Top 5 German Culture Shocks | Expat Life in Germany
2024 ж. 26 Сәу.
22 596 Рет қаралды
Here some more content about life in Germany! Let me know about some of the things that surprised you the most 🇩🇪
#germany #cultureshock #lifeingermany
Here some more content about life in Germany! Let me know about some of the things that surprised you the most 🇩🇪
#germany #cultureshock #lifeingermany
Churches ARE open on sundays! Also museums, restaurants and cafes, zoos and amusement parks, castles and palaces, clubs and bars and brothels. Walmart is closed in Germany 7/24.
Der letzte Satz ist soooo geil. Ich bin vor Lachen fast vom Stuhl gefallen. :D
Shops are open on sunday if they are travel related: at airports or gas stations or train stations.
And hairdressers and restaurants and museums are closed Mondays
For an American it is hard to believe that family values are prioritized over making money. They can't fathom the idea that they can't buy a vital thing like a jackhammer or toaster on Sunday.
What you describe as culture shocks, we call “Luxusprobleme” ;-)
First world problems
You can't walk in the bike lane? No, and you can also not walk among the cars 🤭 I shall never understand why that is a problem 🤣
Radweg. Wie der Name schon sagt, ist der Weg für Radfahrer gedacht. Jetzt müssen wir nur noch herausfinden, wie man Menschen, die denken ein Radweg wären für Fußgänger gemacht, erklärt, was ein Fahrrad ist. Oder wir schicken sie zum spazieren gehen auf die Autobahn. Problem gelöst. ;)
Often you only have a road and a bike lane. In that case people of course walk on the bike lane. Especially outside of the city.
@@renevliex557 In most cases there is a road and a walkway. In this case cyclists have to use the road. Actually I've never seen only a road and a bike lane.
Complaining about that just means that you are not a cyclist, because it is annoying "getting up to speed" and then some silly pedestrian stepping in the bike lane. THAT'S DANGEROUS ... more dangerous for the pedestrian, because there are sharp edges to the bicycle.
"No pharmacies are open on sunday" is FALSE ... there are EMERGENCY PHARMACIES that are staffed and you can get medicine by ringing a bell. Every pharmacy will have a sign which one is the nearest emergency pharmacy/when they are on duty.
Yeah great, I once needed to go to one of these. Its only for real emergency's, if you go there you will first have to call a hotline to find it, then when you arrive you will have to deal with a cranky person talking through plexiglass. If you go there for some Ibuprofen, you may very well be sent off. Maybe thats different when you are living in a big city, but where I live it is this way. I would not call that "open".
It is not intended to PACK your stuff at the cash register! Therefore there are packing tables near the checkout where you have all all time to pile your stuff neatly in your bags. At the cash register throw your stuff as fast as you possible back into your shopping cart!
Yes definitely, just cart it and do that stuff either at your car or at the tables that are always provided right after checkout.
I wish all the customers would do it that way
Wow, that sounds inefficient. Why would you want to pack your stuff poorly, then unpack them, and pack again neatly? Some products with bad packaging may even break because of that. In Finland, we typically have a long buffer area where the products move to on a conveyor after the cashier has scanned them. It's divided into two or three, so multiple people can be packing at the same time. If you have bought a lot of stuff, you start packing them while the cashier is still scanning them. If you have only bought, say, 10 items, it's probably more efficient to just set up your bags and prepare for payment instead. I'm not saying the Finnish way is the most efficient way to do things, but at least you don't need to pack stuff many times. For me, I've started using self-checkout anyway. I find that it's less work for me to pick up a product, scan it, and place it in my bag; as opposed to pick up a product and place it on the conveyer, and later pick it up from the conveyer and place it in my bag. I haven't tried those scanners yet where you pick up the product from the shelf and put it directly in your bag as you walk inside the store.
@@jattikuukunen a couple of decades ago we had the multiple packing checkouts too. But they require more space. And the super speedy checkout personal + several clients would cause a big mess. After the scanner there is only a tiny space good for one or two items. Speed is all what counts…. Throw it back into your cart and pack it later with all time you would require ! Much better and faster for all !!!!
@@wkaemena maybe that's a difference between between German efficiency and Finnish practicality. In Germany, it doesn't matter how much work you need to do, as long as it's efficient; whereas in Finland, it's important to eliminate unnecessary work and figure out a practical way.
1. Directness and honesty: Germans are known for their directness and honesty in communication, which can come off as harsh or rude to people from other cultures. 2. Punctuality: Germans place a high value on punctuality and being on time for appointments or meetings. Being late is considered disrespectful and unprofessional. 3. Efficiency and organization: Germans are known for their efficiency and organization in all aspects of life, from work to personal relationships. This can sometimes be overwhelming for those who are used to a more relaxed approach. 4. Love of rules and regulations: Germans tend to follow rules and regulations very strictly, and breaking them can be frowned upon. This applies to everything from traffic laws to social norms. 5. Importance of recycling and sustainability: Germans are very environmentally conscious and place a high value on recycling and sustainability. They are known for their strict recycling policies and efforts to reduce their carbon footprint.
