expats - advice please
Discussion
So I've got the offer of a job in Germany. pay is good and enough to support my and my GF. I'd love to do it.
The only issue I have is that my GF (soon to be wife) probably won't be able to find a job. So basically she would be sat in an apartment all day in a country where she knows nobody and can't speak the language.
Now I know there are things to keep somewhat busy with but I think if it was me in that situation I'd go mental. She says she's happy to give it a go.
Anyone been in this siuation? How did you deal with it?
The only issue I have is that my GF (soon to be wife) probably won't be able to find a job. So basically she would be sat in an apartment all day in a country where she knows nobody and can't speak the language.
Now I know there are things to keep somewhat busy with but I think if it was me in that situation I'd go mental. She says she's happy to give it a go.
Anyone been in this siuation? How did you deal with it?
I moved out to Germany from the UK back in 1997 with my current wife and two very small kids. Whilst I worked, she didn't have a job, couldn't speak the lingo, but was up to her ears in nappies and puke (not mine, slopes).
She soon made a few friends with other mums of Kindergarten kids (most Germans speak a good bit of English), so they would eat cake and talk b
ks in between smearing st all over the place.
There were a few times when she felt a bit down but in the main she has loved it. Now whenever we go back to the UK she can't leave for Germany again soon enough.
What's the job, where are you planning to live etc etc. PM me if you like
Oh and try and get a house with a garden rather than a flat, she will go mad cooped up in a flat.
She soon made a few friends with other mums of Kindergarten kids (most Germans speak a good bit of English), so they would eat cake and talk b
ks in between smearing st all over the place.There were a few times when she felt a bit down but in the main she has loved it. Now whenever we go back to the UK she can't leave for Germany again soon enough.
What's the job, where are you planning to live etc etc. PM me if you like
Oh and try and get a house with a garden rather than a flat, she will go mad cooped up in a flat.
I did this. I was the stay-at-home one.
Most decent-sized German cities have a pretty strong expat community, and English is the common language. Plus many Germans speak English to a very high standard. She shouldn't be sat alone in a flat for long.
My top recommendation is to get her to the local Volkshochschule (adult education college) to learn German. The courses are cheap, and there's a ready-made set of friends in a similar position that come with them. With no German at all she could be at A-level (B2) standard in a year, though 18 months is more realistic. With that she should be able to find a job unless she's a journalist / lawyer / academic.
Of course, depending on what she does and where you are planning to move to, she may not need German. There are plenty of international companies in Germany who work solely in English.
Lots of info about moving to Germany out there, often slightly American-biased; Toytown is often mentioned.
Most decent-sized German cities have a pretty strong expat community, and English is the common language. Plus many Germans speak English to a very high standard. She shouldn't be sat alone in a flat for long.
My top recommendation is to get her to the local Volkshochschule (adult education college) to learn German. The courses are cheap, and there's a ready-made set of friends in a similar position that come with them. With no German at all she could be at A-level (B2) standard in a year, though 18 months is more realistic. With that she should be able to find a job unless she's a journalist / lawyer / academic.
Of course, depending on what she does and where you are planning to move to, she may not need German. There are plenty of international companies in Germany who work solely in English.
Lots of info about moving to Germany out there, often slightly American-biased; Toytown is often mentioned.
Not Germany but the Mrs was offered a job abroad and off we went. I dropped a good salary in a busy job to become a house husband/man of leisure. It did my head in almost immediately. I don't do coffee mornings or craft fairs, which were the main distractions, and only so much time can be spent shopping etc. After 2 weeks I took a part time job, massively underpaid by UK comparison, but in a field I had never worked in. It proved interesting and led to new mates and different experiences.
I took up sailing and diving and, when my work and kids don't interfere, am quite content to be on or under the water.
The final decider for us upping sticks was the old "what if" should we have decided not to move. We didn't want to spend the rest of our days wondering what we might have missed.
I took up sailing and diving and, when my work and kids don't interfere, am quite content to be on or under the water.
The final decider for us upping sticks was the old "what if" should we have decided not to move. We didn't want to spend the rest of our days wondering what we might have missed.
Not Germany but I had a job in the German speaking part of Switzerland. Wife gave up a job she loved but it was a very busy job. Initially she found it hard mainly because we had a flat in a city without a view or a balcony. After a couple of months we found a lovely flat, nice balcony and lake view. My wife did some training for A Levels and Open Universities all on-line, did some German courses and met friends there. She got very much into mountain biking and sport so became uber fit. After a few months she found a excellent part-time job and traveled to great European cities. Financially it put us in a great position and we would happily do it again. It also ticked the "we have lived abroad" life event.
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