₦airaland Forum

EmmGee:
Braket, if you want to learn the language quickly, befriend a girl in your school who speaks english, even if it's little english...

hahahaha ......my brother it is not easy to befriend anybody here oh, unlike testimonies I have read on the USA thread. This introvert people.

RalphVwede:
Yh, Germany didn't win their game just like 9ja but they played far better than we did. See full attack second half. You should keep your keys better now.

Playing does not matter. It is scoring and having points that matter.

Today was a restful Sunday. I woke up in the afternoon and prepared prepared a spicy Nigerian jollof rice.

I attend an evening German church. Because it has been a while I cycled long distance and my thighs hurt, I decided to cycle to and fro (I learnt how to ride a bicycle here in Germany with an hour, though I had paid my dues by having few bruises )

We had the normal service and some people were appointed as the church elders.

After service, we proceeded downstairs to the Bistro (kitchen) -to have some Persian foods and watch the remaining part of Germany's match. Thankfully they lose just like Nigeria .

Anytime I cycle, I often notice I get this weird look from people but who cares, I know they can hit me except they want to make me rich.

On getting home, something bad has happened.


My keys are no where to be found. I searched my pockets and I couldn't find it. This automatically means I either have to find the keys or pay about 200 euros I think to a have my house keeper replace it for me.

I was so devastated because I have been seeing signs I was going to lose those keys today.
As I was about going upstairs to my friend's room to say what happened and be pitied, there after call my pastor to ask if the keys where found in church, because I couldn't have accessed the bicycle I took to church without the keys and that was the last moment I remembered having it in my possession, he called me and asked if I was searching for my keys.

Thank God it was found by him and he offered to drive down to somewhere close to me, where we met and got the keys.

Was so excited I said a lot of euros and stress

Jigba:
I hate buses ..

Yeah I do too. But there's no choice except to use a bicycle

goldsmiths:
"Your application for Winter semester 2018 for the degree course Bachelor Mechatronics (in German) was returned to you with the request to provide further information. Please note in particular the status note.

Status note: Please make sure that you upload the result of your preliminary review documentation (uni-assist) and proof of English language as soon as possible. You will also need german language A2 and a pre-study internship latest until second semester.

Please refer to https://go.fhws.de/apply/login.jsf to get additional information.
This mail is created automatically, you cannot answer it. If you have any requests please contact helpdesk.hsst@fhws.de quoting your application number: "
Please I applied to fhws bsc mechatronics & business and engineering and they sent me this mail today please can anyone explain it to me?

Did you apply through Uniassit?

Jigba:
You are really getting there, at least you now know these phrases.

Vhs is the best when it comes to language course..

Also, always look at the monitors in the S-bahn and regional Bahn. They always display the next stops...

Yeah noticed that. It even shows long distance journeys.
I only get to use S-bahn in Frankfurt, bus is the most common in my city, no tram.

RalphVwede:
Kassel, Giessen or Marburg?

It's sha in the North

Jigba:
It's always good to learn the language before coming. At least A1 would have taught you how to greet or book tickets. You could even understand what's been said in trains.

My advice would be to register for an intensive course, you would be surprise how you will improve in 6 months. For intensive course, the practice you do in the course is enough to get you by. You don't need to have German friends to be able to converse in German. I too had no German friends but I was able to learn the language...

Will navigate to the west end one of these days.

I think I am way passed the A1 level now tho. But the problem I am sure I have is that my vocabulary is so low and I don't even know the basic day by day phrases.

I really made a mistake registering at my language school. It was not until I paid before a fellow housemate told me about the offer for students in the vhs of my city which costs just 164 euros.

But yes I have picked a lot of phrases that's being said on the train these days. Thanks to coming to Frankfurt frequently.

Ones like Naechster Halt.... Next stop
Ausstieg Fahrtrichtung links oder rechts...Exit to the left or right.

I will get there but the pace is so slow for me.

ZUBY77:
Departure Port, MM International Lagos.

The great Zuby. Loyal follower reporting from Deutschland

Reality check.

