Studying abroad in Germany

[Brotherofwill]

.

If you want to party and see strange customs, go to Berlin

So, jetzt stimmt's .

I've lived in a few different places in Germany and Hessen is an excellent location for you (Osnabrueck I have no idea about). In Germany different states have different mentalities, and Hessen tends to be easy-going and American friendly. I'd definetly recommend going to Berlin for a visit, which is basically a foreign city when you compare it to the rest of the country. You'll meet a lot of fuck-ups but you'll also have a great time as a traveller/visitor.

 

[Fat Hippo]

Like in most other places, soccer is the sport of choice. Also, the beer in Germany is probably the best in the world, so see if you can find any good local breweries, as there are quite many of them. In fact, the food is great in general, so I hope you're open minded. Not that German food is all that exotic, but I know how you Americans are. (I know, racism)
I generally get along with Germans quite well, I think you'll have fun.

 

[JimmerDunda]

One thing I learned not to do in Europe is to not speak english loud or act like an arrogant tourist prick.

Are the German's fashion nazis(pun not intended) at all? I mean I usually like to wear comfortable wind pants when I am resting or on my way to work out. Are there any major "dos" or "donts" when it comes to german fashion.

 

[Hanogar]

Yup, have fun, we Germans hate americans, and we have enough good reasons to do so. So say your from Canada.

Germany, on the whole, is a verrrrry conservative country. It probably wont take you too long to start hating the two major political partys, the CDU and FDP, who like to sit around and do nothing while the country slowly collapses in on itself. Id reccomend you visit Berlin-Kreuzberg, which should give you a glance at what the country is really like, if you dont get shot.

so wrong ... first of all the 2 "big" partys are CDU/CSU and the SPD the smaller partys are FDP and "Die Gruenen" and about hating, its not that we hate americans the generall thinking is more like "they are stupid" but thats the same as americans think "they are nazis" or everybody thinks "japanese are only samurai and kamikatze" its a good old vorurteil

Yes, so wrong, the SPD has gone down to 15% and CDu and FDP have united in "Schwarz Gelb". Please tell me you dont live in Germany.

they only work together they are not united, the 2 big partys in germany are still cdu/csu and spd. and for your information, im german and the spd is around 21% the fdp 14,6% cdu is 36% and die gruenen are at 16%

here's a link as prof (german)
http://www.focus.de/politik/deutschland/umfragen-gruene-im-aufwind-fdp-sackt-ab_aid_474535.html

 

[IckleMissMayhem]

Europäischer haßen Amerika.

That's a bit of a sweeping generalisation, nicht wahr?

So long as you make an effort to speak German, you'll generally find people are happy to help you out, if you get stuck.

 

[Aerodyamic]

I love Cologne, tis a lovely old city to visit, (especially in December for the Weihnachtsmarkt), also, Aachen is pretty cool, but I don't think Osnabruck is that close to either. About the only thing I know about Osnabruck is that there is/was a British Army base fairly close by, as my boyfriend's brother was staioned there for a couple of years. He loved the place, so I don't think it can be that bad!

Apparently, there's a popular nightclub in Cologne that also houses some form of 'adult entertainment', and from the description I heard, it's essentially a whorehouse. Each floor of the structure has a theme: redheads, blondes, asian, etc. Just don't go up to the top, which is apparently the transvestite/transsexual themed floor.

I mean, unless your into that.

 

[JimmerDunda]

That leaves the question of sports.
I think I'm right in saying that football (yes, soccer to Americans) has No. 1 spot pretty much to itself. No. 2 is Handball and after that its Basketball, maybe field hockey. Besides the team sports a lot of people go to the gym, although my uneducated guess would be that Americans are somehow more serious about that.
Ah, yes, you will probably find American football and baseball somewhere, but they are really not mainstream. Likewise, shooting for sporting or recreational purposes is only very rarely encountered.


Hope you enjoy your stay over here.
DA MAISTA!

Sorry for the bump.

I noticed Germany has a very large basketball league. Even a ProA team in Osnabruck. Is this league kinda big here? I mean is there a nice atmosphere with cool fans and competitive teams?

 

[Stranger of Sorts]

I've been to Germany and it's a pretty sweet place, as an Englishman I expected to be hated but all the Germans I met were friendly enough. Nearly all of them speak perfect English and the public transport is amazing.

Oh and for sports, football is the most popular sport basically anywhere outside America.

