Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Living overseas

Whether you're considering emigrating or an expat abroad, you'll find likeminds on this forum.

Es herbstelt schon! Autumn in Germany and Austria

323 replies

LinzerTorte · 11/10/2013 07:56

A thread for all those living in Germany or Austria or anyone who just wants to chat/ask a question about living in or visiting this part of the world - all welcome. Smile

Previous thread here.

OP posts:
AmblingAlong · 30/10/2013 07:18

Morning all. Please, is anyone with better German skills than mine around? I have a letter from the Vermieterin and I don't actually get what she wants us to do. I understand the jist and all the words but the end message she's trying to get over is completely lost! Anyone fancy reading it through?

outnumberedbymen · 30/10/2013 08:45

ambling got ds1 at home today (inset day) but he's playing Lego. Could have a quick look through it if you like

AmblingAlong · 30/10/2013 08:46

Thanks Outnumbered, I will PM the letter to you.

BerstieSpotts · 30/10/2013 08:54

Ooh, hello all! Flying in with a question. We're going to see the Doctor Who anniversary show in the cinema. The website says (google translated)

Rated: from 12 Years,
released 6 years accompanied by a parent

Does that mean any child can come if accompanied or just children over 6? We have a tall 5 year old who will be furious if he is left out, do you think it will be OK? It's a PG in the UK Confused

BerstieSpotts · 30/10/2013 08:59

Ambling we had awful wind here. Our bathroom door slammed so hard that the paint came off the ceiling!

AmblingAlong · 30/10/2013 09:06

Must admit, I have smuggled my at the time younger dc in to fiilms with a released 6 years accompanied by a parent rating. I reckon, as long as it's busy they aren't going to be checking identity cards/passports! Go for it!

hupa · 31/10/2013 11:07

Just a quick post as I haven´t had time to read the thread yet. I haven´t had time to post for ages. We had Herbstferien and then decided to decorate dd´s room. I thought we´d need a couple of days, but the wallpaper seemed to have been stuck on with super glue and it took ages. I´ll read the thread now and hopefully have time to post later.

hupa · 05/11/2013 11:11

I hope I haven´t killed the thread.
It took me so long to catch up, I didn´t have time to post.

outnumbered I´m glad the wedding went well. It´s lovely that your dad was able to mention your mum.

Mr.Tumbles How are things going with the dog? I must admit that over the summer we were toying with the idea of getting a dog, but the combination of your posts and the horrible weather have made me think again.

platanos We also have the pleasure of POU here. How´s your dd getting on in the new school? DD is really exhausted by the end of the week and I think is finding the change from Grundschule a bit of a shock to the sytem.

Smoked I´m also in Hessen, but up in the north near Kassel. I also live in quite a small place were everyone grew up together, so people already have established friendship groups that are quite hard to break into. I have the advantage that dh grew up here, but it took a long time before I made friends through the children rather than through him.
I definitely think a snowsuit would be a good idea.

This is going to turn into an essay, so I´ll stop now and just say a quick hello to everyone I´ve missed.

bibiundtina · 05/11/2013 19:54

Hello

i read this thread but never post :). i wanted to say to smoked i am also in hessen, not far from Frankfurt. If you would like to PM me you are very welcome too.

That did not hurt, maybe I can post again....

petitemom · 06/11/2013 16:24

Hello, we've recently moved to Germany with our 5-year-old and are looking for a place in Wiesbaden.

Just wanted to say hi, especially to anyone else in the area!

The snow gear advice sounds great, AmblingAlong. We spent last weekend buying winter boots, matschhose, gym shoes (we bought a pair from Fink Shuhe anyone else think they are a bit girl-y where else do you buy them?) and indoor shoes for DS for his kindergarten.

We're also looking to buy a car soon. Does anyone have experience of car dealerships in or near Wiesbaden; are there any you would particularly recommend or avoid?

BerstieSpotts · 06/11/2013 19:13

Hi petitemom! I'm in Karlsruhe which is about 2 hours away by train. Sounds far if you're used to UK distances but here it's not so much.

I have a 5 year old son too - lol at the millions of schuhe! We had a similar excursion when DS started kindergarten. We've only been here 2 months.

The traumschuhe do look girly and DS wasn't keen but all the boys and girls wear them - I think once they see the other children in them it's not an issue. He did insist on black ones though rather than white. We got ours from Real.

