Episodes
German youth words of 2020 (Nina from Germany)
Sept. 28, 2020
Every year, the Langenscheidt publishing house searches for the youth word of that year. It's happening again, and Nina from Germany (who previously appeared in the Fasching episode back in February) helps me explain the words and the memes behind them. We also try and figure out if the youth actua…
Germany and climate change (Patrick Niedermayer from Germany)
Sept. 21, 2020
For foreigners living in Germany, you might be thinking that you live in a country that is doing a lot to combat global warming. After all, Germany signed the Paris Agreement, and it put together the Klimapaket (climate package). But according to my guest this week, Patrick Niedermayer, Germany isn…
BONUS - Recent German history, and escaping East Berlin by pretending to be a swan (Emma from the USA)
Sept. 18, 2020
In this outtake from my interview with Emma from the USA, we discuss recent German history, and how to win freedom by pretending to be a swan. Follow Emma on Instagram JOIN THE THE GERMANY EXPERIENCE FACEBOOK GROUP Visit the official The Germany Experience website Contact me: info@thegermanyexperie…
Emma dances here (Emma from the USA)
Sept. 14, 2020
Emma is a dancer who moved from New York City to Berlin. Even though Berlin is a big city, she still has to adjust to the slower pace of life here. She also discusses why there is more freedom to be adventurous with your career in Germany, why Germany is attractive to performing artists, the Visa t…
Everything changes all the time: finding your place in Germany (Shaked from Israel)
Sept. 7, 2020
Shaked moved from Tel Aviv, Israel, to Germany to take the next step in her dance career: a move to dance management or production. But does she want to leave the actual dancing aspect behind? And how can she adapt when the German city she lives in doesn't necessarily give her the career opportunit…
RERUN: Living abroad teaches us the power of connections (Anna from Canada)
Sept. 1, 2020
Originally released on September 4th, 2019 (episode #14). Anna Noakes Schulze from Canada presented a TEDx talk called “ Living Abroad Teaches Us the Power of Connections ”, and in it she tells her own expat story to demonstrate how those that we make connections with shape our lives and who we are…
RERUN: Discussing German stereotypes with Nicole from The Expat Cast
Aug. 24, 2020
Originally released on October 20th, 2019 (episode #20). Are Germans really efficient? Do they like order? Are they as punctual as everyone says they are? Nicole, a US expat living in Germany and the host of The Expat Cast , helps me confirm or bust common stereotypes and cliches about Germans. Fin…
RERUN: Teaching English, Learning Languages, and Raising Bilingual Children in Germany (Lori from USA)
Aug. 17, 2020
Originally released on July 2nd, 2019 (episode #6). Lori from USA has been teaching English in Germany for almost 40 years, so it’s not surprising that she has a thing or two to say about learning new languages. In fact, her language pedigree goes back to even before she moved to Germany, when she …
An update on my hospital visit, and audio logs from my hospital room
Aug. 12, 2020
I spent two nights in hospital recently, and during my stay, I recorded several audio logs about my experience. You can hear them in this bonus episode. Since I won't be able to edit the podcast while I recover, I will be putting out some 2019 episodes over the next few weeks. Thank you to everyone…
German culture: The top 10 selling musical artists in Germany (Craig from Scotland)
Aug. 3, 2020
In order to better understand the music tastes of Germans, Craig from Scotland joins me to look at the top 10 selling musical artists in Germany. This includes German and international acts who have sold the most albums since the BVMI started certifying albums back in 1975. You can find the list on…
African abroad (Tania from Kenya)
July 27, 2020
Tania was born in Kenya and has lived in five different African countries. After a short time in Thailand, she’s landed up in Germany, and she feels like this is somewhere she can stay for a longer time. Some of the reasons for this include feeling safer in Germany than in Kenya, and having the saf…
Sandals and socks, making friends with Germans, and "selfishly" staying in Germany (Amy from the USA)
July 20, 2020
Amy always had a dream of living in Germany, and even happened to marry someone who felt the same way. So living here has kind of been a dream come true. And generally, Amy is really happy here -- she admits that she was "right" about wanting to live here. But making friends with Germans is one asp…
Just a diplomatic spouse (Alexandra from Romania)
July 13, 2020
Being the spouse of a diplomat comes with a very specific lifestyle: you move around a lot, you don't stay in a country for long, and you never know where you'll be moved to next. Alexandra Paucescu is a Romanian married to a diplomat, and she has been based in Germany for several years. We discuss…
Singing schlager music in Germany, and misogyny in the music industry (Sarah Jane Scott from the USA)
July 6, 2020
Sarah Jane Scott is an American who has had success as a Schlager singer in Germany. But how does an English-speaking "Ausländer" become a Schlager star? Sarah Jane explains her path to Germany and her Schlager success, talks about what it’s like to be a Schlager singer, and about how she is curren…
A southern liberal in Germany, running a coffee shop, and casual German racism (Christy from the USA)
June 29, 2020
Christy is a southern liberal who opened a coffee shop in Germany. Over a Pfälzer Weinschorle, she discusses how she tried to integrate herself the “right” way, how Germany is not the best country for special needs children, not going back to the States for 10 years, and how Germans are racist in a…
Trilingualism, switching between languages, and Italian words adopted by German (Carmen from Italy)
June 22, 2020
Carmen is a trilingual Italian living in Munich, Germany. She speaks Italian, German and English fluently, and joins me to discuss her path to becoming trilingual, how she balances three languages, and the effects of learning multiple languages on her native language. We also talk about Italian wor…
The 5 phases of culture shock (Beth from the USA)
June 15, 2020
Beth from the USA moved to Germany to be with her husband, and she found that her adjustment period resembled the 5 stages of culture shock very closely. We talk about how she dealt with each stage, and where she is now on the curve. We also talk about how fencing is actually the perfect coronaviru…
Broken systems, turning points, and racism in Germany (Jessica from Germany)
June 9, 2020
Jessica is a German African American who has lived in Germany since she was in kindergarten. She joins me for this episode to discuss the recent events that started with George Floyd, and the racism that she deals with on a regular basis here in Germany. Follow Jessica on Instagram . The Trevor Noa…