Construction costs are currently skyrocketing

Are you still renovating or what brings you to us?

Well, as I wrote, Bad Dürrenberg is my wife's hometown. And my closest family is now completely in Konstanz; apart from old friends, little has kept me there. After 20 years away, she also could no longer imagine living there (she lived in Jena, Koblenz, and with me in Aschaffenburg). But it does her a lot of good to have her family around her again.

I also feel very comfortable; I of course knew the area from many visits. Strictly speaking, I am also half East German; my father was originally from Ilmenau.

I am still struggling with some peculiarities. For example, butchers (oops, of course "Fleischer") ... who orders cold cuts by number of slices and not by grams/pounds? And why is minced meat only available seasoned ("would you like pepper, garlic, or salt?") But I want plain meat for frying, not to make a Mett roll...

We are not renovating anything, we are pragmatic. The interior was already renovated when we bought it, apart from the second bathroom and still existing GDR flooring in the guest room. But that is easy to maintain :)

Of course, if we had done the renovations ourselves, we would have done some things differently. But we adapt to the old house with its extensions.

The topic is of course still the facade/insulation, the oil heating system from 1994, etc.
In this regard, I do not want to fall into activism and wait to see where politics is concretely heading (and how).

Leisure and educational offerings. What’s so bad about the countryside? Apart from clubs and bars. And what is really used?

We also live in a rural area, but close to a city. Countryside is not the same as countryside. Starting from Munich, you really have to go far out before it gets significantly cheaper, that is, to very structurally weak regions. And there, they often simply don’t have the financial means to keep schools, kindergartens, playgrounds, etc. up to date. Such areas certainly have their charm, but it sometimes feels like a journey back in time. Believe me, we have dealt with the topic for a long time and have traveled around a lot. Sure, there’s a soccer field and fire department festivals everywhere. And especially small children usually don’t have a big need for cultural offerings yet. But I also grew up in the countryside and, for example, in my youth went to concerts every weekend in the nearest big city and usually had to spend the night at the train station because there was no train home anymore (“Mom, I’m spending the night at friend XY’s”). Or later on, I also did a lot of activities in the city during the week. It does make a difference whether I drive 20 minutes home after an event or two hours, especially when I have to go to work the next day. But as I said, countryside is not the same as countryside. Starting from Munich, unfortunately, you have to go two hours out for it to get significantly cheaper, and then you are really far off the beaten path. The local leisure/educational offerings are definitely not comparable to those in or around Munich. It’s always a matter of personal priorities, so I don’t want to speak ill of such areas. It’s just that for us, unfortunately, it’s not the right fit.

Then I can be glad to live far away from the hustle and bustle in an almost debt-free community. Kindergartens, schools, after-school care, [OGS] really in great shape. Educational opportunities, what do you think? English for kindergarten children or cooking courses for adults or master classes? Everything is easy to reach, much on foot. Maybe really the advantage of being so far away. It must be available nearby. There is no metropolitan area nearby where many could theoretically just stop by after work. Of course, countryside is not just countryside, yet the countryside is often generally devalued.

Then I can be glad to live far off the beaten path in an almost debt-free community. Kindergartens, schools, after-school care, OGS really in great shape. Educational offerings, what do you think? English for kindergarten children or cooking courses for adults or master classes? Everything easy to reach, much on foot. Maybe really the advantage of being so far away. It has to be available nearby. There is no metropolitan area nearby where many could theoretically just stop by after work. Of course, countryside is not just countryside, yet countryside is often dismissed overall.

As I said, countryside is not just countryside, just as city is not just city. I grew up in the countryside but have also lived in a medium-sized city and know what life is like in or near a metropolis. Examples of things I couldn’t do neither in the countryside nor in the medium-sized city: choosing between several interesting concerts on any given weekday, watching movies in English off the big blockbusters in the cinema, doing further education at a renowned university, watching a Champions League game live in the stadium after work, sometimes going to a Persian or Caribbean restaurant. I don’t want to argue now about what is better because everything has advantages and disadvantages, as I know from my own experience. And what is better for someone depends strongly on their own priorities. For example, I also prefer living rurally near a city and enjoy some peace and quiet. My uncle, on the other hand, needs the hustle and bustle of the big city and likes living in shared apartments. As I said, everyone has to figure out and decide for themselves in which environment or with which lifestyle they feel most comfortable.

I really like these rental scooters in the big city. Not just great in good weather. Are they already available in medium-sized cities?

Yes, of course they exist. If you mean the electric ones, they cause huge problems (for example, they often end up in the Rhine and have to be recovered at great expense….). In some cities around the world, this model has therefore been discontinued and partially banned.