Those Crazy Germans: 5 Things to Expect When Visiting Germany

Someone once said that the only thing wrong with France was the French. Is it any different in Germany, France's northern neighbor? Unfortunately, not really.

Now, don't get me wrong: I've lived in Germany for a few years. I've had great German friends, and I can tell you that Germans can be incredibly witty, sarcastic, cultural, and intellectual. Still. If you're planning on visiting Germany, you should be prepared for certain things.

1.) bluntness

Germans can be blunt. If a German doesn't like what you're wearing, he or she won't hesitate to tell you. They think it's for your own sake. So don't get offended: it just means they care about you. Or at least that you're on speaking terms.

2.) opinions

Like the trait above, having opinions isn't necessarily a bad thing. After the obvious catastrophe that led to WWII (in which thousands of Germans did not express their opinions against Hitler), German schools have done an extraordinarily good job of preventing this kind of thing from happening in the future. In other words every German child knows how to argue. In fact when teachers assign homework (which they do surprisingly little), it's not at all unusual for the whole class to protest, and even to convince the teachers not to assign any. Just be prepared for the occasional rants from time to time.

3.) recycling

Ok. This is not a bad thing. But even the strongest Green Party supporters here will be a bit daunted at having to decide in which of the seven or so bins to place garbage.

4.) open windows

We're quite fond of using air conditioners and heaters to regulate the temperature. In this regard Germans are closer to nature. You'll seldom find air conditioners, but even on the coldest days German housewives across the country have no problem flinging open windows in their homes. Whereas American homes are built often out of wood, their German counterparts are constructed out of more durable material (e.g. stone). Houses need to breath, or at least the people in them.

5.) closed doors

For whatever reason, Germans close their doors. Walking into an American dorm, you'll notice that most of the students' doors are open. Walking into a German one, they're closed. This doesn't mean that they're all antisocial, they just like their privacy. (Or, on second thought, that they've all been raised in German houses, where doors are closed, to protect against the wind blowing in from the open windows.) So do knock.

Of course none of these things mean that you can't have a great time in Germany. Just don't be surprised if your new German friend starts attacking your shoes. It's really not personal.