Changing Blue Card to Permanent Resident Card (Niederlassungerlaubnis) in Germany

 Hello everyone!

It has been more than a year since I got my German permanent residency, and after a long wait, here you go: the promised post about how I changed my Blue Card to Permanent Resident Card for Germany.

For some of you who did not know, I changed my student visa to EU Blue Card back in 2018 when I started my full-time job (you can read my complicated experience here). I only had a limited blue card that was only valid for the period of my work contract + 3 months (the time window to find another job), which means my Blue Card was only valid until January 2021. 

I did some research already about the alternative of the possibility of the next steps, although to be honest, I was also having the pressure that I wouldn't get a contract extension at work and had to find another job, which meant things would get a tad complicated had that happened. 

1. The first alternative was just to simply extend the blue card with another blue card. From what I've heard, if you extend the blue card, at least it wouldn't be bound to your current company (in my previous blue card I received an additional letter that said that my blue card was only valid when I worked in the company).
2. The second option was to change the blue card to a permanent resident permit. And since it's no secret that I hate German bureaucracy, of course, I'd try my best to go with this flow. 

Okay, long story short (skipping the dread months when I was unsure about my contract), I got my job contract extension to a permanent one, which meant it would at least make my application for permanent residency easier. 

THE DIFFERENCE(S) between Blue Card and Permanent Resident

• Blue card has an expiration date, while permanent resident well.. supposed to let you stay as long as you want -- they simply can't "kick you" out easily. However, noted that in your blue card, they will put "valid until" your passport expiration dates.
• Blue card tied you with your employer, while permanent residency does not, which means you're free to work as anything, and now even without a minimum salary. 
• No unemployment benefits for blue card holders, while permanent residents are eligible to apply for unemployment benefits. 

REQUIREMENTS

• You have to be at least in possession of the blue card for at least 33 months before applying.
• However, this can be shortened to 21 months if you have German B1 certificate.
• I did my B1 certificate in Goethe 10 years ago (2011), but I lost the certificate, and since they did not accept my RWTH Aachen's DSM's (Deutsche Sprachprüfung für Master-Studierende), I either had to redo my test or waited for another 11 months. 11 months seems like a long time and also it meant I had to renew my blue card in between, so that was why I decided to do my B1 test again. Unfortunately, the earliest available exam was at the end of August, so I had to wait a bit. A bit of advice though, do not lose your B1 certificate, because it's pretty expensive to take them again!
• You have some knowledge of the German language (A1 for 33 months, B1 for 21 months)
• You are independent and you don't need any third-party support to finance yourself in Germany
• You have paid the Renteversicherung for 33 months or 21 months (if you have Blue Card)
• You have enough space for living.

DOCUMENTS TO PREPARE

If you think you have fulfilled all the criteria above, then congratulations! Here are the documents that you'll need to send via email/bring in person: 

• Salary slips (they asked for the last 3 months in the beginning, but after I send them all, they again asked for the complete slip salary of the Year 2020)
• Proof that you have paid Renteversicherung for 21 or 33 months. How to get it: 
• Go to https://www.deutsche-rentenversicherung.de/DRV/DE/Online-Dienste/Juli_2021/informationen_anfordern_einreichen.html
• Choose "Versicherungs- und Rentenunterlagen anfordern". A new tab will be opened.
• Choose "Rentebezugsbescheinigung" for "Anforderung von..."
• and complete the remaining form with your data 
• You will receive a letter with the details 1-2 weeks later
• B1-certificate
• Permanent work-contract
• Certificate of employment (they will provide the form) that needs to be signed by your employer
• Housing certificate (they will provide the form) that needs to be signed by your landlord

HOW TO (in a nutshell)

The process below is not an absolute "how-to", it is based on my experience. I think the process would vary depending on your Ausländeramt. I got lucky because since I moved to Sindelfingen, the process of everything related to Ausländeramt (visa, sponsor letter, and so on) was easier than when I lived in Aachen. 

