In the Beginning: Bureaucracy and Visas

In the Beginning: Bureaucracy and Visas

Getting accepted into a music conservatory in Germany was a huge accomplishment. I had found an apartment, unpacked my suitcase, opened a bank account, bought a bike and a mattress (huge purchases considering my budget), and got my Meldebestätigung, a type of resident registration providing proof of your address, necessary for a lot of bureaucratic procedures here. I got my public transport ticket which was a free monthly pass included in the tuition, or should I say, it basically was…

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5 German Christmas Traditions You Will Want To Try Out This Year

5 German Christmas Traditions You Will Want To Try Out This Year

Living in Germany as an expat, the holidays seem to hit pretty hard. Among all the warm lights and smells of cinnamon, the distance from family can be felt more than ever. Traditions surrounding the holidays are different, foreign, and even clash. Good luck trying to explain the multi-day appearances of the various German Santa-like figures AND Santa himself to a toddler. I’m gonna have to make a chart to keep them straight myself. But anyway… While I do miss…

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Sweets or Something Sour? Our Halloween in Germany

Sweets or Something Sour? Our Halloween in Germany

Now that both of our kids can walk and put up with some degree of shenanigans, we decided to do the full Halloween thing this year. Halloween is a holiday that was non-existent in Germany 20 years ago and has been slowly gaining popularity over the past few years. I’m not sure how it got started here officially, but I’m sure it had something to do with all of the American media (TV and movie) influence here, where Germans watch…

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In the Beginning: Why Germany?

In the Beginning: Why Germany?

So…why did I chose Germany anyway? During my Junior year of college, I participated in a study abroad program in Freiburg, Germany, located in the Black Forest. The city and the location were quite dreamy, to say the least! I not only studied German at the university, but also music performance at the conservatory. I played in a few student orchestras, with rehearsals in the evenings after classes, and also went on a few tours with these orchestras (like to…

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You Do WHAT With Your Garbage?! 40 Ways That European and American Homes Differ

You Do WHAT With Your Garbage?! 40 Ways That European and American Homes Differ

Ever wondered about what it’s like to actually live, not just vacation, in Europe? Ever checked out details on an AirBnB rental or watched House Hunters International and been curious about more details? Besides a higher price tag, a reputation for charm, and an electrical current to fry your hairdryer from home, there are lots of interesting differences between European and American homes. You may not notice some of these right away, but they do impact your day-to-day life and…

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8 Brutal Daily Reminders That You’re Living in a Country Once Ravaged by World Wars

8 Brutal Daily Reminders That You’re Living in a Country Once Ravaged by World Wars

In a lot of ways, daily life in Germany is comparable to life in the States. Living standards are similar, the basics are readily accessible, status quo exists, and people love to complain about the weather. Then, when you least expect it, baaaam – you are confronted head-on with some brutal reminders that you are living in a country that was ravaged by two world wars on its own soil, both of which it sorely lost. These are very strange…

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Why Zakopane is Not Only Poland’s Winter Capital – 48 hours with Family

Why Zakopane is Not Only Poland’s Winter Capital – 48 hours with Family

Zakopane, meaning “buried” (i.e. in snow) in Polish, is located in Southern Poland near the Slovakian border and was the destination of our mini family vacation last week. We booked an AirBnB apartment with mountain view in Zakopane for a bit of fun before attending a relative’s wedding a few hours away. Not that the wedding wasn’t fun too…it was wonderful and filled with tons of food! I was just the only one there who didn’t speak Polish (besides my…

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Not Germany’s Ugliest City – A Traveler’s Eye View of Neumünster

Not Germany’s Ugliest City – A Traveler’s Eye View of Neumünster

Expat life and the traveling mind go hand in hand. We’ve already traveled and experienced something new, and then have probably caught the travel bug (assuming the move was voluntary). Expat life is however, not always about travel – it’s more about spending lots of time somewhere new and learning the in-depth, cultural stuff that you would never know while skimming through a city in a few days or even a few weeks. As a foreigner living in another country,…

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What July 4th Means to Me as an American Not Even Living in America

What July 4th Means to Me as an American Not Even Living in America

For the first several years of living abroad, I didn’t really think about the 4th of July much. It comes at a time of year when most are preoccupied with planning for summer and wrapping up tasks before said fun begins. Not to mention that in every other country, obviously, this holiday is not a thing at all. Germany has their Reunification Day on October 3rd, which could be considered the equivalent, yet has no traditions surrounding the day other…

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In the Beginning: A Taste of Asia, Europe, and Things to Come

In the Beginning: A Taste of Asia, Europe, and Things to Come

My first time abroad was actually also the first time out of the Midwest, and boy was it a shocker! My family didn’t really go on vacations besides out East to my Aunt’s house in Pennsylvania, so I hadn’t seen a lot besides corn fields and museums during school breaks. While that was a great way to grow up, I had no idea what to even think (or even to think) about anywhere far away. I was and still am…

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