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.

the search for "bier" in the usa

one of the facts about u.s. life best known to germans is the start of u.s. legal drinking age: 21. but this is just the tip of a red tape iceberg related to alcoholic beverages. passing the magic age does not guarantee to get to the fermented grains and grapes. over the past year i have experienced different situations that left me baffled.

one just happened recently when jerone and i – we both 26 years old – ventured out to get some of my favorite leinenkugel berry beer at the local walmart. after handing the six bottles of reddish liquid to the cashier, the mandatory line on the display blinked “persons under 40 must show id”. since jerone was paying, he did. this was expected although he certainly does not look like a 21 year old. the odd thing happened when i was about to grab the half a dozen bottle box and the cashier mumbled: “don’t touch or i need your id.” fortunately i didn’t understand him, too quiet, quick, and muffled, because if i had i would have broken out in laughter.
jerone took the beer and explained to me later what was going on while i had stood confused between these two guys who obviously thought it is the most normal thing to ask for an id from someone obviously over 21 to buy low-proof beer(!) – not that we wanted any liquor, god forbid! (i come to that later). but also that "the don’t touch, don’t show" policy is just a part of normal crazy u.s. shopping.

a similar incident had happened the evening before. curiously i had ordered a self-brewed wheat beer “with a kiss of cherry” at jackie o., a local athens bar. of course, i had to show my id, which i in wise foresight had tucked into my back pocket. to my surprise the bartender didn’t make a fuzz about it being german. however, i cannot remember the last time i had to show my id for anything alcohol-related in germany since i turned 16.


now to the hard stuff. in germany beer, wine, and liquor are sold in gas stations, supermarkets, little shops, cafés, restaurants, open-air festivals, you name it. i can’t tell the number of locations where you can purchase alcohol of any kind and proof in my german hometown zeitz of about 28,000 people. there are just too many. in ohio there is a division between beer and wine on one hand and liquor on the other. only one (!) store in athens, a 22,000 people town, sells high proof liquids such as whisky. it’s called lucky dog and possesses the precious retail liquor license to sell booze containing over 20% of alcohol. but again only the ones who carry an id are lucky, which is the ticket to the store. this also means that if i just accompany someone without buying anything in the lucky dog, i still need an id. occasionally i had to stay outside because I usually don’t carry my id with me.

a couple other odd things i noticed with regard to alcohol. once upon a year ago i had the idea to buy a bottle of wine on a sunday morning in preparation for some gathering later that night. but how could i have had such a naughty thought when at the same time the pious ones pray in church. no, no, no – no alcohol before noon on sundays, said the cashier. baffled i had to return half hour later.

as teenager i went out with friends to our favorite chinese restaurant in zeitz every now and then. the waitress always greeted us with a shot of low-proof plum wine for each of us. i never drank it because i didn’t like the taste then. fast forward a dozen years later to a lovely chinese restaurant in a detroit suburb. meanwhile i appreciate exotic wine and looked forward to such an aperitif. however, again stubbornly id-less as usual, the pleasure was denied to my palate. even the persistent guarantee of the kind elderly person (with id), who invited me to such nice meal, that I am over 21 and that he would take responsibility could not convince the smiling waitress to budge an inch on the issue. so it was. as a comfort i clandestinely took sips of the warm saké offered by the id-carriers at the table whenever our waitress was out of sight. the saké came in cute little egg-shaped bottles with a black plastic cap to be used as cup. but to buy such a glass bottle from the restaurant – even empty – was impossible. so sorry, we don’t sell them, it’s against the law, said the smiling waitress.

ps: of course, no alcohol in the public anywhere in the usa, including u.s. public parks (and they close at 11p.m. sharp, too). brown bags need to be wrapped around any closed and sealed bottle of alcohol to transport them from shop to car to home to somewhere. gone are the german days when we would ride in the street car playing guitar, sipping red wine, laughing and singing all the way. yes, it is disgusting when people almost drown in beer and use public transportation at the same time. but the occasional package of beer bought in a bar on the way to a party or peaceful bonfires with bratwurst and beer in leipzig’s parks i do miss.

ps2: the u.s. american sitting next to me says there is no story to write about here. you don’t drink in public or until 21 and show an id every time afterwards. period. very normal, he says.

un-bashing u.s. life

recently a reader of my blog directed my attention to the trend that in the topics i write about i seem to highlight more the negative features on the u.s. side in comparison to rather positive german features. something i was not aware of.