1. Send an email stating the intention to change your current resident permit to permanent resident. 
• Again, this varies from person to person. In my Ausländeramt, they accept phone calls and emails, and since I prefer to have it written somewhere, I send them an email instead. 
2. After sending them back all the documents they required, they'll send you an appointment. 
3. Come to the appointment with all the documents and 110€ money (some only take cash, some have a machine where they took EC-Karte). Do not forget to ask where you need to pick up the card once they're ready!
4. Ta-da, they'll give you a paper stating that you're now having a permanent residence. However, your card could be picked up normally after 6 weeks. 
5. After some weeks, you will receive a PIN for your new card. Normally, if you have received this, you can already take the card in 2 weeks. 
6. Take your new shiny permanent-residence card. For Sindelfingen, I need to take it in Bürgeramt (where you do your anmelden). Due to Corona, I had to make an appointment, but normally, people could simply take it without any appointment. 

GOOD TO KNOW that...

• Your "permanent" resident card has an expiration date! My card's expiration date is the same as my passport. So far, I haven't researched on how to extend it, but I will update it here once I know (I'll be back before the end of 2023 :p)
• You still can't vote with a permanent residency. You'll need German citizenship for that!

So that's it! It looks less complicated than my blue card and the driving license, but I also needed at least about 2 months because of the German B1 exam! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to let me know. See you in the next post :) 

Transferring your home country (non-EU) driving license to a German Driving license

 Hello everyone!

I was planning to write this months ago but life was so busy meanwhile (with this whole "new normal" thing) that I barely had any time or muse to start writing, so apologise for that one. 

This time I'd like to write about my experience of transferring my Indonesian driving license to a German one. It seems that I don't have that much luck with German bureaucracy, because almost everything that I wanted to do seems to be not the "normal" case, which means more complications than what it has already been. And for transferring my driving license, it took more than a year for me! And I also visited "Führerscheinstelle" at least 5 times. Believe me, it was really time and energy-consuming! Well, to be honest, some months of it was me being lazy, hehehe. Let's get started!!!

Basically, if you want to make a driving license from scratch in Germany, you need to do the following things:

1. First-aid course (max 2 years)
2. Eye-test
3. Theoretical class
4. Theoretical exam
5. Driving class
6. Driving exam

To do everything from the beginning will cost you approximately 2000€. I also think it depends on where you live. In south, everything seems to be much more expensive than in NRW, for example. We will now go through some cases, and I'll try to provide information on what you need to do had your condition met one of the followings:

You don't have a driving license prior to moving to Germany.

Simple. You have to follow all the steps from the beginning. 

You have a driving license from your home country AFTER you moved to Germany.

Unfortunately, you have to redo everything from the beginning, as you can only eligible to transfer your driving license if you had it before moving to Germany. 

You have a driving license from your home country BEFORE you moved to Germany. 

Congratulations. You have the chance to get a German one. 

• Your driving license is valid to use up to 6 months from your moving date! Use this wisely and I'd suggest practicing as much as possible or get it done within the first 6 months (of course, if you have the budget for it).
• If you're from one of the lucky countries (sorry, the list will provide later if I could find the link, but e.g. Korean one!), you can simply go to switch your driving license without having to go through any class and exams!
• But, if your country was not included in the list, then you have to go through exams, some countries probably only needed a part, but probably other countries have to do a lot more. 

You have a driving license from your home country BEFORE you moved to Germany, BUT your driving license EXPIRED in between

This was my case, and it was one reason why my process took so long because I was a bit lazy to do everything. 

• If you have a new driving license issued after that, make a police statement from Indonesia (better in English, if it was Indonesian, have it translated to either English/German), stating that you already have a driving license before. If you have a copy of your old driving license, attached it as well in the letter. 

(original)

(translation)

• If you do not have a new driving license (my case), I have to fly back home and make a new one, before doing the steps above xD 

Your driving school is in a different Bundesland than your home

Again, this was my case. I worked in the Stuttgart area and every week I was commuting between Aachen-Stuttgart. I was only in Aachen every Friday-Sunday which was a disadvantage for me to do a driving course in Aachen, as probably some schools won't have that much slot for Sunday driving. That was why I decided to do it in Stuttgart. 

