The things which continue to amaze me about Germany

I will be completing 20 years of life in Germany very soon. I will try to pen down a few things that are surprising to me as well as amazing. A few can also be frustrating. The point is, my feelings regarding following things didn’t change even when so many years have gone down the line.

Restaurants CRY to serve drinking water:

Germany has amazing tap water which is of remarkably high quality. No droughts in this country. No water crisis. Drinking water is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Yet, there is absolutely no culture of providing tap drinking water for free.

I come from a hot place, where we get drinking water twice or thrice a week, that too only for couple of hours a day. Yet, you can just go to any hotel or restaurant and will get drinking water for free.

It’s just a way to make easy money for restaurants on drinks. They just won’t let it go.

Extremely quick to adapt environmentally friendly laws among society:

Politicians introducing an environmental law is one thing, the adaption within the society is another. The moment a law comes into force, people just appreciate it, change their habits, and adopt to the law so quickly. It’s just this social maturity that feels amazing every time something new pops-up.

Denial of modernisation to Railway stations, Airports, etc:

Seriously Germany? In India, people cry, protest and even die sometimes to get even a single modern road in some corner of the town. And you deny something which Govt. wants to modernize. I am dumbstruck.

Extremely dumb judgements and fines:

Once a lady in Frankfurt cleared off the empty glass bottles on the street corner all by herself, while the city municipality wasn’t reacting to her request. She did it for the safety of children around in the neighbourhood. You know what happened? Court ordered her to pay fine because she violated the law, by cleaning the garbage by herself. In any other country, municipality would have awarded her.

Appreciation and loyalty towards local products:

The more local the product is, the more support it enjoys. It starts right from farmers vegetables to high end manufacturing equipment. You just say the product is a regional one. It's enough to seek attention.

Strange Requests without any explanation:

There are a few instances where in I had to get down a train/tram before it goes to take a U-Turn in order to travel back in the reverse direction. The driver would ask me to get down before the U-Turn. I had to wait on the platform only to get into the train again. Apparently, only Germans understand the logic behind it. I never really understood the reason behind it.

No sugar coating:

Ah! I appreciate this so much. I don't have to think 1000 times and make the statement and life so complex anymore. This is such a relief. No need of lies either. No begging either. Straightforward, simple, and diplomatic talks. Ah! The time savers!!!

I will try to add few things in case I get hold of new thoughts.