distance makes the heart grow fonder. with my home country being an ocean and a some land miles away i might eye it more favorably. probably often unjustified. for one thing, it is the peanut butter affect: only when you grow up with it you can appreciate its wonderful flavor.

so it goes with me. yes, germany does not have free water fountains and every bit of h2o in restaurants has a price. yes, in germany technology, clothing and cosmetics costs more; germany's sales tax is currently at 19%. and of course, gas in germany costs more than triple the us price (* see a price comparison at the bottom of this entry). yes, germany is a service desert and an unfriendly secretary the default expectation.

but since i grew up in these conditions they don't come to my mind right away. i've soaked them up by every cell, often unquestioned. socialization is the first underlying. it is connected to the next one: ignorance. natives just know stuff but often neglect the why. i follow that rule. being german is my baseline and everything i do is in comparison to that. the german way might not be better but i silently assume it is because i often don't know much about different systems in germany.

where does the cobble stone in my home town come from?
how much ethanol produces that plant outside our city?
where does all the meticously sorted trash go (and is it lumped together again)?

i don't know.

for u.s. culture i have a different approach. i learn it like grammar: many rules, too many exceptions, a lot of confusion.

why is there a fitted and a lose sheet?
why is dental insurance not part of health insurance?
why are there only one-year contracts for renting an apartment?

so i question paradoxes, ask for background, scrutinize every bit and piece to fit them into a growing picture of the usa at work. this process always in front of in a german blueprint as a background: how windows should look like, buildings built, rent paid, insurance guaranteed, and beds to be made...

i know english grammer better than german. the latter i had to study in school but never followed it because i just knew. no asking needed. but not knowing the system makes one susceptible to forgetting about disadvantages and gaps. they are just ignored or gone around because there is a way to get by. surrounded by others with this mind frame this creates comfortable living.

in apology for some skewed blogging, a list of some u.s. things i really appreciate in daily life:

• the u.s. university (a topic for a separate post)
  
• when i step on someone's toe, the person i probably injured apologizes to me (of course, i apologize, too)
  
• the bread and butter pickles from frogranch are unbeatably tasty
• stamps are much cheaper
• and so is my favorite shampoo
• highway restrooms are super clean
• nobody ever says “you can’t do this”, it is always a “just do it”
• s’mores!: a sticky candy bar made from cookies and hershey’s chocolate glued together by melted marshmallows roasted over a cozy bonfire on a metal stick
• the self check-out at kroger supermarket
• the machine wringing my swimsuit automatically after lap time
• the deal hunting in an all season sales environment
• watching my favorite shows in original language
• less complaining or whining in miserable situations
• deep fried onion rings
• the free newspapers (3!) on campus
• free food on many occastions: conferences, weekly church lunches, ice-cream socials, movie screenings, orientations, international coffee hours, green network meetings, fairs...
• the consequent non-smoking policy for bars, restaurants & public buildings in ohio
• the one month only period for a landlord to return the deposit (six months in germany)
  
• my 8$ lawyer that comes with my university
  

to be continued ...

* gas on both sides of the atlantic

germany:

• 1 liter or roughly a quart = 1.49 euro or $2.32
• 1 gallon or roughly four liter = 5.96 euro or $9.29

usa:

• 1 gallon is on average $4 or 2.56 euro
• 1 liter then $1 or 0.64 euro

a u.s. mind on germany

after having returned from germany over a month ago, jerone has found time to upload pictures about his visit to my home country.

the photos include our trips to weimar (including the buchenwald concentration camp), leipzig, dresden, thueringen, and zeitz (including underground zeitz). to germans some pictures might seem banal, however, they struck jerone's u.s. american eye as unusual, neat, or interesting.

ps: when you click on the individual pictures you can read some captions in the first few sets.

letters from tuscany -- a u.s. girl in italy

during the last quarter i ran into a mirror image: a u.s. girl that moved to europe, namely italy (in contrast to me, a european i.e. german moving to the usa).

her name is natalie and she also started a blog to share her experience in florence with the public. okay, i admit she is partially italian since her family comes from there. but, she lived her life in the usa except for a few crucial visits back to bella italia which brought her to rethink what she wants to do with her life and where.

you can read more of natalie's fresh european start in her journalistic letters from tuscany -- an informative, insightful blog with pictures, slide shows and insides into Italian life, may it be festivals, delicious ice cream or even romance.

plus, she updates her blog more often than i update mine. :)

german media in english

my favorite news source about german events in english, independent major german media:

spiegel (engl.: mirror)

spiegel magazine is one of germany's most important political publications. it's website is usually fast in updating breaking news. plus it features an english site reporting about german and international matters from a german perspective but in english language.

it is a good place to go to learn about what is currently debated in germany and also offers reports and comments on the u.s. election campaign from time to time from a german perspective.