• Ask your company to provide a statement letter, stating that you are working in the area of your driving school! AND MAKE SURE IT'S AN ACTUAL ONE. Due to the lacks of documents, I needed 3 months until I got my documents completed, and even by then, they asked me to COME AGAIN with a newer statement letter (I was pretty mad that time because it was their fault of 134134938 requirements that made everything got delayed)

(statement letter from the office)

DOCUMENTS TO PREPARE:

1. First aid course certificate.
• Most driving schools provided some courses. You could also find it through google. In bigger cities, more English sessions are offered. 
• The course is 8 hours (1 lesson hour = 45 minutes) and normally they're put in one day. So make sure you prepare the time for that. 
• And as the slots normally fully booked, you should be prepared to book this a few weeks in advance!
• Cost around 25-30€
2. Eye-test certificate
• I did mine in Fielmann and it was free of charge! 
3. Your original driving license
4. Certified translated driving license (if it's not in English)
• I did in ADAC and I think they overcharged me. For a driving license under 200 words, it would cost 75€. They said mine was more than 200 words, and in the end, I paid 115€ for that!!!! Probably if you have ADAC membership it will be cheaper. 
5. Photo
6. (if you're applying from NRW) Your driving school contract
7. Additional documents based on your unique case, in my case my additional documents were:
1. Police statement from Indonesia that I got my first driving license in 2012 + the German translation
2. Statement from my employer that I worked in a different city than my place of residence

STEPS TO YOUR NEW SHINY GERMAN DRIVING LICENSE 

(I'd also write my own experience in between, that's why it got so long xD):

1. Do the first-aid course and the eye-test. 
2. IF YOU LIVE IN NRW: register yourself at a driving school before going to step 3. IF YOU LIVE IN BW: go to step 3 first before registering yourself at a driving school!
3. Go to "Führerscheinstelle" in your city. Some cities probably need appointments. If you're in Aachen, I'd suggest making an appointment because the waiting time could be up to two hours (no joking here). 
4. Tell the worker that you'd like to transfer your driving license. They'll review all the documents you have, and if all are okay (which probably won't be for the first time xD), they'll ask you to pay (approx 25€-50€) for the processing fee. 
5. Now, you wait until your driving school contact you. I'd suggest you start studying for your theoretical exam. I use this app to study, and it's really helpful! 
6. Once your driving school contacts you, it means you're good to go for the theoretical exam! They'll give you some dates option and you could say when you want to take it. Do not rush if you're not ready! 
7. There are two scenarios of the theoretical exams:
1. PASS: congrats, now go to step 8
2. FAIL: no need to be sad (except if you are like me, who underestimated and failed twice, yeah, shame on you xD). There's no limit to retaking the exams, but you need to remember that you have to pay for every exam. The earliest you could reapply for the theoretical exams is two-weeks after the failed exam. 
8. After passing the theoretical exam, you're now eligible to start your driving course! Note that it is mandatory for you to take the course, you can't skip it and go directly to the driving exam! But, unlike the students who do their license from scratch, there are no mandatory driving hours to take. It all depends on your driving teacher. 
• I contacted my driving school and stated that I'd like to get started as soon as possible, and later on, my driving teacher WhatsApp me with the two hours schedule where he'd decide how many hours I'd have to take before taking the exams. After the first drive, he told me I'd need another 3 times driving. HE EVEN REGISTERED ME ALREADY TO TAKE THE EXAMS.
• Because of Corona, we had to use masks during the lesson. I was lucky that during that time, it was possible again to do the driving classes.
• I did a total of 6.25 hours of driving lesson! I received a lot of criticism, especially since I drove too slow (I could not blame myself, driving in Indonesia, people just appear out of nowhere to cut you on the street xD). My biggest weakness I think was the German Autobahn. People drove really fast, and I was just not used to that. 
• Usually, your driving instructor already knew the route of the exams, so they'd instruct you to go the paths usually taken for the exams. 
9. DRIVING EXAM TIME! 
• On this day, your driving teacher (at least in my case) had me a 30-minutes warm-up. In my case, it was my worst performance and my driving teacher was a bit worried I might fail xD 
• In the exam, you will start and end the exam at the same place. The exam will be about 45 minutes. There will be an examiner that sits with you in the back seat, usually the rear right seat so they could observe your speed and behaviour. 
10. Again, in this scenario, there are two possibilities:
1. PASS: CONGRATULATIONS! NOW YOU ARE ELIGIBLE TO DRIVE IN EU BUT REMEMBER THAT YOU HAVE 2 YEARS OF PROBATION. 
• In some Bundesland, e.g. Aachen, you have to go again to Führerscheinstelle to give your third-country driving license and they'll give you the shiny new German driving license.
• Well, for BW (because I did the exam here), the examiner gave me directly my driving license, even saying I could keep my Indonesian one! 
2. FAIL: I did not fail in the first try, so I am not 100% sure of the procedure, but I think you have to take some hours again before reapplying for the exams. 