Germany is good in recycling. But the higest place of recycling in the world is japan.
Tip1 : lay your heavy/Big Items first on the "Laufband" than the Vegetables (mostly he has to tip the price manualy, that take a bit of time) .This way you pack the Items as they come, no need to sort on the fly. Tip2 : Pack your Items back in the Cart, and sort them later on a mostly available Table in the Area behind the Cashier
Need to try this, thank you for the tip 😂👍🏻
@@valediary Tip 2 is the way to go, just throw all back into the trolley, pay, move away from the cashier and then you can take all the time in the world to pack the stuff into you bags without annoying people with wasting their time.
@@beldin2987 Lay bottles on the conveyor bottom-forward.
There is always an open pharmacy, 24/7 365. It’s just on Sundays and holidays where they work in rotation, so you’ll need to Google which one is open right now in your town/city. Please upvote, some might think we savage otherwise.
I never do shopping on Saturdays and also not for an entire week. Supermarkets are so widespread here that you can easily purchase your stuff on a daily basis. And as ever: Checkouts in Germany are not meant nor designed for you to pack your stuff. Put it back in the cart and bag it elsewhere !!! Fun fact: EC Cards are debit cards. You may only have an issue if the payment provider is foreign or sometimes when using credit cards (because of the fees)
Supermarkets are open in the evening. Most people only work until the afternoon and stop earlier on friday. So enough time to do shopping after work. That even works in Austria were nothing is open after 20:00, many not even that long. I rarely buy anything on a saturday. There's just no need.
2:30 idk how exactly you do it but as an avid Aldi shopper this is how my parents always did it and I do too: You lay everything on the conveyer belt and then after its scanned put everything in the cart. Just plain like you did in the store. You keep your bags in the trunk of your car, push the cart to your car and then pack the bags in peace. That way I only have to keep up by putting the stuff randomly back into the cart, not actually pack bags. From what Ive seen I think many foreigners think you need to pack your bags at the checkout. Instead, throw everything in the cart and pack at your car. Alternatively, if you dont have a car, there is always space behind the checkout with these ledges for you to pack your bags with all the stuff from the cart. This was way to complicated to simply say: pack after paying not right after the cashier scans it, if thats what youre doing
The bike lanes..... well! Can you imagine what will happen when a bicycle and a pedestrian have an accident? The separation between the cycle path and the sidewalk ensures that this does not happen, as it can lead to serious injuries. So a cyclist will shout if you are in the wrong lane to save you both from a collision. And yes, he might not just shout, he might yell. He can't know that the system is new to you. And imho it's much more pleasant than finding yourself in hospital, eh?
berlin ist the most "not german" german city there is :P
What is it if not German? Just its own thing?
@@jattikuukunen Berlin is a melting pot with high foreigner count and has a culture you only find in berlin and nowhere else in germany
2:30 Step 1: when you enter the building, you either grab one of the shopping Baskets or a shopping cart, wich usually is available there. Step 2: Go Shopping. Fill your basket with the Items you want to buy. Step 3: put your stuff on the counter. once it is your turn, you move to the exit of the counter with your basket/shopping cart ready to be filled with your items again. (Dont even try to put them directly into your personal bag or backpack, because the others dont want to wait all day) Step 4: Put the scanned items into your basket, once the cashier sends them down the slope. Step 5: Now you pay. Step 6: once you have paid, you leave the counter and move to the battery return table wich can be found in pretty much every german grocery store. Step 7: Now it is time for your personal game of Tetris. Have fun! In case you came by car AND you are using a shopping cart, you obviously go to your car instead and play a much more boring version of Tertris. Sidenote: If you REALLY want to use a personal bag all the way, make sure its a very big one, where you can just throw your stuff in.
You forgot to tell everyone where you are from...the most important thing!
The secret to be able to match the speed of the cashier is to use a cart until you are beyond the checkout, then bag your groceries and bring the cart back to the cart storage booth(-s), grab your goods packed in your own (non-plastic) bags and carry them home ....
Switzerland looked at the deposit machines for physical items. At that time, I think it was around the 80s, they had a can machine that took the cans and pressed them together.
You make it sound like, that you have to buy stuff from the shop, when you bring your bottles back for the Pfand. You don't! You are not forced to spend any money at the shop! You can just give the receipt of the machine to the cashier and they will give you the money.
Shopping tipp from a german. Take a shopping cart if u dont hsve just 3 items Get something the cashier has to type in manualy like bun roles or fruit/vegetables thst arent pre packed When u are at the check out place the items on the belt in a way where the cashier has to slow down inbetween becouse the bun roles and cucumbers or mango.😅 Then dont panic and put the stuff in ur back put it back into the cart and usualy there are packing tables if not just pack from the csrt into ur back after ubpayed and u are done with the check out 😅 If tvere are no packing tsbles this might be becouse of berlin Personaly i never was in a store without any packing oportunity 😅
Recycling: There is a deposit system ("Pfand") on bottles and cans - and this is the reason, why You will not see these as trash on our streets or in our nature. And if someone just throw it away, there will be soon someone to pick it up. And yes: Meanwhile it is regarded as some kind of good manner to suppress it besides a trash can in public instead of throwing it inside ... someone who needs it, will pick it up soon. Recycling may be uncomfortable for some comtemporaries, but it is necessary, because in the end there is no way of "throwing away" of non-decomposing materials. Esp. in such a rich country with its high population density as Germany. And even if You manage only the simpliest way of trash separation (bio, glass, metal, plastic, paper), You will realize soon: The amount of the resting trash is very, very small.