Talking of Real, I bought him some waterproof trousers (required by the kindergarten) about 6 weeks ago and they have split right from the ankle to the crotch. I'm quite annoyed about it. I don't have the receipt though - do you think I'd be able to take them back? I suppose I can't prove how long ago we bought them which might be the problem.

MrsNutella · 06/11/2013 19:59

Hello all, I haven't really kept up.
The wedding was the Saturday just gone, it was awesome. I'll try and get around to posting more often....

hupa I know what you mean about thread death... It does seem to go very quiet in here occasionally. :)

Hello to all the new people, I'm in Hannover in the north... I'm pretty much no help with small people advice, DS is only a 10 month old hooligan so I'm still getting to grips with making him sleep, let alone all the long lists children seem to have here for kiga/school equipment

Berstie I have friends who visit family in Karlsruhe often and it sounds like a rather nice place. I should really encourage DH to organise some long weekends off work so we can take some little trips

I hope everyone else is well. I'll try and come back soon!

BerstieSpotts · 06/11/2013 20:59

It's a bit of a building site at the moment. They are redoing the whole tram network and putting a lot of it underground, which I think is quite a shame really! They are apparently having some trouble excavating under the pyramid in the Marktplatz because nobody actually knows what is underneath it so they have to go very carefully. Rumour has it that the town's designer/founder is buried underneath Shock but nobody seems to know! From what I understand Karlsruhe is a new city, rebuilt after it was essentially destroyed in WW2, but I don't know enough German to read the local papers. Perhaps something for me to look up Grin

MrTumblesBavarianFanbase · 07/11/2013 10:33

Bertie they won't check ID (under 16s don't have any compulsory ID anyway so, unlike an adult, can'T be expected to produce it) . They just wouldn't let you in with an obviously vastly younger child. My only just 6 year old saw a couple of 6 rated films while he was 5 - he is as tall as his sister, who is 2 years older, and they greatly enjoyed concocting a story about being twins for when they were asked their ages, and were most disappointed that the cinema staff barely glanced at him :o

Spooky hope you got a snow suit - you do need it, esp for sledging etc. - otherwise you are very time limited with staying outside once it gets really cold as she won't be warm enough for more than half an hour or an hour max without the proper clothes. Aldi is good though - I bought my older 2 all their new snow stuff in Aldi this year (my smallest is fully equiped with his big brother's cast offs :) ). I got the very last 2 size 128 snow jackets in Aldi, and it was only 11am on the day they got them in! :o but then they got more in later in the week and there were a lot of returns, so I was able to exchange the blue coat that turned out to have a pink zip for a neon green one DS1 will actually wear :o :)

Nutella congratulations!

hupa the dog is a bit better - and getting fatter, which I think helps :o Aldi dry food seems to agree with her much better than the expensive brand of tinned food we were instructed to feed her (which is handy) and as long as that's absolutely the only thing she eats her stomach issues are almost resolved - if she gets hold of anything else we're back to square 1 for 24 hours though. She still barks a lot, but its better than it was on balance.

petite my older son wears white soled trainers instead of the ballet slipper style gym shoes for KiGa sport. When he was 3 he accepted the gym shoes (if you search you can get dark blue with diggers on, as well as black and white :) ) and most of the boys at KiGa do wear those (they're cheaper than yet another pair of trainers anyway) but by last year he was much more self aware and had very strong opinions on clothing of all kinds, and he'd have walked bare foot on nails before wearing ballet shoes - so we have cheapo supermarket white soled trainers (7.99 I think). Aldi sells them sometimes, ours are from Kaufland, who always have them (the closest thing to a big Tesco type supermarket I've found here, but our nearest one is quite a drive, and they may not be Germany wide). He has so many pairs of trainers, as he also needs indoor trainers for football training, "strong" shoes for KiGa forest days (regular trainers and wellies not acceptable), trainers for every day wear, wellies, snow boots, outdoor football boots, even before taking into account summer footwear... I need to replace 6 or 7 pairs of shoes every time he goes up a size :(

waves at everybody sorry haven't replied to everyone - hello Ambing sorry about the grade blip going on atm! Linzer that's very kind of you being a breakfast club for those 2 kids every week!

We are in Bavaria btw so nowhere near anyone new to the thread - hello to all of you though :)

petitemom · 07/11/2013 17:03

Thanks for the notes, Berstie and MrTumbles! Nice to know your son recently started kindergarten too Berstie. We did get DS dark blue gym shoes with diggers on. Can't believe the shoe prices too, though I suppose as we're still not savvy about shopping here it's not the same as waiting to pounce on a Clarkes sale.