that happy face passing the driving exam in the first try! xD

Theoretical Exam Models:

• It'll computer-based one, so you'll see your results directly after the exams!
• There will be 30 multiple choice questions asked, each question has points. Answering the questions, wrong, you'll get the points based on it.
• The passing grade is to have LESS OR EQUAL THAN 10 POINTS. 
• The good thing about theoretical exams, that the candidate questions are already available so you could study up. But the thing is, there are more than 1000 questions in the question banks xD 
• The exam usually took 30 minutes, faster if you are confident enough you answer everything correctly!
• After you submitted your test electronically, your results would appear, and you can review your wrong or right answers one by one!
• At the end of the exam, if you FAIL the exam, the examiner will give you a paper that contains which part you got your answer wrong. 
• Tipps:
• I repeat, DO NOT TAKE THE THEORETICAL EXAMS LIGHTLY! Went through each question AT LEAST TWICE, and only be confident if you have answered everything correctly at least once!
• The questions in the exam banks really help you with the driving lesson and exams! 

Driving Exam Models:

• As I wrote above, you'll drive with your driving instructor who would seat in the passenger seat, and the examiner who'd be sitting in the rear seat. 
• The examiner will instruct you what you have to do, but if they don't say anything, you just need to go straight. In case going straight is not possible, you should ask them where you should drive. 
• If the examiner is nice enough, you won't need to drive in Autobahn xD 
• Tipps:
• If your driving instructor did not initiate the 30 minutes warm-up before the exam, ask them! I think it's very important to get you less nervous than before. 
• PAY ATTENTION during the lessons! The route you take will be very similar, and in some areas, special rules apply, and that's what the examiner wants to see whether you actually PAY ATTENTION TO ALL THE SIGN.

ANYWAY, thank you so much for reading it through! I hope you won't take as much and complicated processes as I went through, and I hope this post helps (even a bit) in your process of transferring your driving license. GOOD LUCK!!

Second wave pandemi di Jerman: sebuah cerita

 Hallo!

Setelah postingan saya mengenai kehidupan di Jerman bulan maret lalu, akhirnya saya memutuskan untuk melanjutkan cerita dari sebelum second wave, second wave, pengalaman saya mempersiapkan kepulangan ke Indonesia, pengalaman di Indonesia, persiapan balik ke Jerman, hingga tiba di Jerman lagi.  Sejujurnya, saat menulis pengalaman yang lalu, saya tidak habis pikir ternyata Corona ini masih belum berlalu di awal tahun ini. 

Rekap dari postingan lalu: setelah lockdown kurang lebih 6 minggu, kehidupan di Jerman akhirnya mulai normal kembali. 

