I keep getting asked, “So what was it like living in Germany for three months? Lot’s of sauerkraut and lederhosen?” Not at all! Here are some things I picked up while living in northern Germany. (Caution: Vast northern German culture generalizations ahead)
North German Food
Fish Food:
Lots of fish to eat in Northern Germany
When you think of German food, what probably first comes to mind is actually Bavarian food (things like pork knuckle and pretzels are from Munich in the south). Actually, when you think of anything German, Bavaria is probably what you think of (Lederhosen, beer gardens, and cuckoo clocks). But north vs. south Germany has vastly different food.
In Hamburg in the north, white sausage with sauerkraut and big steins of beer are only found in thematic Bavarian biergarten restaurants. While you can successfully order a Wienerschnitzel in many restaurants here, the typical Hamburger meals are much more Scandinavian. Pickled herring is popular, and all kinds of fish, particularly salmon and North Sea white fish.
Another popular cheap street food, coming from Berlin, is Currywurst. The first layer is french fries. Next comes sliced hot dogs. Last, a few scoops of “curry” sauce, which is really just like a red barbecue sauce.
Potatoes with Every Meal:
One thing that I will miss most about Germany is the amazing potatoes. I know this sounds strange coming from someone who grew up in Idaho, but we can’t even compete. Every meal comes with one of three kids of potatoes: french fries, boiled, or pan fried. Let me explain why these boiled and pan fried potatoes are so amazing.
First of all, you have to use the small waxy potatoes. Then, boil them to the perfect consistency. Next, the boiled potatoes go the fridge for 24 hours to harden a bit. The next day, peel and continue the process. For boiled potatoes, cook them with fresh herbs and some butter. The texture is impeccable. For the pan fried, the peeled potatoes are sliced and pan fried with bacon and onions, not flipping until the potatoes are perfectly crisped and browned.
I could go on and on…
Oh, and don’t forget about the southern Bavarian potato salad! Mein Gott!
Bread to Go with Your Potatoes:
In case the potatoes aren’t enough carbs for you, you’ll get plenty of bread with every meal.
Gummy Candy:
There is gummy candy everywhere, and it’s not just for the kids. Leaving a restaurant? Instead of a mint, take some gummies. There are multiple stores with elaborate gummy candy designs meant to look like sushi or pizza or anything you can think of. There are also several different kinds of gummies. There are the traditional Harabo style clear chewy bear shaped gummy, but also opaque fruit shaped gummies that are less chewy and have more flavor. Gummies are everywhere. It is weird.
Sweets in General:
No matter where you go, there will be at least one ice cream shop within sight. Germans adore their “eis”, which is usually more of a gelato style. Pretty much any time you are in a public area, an outdoor fair, a shopping mall, you will see an adult German licking an ice-cream cone. Even on the nightly train commute home, you will see a grown man eating a chocolate covered ice cream treat.
In mid afternoon, it’s time for cake. If you walk by any cafe at around 4:00, look out for seemingly everyone in the city sitting down and having cake with coffee. I can’t figure out how to stay thin with all this sugar.
German Language
Literal Words:
Learning vocabulary in German has been challenging, but oh so fun. This applies to both southern and northern German. While there are some words that make me giggle because I’m immature, like “ausfahrt” which means “exit”, my favorite words are the ones that are so literal it’s comical. Actually, now that I think about it “ausfahrt” translates as “out drive”, so that one’s literal, too.
Instead of calling Rex or Fluffy a “pet”, in German it’s called a “haustier”, literally “house animal”.
A zoo is a “tierpark” or “animal park”.
Keeping in the animal theme, the word for sloth translates as “lazy animal”, while a slug is a “naked snail”. I love it!
Most Germans see no irony in how funny these come across to our English ears. When speaking to a German native speaker, I like to ask them how to say “gloves” in German. Without a hint of a smile they say “handschuhe”. Literally “hand shoes”. When pointing out the humor, it generally elicits a blank stare.
Say it out loud...
Northern German Accents:
Northern Germans don’t have a harsh sounding German accent. That’s more associated with the south, who are louder and more rambunctious in general. Up north, conversations are sing-songy and soft, more Scandinavian.
There are even a few phases specific to the north. My favorite, and the most famous, is “moin”, which is especially cute when repeated, “Moin moin!” This is a casual way of saying good morning, or good day. Rarely do you hear, “Guten morgen” or “Guten tag” up here. Another phrase you don’t hear much of is “Auf wiedersen”. Instead, “Tschüss” or “Ciao” are how you say your goodbyes.
Other Surprises of North German Culture
The Good, the Bad, and the Bedding:
There is one thing I love about the bedding and one thing I hate about bedding here. Let’s start with what I love: two separate comforters! No more fighting over who is stealing the blankets. And the duvet on the comforter works as your sheet, so there is no flat sheet. You just wash the duvet.
Now for what I hate about the bedding: the pillows! I have never been a fan of feather pillows, especially paper thin ones, and these ones are the size of giant flat square shams. Maybe that’s why they need to be so wide, so you can fold it over multiple times. We bought some new pillows in our apartment that weren’t feather, and were a more rectangular shape- more like what we are used to at home, but it was nearly impossible to find the right size of pillowcases to go with them!
