The First Days


We spent yesterday in a state of German Consumer Confusion. Our first task was to organize our telecommunications needs. A phone for the apartment (Festnetts), DSL for internet connectivity, and two cell phones. With the help of Karin, our relocation rep, we approached the T.Punkt shop. This bastion of pink Deutsche Telecom services was staffed with tall young men dressed in trendy, relaxed clothing (many pink articles among them). First came the discussion about our apartment needs. It was an illuminating example of the difference in approach between Germans and Americans. We had already reviewed the package choices and selected the service we wanted. With dutiful German thoroughness, however, the telecom rep explained every package and every option. After 30 minutes, we had the package selected... the same one we originally wanted. Meanwhile, Jack and Cam were trying to be patient and anticipating a long and painful day shopping with Mom and Dad. Next we moved on to the cellular service… Ah, the choices you have, It is like the cell phone industry of yesteryear in the US… minutes, call zones, premium times.. a maze of footnotes and addendums. In this case, the German propensity for detail worked to our advantage. I would have blithely selected a 100 minute call plan, which for some odd reason required renting a phone. Karen zoomed in on the details, picked them apart, and saved us 20 euros a months. This all took about another hour. Meanwhile, the line behind us was starting to stretch out the door. Finally, we finished. Oops, not really. The cell phones had to be activated and, I later discovered, our credit approved even though I was paying cash. The good news is that the prices for telecommunications are way lower here than at home. Our cell phones are ten euros each per month plus minutes (we hardly ever use them) and the DSL, home phone line is only 50 euros per month (75 dollars) where we pay over $120 at home .. and the calls in Germany are free, and calls to the US are only 4 cents a minute (we paid 8 cents a minute to call Rhode island). Enough of Deutsche Telecom… now on to Consumer Electronics.

Karen drove us through to the busy southern section of Berlin known as Steglitz. It is a consumer bastion. There we found the German equivalent of Circuit City, but bigger. We walked in with awe. Everything was there that we had to buy: irons, coffee makers, microwaves, TVs, washers, dryers, dishwashers, vacuum cleaners. You get the idea, we had a long list! Thinking about our phone marathon, I knew we were in for a long consumer experience. We strapped on out armor and headed into battle. It was hilarious. At every turn, the salesman tried to appeal to our sense of quality, our fear of poor quality, our desire for the best in new German technology. The poor guy never had a chance. “You mean you don’t want the 1,500 euro Miele washing machine that allows you to set the time, temperature, spin speed and end tone when it’s done?” “Nope, we’ll take the Hoover for 750.” “But it might break in five years and then you’ll have to pay 70 euros for someone to come fix it”. “That’s OK, we’ll be gone in four” You could almost hear the poor guy scream inside.

Oddly enough, machine after machine that we selected was sold out and we took the floor models at a 50 euro discount. Turns out we are not so different from Germans after all, at least not in the bottom line choices we made.

The trip home was a bit difficult. Road after road was blocked by the police. Even the train was not running. It turned out that a bomb was found so all of Lichterfelde was closed. Our first thought was TERRORISTS! Nope, a bomb from WWII turned up. Apparently this happens all the time. Can you imagine? We think of the war as ancient history, but I think incidents like this keep it much fresher here.

My final anecdote, before you eyes glaze over like our kids at Ikea today, was Ikea today. We took the train to the bus and walked into the parking lot. The trip was a breeze, of course. You can go on the Berlin public transportation system web site and enter a starting address and an ending address. It then maps out your route including estimated walking times, train times, bus times, etc. Incredible. Any way… we walked into the parking lot and approached the entrance. There, to our amusement, was a different kind of parking. It included water bowls, little mattresses, and cords to tie up… dogs. They have canine parking. What a riot!

Tomorrow we are tourists again and not shoppers. Let the bus tour begin!