I have a home!

  Its been a long few weeks. Endless reading, Google translating, replying and visiting WG's (local term for flat sharing). I signed up to the local website where people post their room vacancies and get them emailed to me seconds after posting. Then staying up till 2 am (or whenever the website shuts down for the night) replying to them and then marching off the next day to view... I applied to about 60 and visited 13, lucky 13 was the one. Most are mid 20's students so I don't have much chance of surviving the screening. Obviously, since you are joining a group of folks in one apartment you need to be interviewed and questioned by all. So an obviously older guy isn't going to get many votes when competing against most. Twice I lost out to some young french girl, needless to say the guy's in the apartment were voting with all their members....
  So I have a place starting May 1st! In the meantime I have two other flats lined up to take me through the next two weeks. One near Gorlitzer park (see below) and the other in Kreuzberg. I'll update later with the new place.
  -A word from the experienced, if you plan on moving here, expect much trouble finding a place to live (unless your bank account raises the eyebrow of the local landlord). I don't think Germany wants to encourage people to come here so they've setup this system... Before you can get a job (above table anyway) you must register with the local city hall in the section of the city where you have your apartment. So since there isn't just one city hall for Berlin, if you move you have to re-register with the local city hall in the new neighbourhood. Oh and you can't open a bank account without having a registered address. If you're German and you want to rent an apartment you'll need a healthy bank account statement or a letter from mummy and daddy saying that if you fail to pay the rent they'll guarantee you and pay. Or you'll need a letter from your employer stating that you are employed full time etc.... Suddenly WG's don't look so bad eh?
  Don't worry though, the fringe benefits are worth it. It's Tuesday night, I'm sitting in a local coffee shop/bar/live music venue with a .5 l dark beer in hand (2Euro's) and the Jazz ensemble is jamming in the back. And someone on one of those awesome European bikes with the big wooden bucket in front keeps riding by. He's got a massive sound system wedged in there blasting out club house beats. The club will wait till I recover from the last few weeks. I'm off to see who's in the jam ensemble....  

Prost :)
Andy