First Impressions of Germany

Dear Lauren,

When I first arrived in Germany, my immediate response was to compare this country to other European countries I had visited before. We were on the bus, on our way to the CIEE for the orientation meeting and I was looking at the street trying to find where the old infrastructure was and the buildings where you can feel the history and culture just by looking at them. It wasn't until my first class with Mr. Erik when he told us about self-awareness and being conscious about making assumptions and coming to conclusions before proper analysis, that I realized I was making an unfair comparison. I was attempting to compare Germany to some of the other European countries I had visited. I thought about how the streets weren't as clean as they were in France and how there was much more graffiti on the walls here than in London. Another comparison I made was with the way Germans dress. While it is just as formal as I was expecting, I am not as impressed by their sense of style like I was in some of the other countries in Europe I have visited.

In terms of the culture, I noticed a lot more staring but I noticed the other people in my group were much more bothered by this than I was. I experience a lot of staring in the U.S. as well and while it made me uncomfortable at first, I have in many ways started not to notice it was much as I used to. I actually prefer the people who stare here more than those in America because people in America are much more likely to actually speak to you when you make eye contact vs just staring like they do here.

Another difference I've noticed is that in Germany, there are a lot more people who walk and ride bikes here. I feel like the general population here is more fit. I wish America would integrate exercise more into their culture as well because it's great for our physical and mental health. However, one thing that is bad for your health that I have seen is smoking and drinking. Smoking cigarettes is a really big part of the culture here and I don't really like. While the smell is really annoying, what bothers me most is that smoking is so bad for your lungs and also triggers depression. I often find myself wondering whether the smoking habits here is the reason why a lot of people are so skinny. I've notices that it is considered "cool" to smoke here which is interesting. I don't mind how openly people drink here as much. I feel like because drinking is so socially acceptable here, people aren't as irresponsible with it which makes it something that people do socially which is different but also really cool. 

Sincerely, Lauren