Living in BFG? Learn German then!

EmmaWD

gt568 wrote: »

could have pvr'd at any time.

Most people do not have the option to PVR any more, you now have a 12 month notice period, and some are time barred due to certain courses etc. so most people will still have to go for a min of 12 months.

Other thing is that not everyone is in a position just to walk away from a job if they have a family to support, even if they hate it - I am sure there are millions in jobs they hate because they need the money and therefore cannot leave.

It would be nice if the Army could run courses in German for their soldiers and dependents before they went over there, although from what I gather, they do run them over in BFG from time to time in the AECs.

bonsibabe

In the 4 years I have lived in Germany, I have only ever seen a couple of German courses run by the local AEC and even then, mostly during the day for soldiers, not very many are run with dependants in mind. I'm lucky, I did German at school and still remembered a little bit. I find that if you try to speak the local language, then those Germans that do speak a little English will try to speak to you in English.

I do all my shopping at a supermarket, it's primarily used by the turkish residents of where I live, it's in the middle of their housing estate. But it is also like a cash and carry, so I go in regularly and bulk buy staples like pasta, rice, flour etc. But they have a great butchers counter (cheap too) where I get loads of chicken and mince. I find that a little of the local lingo goes a long way, even if its only hello and goodbye!

Marker_2

One of the things we were excited about with him joining up was the chance to travel and live and see diferent parts of the world. I would love for him to get a posting abroad, I will love to be given the chance to learn another language, what better way to learn than to live in that country and shop at shops where they speak it, your not going to become fluent in a few days its gonna take a while. Watch german tv etc.

I know it is hard, a new country, new people, raising the kids alone, possibly no chance of work, plus a 6 month deployment, but its doable, make the most of the experience out there I say.

Plus, there are posting preferences and whoevers forced it certainly aint 'us' its our OH's isnt it!x

GillzD_2

EmmaWD wrote: »

Other thing is that not everyone is in a position just to walk away from a job if they have a family to support, even if they hate it - I am sure there are millions in jobs they hate because they need the money and therefore cannot leave.

well said that guy must live in a dream land if he thinks you can just walk out on job when the fancy takes you. think each and every one of us would love to do that.

one piece of advice i would give is if you even get the slightest wind of moving abroad start learning then coz it is not easy to learn in situ.

curly_cabbage

Although we were never posted to Germany when my husband was in the RAF, we regulary visited friends and the main German required was the abiltiy to order upto 10 beers, kebab & chips and ice cream, but many people didn't even bother to do that and spent there whole tour (including our friends) using facilties on camp or on the quarters patch and not venturing into the local supermarkets and town ect.

CC

hhullabaloo

Hi everyone, I'm new to this forum, but very interested in all the comments in this thread.
We spent 22 very good years in the RAF, and lived 5 of those overseas... 2 and a bit in HK in the early 70's and three in Germany in the mid 80's.
During both tours neither of us learned other than one or two words of the local lingo... mainly because just about all of the local people we met, whether Chinese, German, Dutch, Belgian... do I need to go on?... spoke excellent English, thus not making it essential for us to communicate and mix and enjoy ourselves. So why bother to spend the time and effort required to go that one step further?
Well, being true Brits, we were as lazy as the next person and just didn't bother doing something that, as many of the posts say, is a difficult and time-consuming task.
Looking back on our times though, we both wish that we had taken the chance to learn the local lingo, and may well have enjoyed our overseas tours even more than we did.
So, please listen to someone who has been there and done it.... twice...If you have the opportunity, and I appreciate that it is not always possible, then I strongly urge you to make the effort... and thereby get more from your time in a foreign land.

GillzD_2

of mthose that did learn the lingo most of the time the locals asked them to speak in english as they understood better than when they spoke in german. sometimes you make life more difficult than easier by trying to learn.

Money_saving_Martyn

raf_wife wrote: »

"I'm not with the forces, but"

says it all really...

Says what exactly? Please explain, via PM if it is an off-topic rant.

I've spent 8 months in Germany (and have a network of forces friends, girlfriend...) have managed to help a few people out by knowing a few words of German and saving them money on shopping, bank accounts and etc.... I don't have access to the forces discounts etc. but without a few words of German, the forces personnel are missing out on the local discounts, offers and cheap products. (eg. German supermarkets are much much cheaper for some things like fresh milk).

This thread seems to be getting off topic. From a money saving point of view, I suggest that it's useful to know a bit of the lingo. Whether or not you have the time, energy or desire doesn't change the fact that you might save money but knowing the words for discount, offer, buy one get one free, free bank account etc etc. Like with all money saving suggestions on this site, you have to be prepared to "play the game" a little. It's your choice. :money:

GillzD wrote: »

of mthose that did learn the lingo most of the time the locals asked them to speak in english as they understood better than when they spoke in german. sometimes you make life more difficult than easier by trying to learn.

This happened to my girlfriends step-mum in France! Keeping this on-topic as money saving, it doesn't stop you slipping in the words or at least recognizing the word "kostenlos" (free) when you need to! And I don't see how recognizing the words for offers, refund, discount, money-back etc. makes things more difficult when you're in a German supermarket.....

Money_saving_Martyn

raf_wife wrote: »

Of course you pick it up as you go along depending on how confident you are and how far you venture. I managed some Greek and German, didnt live on a airbase or garrison (in Germany only), but it didnt happen on day one of the tour when I needed to open the bank account!
.

Indeed, Rome wasn't built in a day!

If you're a regular here, you'll know that you don't need to stay loyal! Yeah, you open a bank account on day one, get a mobile etc .... find a better deal when you get a sense for the local offers.... (A family I've got to know well have been in Germany for a total of 8 years now (5 first, then came back for more!)

Once the local deals filter into the British side of things, I'm sure word would get round about where the best deals are - hopefully on this board - after all, that's what it's for! Also, There are always a few people around, Brits and Germans, who speak the other languages (some wives are German citizens) - use them, exploit them! (When I first got to Germany, I was kind of lucky that I met a German/English teacher on a night out - it's not what you know - it's who you know!)

Like a lot of money saving things, there's not always time to change bank accounts every month, take a 30 hour per week German course etc (but there's always time for money saving expert and forums...).... but we as much or as little as we can to save a few pennies - or cents! Otherwise, why are we here? :money:

Whether the army should force feed people German is a different issue, it'd be fantastic if everyone person posted to Germany was fluent in German when they arrived - unlikely though! What's important for money saving is doing what you can you to help yourself! If you can't learn German, miss the German advertised offers. Just like in the UK if you can't get a credit card, you can't get a cash back card and "earn" money that way. We pick what we can and save money. raf_wife, nobody is forcing you to do everything on this site!

Happy money saving to all!

raf_wife

You clearly have absolutely no idea the pressure some of the military wives are under when they get posted to countries they dont nesesarily want to be in generally with young children, away from families and then their husband is detached to which ever war the government chooses, the last thing on my mind was saving a few quid swapping bank accounts.