Maria Sh. changed her life drastically at the age of 52: she met a German man, married him, and moved to Germany. It took time for her to meet her man: time of “online dating,” meetings, disappointments, time to gain experience and to understand what she wanted from a man and a relationship. As a result of her bad experience, she did not even take her future husband seriously right away.

She has been living in Germany for more than five years, has learned German, and has landed a well-paying job. She confesses that there has never been a day when she has regretted the step she has taken. She is happy in Germany and would like to share her impressions of life in this country: without the politics or social problems that are found in every state.

“Why do I like living in Germany? Because here, I feel like I’m in another world, like I’m on another planet. People live here too, not aliens, they are just a bit different… The difference in mentality – in attitude to themselves, to others.

Here time is given a very great importance. It is seen as the time of one’s life. And in this aspect, it has a special value. If time is spent on communicating with you, it’s a kind of indicator of attitude. There are always alternatives to spending it, mainly active recreation – cycling, swimming, hiking, etc. There are many societies (Verein) that help with new sports or hobbies, for example, if you are interested in mountain climbing or want to try surfing or paddling, or if you have a desire to travel, you should become a member and you will be given the opportunity to develop yourself, learn something new, gain new skills and abilities.

I like living in a clean world here – streets and alleys, rivers and lakes, forests and fields. I have heard the expression, “Clean is not where you clean, but where you don’t litter. Strange as it may seem, this expression does not quite fit this picture of the world. There is a very reverent attitude to the purity of the world around you, with love for every scrap of land. And they clean up and don’t litter. Washing the asphalt in front of the house with detergent is normal, but you can’t overdo it – you can get a fine for polluting the groundwater.

Here is a different color of sky, a bright blue overhead. Greens of different shades. The effect is pure air, the visibility is very good. There are flowers everywhere – by the houses, in the gardens, on the houses, in the vineyards. It is not customary here to tear flowers, even if they grow in the field or in the woods.

Here in Germany, it is natural to live in beauty and purity, to breathe clean air, to drink clean water. People create their own beauty and keep themselves clean and orderly. That’s the way it’s arranged in the mind, that’s the way it’s arranged in the mind.

Culture is alive in Germany. Germans like to wear traditional clothes: men Lederhose, women Dirndl. They follow many traditions and celebrate according to tradition such holidays as carnival (Fasching) and Christmas.

If you want to achieve something in Germany, with effort, persistence and initiative you can make your endeavor a reality. In Germany, too, water doesn’t flow beneath a stone’s throw. However, honest work is valued and well paid here.

In Germany you get used to living in stability, you get used to abundance. It doesn’t matter whether it’s cultural abundance, abundance of goods and services, or the abundance that the country’s nature provides.

Without politics or comparisons, I told about my individual perceptions of the country of Germany. There are as many people as there are opinions. And it is quite possible that someone will disagree. And that’s fine. I have tried to paint just a small piece of a huge canvas…”