So many questions about Germany and Germans

I had to remove the email address from your post, because publishing private contact details is not allowed here. (Read the forum rules!)

Bringing some gifts on arrival is certainly appreciated - as long as they aren't valuable. For example, some snacks from your home town for all collegues to try would be a good idea. Anything above 10€ per person is inappropriate and frowned upon.

Online chats are almost exclusively on Whatsapp, with only few people using Threema or Signal for privacy reasons. Asian chat apps like Kakao, Line or Wechat don't work here.

Germans usually have little knowledge about Asians - and cannot differentiate between Japan, China and Thailand, just as the average Chinese cannot tell Swedes, Germans and French apart. So your willingness to educate them (and maybe remove stereotypes about your country) is certainly welcome. Just don't be frustrated if you encounter the same (mostly negative) opinions over and over again: For example, many believe that Chinese eat dogs, steal European jobs, produce bad quality goods and are gepolitical bullies (e.g. against Taiwan) - my wife gets this a lot, even though she isn't even Chinese (but from another Asian country).

Well, and last not least: Welcome to Germany! I hope you will enjoy your stay!

@beppi Thank you for your reply. And sorry about the email thing.

I don't know what to say. All this malice makes me feel cold and helpless. Does everyone have to have a political opinion? I don't know politics and never cared about it. Just an ordinary person trying to live his life.

@beppi Could you please tell me where is the forum rules? I haven't found it.. And Thank you again for your help and for answering my questions.

@Colin Chou The forum rules are here:

https://www.expat.com/en/faq.html

And what you call "malice" is actually seen as fully legitimate, open discussion here (although in this case sometimes based on incomplete knowledge). Germans are generally quite direct in expressing their opinions - and everyone is encouraged to have and show a political standpoint.

Your "don't know and don't care" attitude is typical for residents of totalitaian regimes and well known here from the socialist GDR (formerly independent Eastern Germany). Germans now prefer an open system where the individual has a say and can make a difference. Maybe an education on how democracy works will be your most important learning in Germany!

@beppi interesting. Your reply got me thinking. I guess there are many things to find out for me. And this is a good start. Thank you.

Hello everyone,

Warm welcome to Expat.com Colin !

Please note that I have created a new thread on the Germany forum so that members can interact with you more easily, Colin.

May I ask in what region, town you will be moving ?

All the very best

Bhavna

@Bhavna Hi Bhavna,

That's great!! Thank you so much! I will move to Munich.

Bhavna, may I ask where can I buy good and cheap goods? Can I assume that most things are cheaper online than offline? (Because that's how it is in China)

If so, which platform do you use for online shopping? Amazon?

I hope you have a good weekend!~~

Best wishes,

Colin

@Colin Chou For your information: Bhavna is from the international site team, which is located in Mauritius. She won't know the answer to your questions about Germany!

But I can answer it: While probably behind Asia, online shopping is getting more common in Germany too. It is not necessarily cheaper, though, but the choice is larger and for many people it is easier than going to a shop. High delivery charges (typically 5€ or more) mean that small purchases are not worth doing online. And people who are not at home to receive the parcels, face the hazzle of having to pick it up in a shop somewhere.

Fresh items like vegetables, meat and groceries are not commonly purchased online, because delivery takes a few days (without refrigeration). Neither are bulky items like furniture and kitchen appliances, because of freight forwarder's charges (e.g. it costs 50€ to get a wardrobe delivered by IKEA, and an additional 70€ if they assemble it at your home - most people thus transport and assemble it themselves, you can rent transporters by the hour for this!).

Amazon and Ebay are the biggest platforms, but better deals are often available at individual seller's webpages.