Die Kaffeestube Teil 2 - virtual Kaffeeklatsch in Germany and Austria

[cheaspicks]

Chat for those living in a German-speaking country, or anyone else who is interested.

world, I haven't felt your posts were insubstantial at all, you fit right in, and I appreciate your input.

Not sure how you could be torn between Edinburgh or Bristol!

We managed better in London financially as we owned. I will never like renting. I can't get over it being money down the drain! I don't feel properly that this home is MINE. I suppose for us as well I don't see us being here forever.
There are pros and cons for living in Germany vs living in the UK. Depends where in Germany, and where in the UK, too!

Thanks so much

I loved Edinburgh, it is such a great place and in Glasgow there is so much going on and the mix of Scots, other Brits and international folk is simply awesome. I could spend hours talking about those fabulous places, and I am glad I got to know Glasgow on my own and not through what usually is being said and written about Glasgow which is not necessarily incorrect, as I feel that way I wasn't prejudiced.

About Bristol, I think the location of that city is wonderful, with Wales on the doorstep and the west country right there, but again it only takes me 1 1/2 hours by train to Berlin and I have been there only twice, so I am not sure I would take advantage of London as much while living in Bristol, might be totally unrealistic, too.

I am so torn on the renting and buying thing, as in Germany it is not necessarily a money-saving investment, and owners tend to have much more responsibilities than folks who rent, and renters have pretty good legal rights, so am not sure. i believe the owners market here is also pretty much buy and stay with it forever and your offspring inherits it and not so much part of a housing ladder property, which also could be sold easily I think.
I feel very, very sorry for the people who are stuck with their properties when regional/structural unemployment hits their town.

Aw! Thanks for the . :)

We love Edinburgh, DH is from just across the water. I agree completely with going in with an open mind rather than having negative opinions from others blurring things!

I bought my home in London a few years ago, then chipped away at the mortgage as much as I could every month, and my required payments came down and down. Here, I am stuck with rent that will never go down, and I will have nothing to show for it at the end of our time here. I need to let go of this, but it really bugs me! :) I will have to think of it as a long holiday, paying a holiday rent! :)

Thanks for the kind words about my friends sister. I've emailed my friends dh back to get her address - really think I want to write to her just to let her know I'm thinking of her.

cake - hope you enjoyed your monday ruhetag. Glad youre feeling better.

linzer & admylin - glad the dc all survived the first day back. Hope tomo is just as successful.

cheaspicks - what present did you buy for the 6 year old in the end?

vegan - I can totally understand how you feel about renting being throwing money away. We've not rented for a long time and think i'd feel the same way. And the German system of renting then spending loads of money on the flat/house is a complete mystery to me. Feel much more settled knowing that we own our house.

world - think this thread is very different from a lot of the rest of MN - I think first and foremost its a support thread for people living and loving and sometimes hating life in Germany which is why we normally namecheck each other to show that support. But also love how thro the support then discussions get thrown up & we dont always agree but we still acknowledge what others have posted. I find a lot of other threads on MN really disjointed and with no acknowledgement of other posters so love how this thread works.

Anyway bedtime for me - we had a fun afternoon in the park playing minigolf then they went out on inline skates. I even had a go with dd's skates but was petrified i'd fall over. Taking them swimming tomorrow - all to keep them busy!

Awww ploom that is sweet .

Yeah, it's what I grew up with, had it drummed into me to get onto the property ladder.

Yes, my husband is from Fife!mvery good! :)

Vegans Very sensible! My dad offered to help us buy a flat in London when we first moved there but we turned him down as we knew we were only going to be there for three years. Property prices really started to shoot up after we'd moved there so I regretted it afterwards.

world I agree with Ploom - I see this thread as for support and chat, and to me chatting means acknowledging what the others have written. Admittedly, I do waffle on a little too much at times and probably spend too much time on here, but it's such a lovely friendly thread and it's about the only thread that I post on now. Of course, you shouldn't feel obliged to acknowledge every single post.

Also agree with Vegans that it really depends where you live in Germany and in the UK. I have four friends/acquaintances who moved back to the UK from Germany as they decided they'd be happier there. All but one were quite happy in Germany too but decided that, on balance, they'd prefer to live in the UK. Of course, I'm not discounting the difference that having friends and family in a particular country makes; I'm sure that was a major factor in all their decisions.

