The grass is always greener on the other side; this quote says the truth about everything we know about the world (Germany) and its people. We wish to live other people’s lives when we see them doing well or just enjoying their lives more than us. The lack of acceptance towards oneself and the things around leads to frustration and unhappiness. And so, every once in a while there should be an assessment to open one’s own eyes.
So, today, I will be breaking down the differences between India and Germany I have witnessed in my 50 days here:
- Well-designed and Organized Public Transport Facilities: This is the best thing about Germany which enables everyone to reach their destinations as fast as possible. The transport facilities like U-Bahn, S-Bahn, Tram, and Bus give people many options to reach anywhere in the city.
- Alcohol Hub: Unlike India, Germany is a huge producer of Alcohol which makes it the place to buy alcohol at cheap prices, starting from 65 cents.
- Insurance is a must: Developed countries like Germany have a mandatory policy to have Travel and Health Insurance. In case you have a dog, you have to have Dog Insurance as well.
- Availability of Part-Time Jobs: One can work part-time and full-time jobs here along with studying. The most common job is as a delivery person for students.
- Safety: Berlin is a very safe place to travel even at night-time with the availability of public transport 24*7.
- Not a lot of English Speaking Folks: German people here don’t speak English much, either they don’t know or refuse to speak. I am not saying they are yokel or eccentric but they just don’t want to learn or speak English. You will find exceptions among youths and IT and Management employees.
- Lots of Paperwork: To live in Berlin, One must have the proper paperwork to get the benefits and facilities. You must have a Tax ID, Residence permit, Bank account, Travel & Health Insurance, Visa, Passport and more.
- Other Countries’ specialities: It is easier to find your country’s specialities in Berlin since it’s a culturally and ethnically rich city.
- No labels lifestyle: People here are free to live life as per their interests and convenience. Nobody cares if they get married, have children without getting married, or remain single their entire lives. Nobody minds whether they drink in public, kiss in public, or identify as homosexual out loud in Germany. Although, they do value Family culture as much as Indians.
- Digitally Stuck Behind: Digitally speaking, Germany has a long way to go before catching up to India. Despite being an automobile nation, they need to prosper as an IT powerhouse to pace up with the world. Indians here are known to be IT savvy.
- Weather: The weather here is quite weird. You will experience all four weather conditions in one day: Snow, Rain, Sun and Wind. The Sun rises at 8 pm and sets around 4 pm, which sun rays visible 1/4th of the month. The evening and night time is unbearable, you feel like being sucked by a Dementor while going out. It’s cold, wet, windy and depressing.
- SIM Card Management: The procedure is different here from India. If a person is charging their phone monthly, they need to be careful as the data gets depleted fast here. So, keep your Mobile data turned off all the time, use public WiFi instead. Another way is having 2 years contract, where the recharge is done by the SIM company which directly deducts the money from the customer’s account monthly.
There are more but this is all I got so far. Keep reading to find out more.
Disclaimer: Please do not get offended, this is just a mere opinion.
