Life In Germany

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Life in Germany

Secret crushes... German style

May 25th 2008 21:01

Maybe I'm writing this post a bit late, but it's still relevant because the merry month of May hasn't ended yet.

In Germany, May means spring. It also means putting up a "Maibaum" or "May tree", especially if you're a young man.

What is a May tree, you ask?

Without explaining the ENTIRE tradition -- as it has a few different varieties across the different regions -- I will just focus on explaining the one I observed in our part of Germany, i.e. the city of Bonn.

On the 1st of May I noticed that all these small cut-down trees decorated with ribbons had suddenly popped up in front of random houses overnight. What on earth was that?

Apparently, on the last night of April, young men have the chance to show their feelings towards the girls they like. They cut down a smallish tree (usually a birch) and decorate it with colourful crepe-paper ribbons and a heart made of wood or cardboard with the name of the crush written on it. Then they prop the tree up against the house of the desired lady and... ta-da!... the girl should get the message.

A month later, the young bachelor is supposed to take down the tree he put up. At this point, if he's lucky, his crush will invite him out on a date... or give him a case of beer (hey, this IS Germany). Traditionally, he can also receive a cake from the crush's mother and a case of beer (damn, this tree really pays off!) from the father. And I suspect that after all this he'll be high on either love or booze... or both. Either way, it's not a bad deal.

Oh, and this tradition is not ONLY for secret crushes. Apparently, guys can dedicate the tree to their girlfriends -- just to show their feelings in that romantic, environmentally-unfriendly way. Also, during leap years, the situation is reversed and girls can give May trees to guys.

I haven't been living in Germany for very long, and I haven't personally received or given a May tree. Then again, I think giving one would be way better... because I could at least expect one case of beer in return.

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Is this too honest?

March 16th 2008 20:34

Today I wanted to attend a fun-sounding exhibition in Bonn, which was supposed to feature over 300 live reptiles (including freaky things like anacondas) and other scary creatures, such as scorpions and two-headed turtles.

Just before leaving I realised that I had no cash on me, so I walked all the way to town (exercise is always healthy after all) to withdraw some money. It was a grey and wet day, and as I was walking the rain intensified.

When I finally got to town, the ATM decided to make my life difficult. I technically had enough cash on my account to withdraw, but after allowing me to enter my pin and asking how much I wanted, it kept giving me the message that "due to a technical problem, this request cannot be processed. Please see one of our staff". Of course there is no staff present on Sundays, so I tried all the other ATMs in that branch, only to get the same weird message from all of them.

Anyway, with no money for the bus or for the entry fee, I quickly realised that there was nothing for me to do but go back home. It was raining cats and dogs -- not what you'd call a typical "spring shower", but rather a torrential downpour. I waited around for a bit, but it didn't ease, so I decided to just walk back home anyway. The tiny umbrella that I had with me was not really sufficient for such crazy precipitation.

Now, here is where the honesty part comes in. I COULD have just taken the bus home without a ticket to avoid getting wet. The risk of getting caught on a bus without a ticket in Germany is very low. BUT my nagging honest self somehow preferred to walk for 25 minutes in heavy rain instead of "robbing" the bus company of €1.50. I always get an incredible pang of guilt when I don't buy a ticket. This guilt is clearly more unpleasant to me than squelching, wet shoes.

As a result of my honesty, I got home feeling like a little rain cloud myself. Due to the small diameter of my umbrella, I'd had to make compromises such as "either my handbag gets soaked, or my left arm gets soaked". Naturally, it was my left arm that was dripping wet.

Anyway, there was a lot to hang out to dry. And I asked myself if all this was really worth not taking one unpaid bus ride. Am I crazy or am I just good? Or have I spent too long in rule-abiding German society to be capable of doing anything even slightly rebellious?

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A winter storm... and a scary plane landing

March 7th 2008 15:42

Last Saturday (March 1, 2008), a huge low pressure storm system called Emma brought gale-force winds to Germany and Central Europe, causing widespread damage and killing several people. Most notably, it wreaked havoc on the nation's roads and railways, with fallen trees leading to numerous accidents.

In the wee hours of Saturday morning (at least not a working day for most!), winds of up to 222 kilometres per hour were recorded in some areas, including the Alps. They were accompanied by heavy showers throughout the country.

Luckily, living in the city of Bonn, I didn't get to experience much of this chaos, probably due to our sheltered lowland location. Nevertheless, my boyfriend and I were woken up at 3am by one massive clap of thunder (which, strangely, was not followed by any further thunder).

