More examples

Okay, so when I wrote the post a few days ago about the subtle German culture shock, I could only come up with, like, two examples. Even I felt like it was anticlimactic! The thing is that it happens probably once a week where I realize that something just isn't quite right, but when I sat down to write the email I could only think of two. That's not cool. So over the last few days I have been trying to remember a few more Germanities that I think are really weird/crazy and write them down so I don't forget. Here are a couple:

There are dogs everywhere. Really, they are everywhere! I don't know how many times I've been sitting in a restaurant for a half hour before I realize that there is a dog sitting under the table next to me. People take their dogs on buses and U-Bahns; they are truly everywhere. I am told that sometimes you'll see a sign on a store that has a pictogram of a dog and says something to the effect of: We have to stay outside, but I have never actually seen one. I have seen stickers of the joke sign for this, that is a picture of a Nazi (or a swastika, I can't remember) and it says something like: We have to stay out completely, but never the dog one. There is a sign at the Media Markt (read= Best Buy) that says that dogs are allowed as long as they are on a leash, but that's as close as I've come. The thing is that 98% of the dogs I've seen are super- duper well behaved. And the other 2%, you ask? They barked, so they don't count as well behaved - not barked and ran off or barked and jumped up, they just barked. Seriously, it's incredible. I have no idea how all the dogs in this country are so well behaved.

The other thing that I think is completely different from Canada is how poor the Germans are at replying to emails. They have this reputation for being so efficient and hard-working, but it's incredible how long it takes them to get back to you sometimes. I actually don't think that this is culture shock in the way that the other examples are, but it is so different from what one expects, that it's shocking nonetheless.

I leave you with this picture I took of my view yesterday. I don't know what it is, but I love the way those buildings look. I love culture and archetecture and what not, but there is something very powerful about these buildings.