Due to some restructuring going on @DFS Berlin I wanted to change my professional orientation within DFS and decided that it would be best for me to move back to Stuttgart. So still the same employer, but a totally different set of tasks. Pretty sad though that I had to leave Berlin this quickly (well ok after 2 years )…
Actually… my Berlin adventure ends here and now - I am currently thinking about adding experiences that I gather in Stuttgart from now on but I am not sure about it - yet.
How do I start… I have successfully executed my masterplan in moving logistics. Everything worked out really well in the end. All the pieces are in place, the furniture is build-up and even the washing machine didnt stand a chance against my unbending strength of willpower. Besides a few medium-class missunderstandings with the flat-owner the moving project reached its final milestone with great results. But of course there were a few obstacles on the way.
- Flooded kitchen trying to set up the washing machine correctly
- Exploding lamp due to lack of electric knowledge
- and some more of those…
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Some minor things have to be done to live in Berlin officially and completly.
For pictures visit the gallery!
After finishing the last official event yesterday @university regarding my bachelor thesis, the official moving-countdown begins. Everything is set up and in place. Moving boxes have been ordered and need to be filled. The timetable is fixed – man this is a good feeling. I even got the heads-up from my new ISP: dsl will be available in my Berlin-flat on the 18th :-)
I just started to think about the future-purpose of this blog. It would be great to present further experiences with the city and people of Berlin. Soon I will write more about my experiences and stuff, I promise. Enjoy the ride!
Picture of flat
As of this moment, my future in Berlin regarding accommodation is assured. STAGE 2 is finally completed. The tenancy agreement for the flat is valid and a date for the key-handover ceremony is set. Everything is going to be alright!
But no time for celebrating there are still some things to be done:
- Composing house-rules (Stage 5) – this shouldn’t be too hard
- Organizing the shipping company – offers have been made already so I only have to accept one
- I have to make a decision what I want to take with me. Dont know yet
- Buying a washer, what type do I need? This is going to be fun to plug it in somehow – i dont have a clue how to do this
- Taking care of some formalities (Einwohnermeldeamt, Versicherungen, GEZ, Fernsehen, Finanzamt, Abonnements)
Well ok this is the second post this evening but – as I discussed with my boss this afternoon on another topic ;-) – I dont like information hiding activities so: What I am actually really worried about is a topic I read in some Forum. People in Prenzlauer Berg are getting really tired about all the Swabian inhabitants there. Kind of funny because I always thought we Swabians are nice people and not only our food is loved all around the world (yes I did say world – not germany). But as you can read here the population of our species is getting larger in number in Prenzlauer Berg and so the “natives” get a little worried. Maybe I will speak english all the time so nobody can hear my still existing accent…
And there are even articels on that topic in “Die Welt“, “Die Zeit” and some strange posters… what the heck?
Now that the excitement about the new job has settled it is time to start thinking reasonably again. The most interesting question at that early point is where i am going to live in Berlin. Truth be told, I haven’t got the faintest idea how to proceed in regard to finding a flat to rent. So yesterday I just startet a google search what’s on the real-estate market out there and frankly, you cannot search for a flat without setting some basic restrictions and limits.
Currently I am trying to answer the basic questions, maybe I can brainstorm here along the way:
- How to live in Berlin? flat-sharing, living by myself… I am not really sure about that. In the beginning it would be great to flat-share in order to meet people and so on but I dont know whether it is easy to find uncomplicated people for sharing my adventure. Best case would be to find someone who wants to move there / moved there recently
- When do I want to move? This one is easy, I definitly want to rent the flat at the beginning of February so I can put my stuff in there without haste
- What type of accomodation (of course for rent)? Maissonette, Loft / Studio, Penthouse, ground-floor, high-tier flat… I think thats not important at the moment, just a nice renovated place to stay would be sufficient and no ground-floor flat
- What specific requirements do I have? There has to be a ready-to-cook built-in kitchen installed. The place has to be renovated – I dont want to paint walls or inlay floors this isn’t within my time-budget. There is no need for a balcony or any furniture for that matter. Secure doors
- Where to live? Well it should be either near Potsdammer Platz or near a subway station. I think Charlottenburg, Tiergarten, Mitte, Kreuzberg and Prenzlauer Berg would be suited for me and the whole situation but as I said I dont know Berlin ;-)
- Where to look for flats? online (I found some websites regarding flat-share flat-offers and some estate agents), newspaper
- How many rooms and square meters do I need? Good question, next question…
- How much rent do I want to pay? Well as little as possible but as much as necessary
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Many questions and very few answers at this moment… I definitly have to think about all the above mentioned points again in order to limit the search sucessfully.