Anyway, what prompted me to write this post was the hair-raising footage I found on YouTube of a plane trying to land at Hamburg airport (northern Germany) in the midst of Emma's windy rage. It avoided catastrophe by only a narrow margin.

Click here to see the video of a plane trying to land at Hamburg airport

If you have a fear of flying, I recommend that you don't watch this!

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A piece of Japan

March 6th 2008 15:29

I took a little trip to Düsseldorf this week -- a relatively large German city on the Rhine river. I went there with the intention of exploring the "Japanese area", since Düsseldorf has the third-largest Japanese community in Europe after London and Paris. Many Japanese companies and banks have their branches there.

The Japanese district is located only a few hundred metres from the main train station, centred around Immermann Straße. Once you're there, you suddenly feel like you've been teleported to Japan. Even the aromas inside the shops (not sure if it was the products or the people) immediately took me on a mental journey back to the time I spent in Tokyo.

I suddenly felt guilty for not being able to speak Japanese -- and like a total outsider. I walked into a local snack shop and the lady behind the counter greeted me with "ohayou gozaimasu", to which I stupidly replied "hallo!". (I actually DO know how to say "good morning" in Japanese, but I was scared she might think I can actually speak it. And THEN I would have felt like a moron.)

And I was simply overjoyed that I was able to purchase all the same weird and wacky edible stuff that I saw in Japan: ready-to-drink canned coffee, some odd nibble snacks with a shady-looking detective on the packaging, canned green tea, some exotic beer from northern Japan, coffee-flavoured chewing gum and, last but not least, a corn-soup-flavoured snack bar (!).

As you can clearly see, it was worth the trip. At least now I know where to go when I want a nostalgic experience that reminds me of the month I spent working in Tokyo.

Just on a side note -- that area is probably the only place outside of Berlin where you can buy Berlin souvenirs. I am guessing that those Japanese businessmen have such busy schedules that they need a convenient location where they can purchase trinkets from all parts of Germany without actually having to travel there.

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What is your favourite airline?

March 2nd 2008 18:24

Mine's NOT Lufthansa, that's for sure.

I returned to Germany a couple of weeks ago after a pleasant summer visit to my hometown, Sydney. On my long journey back to Europe I flew with Lufthansa (the German airline) from Singapore to Frankfurt for the second time in my life. And I was surprised and disappointed to find that (four years after the last time I flew them), the plane STILL didn't have personal screens and a personal entertainment system for every passenger in economy class. Instead, small and widely separated screens hung high above the aisle, showing some dull nature documentaries that practically no-one was watching.

Now, I might sound like some kind of spoilt, whinging brat, but after numerous journeys across the world I have a very firm opinion that a good entertainment system on a plane plays a great role in making a 13-hour flight a lot more pleasant.

After an exhausting day/night of packing your suitcase and a stressful check-in queue at the airport (not to mention teary farewells), there is nothing nicer than sinking into your plane seat and relaxing with a good movie. Alas, this time I did not have this opportunity.

And how about Lufthansa's in-flight magazine? Dull as powder. Even the safety instruction sheet was a more exciting read. This was yet another disappointment, because I am always keen to devour a good in-flight mag from cover to cover. However, in this particular instance, I got from cover to cover in about 30 seconds, after not finding a single article that caught my attention. Yawn.

To top everything off, I woke up groggy and with a queasy stomach two hours before landing, only to be greeted with a breakfast that included a seemingly artificial (or repeatedly reconstituted) sausage, which forced me to slam the aluminium lid back in horror.

Poor Lufthansa. I'm being so mean. To be fair, I can admit that the flight attendants were very friendly, which is at least something positive.

And what are my favourite airlines, you ask? I haven't flown with all the airlines in the world, of course, but from the ones I have, here are the highlights:

ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM:
Qantas and Scandinavian Airlines
FOOD:
Thai Airways and Scandinavian Airlines
SERVICE:
Singapore Airlines and Scandinavian Airlines
IN-FLIGHT MAGAZINE:
Scandinavian Airlines ("Scanorama") -- best by far!

OK, there is obviously a recurring name in there.

And you have probably guessed what my favourite airline is by now. And maybe this airline is one of the reasons why I prefer to enter Europe through Denmark.

After all, where else can you enjoy a delicious smoked-reindeer wrap in the middle of the night (while most of the other passengers are asleep), served by a smiling stewardess who comes around one hour later and also gives you chocolates? That's Scandinavian service for you!

