this website should contact their attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular legal matter. Any links to other third-party websites are only for the convenience of the reader, and user of the website.

Images: PassportsImage ©CaliforniaGermans; Portrait ©PetraKorn

California has over 9 Billion in Unclaimed Assets. Do Some Belong to You?

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Did the past holiday deplete your bank account and left you feeling you have started January with a little hole in your budget? Then go check out if the California State Government’s database has listed some unclaimed assets that possibly belong to you! You might just find yourself ending up with some extra cash.

“How can some of my assets end up with the California State government”, you may ask?

“Businesses like banks and insurance companies are required by law to transfer property to the state controllers office if it goes unclaimed for a certain period of time, generally three years. ” (NBC Los Angeles)

What is considered “Unclaimed property”? 

It is generally defined as any financial asset that has been left inactive by the owner for a period of time. Among the most common types of “Unclaimed Property” are: 

  • Bank accounts & Safe Deposit box contents
  • Stocks, mutual funds, and the like
  • Insurance benefits
  • Uncashed cashier’s checks and money orders
  • And more…

There is no time limit or fee for filing a claim! So it’s for sure worth a try to carve out some time to search the database provided by California State Controller’s office. You may be pleasantly surprised. At least, I know I was when I checked the database, just for fun, and found out that apparently I had some unclaimed assets of about $100. Okay, okay,… it’s not groundbreaking, but hey, who doesn’t welcome a few dollars that he didn’t know he had in the first place!

If you want to give it a try, here is the database URL to try your luck!

To find out more about how you keep your property from being turned over to the State Controller’s office, check out the California State Controller’s website here

Image: Pixabay.com – Resources: California State Controller’s Office, NBCLA

Christmas Carols Services and Christmas Eve Services in German

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If you are looking for some German Christmas service this holiday season, here are some suggestions for you:

St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in La Mesa offers two festive events:

Sunday, 15. December 2019 – 3:00 pm
Albert Einstein School Kinderchor (Children’s choir)
Weihnachtsprogramm mit Krippenspiel (The Albert Einstein School’s Christmas Programme with Nativity Play)

Sunday, 22. December 2019 – 7.00 pm
Deutschsprachiger Weihnachtsgottesdienst
Lesungen und Lieder (German Christmas Carol Service)

Please bring your families and friends to these festive events.

Please find driving directions to the church at this link:

http://www.st-lukes-la-mesa.org/maps.php

Mount Olive Lutheran Church in Santa Monica has its
Christmas Eve 2019 service at 3:00 pm.
Family German Christmas Service – a service of readings, carols, organ music, a children’s message and a Kinderkrippenspiel (Children’s Nativity play) entirely in German.

ADDRESS: 1343 Ocean Park Blvd on the corner of 14th street. Santa Monica, CA 90405

“The Medea Insurrection: Radical Women Artists Behind the Iron Curtain” at the Wende Museum

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To commemorate the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, The Wende Museum in Los Angeles has put on a special exhibition in collaboration with the Goethe Institut. “The Medea Insurrection: Radical Women Artists Behind the Iron Curtain“ is also part of Wunderbar Together and is on view until April 5th, 2020.

Medea: the controversial archetype of female strength and passion from the East. In the years before the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, East European writers and painters often turned to ancient mythology to express their discontent with authoritarian rule. Their interpretations of mythological figures like Medea, Cassandra, and Penthesilea were crucial in shaping contemporary images for women, and sometimes they were straight-up punk. Working under the radar of the accepted art establishment, the artists in this exhibition provoked, protested, played with fire, and experimented while refusing socialist and bourgeois stereotypes.

The Medea Insurrection was conceptualized and curated by Susanne Altmann for the Albertinum (Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden). It has been adapted by the Wende Museum for its Culver City appearance. 

The Medea Insurrection: Radical Women Artists Behind the Iron Curtain is part of Wunderbar Together: The Year of German-American Friendship 2018/19, an initiative funded by the German Federal Foreign Office, implemented by the Goethe-Institut, and supported by the Federation of German Industries (BDI).