Must go and get myself and then the DC up and ready for Day 2. DS is already quite excited about being at school for a whole two hours, doesn't want me to walk with him (he can walk on his own with DD2, he says) and doesn't want me to come into the school with him (his teacher told us we should take the children in as far as the coat pegs for the first week). I hope the novelty doesn't wear off too quickly!

Good morning ,

as I am so new on MN and actually it's the first time I joined a board I still need to get a grip on things, I apologise.
Also reading many threads at the same time and then posting here and there is not so easy I notice, and my English is so rusty (and forgot how to juggle between two languages), and it is really hard work, too. But they say working your brain that way supposed to be a good dementia prevention method .

I'll write write and respond zu einzelnen posts later. Bis später. Wir haben gerade so einen schönen blauen Himmel und die Sonne scheint.

Linzer that's great news that your ds is so excited and happy to go without you! Go for it!

world morning! Blue sky here in Hannover too but dc came back for a jacket as it was really chilly at 7am.
Your English isn't rusty at all - I wish I could write German as good as you write English!

Vegans you might be able to get a festive outfit in 3 weeks when you go. I noticed the first of the Christmas buscuits in the supermarket last night (those ginger/spice ones covered in chocolate) so the countdown has started.

ploom enjoy the swimming pool today!
cake did you manage to get your insurance sorted out?
nutella it's an expensive business moving house so you will probably save alot if you do your present flat up abit instead. I find the ideas at Ikea for the small rooms or how to fit lots of different things in small space are interesting even if you don't buy their stuff - you can steal their interior design ideas!

I agree with yu all about renting/buying. I feel we have really missed the boat by having no savings, studying late, student loans and having dc as students. We never got out of the red at the bank for ages. I never knew we'd be moving around as much for work either so I guess buying would have been a big headache too.

Dd's friend's mother told me they would never buy - they live in a rented house and are already planning on moving to a smaller flat as soon as the 2 dds have left home!

Please don't apologise, world - I worded my post badly as I was just trying to explain why I reply to everyone's posts; I didn't mean it to come across as a criticism of you.

And I really admire you for coming on here and posting in English. I'm quite happy to speak German but really don't feel comfortable writing in it so I'd never post on a German-language forum.

Must go and make use of my remaining child-free hour. I was planning on sorting the washing while watching 24 Hours in A&E (I lead such a ridiculously exciting life ) but a power cut has put paid to that idea.

linzer I meant to ask, are those art folders on that photo on fb available on amazon.de by any chance? Amazing huge pile of stuff to carry to school by the way, did they manage it all on foot?

Not as far as I know admylin, although must admit I've never looked. I just bought them from Libro (stationery store, not sure if you have it in Germany). I've also found those Zeichenplatten things (plastic corrugated cases with a handle) ideal for storing artwork as you can fit several years' worth in.

Yes, we all walked - and astonishingly, no one complained. I took my bike and filled both baskets plus hung huge carrier bags from the handles, while DD2 and DS carried their school bags (DD1 walked on her own and carried all her own stuff, although she didn't have quite as much as the other two).

linzer I'll have a google of Zeichenplatten. What are those art folders called in German again? Mappe?

admylin I'm hoping we can invest in a nice piece or two of furniture (already have loads of pictures and "art" ... although need some more frames) there isn't that much we need. I would love to organise our Arbeitszimmer and make it tidy so I don't have to look at DP's crap delicate filing system... We had to buy tickets to the fireworks twice because he lost them in his filing system I was more than a little bit

And I find the best way to get DP to IKEA is the promise of a hotdog... or two...

Linzer Well done with your trip to school! I showed DP your picture... we were both I hope all that stuff is going to school and staying there for a looong time!

World I think you're doing really well keeping up in English! and you shouldn't feel under pressure to name check us all. It really is fine! I hope you're enjoying the sunshine :)

Vegan I feel ok about renting because it gives us the freedom to move again if we need to. But I find it hard to put in the effort to make it feel like home. Although I'm going to try my hardest here now because I need it to be cosy for all three of us :)

Ok, I have to make some phone calls... better stop avoiding it ho hum...

nutella good luck with the phone calls!
Sounds like your nesting instinct is in full swing! They say you get an incredible urge to spring clean just before labour too (not that I can remember that far back) so maybe you should warn your dh to tidy his filing system up abit before then!

