My American Sister's HONEST Take on Germany! (People, Autobahn, Bakery, Supermarket + Recycling) 

roads being small is actually way safer than big roads. It incentivizes drivers to go slower, American roads are designed on outdated traffic models and ideas.

Handing over your credit card to a stranger is totally unthinkable in Germany! What a crazy thought 😄 It's about personal space, which is different in every country. Here credit cards are definitely untouchable, like someone's baby, you can't touch that either.

Of cause there are cameras at the gas station nowadays. But a decade or two ago, there were no cameras all around, and people also paid after filling up. So I would say that the problem of stealing gas isn't that great. I think overall the German society is a very trustful one. You can also recognize it when you think about public transport. There are no gates at the entrance. They simply trust the majority of people.

Next time, tell your sister that she can order her drinks with icecubes. They are available, just not by default. Also, when the street is too narrow to overtake safely, you just don't. That being said, I look forward to the next visit. 😊

I'm in rural Texas and small roads are more of a county maintained thing. Our FM (farm to market) roads are 2 lane, but a good sized road. I know we have more space in general. I loved the German roads I've traveled. Now I did see some neat tractors in Germany when I was there, both big and small. Loved Willa's participating in the video! She has really began to bloom in her personality ❤. Thanks for sharing!

Farming culture (including tractors and cows) is quite different between northern and southern Germany. The south is much more clustered, farms are mostly smaller, and a lot of natural obstacles make farming more difficult. Thus you need smaller equipment. And as space is more limited, cows spend more time inside barns. And of course, the weather plays a re role, too.

In our village we don't have a footpath either, the road is too narrow for that. But the drivers know how to behave when a pedestrian or a woman with a pram is walking on the road. The only footpath we have is from the bus stop to the next village.

The fuel system, like many others, like public transport travel for example, is based on the "trust" system. Even before cameras stealing fuel wasn't a thing.

what a lovely sister you have! have a great time! greetings from cologne.

It always fun to see the Reaction from your Family-Members. She seems like a lovely person and has a great Smile.

I was laughing my head off! Ausfahrt... dont worry about mistaking that for a town. I did the same thing about 15 years ago. Only difference is, when I kept seeing the same sign I thought to myself.... gee this town is so huge! My wife still makes fun of me to this day.

Thats lovely Risa your sister was over to visit 💕 I am sure you all had a Fantastic time together . Willa sure enjoyed having her Aunt visit too . Have a Good week 🥰

regarding bottle recyling...there are different variations in Germany ...roughly said: Glas bottles of certain types (mineral water, beer etc.) are taken back, brought to a facilty were they are cleaned & reused again. Some plastic bottles too (for example we have bottles with a thicker wall thickness for mineral water), but they cannot be reused too many times to the cleaning process... Also there are glas bottles and glas containers (such for pickles etc.) which are not meant to be reused - these you have to put in the glas containers which you have in your neighborhood. Here you have to sort them according to their color (colorless, brown or green). This glas is recycled/remolten to produce new bottles. Plastic bottles which are made of thin material are taken back for recycling, but not for beeing reused. Every grocery store or supermarket has those machines for that (You put the bottles into it were they were crushed and you get your deposit bill. The big advantage of glas bottles is that the content does not change flavour or cannot be contaminated do to glas not beeing prone to intrusion of unwanted substances. Other that the plastic used (PET =polyethyleneterephtalate). Beverages in glas bottles have a simply longer expiration date and taste better. That affects mostly "natural" beverages such as mineral water, beer etc....if you have artificially flavored drinks with lots of unhealthy chemicals and a too strong taste, you don't need to care about the drawbacks of plastic bottles.

Filling up with gasoline and deliberately not paying afterwards is either fraud or theft or embezzlement. According to the accusation of the public prosecution, this comes to court and is not done with a fine of 500 euros. The first time there is certainly probation and a hefty fine. If repeated, it can mean up to 3 years in prison . Using a false license plate on the car to avoid being found would mean up to 5 years in prison. You'd rather pay, I'd say, 😄

The compact nature of villages and towns is due to zoning laws that only allow the building of houses within designated areas. Though the reason for these laws (or customs) have changed over time. In the Middle Ages, there probably was a security aspect (certainly when city walls were a thing) but also wanting to be close to communal services. Nowadays, it is mostly about keeping the countryside and nature free from too much human presence (including vehicle traffic) but also more efficient use of utilities if houses aren’t spread over a larger area.