I am having a challenging stay here in Germany, all thanks to the language. Forget the fact that my program is in English. Getting around here one need Deutsch not just all these Hallo, Guten Morgen and the likes . Everything is in German, even at the international office in the university, the train, any where here.

There's no doubt that people speak English, but speaking English for Germans is headache because you will even pity them when they speak.

Because of the language, I have been lost many times with trains dividing into two at some stations, not integrating well or being able to express myself. I registered with my school's Language center but it is not an intensive course so the learning process is so slow, I have tried different YouTube channels but the crazy thing is that when I learn in the corners of my room and I get out to converse, I realize they are quite different. I don't even know which approach to give it again.

Not to even mention that I have lost great opportunities to work in good places because of the language. It is so depressing and frustrating. In the trains and buses, I just seat like a deaf and dumb.

I wish I had learnt it in Nigeria but then majority of Africans I have met here said they had to re-learn when they got here because it is quite different from what was taught back home.

otokx:
Nice thread, keep it rolling, we don't appreciate the amount of free time we have in Nigeria until we travel out. It's all about building routines and keeping up with the culture. Frankfurt airport is so lovely, starting with the landing lights with their different colors.

Keeping up with the culture is the problem.

RalphVwede:
You could do posts of how you spent each day, what was particular about the day and things/experiences we could learn from. No sugar coating pls, tell us as it is. Danke.

Lol sugar coating? If I open script for you ehn you will fear. Read along sha

KendrickAyomide:
Lagos. dirty? have you seen the heap load of dirty at ojota? what's your definition of dirty LMAO

Lol. Dirt flying all around the street = dirty.

Jigba:
Frankfurt is so dirty, lol. It's hard to believe if you have never been here .. Is your school located in Frankfurt?..

Have you ever used the U-bahn and/or S-bahn?



In general, I think Frankfurt is a city for 'rich people'. That's why there are so many homeless people on the streets, probably those who couldn't afford the cost of living here... The rent is also crazy here.. I think as a student, you are better off living in a smaller city closer to a big city...

No, I school in the North of Frankfurt. It would have been double trouble for me to live here.

Yes it is better off living in small cities but the commute time to big cities are so depressing. Coming to Frankfurt get as he be for my body

Jigba:
Was wearing shorts last week but this week I'm back to wearing jackets... It's cold at the moment . Yes, I remember that day it rained ice. The rain lasted for hours!....

True the weather has not been good this week.

Jigba:
Yes, it's the same place ..

Those people are not mad otherwise you wouldn't see them on the streets, they are just drug addicts. Have they ever asked you for money?, cause that's what they are good at. At the end of the day that money is used to buy drugs. Do you also noticed that they all look really wasted all the time?.

Have you been to Westendd?. That area is the most beautiful place. Basically it's an area where rich Germans live. If you go there, you will notice a huge difference. It's not crowded like other parts..

But Frankfurt is so diverse, that's why I like here!.

Yeah. Those guys are wasted, one will think they will fall with the way they work. They do ask for money or speak to me sef but I wouldn't even understand. I don't understand Deutsch and it is frustrating me.

No I have been to the Westend. Would take time out some day and explore Frankfurt.

This thread is kind of boring do nit blame me. I have a lot I would like to talk about but I get confused what to write in particular. Maybe pointers from readers who will help. I am kind of free these days.

Frankfurt is just like Lagos to me. So overcrowded and dirty with almost everyone on the street 'mad'. I walked through Frankfurt street twice at night this week and I keep seeing a lot of homeless people around. Just yesterday, I found myself in one of the red-light zones Jigba is this the same one you talked about in your diary?

Originalsly:
During mid summer...June, July and August it is usually hotter...but I'll say a different kind of heat. You can escape Lagos heat by remaining in the shade..or using a fan. No doubt. ...sunlight burn you like fire in Lagos..not so in NYC... the sun an be bright..brilliant..but not as sharp. The heat here is different...like being locked in an oven..open windows at nights no difference...fan..no difference...you be drenched in sweat 2 a.m while doing absolutely nothing...not even thinking hard. A/c is like a must.

