To live in a different country means to wade through an ocean of new information all the time. The secret to navigate life in Germany is in the details: besides the basics (visas, housing, money), it’s important to consider all the cultural and structural differences that exist. So we’ll help you navigate through those in the beginning, listing here a few situations that you’re likely to face when you live in Germany.
- Lüften: Germans have some sort of paradoxical relationship with windows and air circulation. While opening all windows and air the place out at least once a day (even during winter) is deemed vital, at the same time, drafts are believed to make people ill, and should be avoided at all costs.
- Pfand: most bottled drinks come in returnable packaging, with a small deposit attached (0,08 EUR for glass bottles and 0,25 EUR for plastic), which you can claim back by returning the empty bottles
- Sonntagsruhe: on Sundays in Germany, it’s not allowed to make any kind of noise (and you can get fined for it), and businesses must remain closed. That includes grocery stores and supermarkets, except for those inside certain train stations
- Torrents: sharing unauthorized content is illegal in Germany, and heavily monitored. So, unless you want to get a surprise fine of several hundred euro, you’d better uninstall those torrent clients right away.
- Holidays: Christmas and Easter in Germany have an extra day! So Dec. 26th and Easter Monday are holidays as well – and, naturally, shops will be closed, so get your shopping done accordingly.
- Feuerwerk: the sale and use of fireworks is forbidden in Germany, with the sole exception of New Year’s Eve, As a result, the last day of the year is a very noisy affair.
- Mülltrennung: sorting trash is really important in Germany. There are containers for glass, paper, packaging, regular garbage and organic garbage. Whatever falls outside these categories, such as furniture, is considered Sperrmüll, and has its own collection schedule.
- Hausschuhe: You’re supposed to take your shoes off before entering a home in Germany, Hence the beloved and omnipresent Hausschuhe, or “house shoes”. And you’d better get used to them, because you will most certainly own a pair.
- Abendbrot: instead of a warm meal for dinner, some Germans prefer a light, cold supper consisting of bread, cheese, cold cuts and sometimes soup. This Abendbrot usually is taken very early, around 6 or 7 pm.
- Numbers: locating a specific address in Germany can pose a problems sometimes. First, apartments are not numbered – they’re identified by the main resident’s last name (that means you need to have your last name on your mailbox to be able to get mail). Second, in certain places (mostly former Prussian territory), street numbers don’t follow the standard “odds on one side, and evens on the other”, but rather a horseshoe structure, with numbers increasing sequentially on one side to the end of the street, and then doing a U-turn and continuing on the opposite side coming back. Yes, it’s complicated.
So these are just a few particularities, and you’re likely to discover a few more when you decide to live in Germany. Studying in Germany can be really exciting and enriching. Get in touch with us and find out more!