* * *

tagesschau (engl.: view of the day)

the tagesschau is one of the two major public-legal german newscasts. is it broadcasted by the ard broadcasting consortium. ard stands for arbeitsgemeinschaft der oeffentlich-rechtlicher rundfunkanstalten der bundesrepublik deutschland which means in english: consortium of public-legal broadcasting institutions of the federal republic of germany.

however, it is legally independent of any german government. germans pay a monthly fee to a special broadcasting commission. if they own a television to fund the many ard media outlets. it's signature newscast tagesschau is seen as one of the most reliable news sources on german television.

the tagesschau english website features news about the world and current affairs.


official german media but useful websites:

deutsche welle (engl.: german wave)

deutsche welle is comparable to the voice of america in the sense that it is germany's official mouthpiece. germans pay for it through taxes. it was founded in 1953 to convey "german and other positions on important issues, chiefly from politics, the arts and economics".

deutsche welle director-general erik bettermann wraps it up: "deutsche welle is germany's media calling card for the world."

the deutsche welle website is nicely organized and offers news on world, european, and german issues.

* * *

bundesregierung.de (engl.: federal government)

this is the official website of the german federal government. it gives updates in english about politics and events, e.g. obama in berlin, germany and iraq.

together with the deutsche welle this might give you an idea what federal german politicians are up to and how they view what is happening in germany but also how germany relates to issues and countries worldwide.


other websites with good service for german news:

signandsight.com

i just recently bumped into this website and it seems to be an interesting service: translating worthy articles by non-english writers into english. it is not only focused on germany but includes news about it and is provided by a german company. the editors write in the about section:

"signandsight.com gathers voices from across Europe on a variety of topics, aiming to foster trans-European debates and the creation of a European public space.

signandsight.com is the English language service of perlentaucher.de, the largest cultural online magazine in German language. 2003 perlentaucher.de has won the Grimme Award, Germany's most prestigious media prize."

especially their weekly feature "from the feuilletons" gives a neat summary of what was dicussed in the cultural sections of german newspapers. it is published every friday around 3pm.

plus the website offers a key to german newspapers with short english descriptions what the publication is about.

* * *

thelocal.de

this seems to be a very nice website, well organized in the style of an online newspaper featuring a great range of reports on german issues of all areas. it also provides news about europe, little polls, and a most read section. however, be aware, the spelling is in british english.

by the way, it is owned by a swedish company according to their own information but is based in berlin.


websites with some news on germany:

german times

this website is part of a website called world news network founded in 1995, gone online in 1998. it offers a wide range of topics on germany mixed with general international news.

the german times is a little overwhelming at first with lots of colors and different sections but offers some regional news for german cities, too. i have to admit not to be too familiar with it but it seems to be another source that might prove useful.

* * *

expatica.com

expatica's website offers a limited selection of headlines about german events since it also provides news about europe. however, the website is well arranged and easy to navigate. expatica is a company based in the netherlands and targets german emigrants.

44 for sure

as german and us media have trumpeted all over the place, us presidential candidate senator barack obama (d-illinois) has made it to berlin. i thought it might be interesting for some of you to read in english how german journalists interpret his visit.

one of the most important political media is the weekly spiegel magazine (spiegel meaning mirror) modeled after the us time magazine. is offers an english website which features articles about obama's visit. in a spiegel opinion piece the magazine sounds certain that he will become the 44th us president.

"Europe is witnessing the 44th president of the United States during this trip. Anyone who listens to him realizes that he is not only ambitious but will also make demands. In the inner circles of Angela Merkel's Chancellery, he is reportedly seen as a pleasant person, one who arouses curiosity."

more on the spiegel assessment of barack obama's berlin speech.

spiegel also published an article on the reactions of german politicians to his visit including berlin's mayor klaus wowereit.

"The speech of a global citizen," "perfect performance," an "homage to Berlin" -- After Thursday's big Obama show at Berlin's Siegessäule, German politicians seem quite impressed by the US candidate's performance. "This will strengthen the trans-Atlantic bridge," said veteran politician Edmund Stoiber."

more on spiegel's round up of german politicians' views on obama