Germany at a Glance!

With 2 days left to leave the land of my dreams, i thought i should be sharing some useful info for the benefit of others keen on visiting Germany in the near future !!

The first thing that often strikes a traveller is the currency there...i may be wrong though..)

Germans follow Euros...Now 1 euro often falls between 51-63 rupees..( at least in the last one year, the variation was like this.! )

To know the exact conversion rates whenever you decide to travel, visit:

http://x-rates.com/

The best and safest way is to bring a Euro card along, that can be easily received from most of the reputed Indian banks, ICICI for example!

Your credit card may fail to work at many places!!

Be sure to have transactions from only those ATM's which have associations with your respective Indian bank, otherwise you may end up losing a lot of money as the currency exchange fees ..

I'm emphasizing on this because i have lost a lot of money (1.5 euro per transaction), everytime i used to do transaction from my Euro card..(

Next it is very important to understand the Economy of Germany. Till date, Germany is the largest European economy, and the third largest in the world -after US and Japan!

Some body may question why is it important as a tourist....to give you an idea why Germans feel so self sufficient here that they hardly understand the international language English!!

Who wil be the sufferer..certainly not the Germans..Will give you a live example...Today i and my friend Geeta went to de-register ourselves from Deutschland..The incharge at foreign affairs could not even understand the purpose of our visit...!!

Ultimately we used certain signs to convey our purpose..!

So what is the remedy..Atleast be in contact with those who understand German a bit..or carry a mini English-German dictionary for translating some basic words..

A major persistent issue of concern here is the high unemployment rate..

Germany's government runs a restrictive fiscal policy and has cut numerous regular jobs in the public sector..

Your HR or may be you will have to work real hard to prove the German embassy, what special skill set you've which they can't find in their own folks...

Even if you get through, you'll end up contributing a good chuck of your salary for the National unemplyment fund..But then i assure you..there is no such bigger wonder than working here..Germany is well connected to other European countries...And you will surely love that!!

A good way to emerge as a winner is to bargain for your basic onsite salary in the beginning..especially for those in the IT profession!

Another worthwhile thing to know beforehand are the important states of Germany!

The ten largest cities in Germany are:

Berlin (capital of Germany)

Hamburg

Munich

Cologne

Frankfurt am Main

Stuttgart

Dortmund

Essen

Düsseldorf

Bremen


Let me share some Do's and Don'ts:

1. Use formal pronouns especially when talking to people older than you..The people here are highly courteous..!

2. They are very punctual so dont shy to apologise if you are late!

3. Very thorough in their work, and at the top of it, very helpful..no compromises on quality..If you can't achieve something in a particular timespan, dont worry they will move the deadline further!

4. Shaking hands is the established form of greeting.

Take the other hand out of your pockets and look into the person's eyes.

5. They speak their mind immediately, dont feel offended!

Trust me, there will never be a personal assault!

6. Good to carry a small gift when invited for lunch /dinner.

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7. They exhibit a lot of table manners. Wish "Güten Appetit" before eating..

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8. Germans are used to rounding up...but follow this only for cents..not for Euros..unless you are too generous!

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9. The GSM emergency numbers are the same. 112 ..though by God's grace, i never had to try that..

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10. Passport photographs stand a very high chance of being rejected, unles these meet the high quality standards here..)

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11. Most of the grocery shops are closed on Sundays..unlike in India..So be prepared to have some time left for shopping on Saturdays!

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12. The garbage here needs to be segregated and has to be thrown in differen bins ..primarily glass, paper, waste and packaging..

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13. The chemist shops won't give you medicines unless they have been prescribed from a German Doctor..The fees of the Doctor is at times equivalent to your India trip cost..But the good part is it can be easily reimbusred through medical insurance here!!

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14 .The most amazing observation for us here was that even the normal water was being charged in a restaurant..even if the owners of the eating joint are themselves Indian..!!

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So friends......dont ever miss an opportunity to Germany....Hope you enjoy Germany's multi-faceted appeal to the fullest!

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For this Deutschland is Simply Inspiring!!!