Today in the Monday Podcast I talk about our latest adventure: buying a flat.

A few months ago we saw a flat for sale a few streets away, and after going to see it we did not take long to reach a decision - we wanted to buy it.

But buying a flat in Germany is a complex process, which includes not only the seller and the buyer (and the estate agent), but also a lawyer called a Notar as well as various German offices that deal wish issues such as land rights. The Finanzamt also sends you a bill for so-called Grunderwerbsteuer.

Of course, that’s the official side of the business. There is also the financial side so we had to present our case to the bank for a mortgage - not an easy task being self-employed.

The bank and the Notar both presented us with a list of things that we needed to supply, mainly documentation such as proof of building insurance. We spent several weeks getting all of these together, until finally the flat changed hands at the beginning of this month.

Now we are in the process of moving from one flat to another. More about that next month.

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As a foreigner, getting married in Germany - an in particular to a German national - means preparing and presenting specific paperwork.

Translations of certificates and other documents need to be produced by authorised agencies.

Finally, the marriage needs to be approved by the relevant court.

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Today’s Monday Podcast takes a look a shops in Germany, in particular for the weekly groceries.

When you first come to Germany to live, you need to get used to shopping at the supermarkets, which may not be open for a long as you were used to before. Certainly they will have different brands of goods so the first few weeks or even months can be very confusing. Some items that you look for may be very hard to find as they are not so common.

Also, you now have the wide choice of discounters, local supermarkets and larger out-of-town supermarkets. These vary in price and range, so to optimise a budget you may need to go to more than one type during the course of a week.

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Today in the Monday Podcast I talk about my plans for 2008.

These include more blogging, more technical writing but also more podcasting! I am currently planning German Words Explained podcasts for the coming months as well as more content for AllThingsGerman.net.

I also take a look back at 2007 and discuss how the prices in Germany have risen for food, train fares, petrol, and how they are going up in 2008 for parking and electricity.

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With only one week to go until Christmas, Maria and Graham discuss how they celebrate with elements of different cultures and how much they stay with German traditions.

When do you celebrate on the 24th and when on the 25th of December? Who brings the presents - the Christkind, Weihnachtsmann or Santa Claus?

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The Monday Podcast will return in the New Year.