That's actually the first time I see a Non-German who totally understands our concept of privacy... You are totally right, we're not being mean, just trying not to bother other people.
Then you should check out also Danas WANTED ADVENTURE on RU-vid. The Lady is a teacher and journalist with the Bavarian Broadcast living since years in Munich. But it is always interesting to see the own country from " the other side of the plater to use a German phrase ( Sich die Sache von der anderen Seite des Tellerrands ansehen ) Especially since you are close to my own age. That is something I missed sofar in those descriptions about Germany. Most folksdoing these interesting reports are of a much younger generation than myself
8:57 To: GERMAN BREAD CULTURE. That is going down hill since decades. There are several good documentaries to it like RU-vid: Bäckersterben: Deutsche Brotkultur in Gefahr? put on the Net by ARD Mittagsmagazin. at 8/22/2016 Also good " Niedergang der Backwaren ( Billig-Brot, Zusatzstoffe ) "; put on the Net by popscenede, at 11/13/2010 Under the German haeding: "Niedergang der deutschen Brotkultur" you csn find more on RU-vid.
Sehr interessant, auf RU-vid sieht man meist nur recht junge Leute. Es ist erfrischend das ganze aus der Perspektive von jemand mit deutlich mehr Lebenserfahrung zu hören. Gerne mehr davon
voll auf den Punkt gebracht, denke genauso. Darum habe ich fast nur ältere Leute abonniert wie ihn oder The Frank BS Show oder That richie guy, alle super.
Bringing a gift is perfectly fine when you are invited ... for making a good first impression. once you are aquainted with someone, you just bring yourself.
Hey thank you very much! That is such a nice thing to say! I love my life here and how it has opened my mind up to so much more than my life in the US did... vielen Dank!!
Jaywalking? My rule for me. When kids are around I wait for the light to turn green and give a good example. When no kids are around, and there is no traffic then I walk. I am grown up enough to judge by myself if it s safe. We do bring a small gift when we get an invitatation. On restaurants I don‘t agree, a lot are open on Sundays, Monday is the day restuarnts are closed.
Jaywalking: So do I. Gifts for an invitation: A rather formal tradition. I mean, you do it when you're invited to your boss's house, or for the first time to someone you don't know that well. Or also when a friend has a new apartment/house (by tradition: bread & salt). But you would have to be an alcoholic to be happy about every bottle of wine that your friends would present to you. Open restaurants: Here in Berlin an in many other big towns, restaurants are fully open on sundays (i mean, at least they were before the pandemic). But in more rural areas I have also experienced rather strange opening hours. For example, I remember a motorcycle trip to the area around Uelzen, where we couldn't find an open restaurant for lunch on a Saturday because they were collectively closed between 11:00 and 15:00. During the best business hours ...
If only all Americans were as open minded as you are. It makes you see things from a different perspective when watching your videos talking about Germany and the Germans. I only differ on one point: I take chocolates or wine or flowers when I am invited somewhere. Enjoyed your videos a lot. Thank you.
What the heck are you foreign people so much fussing about German jaywalking? OF COURSE WE DO! We just take care that there are no dwarfs around, or other little creatures.
well, you often see people waiting for the lights to switch. Always with kids, but also when you see groups of people. When nobody is watching (or anywhere near) of course you can pass. But you won't see it as much. If you see traffic in other countries you will know what americans are talking about...
Yeah there is always this ridiculous example of the guy waiting for the traffic light in the middle of the night, no person in sight anywhere... Why would anybody think this is the case...
