A Preview of German Place Names and Connections: From Leipsic to Winesburg When I first wrote about German Place Names in the USA and Canada more than five months ago, I realized that the topic was far more vast than I had originally thought. Since then, as I have...
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Germany in the United States and Canada
North American Communities with German Namesakes This was originally intended as a normal brief blog post about German (and Austria/Swiss) place names in the USA. However, as I was researching and writing this post, I began to realize that the topic was far more...
Are Home Appliances Boring?
... if so, you must have the wrong brand. Moving from Germany back to North America, it has become painfully evident to me that the German obsession with perfection in engineering doesn’t translate across the Atlantic. In multiple rented spaces, I have made do with a...
Gone Fishin’
Recently we spent a long weekend on the shores of one of the thousands of lakes that dot Ontario. The weather was fantastic, so we spent lots of time paddling, in canoes and in the pool. Most of the time, however, we spent fishing. The kids had a fantastic time trying...
Incorporating a New Worldview, Into Your Old Life
It’s fairly common to feel like an alien at times, while living in a foreign country. But now, when I come home to Canada for my regular summer visits, I often feel like a bit of an alien here too. In recent conversations with family and friends at home, I am finding...
Germans, the notoriously direct
I pissed off a German today. Such an occurrence is not uncommon. Whether it's my barking dog, my driving skills, or how I maintain my yard, it seems that on a regular basis I am being told that I'm doing something wrong. In a blog post from years ago ("There's a dog...
Expatriates and the cost of living in A, D, CH
Expatriates don't always have a choice of where they're assigned to work, but they definitely need to know the cost of living in their assignment location. If your salary is paid by a US company, for example, that salary might put you at a huge disadvantage if you are...
How being an Expat has made me a better . . . Brit?
A few posts back I wrote about how being an expat has made me a better Canadian. After thinking about it a bit further, I have actually come to realize that being an expat has also made me a better English and Irishwoman. Now I have to admit, I have never been to the...
What Makes You Happy?
About a year ago, I was on a walk in Germany with another expat. We were exchanging experiences and advice on living with the natives and dealing with German spouses, and comparing life in Germany to life elsewhere. Inevitably, the question came up: "Do you think...
How being an Expat has made me a Better Canadian
It seems that every year, as I am doing the last minute prepping for our upcoming move back to Europe (Hamburg, Germany this time around), I get that same sad, longing feeling. Over the years of my on-again-off-again expat life, I have grown ever more fond of my home...
Auf Wiedersehen
This afternoon a crowd of my in-laws converged on our house for the traditional German Sunday afternoon Kaffee & Kuchen. This doesn’t happen very often, maybe once a year, as they all live over an hour away. Anyone with in-laws will sympathize with the latent...
These are a few of my favorite things . . .
I have been back in Canada for a few months now, for the usual hockey off-season, and I can't help but continually make comparisons between my two homes. When nearing the end of the season in Europe, I start fantasizing about things at home in Canada: all the foods...
When to go Home
It’s hard to know when to go home. Situations arise back in Canada that often tug at my heart, wanting to pull me across the ocean. Though we get to experience many wonderful things while living here, we expats also miss out on a whole lot. While we do have most of...
Canadian Wedding with a German/Swiss Twist
Four months before my July wedding I was inundated with the same comment from almost every female I encountered: “Oh you must be so busy!” Further into the conversation always came the question, “Is it difficult planning a wedding from overseas?” I was living with my...
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