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Can you judge a guy by his apartment?

January 21st 2008 13:32

In Germany, there is this one reality show that I really like to watch. I can't remember what it's called, but its main aim is to find a nice date for some single girl (a different one in each episode).

The way it works is that the girl visits the apartments of four different guys (while they are not there, of course) and makes various judgements about those men based on the neatness, decorative style and general ambience of their apartments. Among many other things, she makes assumptions about whether they are romantic or not, what they must look like and what their hobbies are. In the end, she must pick one of them as her chosen date before she finds out which apartment belongs to whom.

It's a fun show to watch, but it also got me thinking. Does a man's (or anyone's) apartment necessarily reflect a lot about them? For example, what if someone is just not into decorating because they are busy pursuing other interests? Could we wrongly assume that this person is boring or lazy?

Girls and guys, what is your view on this?

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You call THIS a bus stop?

January 15th 2008 13:49

A Sydney bus stop

I am back home in Sydney at the moment, enjoying the glorious summer weather. I go to the beach with my friends a lot, and each time I'm happily floating in the blue waters of the Pacific, I actively appreciate what an incredibly pleasant sensation it is compared to walking around on a frosty, grey day.

Now, as lovely as it is to be in Oz again, I can't help but ALSO notice a few things that annoy me about this country. One of them is the suburban Sydney bus stops.

I was walking around a nice North Shore suburb with my friend two weeks ago, and noticed that familiar yellow sign that indicates a bus stop (which is already a lot by Aussie standards, since many stops have absolutely no signage whatsoever). But I also realised for the first time how incredibly uninformative this sign is.

There's a metal pole with a yellow shield with the picture of a little man getting into a bus... and that's it. No name of the bus stop. No indication of which bus lines stop there. No timetable.

And the bus stops in more populated areas aren't much better. They might mention what bus numbers stop there, but not where those buses go.

That's one great thing about Germany: no matter where you are, no matter how quiet the street, the bus stop will always have a proper name and a very thorough, detailed timetable for all the days of the week. It even tells you how long it takes to reach all the other bus stops on a particular route (!). You don't need to visit a transport website, you don't need to harass the driver -- the bus stop itself will inform you where you can go from there and when. Ah, the convenience.

And yes, bus stops having actual names is an incredibly good idea. Another good idea is visual or vocal announcements in the bus itself, letting you know which stop is coming up next. This is ESPECIALLY useful when you're heading to an unfamiliar destination after dark, and it prevents awkward verbal exchanges with the driver, such as the one I had earlier this year:

ME: Does this bus stop on Military Road?
DRIVER: Yes. Which stop on Military Road do you want?
ME: Well, I need to get off at the Hayden Orpheum cinema, which is somewhere on Military Road. Is there a stop near there?
DRIVER: Yes.
ME: OK, that's the one I want to go to.
DRIVER: Right, that will be $2.00.
ME: Could you please warn me when that stop is coming up so that I won't miss it?
DRIVER: All right.

(15 minutes later)
DRIVER: Cinema!!
ME: (Squeezing through the crowd.) Yes, yes... that's me!

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What do you miss about Australia?

December 20th 2007 17:23

After spending five months in Germany, I am heading back to summery Sydney this weekend to enjoy Christmas with my family and to go on yet another fun-filled holiday to Noosa on the Sunshine Coast.

I will continue blogging while I'm Down Under because this actually lends itself wonderfully to reflecting on various experiences and making amusing observations about the differences between Australia and Germany. I will return to Germany at the start of February.

Anyhow, after leaving good old Oz for a substantial period of time once again, I am really starting to realise what I miss the most about our sunburnt country when I'm away (and, funnily enough, it's not the sunburn).

So, here it goes -- my TOP TEN THINGS TO MISS ABOUT AUSTRALIA:

1. The laid-back people. (It's such a cliche, but so true! I find people in Australia are definitely more open, spontaneous and friendly than most other nations.)

2. Stunning Sydney. (And I don't care if I'm just biased because I am from there.

)

3. The prevelance of sunny weather. (I actually like cold temps, but what bothers me in Europe is the amount of grey, depressing days.)

4. Being able to go on a tropical beach holiday in an idyllic setting without leaving my own country. (Germans are especially jealous of that because they love beaches and warm places.)

5. The huge amount of Asian restaurants and their superior quality. (Finding a decent Thai eatery in Germany is a struggle. And most Chinese stuff I've tasted here does not compare to Chinese in Oz.)