OMG! I melt every time I see Willa and hear her talking!!!

As "Tasche" is a bag, pastry with a filling is often called that way.

ahhhh a new visitor, so cool! :D

Bottles at grocery stores, fun fact: ALDI in the US charges a 5c debit for plastic bottles to make you return and get your 5c back. I was in the states a few weeks ago and was kinda surprised about it.

In fact the cities even reshape it's existing streets by making the lanes even smaller than they where build decades ago. It helps calm down traffic and gives the oportunity to add some dedicated new bike lanes as well.

Ah, you Americans and your obsession with "Fahrt"! It's actually quite cute! Ausfahrt, Einfahrt, Rundfahrt, Überfahrt... a constant source of amusement. ;) I seem to remember a travel guide, ages ago, that went by the title "Fahrting through Germany". ;)

well, especially in villages that can be 1000-2000 years old, the houses were there first and the streets came much later. The ways in between houses originally had to accomodate street carts and small agricultural horse-drawn wagons. Naturally, the streets were not designed for two-way car traffic alongside planning the settlements…

About the size of roads: if a road is narrow you're certainly not supposed to dash along with high speed on it - particularly within settlements like villages and towns. If your driving style can be considered reckless you're half way into trouble already and you'd better not be involved in an accident. But apart from that it's just a habit that we're taking care of each other and try to treat each other with politeness and attention - most of the times at least😊

Interesting that Americans do not know some milk products. Remember the rhyme of "Little Miss Muffet", who sat on her "tuffet" (a type of sideboard, popular as a buffet) to eat her "curds" and "whey"? Both "curds" (German= Quark) and "whey" (German=Molke) are a by-product in the processing of milk and popular in Germany. In the USA I have seen "curds" with the label "German Quark"), which seems to be coming more popular in the USA.

How informed Tanner is about consequences and stuff about stealing gas is .... interesting 😁

Great video. Maybe one day you'll live here. Dacia, you are always welcome.

I was in the states in 1989/1990 and back then you were filling gas at the pump and after filling your tank, you'd go inside and pay. The next time I was in the states they changed it to paying at the pump or at least pay in advance. So, it used to be the same way in the states, as it still is in Germany.

About going from the gas station without paying.... I once did this. My grandfather lent me his car, we were at the gas station and he said I can go and he will walk back home from there. It was like a 15 min walk. So I just drove away. He said that the cashiers in the gas station were quite shocked and di not know what to do and if someone saw my licenses plate. But to their relief he said that I blong to him and that he will pay.

Don't know if someone already mentioned the credit card thingy, but I worked at stores and therefore had to often fill in as a cashier for 11 years. Long story short, we used to take the credit card if the customer gave it to us, however, due to some bad actors, new data/privacy laws made it so that the standard became that the customer keeps the card. Also, Covid helped a lot with getting this into our stubborn German heads.

Your little easter bunny ist so cute and absolutely not shy to the camera.

3:03 I once got some fuel headed into the store bought 3 drinks, said "and the 3" which I meant to be the number of the gas pump I was using. but the employee thought I meant the 3 drinks and didnt include the fuel I got. not knowing what he did, I headed back home and received a call from the police :P

The roads are often small as a matter of historical development especially in villages or old towns.

I love ur sister, shes so cute :D

2:54 every gas station I know has video cameras. I used to happen long time ago.

Even before cameras I don't think ditching payment was a thing.

The weirdest thing ever is to hand out the credit card to a waitress or shop owner and they walk away with it.. what are they gonna do with it ? just use it for your purchase or adding some things for their own benefit? weird for us europeans.. i would rather pay cash than have my card taken away. which also answers your question, no, noone in germany does take your card and bring it somewhere were you cant see it.

Of course we have some narrow streets, especially in the old towns (therefore often one-way streets) and especially outside the city. You know, when a big combine harvester comes to meet you, you can get scared. If these roads seem too narrow to her, she should go to Italy. 🤣 When I was there for the first time myself with the car I finally understood why they are honking so much. You wouldn't even come through some roads with a big car - without oncoming traffic.

Your Sister is great!

On some petrol stations you need prepay at night. Happened to me when I lived in Germany.

