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LaserWash posted:Berlin goons, Bismarckstraße is way off. I guess you could reach Zoo relatively quickly, and there's lots of fancy restaurants near S Charlottenburg/U Wilmersdorfer Straße, but everything else is very boring. Potsdamer Platz would serve you better, all the major sights are within walking distance, and you can reach the others by subway easily enough. I'm not sure about food though. The selection near train stations is rarely anything to write home about.
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Mar 16, 2013 21:17
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LaserWash posted:Berlin goons, Hi, you are totally wrong about where you want to stay. Clean and safe is a relative misnomer for Germany, even a "Bad" area of a major city is probably better than most "Ok" areas in American cities, you really should have nothing to worry about ever. I'd recommend trying to find something in or around the Prenzlauerberg area, you're still close to attractions, but you also have access to a whole bunch of cafes, restaurants and art galeries, as well as a fair amount of other cool stuff in summer (fleamarkets, various outdoor going-ons). Central-west Berlin is a pretty dead area, there are some tourist things to see and some major shops, but outside of that it's mostly uninspired residential areas. A huge amount of the current "Berlin" is the former east+Kreuzberg, so if you want to experience any of the more well known modern alternative/art/hipster culture then this is where you'll need to go/be. As for hotels I really don't know alot, there is one called the Huettenpalast in kreuzberg which is a whole bunch of campers in a building and is trendy, if you have money (like 200eur per night) a new one called Das Stue opened relatively recently and is super cool (it's in an old embassy but is all modern), other than that I know nothing about hotels. Train stations usually aren't a big issue as all long distance trains will stop at a number of stations in the city, (Ostbahnhof, Suedkreuz, Gesundbrunnen, Friedrichstr., Potsdamer Platz), so you don't need to worry about easy access to the Hbf. If you like more southern style breakfasts (like Bavaria/Austria) there's a place in Mitte called alpenstueck which is really excellent, if a bit pricey. If you want tips on what to actually see (there is a lot of stuff), I can also help with that.
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Mar 16, 2013 22:51
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Landsknecht posted:Clean and safe is a relative misnomer for Germany, even a "Bad" area of a major city is probably better than most "Ok" areas in American cities, you really should have nothing to worry about ever. Maybe LaserWash means clean and safe like a village in Bavaria? Then I'd recommend Potsdam. 
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Mar 17, 2013 12:52
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elbkaida posted:Maybe LaserWash means clean and safe like a village in Bavaria? Then I'd recommend Potsdam. Seriously, when I read that my first thought was "Stay out of Berlin then". Berlin is probably as far as you can go from a Bavarian village while staying in Germany (it's not really "unsafe" though). Like most Capital cities, it is very different from the rest of the country.
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Mar 18, 2013 08:50
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Heh, In retrospect, the two phrases "Is it safe?" and "in Germany" should never be put in the same sentence. That's a given, at least in my experience having traveled throughout Bavaria and the Rhineland on three different times. Of course I know those don't belong together. My wife and I already know that Berlin is unlike Bavaria, and really Germany for that matter (and that's why we, as people, travel, right?). Maybe what I should have asked was what parts of Berlin are considered "cleaner" (ie lower concentration of strip bars, sex shops, drug legalization, etc.)? We prudes in America don't like that kind of stuff, ya know?   But I think Landsknecht did a pretty good job of summarizing the neighborhoods.
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Mar 18, 2013 13:47
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Yeah then Prenzlauer Berg and Kreuzberg are pretty safe/clean. Consider the Graefekiez, it's particularly beautiful (I think) and for Prenzlauer Berg stick to Kastanienallee or Rosenthaler Platz, or the area around Kollwitzplatz. Both are very pretty but if you don't watch out you'll run into streetwalkers at night somewhere around Hackescher Markt, and Kurfürstenstraße is very seedy but that's in Charlottenburg/Wilmersdorf. (Kurfürstendamm on the other hand is pretty clean for the most part) Drug dealers are mostly an issue in parks like Hasenheide and Görlitzer Park but then again you'll have to actively search them out.
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Mar 18, 2013 17:19
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LaserWash, +1 to everyone saying Potsdamer is a bad idea. You probably want to stay at Circus Hotel at Rosenthaler Platz. There's also an EasyHotel across the street, which I really like but maybe isn't your thing. It's super bare/minimal and the rooms are absolutely tiny, but spotless, comfortable, has a nice shower, etc.
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Mar 23, 2013 13:36
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Darn, Circus is running 95 Euros a night, which for me, is too high for a place to sleep for ~8 hours a day, and Easy Hotel is booked for the week I'll be there. Anyone else have suggestions with places they have stayed?