The Medea Insurrection: Radical Women Artists Behind the Iron Curtain.

WHERE & WHEN:

The Wende Museum
The Armory, Culver City, California
November 10, 2019 – April 5, 2020

Image: ©The Wende Museum

“Liberty Train – Next Stop Freedom” DocuDrama at Alpine Village

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Commemorating the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall the Consulate General of Germany and the German American School Association invite to a special film screening of “Liberty Train – Next Stop Freedom” at the Alpine Village, Sunday, November 17th, 2019.

The documentary reconstructs historical events that started with Hans Dietrich Genscher’s announcement on September 30, 1989, that the East German refugees occupying the West German embassy in Prague were allowed to leave for West Germany. Special trains should bring the refugees from Prague to West Germany but via the GDR. Dramatic events happen when the trains travel through East Germany, with people trying to jump onto the ‘Train to Freedom’ to the passengers inside fearing they would be taken off the train when Stasi members are getting on the train and start collecting passports.

[Read more…] about “Liberty Train – Next Stop Freedom” DocuDrama at Alpine Village

FEUER (Ein Gedicht von Claudia Tichy)

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Feuer

Es graut, es riecht – streng – Feuer?
Die Tiere, seltsam, anders
Der Sturm stört, weshalb diesmal? Sonst doch nicht?

Es graut, es riecht – Feuer?
Vorne und hinten, es fühlt sich gefährlich…
Bestätigung ja, zwei, gefährlich?
Nein, wir doch nicht, doch nicht wir!

Doch! Gemeinsames Essen, was tun? Jetzt?
Sortieren, was ist Dir, was ist Mir – WERT?
Gefühl oder Verstand?
Ersetzbar oder Nicht?

Wann gehen? Sorge – die Tiere!
Wohin – check – klar!
Packen – loslassen – verabschieden
LIEBE ja LIEBE

Ankommen, sicher? Gedanken, nein!
Folgen im Jetzt…die Tiere?!
Alles gut! Alles gut?
Nein! Es kommt wieder, es kommt!

Weiter, die Tiere, weiter
Die Nacht, dunkel und gefährlich
Der ständige Rauch in den Lungen
Unwichtig, wohin, die Tiere?!

Wieder ankommen, morgens, alles vorbei?
Jetzt sicher? Die Tiere geschützt?
Ausatmen, kurz endlich schlafen…
ALARM!! Wieder Gefahr…

Weiter, packen, wohin? Check!
Verkehr dicht! Panik und Flucht spürbar…
Unsicherheit – alles verloren – egal!
Egal? JA – wir sind! WIR leben!

Ankommen – aller guter Dinge sind drei?
Bleiben und langsam erholen…
Ungewiss, was kommt danach?

Danach wohin?Wie?
Hilfsangebote überall – überwältigt!
Oberfläche – keine Spur!
Ernsthafte mitfühlenden Kraft und Unterstützung…

Das andere Kalifornien?
Auf diese Art näher gebracht?
Plötzlich verbindend und gefühlt?
Zusammen gehörend?

Miteinander fühlend, trauernd sich freuend
Diesmal tief und ehrlich…
Dankbarkeit und Verbundenheit
Aus diesem gemeinsamen Schicksal

FEUER

.

©Claudia Tichy

Image: Pixabay.com

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Claudia Tichy, originally from Steyr, Austria, lived in Southern California until March 2019. She experienced California’s wildfires in the fall of 2018 first hand, which inspired her to write this poem. In spring of 2019 she moved back to Austria. Read more about Claudia in our XPAT Spotlight Interview with her husband. she now lives in California. Her stories are inspired by her experiences as an educator, a mother of four children and her therapeutical work. Children and families have always been the most important component of her work. Her innermost desire is to share all her experiences with happiness and love. That’s also how her first book  Tesha Discovers The World came about, a book that takes into consideration the sensibility but also the simplicity of the soul. The book reflects Claudia’s intention: not to seduce the mind but rather touch the soul… and with it start a healing motion in the reader’s life. Connect with Claudia Tichy and HealingSystems here.

