Decades From Home - A Podcast About Germany

Well look at that, we’ve made it two whole centuries of podcast episodes, who would have thought! By way of a reward to our lovely listeners, we have an action packed episode full of dodgy German pronunciation, brutal Denglish phrasing, and numerous grammar corrections, and that’s only the first five minutes! Continuing a tradition established way back in episode 100, we’ve collected some of the m...

It’s feeling very autumnal on the podcast this week, probably because of all the pumpkins we keep seeing around the place. Nic, our man in the Bavarian countryside, has seen piles of them on sale at the side of the road, but Dili’s only seen them in the shops. She’s not complaining though, because she’s found a novel way of getting a discount when she needs a Kurbis. Somewhere that needs a discoun...

On the show this week, Nic has a run in with the Bishop of Augsburg as his kids’ Kindergarten is finally opened. We discuss Bavarian flavoured Catholics, the correct kind of wurst, and sermons for 4-year-olds. Elections are in the air at the moment, and we start with Dili’s optimistic assessment from her former home of Sri Lanka as things seem to be taking a turn for the better after Presidential...

On the show this week, we’re joined by translator, Würzburg resident, and all round top Scottish lass Lynn Nothegger! As if to celebrate Lynn’s debut, Producer Simon brings us some exciting news coming out of Frankfurt concerning one of Germany’s premier sporting events, the 11th European Tram Driver Championship. We discuss drag racing on the Straßenbahn, and our own experiences of Germany’s publ...

On this week’s pod, we inject a little mystery into proceedings as we’re joined by our first unnamed guest, Kinocow ! We ask about useful pseudonyms, social media anonymity, and whether cows really do have interesting opinions about Germany. Perhaps the reason our guest would rather not offer their real name is due to their controversial opinions about mangos, which is enough to bring our resident...

After three weeks of general calm, we welcome Nic back to the podcast, fresh from some serious holiday adventuring. Before we can get to that though, there’s some admin to cover, and an important question to ask: how come the podcast gets the best reviews when Nic is away? We probably all know, but better not to tell him… We take some time to pick through the recent and rather depressing results f...

Once again we're "Nic-less" this week (let's hope he still remembers how to pod when he does finally return!), leaving Dili and Kat to helm our way through another episode. Thankfully, we have a great new guest to welcome the show, Berlin-based writer Jacinda Nandi! Jacinda first came to Berlin in 2000, spending only a year there, but returned in 2002 after completing her degree and has called Ber...

This week's show is again hosted by Dili and frequent guest Kat, and they're delighted to be joined by friend-of-the-show, Scandi Tina. Tina was born in Norway but spent her childhood in Africa before moving to the UK as a adult. She and her partner now call the south of Hesse home, having left the UK during the pandemic. With such an international upbringing, our talk with Tina inevitably turns t...

This week's show sees the return of co-host Dili and the reappearance of frequent guest, Kat. Good thing too, because Nic is away, enjoying a much deserved break from the podcast. We discuss house-moving, a distraction from the Paris Olympics and whether "Brat" is compatible with the essence of being German.

On this week’s show, journalist and Co-host of the BerlinsideOut podcast Aaron Gasch Burnett returns to the pod, and this time he’s come bearing gifts…well not quite gifts, but a promise to buy Nic & Producer Simon a cowboy hat next time he’s in Canada. Speaking of the land of maple syrup and mounties, Aaron tells us about his recent trip back to his homeland, and also why rodeo clowns are mor...

This week we are joined by Berlin based game developer Seb Downie-Blackwell! Seb is a partner and Head of Productions at Remote Control Productions, as well as Managing and Creative Director at It Matters Games. Outside of work, Seb was also been instrumental in organising public viewings of all the Scotland games at the Kulturbrauerei in Berlin. We discuss Seb’s successful efforts to gather his f...

This Week we’re joined by freelance reporter and broadcaster James Jackson. James is based in Berlin, and he covers a range of topics including news, business and culture in Germany and Central Eastern Europe for publications like the BBC, Sunday Times, Time Magazine and others. We discuss how a seemingly unimportant decision to study German at school led James to moving to Germany’s capital, and...