Dankeschön für die lieben Worte an Deutschland 🙏 Deutschland 🇩🇪 ist meine Heimat seid 1968 und ich liebe Deutschland ❤️ Deine Videos sind super 👍 mach weiter so 👍👏👏👏👏👏👏
It is so refreshing to watch a video on YT that is not loud, hectic and sometimes obnoxious. thank you for that and thank you for your open mindedness about Germans and our culture. Just one thing, it should be a crime to put sauce on a breaded Schnitzel. Why go through all the work to make a crunchy crust when you make it soft with tons of sauce. A breaded Schnitzel only needs a slice of lemon and cowberry sauce and potaote salad as a side. A Schnitzel with sauce should always be a plain one. ;) I don't know where in BaWü you live but a weekend trip to Bavaria and its beautiful castles and mountains is always a possibility. if youo ever come to the Chiemsee area, give me a shout and I'll be happy to be your tourguide for the weekend.
Soo, true ... Every time I order a (breaded) Schnitzel I clearly tell the waiter "No sauce on the Schnitzel but on the fries, please" which usually gets me confused looks - in particular regarding sauce on the fries ...
.....I just disagree with one thing - sundays - you said everything is closed - but there are so many acitivties happening and are top selling ( some with waiting lists ) especially on sundays - opera, theater, art galleries, gambling casinos, museums, indoor sightseeings, concerts, dancing events sauna etc. - many of the above mentioned therefore are closed monday and tuesday - and really, noone misses a hardware / furniture store on a sunday - any food/drink/wine/beer shortages can be solved at gas stations.
Nice Video! But i wanted to mention that not everything is closed. Actually only stores a closed. The gas station is open, trains operating, you can go to cinemas and theaters, most oft the restaurant are opend (some of them closed on Monday) and zoos, public pools and theme parks are opened. So basically we are talking about stores that are closed.
no you normally dont go empty handed... i never do... they just wanted to be polite... except if it is maybe close family and not a big deal... "Wäre nicht nötig gewesen..." is just a polite way to say thank you. It means " one bottle of wine? that is not enough to get drunk... " :)
Okay, now for the professionals... let me expand your video title: 3 things you need to have memorized when a german police officer stops you in your car drunk-driving: "Eishockey ... Kanufahren ... Wirsing!" ~ _(Whoever gets it has earned the german passport)_
I think it is also common to bring a bottle of vine if you are invited for dinner in Germany. But thats a question of relationship between the people and how you present the bottle. You can present the bottle as official gift in gift paper, or a naked bottle and say i have here a bottle of interestig vine, wich we may test/kill later.
Thank u very much Sir this was good and a good way of looking a t germany , a german,Sunday is for family.Period No excuses family is first; Sir i do like u because u are open minded, smart and my age
dude ure amazing! i watched a lot of ure vids... and i didn't subscribe you because i don't subscribe a lot of channels... but you are a good soul with an open mind don't get me wrong but the picture of germany is mainly about ww2 and ure understand us!(and that were not just hitler and beer) ((and u did get my abo))
I just subscribed to your channel, will be shifting to Germany next month for my Uni. I find beauty in the you narrate, please keep it going. Love from India ❤️
Thank you for saying that not all German people are like this or that... We are all humans, same. Have fun in Germany and best luck, buddy! Greetings from Japan✌️
English Quote: When in India - do as the Indians do! This was, is and always will be my way of travelling. :-) Cash in Germany is appreciated but nowadays, cards are also welcome, especially in bigger towns. Asking for travel advice: Have you ever been to "Balingen" and visited the Castle of the last "Kaiser" Family? (Burg Hohenzollern) Love to see and hear what you would think on that kind of history! Keep on with this kind of videos - grat work!
Well, my parents always brought something, like wine or some candies. On sundays only gasstations, churches and restaurants are open, but there are different areas with different rules, there are even holidays that only exist in some areas, like some catholic or protestant holidays only exist in overwhelming catholic or protestant areas. In my region it even is different from county to county! Drive 50 km and everything is open!
You are a great example of a smart, friendly American. Really love your videos. Over the last few years the perception of America has changed from looking up to a great Nation, towards beeing irritated and sometimes looking down at the American people and perceiving them as naive and simple; I guess especially due to the politics that have become a soap opera lately. It is wonderful people like you, that remind me that not all Americans are naive, but that Americans are open, smart, friendly, outgoing. Everything we love about America. Thank you for reminding me of this. Really enjoy watching your videos. Keep it up!
