10 strange things about Germany
Beer, pedestrian crossings, street names and more
Einbahnstrasse, moustaches, kebabs, ticket machines, cafe/ nightclubs, dogs, cigarettes, and Speedos... Travel in Germany and expect to come across them all.
Even if you know nothing else about Germany, there are ten things you should be prepared for before you travel there.
1. Every single pedestrian crossing works on a different system. They all have different- shaped buttons to press, swipe your hand over or stand next to and hope it does something. None of these interactions appears to make the blindest bit of difference however, and are probably designed to give the locals a laugh while you attempt to vigorously massage a yellow box.
2. The country is divided up into types of beer. Seemingly each city or small area has its own and, of course, everyone else’s is rubbish.
3. German street names are absolute horrors. As a general rule, they all have at least 27 letters in them, and sound roughly the same. This tends to mean that maps are absolutely covered in text, and getting a feel for road shape and direction should require a degree.
4. Einbahnstraße means one way street. It may sound silly, but you’re going to appreciate knowing this when you spend 10 minutes frantically searching your street plan to find where it is.
5. It is not merely OK to have a moustache, but an accepted sign of virility.
6. Should you want to grab a bite to eat on the move, you have a choice of bakeries (should you wish to dry your already parched mouth out further) or kebab shops (should you enjoy grease). Many streets consist entirely of these two things on a rotation basis.
7. The trains, buses and trams work meticulously. They’re frequent, on-time and go where you want them to go. To offset this, the ticket machines have been designed to infuriate anyone who has just been to an ATM, and will only accept small denominations, even though you can’t pay for much else with less than a €20 note.
8. What looks like a perfectly normal café during the day is liable to turn into a drinking den at about 10pm, then a nightclub at two in the morning. By breakfast time the next morning, it will be a peaceful, tranquil café again, with no sign of the debauchery that went on the night before. Curiously, it will be exactly the same people staffing it, too.
9. Given a hot day, every single patch of dirt that could be vaguely passed off as an inland beach, riverbank and puddle will be filled with men in Speedos. The universal distaste for these items of swimwear is just not comprehended here.
10. Dogs and cigarettes have a free rein. Don’t be surprised to walk into an internet café through a fug of smoke to find a Labrador sat on a spare chair, or to get on a ferry and receive a cigarette burn on your arm after dodging the excitable puppy that is charging up and down the deck.
