00:00Sarah is a Berliner. Not by birth, but by choice. Born in the state of New York, she
00:06always dreamed of living in Europe. But why did she choose the German capital?
00:12Hi, my name is Sarah. I'm from Rochester, New York. I live in Berlin since six years now,
00:18and I'm planning to save for the foreseeable future.
00:22Her dream came true in 2018 when she moved to Metz, a French city near the borders of
00:27Germany and Luxembourg, where she taught English. A year later, her plans changed,
00:33and she decided to pursue a master's degree.
00:37This is where I studied. I did my Master of Public Policy here.
00:41When I chose to study in Berlin, I had three different options. I had Washington DC, Paris,
00:46and Berlin. I chose Berlin because it was the least expensive for student life and also because the
00:51program was very focused on experience, professional experience, so that I could get a job after my
00:56studies. She graduated in 2021. Now she has a job and a flat on the east side of the infamous
01:06Berlin
01:06Wall, which once split the city in two. So this is where we are right now. And the red line
01:13is where
01:14the wall was. And my apartment is here, so definitely deep in the east.
01:24Sarah lives with her partner Ollie and their dog Kinu. Hi. Hi. Yeah, they don't. You're not supposed to look
01:32at the camera.
01:34Hi. Kinu is two years old and rules the house.
01:40Ollie is British but grew up in Switzerland. The couple moved in together about a year and a half ago,
01:45but it took time to find an apartment because finding a flat in Berlin is tough.
01:53They did something common in Germany but unusual elsewhere. They swapped apartments with strangers.
01:58Normally house swap is a kind of a two-way thing. So you have two different parties swapping,
02:03but our case is a bit more complicated and we swapped three ways. So it was like a triangle. So
02:08A to B,
02:08B to C and then C back to A and all on the same day. And the reason people swap
02:14oftentimes is to keep the
02:15old contract. So when you move a different person into the apartment, oftentimes the same rent will
02:20hold as the contract beforehand, which means it's not necessarily adjusted for inflation, which means
02:25it's a lot cheaper. So everyone in this triangle got a better contract for less money. Time to move
02:32to Sarah's centre, aka her workstation. She technically has an office in Berlin, but prefers working from home.
02:40She works for a global non-profit and is one of the lucky ones who truly love their job. Her
02:45studies and German skills
02:46helped her land it. As an American in Berlin, I think we oftentimes have this idea that our English is
02:51better
02:51and therefore we'll get a job faster, but I hate to break it. Everyone speaks English and you really need
02:57a level of
02:58proficiency in German to get past, to make you a little bit more unique. Sarah uses her cargo bike
03:05for daily transportation, which is very common in Berlin, especially among families with children
03:10and dog owners. She enjoys how dog friendly Berlin is, and the real treat for dogs is Berlin's nature.
03:17My favourite thing about Berlin is that it's so green and that there's so many forests and lakes and ponds,
03:24even in the centre of the city. So right now we're in the centre of the city and there's a
03:28lake.
03:29But is Berlin perfect? Like many Berliners, Sarah complains about delays and cancellations in public
03:35transport. She also says she's been overwhelmed by the bureaucracy, the procedures, the long waits,
03:41and the insufficient digitalisation in Germany. Nevertheless, she says she loves Berlin.
03:50Their walk leads them to a special place. So this is where I would bring my friends and family from
03:56the US,
03:56because it's just so unique, it's so different to anything you would see in the US. We don't have Soviet
04:01memorials there.
04:06So this is a memorial for all of the Soviet soldiers that died as they took Berlin back from the
04:12Nazis.
04:16As they walk through the memorial, thoughts turn to her life back in the US. Does she miss it?
04:23I think the things I miss most in the US are just family and friends, and it's not just family
04:29and friends,
04:30it's missing out on all of the little life moments that help relationships grow stronger.
04:34After so many years of making your adult life in a different place, I'm not going to move back.
04:39Berlin can be messy, unpredictable and stressful, but also international, friendly and green.
04:44Sarah is happy here. How about you? Where is your dream place?
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