We invited a guest speaker, Kay Peters, to tell us more about the culture in Germany which he happily did so! He shared with us acceptable and proper German work etiquettes, directness of Germans (they use "NO" more often than Americans do:D), made some good dining recommendations - like what good food to eat (German sausages for breakfast, yum!), how to tip (5-10% tip is acceptable - this is less than here in the US because in Germany, servers are paid real wages instead of minimum wages), no coffee refills (sorry, coffee drinkers!) and it’s cheaper to get beer than soda (shocker!). He also shared tips on how to save on train passes (like getting the “Happy Weekend Passes” and booking tickets in advance). He also recommended the use of debit cards to go around the cities over credit cards to avoid huge charges. He advised to look for “maestro” sign on your debit cards as they will be accepted everywhere you go.
Lastly, he shared some beautiful spots in Cologne, Copeland, Rhein and many others that we absolutely MUST visit during our stay in Germany :)
The extra time we had left was spent getting updates on where everybody was with contacting the companies we’d like to visit in Germany and finalizing some logistics (e.g. the exact number of hotel rooms to book while in each city..etc.). Our calendar is getting full! Some also used the time catching up with one another and arranging how to meet up once we all land in Munich. Wow, this is going to be a great trip!
Before the class left for the day, we were reminded of priorities to take care of before our next live meeting on 8/25 (give a copy of all travel documents as well as profile bio and pictures to Inger; submit travel insurance; prepare business briefs and assigned company profiles to present in class.. etc).
Until then, dear readers! Have a great week ahead of you!