(see the wave?)
sumber: google "coronavirus deutschland"

Kehidupan setelah Lockdown pertama

Setelah sedikit demi sedikit kehidupan mulai normal, harapan pun tiba. Pegawai-pegawai contractor di kantor yang lalunya harus diberhentikan akhirnya dipekerjaka, toko-toko mulai dibuka, dan yang terpenting: sebentar lagi liburan musim panas. Saya pun sempat senang karena Jerman dapat menghandle situasi ini dengan baik. Angka yang terinfeksi pun tiap harinya dibawah 1000. Peraturan kesehatan tetap diberlakukan, masker harus digunakan di tempat umum, orang-orang harus tetap menjaga jarak. 

Saya sendiri sempat menjadi "tersangka" kasus Corona dikarenakan saya sempat demam dan ada rekan kerja yang terkena. Dokter saya lalu merujuk saya untuk melakukan tes. Hasilnya sangat cepat, bahkan kurang dari 24 jam. 

Dalam hal travelling, Robert-Koch-Institut mengeluarkan daftar negara yang termasuk "daerah beresiko" (dapat dilihat di sini). Di mana wisatawan yang masuk ke Jerman dari negara sini harus melakukan karantina 14 hari ketika masuk tetapi karantina tidak diharuskan jika sebelum masuk (atau sesaat setelah mendarat) sudah memiliki hasil tes corona negatif. Saya masih tidak memutuskan untuk pulang ke Jerman karena "ingin menunggu situasi lebih baik aja akhir tahun nanti". 

Oleh karena peraturan yang "agak ribet" itu, banyak masyarakat Jerman yang memilih untuk melakukan liburan domestik. Saya termasuk salah satunya. Pada tiap bulannya, saya setidaknya pergi short trip ke satu atau lebih kota, mengunjugi teman-teman saya yang pertemuannya sempat tertunda dikarenakan oleh lockdown. 

Intermezzo: Foto liburan

 
(Juni 2020, Hamburg)

(Juni 2020, Berlin)

 
(Juli 2020, Frankfurt)                                               (Juli 2020, Stuttgart)

 
                                   (Juli 2020, Heidelberg)                                                                       (Juli 2020, Black Forrest)  

Hingga saat September 2020, jumlah orang yang terdeteksi positif mulai naik. Dari dibawah 1000, perlahan naik all the way to 10.000 kasus di bulan Oktober. Saya sempat pergi mengunjungi teman di kota lain pada pertengahan Oktober, dan pada saat itu diberlakukan peraturan bahwa hotel tidak dapat menerima turis jika kota tempat tinggalnya memiliki insiden lebih dari 50/100.000 kasus. Pada saat awal liburan, kota saya masih berada di angka 25, tetapi pada saat pulang sudah hampir menembus 50. Di tengah liburan juga, di Bayern (Bavaria) menerapkan peraturan untuk wajib memakai masker di tempat umum terbuka, bukan hanya untuk di dalam saja. Saya sempat mengupdate status keadaan saat itu bagaimana di instagram saya (jika minat, dapat di tonton di sini)

(Agustus 2020, Nürnberg)                                                                     (Agustus 2020, Leipzig)

(September 2020, Düsseldorf)                                 (Oktober 2020, Aachen)

(September 2020, Haltern am See)

(Oktober 2020, Füssen)

Angka menembus 25.000 pertama kalinya pada tanggal 2 November 2020. Pemerintah sudah mulai was-was dan akhirnya, pada tanggal 2 November diberlakukan beberapa peraturan baru. Kami di sini menyebutnya "lockdown light/partial lockdown" yang akan diberlakukan untuk 1 bulan (hingga pertengahan Desember). Tujuan dari partial lockdown ini adalah agar masyarakat Jerman dapat menikmati liburan natal dan tahun baru bersama keluarga. 

