Germans are nowhere near as efficient and straight laced as you'd think. In so many ways Germany is like going back in time 30 years. In most smaller cities it is hard to find a place that accepts credit cards. Since living in Europe I have completely abandoned cash except when I go to Germany. I have been rudely surprised by Germany's love affair with cash more than once. Last summer I had to spend an hour running around Hildesheim in a downpour trying to find an ATM because we couldn't find a restaurant that would take cards. Happened a few years ago on the outskirts of Munich as well. I am sure you don't need to be reminded of the efficiency of the new Berlin airport. My experiences with Germany have been nowhere near as efficient as they have been in their neighboring countries, particularly the ones to the north. I have worked with many German pilots for the past several years, and none of them are happy with the German CAA, and the general recommendation in Europe is, if possible, to avoid getting licensed through Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, and Germany because they all are well known for headaches.

The UK CAA does work pretty well. I did my ATPL theory exams through the UK. But they are known for being extremely pedantic and very much in love with paperwork and high fees.

Personally I have worked with the UK, Irish, and Danish authorities and the FAA beats them all. Those three have about the best reputations in Europe and judging from colleagues who have been licensed in just about every EASA country, that seems to hold true. After Brexit, my last company recommended people who held UK licenses to switch over to Irish, Danish, or Swedish because in their experience, those are the easiest countries to deal with in terms of CAA bureaucracy.