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Depending on the timing, I'd volunteer to have a beer with you somewhere in Northern Germany (which to me is anything North of the Elbe). I live in Marburg near Frankfurt, which is a nice little town clustered around a castle overlooking the whole Lahn-valley and quite a beautiful core city that dates back to the 13th century.  As that seems to be a detour from your route, Hamburg or one of the cities in Schleswig-Holstein would be cool, as I will be staying there for a while, visiting friends. I don't know the exact date yet, but it might just be late July/early August. No Wacken for me this year, though  Wacken is definitely a must see in Germany if you're into metal, even though it's getting larger and larger -which not only means logistic problems, but also brings an increasing influx of people who don' give a poo poo about the somewhat familiar atmosphere in Wacken and think it's cool to be a general dickhead (like stealing other people's beer supplies etc. )
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Jul 1, 2010 19:12
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Previously on GBS posted:
Zeche Zollverein is pretty cool, it gave me a good idea of how lovely a miner's work must have been. And Default Settings, your schedule is definitely missing some Saxony! I would recommend Dresden, you should stop there on your way to Berlin. Beautiful city with a very nice baroque old town.
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Jul 1, 2010 20:27
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elbkaida posted:And Default Settings, your schedule is definitely missing some Saxony! I would recommend Dresden, you should stop there on your way to Berlin. Beautiful city with a very nice baroque old town. quote:As that seems to be a detour from your route, Hamburg or one of the cities in Schleswig-Holstein would be cool, as I will be staying there for a while, visiting friends. quote:Wacken is definitely a must see in Germany if you're into metal, even though it's getting larger and larger -which not only means logistic problems, but also brings an increasing influx of people who don' give a poo poo about the somewhat familiar atmosphere in Wacken and think it's cool to be a general dickhead
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Jul 1, 2010 20:50
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If you're interested in old architecture don't go to Munich. Almost everything worth seeing is gone since WWII.
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Jul 1, 2010 21:50
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Hungry Gerbil posted:If you're interested in old architecture don't go to Munich. Almost everything worth seeing is gone since WWII.    
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Jul 1, 2010 22:57
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Default Settings posted:I'm alreay miffed that I have to leave out Bamberg - Many stations along the route are because of my interest in old architecture and history in general. Nurnberg is great and all but the reconstruction after WW2 was a disaster and the city is an absolute shadow of its former self. Look up the Pellerhaus or the Toplerhaus to see what they did to it. They rebuilt the castle but the dreaded phrase "in a simpler form" is all over it. http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pellerhaus I get in a rage whenever I hear the farce over the Pellerhaus. How anyone could have put a protection order on that disgusting 1950s facade is beyond me. They need to snap out of it and realise the original building was a masterpiece. Rebuilding the insides just wont work without the facade. http://www.stadtbild-deutschland.de/rubriken/staedte_und_orte/1/index.html I'd be TEMPTED to leave out Nurnberg and do Bamberg instead. The recon of Nurnberg was half assed and only about 10% of Bamberg got trashed so would be much better for old architecture. Munich is worth seeing. They did keep the old street grid but reconstructed a good amount of the old buildings. There is the odd godawful recon, but the historical stuff was restored reasonably well. Also Munich is worth it just to see the terrifying awesomness of the Asamkirche. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asamkirche http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asamkirche_%28M%C3%BCnchen%29 Edit: And the street the Asamkirche is on is quite nice, didnt look like it got demolished. Edit2: Dresden isnt on your list? THE_Chris fucked around with this message at 23:03 on Jul 2, 2010 |
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Jul 2, 2010 22:57
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General question -- I'm making a permanent move to Germany later this month and I want to get on an iPhone 4 plan pretty much ASAP. What's the best way to do this? Can I buy one from an Apple store in the US, and bring it to pretty much any carrier in Berlin, and get set up? Or must I go to a T-Mobile store and get everything from them? Also, I didn't have much luck navigating the T-Mobile .de site for rate plans. If I want unlimited data and a reasonable amount of SMS, what am I looking at pro monat?
