Adventures of Steffi

Exploring life & language in Germany.

Adventures of Steffi
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  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
    • Expat Diaries
    • Language
    • Culture
    • Travel
  • Contact
  • Collaborations
  • Work with me
  • Personal

    Life Lately.

    2022-11-21 / No Comments

    Dear reader, are you still out there? It might seem like it’s been a really, really long time since I pressed “publish” on a post, but it’s only because it has been a really, really long time since I pressed “publish” on a post. Do you even care that I…

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    Finding joy in being a beginner (plus my 3 top tips on how to be a beginner)

    2021-06-20

    #mayonthemove2021 // generations

    2021-05-13

    Personal: 28 Years Later (lessons learned)

    2020-12-06
  • Expat Diaries

    Expat Diaries: becoming an expat prepared me for a Global Pandemic

    2020-08-02 / 2 Comments

    There have been many times over the past 5 months of this global pandemic where I have questioned if I really am okay, or if I’m just telling people I’m okay. If you’re a high-functioning depressive like me, you’ll know this trick well. But, as it turns out, I really…

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    Sunrise Rural Germany

    Expat Diaries: Expat Depression

    2020-04-13

    Expat Diaries: one year in Germany.

    2020-09-04

    Expat Diaries: the last Good day

    2020-10-05
  • Expat Diaries

    How to Buy a Car in Germany (pt.2)

    2020-07-19 / No Comments

    A couple of weeks ago, I shared part 1 of How to Buy a Car in Germany. Here’s part 2! I’m also going to provide an approximation of costs at the end, so stay tuned if you’re wondering how much it *really* costs to buy a car in Germany! Getting…

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    You May Also Like

    Sunrise Rural Germany

    Expat Diaries: Expat Depression

    2020-04-13

    Expat Diaries: How the Pandemic Has Affected Me

    2020-05-07

    10 Things I Miss About England

    2020-03-22
  • Expat Diaries

    How To Buy a Car in Germany

    2020-07-05 / No Comments

    In January, we decided it was time to begin the search for a German car and send our UK car back to its little island. However, we found it very difficult to find comprehensive information on exactly how to buy a car in Germany. Specifically, how to buy a car…

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    30 days of yoga: my journey + thoughts

    2020-02-27

    10 Things I Miss About England

    2020-03-22

    Expat Diaries: (not) Driving Home for Christmas

    2020-12-21
  • Expat Diaries

    Baking in Germany is a Nightmare!

    2020-06-01 / 9 Comments

    Baking is not one of my biggest passions, but sometimes I do get the urge to start whisking eggs and folding flour into things. Usually when I am feeling anxious or stressed and feel like my life is falling apart. For a short while, baking a recipe allows me to…

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    You May Also Like

    Expat Diaries: How the Pandemic Has Affected Me

    2020-05-07

    How Germany changed me: I will never wear heels again

    2021-02-22

    30 days of yoga: my journey + thoughts

    2020-02-27
  • Expat Diaries

    Expat Diaries: Coronavirus and International Travel

    2020-05-18 / No Comments

    When will international travel be allowed again? Where to and how far will we be able to travel? What kit will we need to pack? What will travel look like in the new normal? Being an expat relies on having open borders and the ability to travel freely. When the…

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    You May Also Like

    Building an awesome online community as an introvert

    2021-05-17

    30 days of yoga: my journey + thoughts

    2020-02-27

    Expat Diaries: becoming an expat prepared me for a Global Pandemic

    2020-08-02
  • Expat Diaries

    Expat Diaries: How the Pandemic Has Affected Me

    2020-05-07 / No Comments

    Hallo meine Lieben! Hello my loves! In this week’s Expat Diaries, I have finally managed to write some coherent thoughts on the current global pandemic. Here they are! Everything feels so new and overwhelming right now. Except it doesn’t. There’s something strangely familiar about this current situation. However, that familiarity…

    Read More

    You May Also Like

    10 Things I Miss About England

    2020-03-22

    30 days of yoga: my journey + thoughts

    2020-02-27

    Expat Diaries: Coronavirus and International Travel

    2020-05-18
  • Expat Diaries

    5 Things I Wish I Had Done Differently

    2020-04-26 / 3 Comments

    I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. However, I do have some regrets. Here are 5 things I wish I had done differently when we first moved here. 1. Take an Intensive Language Course I thought I could save money and learn German using the many…

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    Brexit + UK Expats in Germany

    2020-03-30

    Saudade: feeling nostalgic for a life I’ve lost.