This week we welcome the terrific Pip Roper to the show! When she’s not sharing captivating stories of Berlin's history on the History Flakes podcast, Pip leads tours on diverse subjects throughout Germany's capital. Join us as we delve into strategies for engaging disinterested school kids, the enduring allure of tanks in conversation, and curious British perspectives on Berlin. Of course, we als...

We’re shaking things up this week as Dili takes the reigns for the first time, with her first act as Queen of the podcast being to punish Nic for his many cake based transgressions on last week’s show. To support the new regime, we’ve invited linguist and former academic Sandra Jansen to the pod! Sandra leads seminars and helps support others who wish to leave German academia, and she takes us thr...

This week we delve into those odd little bits of culture that are surprisingly popular in other countries, case in point, the unexpected popularity of British furniture in Germany. Nic, our resident Brit, finds himself bewildered by a furniture brand that has somehow slipped under his radar, proving that even the most mundane items can hold cultural significance abroad. Shifting our focus to the r...

There’s a sense of sadness on this week’s podcast as Germany’s favourite football team, Scotland, have been eliminated from Euro 2024. In fairness, the Scottish fans have left their hosts with some lovely memories off the pitch, leading Dili to ponder whether the Scottish accent might be a cheat code for changing Germany’s cash based society. One change that may be coming to Germany is reform for...

Some listeners may have felt the podcast has been lacking our usual levels of decorative plate chat over the last few weeks. Thankfully Dili is back with us to rectify that oversight! Just in time too, because we have a lot to catch up on the rather depressing results of the EU elections. Turning to more positive topics, we quiz Dili on what it's like being a non-football fan while Germany hosts a...

Euro 2024 has kicked off in style, and to celebrate the first football tournament in Germany since 2006 we have German football journalist Hendrik Buchheister on the pod this week! Hendrik writes for SPIEGEL, Sportschau, RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland, and Elf Freunde, among others, and brings his expert knowledge to discuss the possibility of another Sommermärchen. We discuss the gloomy atmospher...

This week on the podcast, we're joined by guest co-host and Berlin tour guide extraordinaire Jonny Whitlam. With Euro 2024 on the horizon, Berlin is abuzz with preparations for the influx of football fans. From the excitement of a newly constructed fan zone to the appearance of pop-up Adidas stores, the city is fully embracing football fever. In addition to the football excitement, we delve into a...

We’re thrilled to have Kat, occasional guest co-host and founder of the @germany_iam Twitter account, joining us this week. We delve into the intriguing realms of British and German buffets, share anecdotes about spotting squirrels, and discuss the advantages of renting your home to visiting football fans. Transitioning to a more serious note, we commemorate the 75th anniversary of Germany's Grund...

We kick things off this week as Nic recounts a drunken encounter with a fan in the wild, and his hopes that he made a good impression. His co-hosts remain deeply skeptical however, especially since he can’t remember all the details. Elsewhere, Dili continues her streak of neglecting her podcast homework by forgetting her mic. However, she does come with some interesting tea recommendations. We dis...

Join us this week as we welcome Megan and Konrad, the wonderful hosts of the fantastic podcast Megan's Megacan, who share insights into their show's origins, the significance of the eponymous "megacan", and we learn whether alcohol can make us better podcasters. We enlist the help of Megan to explain why Eurovision is so popular, and discuss whether politics and Euro-pop makes a for a good weekend...

The saga of Dili's pigeon woes continues as her unwelcome visitors make a bold return to the balcony, defying all eviction attempts yet again. We delve into ways to accommodate avian guests and why relying on internet gadgets may not be the ultimate solution to bird problems. We also discuss Dili’s new found love of ceramics, the lack of value at flea markets, and the problems of bidding on Meisse...

This week Simon discovers the importance of having his name on his mailbox and questions whether Deutsche Post is deliberately picking on him by not delivering his mail. Meanwhile, Nic suggests a trip to the zoo for some light-hearted fun among lions, tigers, and beer. Do wild animals and alcohol mix? Nic has some thoughts on the matter. Recent UK tabloid reports dubbing Frankfurt as "Germany's bi...

In the latest episode of the podcast, hosts Nic, Dili and Producer Simon embark on a lively discussion that starts with questions about German swimming pools. Venturing beyond the chlorine-scented chat, they delve into Dili's upbringing in Sri Lanka, shedding light on why her parents viewed learning to swim as a controversial decision. The conversation meanders to the realm of peculiar-smelling pu...