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Jul 6, 2010 19:54
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Brecht posted:General question -- I'm making a permanent move to Germany later this month and I want to get on an iPhone 4 plan pretty much ASAP. What's the best way to do this? Can I buy one from an Apple store in the US, and bring it to pretty much any carrier in Berlin, and get set up? Or must I go to a T-Mobile store and get everything from them? Here's the T-Mobile iPhone rates: http://www.t-mobile.de/iphone/tarife If your US iPhone is not SIM-locked, then I think you can get a plan from pretty much any carrier. EDIT: Concerning T-Mobile plans, you can either have a set amount of "free" minutes and SMS per month ("Complete 60-1200" plans), or you pay by the minute/sms, depending on the carrier you're calling/texting ("Complete S-XL" plans). Depending on what you need you'll pay between € 45 and € 120 pro Monat. Your best bet will probably be to buy an iPhone in an Apple store in the US and then get an O2o (Oh-Two-Oh) plan, as they're the best/cheapest in my opinion. Man, I really want an iPhone 4 too  but then again, I'm one of the few Palm Pre users who is really really happy with his device.
Das MicroKorg fucked around with this message at 20:04 on Jul 6, 2010 |
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Jul 6, 2010 19:58
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FLX posted:EDIT: Concerning T-Mobile plans, you can either have a set amount of "free" minutes and SMS per month ("Complete 60-1200" plans), or you pay by the minute/sms, depending on the carrier you're calling/texting ("Complete S-XL" plans). Depending on what you need you'll pay between € 45 and € 120 pro Monat.  Just to clarify, is "HSDPA-Nutzung" what I would understand as 'data'?edit: of course it is, dur Brecht fucked around with this message at 20:26 on Jul 6, 2010 |
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Jul 6, 2010 20:21
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If you're permanently moving to Germany, why not get the iPhone here? I figure it'd save you a lot of hassle. The low end plans (in the 40-50 bucks range) are poo poo in regards to SMS, though - you'll either have 40 free SMS -or- free SMS to anyone in the same network, which is nice if you know a lot of people on the same network, but you can't really tell the network from the number anymore. Any extra SMS will cost you 19 cents, although you don't pay for incoming texts.
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Jul 6, 2010 20:47
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Brecht posted:General question -- I'm making a permanent move to Germany later this month and I want to get on an iPhone 4 plan pretty much ASAP. What's the best way to do this? Can I buy one from an Apple store in the US, and bring it to pretty much any carrier in Berlin, and get set up? Or must I go to a T-Mobile store and get everything from them? Does it have to be an iphone 4 when you can get a used unlocked or unlockable g or gs for a reasonable price and don't have to suffer the rape that is a 2 year t-mobile contract? Just get an unlocked older model and you are free to chose whatever plan is best for your needs.
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Jul 6, 2010 21:43
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THE_Chris posted:I'd be TEMPTED to leave out Nurnberg and do Bamberg instead. quote:Munich is worth seeing. quote:Dresden isnt on your list?
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Jul 6, 2010 22:30
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Brecht posted:General question -- I'm making a permanent move to Germany later this month and I want to get on an iPhone 4 plan pretty much ASAP. What's the best way to do this? Can I buy one from an Apple store in the US, and bring it to pretty much any carrier in Berlin, and get set up? Or must I go to a T-Mobile store and get everything from them?
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Jul 6, 2010 22:54
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elwood posted:Does it have to be an iphone 4 when you can get a used unlocked or unlockable g or gs for a reasonable price and don't have to suffer the rape that is a 2 year t-mobile contract? Just get an unlocked older model and you are free to chose whatever plan is best for your needs. edit: ^^^ I guess Previously answered my question.
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Jul 6, 2010 22:54
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Yeah you could but the 3GS is poo poo compared to the 4 I mean, you're really missing out on a lot but then again this time next year you can probably buy unlocked 4s already so whatever. I got a question myself: I'll be in Saarbrücken for a long weekend in August, what are some good/cheap places to eat? I figure Flammkuchen are big over there, but what else? And where? Also if there's anything worth seeing in the city I'd love to know about that too
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Jul 7, 2010 07:54
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Follow up question, Berlin residents in particular: what's my best bet for internet service?
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Jul 7, 2010 15:02
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I'm heading to Oktoberfest in Munich this year (I know, I know!) and could use some advice on tent reservations. From what I've read, you really need one to get a seat and you need to call the person running the tent. But when? Months ahead of time or the day before? Any advice would be appreciated.
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Jul 7, 2010 18:13
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Getting a seat is not that problematic. You have to come in the morning and wait 2 to 3 hours. Coming on a weekday will increase your chances. If you only want to drink 2 or 3 liters of beer you can also show up in the afternoon and use the reserved seats for a few hours. You will have to leave around 5 to 7 pm though, if you do this. Oh, and if you want to reserve a seat, it's probably too late now.
