..on or around Thu, Jun 26, 2008 at 10:03:52AM +1200 Luke Munn wrote:
> hey ADAers,
>
> my wife and I are tentatively considering moving to berlin, germany
> for about a year so I thought I'd tap the pool of knowledge... :-)
>
> -i'm an interactive designer (websites, animation, games, etc,
> http://www.werkhaus.co.nz) and my wife is a freelance illustrator
> (http://www.kimberleemunnillustrator.co.nz). any thoughts on how easy
> or hard it is to find this type of work in the city?
there's pretty much no work in Berlin, so i wouldn't have too many
illusions about getting a job there outside of learning enough Deutsche
to serve tables or teaching English. within the field of interactive
design, some of the world's best live in Berlin, speak German and they
don't have work. luckily Berlin is well placed as a capital so you can work
in neighbouring countries or perhaps even the odd German city.
it's also pretty hard given that Germany - as a rule - will employ one
of the 5 million unemployed there well before they will you, often even
if you are better qualified. almost no-one that comes from abroad moves
to Berlin with a work visa. most just turn up and wing it - that's the
cultural value of the place from a foreign perspective, why it's an
artist's mecca.
>
> -how difficult is it to obtain work visas to germany? i've read some
> differing opinions on this. some say you need a firm job offer from a
> german company, etc. is this a lengthy process that i should start way
> before hand, or something easier done from berlin?
>
> -have read the cost of living in berlin is relatively cheap. is this
> true in your experience? how do food prices and rent compare to nz?
>
well i lived there for 2 years on very little compared to european
standards: EUR600 a month was what we paid in East Berlin. that's was
marginally expensive by Berlin standards, vastly inexpensive
western-europe-wide and low for Germany: Berlin is a city made for 8
million with just 5 million living there. at any given time there are
many thousands of free apartments.
if you're bringing weak NZ dollars you'll need to be resourceful
regardless. shop at Lidl, do the market thing and make sure you take an
apartment with an oven so you can actually cook at home.
> -is it true that you can get by on english alone? or do you really
> need some german to work, get around, get by daily?
>
if you want to participate in German life, become a local, then learn
Deutsche. even just enough to order bread, ask where you are, tell who
you are, will also earn you social time and greater freedom of movement.
if you're happy hanging out with the many Brits, Americans, Aussies and
English-speaking Berliners, then you can certainly get by very basic
Deutsche: most youngish people speak a little English just fine. that
said, i experienced a distinct cultural glass-ceiling: you'll always be
just another foreigner - temporary - while you're not making an effort.
warnings?
one of the first things to do when you get in is register with the
police. do so on the Frankfurter Alle branch, corner of
ProskauerStrasse. the queue is very short compared to most other places
in Berlin. get there at 10am at the latest to avoid a wait. if you ever
get into trouble the city will be on your side with this registration.
it's as close as you'll get to being 'legal' as a non-EU Ausländer,
especially after your 3 months of gratis tourist visa.
secondly, don't rely on Craigslist to find a place - many scheister's
hang out there these days. look in the immobilien guides. this one is
perhaps the top:
http://www.immobilienscout24.de/immobiliensuche/berlin/berlin.htm
remember that apartments in Berlin come with *nothing* in them,
sometimes even the light-fittings are taken with the previous tenant. if
you find a place with furniture and a kitchen and it's a little more
expensive, than a competing apartment with nothing, take it.
bear in mind also the difference between "warm" and "cold" rent. warm
rent is often sometimes the monthly average *including heating* of the
previous year's tenancy. always take warm-rent as your final guide and
ask "what is the warm rent?". when you leave you will get money back if
you've paid too much heating cost. always take a meter reading..
don't take a house with coal-heating unless you're prepared to buy coal
and huddle around in just one room to stay warm in Winter. central
heating is your first priority, then light: when we were there it got
down to -27C for a couple of days one winter. you'll have just 5 hours
of decent light that far north on a sunny winter day. if you take an
apartment high-up you'll benefit from the heat coming up from below and
- in many cases - more light.
if you want to lease a flat make sure you have papers from your previous
apartments in NZ or elsewhere. also be prepared to present your financial
records. this doesn't always happen but we were hit with a full check.
Berlin's a beautiful and great city, however, rather than planning to
set up a castle there straight away i would give it 3 months of
live-in-research in a flat-sharing situation. your social relationships
there will define your movements and options much more than your
abstract ambitions will have it. to some degree we found that only once
we embraced this contingency, once we dove in to social life there, did
the city open up for us.
that may sound undeservedly romantic, but it really is the case with
Berlin, something others will tell you also.
cheers,
--
julian oliver
http://julianoliver.com
http://selectparks.net
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