Imagining worlds different to the one we live in has been a favourite pastime of humanity for longer than the first written languages even came to be. In the meanwhile, the section of fiction known as “fantasy”, with its trademark magic and dragons and elves (oh my!) has become one of the most popular genres in modern society. There are few children who haven’t read or watched the Harry Potter series, and an even smaller fraction who’ve never even heard of the bespectacled wizard.

Of course, the fantasy genre is far from exclusive to children’s books, as we can see all around us. One of the most popular TV shows on air today is HBO’s Game of Thrones, adapted from George R. R. Martin’s acclaimed A Song of Ice and Fire book series, and it’s no secret that with all the violence, murder, sex, and profanity the show has to offer, it’s not a Saturday morning favourite.

Martin’s books, along with Neil Gaiman’s Stardust and a healthy chunk of J. R. R. Tolkien’s entire bibliography, are examples of “high fantasy”, in contrast to “low fantasy”, examples of which are J. K. Rowling’s aforementioned Harry Potter series and Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series. Continue reading A Song of High and Low Fantasy →

As I told you in my last our exchange partners from Spain came to Austria.

Later, about a week ago, I travelled to Spain for the exchange. There were some differences in the way my partner lived  that I’m going to tell you about now. Continue reading Student Exchanges Spain and Austria →

Are you following the show “Germany’s Next Topmodel“? The show is currently on season 11. This year the jury consists of Heidi Klum, Thomas Hayo and Michael Michalski.

This year they decided to split the 20 girls up into two teams – Team Thomas and Team Michael. I don’t think that this was the best idea because when there are only 2 contestants left on one team they can’t just kick out one of them, because it would be unfair for one team to only have one member left. In the past years the contestants advancement only depended on the performance and the strength a model had in the past week, but in the current season this doesn’t seem to matter as much, because the teams need to stay balanced. Also I think that when there were no teams the candidates were rated more equally, because now of course the team leader doesn’t treat the other team the same way he treats his own. Continue reading Germany’s Next Topmodel →

Is it important that husbands and wives have the same educational level? And should the man in a modern relationship be responsible for bringing the money home, and should the woman just be expected to cook and raise the children?

Today I am going to share with you my personal thoughts about what role education plays in a relationship. First of all, I have to say that I can’t think of anything more important for a woman to be very well educated and independent. All women on earth should have a good education, a high school diploma, maybe even a university degree and I think it is also very important to have a driver’s license. I know that’s easy to say living in a country which is virtually in the middle of Europe and being used to nothing other than these standards. Of course, I have to consider that not in every country do the women have the possibility to go to school, but I also know that slowly, but surely, girls all around the world are beginning to enjoy the pleasure of education. Unfortunately, this process will take a while. To all the women in countries with great education standards: don’t be silly or lazy and waste your educational opportunities, rather take the chance to become an independent and strong woman! Continue reading Education in Relationships →

Now it’s finally come! The MLB (Major League Baseball) season has started! But what does this mean to the Chicago White Sox?

The White Sox won five games straight from April 23 to April 27, making the Blue Jays look old, before loosing back-to-back games in Batlimore on the 28th and 29th. But, Chicago came back in the final two match ups of the series, scoring a slim 8-7 victory on the last Saturday and a confidence-boosting win on Sunday. So, yeah, Chicago lost twice last week, but they also came back in a big way. All together I think that this will be a great season for the Chicago White Sox. Last year they came fourth but I think that they even have a chance of getting third this season.

Of course, we don’t know how the season will end for the Sox, but for now keep on shouting: ” White Sox, White Sox, go,go, go,go”

Are you a big Sox fan as well?

I bet every one of us has seen someone being bullied. But did we actually do something to help?

When I was in kindergarten there was a girl who never played with the others. She didn’t have friends. Soon some boys started laughing at her and saying mean things to her. During the following weeks the situation got worse! They started stealing her shoes and jackets but none of the adults noticed anything. However a lot of kids, including me, saw what the girl was going through but no one did anything to help her. Continue reading Bully or Victim? →

WHY YOU HAVE TO READ: THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK

SUMMARY

On Anne’s thirteenth birthday, her parents gave her a diary. She was very excited to have something where she could write down her secret thoughts. Even though she had a rich social life, she felt misunderstood by everyone she knew. So she started to write her diary to a imaginary girl named Kitty. Continue reading Why you have to read: The Diary of Anne Frank →

Everyone knows that blueberries are tasty, round blue fruit, which you can buy at the supermarket or pick in the forest. However, they are much more then just that: they are really healthy too.They were even rated as one of the healthiest foods by the “George Mateljan Foundation”, which is a foundation founded by George Mateljan who tries to find the healthiest foods. Continue reading Why Blueberries Are Great →