Thanx for appreciation german way of life! But you must live in a small village if Restaurants are closed on Sunday and Credit cards won't be accepted. In bigger cities that won't be an issue. Anyway great video.
nice video, thanks for sharing! i just found your channel and i'm going to discover it :-) do you have already a video about your german house or flat? saw some videos where americans were amazed by tiny, normal german things like the shields on the windows or a power-plug in every room *haha just like giving empty bottles back to receive money (pfand) or stuff like recycling and so on ...:-)
Der Mann hat es verstanden, von mir aus darf er gerne dauerhaft in Deutschland bleiben - außer ich möchte mal die Spezialitäten seiner amerikanischen Heimatregion genießen.
I am german and I really like your videos. But check your microphne. Its very quiet. I watch you as loud as possible. But it is still very quiet. Can you do a video comparing the health care in USA and Germany?
Hi, thanks for that, I bought a little clip-on microphone a little while back, but just figured out how to use it, so i would appreciate the feedback on that. Thank you!
When you like beer, come to Bamberg, the highest concentration of breweries on earth! My community has 9 villages, 6 breweries and 3 bakeries! Once i drove some americans in my taxi that visited a friend that was stationed here. They said, they will stay for 2 weeks and try all beer they find. I just replied "2 weeks is not enough, we have in our county around 90 breweries with more than 270 different sorts of beer! Next time try 2 months!"
Rules yep yep xD Sadly I see many older People walking over the Street when the light is still red.. I don't like that because there could be always a young Kid watching them and then doing it the same. How hard was it for you as American to come to Germany? My Girlfriend from the US wants to move here too.
Probably several things, that do not apply to Germans in general, but to certain age and peerö groups etc. Among my whole big circle of friends (me by now being 71 :), ever since I can remember we brought wine when invited! In my parents time it was flowers and/or chocolates. And I have been jaywalking all my life, except when children are around. ...
A real "Wiener Schnitzel" has to be veal (from calf). Schnitzel made of pork has to be named "Schnitzel Wiener Art" by the restaurant to show that it is not the original way. Thank your for your words that Germans are not rude and that many Germans like to help foreigners / tourists / others. We only have to be asked for support. In Eastern Germany many elder persons don't speak English (they learnt Russian at school). But most Germans try to help when they are asked.
If you visit me you can of course bring a bottle of wine. If you visit close friends or relatives you are usually not bringing stuff - exception: Birthdays, Christmas ... . If you, are invited to somebody for the first time you usually have a small present. If you are younger (students or younger) and you are invited for a bigger party you usually ask the host what to bring. Sometimes the host will provide Bread and "Nudelsalat" for a barbecue and everybody will bring their own meat. I am also stuck in southern Germany and the sauce thing above evertything is not my favorite thing.
Interesting. What is funny that I have to say is that some German I've listened to in person and on a radio show: have the same voices. Ah, so soothing, too! Next time I will not walk away in black frustration when my 7'2" German lady crush plays dull games with me.
"cash is king". Love it! The reason, why we mostly still pay in cash, it's because it means freedom. No bank, no government, no data collecting business knows what you bought. Another reason, why not so many businesses offer creditcard payment is, here the business has to pay 3% interest to the creditcard companies. You mentioned in one of your other videos, in the US the creditcardholder has to pay it.
For young people, German Sundays are often boring. But if you are married and have children you will appreciate this Sundays with your family. I hope for all shopkeepers and their families that the shop opening hours will not be further relaxed.
The observation of the traffic rules also has the intention of making children more independent early on. If we create a reliably safe environment for our kids and lead by example, we can let them navigate traffic from an early age on. That's why six-year-olds walking themselves to school without adult supervision are not a rare sight here. You can also see children without their parents on the neighbourhood playground.
