On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 13:51:58 UTC, Jonathan M Davis wrote:
> On Monday, April 25, 2016 11:16:11 Iain Buclaw via Digitalmars-d wrote:
>> Germany is a cash-in-hand country.  Credit cards are rejected in most places that I've tried.
>
> LOL. I don't even remember the last time that I paid for anything with cash. I normally only have cash for emergencies. Oh well. I figured that I was going to have to exchange for some Euros just in case, but it sounds like my credit card is going to be pretty much useless.
>
> - Jonathan M Davis

It is slowly getting better but overall I'd call Germany one of the least credit card friendly countries in the whole Europe. Historical reasons :)

On 25 April 2016 at 15:51, Jonathan M Davis via Digitalmars-d <digitalmars-d@puremagic.com> wrote:
> On Monday, April 25, 2016 11:16:11 Iain Buclaw via Digitalmars-d wrote:
>> Germany is a cash-in-hand country.  Credit cards are rejected in most places that I've tried.
>
> LOL. I don't even remember the last time that I paid for anything with cash. I normally only have cash for emergencies. Oh well. I figured that I was going to have to exchange for some Euros just in case, but it sounds like my credit card is going to be pretty much useless.
>
> - Jonathan M Davis
>

A little news context. ;-)

http://www.thelocal.de/20150528/germans-still-stuck-on-cash

On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 13:51:58 UTC, Jonathan M Davis wrote:
> On Monday, April 25, 2016 11:16:11 Iain Buclaw via Digitalmars-d wrote:
>> Germany is a cash-in-hand country.  Credit cards are rejected in most places that I've tried.
>
> LOL. I don't even remember the last time that I paid for anything with cash. I normally only have cash for emergencies. Oh well. I figured that I was going to have to exchange for some Euros just in case, but it sounds like my credit card is going to be pretty much useless.
>
> - Jonathan M Davis

You should be fine in hotels, restaurants and bigger bars, though. But _always_ ask beforehand, and in some places there might be restrictions regarding the minimum amount of money you have to spend in order to be able to pay with card (roughly around €10). Since the owner has to pay a fee for credit card transactions, it doesn't pay to accept cards below a certain threshold.

Kiosks, small shops and bars might not accept credit cards, which is true of Europe in general. If a bottle of beer costs €1 at a kiosk, you will certainly not be able to pay by card. If you insist, you'll end up being the laughing stock.

On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 14:25:39 UTC, Chris wrote:
> On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 13:51:58 UTC, Jonathan M Davis

Be aware that in Germany pedestrians actually do stop at red traffic lights, even if there is no car in sight. The police might fine you and / or other pedestrians, who sheepishly wait at the traffic light, might start to scold you for being a bad role model for children (even if it's 2am and there are no children around). As a comedian once pointed out, why did they build the Berlin wall, a red traffic light would have done the trick :-)

On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 13:00:40 UTC, Chris wrote:
> On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 12:03:12 UTC, Nemanja Boric wrote:
>> On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 11:12:04 UTC, Mike Parker wrote:
>
>
> Taxi shortest route (20.9km) ~26 minutes, cost: €38.53 [1]


Thanks!

On 4/25/16, Chris via Digitalmars-d <digitalmars-d@puremagic.com> wrote:
> On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 14:25:39 UTC, Chris wrote:
>> On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 13:51:58 UTC, Jonathan M Davis
>
> Be aware that in Germany pedestrians actually do stop at red traffic lights, even if there is no car in sight.

Berlin is the least German city, you'll find plenty of red-light offenders. :)

On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 14:54:53 UTC, Andrej Mitrovic wrote:
> On 4/25/16, Chris via Digitalmars-d <digitalmars-d@puremagic.com> wrote:
>> On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 14:25:39 UTC, Chris wrote:
>>> On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 13:51:58 UTC, Jonathan M Davis
>>
>> Be aware that in Germany pedestrians actually do stop at red traffic lights, even if there is no car in sight.
>
> Berlin is the least German city, you'll find plenty of red-light offenders. :)

Maybe, but people should still be aware of this phenomenon. I suppose it also depends on where you are. There will be loads of red light offenders in party areas on a Saturday night. In a middle class suburb, people might be more priggish about it. Best do as the Romans do, if nobody crosses the red light, don't cross either.

On 4/25/2016 1:43 AM, Jens Mueller via Digitalmars-d wrote:

Thanks!

> More questions?

Does the AB ticket cover the subway as well as the bus?

Walter Bright via Digitalmars-d wrote:
> On 4/25/2016 1:43 AM, Jens Mueller via Digitalmars-d wrote:
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> >More questions?
> 
> Does the AB ticket cover the subway as well as the bus?

It covers everything (metro/subway, urban railway, bus, trolley, ferry) inside zone A and B for two hours.

Jens

Mike Parker via Digitalmars-d wrote:
> On Monday, 25 April 2016 at 08:43:34 UTC, Jens Mueller wrote:
> >
> >More questions?
> >
> 
> I'll be getting out of the airport probably around 10:00 pm or so. I've seen online the subways run into the early am, but would I be better off grabbing a taxi at that time?

I assume you arrive at Tegel. Then you go by bus 109 to U Jakob-Kaiser-Platz. This should be safe. I never heard of much crime in that area of the city. From U Jakob-Kaiser-Platz you take the U7 (light blue on the BVG maps) for about half an hour to U Grenzallee. So you never leave the metro in between. The less safer places of the ride are actually towards its end. That's my impression. But I'd say it's safe.

Nothing ever happened to me. Even when I went to the Berlin D meetups (third Friday of a month at 7p.m.) to U Kottbusser Tor and back around 10p.m. Though Kottbusser Tor has a reputation for being unsafe.

Try to not look like a rich tourist. It's fine to carry a bag. Berliners also travel and need to get home, too. Be careful when strangers approach you to avoid pick pocketing. Not that this ever happened to me.

Jens