• How I skipped the Paris Protests by staying in Disneyland Paris

    In an uncanny twist of fate, after canceling our weekend trip to Prague last Saturday, my friend decided to follow my suggestion and went to Prague last Wednesday instead. Meanwhile, I headed to her preferred destination (Disneyland Paris) on Saturday, October 17th. I originally planned to explore the city center first, but I got so…

  • Why I cancelled a Prague Daytrip?

    A friend called and we decided to go to a trip together. Since we both work full time, we locked on October 10, Saturday which was the only day we were both availble to explore a neighbor city: Prague. Why Prague? She wanted to explore Paris and I helped her check the logistics. Since she…

  • How I Survived My First German VAT Return as a KDP Self-Publisher

    When I first expanded my self-publishing business into Amazon KDP, I registered as a German Kleinunternehmer (Small Business). I expected to be completely exempt from VAT paperwork. Then, a letter arrived from the Finanzamt ordering me to submit a quarterly Umsatzsteuer-Voranmeldung via ELSTER. Why do I have to file a VAT return if I’m a…