Hello there. Thanks for stopping by. I make videos about language culture and cultural differences between Germany and the UK.
I've been living and working in Germany for over 10 years now but still going back to the UK a few times a year.
If you are interested in learning languages, moving abroad, travel, intentional living and culture in general then you might find this channel interesting
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I am not German, but I like the country. As far as I know, the difference between East and West Germany goes deeper into the past than the rise of the GDR. An example illustrates this well: the first chancellor of post-war West Germany, Adenauer, despised East Germany not because it was communist, but it was Prussia and he considered Prussia to be the cause of all misfortunes, from the stifling of democratic movements in the 19th century to the policy of militarism and expansionism with its finale in the form of Nazism.... I, as a Pole, feel very clearly the difference between the Germans of Saxony, from the East, and the Germans of the Rhineland which is West. The latter have a certain lightness, smiles and laid- backness ( In Vino Veritas! ) and the former just the opposite (Beer Culture). Franconians from Bavaria are also beer culture and slapping each other as part of the fun....😆 You can also superimpose a map of the extent of the ancient Roman Empire on Germany - and you can also find some answers.
London is not even in England anymore, however Nutty Mutty has made Berlin and elsewhere in Germany foreign to Germans. As far as my experience in Germany goes, which is several holidays there every year, Ich kann auf der Autobahn fahren, und habe kein angst vor Straßenschäden. In England driving makes me paranoid, spending more time dodging potholes on our third world roads than concentrating on the task in hand. Keep up the good work with these informative videos.
Very interesting, thank you for posting, informative. I’m studying the Reformation - one of the reasons how I hopscotched to your video - and wondering if there is any sense or pride there that this is where this world-reordering event started, for example you were in Erfurt.
If you’re talking about modern day pride it’s a difficult subject to get to the bottom of. Germans will never say that they are proud of their country. Some say they are proud of their town or the area that they are from but usually they will say „why should I be proud of something which I didn’t achieve“ like nationality. However their behaviour doesn’t support this.
I’m from Brazil and I live in Frankfurt since 2021. 🇧🇷🇩🇪 It was so nice to see the small little city corners in your video and recognize almost all of them 😄 Makes me feel more at home and honestly your video made me think differently about living here. Thank you for the (much needed) change in perspective!
I lived in Germany for five years and loved it! I’m retired and settled in Dublin now. There are many parallels. I don’t need a car. I’m in a great jumping off place for Europe and I avoid the gun crime and chaos of my home country, America. Good for you, choosing a place that meets your spirit.
A lot of tourists do not go there because of the attitude of the people. My husband is English and does not speak perfect German. I don’t feel we are welcome there. As long as the AFD is so successful in those parts of Germany, I don’t even want to spend my holiday there.
Exceptionally well done! Open objective analysis of eastern Germany. Things are never quite as you read in newspapers, or T.V. Your analysis and conclusions were very informative!
I noticed that in the UK after Brexit with all the Polish and other East European people after we had voted to leave the EU, they took it so personally Like we didn't like them personally, I didn't understand that.
Germany is 1.47 times as big as United Kingdom, only 20% bigger population, England on its own is only about the size of the old East Germany about 20% bigger but England on its own has population of 57 million whereas the old East Germany had a population of only 16 million. So you can work out from that the United Kingdom, but particularly England is an incredibly crowded place. I think that is one of the reasons why housing is so much worse in Britain or England than it is in Germany which has pretty good housing.
I found Germany to be a very advanced impressive country in many ways, but the people were so sour and grumpy and they all looked like they shopped at Millets for their clothes.
I have cycle-toured in both western and eastern Germany (including Saxony and Thuringia) a number of times, a great way of seeing the countryside, towns and cities. The west does seem more prosperous, although the effects of consumerism on the architecture can be seen - many lovely old buildings have had their ground floor frontage replaced by sheets of glass to better display their wares and services. The towns and cities in the east that haven’t been redeveloped in the Soviet style retain more original architectural features which is really nice, although the areas rebuilt in the Soviet style are probably the ugliest of all.
My lesson is that at least 60% of West Germans haven’t learned what democracy, sovereignty and freedom is - and why it’s necessary to defend the constitution. They haven’t learned about the dangers of Big Brother and political oligarchy in spite of the Third Reich. They are easily herded to evil via a type of group think necessity (inherent?) and a blind belief in the political / authorities - like in the Pied Piper fairy tale - which reflects much about the character of West Germans. The East Germans still remember another type of Big Brother and are more awake. Most depressingly, I see many Britons too switching off their brains and democratic traditions.
