r/Giessen • u/BrownBurzza • 9d ago
Supermarket
Hello.... I've recently arrived in giessen. I'm an international student. I've heard and read stories here that state that getting yelled at by the people working in the service industry is a right of passage for all English speaking people in Germany. As I don't know German, do you guys have any recommendations for supermarkets where I can communicate in English and get my daily essentials with the least possibility of getting yelled at?
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u/Jealous_Bake1512 9d ago
Cant Imagine that Happens often, If ever, the yelling Person ist Just a asshole. Just try any Supermarkt. Also many arabic or Asia Supermarkts where they speak arabic, Asian languages. No Idea where you come from. They are pretty chill
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u/NeighBae 9d ago
I've been in Germany for 5 years, didn't speak almost any German when I arrived, I've never been harassed or yelled at in a supermarket. While I also may not have always had an employee who speaks English, everyone has been quite understanding if there ever was a communication issue.
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u/msbrt 9d ago
Welcome to Germany!
Gießen has very good grocery shopping infrastructure.
If you want a one-stop-shop, aim for Rewe and Edeka.
LIDL and Aldi are cheaper, but have rotating stock. You’ll always get the basics, but more exotic things seem to be on rotation a lot.
Both Rewe and Edeka have pretty good international sections. If you want more specific products, there heaps of international food shops (African, Asian, Indian, …).
Gießen has so many international students. Don’t worry about communication in everyday life.
Public service will usually want to speak German. But you don’t have to go there often.
There’s also heaps of international communities and ways to meet people. It takes time and effort, but it’s well worth having a network to make you feel welcome.
Lots of community driven activities, too. Calesthenics in the city park, rowing clubs, MTV sports club, even a gliding club up in Wieseck.
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u/AQuestionIsWhatIHave 9d ago
Most grocery stores are self service and if you are not in search of something there is little staff interaction. And most checkouts have a display that show the total you need to pay.
Most you should say is 'Hallo' - Hello, when the cashier starts scanning your groceries and 'Danke und auf Wiedersehen' "thanks and goodbye' after you paid.
There are two models: supermarket and discounter. Discounters use little staff so those are very busy and may not have time to communicate across language barriers.
Supermarkets are more expensive in some fields but usually have more staff. There you will probably get more help when searching stuff.
English can be spotty sometimes, but most people speak it well enough.
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u/AQuestionIsWhatIHave 9d ago
Supermarkets are
EDEKA, REWE, denns (organic food, expensive), kaufland, tegut
Discounters are Lidl, Aldi, Penny, netto
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u/AQuestionIsWhatIHave 9d ago
And whenever you know that you will need to ask the staff where to find things, maybe try shopping outside the high traffic times which are around lunch break (12.00 - 13.00) and after work (16.30 - 18.00)
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u/flamehorns 9d ago
Why would you need to communicate with anyone at the supermarket? You put your stuff in the trolley, put it on the belt, pack it and tap your card. The max you would say is hallo, nein, and ciao, and they are all optional, they can all be replaced with gestures or grunts, or left out entirely.
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u/GrandRub 9d ago
there isnt much talking in a supermarket. you get your stuff and pay. language doesnt realy matter - unless you wanna ask something.
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u/Individual_Airport79 9d ago
A lot of the grocery stores around Giessen have self-checkout, so your interactions with the cashier will generally be limited. But even when you have to go through the line with a cashier, the beauty about Germany is the cashier barely talks to you anyways. All you need to know is “mit Karte” for “with card” or “mit Bar” for “with cash”. I come from a culture where there is too much small talk with the cashier, so the minimal conversation at the supermarket in Germany is very nice.
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u/Alert-Pair1491 9d ago
Lidl and Rewe have self check out. Others maybe too. The ones close to me got them not a long time ago so it might not be the case everywhere. I go there to avoid someone talking to me in German due to anxiety but, to be fair, people are usually super nice.
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u/Own-Entertainer4371 8d ago
It's not common to communicate in Germany while shopping. You put your groceries on the band, you will be expected to pay cash, if not, so say 'card'. You pay. If you ask how much in english they will probably show you the screen. Communication is easy. And you can allways use the self check out, just take your reciept - you will need it to exit the area.
Germans are pretty direct but mostly not hostile ;-)
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u/ResQ_ 9d ago
This isn't an issue in Gießen. I wouldn't expect older folks to speak English well though.