Lockdown light:

Pembatasan yang berlaku:

• Restaurant dan bar tutup, kecuali untuk takeaway (dan delivery)
• Acara-acara besar dibatalkan
• Perjalanan yang tidak penting sangat tidak disarankan
• Tidak diperbolehkan untuk menginap di hotel dengan tujuan wisata
• Disarankan untuk Work From Home
• Untuk bertemu dipublik, hanya diperbolehkan dua rumah tangga  dengan maksimal 10 orang. 
• Bioskop, teater, harus tutup. 
• Tempat rekreasi publik seperti gyms, sauna dan kolam renang harus tutup. 
• Tidak boleh ada keramaian pada acara olahraga (nonton online)

Yang tetap diperbolehkan:

• Sekolah dan TK tetap buka
• Acara keagamaan dan demonstrasi tetap diizinkan
• Pnati jompo tetap dapat menerima tamu pengunjung
• Toko tetap dibuka, akan tetapi untuk 1 customer per 10 kuadrat meter (artinya, jika tokonya 100 meter persegi hanya bisa menerima 10 customer untuk waktu yang bersamaan)
• Batas negara tetap buka

Peraturan untuk wisatawan yang balik dari negara beresiko:

• Harus mendaftar diri secara digital
• Melakukan karantina selama 10 hari (yang awalnya 14 hari diubah menjadi 10)
• tetapi bagi sebagi Bundesland (Provinsi), negatif test saat masuk ke Jerman tidak membuat wisatawan tsb bebas dari kewajiban karantina
• Karantina dapat diperpendek menjadi 5 hari jika pada hari ke 5 dilakukan PCR test dan hasilnya negatif

Gimana untuk usaha-usaha yang akan tutup saat lockdown light ini?

Angela Merka menjanjikan pada usaha yang terpengaruh oleh peraturan baru ini akan dikompensasi. Perusahaan yang memiliki pegawai sampai 50 orang dan wiraswasta menerima 75% dari gaji mereka dalam bentu support. 

Selama 1 bulan November ini, menurut saya pribadi, tidak ada perubahan yang terlalu drastis, kecuali tidak bisa nongki-nongki cantik bareng teman di akhir minggu ataupun saat kerja. Untuk itu, saya malah jadinya lebih hemat uang makan karena lebih prefer untuk masak sendiri hehehe. Pemerintah tetapinya tetap mewanti-wanti, apalagi Black Friday yang akan terjadi di akhir November. 

Yang membuat saya agak resah adalah peraturan jika libur dari negara berisiko, harus karantina minimal 5 hari saat kepulangan. Saya berencana akan pulang ke Indonesia pada akhir tahun, dan dikarenakan hal ini, saya harus menambah libur saya selama 1 minggu dengan alasan akan melakukan karantina di rumah. Pekerjaan saya sendiri bukanlah tipe yang bisa WFH dan dikarenaka masalah perpajakan, kami tidak diperbolehkan bekerja di luar Jerman (ga bisa jadi digital nomads yang lagi trend saat ini, hehehe).

Sebelum "Lockdown Light" berakhir

Ternyata, langkah-langkah yang telah dilakukan selama hampir sebulan tidak sebegitu efektif yang diharapkan. Angka-angka tidak kunjung turun, bahkan pada tanggal 25 November 2020, angka menembuh 30 ribu untuk pertama kalinya. Pemerintah lalu menerapkan beberapa peraturan baru:

• Larangan untuk mengkonsumsi minuman alkohol di atas jam tertentu
• "Jam malam" untuk kota dengan insiden 200/100.000 kasus positif dalam 7 hari terakhir
• (mungkin ada peraturan lain juga yang saya lupa) 

Pada akhir bulan November, peraturan lockdown light ini diperpanjang hingga pertengahan desember, dengan harapan bahwa pada pertengahan desember, jumlah kasus menurun dan masyarakat dapat menikmati liburan natal dan tahun baru bersama keluarga dan teman. 