One week Thats like nothing, boy you americans need more vacation days !

Credit cards: The only occasion, I have to use a credit card is for Hotel reservations. They use it for identification. Paying is much easier with the debit card, which comes with every bank account and this is accepted practically everywhere except on a stall on the market place (they are coming there too).

Another thing why roads are often smaller in villages or towns is that they are often very old from a time were people don't had cars. So after houses were build there, there is just not more room to make them bigger.

Regarding stealing gas - how do they know? Well like Tanner and others said.... there are cameras for every angle... The main difference from the USA is that in germany it's mandatory to register your residential adress at your KVR-office and when you get your car you have to register it (like DMV) at the Zulassungsstelle. Police has access to this databanks - therefore the car owner will get a visit. Doesn't even matter if it was another person. You as the owner you're responsible for your car.

"We have high tech tractors in the States". The phenomenom if you see something and adopt it for everything....Your sister comes with the self-image of "everything is better with me".

6:15 It should not be forgotten that many German cities are significantly older than the car. Especially the small towns. Not to mention large trucks.

"Make the road wider" is kind of difficult if the houses are older than the existence of cars. But in housing areas, 1.5 width roads are deliberately done to prevent speeding. Increases the safety of everyone.

i love your sister´s curly hair :-) both of you look clearly like siblinga but still so differant. if she comes back, i would like to go on a date with her :-)

Hi Dacia, did I understood correctly, you have been here just for a week ? Poor girl ! Well, as you already travel experienced, grab the chance to travel Germany all over, always knowing there is safe base closed by in case you run in some sort of trouble. Risa can point out to you where to go, what to see and she knows hidden gems also away from frequent tourist sides. If you need regional advice, a guide or a base, just drop a note. I love Quarkbällchen and other fresh pastry from bakeries as well, but I also have to listen to my inner voice reminding me to my next step on the bath scale 😀Greetings to Willa and Noa and also the hard working man behind the scenes Tanner. Tschüss

Small roads are good actually because they prevent speeding

We had a longterm friendship to a french family. We visited them every year. As they once came to Germany by Autobahn, they were so surprised how big the City "Ausfahrt" was, until they understood...🙈😄

Your sister is very pretty and cute! :)

I am German living in Dresden, but Prague is a very nice City in Europe. One of my most favorite.

What happens when you "forget" to pay is that they will bill you what you owed, but also all the cost they had to find you, hence it will be a pretty expensive experience, no matter how much gas you originally took.

that 500 € sticker at the gas station just means, that you are not able to pay with a 500€ note

The credit card thing even for me here in NZ, we never hand it over the cashier. They just add the total and the amount flashed and we do the pay wave. Easy and safer.

Europe as a continent is slightly bigger than America, it is also far more densely populated and some of the roads originally date back to the Roman era so it makes sense to have smaller vehicles in a continent where people mostly take shorter journeys. Also having a very good train system within a good transport system makes travel easier, shorter and less done than in America.

A better translation for Quarktasche would be „curd pocket“. But I am never sure if curd is the appropriate translation as curd is the dryer, harder state of Quark whereas Quark usually is softer..

😂 your Face when u took the Asparagus 😂. Looks Like " nice size"

It's funny, we have tractors that are just as big as those in the USA, but they're not needed everywhere. The largest and strongest are also produced in Germany, and there are also the largest manufacturers of agricultural machinery. Such as Claas, Fendt Fahr. The USA, for example, has John Deer, which we also “also” produce.

Giving away a credit (or debit) card is like giving away money. The cashier will give you the device and you can insert the card or hold the card up to the device and enter the PIN.

The width of the roads in towns is on purpose a bit narrow. So the drivers are forced to drive slow. Add: Kids wearing beanies made of cotton outdoors in spring and fall to prevent otitis. If you ever had a kid with otitis, you know why... 🙂

I think everywhere in Europe you pay for patrol / gas after you’ve filled up. Certainly here in the UK. Although there is now the “pay at the pump” thing too these days.

Villages along the North Sea coast are a bit more "american" in that the farms and a lot of homes are located outside of villages.

Never ceases to amuse how Americans can be so amazed about utterly trivial differences between the USA and just about anywhere else i mean the shopping trolleys, Oh my God!!!

