Decades From Home - A Podcast About Germany

Simon very much enjoys the summer camp feel to this week’s show as Nic commandeers his niece and nephew’s bunk bed for the record. The new environment blends nicely with Nic’s new sultry deep voice, a hard won benefit after a weekend spent living in the 17th century with the Sealed Knot. What’s it like to come face to face with a musket block and live to tell the tale?Leaving the past behind, Simon and Nic talk about sharing food, Kamikaze Sandwiches, and why chicken wings are the most sensual of foods. We also wonder whether service stations in the UK are worse than in Germany and whether paying for the toilets is actually quite sensible.With Nic getting ready to leave the UK after two week’s holidays, we talk about the many things people find weird about Britain. We discuss toilet carpeting, the dreaded two tap system and small houses. For those of you looking to support Ukraine or the many refugees currently fleeing the conflict, please take a look at these different charities and consider donating if you can:Ukraine Crisis Media Centre - A list of different donation pages to help the Ukrainian military response.Disaster Emergency Committee - Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal Save the ChildrenÄrzte ohne GrenzenImage CreditAnguskirkTheme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

Nic is back in the UK, so enjoy some extra special audio from some passing seagulls and the full skinny on what’s happening in Britain. Nic has fallen in love with tiny North East breweries, but he’s far more excited that his daughter loves a traditional sausage roll just as much as he does. Simon and Nic talk about the state of the UK, why German news isn’t necessarily a refreshing change and sixties nostalgia.

Maybe we’re getting old, but usually when we talk about “getting pickled” it’s after a night on the sauce, but not this week. After receiving a delivery of vinegar, Simon’s taken to pickling anything he can get his hands on, but how do Germans feel about a pickled egg? Nic has more pressing concerns than Simon’s new hobby though; what do you do when you lose interest in a long German sentence? Is it normal to daydream while waiting for a verb to appear in German conversation and how can you train your brain to pay attention when someone uses an infinite number of commas?New Year is still a good few months away, but Munich has been planning a party to remember…well, we say planning. The beginning of August saw the announcement of a Silvester Rammstein concert on the Theresienwiese, much to the surprise of everyone. However, this week it was cancelled after safety concerns and arguments over support for local arts and culture bubbled to the surface. What has been going on in Bavaria’s state capital?We discuss the reappearance of 17th century Hunger Stones in many German rivers and finish with a discussion on the benefits of a plant-based diet. For those of you looking to support Ukraine or the many refugees currently fleeing the conflict, please take a look at these different charities and consider donating if you can:Ukraine Crisis Media Centre - A list of different donation pages to help the Ukrainian military response.Disaster Emergency Committee - Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal Save the ChildrenÄrzte ohne GrenzenImage CreditPhoto by Andy Makely on UnsplashTheme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

After enjoying a surprise Augsburg only public holiday on Monday, Nic is feeling quite relaxed, a fact that only intensifies Simon’s jealousy at having missed out. Luckily for Simon, he didn’t have to suffer through FC Augsburg’s opening game of the season, a 4-0 loss to Freiburg. Nic was there, and he’s still not fully recovered. It’s not all negatives though, Simon got a new tattoo and possibly made a new friend along the way. In Nürnberg, an over zealous father calls the police on his daughter, which leads us to ask: is it ever ok to snitch on your children? Equally worthy of discussion is the fact we learnt about this story from a police twitter account; should the police be reporting their cases via Twitter and if so, should they try to be funny?To finish, we discuss Das Grüne Band, an 870-mile long nature reserve that runs along the former no-man’s-land between East and West Germany.For those of you looking to support Ukraine or the many refugees currently fleeing the conflict, please take a look at these different charities and consider donating if you can:Ukraine Crisis Media Centre - A list of different donation pages to help the Ukrainian military response.Disaster Emergency Committee - Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal Save the ChildrenÄrzte ohne GrenzenImage CreditPhoto by Paulina Ponce on UnsplashTheme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

For some reason Simon and Nic are really happy this week, possibly it’s the sunny weather, but more likely it’s finally seeing an England football team win a major tournament. We share our stories of jubilation, tears and glorious lobbed goals from the final of the European Women's Championship. After descending from cloud nine, we dive into a legal dispute between a woman and her insurance company who refuse to pay for her to get leg lengthening surgery, and discuss the some of the issues in the German health system. We celebrate the lucrative legal victory of an underdog Berlin tenant over their longtime landlord, and Nic confesses his fear of German numbers.Finally, we learn of the demise of one of Germany’s favourite hobbies: finding a bargain. With many shops choosing to discontinue paper advertising, we ask whether the schnappenjager is an endangered species and why Germany should stop using the word porno in it’s headlines.For those of you looking to support Ukraine or the many refugees currently fleeing the conflict, please take a look at these different charities and consider donating if you can:Ukraine Crisis Media Centre - A list of different donation pages to help the Ukrainian military response.Disaster Emergency Committee - Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal Save the ChildrenÄrzte ohne GrenzenImage CreditPhoto by PixabayTheme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

