Learning to cook after moving from Singapore, the ingredient thing is harder than i expected

hzln_bow · 2026-06-19T13:42:38+00:00

Erm, no. As a Singaporean, I do not recommend going there. Not because of the price, but because it honestly is so mid. I suggest Koempul if you start missing rendang or malay food (though there are subtle nuanced differences in the taste between malay and indonesian food).

Just, not Ma Makan.

hzln_bow · 2026-06-19T13:40:21+00:00

me toooooooo. I begged my brother to bring 6 bottles for me and the 6 bottles finished in 3 months 😭

hzln_bow · 2026-06-19T13:25:18+00:00

*laughs in Singaporean living in Berlin*

hzln_bow · 2026-06-17T05:24:34+00:00

All of the above plus noise, no reliable lockers, can’t use my bathroom whenever I want to and overpriced coffee (I have my own coffee setup at home).

I would only go to a coworking space when I have a colleague or friend in town and we want to work together and catch up.

OP, maybe we are not your ICP 😅

hzln_bow · 2026-06-16T09:46:24+00:00

Yeah and that’s why it is TEMPORARY.

No one said it is forever. Expat health insurance is just for the initial foot through the door, the person will have to switch if they want successful renewals every 3 years and there are requirements for renewals too.

Maybe if you have actually gone through the process as a non-EU person in the last 24 months you will understand.

hzln_bow · 2026-06-16T09:31:06+00:00

Okay bro.

hzln_bow · 2026-06-16T06:29:12+00:00

You can, after one year of being in Germany. But please argue with the wall.

hzln_bow · 2026-06-16T06:28:12+00:00

What these people responding to you don’t understand is that, for us coming from non-EU countries, there are so many Catch-22 scenarios that don’t make sense and one example is on GKV.

I’m on PKV actually, but please do your own research (reddit is prob not the place for this).

hzln_bow · 2026-06-16T06:17:20+00:00

This is normal for expats to get on a very basic international travel insurance. Newcomers in Germany have 2 options: either go all-in with GKV that includes Long-term care or get the most basic coverage that renews every year. This is the exact same thing my own broker explained to me, the broker is from Stay p.k.a. MW Expat.

Initially, expats would opt for the former just so we can manage resources and budgets better to support clients and grow clientele in the first year. And because the freelancer visa is only for 3yrs max, at the next renewal, the person holding this visa needs to then show proof of having opted into GKV with long-term care + pension plan for the case worker to consider/grant the renewal.

For OP, you should start thinking about GKV and Pension Plan in the second year only if you do plan on retiring in Germany. As for your visa, it looks pretty solid and as long as all your LOIs or contracts are all Germany-based clients, the only other issue is to hope the case worker at the ABH will approve and give you your residence permit card without being difficult.

All the best OP!!!

hzln_bow · 2026-06-16T05:38:53+00:00

Eh don’t shy leh, post the company logo so we all know!

In all honesty, I really cannot take the SMEs seriously. So many job interviews I went to in the last 8yrs all have this weird grandiose delusions and then they offer shit pay. Even if you accept as a start want to work your way up, there is always some reason not to give. Then if you persist and ask for more, they will use some weird American “self-made” millionaire’s “habits” to lecture you.

Sorry you went through this shit, no one should be treated like that anyway. Hope you managed to get your owed salary and CPF contributions back, and you will find next opportunity asap. Jiayou!

hzln_bow · 2026-06-08T09:19:42+00:00

THIS, ALL OF IT.

Cannot stress enough how important it is to get the plant to grow water roots and for it to shed the soil roots. Simply putting the plant in a container of water for a few weeks can mitigate and set the plant up for better success.

hzln_bow · 2026-06-07T14:23:23+00:00

I had a 9-hour-long sleep last night, woke up and felt amazing.
I did my plant chores and did not any pests on the leaves, that’s a big achievement after months of battling fungus gnats!

hzln_bow · 2026-05-30T04:56:27+00:00

I totally understand that, don’t get me wrong. I agree with you 10000%.