Sebelum "Lockdown Light KEDUA" berakhir

Angka tidak menurun juga, bahkan rata-rata kasus selama 7 hari terus meningkat. Kalau dari pengalaman sih, peraturan kayak gini banyak yang PHP ya, hehehe. Berharap bakal selesai pertengahan Desember, tetapi malah diperketat. Mulai dari 16 Desember 2020 - 10 Januari 2021 diberlakukan peraturan yang jauh lebih ketat:

• Semua toko harus TUTUP! (pengeculian restaurant take away dan delivery, supermarket, drug store, dan yang essential) 
• JAM MALAM diberlakukan. Ini tergantung bundesland, dan di Bundesland saya diberlakukan. Penduduk dilarang untuk berkeliaran dan meninggalkan rumah dalam rentang waktu pukul 8 malam hingga 5 pagi. Diadakan pengecualian untuk beberapa kasus, misalnya alasan kerja. 
• Sekolah dan TK diliburkan
• Nah, ini sebenarnya yang jadi banyak dilemma. Saya sendiri sempat mengeluh, kenapa pemerintah tidak menutup sekolah aja dari awal dan melaksakan proses pembelajaran daring seperti yang Indonesia lakukan (apalagi di sini "kata"nya teknologi lebih canggih). Saya mengajak berdiskusi salah satu kolega di tempat kerja dan dia berkata hal ini susah terutama untuk orang tua yang harus bekerja. Anak-anak dibawah 12 tahun tidak boleh ditinggalkan di rumah sendiri, yang membuat ada minimal satu orang tua yang harus tinggal di rumah untuk mengurus anak. Dan rekan saya berkata, bahwa tidak segampang itu melakukan WFH dan mengurus anak secara bersamaan. Apalagi jika kedua orangtua tidak bisa melakukan WFH, itu berarti ada salah satu orang tua yang harus berkoban untuk menggambil unpaid leave atau cutinya untuk mengasuk anak. 
• Jasa-jasa, misalnya jasa pijit dan salon juga harus tutup dikarenakan kontak yang sangat erat dengan pengunjung. 
• Acara keagamaan tetap dapat dilaksanakan tetapi harus dengan jarak minimal 1.5 meter, harus menggunakan masker, dan untuk acara gereja, menyanyi bersama ditiadakan.
• Perusahan-perusahaan diminta untuk menjalakan motto "Stay at home", dan ini lumayan ketat dilaksanakan, setidaknya oleh kantor saya. Setiap Jumat saya harus menghadiri meeting penting, dan yang biasanya tetap hadir semua dengan jarak, pada waktu itu hanya diizinkan maximal 8 orang di dalam ruangan.

Nah, tapi karena natal sudah dekat nih, diberlakukan beberapa pengecualian yang diberlakukan pada tanggal 23 Desember 2020 - 26 Desember 2020:

• Pertemuan dengan 4 orang lain dari keluarga terdekat (atau teman) selain yang tinggal satu rumah di perbolehkan. (peraturan awal hanya boleh dengan 2 orang lain!)

Permasalahan dengan peraturan baru ini adalah peraturan tsb dikeluarkan sesaat sebelum natal, di mana adalah masa orang pada keluar untuk beli hadiah natal. Saya ingat, 1 hari sebelum Lockdown di mulai, mall dekat kantor saya sangat FULL hingga harus mengantri masuk (dan antriannya ga main-main, bisa sampai 2 jam berdiri). 

Kembali Lockdown

Perasaan yang saya rasakan agak sedikit suram, karena suasana kembali menjadi "kota mati". Saya tetap kerja dari kantor seperti biasa, dan saya dapat melihat perubahan drastis. Yang biasanya saya satu bus dengan anak-anak sekolah, busnya malah hampir kosong. Stasiun kereta pun sudah tidak banyak orang. Polisi-polisi juga semakin memperketat pemeriksaan pemakaian masker. Tetapi semua dengan harapan bahwa angka akan turun. 

Setelah kembali lockdown lagi, saya disibukkan dengan kerja dan mengepak barang untuk dibawa pulang ke Indonesia. Di postingan berikutnya saya akan menceritakan pengalaman saya travelling di tengah pandemi. 

Stay tune, and thanks for reading!

sumber data:

• https://www.dw.com/en/coronavirus-germany-to-impose-one-month-partial-lockdown/a-55421241
• https://www.baden-wuerttemberg.de/de/service/alle-meldungen/meldung/pid/bund-und-laender-einigen-sich-auf-lockdown-ab-16-dezember/