Expats in Germany and the other German-speaking countries are often surprised by a type of culture shock I call "inverse customs." These are practices that are either the exact opposite of, or extremely different from the same custom in the US. Expats quickly learn...
The GW Expat Blog
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communication
Expat Life and Loneliness
One of the most poignant feelings I have experienced as an expat is loneliness. It was an emotion that I knew very little of before I moved abroad. In some sense, I was probably naive in my adventurousness; I wanted to experience things that were new and different, I...
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Part 1)
No, I'm not going to discuss Spaghetti Westerns today. I'm going to list some of my expat likes (the good), dislikes (the bad) and major gripes (the ugly) related to living in Germany. Although I'm going to start with "the bad," you should know that my "good" list is...
Online Lifelines
Remember that time not long ago when long-distance phone calls were reserved for special occasions? Your uncle on the other side of the country would get a nice three minute phone call on his birthday, and your grandmother across the ocean could expect a quick "Merry...
Is Intercultural Business Training Worth It?
I recently had an encounter with some Americans who worked closely with German colleagues — not very well. They felt that their hard work and efforts were under-appreciated by the Germans and that they were regarded as a bunch of cowboys. They felt that compared to...
Expat, Phone Home
Nowadays, there are many cheap and easy ways to keep in touch with friends and family at home when you are an expat in Germany. When I first moved here in 1992, I was only really able to call my parents from a pay phone outside my dorm, and I could talk for about 5...
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