 

[DA_MAISTA]

I hope it is legal to link this here in the forums.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYKJAzISjsk&feature=related

I think it gives you an impression of the athmosphere. Since I have never been to an NBA game it will probably all be on a much much amaller scale that in the USA. Quality of the teams varies of course and I can't tell you anything abou partzicular rivalries or especially tense pairings.
On the other hand you will probably only find very dedicated fans at the games so athmosphere should be fairly good most of the times.

By the way...
I just checked one of the BBL-ticket retailers and it appears that the season tickets are sold out for some stadiums. Single tickets seem to cost from around 12 to 26? (16 to 35$).


Cheers
DA MAISTA!

 

[Undo]

Pretty much all Germans learn English in school. But not all folks here are good at it or are locals. My ex from the States, who only knew English when she came here had bigger problems than I ever expected. But, as anywhere, if you give it some effort and use hands and feet people will try to help.

Never been to Hessen or Osnabrück, so can't comment. Munich is nice though there's a local tradition for being grumpy. I'm living there again. We got over 1000 beergardens [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_garden] in and around town, where you can sit outside, shaded by trees, drink beer in 1 litre mugs [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ma%C3%9F] (2 pints) and buy or bring your own food. And there's the Oktoberfest of course. Ah, and I think the nude sun bathing here is pretty well known.

I also found the region around the Rhine river pretty impressive. With, at some places like Koblenz [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koblenz], all them castles but a few miles apart. There's lots of wine farming, too, with fun town celebrations after the harvest to have some tastings.

Hope you'll enjoy your stay.
(and while it is true about German punctuality and doing things by the book, following the rules, I sure don't fit that description)

 

[DividedUnity]

Im from ireland but ive been to germany twice on exchange trips. Any reactions to me might be different to amercians though i doubt it will be severe

The first time I visited germany was to the city of Munich or Munchen auf Deutsch. The people here were very reserved and did not care for small talk much when it came to me. I found that the people here were helpful when asked for directions but were not too bothered with engaging in conversation other than that. (This is just going from what I experienced)

The second time I visited germany was in Berlin. I stay in the schonebery area of the city with a small family. It was one of the best weeks of my life. The family was very nice, they spoke in English to me sometimes when I did not know the German for a particular response. We sat together at the table and they went about their daily lives as normal but always included me in everything even something as simple as their discussion about their daughters history test. The people in Berlin were the nicest I have talked to in any european country. They smiled and were always very helpful. Even in bars I could walk up to anyone and begin talking with them about anything. When they learned of my nationality they were always so excited and called their friends over. I met two guys who had actually been to american where they learned english which i found very interesting as when they spoke in english you could swear they were Californian. Im unsure of the spelling but the Kreutsberg area of berlin is fantastic for nightlife and there is so much fun to be had in the many clubs and bars which are so different to the ones we had here.

Berlin also had fantastic sights it is one of the most beautiful citys in the world. I found however differences in culture. They do not watch nearly as much television as I did at home but in terms of sport it was similar. They enjoyed football and basketball. I went to the Olympicstadion on berlin to watch a match between FC Koln and Hertha BSC. The atmosphere was amazing.

Im not sure if this was answering your question. But if you have even a chance to visit germany, especially Berlin. I think you will regret it for the rest of your life if you do not take it. The culture is only slightly different and it will give you another view on life.

 

[Horticulture]

I've studied in Germany on two occasions, the first in Wiesbaden (in Hessen near Frankfurt) and in Trier (on the border with Luxembourg). I didn't feel especially ostracized for being American at any time. There aren't any wide cultural gaps (just recycle your bottles), and I found most Germans to be pleasant, if a bit reserved initially. I recommend getting up to speed on soccer; it's a FIFA year and watching the games is a great way to meet new people.

Places to visit: I particularly enjoyed Berlin and Köln. Berlin is kind of on its own wavelength compared to the other cities I've visited, but it's very cool. Both also host HUGE Christopher Street Day parades which are like gay pride parades crossed with street festivals. They're worth checking out (and pretty much unavoidable) if you're there in early summer.

Saving money: Germany is pretty expensive, especially on a student budget. When you plan your trips, look into hostels or couchsurfing [http://www.couchsurfing.org/] and travel by train or discount airline (Ryanair etc.) Students can get a discounted rail card which is helpful if you want to take a lot of trips. Opening a checking account that allows cheap or free withdrawals from German banks (Bank of America did this as of 2 years ago) will also make your life easier. Learning a few words of Turkish might score you some free Döner as well

You won't understand Bavarians or Swiss at first, but I promise that underneath the accents, they are actually speaking German. Well, the Bavarians are, anyway.