Here in Germany it's quite different. There's absolutely no need for fan because when the sun shines, the weather is still cold. Little wonder the whities sun bath

And yes, the weather here is so fake. It can be so hot now and the next minute it is so cold it starts raining ice. It has rained ice once in summer.

The concept of longer day and shorter night or vice versa in Geography is best understood here. The day is still bright sometimes at couple of minutes to 10pm here and this literally makes me sleep so late because as a naija guy nah I sleep in darkness. And the sky becomes bright as early as 3 or 4 am.

Picture was taken at Frankfurt central train station as at 21.44 Uhr

I literally have been running after time since I arrived here, I can't just wait for winter to come. Presently, Germany is an hour ahead of Nigeria and trust me one hour here is fake, before you know it's gone.

Take God for the brains behind DB navigator. It is one of the survival app here where one can get real time information about bus and train connections to plan ones day or trip.

Unlike in Nigeria where one can come out if his or her house and hail either bike or bus or even taxi. Life is quite stressful for any one that doesn't own a car here because it's so stressful catching up with buses at least in the city because I always have to make sure I am done preparing so that I would not miss the bus that comes around. And everywhere I have had an appointment here in Germany, I often get there like half an hour before schedule because of the timing of the bus only allows me to either get there late or way early.

RalphVwede I stay couple of hours away from Frankfurt central station. Each time I go to Frankfurt, I take the train which is absolutely free based on semester ticket.

Frankfurt Hbf 21.41

Frankfurt Hbf

Used Flixbus to my final destination. It was paid for by the wonderful soul that picked me up from the airport

The plane for the connecting flight was so scanty that everyone chose a row to sleep and snow. Though I wasn't convenient

The stopover in Ethiopia was brief and it was cold. The airport beats MMIA down by far.

We were all served with nice rice and you either choice between beef or chicken. The aisle seat was the best during the first part of the flight because the plane was full and I often use toilet so I didn't have to disturb anyone.

On board

This post is too long I can't just re-read. Kindly accept every errors.

Uhmm it has been a long while here. Gist plenty I don't even know where to start from. Before coming to Germany, I always wondered why there were not much threads about Europe here, not until I arrived here before I realized the truth. NO TIME. Shout out to every poster on NL travel thread it's really not easy to catch up with busy schedules and NL.

Let me just talk about my journey and how landing in Germany felt.
I flew Ethiopian airline and I must say that the flight was so smooth and ahead of schedule except the part where they added to my problem by destroying the tyre of one of my luggage which made life so stressful for me.

The whole journey was Nigeria to Germany was a very stressful one for me. Weeks before traveling, I have been weighing my bags with my mind and I was so sure I was above the weight limit. A day to my flight, I went to a gas station nearby and I used their digital scale to weigh my luggage and I was like 10kg above the limit and everything packed in those bags are all of importance. There and then I decided I would just have to shake body very well at the airport and hope luck finds me.

My flight with Ethiopian Airlines was in the afternoon, but immediately I got to MMIA, the stress and shaking body began. We had to shake body for security guards for my mum and brother to come through with me, checking in was so stressful because there were a lot of people on the queue and with the fact that I was so over the weight limits, I had to do some re-packings and do away with some of my foodstuffs and even with that I was still overweight but I sha managed through with it.

After successfully checking in, I proceeded to the boarding gate immediately with my overweight hand luggage. Trust me, my hand luggage was so overweight because almost all the clothes I was taking to Germany was inside.

At the boarding gate, I had to shake body again. I was so stressed with carrying my hand luggage from one end that I wasn't in my right senses again. The immigration officer was like is this my first journey abroad I said no just because I did not want to sort her, but she was like this is the first stamp on my passport I said yes it's a new passport that the previous ones were in the old one, then she said where's it. There and then, I just gave her what she wanted so that I could go in peace.