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Jul 7, 2010 18:44
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Brecht posted:Follow up question, Berlin residents in particular: what's my best bet for internet service? Uh, Alice/Hansenet? They're pretty reliable.
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Jul 7, 2010 23:29
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Zwille posted:Uh, Alice/Hansenet? They're pretty reliable. And they also have a 1 month cancellation period unlike everyone else where its 12 or 24 months.
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Jul 7, 2010 23:45
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Yeah, Alice is good. I was really happy with Kabel Deutschland, too, their customer service is really good in my experience. Plus you get better upload speeds with cable. The subcontractors who do the installation are hit or miss though.
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Jul 7, 2010 23:50
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Sereri posted:And they also have a 1 month cancellation period unlike everyone else where its 12 or 24 months. That's new though, isn't it? I know I signed up for a 24 month contract a couple years back.
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Jul 8, 2010 08:45
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Hungry Gerbil posted:Oh, and if you want to reserve a seat, it's probably too late now.
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Jul 8, 2010 15:56
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BerkerkLurk posted:I was afraid of that. Thanks for the info. http://www.wiesn2.de/wiesnportal/info_03-wiesn-wirte_oktoberfest.htm
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Jul 8, 2010 16:03
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Arwarker posted:Marburg Marburg is pretty great. I spent the past month living and studying there (wish I would have said something in this thread while I was still there!) but its a cute little city with some fun history, definitely good for old architecture and sights. I think the oldest building there is just shy of 1000 years old. I felt like I was living in a fairy tale the entire time walking around the Oberstadt. The best thing about Marburg that I can say is if you look in the nooks and crannies, you will find some really cool poo poo hidden. Theres a really old church and graveyard hidden up behind some shops right near Elizabeth Kirche. Finding little hidden gems like that is so cool. Also seconding München, it's a bigger city with a lot more to do and much better public transportation and lodging. Berlin and Frankfurt are good cities but are way more modernized, Berlin was hosed up from the wars and Frankfurt is such a big business city that it's been forced to evolve more, whereas München has been preserved a lot more carefully. Try to go on weekends with festivals, it adds a fun atmosphere to everything.
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Jul 9, 2010 04:59
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Unagi posted:I felt like I was living in a fairy tale the entire time walking around the Oberstadt. The best thing about Marburg that I can say is if you look in the nooks and crannies, you will find some really cool poo poo hidden. Theres a really old church and graveyard hidden up behind some shops right near Elizabeth Kirche. Finding little hidden gems like that is so cool. Yeah, that's definitely what I like most about Marburg. I have a friend who actually lives in the Oberstadt, one short alley across from the "Sudhaus", if that means anything to you. One of the Grimm brothers once said that "Marburg's surroundings are certainly beautiful; the city itself, however, is ugly. There are steps everywhere, and there is a house one has to enter through the roof." This is actually written on the steps leading up to castle, so you might have seen it. Which part of the Uni did you frequent? The horrible PhilFak or the gruesome science faculties (in regard to the state of those buildings)?
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Jul 12, 2010 22:15
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Just browsing the thread and didn't see a few things I was wondering about so here goes: I'm studying abroad at Universität Heidelberg for a year starting in September (1 month preparatory language program before I start). My intent is the mostly take German language classes, but I might also want to take some classes related to my major. It's my understanding that you have to take a rather difficult language test in order to enroll in regular university classes. I've googled around about this but the only result I seem to get is "It's hard." Anyone have direct first hand experience with the test (I believe the one I'm facing is the "Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang")? Curious about your thoughts. Anyone attend Universität Heidelberg? Is this experience going to own as much as I hope it will?
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Jul 14, 2010 09:28
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It's hard. My cousin from abroad had to learn German for six months daily before being able to pass the test. Some need a year. So, I think it depends. How good is your German right now? You will probably be able to take some non-language courses in your second semester over here though.
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Jul 14, 2010 10:05
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Rums posted:Just browsing the thread and didn't see a few things I was wondering about so here goes: It probably depends on your major, but I guess you could just show up for the classes and try to take the exam at the end? Do you want to transfer credits from this or just take classes out of interest?