    2021-05-24

    How to Buy a Car in Germany (pt.2)

    2020-07-19
  • Sunrise Rural Germany
    Expat Diaries

    Expat Diaries: Expat Depression

    2020-04-13 / 3 Comments

    Some background. I have suffered from bouts of depression in varying degrees of severity since I was about 13/14 years old. But nothing prepared me for Expat Depression. Between the ages of 15 and 19, I self-harmed on an irregular basis. There have been times when I have been driving…

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    You May Also Like

    Brexit + UK Expats in Germany

    2020-03-30

    Expat Diaries: the last Good day

    2020-10-05
    blue background with a photo of Ettie Jayne from the Alignment Alchemist and the words "MENTAL HEALTH" and "with @thealignmentalchemist" along with the hashtag #mayonthemove2021

    It’s good to talk – mental health as an expat with Ettie Jayne from The Alignment Alchemist

    2021-05-31
  • Language

    Duolingo is Hilarious (German edition)

    2020-04-05 / 3 Comments

    Alternative title: Duolingo, u k hun? I’ve been using Duolingo as one of my language learning tools since I began learning German. I love it. It’s my favourite language app to use, not least because it is FREE! I would normally use it for about 5-10 minutes per day on…

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    Language: Top 5 German Netflix Shows

    2020-11-18
    Learning your first foreign language as an adult with Mundey Young on Living la Belle Vie

    3 top tips on learning your first foreign language as an adult with Mundey Young

    2021-09-05

    10 Favourite German Words (so far…)

    2020-02-29
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Hey! I’m Steffi. Join me here as I explore life & language as a first time expat in Germany.

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INSTAGRAM

Germany is a real work of art! 🇩🇪🎨 Check Germany is a real work of art! 🇩🇪🎨

Check out my AI-generated images of some of the country's most famous landmarks.

🔮 Can you guess all 6?

#Germany #landmarks #AI #travelinspiration

*this caption was also written by AI, including the hashtags 😜
What do you mean I can't lüften my way to better What do you mean I can't lüften my way to better mental health?
Swipe 👉 for what my brain did when Mr Steffi sa Swipe 👉 for what my brain did when Mr Steffi said "put your foot on the wall like a real Instagram model" 

I often wonder how he's put up with my shenanigans for over a decade 😆

This photo is from the longest castle (fortress) in the world! 🏰 Blog post and Reel coming as soon as I can be bothered to create them. How professional.

📍 Burg Burghausen, Germany
📸 loml @ozonehostile

#exploregermany #castlesofeurope #castlesofgermany #livingingermany #lifeingermany #differentcountrysameidiot
I've set my goals in quarters this year to make th I've set my goals in quarters this year to make them more attainable. But I wanted something general to guide me through the whole of 2023. So here are my words of the year:

✨ Shift - "move or cause to move from one place to another, especially over a small distance"

✨ Remain - "continue to exist, especially after other similar people or things have ceased to do so"

✨ Refine - "improve something by making small changes"

✨ Audacity - "a willingness to take bold risks"

How are you setting yourself up for the new year? Do you have a word/words for your 2023?