After being stamped out of Nigeria, I processed to the scanning point, and at that point one funny officer told me I had a scissors in my bag when the tray came out. I was shocked and just stood my ground like it's not mine and my mind went to my village people maybe this is how they wanted to do then she rescanned it and didn't see the scissors. Apparently it was the man behind me that had scissors in his bag. I was like if it was cocaine, that's how I would have been set up and no way to defend myself because there was no camera in that area.

Next to the waiting area. I was dealing with two things, stress of carrying my heavy hand luggage and joy of the fact that I was reaching some sort of places I have never been to. At the waiting area, I did something so stupid that I think the stress caused it. I needed to use the rest room and it was far away and I could not afford to carry that heavy bag. I left the bag there and went to the rest room. It was at the rest room that I came back to my senses that someone might have inserted drugs inside my bag most especially the guy seating beside me. This again added to the stressful journey because I could not start rearranging the bag again and searching for what is not lost.

Long story short sha, the journey was so stressful thanks to my overload, that I felt like if I was denied entry at POE, I will be so happy that at least I have entered plan and stepped into Europe before.

We landing at Frankfurt airport way ahead of schedule in the early hours of the day and there and then I realized I had made a big mistake. I was calculating my arrival time based on Nigerian time and not German and Ethiopian time. I realized this while on the connecting flight to Frankfurt and really wished the pilot could slow down

The airport was empty when we arrived and funny thing was that the immigration officer that attended to me didn't know he was to stamp my passport. I had to remind the dude.

At the baggage claim, I realized the tyre in one of my boxes was destroyed. I couldn't cry because I just bought the box the week I traveled and I was thinking that at least and I can roll the heavy luggage.

Sha, I managed to drag my overload and sat the the same spot for good 4 hours because of miscalculations. The person that was to pick me up finally cam and at a point, I had to put my box on my head because of spoilt tyre.

Jigba:
Perfumes are cheap, the one I'm using is even less than 2 Euros. If you mean designer perfumes then it's not cheap.

Hair shampoo/conditioner are really cheap here too. The only thing you should get is maybe hair cream. Except you are keeping your natural hair, then it's expensive. You mustn't use the natural hair products, cause it's expensive.

Studentenwerk? Then you are lucky!. Their apartments are really cheap.

Garri and beans could be get in afro stores, you could get the one you would eat for the first few months.

Thank you for the pointers, you clarified some things for me. I will keep you posted as I update the thread.

Jigba:
Try to connect with people living in your intended city.

If you are moving to a big city, goodluck finding an apartment, cause it's really hard and costly too!. Try to look for shared apartments, since you are a student. You could start now to search on eBay and send enquiries. It would be great to have german flat mates, that way you could improve your German. Also, be aware of scammers!. Do not pay for an apartment you haven't seen.



If you can connect with any Nigerian student living in the city you are moving to, it would be great.

For things to buy, I don't think you need much clothes. Maybe a lot of jeans and a jacket would do.

As for foodstuffs, I would say you should get egusi, ogbono, dried fish, dried pepper and stock cube. Unfortunately, that's all I can remember for now. Even if you can't get other foodstuffs, try to get egusi, Ogbono and Maggi. You could easily get other things in afro shops/Asian supermarket if you will be living in a big city. There are even Asian supermarket in smaller cities.

Also, don't get toiletries. They are really cheap here.

Thanks for the pointers.
I have been connecting with Nigerian students in my state and as it stand i have a contact in my city. As per accommodation, I should have a Studenwerk hostel contract that will be starting in April before this week tuns out hopefully.

Thanks for the list as well. I will never joke with egusi, ogbono, garri and even beans lol. Likewise I will be coming with our local black soap and shea butter as per team natural.

Should I buy enough perfumes? Because a friend told me they are kinda expensive in Germany and even hair cream.

Keep me posted as you remember things I might need to save cost in the first few months please.
Danke Schön

Jigba:
Lmao,
It's not longer East Germans but West Germans

I laughed when I saw it. But then what do I know. Even the laws in East are stricter than anywhere else