Warm water is to clean dishes or if you like to clean your handa in warmer water but (except tea) we don't drink warm water

A little side note to the stealing of gas at the gas station: not only is the license plate registered, but also the maker, type, color, and other special features of a car. So while license plate theft may seem like a way to get around the registration issue, that only compounds the crimes of the persons involved. The 500 or even 200 euro note on many pumps is not the fine, it just signifies that these bank notes won't be accepted at the cashier as they usually have no safe storage capacity as well little change for these notes. The fine and punishment for just driving off with a full tank of gas varies a lot. If it was truly an accident then you might get off with a slap on the wrist. If license plate theft plus fuel theft is combined then the judge will apply the full extent of the law as this was obviously premeditated and intentional. This can go up to three years in prison for extreme cases. Plus payment of the stolen fuel, plus most often the fine as well as the cost of the court case. So, simply don't do it unless you have an absolute surefire way of escaping arrest.

"Curd bag" is a pretty accurate translation, I would say.

The fact about stealing gas which boogles your mind most is propably the step between identifying a person which have stolen the gas. As we in germany have the residency law where you need to register yourself where you currently live - it's very hard to maintain live for special things without a valid registration as all papers go there. And to register a car with plates you need a valid ID and it needs to be in the same area where you live (and you need a valid insurance coverage as well up front) so a license plate is always very strictly referring to the owner of the car where as in the USA you don't have it that strict, you coming from the license plate to an owner where he currently lives is much harder. Plus if somebody else drove the car and stole the gas you as the owner are liable and need to provide a name of the person. Plus what others are writing, it's a cultural/mindset thing - see grocery carts returnal, people bring them back even when there aren't any coins necessary as like at IKEA.

Mag eure Videos wirklich sehr und würde mich sehr freuen wenn ihr mal ein Video zeigen würdet wo ihr versucht deutsch zu reden l.

I don't know where you've been with your sister? but the water is too warm, the tractors are so small, the streets are too narrow, everything is probably better in the USA.. well. only here you don't run in danger of being shot! and that's at least one advantage here in Germany, isn't it? 😉

Hahaha *i just realized* as a German,.. *Ausfahrt* sounds like *Aus-Fart* in English,.. fart,.. is *Pfurz* in German hahaha yaaa a true _EXIT_ indeed haha. >> I love your sisters curly hair btw!! She should keep that style! So cute!

Your sister is rly cute and also a kind person to. :)

Sorry for the unqualified commend, but your sister is really cute 🙂

If you don't pay your gas, after some weeks you get a nice letter from the criminal court asking you to appear on a given day in room so-and-so. Obviously you can give it a try, but then again it gets kind of expensive after a while.

keep in mind,the US is like 50 times larger then germany,we just dont have room for 8 lane highways if not needed.

The cameras will track your licence plate if you decide not to pay. The Gasstation owner will call the police and the police will pay the car owner a visit. i dont know about the fines, but you have to pay for the gas plus the fine ontop. When the car owner says it wasnt him who ran away but his friend (because he lend his car to someone) , then it will go to court and the court has to decide who was driving the car. Sometimes they even change the licence plate (steal it from a car and put it on another) and then steal the gas with the stolen plate. Nowadays you can enter the gasstation 24/7.. but 30 years ago, when the stations had no cameras, the stations had a small hatch (nachtschalter) where you had to pay at night. This was made for security reasons for the worker. No criminal could get into the station to rob you at night. Take a close look next time you pumping gas.. maybe youll find the small hatch in the window close to the cash counter at an old station.

Go with here to a big City not to a oldfashioned Town. Little towns in USA oldfashioned. In Big City are big grocery stores😊

Could you ask your sister what she is missing the most from the US? Have a nice time here in germany ...

About the streets: They are smaller on purpose. This avoids speeding.

Candy isles... have you tried the chocolates? Unless your taste is much different from mine, the chocolates in the cheapest grocery store here are beyond the high end in most US stores...

Running from gas stations without paying does occur, but rarely. There is some sort of organization, of gas-station owners, that asked among its members about statistics, and they say, that 95 % of the time, it is unintentional, because the people actually return, sometimes only minutes, sometimes days later to pick up the bill. The remaining cases are usually addressed by sending the video to the police as proof for an indictment. Which, in the long run, could lead to a prison sentence for theft, depending on circumstances.