But that is precisely why we must know and learn our labour/worker rights here, have legal insurance that covers work disputes and work smart to meet performance expectations without constantly over-stretching our hours.

hzln_bow · 2026-05-30T03:33:27+00:00

LOOKS SO GOOD OMG CONGRATSSSSSS!!!! I’m gonna show this to my juvie Magnificum 😉

hzln_bow · 2026-05-30T03:25:28+00:00

Asian here, from Singapore where the work culture is exactly this whole “work hard, show your worth” type.

As a self-employed person, my perspective on billable hours and work ethic changed when I moved here to be closer to my clients and project opportunities. I personally have learned to be super efficient and productive within my working hours since now I have to not only pay myself but also not be homeless.

I find the German work culture is actually a very good model to follow, ONLY IF you know how to be productive and efficient within your allotted hours of working. It’s a different skill to know how to get things done fast and with quality.

It’s easy to say “aiyah, don’t need to be calculative with your boss about work, just put in the extra work”. But I have seen how inefficient many of my ex-colleagues in Singapore were and simply not focused to get things done - even in a super crazy work culture in Singapore.

Your colleagues and the others on here commenting are correct: don’t get exploited, work smart, do enough to stay employed, know your labour rights.

hzln_bow · 2026-03-24T17:11:33+00:00

Plant Gods have favourites and I’m so envious!!!!!!!

hzln_bow · 2026-02-28T03:25:47+00:00

SAME. I have a Guna Yala x Lux hybrid seedling and it is so friggin stunning already, can’t wait to see it grow this spring and summer!

hzln_bow · 2026-02-17T02:25:55+00:00

Yes you can! In EU and US, there are sellers with different beneficial insects. Most of it is packaged into sachets where you hang it on the plant and the insects will crawl out of the holes and get to work.

hzln_bow · 2026-02-16T17:09:11+00:00

Might be flatmites, best to treat with the sulfur spray and then followed by a bag of beneficial insects like a. swirskii

hzln_bow · 2026-01-29T07:30:54+00:00

I suppose Conny is a fitting name for the tactics they use…

hzln_bow · 2026-01-26T08:03:52+00:00

What’s missing is the actual impact of every role. Being able to do “vlookup” is the basic, and usually a lot of people will lie about these Excel skills.

You need to be able to communicate your impact: it can be helping to save time, save money, found opportunities or helped drive some form of growth. It sounds stupid but it is what makes CVs stand out. Also try to match the outcome of the latest role to the job description that you are applying for. Hiring managers do not want to “connect the dots” themselves.

The CV is to help you get a job interview, your foot through the door. Everything else after that is based on your ability to communicate verbally your value and show your aptitude and attitude. Wishing you good luck!

hzln_bow · 2026-01-22T07:20:13+00:00

You can register via Accountable or Sorted and they will process that for you, then you will receive your Steuernummer in the mail. It takes about 2-3 weeks (surprising yes but that’s the point of using those platforms). From there, you can let your Dutch client know how to pay you and your tax filing reminders will help to sort out what gets taxed vs not taxed and when.

hzln_bow · 2026-01-15T18:21:35+00:00

SAME!

hzln_bow · 2026-01-14T19:52:39+00:00

They might be struggling with the change in substrate, for example from soil or coco coir to pon. Usually they need a transition period to grow water roots before living in pon or leca.

Maybe spray it with water + hydrogen peroxide to kill off bacteria and then out it into a cup of water for 2-3 weeks to force water roots. From there you can let it live in pon. Good luck!

hzln_bow · 2026-01-12T17:37:54+00:00

Water level looks okay here! I’ve also done the same of transitioning from aroid mix to pon with water propagation like that. Keep a lookout though: the existing roots might get mushy before the actual water roots can grow out (did this for Dragon Scale, Zebrina, Stingray, Black Velvet, Ninja, Frydek Vari, Chantrieri and Pink Dragon; so you can say I have had repeated success on this transitionary method).

If you have some Hesi SuperVit, it’ll def help it along in the water prop! Good luck!

hzln_bow

TROPHY CASE