Interesting take. I see where you’re coming from. Although I have to say during Covid there was a definite split. There was actually a lot of resistance to the dominant narrative but I’m not sure that was reported on in the media so people probably didn’t hear that much about it outside of Germany
East Germans still remember a Big Brother criminal regime - and are more awake to the dangers of a new even more odious Big Brother a’la the Oligarchy. They also still remember community spirit due to past tough times shared together - and I personally find them on the whole far more pleasant/friendly than the people of Hessen / Hessia. I pray we can together find a way to defend personal sovereignty, freedom, a real democracy, our culture, Christian roots and, thereby, peace.
Having traveled to Europe previously I wouldn’t recommend the UK or France. Skip these two countries and go straight to the continent, people will generally be a lot nicer. London and Paris are Uber expensive, both are fantastic places, but not worth the rudeness. Americans wouldn’t treat foreign tourists rudely, but don’t expect the same courtesy while visiting Europe.
I focus on my family and my home town. No need to worry about how people do things elsewhere. I doubt if people all over the globe do much different than I do. Of course they do it in their own way. The majority of the people in the US came from Europe and our way of life is based on the European way of life.
I visited east Germany in 1999 where I stayed in Chemnitz for two weeks and a few days in Dresden visiting several small towns. The eastern Germans were very welcoming and friendly, and were really helpful with my basic German. They encouraged me to speak and practice the language…on the other hand, in west Germany, I noticed most people would correct my German when I made mistakes unlike the east.
There are two diametrically opposed countries in the US. There can only be one. After that is resolved we might care what Europeans think of us. Probably not.
One of the reasons for the former East Germany's continuing economic under performance is that working aged adults leave and have been leaving for decades; GNP suffers when people relocate in large numbers.
The Germans are the German, are the Germans. Considering the damage caused to the world by WW II, it was surprising they were ever allowed to reunite. That being said, the Germans are resourceful, smart, tough and innovative. Countries get labeled for national traits which do seem to define who they are as a people. Italy and France certainly are in this category, as are Americans. So are the Germans and all these national traits have brought about, and will continue to bring about, a complete change in culture eventually. This will especially happen as the oldest generation passes away, and the memory of occupation passes into obscurity. One generation, two? Inevitably, it will happen because of who the German people are.
When I was in high school my German Language Teacher, who was born during WW2, talked about life in the old DDR. She described how she and all of her girlfriend would hide whenever they heard Russian Soldiers in the area. She escaped the DDR shortly after graduating school. She said she realized the communist government only allowed dedicated / trusted communist party members out of the country. She joined every communist organization she could and actively participated in activities. As soon as they let her out of the country to "visit" the west she defected.
I think allot of the attitudes and thoughts about The Former GDR you are talking about are from maybe a narrow capitalistic predominantly American perspective… however visiting East Berlin or some of the more industrial cities in the 60s or 70s maybe some of those images were true
It is of course highly subjective. Regarding Berlin you can still “feel” when you are in former Eastern territory so there is still truth to these stereotypes. They are just less obvious than before
We have relatives who live in Zschopau, East Germany. We have visited them 10 times over the years and East Germany is beautiful. I love the charm of the small cities where 90% of the buildings are no more than 6 stories high with beautiful architecture. The rural areas of farmland are immense with no houses and then you come to small villages and beyond, more farmland.
I visited Dresden before covid and it shattered all of my preconceptions about East Germany. The whole city center is immaculate. The streets are spotless and public infrastructure is amazing, much better than West Germany in my opinion.
The East used to be indeed grey and decaying because of neglect due to the lack of resources and priorities. After the re-unification a lot of West money had to be invested on infrastructure and buildings, and introduction of western capitalistic Consumerism and easy Loan taking. So what you see and witness is the Result of that investment and re-starting of a new way of life for East Germans
I'm living in east germany. People here are not against foreign influence or visitors or even migrants in general. Most older people are a little reserved or ashamed because of a lack of ability to understand or comprehend in foreign languages. What people are in opposition to is masses of muslim migrants from middle east and africa showing no respect for the german culture and its people. I would say from my experience, anyone who tries to cope with german culture, learns german language, is willing to work hard and shows respect will be treated friendly and respectful. Also roma people are not very welcome because of their usual behaviour which in most cases is strange, even alien, and culturally incompatible to most germans. Never did i hear anyone complain about dutch, swedish, french, belgian, swiss, spanish, italian oder brits. Sometimes about croations, serbs, chzech, polish or russian folks. Don't be afraid to come to east germany! We are no more xenophobic as you are 😂
Germans don't want money? They are the best in pretending how they follow laws and rules, but when you show them cash, they will jump and catch it immediately, they don't like to pay taxes, that's why they prefer cash and they also bribe a lot to earn even more money later. Why do you think Czech companies have so many untaxed euros in cash? From German customers who don't like taxes and pay in cash and want everything cheaper, but when you tell them that material cost double of precovid price, so you have to increase final price about 10%, they are like "no way, you eastern european cheater, we will move to other country that is cheaper...." In Czech we have proverb - "He would have his knee drilled for the coin." and that perfectly fits for Germans. 😀
