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Wind, Obst, Wein und Spaß - living in Germany and Austria: the autumn edition

577 replies

LinzerTorte · 16/09/2014 07:35

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 (particularly as the previous thread has been so quiet recently). Smile

The thread title comes from this song btw - they're not the first four autumnal German words that popped into my head. (It could have been worse; I did briefly consider "Nüsse auf den Teller, Birnen in den Keller".) Grin

OP posts:
C4ro · 20/07/2015 13:45

Hi all, a thread lurker coming past to say hello.

DDs best friend has an older sister of 12 and I know about a year ago her mum had to cave to a phone with whatsapp on it for her. 80-90% of kids had one and it was becoming a bit of a social-outcast problem not to have one.

DD already has a kid in her kindergarten class that has 2 ipads (he just turned 5). On Mondays at Kiga they can take in their own toys and he has form for taking in giant mega-toys, like a crane that was as tall as an adult and more. He's quite a sweet kid for all that. Did have one moment that I wasn't sure about him as DD came back one day with really badly grazed knees and elbows and a tale that he pushed her over and then didn't say sorry... Turns out he was driving one of the little cars they whizz around the paths on and asked her to push him to go faster, she did, they overdid it, he went off the path on the grass and she fell over. Not quite as per the first storyline!

Last weekend my GFIL turned 99. My FIL has been really into genealogy and had discovered his G-G-G FIL owned a little patch of mining ground and a small smithy as a nail maker, specifically for climbing boots. We went round a little museum place that and made nails there which was fun.

I'm getting even more decrepit and now discover I have a gallstone. It's about the most unpleasant pain I've ever had when I get the cystitis attack so probably need it removed at some point. Still haven't been back to the hearing guy for my 12 week check up that was supposed to happen after my operation June 2014! I decided I can't face to have the other ear done, it's worked to give me some better hearing on one side but there are persistent side affects I'm not keen to double down on. I'll have to look into hearing aid for the side that is still bad.

LinzerTorte · 20/07/2015 15:25

NurNoch The Jako-o bag is very good quality; we're really pleased with it (DD2 picked it out herself after spotting it in the catalogue). €120 for a school bag is a bargain! No, not really, but you could quite easily spend €160 or €170 on one for primary school here (although much less too, of course). I remember totting up my stationery spend a couple of years ago and it came to about €130 for both DDs, but it's bound to be more now that all three of them are at school. I'll have to make a note of what I spend this year, although it won't be an accurate reflection as I'm hoping to be able to make good use of my Aldi stockpile.

You used to be able to get Schulstarthilfe of €100 if you had more than one child, but they stopped it when they brought in the 13th month of Familienbeihilfe IIRC. We've just had to renew our application by sending in confirmation that the DC are all at school here - well, I say just, but we sent in the forms in early May and are still waiting. Apparently they're waiting for our (more recent) application for increased FBH for DD1 to go through; it's obviously perfectly acceptable to make us wait for three months of FBH in the meantime (I know we'll get it eventually, but even so - why they can't process the two applications separately I've no idea).

C4ro Good to see you again! Gallstone sounds excruciatingly painful; hope you can get it sorted out asap.

Our life seems to be ruled by health appointments and problems atm too, although the DC's rather than mine. Have just made an appointment for DD2 to have a mole removed, then spoke to dermatologist about DD1's blood test results (for allergies) - turns out she has fairly severe pollen allergies and so rather than going back to dermatologist for the skin prick test, she's recommended we take her to an allergy clinic in Vienna. So have just been getting recommendations from suenan. Smile She also has an appointment at the diabetes clinic tomorrow. All fun and games here!

OP posts:
MrsNutella · 23/07/2015 12:36

C4ro I had gallstones when I was about 22/23... It took almost a year to get the op on the NHS. So you have my sympathy and I hope you get them sorted soon!

Blimey the talk of schools bags and books and pens and paints and crayons and and and .... Sounds exhausting and expensive!

Linzer what is Familienbeihilfe? I hope that DD1 is ok and coping with the diabetes and all the treatment and monitoring. It must be a big adjustment for her and you all.

