More than four million Ukrainian refugees have been forced to flee the war in our country. Some of our guys also left their homes and relocated to Germany.
Today we want to share with you the story of our Victor Saranchuk.

Victor Saranchuk (SFDC Team Lead), Karlsruhe

“Germany met me in a relatively warm season. I came there in October, so I liked it. But the climate here is still a separate topic for communication, because it has been cloudy here and there is almost no sun.

I am currently in Karlsruhe (Baden-Württemberg) and I chose this place because my wife studies here. So, I registered with this country council. It’s tough here: I have to live exactly in this council. The Migration Center emphasized that if I want to change the place, I need to contact them and the bureaucratic apparatus begins to move.”

“Upon arrival, I did not have to look for housing. Because my wife had already been here for some time, Frederike von Wedel and her family allowed us to live in a separate guest room.
In fact, it is not even a room, but a separate smart apartment on the ground floor (in Europe, the first floor is ground floor, in Germany it is called Edgeschoss). But we are going to move.”

“Another difficulty is the bureaucracy of the country and the fact that they like conventional rules, although sometimes they do not make any sense. So-called terms are used everywhere here. It’s just an appointment date.
That is, I come to the window to get a deadline to go to another window. How do we get foreign passports? That is, number, date and time. But for some issues that can be solved in a minute or two – still take the deadline and come in a week.”

“The migration service no longer helps refugees, as it was in the first months of the war. That is, they don’t even say what to bring with you.
That is, I came on time, but I was asked “Where is the registration form the burgher bureau?” , but due to the fact that my name was not on the mailbox – it returned to the sender.
Yes, here the address does not include the number of apartments, and no one leaves letters anywhere, there must be a house number and surname.”

“I also learned about insurance, which is very expensive and mandatory here (although someone says that it is not, I will be glad for additional information if someone has it), not from official sources, but through all kinds of Telegram channels!”

“To be honest, sometimes Germany seems like a technologically backward country. When I used Apple Pay in one of the coffee shops, they looked at me like a Martian. They even asked what it is and what kind of card it is (here they still carry cards with them and apply them).
There is also a lot of correspondence by mail. The bank card for the wife came here in a letter and the pin code separately. I encountered this when I was a client of the Aval bank back in 2006. Amazon also seemed somewhat problematic to me, Rosetka is more convenient.”

“There are a lot of people who communicate in russian / Ukrainian, but I try to separate myself in order to fully immerse myself in communication in a foreign language. The fact that in Germany everyone speaks English is delusional! I encountered a bureaucratic apparatus, namely the burgher bureau, where I was refused communication because they do not understand English. Bring an interpreter with you. So I had to run in search of a window where there was a girl who spoke English. I study German on my own.”

“Sometimes I am ashamed to enjoy life. Although sometimes the wife still insists on changing activities. We were in Baden-Baden. It is also a small city, just like Karlsruhe, which is nearby. I visited an ancient, almost destroyed castle there (very high).

Also I visited the capital of the council – Stuttgart. It is a beautiful place, but there was not much time to learn everything about it. It is the home of Porsche, Mercedes, Ritter-Sport chocolate and much more. I was surprised by the vineyards in the middle of a big city!
Also visited Dusseldorf, a city similar to Stuttgart, I saw Rein.
Karlsruhe also has a Schloss (castle), but it is more of a palace than a castle. We are going to visit Bavaria, namely Munich and the amazing Neuschwanstein Castle.”

“What I really like: peace, decency (although people are people everywhere), politeness and responsibility of officials. Here it can be seen that taxes go where they should, and not for corruption. City transport works perfectly, I think. But I miss the sea and the sun! To meet old age in Germany is to be able to travel and smile. Pensions here are enough for people to have a carefree and cloudless old age.”

“There are huge taxes here. And if you become a tax resident here, it is very unclear what the point is.
Yes, this country is cool to live in. I feel safe here! That is, even bicycles are almost never stolen here! I see them just thrown in the middle of the city, they have been lying there for months and no one picks them up. The police are enough and they do work.”

“Having said all that, I want to add that there is no war here, but I am still terrified by some loud banging and I can’t get used to the absence of a curfew. I like to raise my head to the sky when the day is clear and watch the peaceful sky dotted with peaceful planes flying by. I like not hearing the sirens and seeing people walking and not thinking about such horror.”

#Speroteck Dream Team