What is your living situation?

More than half of all apartments in Germany are rented. For a rented apartment,
you have to pay a monthly rent plus additional costs, like electricity, heat, water,
and trash collection. People who own an apartment or a house also have to pay
these extra costs, as well as property tax.
Nearly one in five people lives alone. In big cities, more than a third of all
apartments are occupied by just one person. Living space in Germany,
particularly in cities like Berlin, Munich, Hamburg and Cologne, is limited and
expensive. That's why students in cities with universities often share an
apartment, called a "Wohngemeinschaft" or "WG" for short.

A beer, please!
Germans like to drink alcohol, mostly beer and wine: with meals, at parties, in
pubs or bars. People aged 16 and over are allowed to buy light alcoholic drinks
like beer, wine and sparkling wine. You have to be 18 or over to buy hard
liquor. If you look young, you will be asked to show identification when you
order or try to buy alcohol.
If you have been drinking and your blood alcohol level is over 0.05 percent, you
are not allowed to drive. There is a zero blood alcohol limit if you are under 21
because you are considered an inexperienced driver. There are also restrictions
for cyclists: your blood alcohol level has to be under 0.16 percent.
It is best not to drink at all when you are driving a car or riding a bike, as you
can be fined for having a blood alcohol content of 0.03 percent if you are caught
driving or riding dangerously.

Regional or international?
 If you think you will just be eating
local foods like potatoes, sausages
and sauerkraut in Germany, then
you are wrong. As well as regional
specialities, people in Germany love
international cuisine. Particularly in
big cities, you find restaurants
offering foreign food.
Lots of Germans also like trying to
cook exotic dishes at home. Supermarkets have adapted to accommodate this
trend. You can get specialist ingredients in shops like Asian and Turkish grocery
stores.

Pizza, fries and sausages

Germans don't usually take a lot of time to eat. They often look for filling food
that they can eat on the go. This is why snack bars are so popular. There
are Imbissbuden (snack bars) everywhere, not just in big cities. There's usually a
big selection, and though the food may not be particularly healthy, it is tasty.
You'll find traditional German snack food like sausages and grilled chicken with
bread rolls or Pommes (French fries), but snack bars with international food are
also common. Pizza, gyros or shawarmas and burgers are just as popular as
sausages. As well as smaller snack bars, you'll also find well-known food chains
and fast food restaurants.

Keep the change!

In restaurants, bars and even when you get pizza delivered, it's common in
Germany to give a tip. About 10
percent of the check is normal,
but you decide whether and how
much to tip. If you were very
unhappy with the service, then
you do not have to tip at all.
If you give the exact amount
you want to pay (the check total
plus the tip), then you say "Stimmt so" ("We're good" or, literally, "It's just
right"). Then the waiter knows not to give you any change. If you do not have
the right amount in bills or coins, then you can give them the money and say
what you want to pay (check total plus tip), and the waiter will give you the
change for that amount. For example, the check is 18.20 euros, and you want to
give 20 euros (check plus tip), but you only have a 50 euro bill. You say "20
euro, bitte" and the waiter will give you 30 euros back. If you do not say an
amount, the waiter will give you back the exact change, without a tip.

Paying together, or separately?

If you are out to dinner with friends and you want to pay, the waiter will ask
"Zusammen oder getrennt?" ("All together or separately?"). It is normal for each
person to pay their portion of the check. Then you say "getrennt" ("separately")
and the waiter works out the amount with each person.