Berstie, I guess with no receipt it would be difficult... We bought ones for DS at H&M, yet to see how they'll hold up.

Sorry if I'm being dim, but just wanted to be sure. We got a letter asking us to register for TV and radio tax. I registered at www.rundfunkbeitrag.de/anmelden_und_aendern/antworten/index_ger.html, said we moved in in September, and selected "quarterly in advance (1.1./1.4./1.7./1.10.)" and "durch Überweisung oder durch Zahlschein". I'm planning to pay by bank transfer online.

Is the next step then for us to wait for an invoice at the end of the year, which will have the details of the bank account we need to transfer to?

LinzerTorte · 08/11/2013 08:17

petite Have you tried Deichmann for shoes? They're usually quite reasonable. I used to miss Clarks and would always try to buy shoes there when we were back in the UK, but find them useless for the girls now - unless they want black school shoes or trainers.
Am no help on the TV licence I'm afraid, as we're in Austria. I paid ours yesterday and really resent having to pay the best part of €300 a year when I watch about five minutes of Austrian TV a month and listen to very little radio (Radio 4 podcasts aside).

MrTumbles Well done on getting the snow suits; children's winter gear goes so quickly. I hate braving the scrum, but you have no choice really! Having said that, I'm hoping I won't need to buy anything new this year as I've stocked up in previous years and we've had a few hand-me-downs from SIL too.

Nutella Congratulations; you looked lovely in the FB pics!

Berstie I would try taking the trousers back as the worst they can do is say no - they really should have lasted longer than six weeks.

bibi Hello and welcome. Smile

Ambling What happened about the mole on your DD's face - did the doctor remove it?

I was quite excited just now to discover that I can now make online appointments to see my gynae. Apart from the fact that I'm not a huge fan of the phone anyway, half the time I end up putting it down wishing I'd gone for an alternative appointment/asked for something earlier, etc. Being able to see all the free appointments takes the stress out of the situation! I'm definitely better at going to the dermatologist more regularly since she's been offering online appointments too.

OP posts:
SpookedMackerel · 08/11/2013 08:29

Ooh, I thought the thread had gone, it didn't reappear in Threads I'm Watching for some reason Hmm.

Since I wrote before, I have managed to find two groups to go to with dd, and befriended the French girlfriend of on of DH colleagues, who is also quite new and has a baby boy, so I have met up with her a few times, and get a chance to speak English ( though sometimes I talk in halting schoolgirl French too, to make it fair Grin).

Not the greatest success on the snowsuit front though, I went to Aldi and they had already sold out off the right size, so I had to get one that is too big. So the next week I needed something else and we went first thing and it was like supermarket sweep crossed with Ozzie rules football Shock all these women blocking the aisles and shovelling armfuls of packets of clothes into their trollies to look through, snatching stuff from under each other's noses. I didn't get a look in Grin. Is this normal, or do I live near a particularly cut-throat Aldi?

We have just been informed we need Fest shoes for Forest day at Kindergarten. Do they mean walking boots? Can't believe I have to buy another sodding pair of boots. Petitemom I agree about the shoe prices!

MrTumblesBavarianFanbase · 08/11/2013 09:26

Spooked that is absolutely normal, yes. Shock If you want to avoid the scrum you have to avoid Monday and Thursday mornings, (when they get new special one-week-only special items) but that doesn't work if you want those items! If you go later on the same day, or the following day, you have a chance of getting returns if its clothes, as a lot of people buy items in several sizes fully intending to bring what doesn't fit back.

Fest shoes are light walking boots really - you might find them in Deichman as Linzer suggests, or try second hand, we just got a pair for DS1 from an acquaintance for €5, and then DH looked them up online and they would have been €120 new! Shock (they are a "good" brand, but who pays that for kids shoes that will be outgrown in no time!) If you have a local listings site that would be a good place to look, DH is always buying and selling on www.quoka.de - you can search under your town name and schuhe-stiefel and find some locally, and then ask to try them and just take them if they fit.