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Mar 25, 2013 01:25
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LaserWash posted:Darn, http://www.plushostels.com/plusberlin It's kind of a mix of a hostel/hotel, but the two times I've been there it's basically been just like being in a hotel (there are plenty of private rooms). The beds are kind of hard, but everything else is really nice.
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Mar 25, 2013 08:22
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Apparently everyone in Germany needs a physical address in your registration for whatever, be it a bank or even a prepaid SIM card, which makes trying to get one for travel, or before I have a permanent address in Germany, basically impossible. I have this Blauworld SIM card and it requires an address before I activate it. The clerk in the store told me just to use the address of the store, but I read elsewhere that a confirmation letter is physically sent to the provided address and if the letter fails to be delivered, the SIM card will be deactivated. I feel like I'm missing something. Why even have pre-paid SIM cards if they require you to be a resident? Is there a plan specifically designed for travelers? I could care less about getting a gajillion minutes or whatever, I just want to be able to use a generous data plan when I'm wandering around the city.
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Mar 25, 2013 19:35
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That's weird, when I helped my aunt activate her prepaid card there was nothing about her address. I think you just called some number and entered a code or whatever. If you give the store's address, won't the letter be successfully delivered anyway?
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Mar 25, 2013 20:11
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I've bought sim cards from Vodafone (2 years ago) and TMobile (last year). In both cases, I can only think of (maybe) needing to show a passport. Also, there might be something in the blau package about going to a website to activate. Something tells me it has something to do with this webpage: https://www.aufladen.de/. I wouldn't ever know because I couldn't activate the card because the server was down last summer when I tried.  ... and then I proceeded to try to cut it down to mini-sim size (unsuccessfully). 10 Euros not very well spent.
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Mar 25, 2013 21:27
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If you look carefully, aufladen.de appears to be some offshoot of Vodafone: the payment options, description texts, even the questions in the FAQ are the same between aufladen.de and aufladen.vodafone.de. In both cases, purchasing by credit card or Paypal asks for a German address, same as the Vodafone page (I got a CallYa card before I realized it was essentially just for calls and not really for data). All the cards I get now have a SIM factor and mini-SIM factor perforated into them so there's no need to cut your own, anymore, at least. The basic workflow for 'topping up', be it Vodafone or Blauworld, does indeed involve calling a number (or using one of the *XXX# GSM carrier codes), entering the ID of the top-up card, etc, but the initial registration of the card is the part that involves the address. From their FAQ: quote:blauworld offers are limited to Germany and we can thus only process orders with a German delivery address. Thanks for the input, Zwille and LaserWash. Gonna figure out what I can tomorrow. When I went to Belgium, I got a BASE plan, and it worked immediately before I even left the store, and it was a joy to use the entire time. It's a shame the process seems so convoluted here.
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Mar 26, 2013 03:46
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I have an unlocked GSM AT&T iPhone 4, so ymmv, buuuuttt...... The Vodafone plan I have is also callya plan. I had 20 euros loaded, topped up a few times on it 2 years ago and still have some change left. We've used the card almost exclusively for data. Poke around on google, but you should find that you can use the aep wap.vodafone.de or something like that in the settings to use data for .99€ per day. Ask at a Vodafone store. I have the address bookmarked on my computer. Let me know if you want it.
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Mar 26, 2013 12:18
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horse mans posted:aufladen.de and aufladen.vodafone.de. In both cases, purchasing by credit card or Paypal asks for a German address, same as the Vodafone page (I got a CallYa card before I realized it was essentially just for calls and not really for data). That sounds like the address issue is because of ordering online, not because it's required for prepaid cards. I can't confirm it but I'm pretty sure that won't be an issue at a brick & mortar store but then again you said earlier that the employee told you to use the store address so you obviously tried to buy it at a b&m store already.
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Mar 26, 2013 13:00
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Zwille posted:That sounds like the address issue is because of ordering online, not because it's required for prepaid cards. I can't confirm it but I'm pretty sure that won't be an issue at a brick & mortar store but then again you said earlier that the employee told you to use the store address so you obviously tried to buy it at a b&m store already. It should be an issue at brick and mortar stores as well. Telecommunication providers are required by law to verify certain data about their customers, among them their current adress. This used to not be applicable for pre-paid cards but was changed back in 2004.
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Mar 26, 2013 13:29
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I meant apn settings. Here's a link to the apn settings for vodafone. http://wiki.apnchanger.org/Germany Note that there is a wap.vodafone.de and a web.vodafone.de. I can't remember which is which, but one of them charges by the MB and the other one charges by the day. There's also something on that page about activation, it might help.
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Mar 26, 2013 13:38
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You get like 200mb of data with CallYa I think, and only if you top up over a certain amount.