#newyeargoals #wordoftheyear #mindfullymovingforward #2023goals
Look at this girl happy as Larry with her first ev Look at this girl happy as Larry with her first ever Handbrot 🍞

I know it's 2023 now and Christmas is over  but I had a really great 2022 Christmas Market season and I want you to know about it so here's my ranking of German Christmas Markets:

🎄 Augsburg - go for the main Christkindlmarkt, stay for everything else. It's not a big city, but it's my home and I love it and you won't change my mind. 10/10 ⭐

🎄 Munich - go with all your life savings and a mortgage loan or don't go at all. Tourists are everywhere, it's way too busy and expensive. Cute Glühwein cups though. 5/10 ⭐

🎄 Bamberg - go hungry! Best food offerings by far and not too pricey. Very small, so don't expect an extravaganza but it's cute and quaint and not too busy. Also, Bamberg town is worth wandering round. 9/10⭐

🎄 Tollwood (Munich) - go with an open mind for creative stuff. Lots of cool art and weird indie shop stalls. Big vibes. Food is average. Not for those with a fear of felt or incense. 7/10⭐

🎄 Berlin Medieval Christmas Market - go with life insurance like a good German in case of a fire emergency. I joke, but there are fire performers there who are super entertaining! Pretty good food and different Glühwein flavours. Also axe throwing, and honey wine. But you do have to pay to enter boo. 8/10 ⭐

What were your fave Christmas markets in 2022?? TELL ME.

#Germany #lifeingermany #christmasmarkets #germanchristmasmarket #weihnachtsmarkt #christmasmarketberlin #christmasmarketmunich #christmasmarketbamberg #christmasmarketaugsburg
2022 was a good year ✌️🤗💜 #2022recap #t 2022 was a good year ✌️🤗💜

#2022recap #traveldiaries #lifediary #minivlog
Snapshots of Berlin, 14.12 & 15.12 ❤️ #Berlin Snapshots of Berlin, 14.12 & 15.12 ❤️

#Berlin #Germany #worktravel #travelgermany #lifeingermany
I made it to 30 🎉 here's some photos of me at m I made it to 30 🎉 here's some photos of me at my happiest to celebrate the occasion, plus a couple of baby gollum Steffi if you scroll far enough ➡️
🎄☃️ Festive szn 🎄☃️ Counting this a 🎄☃️ Festive szn 🎄☃️

Counting this as my first official German Christmas because my first year I was too depressed and unemployed to enjoy anything and the two years that followed were...well, a little bit not great.

Anyone else got any good Bavarian/German Christmas Market recommendations? Please don't say Munich I already went and my bank account can't take it 😫

#Germany #lifeingermany #christmasmarkets #weihnachtsmarkt #christkindlesmarktaugsburg #christkindlmarktaugsburg #visitbavaria #festiveseason
I'm not a nester. And I'm not good at DIY, nor do I'm not a nester. And I'm not good at DIY, nor do I care to be. Having the perfect house with coherent interior design has never been of interest to me, although I love visiting my friends who have wonderfully put together homes. I'm often fascinated by how their brains managed to make all of ✨this✨ happen. 

Instead, chaos tends to reign in my world. Even in the UK I never truly felt at home anywhere. Moving to Germany made that feeling a thousand times worse for a long time. 

So I learned to build a home within myself. It's taken a long time, but pursuing this allowed me the space to finally feel at home in Germany, and in the UK.

Two weeks ago, on the plane from Munich to Manchester, somebody asked me where I was going.
Aside from surpressing the urge to make the dad joke of "Same place you are hopefully" *chortles in dad*, I answered "I'm going home." 

The same thing happened on the flight back to Munich. "Where are you heading?" asks the lady next to me. "I'm going home."

Each time I land in the UK, it feels like home again. It's comfortable. Familiar. There's a Greggs with a lovely warm pasty and a yum yum waiting to greet me as I step off the plane. 

Each time I land in Germany, it feels like home again. It's comfortable. Familiar. There's a bakery with a pretzel waiting to greet me as soon as I step off the plane.
 
During the #virtualcampfire2022 virtual meet last week, the word "homeful" was brought up to describe that feeling of having multiple homes. I can't for the life of me remember the origin of this word, but I really really like it.

My home is in England. It's also in Germany. 

It's in my friends. My partner. Home is within myself.

If you made it this far into my rambling, have a gold star ⭐

Part of #virtualcampfire2022 by @chameleon_coaching and @southboundstories

EDIT: as Wiebke kindly mentioned in the comments, the term originates from @tandemnomads so all credit to her ❤️

#findinghome #discoveringhome #exploringhome #livingabroad #findinghomeabroad
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© Adventures of Steffi 2023
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