Re:Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area
by guitarbill on Tuesday September 04, 2018 @11:12AM
(#17909568)
> I’m not looking forward to that, because I’m told the people in charge of that really insists on speaking German, even in Berlin where about 20% the population is Ausländer.
I don't quite get the phrasing "insist[s] on speaking German" - of course they are going to do that, German being the official language and only official language (unlike e.g. Switzerland with four, although unsurprisingly, English still doesn't make the list). Also, if they did allow another language, surely it would be Turkish, not English.
My advice would be to take a friend or colleague. Way easier than trying to do stuff with a translator, or misunderstanding something.
Re:Ask HN: Where are other tech scenes outside Bay Area
by ben_w on Tuesday September 04, 2018 @12:49PM
(#17910483)
I could certainly have phrased that better. Quite a lot of the Germans I have met seem genuinely shocked that I’m actually learning German; registration is obligatory almost immediately after moving; the country brands itself as a place for immigrants; and English is the current lingua Franca (to the disappointment of the French)… it seems like an odd combination. France or Spain doing the same would be much less of a surprise.
> My advice would be to take a friend or colleague.
That’s the plan :)
Groceries are basically not a problem, even if you don’t speak a single word of German and don’t want to rely on Google Translate on your phone: almost all of the products in packaging have pictures of the food on the outside, the tills show you the total at the same time the cashier tells you, most of the shops accept contactless payment (even discount chains), and half the cashiers probably want to practice their English on you.
On the other hand: at some point in the next month, I need to officially register that I’m living here to get an ID card. I’m not looking forward to that, because I’m told the people in charge of that really insists on speaking German, even in Berlin where about 20% the population is Ausländer.