Spending the Thanksgiving holiday with friends who have recently moved to Germany, I found myself thinking – yet again – "I am becoming sooo German". The topic of conversation was the abundance of deliciousness available at German bakeries; under contention was...
The GW Expat Blog
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cultural comparisons
Pregnancy in a Post-DE World
One of the most challenging factors in my family's relocation from Germany to San Diego this year has been doing all of this during the first trimester of a pregnancy. For anyone who has close experience with this 3-month (often longer) phase, it can make life extra...
Feiertage: What are we celebrating today?
With Halloween drawing close, I've been thinking about holidays for expats. Which holidays are observed and how they are celebrated varies a lot around the world. In the English-speaking countries alone there are great variations. (Canada's Thanksgiving is the second...
More Things I Miss About Germany: Punctuality and Public Transport
Being in Ireland for the past couple of months has of course given me a new perspective about Germany and its many benefits. Every expat in Germany has some painful dealings with bureaucracy and at least one or two stories to tell that make others cringe and nod in...
Dies and Das
Being a foreigner once again here in Ireland, after finally not feeling very foreign in Germany, is a new adventure. I finally learned the little cultural tricks in Germany, like not putting my hand out for change at the bakery, but waiting for them to place it on the...
Expats All Over Again: 10 Things I’ll Miss (and 10 Things I Won’t) About Germany
Like Jane and her husband, we are also on our way out of Germany. Unlike them though, we are becoming expats once again, this time in Ireland. There are so many things I love about living in Germany. This move happened quickly, and it was a choice for us, but it is...
German Transplants in California
We're a long way away from our Swabian village. Here in sunny California, the roads are wide, parking is plentiful and you throw everything away in one place. Welcome to the land of plenty. We've been here for one week, and my mind has been in a big jumble sorting out...
Goodbye Deutschland
The title of this post is not meant to be in reference to Germany and its standing at the World Cup. Rather, it is in reference to the fact that this will be my last post on this blog while living in Germany. One prominent aspect of expatriate life is a higher...
Germany’s North and South Divide
Perhaps you've heard of the Weisswurstäquator (white sausage equator - these sausages are particular to Bavaria). If you haven't, it's the line that divides the north of Germany from the south, and it runs just south of Frankfurt. (Writer's Note: this border is open...
Politicans and Universal Constants
Whenever I am stuck for a topic to write about, I can always get myself fired up by just reading the newspaper. Today was no exception. Guido Westerwelle, in particular, is a great topic whether in a blog or at the pub. Mr Westerwelle is currently the head of the...
Buying Shoes for Kids: Germany vs. the US
Just recently, I went to buy my youngest his first pair of shoes. Ty the au pair came with us to chase Olivia through the store, expecting this to be a short process. He was wrong, of course, because this is Germany, and everything takes just a little bit longer! And...
Raising “Free Range” Kids in Germany
I'm concluding my Christmas holidays now here in America, so it's natural for me to once again think about how different my life would be if I were living in America instead of in Germany, especially as a mother. Despite all my good intentions to not shop as much and...
Going Native (on Sundays)
Oh my goodness... I always knew there was more than a little bit of European in me; but my conversion to the German Way was more subtle and insidious than I could have imagined. I, unlike most other red blooded, consumer oriented, individualistic Americans was...
The Decline of Journalism
It is natural to feel less informed about your country of origin when you've been gone for a few years. Such is the case with me. I still have access to most of the same news sources. My hometown newspapers are online, major news channels are available here in...
The Dreaded Swine Flu
I'm quite positive that no one wants to read anything else about the swine flu at the moment, but unfortunately, the swine flu is the reason my blog was two days late this week. It has been a hard week for our family, because all four of the kids have been sick, and...
Closed Door Policy
When I moved to Germany for the first time in 1992, I was 21 and was going to university in Freiburg. I had never worked in an American office for more than the time required to do a temp job over spring break and had spent summers working at McDonald's. When I was...
Where a House is a Home
I've been living in Germany for about two years now. I knew things would be different here, but how things would be different was a big question mark. Although I had visited Germany a few times before, living here is a whole different ball game... as we Americans like...
Starting them young: Germans and Nudity and PEKiP
One of the aspects of German culture which we Americans often find so shocking is the prevalent open attitude towards nudity, otherwise known as naturalism. One of my good German friends is a big sauna goer and explained once to a group of us that her whole family was...
What’s in a Name
As an American, it would never occur to me to make a distinction such as “German” vs. “German national,” but it’s one that I’ve encountered while living in Germany. Not only would I never think to draw such lines, I find them offensive. It’s a debate that hits close...
Furry Love Part 2
The big day had come. We were nervous. My wife was busy cleaning. The house was spotless, which is certainly not normal for us. Cleaning was something that we both hate doing. We had all the windows open to air out the place, even though it was only about 60 degrees...
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