BerstieSpotts · 08/11/2013 09:36

YY to second hand - see if there are any expat groups on facebook near you. I'm in one and people buy/sell/give away/swap outgrown stuff all the time, especially things like shoes and waterproofs. One lovely lady on mine gave me her son's outgrown waterproof trousers for DS when she heard of my plight and said she doesn't want them back as her DD won't want a "boy's" colour by the time she gets big enough for them :)

Spooked if you think Aldi is bad, never ever venture near a German Primark. It is TERRIFYING. One opened here last year and people apparently travel for hours just to visit it Confused If you go into the shopping centre on a Saturday there are people strewn around sitting recovering against the walls and pillars surrounded by huge Primark bags.

SpookedMackerel · 08/11/2013 09:54

Haha Bertie, we actually did go into to Primark last Friday afternoon, as we had a bit of time to kill before an appointment. We turned round and walked out again pretty sharpish though, we must have been in there about 15 seconds, which was still enough time for dd to get her foot trodden on!

AmblingAlong · 10/11/2013 13:13

spooked and Berstie we also have a Primark in Hannover and it's exactly the same picture, people strewn around sitting recovering outside the shop surrounded by huge Primark bags! There's a TK Maxx too and they queue up outside it before it opens at 10am to get the best deals. Dd and I went in yesterday to get some bits and bobs that she needed and it wasn't too bad, must have been a quiet moment between the early shoppers and the after lunch shoppers (we went at 12).

Linzer I agree it hurts to pay the tv licence for German TV. I'd rather pay the UK one and get decent TV instead.
Dd was told the mole on her face would be easy enough to remove but it would be private and cost 'around' 100€ per mole (she has 2) so she's now thinking about maybe getting the one that bothers her most done first. Does that price sound about right to you? Any experience? She didn't reallylike the doctor but I was with her and he was OK, just abit straight to the point, not over friendly but that sort of thing doesn't bother me.

petitemom did you find out about the GEZ? Ours is booked from our account quarterly as we gave them our account details. I'd guess they would send you a bill every quarter for you to pay.

BerstieSpotts · 10/11/2013 19:38

They have just opened a TK Maxx here - I haven't been into that shopping centre since but I dread to think!

MrsNutella · 11/11/2013 12:37

Hello everyone!

Have to completely agree to primark and TKMaxx over excitement! Ambling I heard the primark here in Hannover is the biggest in Germany... If you look up its opening day on you tube there are many videos of all the excited people queuing to get in. Hmm I know some people who recommend it for baby clothes but it isn't much cheaper than C&A and the quality is appalling.
On the other hand, you can pick up some great stuff in TKMaxx. Their baby section is pretty good for books, sleeping bags and toys. Smile

AmblingAlong · 11/11/2013 13:17

Nutella I've seen that video! Dd tried to talk me into going to that opening day. I am really glad that I had already, by chance, seem another Primark opening video online (Berlin I think) so I was wise enough to wait a few weeks. Even then, when we went we saw groups of girls running towards the shop screaming with excitement.
Do you still have family here from the wedding Nutella? Must have been nice to have everyone together at once! Doesn't happen often when you live abroad!

I have another taxi day ahead. Getting abit fed up tbh. How long do you all sit around waiting for dc to do activities? Dd's cheerleading club is over on the other side of town so not worth me driving back home but still long for me to be sitting in the car. Thank goodness for my Kindle but in winter it's going to get pretty cold.

LinzerTorte · 11/11/2013 13:34

Ambling I don't think the DC have done any activities that have been more than a 5-10 minute drive away so I've never hung around waiting for them - apart from when they went swimming, but then I sat at the side of the pool. I did get fed up with the amount of chauffeuring I had to do a few years ago, but now we just have DD1's dyslexia lesson and scouts and DD2's piano lesson, which is quite manageable. DD1 usually walks to scouts and gets a lift back with a friend, so I hardly do any driving during the week.

€100 for the mole removal sounds about right. I can't remember exactly what I've paid, but I know that a check-up is €90 and I think mole removal is slightly more (but it includes a follow-up appointment to have the stitches removed if necessary).

Primark madness has reached Austria too, but I have no intention of going - it's the other side of Vienna from us anyway, so not the easiest place to get to. Not that this puts us off going to Tesco and M&S in Bratislava. Grin

Our 20th anniversary is coming up soon and we were hoping to go out for a meal to celebrate, but our neighbours - one of whose daughters we would normally ask to babysit - are most inconveniently away that weekend and I'm a bit stuck about who to ask otherwise. Virtually everyone we know here has children the same age as ours, which is no good for babysitting purposes, and has family on hand to babysit, which means I can't even ask for recommendations.

OP posts:
Swipe left for the next trending thread