Relocated to Berlin: Getting New Stuff

After having previously sung the praises of getting rid of old stuff, after arriving in Berlin, and after quickly coming to the realization that at least some stuff is necessary for the basic function of life in the modern world, we reluctantly unwrapped our new Deutsche Bank debit cards and headed out to the stores to restuffify ourselves.

So, what did we need?  Unlike many Berlin city apartments, we have ample space not just for a full-size clothes washer, but for a full-size dryer as well.   Unfortunately, the previous tenant took their washer and dryer with them, meaning we would have to act fast to ensure that we wouldn't get too stinky by wearing the same underpants more than 5 days in a row.

Second, we needed a coffee maker.  This was not optional, and it could not be delayed.

After that, pretty much every common electrical appliance needed to be replaced, as our American electronics would not have worked here.  That included a TV, a stereo, an alarm clock, a vacuum cleaner, a slow-cooker for my wife, new telephones, a new printer/scanner, plug adapters for our iPads and iPhones, and plug adapters for our laptop computers.  One of the most urgent questions we asked our relocation adviser, after "Can you pick us up at the airport?" was "Where can we buy all of this stuff?"

For anybody leaving one country and moving to another, a useful first step in getting acquainted with your new consumer milieu is to find new analogs for old consumer habits.

As any American will tell you, big box stores are the embodiment of evil.  After telling you that, they will then immediately hop in their SUV and will drive to Walmart or Target.  While we could never quite get over the feeling that we were doing Lucifer's dark bidding by shopping at Walmart, we did regularly shop at other big box stores like Best Buy for home electronics and Home Depot for tools and general home maintenance supplies. 

Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it), Germany has also succumbed to the allure of the big box store.  In place of America's Best Buy, there is Germany's Media Markt.  In place of America's Home Depot, there is Germany's Obi.  Both stores are almost identical to their American analogs, and both stores are almost ubiquitous - even in Berlin's urban jungle.

Fortunately, both Media Markt and Obi were also a quick tram ride away from our new apartment.  Every day, for three weeks, my wife and I took the tram up to the conveniently adjacent stores on the corner of Greifswalder Straße and Ostseestraße.  Every day, we trudged back home, past the lunchtime crowds sitting outside our street's multiple Indian restaurants, bakeries, and coffee shops, with our arms aching from the weight of some new appliance or accessory.

When it was all over, I almost felt sad that I would not be making those daily trips any more.  After three weeks, our apartment was (more or less) fully furnished and equipped with the latest German home appliances.  And the best part was, despite our not having a car to transport all this new stuff home, we could easily get most of it there using public transportation.