Unique cultural differences between Germany and the United States, as observed by a 20-something American girl living, working and studying there. (This was written after only a few months there...I developed a more accurate understanding of the culture later! My year there, overall, was a WONDERFUL experience, that I wouldn't trade for anything. Germany, it's people, traditions, language and beauty mean the world to me.
An American living in Germany...observations
~ Random Facts about Germany ~
At McDonalds: McDonalds has a few different items that appeal more to German taste buds. What stands out to me the most is the ALCOHOL. The menu lists coke, sprite, BEER, WINE... I guess they're trying to appeal to both kids AND grown-ups now. Another interesting McD's fact is they don't generously hand you 3 or 4 packets of ketchup like in America. They charge you 15 cents for each one.
At the grocery store: Ya know that pesky problem we have with people not returning their carts to the proper place when they're finished shopping? Well, here you have to 'rent' the cart. They're locked together and have a special slot for a 1 Euro coin. Once you slip the coin in, the cart is released. When you're finished shopping you take the cart back, click it in adn it gives you your coin back. Obviously everyone is gonna want their buck back, so the carts are always returned. Also at the store, they don't give you the grocery bags for free...oh no. You're charged 15 cents for each grocery bag you take. And of course, you bag the groceries yourself. Most Germans bring a basket to put everything in. They never buy in bulk. They go to the store almost daily and just buy a few things each time. When we Americans fill our cart to the top they look at us like we're crazy. You can't buy milk in those big ol' gallon jugs. 1.5 liter cartons are the largest size they have, so we always have to buy about 10 of them to keep the kids stocked with their favorite beverage.
Kindergeld: Okay, I knew Germany was a fairly wealthy country, but this amazes me. The government gives you money for each child you have. EVERY MONTH. And it's a pretty significant amount. It's not welfare at all, just a way to support their citizens, I guess. And obviously they're encouraging people to have children with the future of Germany in mind. They determine how much you receive according to the ages of your children. The older they are, the less it is. What amazes me the most is you don't have to be German to get it; If I had a child tomorrow, I'd be eligible for Kindergeld, too ('kinder' means children and 'geld' is money...hence Kindergeld). They just deposit it into your account each month.
At a restaurant: There's no ice. Never. Don't bother asking. Your coke will be cold and served in a glass...with no ice. And the customer service? Appalling, from an American's perspective. They could care less that you're the customer. Honestly I have no idea how half these places stay in business. Sometimes they're incredibly rude. Germans certainly can be very warm and friendly, but it's usually in other settings.
Blumen (flowers): Throughout the area there are small, privately owned fields of beautiful flowers that you can pick. There's a little tin where you deposit small change to pay for them. They're not random wild flowers either...they're really beautiful and well-tended.
Personalities: Germans are really prompt. They'll never be late for anything. They're also surprisingly passive. If they have a problem with something, they don't try to change it, they just go along with it.
They shake hands upon EVERY meeting, whether it be a first time introduction or your good friend whom you just saw 2 hours earlier. That took some getting used to, because it seemed so formal to me. I'm from Texas where you give your good friends a big ol' hug, not a hand shake!
They're VERY rigid when it comes to the law, but with moral issues...very liberal. Half the country is shacked up, instead of married. They begin sleeping arond, drinking and smoking at age 12, but GOD FORBID your car should be a foot over the white line at a stop light!!! Off with your head! And don't even get me started on the PORN that is everywhere! On TV, in the shopping circulars, newspapers and on billboards. You could be watching cartoons and suddenly there's a woman with no shirt on in a commercial for shampoo or something.
Trash: WOW! Okay, I'm all FOR keeping the country green and litter-free, but the trash laws here are a little excessive. In our kitchen we have 4, count 'em FOUR trashcans. One is for clean paper and cardboard. Better rinse those paper plates before trashing them or they won't pick it up (defeats the purpose of using paper plates, doesn't it?). Another trash can is for plastic, such as yogurt containers or other packaging. Don't try to thrown that yogurt container away with a little yogurt still on it! Another can is for the food, because most people don't have garbage disposals. We have to scrape the leftover food off the plates into a little trashcan next to the sink (it's so gross). Then finally, we have a trashcan labled "Everything Else" for diapers, etc. We tend to throw a lot into "Everything Else" because we're sick of rinsing. Outside we have 3 large trash bins for all the sorted trash. They pick up yellow every other Monday, black every 2nd Monday, etc. And you can't thrown away glass. You have to drive it to the glass bins, located in almost every parking lot. They separate it into green glass, clear glass and brown glass (lots of glass juice bottles here). EX-CESS-IVE! Sheesh. But it's working, I guess! Germany is exceptionally litter-free! And beautifully green.
Health: I'm so impressed. They are all so fit and healthy here! Okay, of course not all, but the majority are in really great shape. Their way of life is to walk or ride a bike everywhere and there aren't fast food restaurants on every corner. They're active until they die, seriously. I always see older men or women (who look at least 70) riding their bikes in the park or to the store (which is miles away). And the other day I was walking on a farm road near our house and 2 elderly women with their WALKERS were taking a slow walk along the same road.
Most Germans grow vegetable gardens and the biggest meal of the day is lunch, instead of dinner. Smart.
Blitzers: Like the reindeer Blitzen, 'Blitz' means either lightening or a flash. There are random Blizers along the Autobahn and other major roads that will flash and take your picture if you're speeding. The pictures are so clear and amazingly detailed (ask me how I know!). They get the whole front of the car and the driver, then you receive your picture and ticket in the mail.
Random stuff: Germany uses the "other" forms of measurement...all the ones we don't. Milliliters, Kilometers, Celsius... Ya know how to change Celsius to Fahrenheit? Double it and add 30. If it's 7 degrees Celsius, it's approxmately 44 degrees Fahrenheit. They also use Military time, which took some getting used to. I'm finally starting to quickly recognize that 22:14 pm is 10:14 pm and 00:30 is 12:30 am.
They bring their dogs everywhere! In restaurants, even. I was in a department store recently and 2 dogs (separate owners) started fighting right in the middle of the shoe aisle. For a country that is so incredibly concerned about cleanliness, I'm a bit surprised this is acceptable.
There are cigarette machines EVERYwhere! Our village (dorf) poplation is only about 900 people and there are at least 4 here that I can think of. Unfortunately this makes it really easy for 11 year olds to go buy cigarettes, no ID necessary.
The Deutsch Post (like our USPS) doesn't pick up mail at your house. If you want to mail a letter or a bill, you have to take it to the Post Office. They do deliver incoming mail to your home, though.
Every day from 1:00 pm til 3:00 pm is quiet time. You're supposed to keep your children indoors so they're not out screaming and stuff and you can't mow the lawn during that time. It's not really enforced, it's just a known courtesy. You're also not allowed to mow your lawn on holidays or Sundays, which is odd, because that's when most people finally have time to do it.
The average German works about 30 hours a week and takes a long 4-6 week vacation in the summer. No wonder they live so long.
So there's your culture lesson for today. It can be pretty difficult to adapt to a new culture, but it's also a lot of fun! You have to just get over the notion that everything should be the way it is in America and enjoy the experience. It seems like most of my observations of German culture thus far were negative, but honestly, my perspective of the country and people as a whole is quite the opposite. I think it's a beautiful country. I appreciate how they preserve history (1,000 year old castles), how hey celebrate together all the time (if you look past all the beer, you can really appreciate how they come together to relax and be happy so often - the festivals are so cool!) and of course...the scenery is AMAZING. The word beautiful doesn't do it justice...it's beyond beautiful.
Having said ALL that...I encourage you to visit someday. You'll love it.
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