Hello everyone, I am the vowel brother of the newsroom.
Today I want to talk to you about a topic that is not easy: as a Chinese student who has just arrived in Germany, how to integrate into the local society?
More than a decade ago, the moment I walked out of Munich Airport, although it was 7:30 p.m., the sky was still bright. And the taxis on the street are all Mercedes.com. Suddenly, I felt that this country was really a local tycoon.
First, integration, first start with the language
When I was still in China, I heard rumors of German indifference and Chinese difficulty in integrating into local society.
In this regard, as a school student with little social experience, we blamed the language barrier at that time. Many people think that it is good to pass the TestDaF exam and then go to a German university to listen to lectures and adapt.
Not really. After entering a German university, I found that the teacher could only understand a small part of what the teacher said, and the free discussion between the students was elusive. Once, when I entered the classroom, my classmate asked me: Kommst du mit? I understood whether I was going to follow into the classroom, so I said Ja, and when they saw that I didn't understand, they explained: Can I keep up with what the teacher is saying.
Gradually, I found that many oral expressions could not be found in books, which required regular communication with German classmates and locals, especially to learn some local oral habits. It's like you're a southerner who went to college in the northeast, if you don't learn a little northeast, how can you go to the barbecue stall to pick up the skewers.
Chinese to Germany, you bring your own Asiatischen Akzent. In the Francon region of Bayern, where I am located, the pronunciation of the clear consonants is different from that of Hochdeutsch, that is, by whether or not to send gas, and the locals call themselves weich and hart. For example, people who don't understand will listen to Bass scho and don't know what to do. Actually people are talking about Es passt schon.
During my time at work, my boss once said to me: Haschne Frach? I thought I was asking if I was married, but people were actually asking, Hast du eine Frage?
There are also some colloquial habits, such as Da ha ma... Is it said that Da hat man... Or Da haben wir... Meaning. Another example is the vibrato is generally a large tongue tone, a question word unique to Nande, and so on.
As a Chinese student, you don't have to imitate their local dialect or accent, but you must be able to understand the most commonly used sentences, (of course, pure local dialect is almost incomprehensible) It is especially important: when communicating with others, you must not reveal disdain for their accent because you think you are speaking Hochdeutsch.
After returning to China, I experienced this more deeply. Once, he took a restrained German to Heilongjiang to talk about a project, and taught them to learn a Northeastern dialect: "Hold your mouth, you will finish." Learning to speak dialects is a respect for the locals, and doing things will have unexpected effects.
With these Buff blessings, you are one step closer to integrating into the local society.
Second, WG, the magic weapon of rapid integration
Wohngemeinschaft (shared) is my recommended form of accommodation. In Germany, in addition to living in the dormitories of schools or institutions, it is also possible to rent your own house, and WG is more common. In a large city or university town that is more international, it may be more difficult to live in WG. In smaller cities, it is relatively easy.
Living with Germans is a shortcut to local society. Because when you are exposed to the daily life of Germans, you are integrating. Living in WG can communicate while cooking, and can often play together.
Without such an opportunity, you may only be able to "speak freely" with the Germans at a party.
To find WG, in addition to looking at the information on the bulletin board on campus, you can also ask more questions among classmates. Then there is the Internet, the choice is wide, and the probability of success is higher. Once you've found the right listing, you'll call to schedule a viewing. In general, if you talk directly with the landlord, as long as you are friendly, there is basically no problem. Some landlords or roommates are reluctant to accept Chinese, often not because of discrimination, but because they are worried about whether they will receive their rent on time. This is related to the previous Chinese refugees. In the 1990s, many Chinese smuggled into Germany to work did not leave a good impression on the locals.
Therefore, Chinese students must not be discouraged, and do not be discouraged by rejection a few times. This kind of thing is quite normal in a university town. The more interconnected the place, the more likely it is that people will form prejudices against specific foreign ethnic groups.
In the early days, I also lived in a WG with my Chinese classmates, but I found it difficult to integrate into the local society without leaving, so I resolutely decided to move out. Soon, through the German classmates in the class to find a WG with German classmates, my German level has improved a lot.
After graduating as a bachelor in Germany, I moved to another city to go to graduate school. I took the train to see the listing three times, but I didn't succeed, I didn't apply to the dormitory, and I had to temporarily spend the night with a classmate. Soon after, he applied for a dormitory provided by an institution, which was donated by a previous theologian when he died, and then expanded and renovated. These experiences have enriched my insight and language skills.
Third, in class, do you dare to integrate?
Chinese students usually go to class together, which I personally find very bad.
The German Classmates Association thinks that you prefer to stay in the small circle of Chinese people and are reluctant to communicate with them. Although you are eager in your heart, it is difficult to jump out. So my advice is not to go to the classroom with Chinese classmates, but to choose to sit with German classmates.
Some students may say that this is not good and will cause misunderstanding among Chinese students. However, have you ever wondered what the purpose of your study abroad is? If you want to give up the circle of Chinese in order to integrate into the circle of Germans, are you willing to make such a trade-off?
In our first chemistry experiment class that year, the teacher sent out a form and hoped that everyone would fill in the experimental group by themselves. When we got it, we found that the Germans had already filled it out, leaving only our Chinese classmates looking at each other. When other Chinese students filled it out, I did not fill it in, but directly went up to the teacher and said: I am a Chinese student who has just arrived, the German language is not good, please ask the teacher to arrange a group of me and German classmates.
As a result, I became the only Chinese in a group with my German classmates.
In fact, then again, many Chinese students have closed themselves step by step in the circle of the Chinese people because they are "afraid of trouble". In the words of a German classmate: Die anderen Chinesen trauen sich nicht. However, they also feel that if they study in China, it is estimated that the probability is also the same.
Another time I hurried to class, the classroom was already full, and there were several students standing in the back row, but there was still an empty seat in the front second row. I looked closer and it turned out to be a black girl, and the Germans didn't want to sit with her. I sat down. As soon as I looked up, I saw that the teacher nodded at me, which should be a sign of respect.
After class, I learned that German students have a deep prejudice against Cameroonian students, and this is mainly because the first batch of Cameroonian students did not perform well. Coupled with the language barrier, it took a long time to form today's situation.
Later the Cameroonian girl said to me: The Germans are cold, while the French are warm.
This is well understood because cameroons and French have no language barrier.
But did you know that many Germans like to learn French and think that the pronunciation is good, but they think that the Cameroonian accent is difficult to hear; but the French classmates told me that the French people think the Cameroonian accent is good.
It can be seen how terrible the prejudice accumulated bit by bit is! Of course, this bias also exists to a greater or lesser extent for Chinese.
4. Social activities
Those who have special skills or want to enrich their amateur life can join local social groups or apply for some winter and summer vacation classes. Especially in sports, there are many discounts for students.
In addition, I use my spare time to work. But it is not recommended to go to Zeitarbeit (short-term work) because there are not many opportunities for communication and there is not much money.
Students who are not under much financial pressure still put their time and energy into studying, and strive to find the opportunity to intern at the company after a year, doing Praktikant and Werkstudent.
Students can also use their expertise, such as being a tai chi or martial arts instructor. It is very popular in Germany. Limited by space, brother vowels will not expand on it.
If you are interested, please leave a message, I will open a separate introduction.