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Jul 14, 2010 18:41
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My German right now is what I would describe as fair for someone who's been studying at university level for a few years, which means not that good. That's why I'm going, I want to work towards fluency, or at least understand most of what I'm hearing. I'm okay with taking only German language courses while I'm there because my school (which doesn't have a German major) is going to give me a BA in German if I take the right courses (special major). My normal major is economics. Only thing I would take while in Germany is electives (economic history, game theory, fun stuff like that). I'm not stressing it, I just would like to take some regular university courses while there to get the full experience, ya know? Cal State system lets me transfer all my units as resident units, and as I understand it they only transfer the courses I turn in paperwork for, so maybe I can just take some courses and if I don't do well I just won't turn in the paperwork and its like it never happened. Might be useful to just sit in on a class and try and absorb either way...
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Jul 15, 2010 04:51
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Rums posted:Cal State system lets me transfer all my units as resident units, and as I understand it they only transfer the courses I turn in paperwork for, so maybe I can just take some courses and if I don't do well I just won't turn in the paperwork and its like it never happened. If you're going through an American university system, I'd assume they have some sort of arrangement where they enroll you directly at Uni Heidelberg. That's what my program did for us. I was technically a German student and could take whatever classes I wanted. You just have to get the Schein from the professor and then you submit that back to your university and they have to decide whether to accept it or not.
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Jul 15, 2010 17:03
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Oh, and there are international programs with lectures and everything being all in English. You could look into that, too.
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Jul 15, 2010 17:06
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Found out I'm going to be doing 80 hours of German instruction during my 4 week long prep. language course, and afterwords I'm free to enroll in regular university classes (I'm going to be enrolled as a regular student, take whatever I want). University aside, anyone got protips about Heidelberg?
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Jul 16, 2010 03:05
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Arwarker posted:Which part of the Uni did you frequent? The horrible PhilFak or the gruesome science faculties (in regard to the state of those buildings)? Mostly Philipps stuff. It's a bit confusing, the classes I took were part of the University but they were ran by a smaller department of the school and were held in a smaller building on Universitätsstaße. But I lived in Uni housing, ate at the Mensa and lived as most other students would. I did see that Grimm quote, and it is mostly very true. Everything is uphill in Marburg. Everything.
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Jul 18, 2010 00:36
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Default Settings posted:Just in case anybody wonders, this is the route we finally decided on ...
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Jul 22, 2010 21:38
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I have an odd request. Could someone tell me the the Zutaten in Bayer Aspirin? I want to know if it's the same as over here in the states, because the German stuff seems to be much better than any American Aspirin... I just don't know why or if there's any difference. Unagi fucked around with this message at 23:03 on Jul 30, 2010 |
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Jul 30, 2010 23:00
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Actually, there should not be that much of a difference, as Aspirin is a drug containing only one pharmacologically active ingredient, acetylsalicylic acid. Bayer claims bragging rights because they developed a way to produce pure ASA on an industrial level. Not saying there's no difference at all; I dimly recall that aspirin is not a registered trademark in the US. By the way, if you spent most of your time in the Universitätsstraße, I take it you did not have to be around those soul-crushing towers that are home to English students and the like. Lucky you. I'm wondering - did you expect German universities to be so.. desolate (is it much worse than in the US, not considering Ivy League for a moment)?
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Jul 30, 2010 23:36
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Unagi posted:I have an odd request. Aspirin only has one active ingredient but comes in different doses. Maybe American Aspirin (or the brand you usually buy) isn't as highly concentrated as the Bayer one's you bought here. Last year I bought some in Spain that were basically 1/5 of the dosis of the one's I buy at the local pharmacy here. Taking 5 of them at a time solved the problem
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Jul 31, 2010 00:00
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Arwarker posted:By the way, if you spent most of your time in the Universitätsstraße, I take it you did not have to be around those soul-crushing towers that are home to English students and the like. Lucky you. I'm wondering - did you expect German universities to be so.. desolate (is it much worse than in the US, not considering Ivy League for a moment)? I wasn't in Marburg, but I really missed the "campus" feel when I studied in Germany. That's something that's just uniquely American. You eat on campus, you go to class, your sports fields are on campus, and you live on campus. There's always something going on all the time. The German university system has some great advantages, like autonomy, independence, and less busy work, but the American university system is just awesome. I think everyone should study abroad in the US, no matter what country you're from. It's a shitshow.
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Jul 31, 2010 03:13
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