An American’s Adventures Abroad
The Good — The Bad — The Ugly
I moved to Berlin about one and a half years ago, in March of 2022, amidst the beginning of the Russia and Ukraine war.
I became an Au Pair to two little boys and attended German language courses.
In my German language school, about half of the students in my class came from Ukraine.
A lot of them had to flee with barely any of their belongings.
Many left behind fathers and brothers who stayed and fought for their country.
Since moving abroad, I have met so many incredible people from all over the world.
I am so grateful to have met them, although hearing many of their stories breaks my heart.
Even though I disagree with American politics, I have to admit I grew up extremely blessed.
I think many Americans forget that many people, especially women, don’t have the same freedoms around the globe as we do in America.
It has also opened my eyes to how we treat foreigners in the United States, never truly understanding the struggle so many have.
I have expanded my knowledge of DACA and several other cracks in our system.
It hasn’t been an easy process getting a visa in Germany, and I am one of the lucky ones.
As an American citizen (usually), you can enter the Schengen territory on a tourist visa and then figure out the next steps of the process once you are already admitted into the country.
That is different for many other people from different countries around the world.
Unless you have the money to pay for a lawyer, typically, you have to wait over three months (in my case, it was five months) to get an appointment with the foreign office- here in Germany, known as the Ausländerbehörde.
And yes, they strictly speak only German at the appointments.
One day, I needed to extend my driver’s license permit to keep driving abroad.
We luckily got an appointment with the Fahrerlaubnisbehörde (the driving license authority) way faster than expected.
However, my host dad was out of town.
That meant my host mom took the kids to school while I went to the appointment alone.
Big mistake.
My German was at the beginning stages of A2 (in other words, beginner/intermediate).
Once I got to the office, I picked up my ticket and waited patiently for my turn to be called.
It’s very similar to waiting in the line at the DMV.
Once my number was called, I walked over to a woman working behind a desk.
I gave her all of my paperwork and explained what I needed to the best of my abilities.
Everything was confusing and didn’t sound like what I needed to accomplish, so I called my host mother to talk to the worker on the phone and sort it out.
The woman was highly annoyed, even though the transaction took maybe ten minutes or less.
I had only realized she could speak English when she decided to yell at me.
“Don’t come here again without knowing German or bring someone in person with you!
You have wasted my time and everyone else’s.
I could’ve gotten through three other people in the same time it took me to take care of you!” She shouted.
Everyone surrounding us turned their heads and stared at me.
I felt a hotness slowly creeping up my cheeks, turning my face red.
I was so incredibly embarrassed and ashamed.
I had tried to speak German. It wasn’t like I was trying to be complicated or cause problems.
Do our authorities and higher-ups in America talk to foreigners this way?
Do they look at people who are different from themselves with a look of disgust and anger simply because they don’t speak English?
I pray not, mainly because America is such a melting pot of different people and ethnicities worldwide.
Even though my German has dramatically improved since that day, I refuse to call anyone on the phone.
I ask my German partner to call for me while I sit there and observe for any business, appointment, or anything important I need to do in German.
This incident happened in Berlin, the most international city in Germany.
I had been warned that other cities in Germany were even less accepting of speaking any English.
I attended Oktoberfest with some friends two weekends ago; it was my first time visiting Munich.
When we got off the train, we called an Uber to pick us up and take us to my friend’s flat with whom we were staying for the trip.
The Uber driver arrived and grumpily got out of his door, slamming it shut.
He hastily picked up our luggage, ripped it out of our hands, and shoved it into the back of the trunk.
All I thought to myself was:
Well, someone is having a bad day.
Once we all got into the car, I started to ask him a question and was swiftly interrupted,
“Kein English Sprechen!” (Don’t speak English!)
And that is when it clicked.
He did not like Americans, or possibly even any English speakers.
My friend and I quietly talked to ourselves the rest of the ride, trying to whisper as much as possible not to upset the driver.
Eventually, we were coming up to our destination, but his GPS needed to be more accurate.
He was lost. He turned around and pointed to his screen, seemingly asking me for directions.
I pulled up the maps on my phone and showed him, saying, “Die Wohnung ist da. Du kannst mein Handy benutzen.” (The apartment is there. You can use my phone.)
The look on his face was priceless, with complete and utter shock.
He took my phone and started driving in the correct direction.
He started making small talk with me, asking me where we were from and why I was in Munich.
I answered politely to all of his questions in German.
His whole demeanor had changed into this kind and helpful person.
Once we finally reached the apartment, he returned my phone and said, “Dein Deutsch, it’s gut.” (Your German is good). I said thank you and stepped out, pleased at how far I’ve come with the language and my confidence in speaking it.
These encounters abroad have shaped me into a completely different person.
I want to think I was always kind and considerate of people different from me, but now I am at a whole new level of understanding.
Being a foreigner has been the most rewarding experience of my life, accompanied by some of the most complex challenges
I’ve ever faced.
