Day 22 of 35

Day 22: Listed Windows, Cold Draughts

In a listed nineteenth-century building in Görlitz, Stefanie Richter (A), a tenant, complains to her landlord, Matthias Lehmann (B), about her draughty old windows.

How to study this lesson 3 steps
  1. Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
  2. Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a German word to see what it means.
  3. Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native German, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.

Dialogue

Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.

Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning

  1. A

    Herr Lehmann, meine Gardinen flattern, obwohl alle Fenster zu sind. Die alten Dinger müssen raus.

    Mr Lehmann, my curtains flap about even when all the windows are shut. Those old things have got to go.

  2. B

    Ich weiß, aber das Haus steht unter Denkmalschutz. Kunststofffenster genehmigt das Denkmalamt nie im Leben.

    I know, but the building is listed. The heritage office will never in a million years approve plastic windows.

  3. A

    Dann stellen Sie doch wenigstens einen Antrag! Ich habe gerade 380 Euro Heizkosten nachgezahlt.

    Then at least put in an application! I've just had to pay 380 euros extra for heating.

  4. B

    Den habe ich im Herbst gestellt, und die Antwort war: „Die historischen Holzfenster sind zu erhalten.“

    I put one in back in the autumn, and the answer was: 'The historic wooden windows are to be preserved.'

  5. A

    Na toll. Bis sich die Behörde rührt, werde ich mir hier eine Lungenentzündung geholt haben.

    Oh, great. By the time the authorities stir themselves, I'll have caught pneumonia in here.

  6. B

    Keine Sorge, wir halten die Wärme drin, indem wir innen hinter jedes alte Fenster ein zweites einbauen.

    Don't worry, we'll keep the heat in by fitting a second window on the inside behind each old one.

  7. A

    Also doppelt so viel Fensterputzen? Das nehme ich gern in Kauf.

    So twice as much window-cleaning? I'm happy to put up with that.

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