What baffles me about the bike lane thing: When there’s no one there, it’s not really a problem, IF you are aware of your f***in surroundings and move out the way if a biker comes. To note for foreigners: If someone yells: Aus dem Weg! Or something like that, you’re probably standing in the bike lane. Just move over. People here are used to following these rules, and also know they are in the right to tell you to move. Don’t take it personally! There are ignorant people who just don’t care and it’s usually those who stand in the bike lane. If you’re just new here, almost everybody would understand, but how would they know if you are someone that cares or not.
In Finland we would just ring the bell because we don't want to talk to strangers.
There is no bad weather ... only bad / inappropriate clothing. Stop living your life for convenience / fun.
If you are standing in the middle of the road someone will honk at you. That is different in the USA?
You just put your stuff BACK IN THE SHOPPING CART ... then you move out of the way (after paying) to LET THE NEXT CUSTOMER get his stuff scanned. It is about EFFICIENCY ... NOT "your COMFORT".
Actually, it sounds quite inefficient moving stuff around multiple times. There are other ways to arrange this that are more efficient.
You're so much better then those other scam KZheadrs that take forever to get to the point & show stock videos. You need to be cloned to have more of you
People in Berlin always sound more rude than they mean it. If they yell at you smile and say something nice in english. Helps instantly.
there isn´t bad weather just bad cloth XD
You just put your groceries back in your cart and bag them in peace after paying
ANDERE LÄNDER andere Sitten . So einfach ist das 🎉😊
Ist es nicht!!! Viele deutsche Unsitten muss niemand akzeptieren!!! Zum Beispiel sich warnblinkend ins Halteverbot zu stellen!!!
Berliners tend to be slow.... ;)
...and unfriendly
😂😂😂
It feels like you acting like a american expat in Germany and don't tell where you really from. The fact that you don't tell that makes me feel you are from Easteurope. But you speak about Europe/Germans and the Culture like Aliens! Sorry if this is wrong. But it feels really hard like that... 🤷🏻♂️
Always the same bla bla from expats. These so-called 'culture shocks' are easy available on YT by now. Btw, checked some other videos. She is from Russia, so Easteurope 😂it is.
I started wondering as well since her accent is definitely not American. I was actually admiring the clarity of her speech before I realized that she has an accent that's not one I'm familiar with. My first guess would be that she's from the Baltics, but she might be from Hungary or elsewhere for all I know.
Shopping on Sundays actually is still quite possible in Berlin due to the many supermarkets situated in train stations, which are open on Sundays. Ullrich at Berlin Zoo is a prime example - but don't go to the REWE in the Ostbahnhof.
Whining at a high level
There is no video on youtube where Americans don't touch the subject of shopping.It's shocking and scary how the American consumerism is affecting them.Thank God we don't have this here in Germany.
Hello from Switzerland, well, using cash or credit cards is certainly a question of generation and trust. Personally, I hardly ever pay with a card (especially not the contactless methods), so there are actually no incorrect bookings, which are always possible. We have, among other things: Twint, (very similar to Apple Pay) which is very common and accepted practically everywhere, even in cafes, bakeries, etc. As far as I know, the EC card is not a credit card in this sense, but a means of payment that debits your account directly (simultaneously, so to speak), or the payment fails if your account does not have the appropriate balance (unless you can also fall into the red). Recycling works a little differently for us, all without a deposit on PET bottles and aluminum cans, but it still works. Why? Because with us you pay for the volume of household waste (chargeable waste area), so the more you recycle, the less you pay for household waste (i.e. fewer waste bags you need). The thing about the bicycles on the "sidewalk" irritates me just as much in Germany, I still don't understand it (although I'm rarely in Germany). In our case it is separated (structurally by a height difference from the sidewalk) or marked throughout with lines and markings so that it is obvious at all times. This is also the case with us, that there are no checkpoints for tickets on public transport (nationwide), however, if you get caught during a check, it will be quite expensive and you can be excluded from using it if you travel several times without a ticket. If you do it anyway, you may face criminal proceedings.
I went looking for biking videos from Berlin, and in those ones the bike path was clearly marked by different surface material with the occasional road painting. Do you think this is not enough?
And ALWAYS remember Berlin is NOT Germany! Berlin ist irre.... 😆😆😆
Welcome in Germany
Berlin is not Germany. Berlin is Berlin. Don't get me wrong, it's our capital but this city is not how Germany in general works...
just a smal ride to Brandburg every one can experience true germany XD
Hi! Just found your channel, really cosy and warm videos! Do you have instagram by any chance? Your hair is gorgeous btw 😍
Hi, thank you so much for the nice words ❤️