I returned from germany early morning today . As promised writing a few blogs on germany , Austria . Though a short trip of one week , it gave me few experiences which made this second visit to germany more memorable than the first one done 2.5 years back .
I arrived in germany by Lufthansa the official carrier of germany . Having read a few bad reviews of this airline i was skeptical but was pleasantly surprised by an excellent service and nice food . They had even arranged tamil speaking person to help passengers in transit at frankfurt airport as flight took off from chennai airport . I would have loved if the food was german but since most of my co-passengers are not the "experimenters " it was nice welcoming gesture that they served delicious indian food served by german airhostesses . I arrived in the historic city of Nuremberg where the famous Nuremberg trials of world war 2 took place . And i was travelling through the heart of Bavaria ...
My training was in Erlangen a small "village " around 25 kms from Nuremberg . It was not the lego brick houses and the lush greenery on either side of the roads that attracted me more but that every other car was a BMW or an Audi . Nothing unexpected for this was Germany the land od das Auto where these cars are manufactured . Gotta buy one next time i land (this time didnt take that much money:) )
I reached my guesthouse on the outskirts of Erlangen in a residential area . This time so many things went wrong but they were all blessings in disguise . For one my map which i got from airport was irrelevant as my guesthouse was just outside the map in Erlangen . That made me observe the excellent public transport system in erlangen with buses every 19 minutes . You read that correctly , being a time obsessed culture buses and trains go by the minute . Germany has changed to some extent according to oldtimers who say you could correct your watch by observing train or bus but still punctuality is top priority .
There was a superb cafe nearby with pretzels and nice cappucchino coffee . In addition they had a great variety of hamburger like things stuffed with a variety of fillings . Pastries were amazing as i was doubting whether i was eating strawberries or pastry . Surprises again every establishment i went the staff were very courteous though many places they didnt speak english . But the HALLO (hello in german ) told with a warm smile was everywhere and though ages have passed you should appreciate that this is Bavaria where the Nazi party was formed . And age has shown me how to recognise whether you were welcome by the tone and body language of the HALLO . I was welcome everywhere . But just a warning though ..dont expect the "where are you from ? etc etc " as in germany stranger ,aquaintance and friendship is different like gears of a bmw ...So you will enjoy your stay if you keep your expectations culturally relevant . There is not the plastic smile which can be encountered in sales establishments of some countries and if interpreted correctly its a sign of honesty ... germans are generally more honest than many cultures .
Purely from the internet (i havent tried it ) ... Its said if you weigh 200 kg and ask a german date how do you look dont be surprised or sad that she told you you are overweight . Its plain honesty and you asked for it ....:)
I arrived in germany by Lufthansa the official carrier of germany . Having read a few bad reviews of this airline i was skeptical but was pleasantly surprised by an excellent service and nice food . They had even arranged tamil speaking person to help passengers in transit at frankfurt airport as flight took off from chennai airport . I would have loved if the food was german but since most of my co-passengers are not the "experimenters " it was nice welcoming gesture that they served delicious indian food served by german airhostesses . I arrived in the historic city of Nuremberg where the famous Nuremberg trials of world war 2 took place . And i was travelling through the heart of Bavaria ...
My training was in Erlangen a small "village " around 25 kms from Nuremberg . It was not the lego brick houses and the lush greenery on either side of the roads that attracted me more but that every other car was a BMW or an Audi . Nothing unexpected for this was Germany the land od das Auto where these cars are manufactured . Gotta buy one next time i land (this time didnt take that much money:) )
I reached my guesthouse on the outskirts of Erlangen in a residential area . This time so many things went wrong but they were all blessings in disguise . For one my map which i got from airport was irrelevant as my guesthouse was just outside the map in Erlangen . That made me observe the excellent public transport system in erlangen with buses every 19 minutes . You read that correctly , being a time obsessed culture buses and trains go by the minute . Germany has changed to some extent according to oldtimers who say you could correct your watch by observing train or bus but still punctuality is top priority .
There was a superb cafe nearby with pretzels and nice cappucchino coffee . In addition they had a great variety of hamburger like things stuffed with a variety of fillings . Pastries were amazing as i was doubting whether i was eating strawberries or pastry . Surprises again every establishment i went the staff were very courteous though many places they didnt speak english . But the HALLO (hello in german ) told with a warm smile was everywhere and though ages have passed you should appreciate that this is Bavaria where the Nazi party was formed . And age has shown me how to recognise whether you were welcome by the tone and body language of the HALLO . I was welcome everywhere . But just a warning though ..dont expect the "where are you from ? etc etc " as in germany stranger ,aquaintance and friendship is different like gears of a bmw ...So you will enjoy your stay if you keep your expectations culturally relevant . There is not the plastic smile which can be encountered in sales establishments of some countries and if interpreted correctly its a sign of honesty ... germans are generally more honest than many cultures .
Purely from the internet (i havent tried it ) ... Its said if you weigh 200 kg and ask a german date how do you look dont be surprised or sad that she told you you are overweight . Its plain honesty and you asked for it ....:)
No comments:
Post a Comment