u/Common_Alfalfa6660

I talk on a regular basis to the older generation. Sometimes they come up to me and speak out of curiosity and sometimes I give a smile and conversation starts.

In the beginning it is, oh your German is good, how do you like it in Germany? But the conversations always end on a bitter note where I see a lot of hostility in the eyes of the person. Which country are you from? Oh, you're from --- but their country is so poor and dirty over there. I see a lot of them here in Germany, hey are always doing --- and causing trouble. --- nationality is different, but they have weird culture --- good food. You seem to be not like them. Why does your culture do "some weird thing" ---- what are your stand on it??? And then I leave the conversation.

I have noticed a trend in Germany. A lot of foreign nationalities and their culture is somewhat used to instill fear in people. I agree there are news once in a while, but it is just demographics, the larger the set, more things you get to hear. Also the news usually gives out random bad news from different countries, never a balanced picture.

However I think this might not be organic, I think this hate is distributed by the higher authorities or the news media to the people, to never let the Germans live in a harmony with with the foreigners and always maintain that divide.

Have you as a foreigner had these experiences?

From the Google search and reviews I see some recommendations

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1. Learn2swim

2. Schwimmschule Bavaria

3. Schwimmschule München

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Any experience or recommendation is highly appreciated 😊!

What spots can I go to for a nice swim and Picknick? The lake is quite huge and its my first time there

I come from an asian household, and in my country it is absolutely normal for people to wear open toe sandals or flip flops everywhere. They are super practical, easy to clean, and waterproof. Since I have moved to the European country, I rarely see the open toe sandals or flip flops, maybe once or twice a year. I myself had to switch to wearing shoes with socks.

Where did this stigma get in from, for a body part that literally serves as our support system and takes us from one place to another, how do we find that body part gross??

If you want to wear sandals, you NEED to wear them with socks, to not expose your "gross toes". Everyone wears shoes even in the summer. Women HAVE to get a pedicure with nail polish for presentable feet.

It only makes sense if you think Big Shoes made it up. Lets take a look at the things you need to buy for both scenarios. For flipflops/sandals we dont need anything else 90% of the time, maybe socks, which is also a stretch. For shoes, you need socks, shoe polish/ shoe cleaner, the thing to put shoes on with, shoe bag for washing, laces for replacement, and as in summer the shoes smell, shoe deodorant. The list is neverending!

One more thing to note, sandals and flip flops are size adjustable to some extent, and wide foot friendly, but shoes, one day you stand too much and you need to adjust it constantly, its closed, smelly and literally changes your foot shape over the years.

Finally, shoes are freaking expensive, 50-100€+ for a decent pair, while sandals and flipflops are around the 10-20€ range and you can't really go wrong with it.

Just right now there is some parade/rally/demonstration at Marienplatz. Also going around still. Can someone's tell me what it is about? Is it political?

I couldn't see from near, I saw some red flags but wasn't able to recognize

Have you guys recently noticed it, out of 1 out of 2 job companies seem fake, especially offering remote work and english job description.

Check each and every time the companies, employees and followers. Did you also recently experienced it. I always try to report it if I come across it. It's really frustrating.

Jeden verdammten Tag fahre ich morgens zur Arbeit oder abends wieder heim, und überall sind Rentner. Im Zug, im Bus, am Bahnhof, im Supermarkt.

Bevor hier jemand Schnappatmung kriegt: Ich hab selbst Großeltern und hasse nicht pauschal alle Rentner. Aber ganz ehrlich, die tägliche Nerverei geht mir langsam brutal auf den Keks. Und obendrein sind 80 % der Rentner, die ich treffe, einfach nur total genervt, unhöflich und streitsüchtig.

Letzte Woche am Bahnhof: Wegen der Baustelle musste ich zum Zug sprinten(Zug je 20 min). Direkt vor mir steigt eine Rentnerin mit ihrem XXL-Trolley ein, in absoluter Zeitlupe. Der Zug wollte schon die Türen schließen. Also bin ich über den Trolley gestiegen (ohne sie oder das Ding zu berühren) und noch reingekommen. Türen gehen hinter mir zu und sofort kommt: „BOAH, EGOISTISCH!“

Und das war nicht mal ein Einzelfall.

