Oktoberfest, Lederhosen, Dirndl and the land of sausage Gods, we have all heard, seen and read the stereotypes, but what lies beyond them? What are the nuances that you observe in Germany over a period of time? And what are things that might be helpful to know and understand before moving to Germany?
Below is a tailored list, of-course, based solely on my personal experience.
A. Sundays are reserved for family or friends or “me” time. Almost all shops and business are closed and people use this day to ease into the week or socialise with their loved ones.
What does this mean?
- It means there is little room for laid-back-ness and procrastination.
- You need to ensure you shop before Sunday and have everything you need for the week.
- This means if you need an electrician or a plumber of a gardener, you DO NOT disturb them on their “Ruhetag” which mildly translates to “Rest Day” or Day off.
B. It is extremely quiet and that is A okay! I moved to Germany from Mumbai and the moment I arrived there, I was shocked how extremely quiet Germany was. It took me a while to adjust to that. Germans are quiet people. This is no reason to worry, the walls, windows and general machinery seems to be designed and engineered to ensure peace and people often observe silence in public transport, public spaces and the like.
What does this mean?
- Please do not start to talk loudly in public transport, this does not apply just to Germany, but should really be an ode to public decency and showing you respect others.
- Ensure you do not use heavy noise producing machinery post 10 pm, for instance washing machines, vacuum cleaners and although I am not entirely sure of it, the glass bottle disposal bins.
- For the love of God, your choice of music is best reserved for your earphones.
(The Berlin public transport system, BVG, which is really the coolest transport system ever, I mean they make dang memes on their Instagram page, has really interesting advertisements informing people, that their music is best kept to themselves and not the whole train).
C. Do not dawdle on the path reserved for bicycles. Please don´t, unless you do not mind being run over by an annoyed bullet speed bike rider. That would be embarrassing. And btw, this rule holds true even more in the Netherlands. It is amazing that bike riders get their own dedicated paths, this allows them to stay away from the speeding cars, but believe me, they are quite possessive of their space and well legally, they have the right to do so.
What does this mean?
- If you are on a bike, find the bike path and stay on it.
- If you are walking, use the pavements and ignore the lane with a visibly huge bike sign on it.
- If you are biking in company, please follow a line and do not take over the whole lane :)
D. Show up on time — this one took me a while to get used to. I am not going to blame my ethnicity for this one, but I was just not a punctual person. Living in Germany really showed me how showing up on time is so much about respect of other people´s time and ensuring everything works, as planned.
Often I hear generalisations about “Indians being late, no surprise” and I try my level best to beat these stereotypes by ensuring I show up, on time. Sometimes, that works :D
What does this mean?
- Don´t be late.
- If possible, keep a couple minutes extra, in case of “whatever”.
- If you know you´re gonna be late, call in advance. (An option that I use sometimes :P)
E. Make an appointment: I cannot emphasise enough on how much Germans love to plan. I have had close friends making appointments to stay at my place, three months in advance. In the beginning I found it very impersonal and monotonous. Slowly I realise this is just good sense. And if you are surrounded by people who love to plan their days and hail structure, then you´re gonna have to respect that.
Unlike other places you cannot just walk into places without making an appointment first. Although there are service businesses that say “Termin Frei” which translates to “no appointment needed”. This is still, not that common.
F. Society: The society is not “cold” or “rude” or “emotionless” as often stereotyped.
Although, people are reserved and take time to open up. I also remember hearing a strange parallel that — Germans are like coconuts, tough from the outside and soft inside.
I cannot confirm the veracity of this phrase but what I can confirm is all kinds of people live everywhere. I have often founds German helpful and polite however in order to share personal stories, you often need to invest in friendships.
What can you do?
- Learn German. Please do. It never hurts to learn a new language. I am still working on it.
- Join interest groups and keep an open mind, with no pre-conceived notions.
