As I write this, the temperature outside has dropped below 0. The snow has stopped falling, but the pavements around here are either covered in snow or wet and slippery. Not to mention that the area I lived in was affected by the power outage. Can you imagine what it’s like to live through winter with no power, no heating, and no internet access? I sat in the dark, wrapped in every blanket I owned, watching my breath form small clouds in the cold air. That was how I started my first weekend of 2026.

No, this isn’t a post about how much I hate living here. In fact, I love living in Germany.

Whenever I introduce myself, numerous people ask “Why would you move here from a warm tropical island? You were living a dream”. Well, now you will also know how I answer them.

Let me take you back to where it all began.

I spent the start of 2025 buried in paperwork - employment contract, apostille, translations. Two months of gathering documents, one more month of waiting. Then the email arrived. I was going to Germany.

Berlin was the first city I visited in Germany. To be perfectly honest, it’s even my first time being in Europe.

When I stepped outside of the Berlin-Brandenburg Airport, I stopped. A cool 15-degree breeze touched my face. I took a deep breath - and for the first time in years, my lungs didn’t protest. No exhaust. No smog. Just air. I was ready for the so-called “German directness”, but the taxi driver who picked me up was very friendly. We chatted briefly about the Spring weather. “Guten Tag” was the only German word that I used, the rest was all in English. I knew it was silly of me to come unprepared.

For months, I lived in a shared apartment with people of several different countries. One day, while browsing for places to visit, I stumbled upon Berlin’s official website - a section about “Sakura in Berlin”. The photos showed the exact streets I walked daily, transformed into tunnels of pink petals. I had missed it by weeks.

My first impression of Berlin is that the weather is unpredictable. There’s a saying that goes “There is no bad weather, only bad clothing” and the people here live by it.

During the spring I was occasionally shaking outside because of the cold, but perhaps that was just me getting used to the breezy weather. Nevertheless, my point still stands because during the summer there would be two weeks of warm sunshine followed by a week of wet and cold rain. I even got to experience a warm winter in Berlin.

It was unusual, but again, you just have to be in the proper clothing.

Adapting to the weather was one thing. But getting around? That was surprisingly easy.

One thing that I love the most about Berlin is definitely the public transportation.

Yes, it’s not the most punctual one. But, I can survive here without having my own vehicle. I can get anywhere with just my monthly ticket.

There was a time when I missed my regional trains because they were either cancelled or delayed so badly. I ended up taking a connecting bus instead - but I arrived at noon, and my connection wasn’t until 4. Four hours of watching strangers come and go, none of them waiting for the same ride as me. But it’s a story for another day.

When I came back to Indonesia for a month, this was the thing that I missed the most. I hate driving because the traffic is always unpredictable. Using a ride-hailing service is also a gamble, sometimes I end up with a driver who drives as if they are above the law.

Here, I can hop on to a bus, change to a train or to a tram, and get to my destination not feeling tired nor anxious about getting bumped by other drivers. Peace of mind is number one.

And because getting around is so easy, have I told you that it’s very nice to be in the centre of Europe?

It was not long until I found myself in Tallinn and Helsinki. One hour flight from Berlin, then two hours by ferry. Cobblestone streets, medieval towers, the smell of the Baltic Sea.

The cities in Germany also have their own charm. Every time I visited a new place, I would bring home memorable photos. Classic architecture, bronze statues, pieces of art. Each city had something worth capturing.

That’s not all, in Berlin alone there are hundreds of open spaces. You can find parks everywhere you go. I often saw people walking their cute dogs, parents playing with their children or socialising with the other parents, and musicians singing songs they themselves composed.

Summer was the best season where parks would never be empty. The smell of grilled sausages would drift across the grass. Laughter. Clinking bottles. Someone always had a speaker playing music, sometimes a bit too loud, but nobody seemed to mind.

Those park scenes bring me to another surprise. I was told that the people here would not be friendly, like, grumpy all the time. It was not the case. In my opinion, the elders are the most open, they would not hesitate to throw back smiles, especially to children.

Indonesia is known for being friendly, but we don’t have the custom of cashiers greeting customers and saying farewell. I love hearing “Hallo!” when I’m going to the cashier and the usual “Tschüss/Ciao/Schönen Tag noch” to end the interactions.

For a country which is said to not tolerate bullshit, I say, a lot of Germans can be quite friendly.

Work has been just as welcoming. I can’t say much because the company I work for has an international environment. The culture is amazing and I don’t have any issue. People are eager to give their best and I can talk to anyone without being bothered by hierarchy. I apologise if I sound like I’m showing off, but that’s just the reality.

There’s a lot to learn at work due to the differing business needs, but I’m grateful for the opportunity.

If you have read this far, you must’ve already known that I love living the life here.

Hey, there are also times when I get annoyed. Having to do everything by letter. Waiting months for an appointment with a general practitioner. Queuing for hours with more than 25 people to compete for a 1-bedroom apartment. Walking to a food stall just to be greeted with “Kartenzahlung erst ab 10 Euro”, card payments only above 10 euros, and having to carry banknotes everywhere.

I accept those complexities as my new normal.

Even when someone was mean because I didn’t understand what they said and they didn’t understand my broken German words, I didn’t regret coming here. At the end of the day, I would grab a Döner mit Pommes frites, take it home, and eat it alone in my room. Sometimes with a few tears. Sometimes with a drink or two. Sometimes I wouldn’t remember falling asleep.

I’m not joking, German is super hard to master. Despite learning it for the last 6 months straight, two hours every weekday, I still struggle to converse spontaneously. Reading the news is also a challenge I have yet to tackle.

So here I am, back in my apartment, a warm mug of milk in my hands, the heating finally restored. The snow outside doesn’t seem so bad anymore. If anything, it reminds me why I stayed.