The problem that a company doesn't want to accept credit cards is simply the fees that card companies charge. This is not a problem in large stores and chains. But in the local store - for example, a small flower shop, local bakery, or restaurant has to pay so much transaction fees that they make a loss-making transaction if the purchase price is less than € 25. If you, as an American tourist, are sitting in this cute little restaurant and want to pay for a coffee and a piece of Black Forest cherry cake with your card as usual and the baker or the service staff are not enthusiastic about it, then this has nothing to do with laziness or impoliteness. In places with a lot of American tourists, this very quickly becomes a very existential threat to local business. BTW most credit card companies are American.
Adding to my last comment: nope, the majority of restaurant are open on Sundays, as are all museums or art exhibitions. Traditonally these locations are closed on Mondays!
Well its good to see a man who real y love Germany Its good that you Made your Videos Because i hope Germans watch it and the realized in what great Country They have the privilage to live Thank you for that Yours Frank
There is one more important aspect to rules on the streets: German kids go alone to school quite early. few start even before school and go alone to kindergarten. This requires them to follow the rules because they can't judge every situation. Other adults breaking the rules could influence kids to do the same. So it is better for everyone to follow the rules. Some adults even check if there are kids around before breaking some rules.
me as a german never understood why the americans always thought we are rude while respecting their privat space..we totaly are happy about our Ami friends here and want them to feel good... i think i talk for almost every german when i say : we are glad to help you out with what ever you are dealing with... but we dont break in to your privacy... we love you guys
germany was the warden of the christian church for 1000 years. the bible dictates : on the 7th day you rest so by tradition this old order is deeply ingrained in the culture.
in switzerland which is pretty similar to germany we always bring a gift when we are invited to someone's house to eat, as you did in america. mostly a bottle of wine or / and some flowers.
For what it's worth: it *is* common to bring a small gift like a bottle of wine if you're invited to someone's house. Maybe less so with yonger people or if you know someone very well are invited very often. But in the instance you referred to you definitely made the right call.
Hé oui : quand on est curieux et ouvert , on découvre plein de choses intéressantes et même formidables en Allemagne comme partout ailleurs en Europe aussi bien qu'aux USA d'ailleurs
Wir wohnen am Bodensee.... das solltest du dir auch mal anschauen... ist ja nicht so weit weg vom "Black Forrest" :P Direkt dahinter sind die Alpen - auch sehr sehenswert!!! Natürlich nach Corona...
Die regionalen Unterschiede sind oft geschichtlich bedingt, früher waren die bekannten Region oft eigene Herzogs- oder sogar Königstümer z.B. Sachsen, Bayern, Preußen. Jede Region hat eigene Bräuche, Essen, Dialekte, Kleidung usw. Alleine mit regionalen Essen kann man sicherlich sein halbes verbringen, und würde nicht alles ausprobieren können, höchstens die jeweils regionalen Top 10.
You really understand! Thank you! We germans are timid, we don't know how to start a conversation with a stranger, we don't know if the stranger may not want to get bothered.... If you are invited for Kaffee und Kuchen at 15:00 (😂) you may free up more time since after long talking, drinking heaps of coffee and refilling plates with cake and more, you might get requested for a walk (Verdauungsspaziergang) around 18:00. Maybe the visit ends when you feel topics of conversation end or circle (you then are expected to thank for invitation and declare your soon leaving.) Or: it will go on with a connected invitation for Abendbrot (evening supper) 😂. Endless!
Where I am from the usual reaction to a visitors bottle of wine would be "thanks - now we have more to drink for tonight". Must be a south-german thing to make a fuzz over visitors gifts...
Absolutely not south-german! In my area (south Bavaria) its absolutely normal and considered polite to bring a gift (flowers/Wine/Chocolate.... i bring mostly stuff I made in my kitchen) Its not about the Prize but the effort and consideration.
