Episodes
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 pu…
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 sinc…
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 …
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 "ri…
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 …
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, talk…
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,…
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 learnin…
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 t…
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 …
One year anniversary live stream - recorded 29th May 2020
May 30, 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…
You go me on the cookie! (Dana Newman from Wanted Adventure)
May 25, 2020
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…
Seven months as an exchange student in Germany (Montana Showalter from the USA)
May 18, 2020
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 …
Learning German with apps, and working in the video games industry (Thomas from the UK)
May 11, 2020
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 …
Traveling with teenagers, and interrupted travel plans (Linda from the USA)
May 4, 2020
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…
German culture: The top 10 grossing German movies (Dominik from the Ach! podcast)
April 28, 2020
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…
Homebrewing beer (Greg & Brigida)
April 23, 2020
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…
From USA to Germany, California style (Greg from USA and Brigida from Germany)
April 21, 2020
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…
BONUS - Poetry in Berlin, feminism, and diversity (Deenara from Russia)
April 13, 2020
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 …
Some German idioms (Steph Fuccio from USA)
April 6, 2020
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…
Dealing with depression in Germany (Deenara from Russia)
March 30, 2020
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…
Being a TV anchor, online weirdos, and stereotypes about Russian women (Daria from Russia)
March 23, 2020
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…
Coronavirus and COVID-19 in Germany (with Nicole from The Expat Cast and Steph from Geopats)
March 16, 2020
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…
Leaving Germany after a decade (Natalie from the UK)
March 9, 2020
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…