Even month we spent here in Germany comes with another surprise and this month we found out that Carnival is celebrated, in a very different way of Carnival in Brazil, where we grew up. Those days around Carnival celebrations are called Fasching or Karneval here in Germany, similar to another countries in Europe. The terms also differ depending of each region, so you might hear karneval, fasching, fastnacht among other names. The celebrations are usually concentrated from Friday to Tuesday and here in the Frankfurt area, most of the parades are on Saturday, Sunday or Monday (Rosenmontag) with decorated floats, bands and lots of people in costumes (ones that are…

One of the most common questions we get since we moving to Germany is about the language barrier. How are you guys moving to Germany without speaking German? So here in this post, I share some of our experiences in this “long” 6 month journey and insights about it. Well, I must say that although it is our situation at the moment (not speaking German in Germany), we are not comfortable nor would recommend it. For those who have the time to learn the official language of wherever you are moving to, I strongly recommend. Our preparation time before the big move to Germany was relatively short , so with…

When in Germany, do as the Germans! And Germans like their “Schwimmbads”. This post describes our experience with three different public pools in Germany in the Taunus region, where we live. When we arrived and it was still hot outside, we went to two different ones. Then the “cold” started, and we stopped visiting pools. But last weekend we went to a new one and loved it. They all had similarities (like pools, of course!), but also offered different activities, depending on which season of the year you decide to visit them. In the summer, the outdoor pools are freezing (at least for me and in the ones we went).…