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Reposted by Nic Houghton

Decades from Home - A Podcast About Germany @decadesfromhome.bsky.social · Sep 27

Shoutout to @raecomm.bsky.social for being part of some indie German podcast history..... and being a bloody good sport!

Many thanks for this special moment.

Decades from Home - A Podcast About Germany @decadesfromhome.bsky.social · Sep 27

After 250 episodes and almost 5 years of podcasting, the curtains close on the "Decades from Home" stage.

Thanks to the listeners, guests, contributors and co-hosts who’ve been part of the show - you’ve been class, and we love you!

Ep 250: "Endstation, Tschüsseldorf". Out now!

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Simon Maddox @maddox84.bsky.social · Sep 27

My absolute highlight of our now complete 250 episodes: Derek Rae @raecomm.bsky.social gracing us with an unforgettable moment of audio brilliance.

Thanks to all our guests and all our listeners for supporting us for 250 episodes. It's been great.

That's all, folks. Tschüsseldorf.

Decades from Home - A Podcast About Germany @decadesfromhome.bsky.social · Sep 27

After 250 episodes and almost 5 years of podcasting, the curtains close on the "Decades from Home" stage.

Thanks to the listeners, guests, contributors and co-hosts who’ve been part of the show - you’ve been class, and we love you!

Ep 250: "Endstation, Tschüsseldorf". Out now!

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Aug 10

That's even more grim than I expected.

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Decades from Home - A Podcast About Germany @decadesfromhome.bsky.social · Aug 9

Simon shares his list of the best/worst German shop names, we discuss the fear of straight razors, and we finish on the world’s largest Knödel.

Find out more on Ep 243. Out now!

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jul 25

Germans have a reputation for directness, sadly no one told 15-year-old me before our school exchange to Hamburg in 1998.

Before leaving, I asked one of the German girls for her address so we could be pen pals.

She looked at me quizzically and asked "Why? I won't write back."

a picture of ralph and lisa from the simpsons

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Decades from Home - A Podcast About Germany @decadesfromhome.bsky.social · Jul 25

What constitutes a weekend festival? We have no idea, but Nic reckons he might have been to one when his village closed the main street, built a stage, and Schlager singers started warbling. It's not Glastonbury, but it was certainly...something...

Find out more on Ep 241, coming Saturday morning!

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Decades from Home - A Podcast About Germany @decadesfromhome.bsky.social · Jul 19

This week, Nic has an unexpected encounter with David Hasselhoff, and Simon buys some slate out the back of a van. We find out how to effectively flirt at a supermarket, and we finish on a German backpacker who survived the Australian outback.

Find out more on Ep 240: "Animal + Verb". Out Now!

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jul 19

Barbecue culture is serious business in #Germany , with courses on how to become a grillmeister, and endless debates about what makes a proper Kartoffelsalat. What can a visitor expect should they ever be lucky enough to get an invite?

Blog Post: bit.ly/3Uk2Npj

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jul 6

2,50? Are the cones free? Bloody should be.

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Decades from Home - A Podcast About Germany @decadesfromhome.bsky.social · Jul 6

In this week's episode we cover Germany's most recent heatwave, the joy of a local Dorffest, and the start of the Women's Euros tournament.

Episode 238 "Hitze spitze" out now!

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Decades from Home - A Podcast About Germany @decadesfromhome.bsky.social · Jul 5

It’s been hot this week in Germany, resulting in a lot of the weird and wonderful.
The wonderful: a Dorffest.
The weird: too much Tzatziki, much to Simon’s annoyance.
We finish off with bad tattoos, England’s Georgia Stanway, and the start of Euro 2025.

Find out more on Ep 238! Out now!

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Norwegian Frankfurter @scanditina.bsky.social · Jul 4

We've just tried Ratzeputz for the very first time. We bought this unique Schnapps during our visit to Celle, in Niedersachsen, which is where Ratzeputz is made. Amongst its varied ingredients, it contains distillates of root ginger. 🫚

I think I might possibly grow hairs on my chest after this! 🤯🔥😝

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jul 5

Shopping in #Germany is rarely described as convenient. Supermarkets are hard to navigate, payment methods aren’t uniform and customer service is disinterested. Is Germany a land of inconvenience culture and could that actually be a good thing?