6. The beautiful birds that we see on a daily basis in our suburbs and backyards, e.g. cockatoos, rosellas, lorikeets. (Most people can only see them in the zoo.)

7. Shops being open on Sundays.

8. Carols in the Domain.

9. Bondi Burgers at Oporto.

10. Twist-off beer caps!

Some of the things I DON'T miss about Oz include: the bugs and spiders, the lousy public transport system, getting really sunburnt, the bushfires, and the super-expensive food and alcohol (so much cheaper in Germany!). But I won't dwell on these negatives because they are far outweighed by the positives.

All you fellow Aussie Orblers and travellers, what do YOU miss most about your country while you are away?

Dee Why Beach, Sydney

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Vegetarians -- do not read this!

December 17th 2007 13:12

Warning: if you think eating baby animals is evil, you will be appalled by this story.

I went to an unusual dinner party on Friday night. It was supposed to be a birthday treat for a girl we are friends with. The thing that made this dinner unusual was that it had a special theme: a medieval feast.

The restaurant that organised this party had obviously gone to a lot of trouble to create an authentic medieval dining experience. Hay was strewn all over the large wooden table as decoration and the crockery consisted of heavy ceramic bowls and cups. Instead of modern metal spoons, thick wooden spoons awaited those who were keen to try the soup.

The entree itself was very generous, consisting of strings of sausages, large slices of salami and freshly-cut onions, tomatoes, carrots and radish that you could eat as much or as little of as you pleased. Then came the giant pot of soup, filled with deliciously greasy chunks of meat, potatoes, carrots and barley.

And then... the spectacular main course: a whole piglet roasted to perfection. It came complete with a head and tail, which were just as beautifully baked as the rest of it.

I was slightly shocked and reluctant. This was the first time in my life that I was being confronted with an entire animal served as a meal. I looked at the piglet's closed eyes and pointy little ears and thought, "The poor thing..."

I then leaned over to my boyfriend and whispered, "How do they kill them? Not brutally, I hope!"

To which he replied, "Don't worry -- they are quickly and painlessly electrocuted. Other methods are illegal in Germany."

Before I could hesitate any longer, a sizeable chunk of the piglet was placed on my plate, its tempting aroma wafting up to my nostrils and awakening the merciless carnivore inside me. "Dig in!", someone next to me enthused.

All of a sudden, my mouth was filled with a tender, juicy, delicious piece of meat. As I chewed and swallowed with pleasure, the piglet's cruel fate was a distant memory somewhere beyond the horizon. "Give me more pig meat!”, I commanded with a grin.

As we continued to devour the piglet (together with its skin, which tasted exactly like crunchy fried bacon), I felt like a happy savage at a true medieval feast. Kudos to the restaurant for creating such an authentic experience.

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Instructions for morons

December 4th 2007 20:09

Clear, detailed instructions are great thing, aren't they? Well, yes -- as long as they don't insult your intelligence.

Germans love instructions -- clear, detailed instructions. Because instructions make things run efficiently. And because instructions prevent people from being able to use the "I didn't know" excuse when they do something wrong. For this reason, there are a lot of signs in public places (such as parks, train stations, you name it) telling you what to do and what not to do. Most of the time they are actually quite useful, but sometimes... well... just consider the example described below.

I went to a public indoor swimming pool in Bonn one day. In the ladies' changeroom I noticed a sign on the wall that contained complete instructions for what to do before and after swimming. The "after" part contained instructions that sounded something like this:

"At home: Wash your towel and rinse your swimming costume. Hang everything out to dry."

What a stunning example of wasting space with something that 99% of people with an IQ above 80 would already know. I was speechless.

My boyfriend tried to defend the poor sign-writer's case with something along the lines of: "Hey, remember that most Germans do not come from a beach-culture city like Sydney. Swimming might be something they only do occasionally, so these instructions might not be 100% obvious to them."

Well, I only have one response to that: rubbish.

Here is my logic:

That particular pool ain't no kiddie pool -- therefore you can safely assume that practically everyone who goes there knows how to swim. And just the fact that they know how to swim indicates that they have already swum quite a few times in their life. And even a few times are enough to know exactly what to with your togs and towel once your bathing experience is over. What's more, this is a first-world country for goodness sake.

Good old Germans and their instructions... *sigh* Then again, I guess it's nice to see that even the least bright individuals are catered for in this society. Isn't that what caring and tolerance are all about after all?

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May 2008

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March 2008

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