HOW WE KNOW WE ARE NOT IN 
UTAH (KANSAS) ANYMORE....

Giant Hay Bale Wedding Announcement!

There are a few adjustments we've had to make in the way things are done here. Different cultures have different ways of doing things. I guess there must be some middle ground, where "Yankee ingenuity" and "German technology" crossover. There is also somewhere, where the two go different directions. Who are we to decide whether or not they are good differences or not-so-good differences? I'll let you decide. Here are a few we have noticed:

1. Here in Germany it is against the law to leave your car windows rolled down (even 2 centimeters) or your doors unlocked when you park, even if it is 100 degrees + outside. The reason, I was told, is because if cars get broken into, it makes more work for the police, and they are spread too thin as it is.

2. The traffic lights turn yellow before they turn green, as well as red. (this gives you time to hang up your cellphone before it turns green, I guess).

3. On the autobahns(freeways), most of the time there are no speed limits. I don"t know about you, but it is a little unnerving for me when I'm already going 120 kilometers per hour (75 mph) and someone whizzes by me going 220 kilometers per hour (135mph).

4. Because there are fewer gas stations as you drive through the little villages around this forested area, they understand the principle of "Supply and demand". After about 7:00 pm, the few gas stations that stay open that late start raising their gas prices. The later it gets, the more demand, and the higher the prices. All this time I thought American were the  "Capitalists". Maybe they learned a lesson from us.

5. In your car it is required that you have 3 important things: namely, a Fluorescent vest, a First Aid kit, and a reflective triangle to set up behind your car if you have an emergency. Now I think those are good items to have on hand.

6. You had better have enough gas in your car when you enter a freeway, because if there is a traffic jam and you run out of gas on the freeway, you will get a ticket.

7. If you get pulled over by an officer for a traffic violation, you may pay your fine directly to him, on the spot. Just think, no going to city hall to pay the fine. It's done and taken care of.... So if you want to speed or do something illegal, make sure you have a lot of cash on hand.

8. Honking seems to be the Germans' national pass time. If the light turns green and your engine isn't already gaining RPMS, expect a honk just to make sure you are awake.  They honk for everything you might do wrong! So, when we get honked at, we write down what we were doing at the time and try not to do it again. That's how we learned the rules of the road.  (Of course, this happens in Utah as well but not as often!)

9. If you go to a restaurant to eat, don't expect a cold glass of water as a starter. If you want water, you have to pay for it. And, if you're lucky, it's not carbonated or warm.

10. Sales Tax here is 19%. (Yes, I said nineteen percent)

11. If you go to a hospital to get minor treatment, chances are good you won't get billed, even if you are not native German. You see, here all health car costs are mostly paid by the government, after you pay about 1/2 of your salary each month for taxes. The hospitals are so busy that your bill will probably get lost in the shuffle..   Mine did.

12. There are big rodents here who live in the forest, who kind of look like hairy weasels. There is one in particular, who thinks it's great to chew on warm radiator hoses. They say that the hoses are made partly out of fish parts  (???) so, when hoses get hot they radiate a fish smell. Our car did, and we have a bill for $320.00 to prove it. Can't they find something else besides fish parts?

13. When you go shopping, in order to get a shopping basket, you have to insert money into the handle. You also have to bring your own grocery bags and bag your own groceries. When you bring the cart back, you get your money back. On the bright side, you don't see shopping carts scattered around parking lots. America should adopt this one, except for the bags part.

14. When you are traveling, make sure you have coins enough to pay for the toilets. Some of them even automatically clean themselves. Just make sure you are not still sitting on the toilet after you flush it. Maybe that's where we got the phrase,"It's like flushing money down the toilet".  What is nice on the Autobahns are the "Rest Areas" which are usually a quick on and off the actual road and they have great food and these wonderful toilets.

15.  Parking is almost always a problem here.  So, there are many narrow roads where cars are parked on both sides and somewhat out into the road.  We call these streets "Dodge em' Cars".  We have one that we travel frequently because it is the quickest way to the shopping area here in area.  (Please see video if you are on a computer and we are sorry it isn't in the right format.).  When driving these streets, you must stop and wait for oncoming cars if there is a car parked in your lane.  It gets pretty exciting at times!

We don't mean to sound judgmental, we would just like to know why some of these rules exist. And, we wish someone would have told us about them when we first came.  We love being in Germany and everyday we seem to feel more at home here.  I am sure all of our German friends would feel the same way about Utah and wonder about some of our "cultural" differences.  Just ask them about "slow cookers/crock pots" "fry sauce" and "Stovetop Stuffing".