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Mar 26, 2013 22:55
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I need help finding a 5k or 10k race in Germany this August. I'll be in Homburg (in Saarland, near France) for 7-10 days and think it would be really fun to run in a race. I may be spending 2 or 3 days in Zurich as well, so that's another option.
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Mar 27, 2013 00:03
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http://www.runme.de/DE/Laufkalender-Saarbruecken/rc/ELI/CY/Saarbr%C3%BCcken There are a couple of events in August (you have to scroll down quite a bit, and a lot of dates are still TBA). There's even a 10k in Homburg, but no date yet. Also, more power to you for visiting the quaint little land of my people. I was born there, and still have lots of family there that I occasionally visit, but mostly grew up near Hamburg, and to me it seems like Saarland is always a little behind (in basically everything). Probably because everyone is so goddamn gemeytlisch. Probably the worst thing that could happen to you while there would be the chain of the Schwenker breaking before the Schwenker is done.
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Mar 27, 2013 00:44
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Badly Jester posted:http://www.runme.de/DE/Laufkalender-Saarbruecken/rc/ELI/CY/Saarbr%C3%BCcken This is amazing; thank you! Running a 10k in Homburg in mid-August would be perfect.  I'm traveling there with my German boyfriend to visit his family. I've only been to Germany once before, and hit up all the big cities (Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Dusseldorf) so am actually pretty psyched to spend time in a smaller city. Here's to lots of Schwenker and beer!
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Mar 27, 2013 01:08
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Gold and a Pager posted:http://www.plushostels.com/plusberlin Hey thanks. I booked this as a "hotel room" in Berlin this June. This looks exactly like the kind of thing my wife and I were looking for.
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Mar 27, 2013 18:34
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Can someone help point me to the precise German statute that says a security deposit must be placed in escrow? I've signed a lease, I've submitted the first month's rent, I've paid the agent their commission, but they (the agency) insist I should pay the deposit into the same account that I placed the rent. The only reason I can think of for this insistence (besides them wanting to just gently caress over an immigrant) is that they would take the money from that account and put it into escrow, but everything I've read seems to indicate the money must be placed 'directly' into a specialized account in both the landlord's and tenant's names.
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Apr 3, 2013 00:30
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This here link basically says you usually pay it in cash and the landlord can do whatever he pleases with it until you get it back after you move out if everything's ok although you can both agree on putting it on a separate blocked (I guess that's what escrow is?) bank account or whatever. I think it doesn't HAVE to be placed in escrow or something fancy like that, at least that's what I get from the above link. It even says you can pay it in three monthly installments regardless of what the contract says.
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Apr 3, 2013 00:37
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Okay so I guess I'm an rear end in a top hat. I got all insistent. Well whatever. He has some of my money, not like I'm gonna flake out now. Thanks for looking into it.
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Apr 3, 2013 00:50
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http://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/englisch_bgb/englisch_bgb.html#p1951
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Apr 3, 2013 04:50
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So I'm an American student having a semester abroad here in Berlin. It's been really nice so far except for the bitter cold and I've done some cool high-cultural stuff (been to some of the museums, the memorials, the Deutsche Oper and Komische Oper, etc.) but now that it's getting a bit warmer and easier to walk down the street without freezing I'd like to try some barhopping and clubbing and such. I'm not somebody who's been out clubbing back in the US since I'm only just turned 21 and I'm not the sort to risk a fake ID, and I have no idea where to start. Also, I live right near Schloss Charlottenburg so there's not much in terms of bars/clubs near me. Does anyone have any suggestions for places that might be good and/or tips for how to have a good night out here?
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Apr 7, 2013 14:17
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DelightFun posted:So I'm an American student having a semester abroad here in Berlin. It's been really nice so far except for the bitter cold and I've done some cool high-cultural stuff (been to some of the museums, the memorials, the Deutsche Oper and Komische Oper, etc.) but now that it's getting a bit warmer and easier to walk down the street without freezing I'd like to try some barhopping and clubbing and such. I'm not somebody who's been out clubbing back in the US since I'm only just turned 21 and I'm not the sort to risk a fake ID, and I have no idea where to start. Also, I live right near Schloss Charlottenburg so there's not much in terms of bars/clubs near me. Well, what kind of music do you like? I go to Berghain fairly regularly and I could meet up there once with you (I'm almost as young as you), or you can check out Tresor/Stattbad/Ritter Butzke/Farbenfernseher/about :Blank/Prince Charles if you want as well (all are fun). There's also some places running non-techno/house stuff, I just really don't go out to those much.
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Apr 7, 2013 14:26
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Are there any job finding resources for people not currently in the country, like headhunters and such?
