a few questions about Berlin. (life, cost, place, people)

[rzzz]

The company I work for is based in Berlin with an office in Los Angeles. I currently work from home in Minnesota.

I am thinking of changing my career focus but staying with the same company. This would require a relocation to Berlin for at least a year but maybe forever. Also, our main competitors are also located in Berlin so it's not a bad place for me to be career wise.

My first question is Berlin an nice place to be for someone in their late 30s? I know many who love Berlin but what they mean by that is they love doing drugs and going to nightclubs all night. I am not really into that. I am more of a fitness / sports person and amateur artist. Will I be bored?

My second question is about food. It has not always been the case, but I am generally happy with the food selection in the USA. I can get any manner of fruits and vegetables for what I consider reasonable prices. When I'm in the southwest USA I often find it hard to believe how inexpensive the food is. Berlin does not make me think of fresh fruit and vegetables but I admit I know nothing about groceries there. My main experience with grocery shopping overseas is in Australia where food costs are shockingly high and shortages are common. Is it convenient to buy healthy groceries at a reasonable cost in Berlin?

Finally, a colleague moved to Berlin in 2010 and I was surprised at the price of his rental. He had a very nice, newly finished apartment for around $800 USD per month. In Los Angeles, the same apartment would cost around $2000 and in NYC even more. Even in Minnesota the same place would be $1500-$1800. Are nice apartments really this inexpensive? Would it be easy to purchase such an apartment?

I have been to Germany once for a month, fourteen years ago. I enjoyed my time there but I went pretty much everywhere besides Berlin, so I know little about it other than what I've read and people have told me.

[KathrynAragon]

I can only speak for the artistic side of Berlin. Berlin is a funky city chock full of art and artists of every persuasion. There are also enthusiasts of just about any sort, including fitness and healthy lifestyle enthusiasts. Maybe not to the extent that you'll find in large SW metros in the US, but still - I think you'll be able to find people who share your lifestyle interests.

I really don't know much about food or rent prices in Berlin. Sorry. But I'm jealous of you for your opportunity to live and work in Germany for awhile, especially in Berlin. Be sure you check out Poland and Slovakia and other former eastern bloc countries while you're there as well as Germany and all points west.

I think you'll have a marvelous time, even if you have to change your focus on some things and derive satisfaction from new experiences rather than your familiar routine.

[Stefan_from_Germany]

You should have no trouble at all finding affordable, fresh, good quality produce (fruit, veg, meats etc). You have a choice of supermarkets (discount, traditional and even organic food markets) as well as a number of family owned (often turkish) fruit&veg stores. Also plenty of bakeries and butchers'. All of those will be reasonably priced maybe with the exception of some of the organic food supermarkets which can be pricey.

In terms of rents and real estate prices: Berlin is still cheap compared to most major cities but prices have been increasing quite a bit in recent years. It's not nearly as cheap anymore as it was 10, 20 years ago. Interest rates are at an all time low so a lot of people are investing in real estate with the expected effect on prices.

As far as lifestyle is concerned, the previous poster is spot on: There is everything to be had. Even if you don't enjoy clubbing etc. The arts are alive and well in Berlin and many people enjoy sports of every variety in the city and around it. There are lakes, parks etc for outdoor activities, gyms, sport clubs (as in soccer clubs, tennis clubs etc) and you should have no problems finding something you enjoy.

Give it a try. As always, if you do decide to go, don't expect things to be the same as at home, come with an open mind, don't compare everything to what it is like at home. Things will be different. People will be different. If you can embrace these differences and make the most of your time there (or anywhere else for that matter) you will enjoy it, I am sure.

[Jesse44]

I'm in Berlin right now for the whole summer and have also visited a few times prior.

People will talk about the party/nightclub/artistic side of Berlin so much that by the time you get here you might be surprised by how little of that you actually see. It's there, but people blow it way out of proportion. Berlin to me is just a nice, large European capital that may lack the old world charm of other cities in its area, but there's a whole lot to do and see that it probably won't matter much to you. I think it is a young city in general, but there are still families, schools, and older folks seemingly everywhere, so if you're worried about the atmosphere of the place, I wouldn't. You have a career and a good shot at hitting the ground running so it seems like the perfect time to come.

Rent is fairly cheap and I find the groceries and COL in general also very cheap, but I'm from Canada so that sets me up to be impressed most anywhere. Berlin is probably no where near as expensive as an Australian city, though. You will hear people lamenting the days where Berlin was cheaper, but it still is a bargain for a super modern capital. All cities are getting more expensive, so it probably will be a noticeable value for a long time to come.

As for the food. Berlin is pretty continental in climate so food seems pretty seasonal. There's some fruit and berries I have never seen before available around town now (i.e. Johannesbeern) so maybe stuff like that might keep you interested. There's a huge Turk population and they run a lot of groceries stores and markets turning up all kind of delicious pickled things, olives, salads, meats, etc. The quality of bread here is also out of this world. Cheese and dairy is affordable in large varieties. This is also a pretty multicultural place for Europe, so there's different kinds of markets and restaurants for eating or getting specific ingredients.

If you're in to living a healthy lifestyle and fitness, I think you should also fit in here. Lots of businesses with 'Bio' as a prefix, and people are pretty health conscious. There's always people jogging around. There's a lot pools and I would imagine fitness centres too. Actually, I'm looking forward to visiting Badeschiff Arena, a swimming pool that floats on the Spree river.

[Tiger Beer]

I was just recently visiting Berlin, and loved it.

I also wanted to add, someone else said that the nightlife isn't as evident as you'd think. I would agree with this. I stayed in a part of Berlin near "Checkpoint Charley", and which seemed to be near many tourist things, and to what I assumed would be 24-7 lively. It wasn't. It was quite quiet at night, so much so, I asked where I should go to see more open restaurants and nightlife and such. It wasn't evident at all walking around that particular area.

Of course, later I got around to Berlin more, and saw that it certainly has its pockets here and there. In short, I think it would be easy to avoid 'nightlife' if that was your intention.

I also saw PLENTY of great food choices everywhere. People in Germany seem quite aware of healthy foods, etc. You have all the same options as the U.S., it appeared to me. It's a movement everywhere. On the environmental movement in general, I saw a whole ton of sun roofs on houses to get sun energy. From an observational standpoint, it seemed way more promoted in Germany than it is in the U.S.

I also noticed, in general, German people are FIT. The obesity and overweight rates were way way way lower. So, people in general, who may or may not be exercising, just had very good bodies in general, naturally. I didn't get the impression that they had to 100% absolutely positively work for it, like it seems to be in the case with the U.S. Probably largely due to the fact that Berlin is both very walkable and bike-able, people are less likely to sit in cars all day.

Also, if you are a beginning artist, you'll have a ton of great inspiration in Berlin. It is really incredible from an artistic point of view. Probably one of the highest amounts of creative artistic energy I've seen anywhere.