Close Reading

It's weird when people move to Canada and have no interest in integrating whatsoever. Like.. we aren't asking you to leave behind your culture or religion.. just follow our social norms and be an active member of our society. Don't just cluster in your own community.

I've lived here 6 years and can't wait to leave. Salaries are just enough to get by. I work full-time as an analyst and am looking for a minijob just to save money, which I already live quite modestly. It's easy to come across nasty unfriendly people, neighbors, service people, people in government agencies. I hate people staring in the most unfriendly manner or givng attitude for no reason other than they are nasty people. Don't get me wrong, there are nice people as well, but the bad experiences outweigh the good. Beauracracy is overbearing, personalities are underwhelming, the food scene is underwhelming, learning German is a big burden when you work a full-time job (and now I need a minijob too??). The country seems like it wants to diminish the human spirit and ambition. I definitely regret moving here. Many housing companies are over charging rent. I found out the company, Deutschewohnen, who owns my apartment was overcharging me by nearly double!! I had to go through a year long court procession to get them to lower it to the legal price which I won. And now they sent me a letter last month saying they are raising my rent, which is illegal and I have to go through ANOTHER court battle with them. Of course it is exhausting to try and find another apartment. Some people search up to a year. What a joke. And not to mention the dating scene. I've been single the entire 6 years and I'm quite an outgoing, friendly, loveable person. Dating Germans comes with own weird experiences and I refuse to give them a chance anymore, for my own mental health. If you're POC, it's not uncommon to come across strange sexualizations and general lack of understanding other's cultures. A couple years ago I was attacked by 8 men while walking home at night. I ended up in the hosopital and there was an investigation opened. The police asked me why they attacted me, which I didn't know since it was unprovoked. They just followed me for awhile, surrounded me and started beating me. The police said it was probably because I'm Asian. Meanwhile, I'm not even Asian!!! I'm Latino. ??‍♂This is the type of ignorance POC have to deal with in Germany. Also, I only have 1 German friend and all my other friends are immigrants (which I love) but this poses it's own frustrations because many people move here, then move away after a few years when they learn they can have a more fulfilling life elsewhere. So keeping long term day-to-day friends can be a challenge. The entire system is exhausting and there's not enough balance to bring joy to my life to want to stay. When I lived in NYC, an African American aquaintance had just moved there after living in Berlin for 8 years. She warned me not to move here because I will never feel I belong. I didn't listen. That was a big mistake. Germans can have Germany. I'll find my joy elsewhere. End of rant. haha