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Apr 8, 2013 13:41
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I got my current job through monster.de, but there's also stepstone and (the probably useless) jobboerse.arbeitsagentur.de. xing etc. may also be useful. Depending on your degree and if subscribing online is useful (I haven't really checked it out, I subscribed for a while from inside Germany), the Wissenschaftsladen Bonn might also help.
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Apr 9, 2013 17:38
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Troubadour posted:I got my current job through monster.de, but there's also stepstone and (the probably useless) jobboerse.arbeitsagentur.de. xing etc. may also be useful. Depending on your degree and if subscribing online is useful (I haven't really checked it out, I subscribed for a while from inside Germany), the Wissenschaftsladen Bonn might also help. I'm guessing most of those require a level 1 in German? It's probably unlikely I'll find work outside ESL as a business admin major but I figured I could leverage aerospace industry experience to work for the sector in Hamburg or something.
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Apr 9, 2013 22:46
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If you're working on the science/engineering side of aerospace it would probably be possible to find a job where you can get by with English. Business part of it? No idea, but I guess German would be required there.
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Apr 9, 2013 23:37
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So I'm officially spending fall semester at Free University Berlin; what's there to do in Steglitz-Zehlendorf?
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Apr 10, 2013 00:35
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Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. OK, serious answer: there's a cool beer garden called Luise http://www.luise-dahlem.de Botanischer Garten is cool too, it's close to Schloßstraße as well. And Schloßstraße - there's the Naturkaufhaus or whatever it's called, they have a sushi place which does good sushi. Otherwise, just bite the bullet and ride the U3 into the city - or ask your fellow students about activities nearby.
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Apr 10, 2013 08:51
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DerDestroyer posted:I'm guessing most of those require a level 1 in German? It's probably unlikely I'll find work outside ESL as a business admin major but I figured I could leverage aerospace industry experience to work for the sector in Hamburg or something. It obviously restricts your pool of possible jobs, but none of those explicitly require German. There are a number of (international) companies where the company language is German. Engineers can relatively easily find a job because German universities don't produce enough graduates to satisfy demand and almost nobody learns German without learning English first. Being a business graduate would be less advantageous, especially if you don't have an MBA. But it's worth a look around. Also remember that the traditional German CV is different from the traditional American/Canadian(?) one - photo on the first page, letters of reference from previous employers and certificates of training completed, etc. The bigger the company, the more likely you can use the one you're used to, or that you'll need to submit an application on company-specific forms. But the majority still want the older kind.
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Apr 10, 2013 17:36
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Zwille posted:Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. Ah, so basically I'm in the boring part of the city? Bummer... Any good Turkish or other ethnic food near FU, or is that all in, uh, downtown as well?
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Apr 11, 2013 00:29
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Jerry Manderbilt posted:Ah, so basically I'm in the boring part of the city? Bummer... If you want the german version of turkish food (eg Döner), you can throw a stone anywhere in germany and you'll probably hit a Kebab "restaurant".
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Apr 11, 2013 08:15
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On the subject of biergartens in Berlin: I know this isn't exactly a "Berlin" thing, per se, but what do you guys that live there recommend as far as outdoor beer and food? What about something similar in Dresden? Any Dresden goons that want to point out cool things to do there? Someone a long time ago recommended Augustiner Keller near the hauptbahnhof in Munich. Totally awesome the night we were there last year (with the exception that Italy was trashing Germany in the Euro Cup). Any one have other places we should try similar to this in Munich? LaserWash fucked around with this message at 15:19 on Apr 11, 2013 |
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Apr 11, 2013 15:12
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How much time do you want to spend in Dresden? Some general things to do: -walk around the old town near the Elbe, see famous buildings like Frauenkirche, Semperoper, Zwinger -visit museums/galleries: Grünes Gewölbe, Alte/Neue Meister, military museum etc. -go hiking/climbing in Sächsische Schweiz, beautiful area 30 minutes up the river with rocks & canyons -try the cake (best variety of cakes in Germany!) -chill out in a beer garden or cafe near the Elbe If you've got more specific questions, just ask!
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Apr 11, 2013 15:43
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Troubadour posted:It obviously restricts your pool of possible jobs, but none of those explicitly require German. There are a number of (international) companies where the company language is German. Engineers can relatively easily find a job because German universities don't produce enough graduates to satisfy demand and almost nobody learns German without learning English first. Being a business graduate would be less advantageous, especially if you don't have an MBA. But it's worth a look around. I know lots of people in Cologne who don't speak much German yet work here. Most of them are in some sort of technical field (the sciences, IT/programming, engineering) but I know others that do business stuff and insurance.
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Apr 11, 2013 15:58
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