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Wow! So much help. You're probably right, my wording was poorly chosen.
My husband works in corporate IT, so a larger city or city suburb will likely be where we need to live, Good buses/trains since we'll be leaving the cars behind, we're looking at the southwest side of Germany (but that's not set in stone), we also like eating out enjoying a wide range of foreign food, and love the water and hiking. Currently, we live outside of Portland, Oregon.
Another note, we'd like to bring our small family dog, are dog friendly apartments very hard to find?
Location: God's Gift to Mankind for flying anything
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Alright, so we now know that:
1 - you are an IT person.
--- therefore you should settle within 30 minutes
--- of public transportation from a large city,
--- since you will most probably find work in the IT sector in larger cities.
2 - you are looking for *the real Germany*, whatever that is.
--- find a place in a small town/village with a good transport system
--- to the town you will be working in.
Just moving to Germany and thinking you can just work there is not as easy as you think.
You need a job, or a lot of money to survive on your own.
If you do find work before you move there, your wife may not get a work permit.
*WITH* a job, you will get a residency permit (Aufenthalterlaubnis) which allows you to live and work there for an unspecified time limit, as long as you have a job there.
Get to the nearest German Consulate, and ask them all about what is or may be involved in *moving* to Germany for some extended time.
I have sent you a contact name of a family who is in the IT business.
Contact them to find out what their experiences are.
Leaving your cars behind.
OK, your choice, but do realise that without a car,
even tho Germany does have a very good public transportation system,
you would not get far in today's Germany,
unless you just want to come home from work,
and then stay at home any other time.
Somewhere, some time you may want to explore the neighbourhoods,
and that takes a bit more than a bike or your feet !
Especially if you want the experience *The real Germany* as you have so stated ...
Germany is
real big Towns or Cities,
then medium sized cities,
and small villages with more cows than people.
We lived a long time in the latter,
(on a working farm - how close can you get to real German life ?)
the job was located in a medium sized town, 10 minutes away by car,
and the large city was 50 km away from us.
We moved there with 4 children and came home with 5 ...
Our children do know where milk, eggs and meat really comes from !
If you want the authentic German experience then you have to find a small town where pretty much nothing goes on except maybe a festival or two. Stores open early in the morning and close in the early in the afternoon, with a long lunch break in between. For most of the day the place will look deserted. The people will be insular, burdened by history, and most will be able to trace their ancestry in the town or region back as far as the records go. Outsiders will be viewed with suspicion, but usually tolerated if they don't upset the status quo. Many of these people will have a "provincial" attitude - what we consider to be German "arts and culture" has little bearing on their lives. If they speak to you - esp. the older people - the dialect will be difficult to understand.
If you want to experience the real Germany I would advise to take a car. Not only because it is quite difficult to live without a car completely. Unless you want to live in inner cities, but I understand you don't. And because you want to experience the real Germany. Most Germans have a car and use it a lot, out of need and out of love. And what would living in Germany be without legally driving 200 km/h (125 mph) on the Autobahn now and then
But do take public transport wherever convenient. I would say a small town near a large city with a S-Bahn Station (suburban rail).
So my husband and I are interested in moving to Germany. We're making a trip in May '15.
We would like to visit a city/town that is not for the tourist, but will give us a real look at what Germany is really like, people, culture, food. The kind of town that you might say about it "if you enjoy it here, you'll love living in Germany".
Any suggestings?
Have you got jobs? If you do you just have to move to wherever the job is. If you don't I would start to look into the job market (or the market for the service you're offering if you're going to work freelance) before making a decision.
My husbands IT skill set is in high demand, so finding a job isn't a big concern (of course we wouldn't make the move without that in place). I am a stay-at-home mom, so I don't need a work visa. Leaving the cars behind seems to make the most sense, but that doesn't mean we won't buy a car once there if needed.
For those of you who have shipped a car from the U.S. to Germany: what is involved? Cost? Red tape? Any changes required to make on the car?
P.s.
Irman, we do plan on visiting the german consulate as soon as we can, the closest is down in San Francisco so it'll have to be on our next trip down to CA (in a few months).
My husbands IT skill set is in high demand, so finding a job isn't a big concern (of course we wouldn't make the move without that in place). I am a stay-at-home mom, so I don't need a work visa.
I will not claim to be an expert in visa for the EU, but is it possible for an American to just move to Germany?
Possible to just up and move? No. But there is a Skilled worker list that Germany has up on their immigration site, that allows for easier immigration if you can supply a skill that's in need. A visa is still required, a job offer is still required. So it does take some work but it is possible.
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