Jeden Tag zwischen 17 und 18 Uhr, wenn eh schon alles brechend voll ist, tauchen plötzlich die Rentner-Horden auf. Sie steigen ein, schauen die Leute an, als hätte man persönlich ihre Rente gekürzt, oder stupsen direkt Leute an, damit sie aufstehen.

Im Bus stehen Rollator neben Rollator, Rollstuhl neben Rollstuhl. Normale Fahrgäste haben kaum noch Platz zum Stehen, weil offenbar exakt nach dem Mittagsschlaf die beste Zeit für einen kleinen Ausflug ist. Dann darf ich den Zug vorbeifahren lassen oder 30 Minuten im Bus stehen.

Nach der Arbeit gehe ich noch schnell einkaufen, weil ich überraschenderweise gern esse und nicht verhungern möchte. Die Rentner blockiert die Kassen? Natürlich. Und mittlerweile auch die Self-Checkouts.

Dann geht's los: Diskussion über irgendeinen 17-Cent-Rabatt, Kleingeldsuche, anschließend wird jedes einzelne Produkt langsam eingepackt. Zack, Abendessen wieder 30 Minuten später.

Das Beste: Von 9 bis 17 Uhr sind die Läden und Öffis vergleichsweise leer. Aber nein, warum dann rausgehen? Lieber genau zur Rush Hour losziehen und alle anderen mitnerven.

Und wenn ich dann endlich heimkomme, erklärt mir die Nachbarin, ich solle bitte abends nicht staubsaugen, weil das ihre Nickerchen-Zeit sei.

Was macht ihr eigentlich den ganzen Tag außer pennen?

Ich schwöre, irgendwann dreh ich komplett am Rad.

I have seen this happen more often in public now.

A friend of mine (non-european) said he’s had teenagers, especially girls, take photos of him in public a few times now. He’s a young average-looking guy, slightly brown skin, nothing super unusual about him. What’s even the point behind this behavior usually?

He said they were pretty young, so confronting them doesn’t really feel appropriate or productive. I’ve also personally seen groups of girls take photos of random guys and then laugh together afterward.

Is this generally a good sign, a bad sign, attraction, mockery, curiosity, or just immature/social media behavior? Trying to make sense of it without jumping to conclusions. How can one approach it? Have you seen this happening?

Isn't this against Datenschutz?

This is something that has been in my mind for some time.

Maybe from my perspective Korean beauty industry is just overtaken by the capitalists to make as much as profit as possible. The society has stopped being a society and maybe it is now just a play in front of the world. Following are some things I noted, please feel free to voice your opinions.

- The trends in beauty standards change very fast and one has to keep up with them

- The family, friends etc. will be very direct and blunt in commenting about your appearance. So even if a person doesn't follow social media one will be continuously told if they are ugly or beautiful

- One has to be unhealthy amount of skinny

- The standards are unachievable without cosmetic procedures

- cosmetic procedures are very cheap and people start them in their teenage years

- The natural skin color of Majority of Koreans is not so fair but rather like other south asian countries rather tan, but it is rare to see Koreans represented in it

- The girls feel ashamed for going out without makeup to such an extent that they wear sunglasses and mask to hide their faces

- The s*!¢!de rates are one of the highest

- The birth rates are all time low

Please feel free comment your theories

Tandem partner= language exchange partner

How do I avoid the awkward silence??

What activities, games, or tasks worked well for you in the beginning and later on?

Especially interested in:

- good first meetup ideas

- ways to avoid awkward silences

- fun language exchange activities

- things you started doing after a few meetups

I love to hear what actually worked for you.

I saw a few comments recommending using apps or softwares. Would be nice to have a recommendation.

I'm currently writing my master's thesis. I developed the ideas together with my supervisor. Since English isn't my first language, I've mainly used Al to rewrite the sentences and improve the flow of reading.

I tested some Al-based text recognition tools; they seem to recognize about 80-90% of human text.

My question is: Has anyone had similar experiences with Al, and were there any issues? I know that universities use Turnitin.