When you live away from your country for a decent amount of time, you start to appreciate the little things which you didn’t before. In parallel, you begin to notice distinctions and parallels that define your current location as a “Home” or just a place for someone else; I refer to myself as a “Traveller.”
Berlin is the hub for all the cultures, countries and races in the world. Here you want people from all walks of life to come together to get something new out of their lives. Berlin is a city of chance and unlike other cities in Germany, English is the most spoken language here since everybody is a tourist or here for a brief time. You meet and greet people from all over the world here, thinking it’s a small world after all.
Decent things I have felt or seen since I started living here:
- People value their Ruhezeit: Everybody values Ruhezeit (quiet time) and doesn’t bug people unless they do something unlawful like playing loud music or mixing Bio garbage (mull) with Plastic garbage.
- People greet each other: This is probably my best thing to do in a day, greeting people Good Morning (Guten Morgen) and passing smiles along the way. And people here reciprocate that which is quite nice.
- Time value: People here are very time strict, bound and stick to the time, no extra work, if yes, then you get paid for it. They are all about appointments (Termin) for everything in life – like Doctor’s visits, Official Government offices, Job interviews and more.
- Nobody judges anybody: It’s the place for free spirits, no matter how you look, you have every right to get a job like anybody here. Got tattoos or piercings or colourful here or dress like a drag queen, no worries you can do any job you like if you are qualified enough for it.
- Use of Bicycles: People here really value the use of bicycles, since it is environmentally friendly and you will see especially in summer, a lot of people use bicycles and even shout at other people if they are walking in the bicycle lane (Fahrradspur).
- Club Central of the world: Berlin has the world’s most famous clubs that come with a reputation like Kitkat, Berghain, Kater Blau and more.
- Scenic Clouds: I love looking at the clouds here because they change a lot in a day, from rainy clouds to sunny clouds to windy clouds to clear skies, I just love it. With the sun, rain, and wind all occurring in one day, the weather is also exciting.
- Transport facilities are good: I appreciate the options I have for travelling. Yeah, sometimes, the trains are late and that’s bad but, I do value the modes of transportation available here.
- A good conversation with a stranger: It is easier to talk to people about weather and they truly have a lot of say about other things as well. People talk about their experiences and share stories which are fascinating to hear.
- 5 days life: I love how people work for 5 days and on weekends party like there is no tomorrow. They have separate work and personal life and don’t let it collide. They like to spend their Saturdays and Sundays with friends and family: doing barbeque, going to public parks, shopping at the local market and more.
Substandard things I have felt or seen since I started living here:
- Get paper mail in the post: I understand they are all about environmental and climate change, but they still use paper for their mail. I have two piles of papers in my cupboard about insurance, banks, ARD, and more. Isn’t saving trees a big part of climate control and environmental change?
- Open use of Weed: The consumption of weed in the open has been legalized since May 2024 and now, people are openly abusing weed and making others uncomfortable with the usage.
- Path of Metros smell like piss: Whenever I have to take a metro (S-Bahn) from my station, I have to go through the steps which smell like piss and everything disgusting. So, I usually stop myself from breathing for about a minute, whenever I am close to that place.
- Police just write reports: I remember when I came to the city, I used to get intimidated by the police. But that was the past, now I don’t care at all. Why? They just write reports and don’t take any action. After a week, they will send you a post stating, that you filled out a case, and we did all we could, that’s it. They are hot, and well-mannered and only use violence during protests and rallies.
- Too many taxes: I have been living in an apartment for a year now, and still every month I pay Television and Broadcasting tax i.e. 18 euros. I have been registered under the apartment and yet they say, I live in a different place. Nothing is free.
- Strong coffee: I used to be a fan of coffee back home, but since coming here, German coffee has started giving me severe headaches so, I cannot consume it without a headache.
- Difficult to befriend people: German people don’t let strangers into their friend’s circle, they are friendly and respectful but that’s all. So, to make friends, you must join some international meet-and-greet circles, and hope to find people you can get along with. Good Luck!
- Beer is cheaper than Water: Yep, you heard me right, since Beer is what Germans and their culture are all about. You will find beer choices at cheaper prices than water.
- Food is too bland: German food is all about the consumption of sausages, bread, beer, cow, coffee, currywurst, pretzels, and sparkling water. Although, they love senf (mustard) and eat it with every meal of theirs. They do have a dish about Potatoes (Bratkartoffeln).
- Open Relationships/Marriages: This is a trend here. People want to date everybody they can get their hands on even when they are in a relationship or marriage. They enjoy the economic benefits they get in taxes with marriage but want more people to enjoy their private life.
It’s not good to know a country from just one city, which is why these comments look at Berlin and not at Germany as a whole. I adore Germans because they are nice, kind, welcoming and appreciative of each person’s unique abilities and attributes.