Gas stations: Back in the day when there were no surveillance cameras, there were attendants at the stations who would pump gas, collect the money in cash and - wash your windscreen.

Talking about small roads - you should know that many towns and cities are very old. That means their roads were ok for their time but maybe not for today. And you can´t pull down a whole row of houses just to make a street wider. - Second point: Germany is pretty densely populated. We don´t have the space that the US has in most regions.

In Germany no one takes the gas without paying. I never heard of such an incident.

A few years ago my wife accidentally forgot to pay for gas at the gas station. A few days later we got a visit from the police but luckily it wasn't a big deal. The police believed her when she said she just forgot to pay because she paid for cigarettes she bought at the same time. So, she just went to the gas station and paid a few days later.

The width of the roads is due to the fact that they were usually already present before the invention of the automobile. Apart from that, it is not necessary to pave the larger area of the country with asphalt or with too large single-family homes. The space that the world makes available to all inhabitants (including nature) is not only for There for humanity. We should be much more careful with the consumption of land and not suffocate everything under paving slabs and asphalt. The old American way of thinking: bigger is better - was impressively refuted a long time ago by David against Goliath. Limitless consumption and unbridled growth are not signs of prosperity and freedom, but mere window dressing and, in today's world, rather an expression of ignorance of the well-being of all people. Pure selfishness, if you want to bring it down to a common denominator

I agree on one ocation If its a village with slim sidewalks where every turn the house corner is on half the path and u cant look ahad and tve people driving theough ther with 50kmh no just no.i was in auch a vilage to sell my my dead doners house u know het the papers and all i felt ik ive been in danger but the side walks and roads she saw where not even that slim

oh boy.. i really hope you explain her European and German culture... Credit cards are not very common, but EC-cash is. Every shop has a sign with the accepted cards. tbh.. i have not paid a single item via cash in years exept on festivals

3:05 Not paying for the gas is a crime in Germany. But the procecution takes so much time and costs a lot of money that you can reach a deal with the states prosecutor in most cases. The deal usually comes with a fine in the range of 30 - 90 daily income rates. So for almost all people in Germany that will be more than €500.

Do you also have a German brother or German sister? How nice!

A Quarktasche I would call curd cheese turnover (if the dough is puff pastry)

5:13 Also interesting, the tractor with an internal combustion engine was invented by a German. He then sold the invention to Deere & Company (now known as John Deere) because he couldn't market it himself

Your sister know that a Romani Car Brand shares her Name? Dacia Duster as a example. 😉

About the stealing of gas: you‘re right, they can track you down with your license plate. As for the penalty, you‘d be facing a criminal charge of thievery/ stealing. And it would depend on the circumstances of what happened and your criminal record and things, it could be either a fine or even a jail sentence, if you are a repeat offender.

Ausfahrt two words in one Aus = Out, Fahrt = Drive... Outdrive 😆 yeah Exit is the best translation four Ausfahrt 😋

Your sister is lovely. Glad you had family time. "Curd Bag" is the correct literal translation of "Quarktasche".. google only translates literally.. especially if there isn't a translation equivalent. Warm water?.. if you are in a restaurant you just ask for ice! Water bottles in shops are in fridge, so chilled!..so having ice-cold water is not a problem. South German farmers are lazy.. sadly they keep cows in the barn.. which I hate! Its so unfair on the cows. It seems only the Alpine cows spend the summer on the Alm in the Alp mountains and in north Germany the cows are generally outside. Organic farmers also keep their cows outside. No in Europe we only use credit card for eg booking or buying big items eg holidays online etc.. we use direct debit cards or cash in Europe. No they don't touch your card for security reasons... because we have to sign or type in our pin!

You should never allow anyone to take or touch your credit card. The States is way behind in credit card security. And as for stealing petrol at petrol stations, I've never known that anywhere except in the USA! Is it because of the "me, me .me" type of attitude that seems to prevail over there?

German autobahns have asphalt, but again asphalt on the autobahn is mostly whisper asphalt (Flüster Asphalt)that's a real tongue twister isn't it!? :)

The cap protects against heat loss. Up to 7-10% heat is lost through the head. It also prevents inflammation of the middle ear.

sooooo since your sister wants to move to germany .... where can i file the application to host her 😅