Decades From Home - A Podcast About Germany

As summer continues to cut a rug through to August, we talk tourist sites, and three in particular: Neuschwanstein, Herrenchiemsee and Linderhof. Why these three? For the simple reason that they are the three newest German UNESCO World Heritage sites. Are they worthy entrants, and what does this have to do with the Great Wall of China? We find out.Summer also means school holidays, but it wouldn’t be German school holidays without a little bit of complaining. What’s boiling people’s blood? The most obvious of German annoyances, Bavaria. Yes, Bavaria, who along with their southern neighbours Baden-Württemberg, are refusing to move their summer holidays with their fellow Bundesländer. We question the Bavarian belligerence, but wonder if they might have a point after all.We finish off with another listener question…well sort of…not directly, but it does give Nic and Producer Simon a chance to have their favourite argument: Tanks vs Castles!!!!Theme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

There are many ways to have the perfect summer, and Nic has landed on his perfect recipe. All he needs is a few beer tents, some schlager, and the cleanest public toilets he’s ever seen. An England win in the European Championships would also help too, and we consider the chances of that happening with a review of the tournament so far.From ball kicking to treaty signing, we discuss the exciting new friendship treaty between Germany and the UK, but it have been signed somewhere with a more interesting name than Kensington? There’s still plenty of positives to enjoy, except maybe Friedrich Merz’s new stand-up routine. We also finish on the recent summer interviews from public broadcaster ARD, which faced some disruption when they attempted to interview the leader of far-right AfD. Theme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

Living in Germany as long as we have, you sometimes forget how German things can be. As Nic finds out, all it takes is a quick reminder, or the mere mention of David Hasselhoff. On the other hand, Simon is perfectly aware he’s in Germany as he talks about his Flohmarkt victories, which of course include a lovely beer krug.From glassware to baskets, Simon introduces the newest retail dating concept as a branch of supermarket chain EDEKA play matchmaker with their customers. Can you meet the love of your life in the yoghurt section, or is that more of a fruit & veg kind of hook-uo?Finally, we finish on the miraculous story of a German backpackers survival after getting lost in the Australian outback for 11 nights. How did she manage it, and is it comparable to Nic getting lost in woods?Theme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

For good or for ill, Germany has reputation for steely seriousness, but if we’ve learned anything living here for as long as we have, it’s that reputation means nothing. Honestly, how serious can any country be if they don’t even make escaping from prison illegal? Luckily, Simon’s on hand to explain why jailbreaks are only human.A few weeks ago we learned of attempts to bring Volksdöner back to Germany in the form of a €3.99 kebap, but apparently some didn’t get the memo. A “24 carat gold “Dubai Döner” has gone on sale, much to our disgust. We discuss why putting gold in food is a terrible idea, and wonder if kebaps are bigger and better if you eat in rather than takeaway.Finally, we bring proceedings to a close by finding out Germany’s safest cities, and which are your hosts favourite cities in Germany.A few weeks ago we learned of attempts to bring a truly Volksdöner back to Germany in the form of a €3.99 kebap, but apparently some didn’t get the memo. A “24 carat gold “Dubai Döner” has gone on sale, much to our disgust. We discuss why putting gold in food is a terrible idea, and wonder if kebaps are bigger and better if you eat in rather than takeaway.Finally, we bring proceedings to a close by finding out Germany’s safest cities, and which are your hosts favourite cities in Germany.

It might feel like stating the obvious, but it’s been fairly warm this week in Germany, which means a little more of the weird and wonderful than usual. In this case, the wonderful came in the form of a Dorffest, and the weird was large amounts of Greek condiments on offer, much to Simon’s annoyance. The primo weather wasn’t just great for dorffests, it was also Christopher Street Day. With pride events happening across the country, it seemed an odd time for Bundestag President Julia Klöckner to decide not to allow a Rainbow flag to fly atop the Reichstag. Was the decision all about political neutrality as Klöckner claims or for other more performative reasons?We finish off proceedings with some tattoos, not on us, but on the Bayern Munich team mates of English footballer Georgia Stanway who volunteered themselves to be the canvas for Stanway before she heads off to Euro 2025 in Switzerland. We talk about tattoo choices, and the kick-off of a summer of football.Theme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

This is usually a podcast about Germany, but after a trip to Strasbourg, Nic’s a hare’s breadth from trying to turn this podcast all French with his general love of one of Europe’s most delightful destinations. Was it the architecture, the boulangeries, or the sexy gargoyles? Whatever it was, we find out.While Nic was out of town, Simon found himself enjoying more German pursuits, or at least more German TV in the form of the Rosins Restaurants, a Kitchen Nightmares inspired look at some of the more terrible places to eat across the country.We finish things off with some flora and fauna, well, more fauna as a story about moose hiding in the forests of New Zealand leads us to wonder whether Germany has any hidden beasts lurking out there.Theme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

Known for his formidable producing powers, the aptly named Producer Simon is also something of a travel expert, or at least he’s gone on holiday a lot recently. It does mean he has some interesting stories to tell though, especially what it was like travelling through Europe in an electric car.We can’t all save the world like Producer Simon, but we can answer listener questions, or at least Nic & Simon can at least. Last week it was “Mahlzeit” this week it’s “Feierabend” as we try to explain one of the best words in the German language.To finish things off, we discuss why berets and the Bundestag don’t mix well, and ponder whether “ACAB” or “Eat the Rich” are serious statements to make in the seat of German government.Theme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

In order to ensure our darling Producer Simon made it on his holiday, we recorded a number of episodes back to back, but we may have forgottten when they needed to be released…perhaps this is why we begin this week by celebrating co-host Simon’s beloved Spurs winning the Europa League a month ago…how can we complain though, Simon is so bloody happy, and isn’t that worth an opening segment?Moving on from football success and surprise German spurs fans, Nic and Simon tackle a listener question on the topic of the tricky German word “Mahlzeit!”, which is frequently uttered in the corridors of companies across the country as lunchtime approaches. We discuss the right way to celebrate mealtimes in Germany, as well as regional ways to say hello.Theme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

This is a podcast about Germany, so you might assume some of that fabled Germanic organisation might have rubbed off on us. Well…sort of, but all the organisation in the world can’t prevent the confusion over Producer Simons recording schedule.A little uncertainty isn’t the worst way to get the podcast started, but what does seem to be a sure fire hit are the prices at an exciting new Dönerladen in Bochum. Sure, the Döner might be €3.99, but what is the real cost of this supposed “Volksdöner”?We finish things off this week by questioning the general honesty of ourselves, Germans, and pretty much anyone who’s ever decided to buy some ancient marble while on holiday in Greece. Theme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

Having missed Eurovision last week, Simon brings in a special guest reporter to remedy that situation as we discuss politics, Pride flags, and Celine Dion, while learning some new vocabulary to boot. Sadly, we can’t enjoy the bright lights of Euro pop’s annual extravaganza for the whole show, apparently we need to do some work…Yes, you heard right, work. That’s the key message, not of this humble podcast, but freshly minted (give or take a week or two) Chancellor of Germany Friedrich Merz. He reckons all we need to bring back the good times in Deutschland is a little elbow grease, but is that really the only option?With work on our minds, we also take a moment to celebrate an important milestone as the Fraunequota reaches its 10th anniversary. Theme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß