Essays

Few experiences in my life have been as dreadful and anxiety riddled as dealing with the German immigration system. I would rather get arterial surgery again than go to the freakin’ Aüslanderamt or foreigners office.

To be fair, thems was some goooood drugs, I got!

But if you want to live in Germany, it’s a necessary evil… Like listening to your co-worker talk about how their weekend was.

So in this video, I’m going to share my immigration experience from getting my initial visa at the German consulate in Chicago to getting my Aufenthaltstitel residency; my Blue Card; and finally last year; my Niederlassungserlaubnis, or permanent residency.

Stick around for the end and I’ll share a little update on citizenship.

Ah, Europe… A continent of rich cultures connected by train, full of people with honest-to-God vacation days they can use to enjoy it all.

At least, that’s what I thought when I moved here from the United States over six years ago.

So is any of that true or was I just hallucinating from a massive dose of “the grass is greener” complex?

Inspired by a video from Eva Zu Beck on how she sees the US as a European after six months in the country, I thought I could share how I see Europe as an American after six years of living in Germany.

Germany is the best place in Europe to move, but probably not for the reason you think.

People, Germans especially, often ask me with a tinge of surprise, why out of all the countries in the world, I picked Germany.

Truth is… I didn’t, really. Germany, in a way, picked me, which sounds much more romantic than it really is.

Trust me when I say this was not the next stop I wanted to make. Can we go back to Copenhagen? Ooo, what about Japan? I heard they’ve opened the borders to tourists again!

Alas, not every trip we take is one we want.