THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE UGLY 8-28-05

THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE UGLY
8-28-05

I just wanted to write about some of the differences between Germany and the USA, while it’s still fresh in my mind, and while I still notice them. So here goes some random thoughts, in no particular order:
1. Milk in a box, that you buy on a shelf and not a refrigerator: I’m already seeing the wisdom in this one. Milk here has been processed some way so it has an almost indefinite shelf life – great in that I can buy milk and store it in the cupboard. But still, this one is a little weird. Who likes warm milk?
2. Traffic signals on my side of the intersection: When I’m driving I have to be careful not to pull too far into the intersection or I can’t see the signal. It’s not across the intersection like at home but on my side. Not bad, just requires a little practice. (and one or two times when everyone honks at me b/c I am not going, b/c I didn’t know the light had turned green).
3. No ice: Now this one makes me sad. When you order a coke here it comes at about room temp., with no ice. There’s no icemaker at home, just a few ice cube trays. While this one is certainly not enough to make me cut short my term of service here in Germany, it does make me miss all that shaved ice in a big, tall Coke from the Varsity.
4. No sweet tea: Unless I make it.
5. Peanut butter cheetos and sugar on popcorn: Disturbing, I know, but I’ve encountered both of these snacks. While not as bad as one might think, with a little mental preparation they can be quite nice. But it’s sooooo disappointing when you are expecting cheesy cheese puffs, or salty, buttery popcorn.
6. Less customer service, and less tipping – The Germans are not known for their great customer service at stores and restaurants, and I can confirm this through experience. The upside is that at restaurants they bug you less, you can stay as long as you want, they only bring you the check when you ask for it and you are only obligated to tip an insanely small amount.
7. No Diet Coke: While not entirely true, I do have to work to find diet coke. So far I’ve only found one store that even carries it or a knock off. And I have yet to find a restaurant with it.
8. No canned soft drinks: The Germans are so big on recycling that they just don’t sell cans of soda anymore. Not enough people bothered to recycle them. Most drinks are in liter containers, which are smaller than the 2L at home, but fit better in my smaller fridge. (see my post: Living Less) And sadly, soft drinks here are much more expensive. Most Germans, from what I can tell, drink less as a whole, but drink more fruit juices.
9. Chocolate: I have to say, the chocolate here is out of this world! And because everyone walks everywhere there’s less guilt in indulging, which the Germans seem to do much more of than Americans. Everywhere I go people are eating cookies, ice cream, cake or candy. But if the American stuff tasted this good, we’d probably be eating more sweets too.
10. No smiles or waving on the street: This one is tough for this Southern girl. When walking through town, you don’t look other people in the eye, wave or greet them unless you know them. Sometimes I’ll play a game where I wave anyway, just to see if I can get anyone to respond. So far I’m losing big time. The culture here is just relationally cooler (at least with strangers and acquaintances) than in America. They’d probably say their culture is more authentic and sincere, since they save their affections for their true friends.