Serious Playgrounds:
Forget the standard playgrounds with just slides and swings and monkey bars. Here, every playground is unique, with all kinds of creative contraptions for kids that probably would not be deemed “safe” enough in the states. Some even have climbing walls and balance cables.
There are even adult playgrounds, called “TrimFit”. These are located in popular parks and have various workout equipment for adults to work out on. Usually located on running trails, you will find that they have an accompanying lernplakat, learning poster, with instructions on various exercises you can do on the equipment.
TrimFit: The adult public workout space.
Tiers of Schooling in Germany:
Students start out in elementary school all together, but after our equivalent of 5th grade (so 10-11 years old), students then get divided up into three levels of schools, based primary on their grades in elementary school. Some parental and teacher influence can help, but grades are the primary factor. The top level school, called “Gymnasium”, continues to the top level in high school, and moves on to academic universities for high level careers. Students in the middle, average level schools could potentially move up if they work hard. Students who show no promise in elementary school, get put into the lowest level of schooling through middle school and high school, and maybe go into a trade once completed. As someone who taught 5th grade for multiple years, I wonder how my students would have reacted to a system like this.
Dogs Well Trained, Children Fairly Well-Behaved, Too:
For the longest time, I couldn’t figure out how every dog was off leash with no problems until I learned that if you own a dog, you are required to put it through training. The only dogs I ever saw on leashes were puppies.
Kids. Why did I combine dogs with kids? Well, they are pretty similar if you think about it. But seriously, kids are required to take classes on skills like biking in the city, which is just smart.
Bike Lanes, or How Seattle Could Learn a Thing or Two about being a Great Biking City:
Most bike lanes are on the sidewalk, separated from traffic. Because of this, sidewalks are much wider and bike paths are marked with a red brick on the sidewalk. While newbies tend to stroll in the bike lane and get bells rung at them, for the most part, the system is great! Not once riding a bike in Hamburg, did I worry because all major roads separated me from the cars.
Notice the bike on the red brick section of the sidewalk.
Sunday's Closed. Annoying Day of Rest:
At home in the States, we generally would do most of our errands on Sundays. It was our day to stock up on groceries and anything else we needed for the week. That lifestyle would be nearly impossible in Germany because Sunday is a mandatory day of rest. No grocery stores or malls or anything is open on Sundays, as employers would have to pay double the wage (like Holiday Pay). Some restaurants remain open, so at least you can go out to eat if you are out of groceries at home.
It seems annoying to the locals also, as I’ve heard multiple Germans complain about not being able to do anything on Sundays. Toward the end of our trip we walked by our local pharmacy only to find it open. We walked in and were awestruck about being able to actually shop on a Sunday. When being rung up, we asked why they were open. The woman behind the counter explained that because people need their medicine in case of emergencies, one pharmacy in each neighborhood must be open on a Sunday. Pharmacies take turns, so if you get sick on a Sunday, there is somewhere that you can go.
The 7 Steps to Medical Care:
This was an interesting process (that would probably apply all over Europe) that we learned because Matt gets regular infusions.
Step One: Make an appointment.
Step Two: Go to the doctor to get a paper written prescription.
Step Three: Make a new appointment for the procedure.
Step Four: Go to the pharmacy to drop off the prescription.
Step Five: The next day, go back to the pharmacy to pick up and pay for the prescription.
Step Six: Carry your infusion medication to the doctor’s office. (!)
Step Seven: After the lab from the blood work sends a bill, go to the lab (which isn’t easy to find), and then pay in person only in cash.
For Matt there was an additional step, step eight, get reimbursed from the insurance company. One really odd thing was that the doctor did not charge for the actual infusion procedure (actually hooking up the drugs for infusion). He and his office just did it for free. When asked, they just said it was their pleasure to help. This would NEVER happen in the States.
Legal Prostitution, Yes Really:
Bet you thought this was only legal in Amsterdam? Nope. It’s legal in Germany, and prevalent in Hamburg as a port town. Hamburg is a party destination because of it’s Red Light District and it’s reputation for the music scene. It is very common to see hoards of people, especially stag parties, coming in for the weekend.
Stag Parties:
Bachelors have an interesting tradition before their wedding. When he goes out with his buddies for his bachelor party, he must be in costume. The more ridiculous the costume, the better, be it a bunny suit, or an inflatable sumo wrestler, he will be a spectacle. The rest of his buddies will have some sort of matching outfit, whether it’s just a specific t-shirt (“Das Wars” is common) or a uniform like white button up shirts with black pants.
Girls getting married on the other hand, typically walk around selling random objects with one of those old-style candy/cigarette style trays strapped to her body. Her friends will pull in the customers for her.
The Land of Giants:
For once in my life, I don’t feel like I stand out as being tall! As a 6 foot tall female, I am used to getting lots of comments about my height, but here in the north, I fit in! I have finally found my people!
So while some of these generalizations apply to all of Germany, you need to remember, that it’s a large country with vast differences. In fact, here is an excellent graphic that overlaps Germany onto the US. Just because Ohio and South Carolina both speak English, doesn’t mean they have the same accents, food, or culture. And that applies in other countries as well. If you want a good taste of Germany, make sure to explore a variety of corners.
To read more about my experience Hamburg and other cities in Germany, check out my personal travel blog here!
Tchüss!