germany Archives - Everything's Famtastic

December 10, 2020June 26, 2021

What’s Christmas like in…? Fun Christmas Traditions Around the World

I’ve got a real treat for you today! I am taking you on a sleigh ride to peek at how people celebrate Christmas around the world! And you don’t even need to pay for the fare. It’s my feel-good Christmas surprise for you!

I’ve got a bunch of expat friends and bloggers together to write about what Christmas is like for them in their respective adopted countries. It’s a really fun insider’s look at this lovely time of the year.

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Have you ever wondered how people celebrate Christmas in other countries? Maybe you didn’t even know that the 25^th December is not always a big deal in holiday celebrations at this time of year. Well then, buckle up and come along for the ride to explore Christmas traditions around the world with me!

June 9, 2019June 26, 2021

The Sweetest Season of All- Strawberry Season

Hooray! This week’s Everything’s Famtastic post is brought to you from a germ-free household! This is very exciting news, let me tell you. If you have no idea what I am talking about, you ought to go back and read my post from last week talking about how our family was knocked over one after the other like a set of bowling pins with a stomach virus. But healthy we are and here I am!

We are still finding and ridding our garden of strips of glittery streamers and pieces of confetti leftover from the confetti bomb my daughter and her friends gleefully enjoyed at her party last Saturday (see also, last week’s post here).

It’s wonderful that we are all healthy, because that means we can get doing things outdoors. Like soaking up the Vitamin D-filled sunshine… Like having spontaneous waterbomb fights over the hedge with the neighbours… Like taking advantage of the season and picking strawberries!!!

I might still have some adjustment issues with being an Australian expat living in Germany. Sure, a few months back I even posted about some of my personal difficulties of living an expat life here. But I’ll tell you what, I have totally found my groove when it comes to Erbeerzeit in this country.

You seriously have NO IDEA how much I love strawberries.

March 3, 2019June 26, 2021

What You Need to Know About Karneval in Germany

Hi there! How are things in your part of the world lately? This past week in our corner of Germany we have started seeing a change in the weather. Sure, this winter hasn’t been too extreme. But it’s still been, you know, cold.

This week though? Amazing colours at sunrise of golds, pinks, purples and blues. More sun and blue sky throughout the day. We even had unseasonably warm temperatures hovering around the mid-teens (that’s Celsius, for you North American types!). The plants are covered in leaf buds. The early bloomers like snowdrops and crocuses are on display. Some of the other bulbs are heavy with flower buds waiting for the weather to warm up just that little bit more. Spring is definitely on it’s way. Hallelujah!

However, the main excitement around these parts at the moment is Karneval. And by “around these parts” I mean in many regions of Germany and specifically the kids in our house 😉. The other week I even posted about how to sew a Hulk costume in time for Karneval this year. Karneval fever is well and truly alive!

But what? You haven’t heard of Karneval?

I didn’t really elaborate too much in the last post, it’s true. Well, let me try to explain a little. Depending on how hardcore you are about it and whether you are in a Karneval club or not, Karneval may be seen as either:

a) only the big loud street parade that occurs in February or March and blocks off the city streets, or

February 3, 2019February 11, 2025

Reality Bites Back: See ya Australia, Hallo Germany

Here we are at the start of February! How’s the year going for you already? My January went pretty much as I had imagined it, with a few unavoidable hiccups not of my doing. But all in all, a pretty good start to the new year.

As you may have read in my last couple of posts here and here about what it’s like for an expat to return home to visit, I actually spent almost all of January in summery Australia, my birthplace. The boundless blue skies, the hot sunny days, drinking wine with friends and family, regular visits to the beach… *swoon*

January 27, 2019February 3, 2025

Down Under Australia- The Good, the Not So Good and the Ugly

Just last week I posted about my Reverse Culture Shock in Australia where I talked about my (and most repatriates’) feelings of returning to my “home country”.

In a way it was a difficult post to write, as it required quite a lot of introspection and carefully-planned wording. Speaking about travelling and relocating and returning brings with it a rollercoaster of emotions and memories. Some great, some not so good and some painful. Not only for me, the writer, but I imagine also for a lot of readers who have been or are still going through a similar phase.

You know that saying “Home is where the Heart is”? But what if you have TWO homes?

January 20, 2019February 3, 2025

Reverse Culture Shock & Insider Expat Tips to Survive it!

As you probably already noticed, I was missing in action for a few weeks. This was because my family and I (all 5 of us!) flew from Germany back to Australia to celebrate Christmas last month! I am still here in Australia living with a little culture shock and thought “Hey! Why not keep on writing about my experiences here?!?”. And so I shall…

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I LOVE being back in Australia. There are so many awesome things about being here: my entire extended family, old friends, the weather, the hot summers, the long, sandy beaches, foods of my childhood, restaurants serving awesome, international-flavoured delights, driving on the left (yes, left!) side of the road, I can speak English all the time and be understood, the cute and furry native animals, the wide open blue skies …

But, and this is a big BUT… it is not entirely easy or without complication coming back here. And I am not talking about the humdrum yet stressful things like: How the hell can we afford to fly there? or Seriously, will we be able to fit everything in the suitcases? or Is the school going to really reject our request for the girls to miss the last couple of days of school?

expat life, reverse culture shock, repatriation, tips, help, Australian, Germany, culture, airport, Sydney — Welcome Home! But which home?

No, well, yes, those things too, BUT I mean the practical and emotional effects of…