I moved to Berlin with basically zero German. Duolingo streak? Sure. But ordering at a Bäckerei? Complete panic.

Here are the 5 phrases that actually got me through week one:

"Entschuldigung, sprechen Sie Englisch?" — Your safety net. But try not to lead with it.

"Ich hätte gerne..." — "I would like..." Works at every restaurant, café, and Imbiss. Way better than pointing at things.

"Wo ist...?" — "Where is...?" The train station, the bathroom, the exit. You'll use this 10x a day.

"Wie viel kostet das?" — "How much does that cost?" Essential at markets and anywhere without price tags.

"Tut mir leid, ich lerne noch Deutsch." — "Sorry, I'm still learning German." Germans respect this. They'll slow down and help you.

The truth is: you don't need to be fluent to survive. You need 50-100 phrases and the confidence to use them badly.

That's exactly what I teach inside FluentDeutsch — structured lessons built for people relocating to Germany. No textbook fluff. Just the German you actually need.