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.

admylin - cant imagine why she'd be pressing under your ribcage if you've got shoulder pain but will ask one of my physio friends who specialises in that kind of area and see what he thinks. But importantly did it help at all?? I'm a bit puzzled by physiotherapy in Germany - it doesnt seem quite the same profession as in the UK.
I'd be getting those messy beggars to clean up the mess they left in the kitchen themselves - they'll be loving that Cinderella comes when they're still in bed and does it for them!.

Sorry forgot to wave to everyone else before - glad you've survived your very long summer hols jenny. have heard lots of moans about the rain this summer in the UK - hope the weather is good for you back in the States esp after your long winter.

Thanks ploom - I'd be reassured if you are your colleague said it's normal but it felt wrong. I asked if it was meant to be abit like acupuncture but without the needles and she said yes. Didn't help my shoulder though, it's still stiff and I now have a sore arm where she prssed so hard. Not looking forward to tomorrows session.

You're right about the kitchen, I should send them in to tidy up!

Aargh, DS is driving me mad this morning. He refused to go to KiGa today, which is fair enough, but I told him he'd have to come to the playground with me while the DDs are at their Lernstunde - he was bored after about five minutes and keeps asking when we can pick the girls up.

admylin Sorry the physio didn't help - it does sound more like a kind of needle-less acupuncture! Our kitchen is often in a state, although I must admit I'm usually the one to blame. I always dread the DC making themselves snacks, though, particularly ones involving butter and jam. DH thinks I just need to teach DD1 how to do it properly rather than complaining about it. (He probably has a point.)

Ploom I'm not looking forward to all the chauffeuring around I'm going to have to start doing once school starts; it's been so nice to have a break from it over the summer. I'm going to encourage DD2 and DS to walk or cycle to school; parking outside the school is always a nightmare for the first month or so while all the new pupils are still being driven to school.

Cake Good luck with your appointment; let us know how it goes!

EnglishWoman Hope all the colds clear up soon, but well done to your DS on the swimming. I was hoping that DS would learn to swim this summer as the DC have been in the water loads, but he hasn't made much progress unfortunately.

admylin - my lovely physio friend said they've maybe irritated a nerve but he said he's quite happy to chat with you if you want to via FB or Skype - he's very good at his job - he's just been working at the Olympics. Let me know if you want his details.

Got a German passport last year for dd & some of you might remember - I wasnt allowed to pick it up without dh's written permission but he was able to pick it up without mine . Well ds2 now needs a new passport so I went to the Rathaus to do the paperwork to order him one and now I'm not even allowed to do that without dh's written permission . Its like living in Iran!!! Thankfully I had other jobs to do in that town - i'd have been so pissed off if I'd driven there deliberately. I've got to drop dd off at another party tomo so will try (with dh's permission obviously) again then.
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Everyone has been up bright and early this morning! The lovely sunny weather definitely helps get me moving :)

admylin yes we live above the restaurant - no getting away! I'm hoping it means DH will be around a little bit to help though once the baby comes....

world I can't actually remember the last time I might have described the weather as "feuchtwarm", fortunately. As long as I can catch myself in time I usually manage to use "hohe Luftfeuchtigkeit", it's just when I've started "Das Wetter ist heute so ekelig...... that I get desperate!

Please don't think that any of us are properly embarrassed by our mistakes in German, though. It's hard to know how things are going to come across in a written post on here, but making fun of oneself is typical British humour and of course this thread is to a degree about being British in a German-speaking culture. It's great to have a real German on here to help us out with the dilemmas and hopefully stop Linzer and I arguing over the formulation of admylin's next important email. Just close your eyes/ears to our code-switching and denglishicisms, please .

Er, I can't remember anything else I was going to write now. I have a massive craving for cake. Maybe I should look up ploom's zebra stripe cake that she reckons is pretty easy to make .

Linzer and me

cheaspicks I agree it's great to have a real German on here! We're a 100% non German household and sometimes I think it would be handy to have a German dh! I often have to try and get hold of one of my German friends for help with wording or to be sure I've understood something.

ploom that would be great if your friend has time - I don't have skype but fb would be good.
Must be a Bavarian thing with the passports. My 2 were born here but registered at embassy and their first passports were British. They're German though as dh has a German passport and I got their first Kinderausweis at the Rathaus in Tuebingen without dh and passports too. I do know Behörden seem to have their own rules from area to area but that does sound abit over the top.

cake how did the midwife appointment go? When are you due (sorry if you already said, I missed it)?

cheaspicks and admylin

Well, I am always looking at MN as a little bit fun and don't take anything seriously here
As I don't have all these other stories to share, I thought I might as well add my Senf to language stuff ha ha ha see I can also switch to Denglish

Oh and to the passport thing.

I am always delighted to hear, when there are Behördenfolks who take the legal guidelines very seriously when it comes to children and passport applications. I always say better safe than sorry...

world your denglsh is indeed most prima!