DS and DD will be at Kiga and Kita respectively from sometime around November/ December (depending on how settling them in goes). I'm looking forward to it and I cannot wait to get some kind of work Smile although it's going to be very weird bit having a baby at home.

DD turns 1 in just less than 4 weeks!

LinzerTorte · 23/07/2015 14:56

Nutella Can't believe your DD is about to turn 1 and start Kita at the end of the year; I still think of her as only a few months old!

Familienbeihilfe is family allowance; I can't remember what it's called in Germany, hang on... ah yes, Kindergeld.

DH is exhausted after a 5 hour round trip to pick up DS from scout camp before we go on holiday tomorrow. Next year we'll wait for the scout camp dates before booking our holiday! Although next year all the older children (10+) will apparently be going to a big meet in Japan and the DDs have already said they don't want to go (which I must admit to being quite relieved about).

OP posts:
velourvoyageur · 23/07/2015 19:30

how do you cope in the heat?
I feel very wimpish for being so miserable with it....

this is one of the few times I am missing England!

BertieBotts · 23/07/2015 23:13

Velour I was totally incapable of anything at all last year. Better this year but I still sweat buckets just sitting on the tram while everyone else sits there looking perfectly dry and serene Confused

Quick tips are use your metal/wooden blinds if you have them. Get an indoor/outdoor thermometer (on amazon) or just an indoor one (on clocks in all shops, aldi, media markt etc) and cross reference with weather apps. The MOMENT the outdoor temperature exceeds the indoor temperature, hermetically seal everything. Blinds/shutters down on the sides of the house which the sun faces. If you don't have any, cover cardboard with foil and stick it in the window to make a makeshift blind. It's important to stop it from getting hot in the first place. Then in the evening, watch the thermometer like a hawk again and as soon as the outer temperature is lower than the inner temperature, throw everything open, maximise air flow and pray for a breeze. If worried about security at night and you're not upstairs, close roller blinds but open windows. Air gets through but people can't see that your windows are open. If you live right under the roof, kick yourself, because it just acts as a total greenhouse. You can touch our eaves during the day and it feels like a radiator.

Don't use any electronics that you don't absolutely need to use. Buy energy saving lightbulbs. Don't cook anything - barbeque outside, serve cold food, reheat things in the microwave that you made on a cooler day, or make really fast cooking things like tortellini or instant noodles, maybe a stir fry, and eat out/takeaways. Absolutely under no circumstances use an oven. Rinse cooking utensils in cold water so they don't leach heat into the room. Fans cool people, not rooms, so turn them off when you're not in the room. You can drape wet towels over fans to make them colder but it doesn't help that much. Keep hydrated and wear as little clothing as you can get away with. Regular cool showers, more than once a day. Cool baths are nice too (33 is perfect!) Humidity makes heat more uncomfortable but the air might be less humid than you are used to so you could try a humidifier if you happen to have one.

To keep hydrated - don't drink too much really sweetened stuff like coke etc. Water is best of course but if you don't like water, iced tea is good and there's a reason Germans love Schorle - it's so refreshing! We like Alwa brand because it's literally just juice with fizzy water, but you can also make your own. It's nowhere near as sweet as other fizzy drinks so can take a while to get used to it. And import squash if you like it. Freeze bottles of water and drink them as they melt, it keeps you much cooler.

If your house is hot then seek out air conditioned locations. In the absence of anything else, being near water, under the shade of a tree or stone, or at higher altitudes will reduce the temperature by a good 1-2 degrees each. Stay away from tarmac as it absorbs and reflects heat back at you. If you have an outdoor pool nearby, check if it's worth buying a summerpass or multiple tickets for a reduced price, often it is, and you can spend all day there because just being near the water and a legitimate excuse to basically wear underwear in public is helpful.

If you are having sweating problems, carry tissues. Mopping it up will keep you more comfortable, and you won't look as strange as you think. Wear clothing which dries quickly and carry hair ties to tie your hair up. Think about wearing a hat. There's also a useful tip which is to use pantyliners stuck to the inside of problem areas of clothes - e.g. just under armpits or on your breastbone, the small of your back, etc. But make sure they stick and don't fall out! Pantyliners can also keep your nethers comfortable if you sweat there too.

