Christmas (Weihnachtsmarkt)

Easter is just around the corner, but there is not much of a difference between Easter in Germany and the rest of Europe, then is here in the United States.

However, Christmas in Germany is much different. Saint Nikolaus, or as we call him Santa, comes on the 6th of December. I found this out when on December the 6th of last year, I open my door to get ready for school and a ton of presents fall at my feet as I open the door.

I was thinking, what in the world is all this for. I soon found out that Saint Nikolaus brought me presents, which I had to be careful to say he did and not my host parents because I didn't want to spoil Christmas for my host-families grandson.

Christmas is celebrated on the 24th of Christmas and if they exchange presents like we do, it is one or two gifts. This is to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas and to remove the idea of gifts on that day. Not to say the kids don't get gifts, they just get them more on the 6th.

Some families wait till the 24th to open the gifts Saint Nikolaus brought, however my host family lets their kids open the gifts right away and they get something small for the 24th.

Another tradition in Germany is the Christmas market or Weihnactsmarkt. In Berlin there are 60 of these and I went to about 10 of the biggest ones. Germans really do know how to celebrate Christmas, contrary to popular belief because of the way the culture is perceived.

Me and my sister at a Weihnactsmarkt in East Berlin.

My favorite Weihnactsmarkt in Berlin, Gendarmenmarkt.

My family and a friend from school at another Weihnactsmarkt- Schloß Charlottenburg.

Pride

We Americans are very patriotic and proud of how are country was founded on the principles of democracy.

Germans as well are proud to be german, but they also know of their past. The days of the Nazi's and the communist day will haunt the germans forever and they are aware of that. 

My host-family said when I asked them about this issue, that Germany today is not the Germany of the Nazi's or when they were divided. There is nothing germans can do, but live with the fact that these happened. 

In all of Germany, especially in Berlin there are reminders of the horrible events everywhere you go. It is important for the germans mourn what happened and to remind themselves of the past, so they never let it happen again.

Germans are more proud of their heritage and how they overcame these horrible government's, to having a democratic government like the United States.

Picture of the Television Tower in Berlin. The Television Tower is a reminder of the communist regime that once ruled East Germany.

Schools

The school system in Germany is much different then in the United States. We go to grade school almost during the weekday almost five days a week. In Germany they go to school five days a week, but only stay past noon one or two days per week.

They go there to learn and not to socialize, so they don't have gym and other social activities like we have here in grade school. They get quite a lot of homework and are expected to learn outside of the classroom.

Picture of a Schultüte filled with candy.

The only day of school where it is a social event is the first day. The kids carry this big paper cone, in german it is called a Schultüte, filled with candy and at school they share it with all their friends. This is a tradition on the first day of school in Germany.

Crime

Coming from a small town of about 300, it is very rare to see crime. However, when you go to big cities there is always parts of the city, where you are told to never go because it is violent. If you go there you might not come back because of the shootings that happen.

Living in Berlin, the biggest city in Germany, I never once felt like I was in danger. My advisor told us, you should not worry about walking alone in Berlin. He did not advise woman to do that because they are usually targeted more, but if it was unavoidable he assured they would be fine.

Germany has pretty harsh penalties if you commit crimes and you don't get the same rights you would here in the states.

Murders seem like an everyday occurrence in big cities here in the U.S. I heard of one murder happening in Berlin in my four months there. As I recall, it was between drunk men and they beat the one guy until they killed him.

German Police (Polizei) van in the middle of Berlin. It is illegal to take a picture of a police officer in uniform, but not their vehicles.

Even in what outsiders to Berlin call, "rough neighborhoods," I believe that these areas are just poorer and not "rough" as a non-native would think. In fact, several nights I came back at 5-6 in the morning in the area with the highest crime rate in Berlin, called Kreuzburg and I felt just like I did in every other part of the city, safe.

In other European cities, I can not say the same as I do in Berlin. In fact in Paris we were approached by a Police officer and he told us we should leave the area we were in because it is quite a violent place to be. We took his advice and left. Even so, Paris doesn't have a lot of murders, but more thefts and acts of that nature.

Public Transportation

I briefly touched upon this when I talked about Europeans, Germans in particular, being environmentalist. Since going to Chicago over Spring Break, I noticed that the Public Transportation here in the United States is NOT EVEN CLOSE, to as good as in Germany.

The city trains don't run very often and are often late. Nothing is posted as to how to get somewhere. (Thank God for iPhones or I would of been so lost in Chicago) My friend, who lives in Chicago, said it takes an hour and a half for her to get to work and it would be a 30 minute drive.

It is very frustrating to see our transportation after coming back from Europe because their system runs like clock work and in America our public transportation runs like a broken clock.

Picture of the Chicago Metro in North Chicago

It is not necessary at all in Europe to have a car, but here you will get no where if you don't have one. We may add a lot to pollution as Americans, but until a more viable option comes available to us, we are going to continue to drive cars.

Attitude

Walking down the street in Berlin, you notice that Germany people do not stop to chit chat or say a friendly hello to you. It does not mean they are angry, they are much more reserved society and do not pretend they know you, so they don't bother you.

My host-mother with the very first day told me, "If Germans say something to you that seems offensive or and they seem rude, they are not trying to be rude and don't take it personal it is how we are."

This is a picture of my host- family. At first I felt like a stranger living with them. By the end of my stay, they were like my family.

This sounds like it would be awful to meet a Germany, but if you make the step to talk to them, they are very nice people. It will just not happen that they approach you first.

Füssball vs Football

Here in America, a lot of people, particularly men, are very passionate about football. I myself love to watch football and get quite into the games.

In Germany they take it to a whole new level. I went to a soccer game in Berlin and watched soccer games at bars. Germans go absolutely insane when there team wins. It is like a riot every single time the team is playing.

This is not only true for Germany, but for almost every European country. Most people live and die by how their Füssball teams, as they say in Germany, play.

I get upset when my team losses, but I get over it. In Berlin last year, the Hertha Füssball Mannschaft, Hertha Soccer Team, finished with a losing record, the people had a riot on the field. They were very angry their team was moving down a league and no longer in the top league.

Soccer Game in Berlin, in early November of 2010

The reason why Europeans hate American football. The response I got every time, "Football is to slow, you play 5 seconds and then take 30 seconds off." Which when you think about, is true, football is a slow pace game. 

One last thing I want to say about German füssball. They play almost all year around. Whether it be the German national team playing or the local team, games are always going on. Unlike here where there is such a long offseason for say football. Football fans, are left with watching other sports or like I did over spring break took a tour of a football stadium.

Lambeau Field where the Green Bay Packers play(Above)
Me at Wrigley Field over Spring Break. (Bottom)