Glass, Steel & Pork -- Germany From a U.S. Perspective

Albeit Jerone and my trip to Germany is already over a month a way, I wanted to to record some of the observations and thoughts that Jerone had during the trip. Here is a guest post reversing my usual take on the world (viewing the USA via German eyes) looking at my home country with U.S. glasses.

Glass, Steel & Pork -- Germany From a U.S. Perspective

by Jerone Anderson

Germany is a land of history which can be seen everywhere. In almost any city there are buildings, which date back at least five centuries. The age is reflected in the architecture more than anything since most of the old buildings have been kept up quite nicely with plenty of modern wiring and new coats of paint. Even the floor plans of old buildings have been changed inside to accommodate modern living while the outside of the buildings and their foundations often remain as they were made originally.

The history of Germany’s role in the wars of the western world is also easily discernable. World War II landmarks of battlefields, concentration camps, destroyed churches and other remnants from the past are well marked and open to the public often with plenty of information for tourists to peruse.

My first impression of Germany was made when I arrived in Frankfurt. I was greeted by a rather confusing array of hallways leading through a labyrinth, which eventually passed through security and arrived at the departure gate for the next flight. Departures from German airports are a bit unusual because usually you can’t see the plane at the gate. Instead the departure gate will open and you will be directed down some kind of path, which usually ends at a bus. While this creates a lot of hurry up and wait to get on the bus, travel to the plane and then unload the bus and load the plane with passengers, it does allow more flexibility in where boarding of planes can occur. Also unlike when baggage is loaded into planes in the US and only 1/3 of the barcodes are read to check bags onto the flight, it appears that the Germans are more conscientious and check for every bag which probably helps keep costs down since every bag that gets lost costs around $120 to the airline.

The airports like almost any other modern building in Austria or Germany are filled with an architecture, which is made up of metal and glass. This is more than just a lot of glass windows; there are glass floors with corresponding glass ceilings as well as glass railings and glass inner walls. The sliding doors, which are of course made of glass, make a unique whooshing noise whenever they open and close. The effect of all the metal and glass can seem out of taste particularly given the cultural and architectural heritage of Europe as a whole. To me it appears as a rebellion against classical architecture, a determination to appear modern.

When I arrived in Munich at the airport I was able to send my first text message within the German cell phone network. Since German phones have this peculiar requirement of having pin codes to activate them every time they are turned on, it took a bit before the phone was ready to send anything and by this time all the other passengers arriving had vanished up the escalator. Unlike in the US where passengers mill around almost everywhere in the airports, Germans are determined to get where they are going without wasting unnecessary time and thus it was completely vacant where I had arrived. To make a short story long I noticed all these things and figured I had better do as the hurried Germans do and start rushing off to my next gate lest the two and half hour layover not offer enough time to cross the airport. The escalator however had stopped by this time having delivered its last hurried passenger up to the top and I assumed some energy conscious airport people had decided to do so. This was a bit annoying so I walked up to the stopped escalator and was determined to walk up it just to show it that I was not to be perturbed. It magically started up again however and I was soon to learn that automatic sensors for escalators and people movers are more common in Germany than in the US where we insist on needlessly running these devices when nobody is in sight. The people movers for instance which appear slow at first look, will wake up and move much faster if you step on them.
My arrival into Leipzig was quite convenient as the many customs booths were not in use and thus my luggage could be carried directly to the train, which conveniently connects right near baggage claim. Buying a ticket however is more complicated because if you are traveling within the city your ticket may need to not only be purchased but also devalued in a separate machine before it can be used on the train. If the ticket is to be used immediately and you devalue it then it is useless, if the ticked is purchased days before and you forget to devalue it when boarding then it is useless. You have to devalue the ticket or not devalue it at just the right times which hopefully your German companions can discern for you.

Once I arrived and spent some time in Leipzig and Zeitz there were other things, which I observed. I noticed that the people, despite a desire for organic foods, control over pesticides and genetic modification, tend to live in a manner, which is quite unhealthy on average. Most foods in the grocery store are made to be so sweet as to make your dentist delight at the extra business he would soon expect.

There is a tremendous amount of pork, which for all the fat and calories is usually something that Americans try to eat in moderation. Ground pork, sliced pork, sliced pork specifically for schnitzel, pork sausage, pork bratwurst, pork knackwurst etc are not uncommon and many more varieties are likely. Finding beef is quite a project however since the selection and demand has almost disappeared after fears over mad cow disease. There are at least as many frozen dinners, frozen pizzas, and processed foods in a typical German grocery store as there are in the US. The selection of many things is unmatched even in a large US grocery store. The variety of cheeses, the variety of ketchups, mustards, frozen pizzas and chocolate at the Kaufland is unmatched at any store I have been to in the US. The selection of other things is however limited. Salad dressings are not so common for instance. The same industrial food ingredients including the natural flavor and the mysterious ingredient “aroma” are present in most of them. The organic “Bio”-foods solve some of these concerns but are quite pricey. Bread is more ubiquitous than in the US and a decent bakery is likely just around the corner. The number of pastries is quite impressive and many of them are quite tasty and innovative. However the easy availability of sweet high calorie and sometimes artificial ingredients in food may help explain the growing obesity epidemic.

The variety of Döner Kebab Gyro shops is extensive and serves as the dominant fast food in the country. Some are very tasty and have red cabbage on them and often have the option of sheep cheese on top of all the vegetables and garlic yogurt sauce. Depending on the shop this is a very nice option for lunch. I would stay away from the shops run by Chinese people however. Something about Chinese cooking tradition in general is not compatible making Chinese food and Greek food in the same shop.

Smoking in Germany seems to be more common and more accepted than in the US. Many Germans smoke, most states don’t have a ban on smoking in restaurants and bars, and those that do don’t enforce the ban. This was my first really obvious example the Germans don’t really expect all their laws to be enforced. It would be almost impossible to do so given the lack of police in the country in general. Driving down the road a policeman is quite rare and almost everyone speeds with impunity.

Driving is quite an experience since the roads, including the autobahns are quite small. Rarely is there a shoulder or a median, the lines on the road are all the same color and there is no color distinction or double line to indicate where the division is for oncoming traffic. This leads to many accidents and long backups since without medians or shoulders there is nowhere convenient to put the cars, which get into accidents on the road.