It really helps to have regular breaks from the heat so if you have the choice of air conditioned vs non air conditioned vehicles, go for the air con even if it means waiting or paying more. If you have access to a basement, take a book, make an excuse, pretend not to notice the spiders and spend half an hour there every few hours.

Move slowly. Expect to be crabby. Don't expect to get much done other than survival on the hottest days. Try to avoid stress. Expect children to also be crabby but not really know why. Develop "air hugs" and "France kisses" (on the cheek!) instead of a normal bedtime kiss and cuddle. Own at least half as many fans as you have people. The ones which sit on the floor and blow up diagonally are good and cheap, but you'll want a normal office type fan for sleeping.

You will be better able to cope with it next year but the first year is bad!

velourvoyageur · 24/07/2015 03:25

Bertie wow, thank you so much! you have much wisdom Wink

My housemates are Austrian and used to the flat turning into a furnace in summer so I'm copying their little tricks. Currently with window open in the dark.

I am actually moving out next week so am being a little pathetic but still looking so much forward to less extreme French temps. Glorious predictions of 26 degrees in the day....

AppleBarrel · 24/07/2015 10:21

Yes, the heat is much more bearable in subsequent years when you have got the hang of things. I hate having to shut all the windows and blinds and lurk in a dark house, but it does make a big difference.
When it was really hot, I put t shirts through a rinse cycle on the washing machine before wearing them, so they were cool and damp. And I put the DC's hats in the freezer before we went out.
I saw someone with (I thought) an aerosol of water to spray to cool down. I think it was from DM or Rossmann. But I have scoured their shelves since and failed to find it. So now if we have to go out and it's really hot, I bring a little plastic bottle of cold water in a spray bottle, so we can spritz our faces and wrists to cool down a little.
Tepid baths and showers are better than cold, because cold just makes all the hot blood near the surface try to escape deeper into the body, whereas a tepid shower will cool it. Apparently it's the same with drinks, but I still prefer cold drinks with plenty of ice.

By the way, speaking of school equipment (again), I just got our list for this year, and it looks like it will be less than 10 euros altogether - just 5 "Schnellhefter", 2 whiteboard markers, and a drawing pad. Our class teacher is clearly a minimalist Grin!

BertieBotts · 24/07/2015 15:22

DH got some evian spritzers from amazon. I think they are a bit silly though, but it makes sense to make your own.

doradoo · 27/07/2015 12:55

So summer (!) holds nearly over for us here in NRW and am looking at something to plan for the Herbstferien. Has anyone got any experience of Hamburg with kids? Or perhaps any suggestions for a midweek break at the beginning of Oct - looking at up to 4hrs drive from Essen and have DCs 11,8&5 to please Grin

mrsmortis · 29/07/2015 09:08

So it's definitely happening. We move to Koeln on the 10th August. School starts on the 13th. I'm not panicking or anything...

doradoo · 29/07/2015 09:14

Exciting times mrsm! We're near Essen so have the same hols - gearing up for the big back to school here too - not like there's been much of a summer though and the weather is a bit rubbish at the mo too!

BertieBotts · 31/07/2015 20:29

Well the school letter came! :) With two sides of A4 for the equipment list. Lol! They are studying French in first year, too. Will be interested to see how DS does with that. He is really excited about the idea.

ptumbi · 03/08/2015 15:58

Hi You lot! I'm so glad I don't have the school stuff to do anymore - although I have one going away to uni, and the youngest to college, in sept. At least I don't have school Uniform any more - but you lot don't have that anyway, do you? We will have to buy a ton of stationery, but can get it at Tesco, along with a backpack (I only realised recently that Rucksack is Backpack in German Grin).
I have a bit of a bone to pick with Germans - we've just come back from Croatia; first time there, and been on my list for a year or so, it's just rising as a holiday destination here. Anyway, It' is gorgeous, sunny, beautiful towns and beaches - and full of Germans (And Italians, Dutch, Hungarians etc) so it's somewhere they have known about for a while and haven't let on!

