Category Archives: Uncategorized

The 37 Days of Christmas

Germans don’t celebrate Thanksgiving but they celebrate Christmas half the winter. Starting at the end....

If this is punctuality, my watch is broken

Germans have a reputation for being punctual, but trains are a different story. During a....

No Halloween? No way. My sneaky and successful plot

Some Germans celebrate Halloween, but not all of them. I was determined to find a....

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The nightmare of motherhood in Germany

School has started, a good moment to consider the burden on mothers with children in....

The library, the monk, and the sandals

This stunning Baroque library tucked away in a monastery in a Bavarian village is the....

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‘Tis the season of the Wiesn: The Oktoberfest for locals and tourists

What some probably don’t realize is that while the Oktoberfest is the biggest folk festival....

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Spicing up an e-mail is as easy as 1-2-3

Every language has its peculiarities, which should be respected. But when you translate into another....

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The tiniest stars of the Oktoberfest live in a drawer

The Oktoberfest is synonymous with beer for most people. Yet half of the fairgrounds consists....

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Not teaching foreign languages will make America more insular

Do you speak English? This question is often answered with “Yes” all around the world.....

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Getting lost the old-fashioned way

Those of us who predate GPS know how to get around without using technology. Knowing....

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Germans delight in overengineering, taking helicopter mothering to new heights 

Any foreigner in Germany knows all about the country’s love of overengineering. All it takes....

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Hitchhike to work? You bet – and in the most powerful city in the world

Gridlock is a word often used in connection with legislators in the U.S. Congress, but....

Munich comes full circle: From putsch to Rabbi Conference

The hand of history has done its work on the city of Munich. Named after....

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Landshuter Hochzeit: The most theatrical wedding this side of the 15th century

Imagine if your wedding were so spectacular that people would want not just to reenact....

Knee-high by the 4th of July

I fully expected a lot of cultural differences when I moved to Germany. They speak....

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To Bavaria with love, infused with dialect for language nerds

It is best to learn the standard version of a language, but what if you....

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Quit the tomfoolery – I’m sure I don’t know you

The pandemic is over, but its effects continue - sometimes in strange ways. I got....

A fortune for footwear, or my kingdom for a sneaker

There was a lot of hullabaloo when Adidas dropped its sponsorship of the rapper Ye....

Watch out! Augsburg joined forces with the Swedes

Companies sometimes use shady tactics to gain the upper hand in a market. But this....

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One foreigner is not like another – here’s why

There are varying grades of foreigners in Germany, with subtle nuances between them. People instinctively....

Munching my way to Munich, one chaotic airport at a time

There’s a lot to be said for approaching challenging situations with the right attitude, which....

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Are you sure that’s what that sign means?

Signs are there for the express purpose of helping you find your way. They tell....

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Don’t look now, but there’s a shark at your feet

Everybody has their idea of a perfect vacation. I enjoy the ocean, but I don’t....

A kindness repaid, 40 years later

After an overnight trip from Spain, I was thrilled to finally arrive at the doorstep....

This cheap ticket is amazing, but I missed my connection

Germany already experimented with a cheap train ticket last summer. People loved it so much....

Bring out the Easter eggs – the kids are coming home

Just as I was getting used to not being a mother, my COVID-harassed daughters came....

9 things you didn’t know about Chicago

Chicago was named by French fur traders who founded the city, which was destroyed by....

Home sweet home – only better

I fantasize about taking my kids back to where I grew up to show them....

A knack for snacks

When is a snack a meal? It depends on what country you’re in, as Germans....

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Just ‘cause it’s American, Europeans ain’t buyin’ it

American companies have made serious inroads into the economies of Europe and elsewhere, but this....

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The Super Bowl and other American sports make a touchdown in Germany

Football – the sport known everywhere but America as “American football” – has become popular....

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Look here, U.S. election deniers – Berlin bungled it big time 

The press and social media are still abuzz with deniers of the U.S. elections in....

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Even better than bread: the best excuse to fatten up, complete with cream filling

January is when Germans confront the fact that Christmas is over but winter is just....

The new, improved me – courtesy of the EU-conform driver’s license

For years, I suffered from the lousy picture I had taken for my German license,....

Catapulting the plague into Europe and other viral tales

The coronavirus isn’t the first disease that jumped from animals to humans. This has been....

Belt out “Walk the Line” all you want, but walking in the U.S. is not an option

Long gone are the days when you could walk down to the local five-and-dime store....