Episodes

Aug. 12, 2020

An update on my hospital visit, and audio logs from my hospital room

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 pu…
Aug. 3, 2020

German culture: The top 10 selling musical artists in Germany (Craig from Scotland)

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 sinc…
July 27, 2020

African abroad (Tania from Kenya)

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 …
July 20, 2020

Sandals and socks, making friends with Germans, and "selfishly" staying in Germany (Amy from the USA)

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 "ri…
July 13, 2020

Just a diplomatic spouse (Alexandra from Romania)

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 …
July 6, 2020

Singing schlager music in Germany, and misogyny in the music industry (Sarah Jane Scott from the USA)

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, talk…
June 29, 2020

A southern liberal in Germany, running a coffee shop, and casual German racism (Christy from the USA)

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,…
June 22, 2020

Trilingualism, switching between languages, and Italian words adopted by German (Carmen from Italy)

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 learnin…
June 15, 2020

The 5 phases of culture shock (Beth from the USA)

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 t…
June 9, 2020

Broken systems, turning points, and racism in Germany (Jessica from Germany)

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 …
May 30, 2020

One year anniversary live stream - recorded 29th May 2020

Recorded from a Facebook live stream to celebrate one year of The Germany Experience podcast. I answer listener questions, list my top 5 highlights of having a podcast, and talk to previous guests on the show. Dwight's YouTu…
May 25, 2020

You go me on the cookie! (Dana Newman from Wanted Adventure)

Dana Newman from the Wanted Adventure YouTube channel joins me to discuss her book, "You go me on the cookie!". The book (written in German) describes Dana's adventures (and misadventures) learning German, and also highlight…
Guest: Dana Newman
May 18, 2020

Seven months as an exchange student in Germany (Montana Showalter from the USA)

Montana Showalter was an American high school student who went on an exchange program to Germany (called CBYX ). At around the same time, she started a YouTube channel intended to document her experiences in Germany. Little …
May 11, 2020

Learning German with apps, and working in the video games industry (Thomas from the UK)

Thomas Cartwright is originally from the UK, and landed up in Hamburg working for a video games developer called InnoGames . He explains why a company like InnoGames is a good fit for foreigners looking for opportunities in …
May 4, 2020

Traveling with teenagers, and interrupted travel plans (Linda from the USA)

Travelteening is a blog that gives travel advice for traveling with teens. The blogger behind it, Linda from the USA, joins me to discuss the value her family sees in traveling, their three-year-plan to give their children t…
April 28, 2020

German culture: The top 10 grossing German movies (Dominik from the Ach! podcast)

A good way to explore Germany's culture is through its movies. And what better way to do that than to look at the German movies that have had the most success in Germany? But you'll be surprised at the movies that the German…
April 23, 2020

Homebrewing beer (Greg & Brigida)

The guest in the previous episode, Greg, is a homebrewing enthusiast, and he talks about his adventures and misadventures brewing beer. He also discusses his website, Brew Wizard , that helps you create recipes and gives det…
April 21, 2020

From USA to Germany, California style (Greg from USA and Brigida from Germany)

When Greg and Brigida decided to move from California to Germany, they did it with just a small amount of money and two dogs. And they were met with adversity from almost the moment they arrived. This is their story of how t…
April 13, 2020

BONUS - Poetry in Berlin, feminism, and diversity (Deenara from Russia)

Deenara from Russia appeared in episode 38, about mental health in Germany. However, her original interview with Berlin-based journalist Daria Sukharchuk also included her talking about her time in Germany. Here is the rest …
April 6, 2020

Some German idioms (Steph Fuccio from USA)

Steph Fuccio, host of the Geopats podcast, is new to Germany and to the German language. So as a new learner, I thought it would be fun to throw some German idioms at her and see if she could figure them out. If you're new t…
March 30, 2020

Dealing with depression in Germany (Deenara from Russia)

How do you recognize that you are depressed? How do you seek out therapy and other help for depression in Germany? And what if you are from a culture that has a stigma towards mental health issues and therapy? Deenara, who i…
March 23, 2020

Being a TV anchor, online weirdos, and stereotypes about Russian women (Daria from Russia)

Daria, originally from Moscow, Russia, is working as a freelance journalist in Germany. She helped me put an upcoming episode about mental health together, and I wanted to introduce her first. We discuss her role as a TV anc…
March 16, 2020

Coronavirus and COVID-19 in Germany (with Nicole from The Expat Cast and Steph from Geopats)

Since COVID-19 in Germany got "real" on Friday 13th March, I felt I had to discuss it. And who better than to discuss it with than two other podcasters: Nicole from The Expat Cast and Steph from Geopats . We cover our person…
March 9, 2020

Leaving Germany after a decade (Natalie from the UK)

What is it that makes someone who has lived in Germany for over a decade decide that it's time to go back "home"? Natalie is originally from the UK, and is now making the decision to leave Germany after 11 years. She explain…