The men chose to speak only Spanish in the suite because, with the exception of Lombardo, a St. Louisan, Spanish is their native language. It's good to come home to people you know. The tradition started in Germany as early as the 19th century, he added. It continues today as groups of lawyers, doctors and other professionals reserve tables in German pubs to interact in a relaxed setting. Graduate students, most of them teaching assistants in German, lead the conversations.
Participation is voluntary.
No academic credit is involved. Participants could be taking their third year of German classes or their first year. They meet in order to speak German in a more 'real' context. It should come as no surprise that at the dinner table, the students also talk about food and argue the merits of healthy vs. unhealthy edibles. Cory has studied German for 11 years.