Bratwurst und Bier (Bratwurst & Beer)

Apologies to all who has been following our adventures in Europe, here is our first journal entry in Germany. It’s been about two months since I’ve officially called Germany home; it’s about time to put in a REAL entry now. Here are some of my first impressions since arriving in Germany, in no particular order and in rambling thought process.

I would say that if there were one culture that is the exact opposite of Italy that would be Germany. Germany is very clean, not a bit of trash to be found anywhere. The German people in general are reserved, respects other people’s sense of space, and very polite. Germans love organization, in almost every aspect of life. This love of organization sometimes borders on the extreme. One example of this anal retentative organization is in the way glasses are recycled. Germans are big environmentalists. Every piece of plastic, paper, and glasses are recycled. Glasses are separated by bins that are labeled by the color of the glass: green, brown, white (clear). Why they didn’t just make all glasses the same color or allow people to put glasses in one big bin is beyond me. However, after one year of living in Naples and throwing every piece of recyclable material in the garbage dump, I was happy to be able to recycle again and rejoin the civilized world.

The terrain reminds me of the Midwest, made flat by the glaciers tens of thousands of years ago. Although I would say that it is hillier than Indiana where I grew up. There are big trees everywhere and manicured lawns even in the center of the city. Pets are well cared for and welcomed to just about anywhere. We often see people bring their dogs into restaurants, shops, and trains. In fact, many stores and other establishments have water bowls for our four legged furry friends.

Some friends had warned us about the cold weather in Germany before leaving Naples. We had a taste of the winter to come in August. We had four dry days in the month of August. I was wearing sweaters and heavy socks in the middle of August. I was really starting to think that I had indeed moved to the North Pole. For a girl who had lived the past seven years in the Southwest and gotten accustomed to the warm weather, I was starting to question why in the heck we decided to move here. After a dismal August, September has been like a dream. It’s been sunny and bright just about everyday, giving us a taste of the nice weather in San Diego that we had taken for granted.

Although there are many differences between living in Germany and in Italy, there are many things that remained the same. I think the Europeans know how to enjoy life more than the Americans. Europeans live life in a slower pace, they take the time to smell the roses, and they take their annual vacations seriously. May be we can learn a thing or two from these guys and learn to relax and enjoy life at a slower pace. But then again, may be it’s exactly the kind of crazy drive that the Americans have that makes it such a great country.