Blog Post: bit.ly/4lgN7PE

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jul 3

I'm often told that living in Bavaria is like living in a different century.

Turns out Bavaria is actually really modern, even the Oktoberfest now accepts payment via mobile...which was invented in...*checks notes*...2015.

So, we're only a decade out of date...

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jun 24

We have a new colleague in the office, freshly arrived in Germany.

They just asked another colleague why the windows aren’t open, even though it’s blisteringly hot.

I’m now watching them learn about the many dangers of Zugluft.

Welcome to Germany baby!

a close up of a man 's face with a jacket that says ' a ' on it

ALT: a close up of a man 's face with a jacket that says ' a ' on it

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jun 21

I can't imagine @Germany without Kaffee und Kuchen, just as I can't imagine Britain without tea. Unlike the British though, Germans aren't judged on how they make their favourite hot beverage. Is this why coffee in Germany can be so hit & miss?

Blog Post: bit.ly/3HRsL0m

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jun 20

No problem Walter, more than happy to, feel free to send us more on here or via [email protected].

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jun 18

Took daughter to the Bäckerei, we stand in the queue. She asks for Krapfen, I say no, they’re not for breakfast.

Before I know it, the people around us have assembled an adhoc legal team and are forcefully advocating for my daughter.

And that’s why we had Krapfen for breakfast.

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jun 13

When people in the UK ask me how life has changed since moving to Germany, I tell them I seriously underestimated how much Kohlrabi would feature in my day to day diet.

“What’s Kohlrabi?” They tend to ask.

“Exactly!” I reply.

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jun 11

I've never really understood why some people consider food in #Germany to be boring.

Seems like a good variety to me...I can't pronounce half of it, but still.

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jun 5

After a decade of learning German via online courses, VHS, apps, and several unproductive "meet-ups" in various pubs, I've crunched the data on the most difficult elements of the language.

Frankly, the results aren't that surprising.

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Lynn Nothegger @lynnnothegger.bsky.social · Jun 4

Adorable. For the young folk here - we had maps and we argued a lot more.

I’m a big fan of ADAC in Germany - automobile club. You can still go there and get a holiday pack of maps for your destination.

Paulrus of West Bumblefrick @paulrusof.bsky.social · Jun 4

I am officially one of The Ancients, Keeper of Knowledge of the Before Time

Post to the subreddit r/AskHistorians:

What was navigation like for vehicle drivers in the United States before the internet and
GPS?

Before GPS devices and smartphones/cellular internet networks were a thing (Garmin company was founded 1989), millions of Americans were already getting around driving without the use of those inventions. How did they navigate? Did everyone need stacks of maps? Were drivers frequently lost? Did everyone have to understand the interstate system and use intuition to guide them? How burdensome was driving before GPS? Did drivers pay people to calculate an optimal route for them?

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · Jun 4

While working at a German company, I noticed managers used English buzzwords that most didn't understand.

I started adding random English words & phrases to see if anyone would ask what they meant.

It took weeks, the phrase that did it was "Das ist für mich nicht hunky-dory".

a man with a mustache is making a funny face and says `` what did you say ? ''

ALT: a man with a mustache is making a funny face and says `` what did you say ? ''

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · May 30

One of the funny things about living in Bavaria is the approach to drinking. If I cracked open a beer in the 10am meeting, my colleagues would be shocked.

Bring a crate of Weißbier, Brezen, and a load of Weißwurst, and suddenly 10am drinking is some kind of "cultural event".

a group of men in traditional german clothing are dancing together .

ALT: a group of men in traditional german clothing are dancing together .

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Nic Houghton @40percentgerman.bsky.social · May 27

"OK Duolingo, I've been using this app for years and it's finally time to teach me something that I can actually say to a living breathing German person without them looking at me like I've been lobotomised"

Duolingo:

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