The places we stayed in said they spoke English (on tripadvisor) but the had only v basic english, so I got to use my German! Grin I was so happy to use a bit of German and not be answered in English! And I got the impression taht their German was actually not much better than mine, so errors like der, die, das, and dem etc didn't matter. Grin

Will def be going back.

ptumbi · 03/08/2015 15:59

Oooh MrsM, how exciting! Grin

mrsmortis · 06/08/2015 19:35

OK, I've just realised how much a Ranzen is going to cost. We move on Monday and DD1 starts school on Wed in Y2. She's going to Bilingos. Does she really need a bag that costs that much? I don't want her to be the odd one out, any more than she is already going to be. Advice would be appreciated.

BertieBotts · 06/08/2015 19:54

Hard to tell. I think that even in bilingual schools it's very much the norm. Can you look around for a local facebook group near the new place? That's where I get most of my info (An English speaking one).

I did find these, which look like the Ergobag, they are sold as Ranzens, and a friend recommended the brand as being good. But they don't look like the Scout/McNEil ones. physio-schulranzen.de/index.php/cat/c11_Ranzen-ab-1-35-m.html/XTCsid/04b79905485ce04c7e795020db288737

BertieBotts · 06/08/2015 19:55

The ab 1.05m ones look more ranzen-ish, but might be too small?

doradoo · 06/08/2015 20:08

they do all have them - we got ours second hand on an FB selling page - perhaps there is something similar for Koln? Or try Ebay kleinanzeigen here you may find something local which you can pick up before school starts.

BertieBotts · 06/08/2015 20:17

Oh yes that's a good point too, ebay.

I have a friend who just recently moved to Cologne, I'll ask her.

mrsmortis · 06/08/2015 23:17

Thanks for the help so far. Another question: are the cones just for the first day of school ever? Or do they get one every year? And do the actual cones go into school? Or are they just for home?

BertieBotts · 06/08/2015 23:18

No just for the first year. So you don't need to worry.

NurNochKurzDieWeltRetten · 08/08/2015 18:25

MrsM I don't know about bilingual schools, but certainly in a regular school here a child in year 2 would feel very much the odd one out without a Ranzen. Its a pity you are much too far away (we're in Bavaria) as we now have a 2nd hand Ranzen going spare which I'd be more than happy to give away - DD has just finished Grundschule and the local priest had arranged to collect the Ranzen on the last day and take them to a collection point for sending to Romania (I think) but decided to collect them a week early on the only day of the term DD has been off sick (resulting in most of the non Catholic kids taking home pencil cases and exercise books in their sport bags and plastic bags that day - he'd mentioned it in Catholic religion class the day before but not bothered sending a message via the class teacher).

What do people do with their no longer needed still functional but no longer new looking Ranzen after Grundschule? It was 150 Euro new, but of course isn't worth anything now even though it is not damaged in any way ö just faded etc. I will probably end up giving ours to the red cross shop, but not sure if anyone will buy it... wonder if the refuge kids in Muncih need Schule Ranzen or if they're educated separately in the accommodation centres...

mrsmortis · 08/08/2015 19:44

If you are in Munich try getting in touch with Pastor Erb-Kanzleiter at Peace Church. They do a lot of work with Asylum seekers. Often having an English speaker to help with German beaurocracy makes a big difference. When I left Munich 9 years ago I left a whole load of stuff with them (pots and pans, etc) because I knew they'd go to a good home.

NurNochKurzDieWeltRetten · 08/08/2015 20:09

Thanks MrsMorrtis - I'm too far outside Munich to go in regularly really, especially with the school day being so short - would barely have time to get there and back between Kindergarten drop off and school kick out... I've seen posters asking for help more locally (not through a church) but never offered because my German isn't good enough to help with bureaucracy (I'm fine with everyday or school stuff, but for real government, insurance and legal stuff I'm flummoxed and have always been able to leave it to German DH, like a 1950s woman but for language reasons) , so I'm afraid I'd be more of a hindrance than a help! I can donate stuff though - especially outgrown kids' clothes, which I usually give to the Red Cross but I know they just bundle them and sell them by weight for shredding when they have a glut...