I don't know whether you were being sarcastic in your
last post or hadn't quite understood ploom's problem with the passport application: her husband would be able to apply for the child's passport without her signature, but she can't without his .

Just time for a quick post (famous last words) as I have an English friend coming over in an hour and I really need to tidy up so that I can sit and drink tea for hours without feeling guilty.

Grr on your behalf, Ploom. That's why I sent DH to get DS's passport; he was sure I'd be fine as long as I had DS's Staatsbürgerschaftsnachweis with me, but I shall tell him your story if he tries to get me to go and apply for DD1's passport in November! And while we're on the subject of passports, is it true that a child's passport in Germany only costs ?13?

cheas Me (or should that be I? ), argue with you? I like to think we work together towards a joint effort! You could always just finish your sentence after ekelig. I find that when I tail off towards the end of a sentence, Germans and Austrians are usually kind enough to finish it off for me (or start a new sentence as they've got fed up of waiting for me to finish mine).

Weird extra last break in there, almost looks like Alice posting. Excellent most recent namechange btw.

Last break, er line break, rather. I should probably give up now!

Linzer of course you are right, optimal teamwork in the pursuit of the exact degree of directness/passive-aggressiveness/polite forcefulness required . I'm just still carrying a grudge from ages ago when you tentatively suggested that a word I had made-up might not exist and then DH said later it was a perfectly good word .

No, I didn't get Plooms problem. I shall read again,as to why her husband can but she can't. Is it, because he is the German citizen and ploom is not and they are married and they applied for the childrens' German passports right?

I'll read again

Kinderausweis is different, as a Kinderausweis is only valid in combination with travelling parents' passport and NOT on its own.

And no, it shouldn't be different regardless if in Tübingen or next door Bundesland Bayern, as this falls under Staatsangehörigkeitsrecht und Ausweisrecht and that is federal law (fällt unter Bundesgesetze und nicht Landesrichtlinien).

Oh no cheas, I'm so sorry! I didn't realise how much I'd inadvertently upset you. Please accept my heartfelt apologies. What was the word btw (so that I know for future reference)?

And yes, pursuit of the correct degree of PAness is the way to go, I feel.

Rereading my post, it seems a little too sarcastic and as if I'm not apologising at all. I really do feel bad now, though! (Won't add a smiley in case it looks PA. Not even sure the exclamation mark is appropriate; have I been here too long? Am I overthinking everything?)

I'm keeping out of the discussion on German passports as I have nothing useful to add and am getting more by the minute.

No seriously about the passport thing, it has to do with trying to do a prevention on possible child abduction when there are fights and conflict in a bi-national marriage.

So, if the parents are a married couple it only takes one parent's signature.

If parents are divorced than they go by who is the custodial parent, regardless of nationality of that parent.

In a bi-national marriage the difference is to see who in this case is the German parent who wants to apply for the German passport of the child.
Also the picking up is ONLY allowed by the person who was eligible for the application, or that person need to give a written consent which also follows certain guidelines.

This is usually common practice in most countries. And is supposed to help to prevent child abduction, which is unfortunately not so uncommon practice, even in Europe.

There are app. 7,000 to 9,000 abductions (moving child across European borders) without the other parent's consent....

abductions (moving child across European borders) without the other parent's consent

And I mean not only moving across borders, but with the intent to keep the child either in home country or even go into hiding in a third EU country, with the intent to disconnect the child from the other parent and also with the intent to make custody claims in home country etc.

Sorry, about bringing too much seriousness to this thread

worldcitizen - i'm british, dh is german and all dc had British passports but we are gradually moving them onto German passports as their older ones expire. Last year I was able to do all the paperwork and pay the fee on my own but they wouldnt let me pick it up without his written permission. He was then able to go and pick it up without mine . So this morning I went to do all the paperwork for ds2's passport fully intending to then send dh in to pick it up but she wouldnt even let me do that. I understand fully that its to protect dc from being moved out the country without the other parents permission but that has never been explained to me - only that I need my dh's written permission but he would never need mine. Surely he could steal the dc away as much as I could - we both have an EU passport?? The sexism of the whole situation stinks of a bygone time that I hoped we'd left behind in 2012.

Anyway moan over. Have done the first half of my taxiing (?sp) so now going to have a cuppa while the boys play with ds1's friend. His parents are seeking asylum in Germany and have been put in really terrible run down accomodation in an isolated part of town so i'm so happy that ds invited him to play and he can escape to some different surroundings for a while.

Ploom I hear you, and not getting any explanation, well that's sounds like a German Behörde, yes.

And yes, he could steal the children as much as you could. That's right, but unfortunately countries are very biased in favour of their own citizens.
This is a common issue even within Europe and with the UK not being a Schengen country sometimes makes it even slightly different than with other EU countries who are part of the Schengen treaty.

Definitely overthinking, linzer. [non-PA ]

The word was "Vorangehensweise", which world will now tell me doesn't exist...

Heartfelt apology accepted, btw!