The lads have been doing a bit of travelling around Germany this week. While Nic stuck to the safety of Bavaria, Simon went further afield, and on the way spotted some fellow Brits who’ve managed to avoid the traffic and make it to Germany. We talk about a recent funeral held in a forest and why that might be the most German of send offs, and we go over the recent travel chaos at various airports that’s certainly not the expected level of German organisation. A kebab shop in Munich has recently laid claim to the title of most expensive kebab in the country, which gives us a chance to suggest our own luxury kebab recipes and how best to make a dessert kebab. All this kebab chat is hungry work, but clearly not as much as fighting in the UFC, where a young fighter wowed an recent press conference by eating two kebabs in under ten minutes. We finish this week with a catch-up on German Comic Con, which may be smaller than its more famous American cousin, but might well be the most pleasant event of its kind in the world. We discuss German cosplayers, asking celebrities questions in a second language, and recommend some of the best graphic novels by German artists. For those of you looking to support Ukraine or the many refugees currently fleeing the conflict, please take a look at these different charities and consider donating if you can:Ukraine Crisis Media Centre - A list of different donation pages to help the Ukrainian military response.Disaster Emergency Committee - Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal Save the ChildrenÄrzte ohne GrenzenImage CreditPhoto by Dev on UnsplashTheme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

After the highs of last week’s show, we resume normal service as we discuss having family come visit us in Germany, the complex dance of German and British politeness, and why it’s impossible to find an ice cream van when you need one. Although we can’t offer you a Mr. Whippy, Simon might be able to offer you something much better: the opportunity to win a trophy!After avoiding the chaos of British politics for a few weeks, we turn our attention to Boris Johnson’s resignation and the resulting Conservative Party leadership contest. We discuss the remaining candidates and why choosing a PM in Britain is often like voting in an 18th century election. Sticking with the exciting world of British politics, we recap the visit of Labour’s Keir Starmer to Germany and why a video angered some on German Twitter.Turning to the relatively tranquil world of German politics, the wedding of FDP leader Christian Linder was an opportunity for politicians to dust off their finery, and their private planes, to join the festivities on the island of Sylt. Is it OK for politicians to be flying around the country while the climate crisis ravages the country? To finish we look at a recent story from TikTok, where a young man attempted a very public 360 kilometer journey, but gave up after less than 24hrs.For those of you looking to support Ukraine or the many refugees currently fleeing the conflict, please take a look at these different charities and consider donating if you can:Ukraine Crisis Media Centre - A list of different donation pages to help the Ukrainian military response.Disaster Emergency Committee - Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal Save the ChildrenÄrzte ohne GrenzenImage CreditPhoto by Kenny Eliason on UnsplashTheme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

Well listener, aren’t you in for a real treat! We’re joined by the the most incredible of special guests, the definitive English language voice of the Bundesliga, Derek Rae. Derek is ESPN’s lead commentator for the Bundesliga, the DFB Pokal, La Liga and the Deutsche Fußball Liga. He’s also, along with Lee Dixon & Stewart Robson, the commentator for hundreds of thousands of daily Fifa 22 games played across the world.In a delightful conversation, Derek takes us through his childhood in Aberdeen where he discovered a love for the German language and culture, his first big break commentating on Scottish football, and how he managed to listen to German language radio without ever having to travel. We learn what it’s like to record commentary for football games you can’t see, discuss why more British footballers should take the leap into the Bundesliga, and what aspects of German life and culture Derek would happily take with him if he could.For those of you looking to support Ukraine or the many refugees currently fleeing the conflict, please take a look at these different charities and consider donating if you can:Ukraine Crisis Media Centre - A list of different donation pages to help the Ukrainian military response.Disaster Emergency Committee - Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal Save the ChildrenÄrzte ohne GrenzenImage CreditPhoto by 3DVisu on UnsplashTheme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

Simon returns after a week of avoiding a house full of Covid, and not a minute to soon either. Nic needs an answer to a burning question: why do Germans enjoy eating piping hot meals, even when it’s hotter than the mouth of hell outside? We try and find an answer to this puzzler, among many other important questions. A recent proposal to make English an official bureaucratic language gets us thinking about how life might change if we didn’t have to worry about Der, Die, Das, when we speak to the tax office. Are the plans realistic? We look into a recent decision in a Frankfurt court to fine SUV drivers more than normal for breaking traffic laws, and we celebrate as a small boy from Oldenburg is rescued from a sewer after going missing for eight days. Finally, we take a minor disagreement to the mat with our inaugural Schland Slam segment, as we argue whether Pineapple and ham is really worthy of being Germany’s third favourite pizza topping.For those of you looking to support Ukraine or the many refugees currently fleeing the conflict, please take a look at these different charities and consider donating if you can:Ukraine Crisis Media Centre - A list of different donation pages to help the Ukrainian military response.Disaster Emergency Committee - Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal Save the ChildrenÄrzte ohne GrenzenImage CreditPhoto by Patrick CaseTheme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß

We are joined by two very special guests this week, Marty and Marcy, who join Nic for a special Pride episode to discuss their experiences of life in Germany. We talk about culture bubbles, the price of Vegemite, and the glory of American convenience food. After a weekend of terrible news from the US, wevdiscuss the loss of established freedoms, and the threats to LGBTQ rights. We turn to Germany and question the perception of our adopted home as a bastion of liberalism, and whether there is a big difference between the north and south of the country.Our guests share their experiences of moving to Germany, civil partnerships, and why a translator can be the best of guests when tying the knot. Finally, Marty teaches Nic some useful German terminology, while Marcy explains what it’s like to go to Christopher Street Day.For those of you looking to support Ukraine or the many refugees currently fleeing the conflict, please take a look at these different charities and consider donating if you can:Ukraine Crisis Media Centre - A list of different donation pages to help the Ukrainian military response.Disaster Emergency Committee - Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal Save the ChildrenÄrzte ohne GrenzenImage CreditPhoto by Steve Johnson on UnsplashTheme tune courtesy of Kloß mit Soß