Making a video about: "Visiting the weekly market in your town", where you can buy some fresh vegetables, fruits, meat and cheese. It's a little bit more expensive like in the supermarket, but its fresh, regional and mostly Bio. You can talk to the farmer, meet friends and after shopping having breakfast in a Café. It's that experience worth.
Strange watching these videos. Since I am a German native, I know everything this guy is talking about from everyday personal experience. And yet, i find it highly fascinating to see our culture from a different perspective. You learn something. Two remarks however. About bringing wine to a dinner party, we do that as well but there is no fixed rule. You can ask, and some hosts might reply that you can bring a bottle of wine, if you want to. Second remark: I do find refering to Americans as "Amis" slightly disrespectful. At least occasionally. Wonder how meine Landsleute das sehen?
Love your insights. Quick, deep, truely insightful, open-minded. Great. Huge thumbs-up. Perfect explanation for our typical German stand-offishness: we don't want to bother you. But if you need help, just ask. J-walking: you got it in one. You always should try to be a role model for kids. Sosse is a part of most dishes. Oh, and be ready for the invasion of Germans in your comment section. :D
How do I watch your videos in the right order? I commented on some other video of yours (I think the one with the Blutwurst) where you asked how many types of sausage we had. I commented that video with the exact numbers you are mentioning in this video.....how embarassing. I though, you just took my numbers but this video is far too old. :-(
there is a playlist of videos... but if you click on the "videos" button on every youtube channel, it will list the videos with the newest one being at the top. thanks for watching!
Dein Sox Cap ist richtig cool 👌😊 Jaaaa du hast so recht! Deutschland ist echt das Land der Regeln und Vorschriften, deshalb gibts auch so viele Schilder hier überall 😂 Und ich hab auch noch so einen klugen Merksatz wie die Oma: "Die rechten stehen & die linken gehen", weil man auf der Rolltreppe immer rechts stehen soll, damit man links vorbeilaufen kann 🧐🇩🇪😂 Liebe Grüße, Max
Hello my favourite american 😊 Ich danke dir von ganzem Herzen und freue mich schon auf dein nächstes Video & Herzlichen Glückwunsch zu deinen 3000 Abonnenten 🥳👏🎊🎉 Liebe Grüße, Max 😀
nichts mitzubringen, bei sehr guten freunden, da ist das nicht notwendig, die kommen auch zu dir, aber bei nicht so guten freunden, bei bekannten dann ist es in deutschland üblich und auch richtig so. und ein kleines gastgeschenk hat noch nie geschadet. darf nur nicht zum pottlach ausarten
It's not really to teach kids to follow the rules that I don't cross when the light is red, but so that a kid who doesn't yet have the judgment to see when it's safe to cross, stays safe. And I always bring a bottle of Prosecco when I visit a friend, unless we're constantly in and out of each other's houses.
You are absolutely right with the "don`t want to interrupt their privacy-thing". The best method to break down the social barrier is the language. If a person tries to speak German, even if it`s not perfect, German people recognize the effort you put in, and automatically react positive to you. That`s how we think and are being raised. Germans are hard workers and if you show the same characteristic trait, by learning our language, you are automatically welcome :-) It`s like that in my many other countries too I think. I speak a little bit Spanish, Chinese and a little bit Thai and even if I probably have a really bad accent, people there appreciate my effort. Just like Germans do to, especially on the language part, because we know, that it`s not that easy to manage it. For example ""THE" splits up in "DER, DIE, DAS" and differents genders :-D like ( he, she, it) just for objects. People confuse it all the time, because you just have to know it for every object, it`s no logic behind that. If you like Schnitzel, which actually has it`s origin in Vienna, Austria, then try "Schäufele mit Knödel/ Klösen" in Franconia. You will be addicted to it. Some people even say it`s the best food in the world and saves lifes :-)