I've just found out that last time ds went to the Kieferorthopäde in July (alone) they told him I should phone and make an appointment for dd! He didn't tell me that of course. I was waiting for them to call me when they had their treatment plan ready.

admylin Sorry, should have written Zeichenplattentasche - Zeichenplatten are what are meant to go in them. We have some like this one, but they only cost about ?7. Their art folders are called Zeichenmappen, but I can't see anything on Amazon that's exactly the same. This is similar but doesn't have the handles, or rather cutout bits, which make it much easier to carry.

You've just reminded me that I need to make an appointment for DD1 to go to the orthodontist, who said that she'd send us a reminder in the summer - but didn't. I think I'll wait until we know what we're doing in the afternoons before I phone them, though.

Nutella I've spent so long looking for things this week that I'm determined to get more organised (we had to buy a new pair of plimsolls for DD1 as she couldn't find her old pair, which inevitably turned up as soon as we'd bought new ones).
Thankfully only the school bags come home every day, although they can be pretty heavy sometimes. The PE kits only come home for washing at the end of the semester and everything else stays there until the end of the school year. By which time the children have also accumulated dozens of text books (well, almost) and even more exercise books.

I picked DS up from school about an hour ago, and he seemed to have enjoyed it although he said he was sad he didn't have his cuddly toy with him (I felt very guilty! Apparently another of the 1. Klasse teachers said the children could take a toy in with them today if they wanted to.).

DD1 has just arrived home with a ridiculously long list of things she needs to buy this week. Thankfully I understand most of it apart from "Tusche - weiß/schwarz - Federkiel: Spitz-, Redis-, Breitfedern" (for art; don't have a clue what any of that means other than white and black!) and 3/4-Hefte, which I'm sure I've never seen at the stationery shop. They're going to be playing minigolf tomorrow, will be going to the river for a picnic on Thursday and going on a Wanderung on Friday, so a nice gentle start to the week!

Linzer Tusche is maybe another name for the paint? water colours I think. No idea about the other things though - good luck getting it all.

I need help writing a note. We borrow the school books from school (well for almost 100? per dc a year it's nearly like buying) and they were handed out to the dc yesterday.

Dd has one book with a very bent, creased cover and I need to write a note to get someone (the person in charge of books) to confirm that this has been checked and is not my/dd's fault. Otherwise we will have to pay for a new book when she hands it in at the end of the year.

How could I word it? Bitte bestätigen, ist der Zustand des Buches in ordnung wegen zerknickte 'book cover' is about the best I can do (terrible I know).

Off to my torture session at physio now. Shoulder is still stiff and arm sore.

Thanks, admylin. I haven't got round to googling (should probably just look on Amazon!) or asking DH yet, but at the moment I'm imagining that they need a selection of different feathers for painting with!

I could have a go at your sentence, but I'm sure world is the best person to ask. I would start off with "Können Sie bitte bestätigen, ..." but would have to have a think about the rest - hopefully world will be along before too long!

Or maybe even "Könnten Sie bitte bestatigen, ...". But I've noticed that the Austrians tend to be a lot more flowery, formal and roundabout in their writing.

Linzer think I've fround one of those Zeichenplattentaschen that dd would like and have put it on the wish list on amazon. Hope the shop people can help you with your list.

Thanks for trying with the note. Yes, Könnten Sie bitte bestätigen sounds good to me. So maybe Könnten Sie bitte bestätigen dass der Zustand dieses Buches nicht später reklamiert werde? Es ist vorne sehr zerknittert. Danke, mfG Admilyn Hier unterschreiben......
I definately need them to sign it and I know zerknittert is maybe wrong too.

The first 50? has been called for too - 10? each for photocopy money and the rest for more books that the school will order.

Pysio was OK but I should expect to be in pain tonight when the effect kicks in.

Instead of "hier unterschreiben", I would maybe write "Unterschrift:" and leave a space for them to sign, but only because that's what I've always seen here; "hier unterschreiben" could be fine too, but I've never seen it. Will have a think about the rest.

It doesn't take long for them to start asking for money, does it? I expect we'll get a long list at the parents' evenings. DD1 also has her first ever class trip coming up at the end of the month (three days away), which is going to cost ?120.

Oh, and wird instead of werden at the end of the first sentence.

instead of werde