 

Summer Adventures Revisited

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Two days ago was the official start of FALL! Yes, can you believe it? Summer is over at least according to the calendar. But don’t we all love to take a look back to these blissful days of summer, recalling our adventures?

That’s exactly what Eric Goldston and Kai Levato did. These two teenagers attended GASA’s German Summer Camp at Irvine Ranch Outdoor Education Center and had such an inspiring experience that they felt compelled to share their adventure with you!

GASA Camp June 2019: Der Zauberlehrling

By Eric Goldston (17) and Kai Levato (15)

[Read more…] about Summer Adventures Revisited

German Summer Camps in San Diego at GPSSD

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GPSSD German Summer Camps for Kids – A creative way to Learn German in San Diego

A few years ago, a brave woman from East Germany started a project that is now a wonderful meeting place for many German-speaking families and families, who are interested in the German language: The German Pacific School of San Diego.

In the beginning, Wiebke Elbe, a former pharmacist, had just a few resources but managed quickly to connect with a number of similar oriented projects in San Diego and other parts of California.

With growing know-how, she started one German after-school-class in a small facility in Clairemont followed by the first German Summer Camp in San Diego.

Within six years the school has grown and now has 4 locations in La Jolla, Clairemont, Carmel Valley and Poway with more than 200 students attending classes from 4 to 6 pm during the week and Saturday classes.

Our founder Wiebke has started a new project in Norway! But she has put so much effort and energy in our project, that today GPSSD is thriving and continuing attracting more and more germanophile families that attend our school.

Wiebke has always made a point of creating a relaxed and stimulating learning atmosphere. She had a discreet manner to inspire our teachers and helpers. She induced them to the philosophy that German lessons and German summer camps should be a fun experience, where children should be inspired and helped to develop their own initiatives and creativity.

With our new principal Christine Johnson, we are continuing this philosophy, and we are still getting a lot of support and help from Wiebke and her husband Hauke.

What about our German Summer Camp?  

Summer Camp 2019 will be amazing! This year it’s all about magic!

This year’s GPSSD camp will be at a wonderful location at the French American School in La Jolla! It’s a campus that offers a lot of space for many outdoor and indoor activities.

GPSSD 2019 Summer Camp’s Topics and Activities

Depending on their interests, the campers will dive into a magical atmosphere where they can learn magic tricks, create their own theater play or even create their own video ( 3rd week)! We would like to give our campers impulses and inspiration and then encourage and help them to create their own play or show.

In our magic oriented group,  campers will read and listen to magic stories and plays. The magic flute might appear from time to time to enchant us with new ideas. Campers will also be surprised by magic tricks and then learn and practice them for a little end of the week show.

In our theater oriented group, campers will get inspiration by German plays and stories, ways to perform a play, and materials they could use. Our camp teacher Heather has a broad spectrum of ideas and ways to carry away our campers imagination. They can choose to create a performance that matches their interests, from a simple puppet show or a self-performed play on stage.

In our third week, campers will create their own small video with the stop motion film making technique.

“Creating a Movie”

A lot of crafting, painting of props and other hands-on activities are always part of our summer camps. All groups will liven up their activities with fun games and a lot of music and entertainment. We will also do Karaoke and will not only use the airy sports field but also the playground to do our outdoor activities. And, of course, our camps are full immersion German language camps.

That means that we will help our campers to better understand German words and sentences by repeating, describing and explaining German expressions. We will also help our campers to produce German sentences and to speak German by their own initiative.

We are looking forward to a relaxed and fun summer event, that will take place from June 24 to July 12, 2019 from 9am to 4 pm. And there is also aftercare available for working families.

Weekly sessions can be booked online at www.gpssd.org. Call us for more information at 858-461-9118 or send us an email, germanpacificschool(AT)gmail.com

Text: Vicky Ripart – GPSSD Camp Team

Images: ©GermanPacificSchoolSanDiego