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LIVING IN GERMANY

Living in Germany: Airport chaos, creative bureaucracy and Saarland’s French influence

In our weekend roundup for Germany we look at what it's like to fly at the moment from German airports, an intriguing festival and Saarland's cuisine.

Published: 4 June 2022 08:50 CEST
The Saarland delicacy Dibbelabbes.
The Saarland delicacy Dibbelabbes. Photo: picture alliance / dpa-tmn | Eike Dubois

Airport chaos – have you experienced it in Germany?

With Covid restrictions easing across many parts of the world – including Germany – many of us are desperate to jet off. But although travellers are raring to go with their suitcases packed full of suncream and swimwear, there is one thing making it harder to get away: airports across Europe have been struggling to cope. 

As The Local reported this week, it’s mainly down to the handling of the pandemic. After two years of restrictions that made travel impossible in some instances, airlines and airports cut back, and got rid of a lot of staff. Now there are debilitating staff shortages just as peak travel season is kicking off. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the staff shortages are worst at security and baggage check areas.

We’d love to know if you’ve experienced airport problems in Germany either when trying to leave or coming back. Drop us an email: [email protected] and tell us what it’s been like.

Tweet of the week

Not sure if we’d like to know what a German creative bureaucracy festival really involves but we are intrigued…

Where is this? 

Photo: DPA/Robert Michael

The poppies are beautiful and blooming – but can you recognise the background? It is Dresden’s historic Old Town with the Ständehaus (l-r), the Hausmannsturm and the Hofkirche (Dresden Cathedral). The photo was taken on Friday morning when the sun was shining ahead of the long weekend. 

Did you know?

Perhaps it’s the French influence, but the German state of Saarland is considered a region of pleasure, especially from a culinary point of view. Lots of menus in Saarland, which shares its entire southern and western borders with France, include French dishes, from Schneckenpfanne (a dish of snails) to Flammkuchen (Tarte Flambé, a flat tart with onions and bacon). The area is also known for having a higher proportion of Michelin chefs than anywhere else in Germany.

But despite the French influence, Saarland is definitely German too, and potatoes are at the heart of many traditional meals. A speciality like this is Schales – a large potato pancake. Another dish that uses the same ingredients but is prepared differently is the Dibbelabbes – a sort of German hash brown created from grated potato, dried meat, onions and parsley.

Rachel and Imogen @ The Local Germany 

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INSIDE GERMANY

Inside Germany: Citizenship campaign, wedding bureaucracy and landmark cinema closure

From a campaign to encourage foreigners to apply for German citizenship and the clunky process of getting married in Germany to an East German cinema, here are a few of the things we've been talking about this week.

Published: 18 May 2024 07:43 CEST
Inside Germany: Citizenship campaign, wedding bureaucracy and landmark cinema closure

Inside Germany is our weekly look at some of the news, talking points and gossip in Germany that you might not have heard about. It’s published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to their inbox by going to their newsletter preferences or adding their email to the sign-up box in this article.

Citizenship campaign to launch

With just over a month to go until Germany’s citizenship law comes into effect, many foreign residents will be getting their documents together. 

But for those who are unsure (and do qualify under the new rules), the German government wants to convince you to become a naturalised German. 

This week we learned that a campaign will kick off on the same date the new rules enter into force – June 27th – providing foreigners with guidance for their applications.

The campaign will be launched by the Federal Government Commissioner for Migration, Refugees and Integration and aims to “inform those interested in naturalisation and those potentially entitled to naturalisation about the requirements and procedures for naturalisation”.

A website will go live when the reform comes into force. 

“It will contain information on the requirements for German citizenship, the application process and the naturalisation procedure, as well as a digital quick check, which interested parties can use to check whether they basically meet the requirements.”

People in Germany may also spot various adverts about the new on social media, including Instagram. 

A German citizenship certificate and passport.

A German citizenship certificate and passport. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Fernando Gutierrez-Juarez

Alongside cutting ordinary residence requirements from eight years to five, a previous ban on dual nationality for non-EU citizens will be lifted, allowing applicants to keep their existing passports after they become German – unless it is not permitted in their origin country. 

Meanwhile, we were also given some clarification over the exact date that German citizenship will come into force. After previously letting us know that the law would come into force on June 26th 2024, the government told us on Thursday it would be June 27th. 

There had been some confusion over this date, including among elected officials. 

Saying yes (or no) to marrying in Germany

Imagine meeting the person of your dreams in Germany – but then realising how difficult the bureaucracy requirements can be when you’re getting married. That’s the experience of many foreign residents.

Instead, a lot of couples choose to cross the border into neighbouring Denmark where the hurdles to wed are much lower, as Paul Krantz reported this week.

“Given our experience with German bureaucracy, it didn’t take much to convince us,” Sam Care, 32, who lives in Berlin told The Local.

There are, of course, some couples who stick with Germany and successfully get married here. Check out our article below to find out the steps you need to take. 

Germany in Focus 

Former Chancellor Angela Merkel this week announced more details about her upcoming memoir and when it will be released. We get into this on the new episode of the Germany in Focus podcast as well as looking at how politicians are getting on TikTok, why a row over pro-Palestinian protests at a Berlin university have sparked a nationwide row and fascinating facts about Cologne. 

Former Chancellor Angela Merkel on stage in Berlin on Tuesday.

Former Chancellor Angela Merkel on stage in Berlin. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Fabian Sommer

Berlin’s Kino International cinema shut for renovation

One thing I love about living in Berlin is the number of cinemas. I especially like the ones with a bit of interesting history attached to them, such as the Kino International. 

This cinema, which opened in 1963 in the former East Berlin, shut its doors on May 14th for a two-year renovation.

It was viewed as a gem of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), hosting film premieres up until German reunification in 1990. Interestingly, On November 9th, 1989, the day the Berlin Wall fell, the premiere of an East German film called “Coming Out” took place – this was the first and last queer film in a GDR cinema.

One of the last films to be shown this week at the Kino before it shut was (the German dubbed) Dirty Dancing. This film premiered there in 1987!

Last weekend I took a turn to the cinema’s iconic cafe-bar before it closed. Check out the video in this tweet if you’re interested in getting a last look (at least for now) inside the building. 

Let me know if you have some recommendations for cool cinemas to check out in Germany. 

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