6 Lies America Taught Me About Germany 🇩🇪

[@PassportTwo]

What is it like for Americans seeing Germany for the FIRST TIME? Watch my friend's first ever impression of Germany here 👉 kzbin.info/www/bejne/gqG8q6GQnspmhrs Be sure to check out our video where my sister and her family came to Germany and we talked about their take on Germany as well 👉 kzbin.info/www/bejne/h4nbfJqYm85lbK8 Also, here’s the video where my brother and his wife came and visited us for the first time 👉 kzbin.info/www/bejne/eJrEf3ekh62badU\ Enjoy 😊

[@Gutenberg1977]

Ihr wohnt doch in Enkenbach-Alsenborn, oder? Da fahr ich regelmäßig durch :-D Dann müsstest du ja eigentlich auch ab und an mal die Flexx nehmen anstatt die DB

[@HH-hd7nd]

Fact about Hitler's way of speaking: He practiced that for his public speeches in particular. It drew attention because it was so different from normal german people heared all day that if kind of stuck for that fact alone....which is indeed the reasony why he did this. People who interacted with him outside of the public speeches - like his secretary Traudl Junge for example - mentioned that even Hitler did not use this harsh pronounciation in his every day life.

[@Commander-Es-Scheppert]

hey wehen u search for beautiful looking citys check out Hann.Münden in Niedersachsen, a little, beautiful, old historic town :)

[@PassportTwo]

Tatsächlich nicht 😊@@Gutenberg1977

[@user-lu9il2qv5s]

Dude man, you really are hilarious

[@fr89k]

Actually, Germany used to have a train station in pretty much every second village. It just has been either removed throughout the last decades or it was destroyed in WW2 and never rebuilt afterwards. The biggest removal probably happened since the 1990s, because the German train system was privatized and therefore the unprofitable tracks had to be removed. (Which was insanely stupid, as we know today)

[@oldfrittenfett1276]

And what we could have known just by taking a look at Great Britains Railroad going to the shitters once Thatcher implemented the naive "the market always knows best".

[@fr89k]

@@oldfrittenfett1276 The market totally fails on pretty much every infrastructure.

[@oldfrittenfett1276]

@@fr89k Yes. Postal, Busses, Trains, Police sometimes...

[@matthiassimon1739]

That information is wrong. The railway system in Germany is still state owned.

[@oldfrittenfett1276]

@@matthiassimon1739 The rails, like the streets. the other parts are a stock corporation. The stocks are still held in part by the state, but as a stock corporation, it must make profit above serving the citicens.

[@Psoewish]

I’ve spent a lot of time in the US and I’m afraid to say that the whole water beer thing doesn’t refer to the alcohol content, but rather the flavor.

[@L0mb4x]

As in Germany, you just have to choose the right beer. I always find it kinda funny when fellow Germans, proud of the Reinheitsgebot (totally overhyped btw), talk bad about American beers because they only tried Millers but then try to convince you that Bitburger or so is the best beer ever :D

[@p3chv0gel22]

​​@@L0mb4xthere are actually people, who like Bitburger?! I only know people, who buy that, when it's discounted

[@passio-735]

@@L0mb4x Let's be real here, all of the best selling beers in Germany taste basically the same. You can make the test for yourself. If you ever have a friend who says they only buy Bitburger or Becks or whatever because they think that one tastes the best, sit them down with three glasses of beer and ask them which one is the one they like most. I've done this 4 times now, no one ever got their "favorite" right and they still had a 33% chance XD If you want good German beer, try craft beers and buy from the breweries themselves. So many unique flavors it's insane. And I suppose that's the same for American beer because why wouldn't it? [btw. when it comes to those brands that everyone drinks, Czech beer is superior ;)]

[@L0mb4x]

@@passio-735 I totally agree with you. Maybe my comment was a bit misleading. I am a german craft beer nerd and home brewer 😉. I tried to make the point that it is unfair to judge the US beer culture by its best selling beers and even if you choose to do so, it will not be a high level contest if you compare it with Germanys best selling ones. Doing this test with all the TV advertised beers with my friends is on my list for years 😀 . It gets even funnier if you include beers they "hate" or with a bad reputation, like Oettinger.

[@NeurosenkavalierEmilSinclair]

But I guess it's because we think of bud light when we think about american beer. I'm a casual Pils drinker but even I have to honor the incredible and fast growing diversity of craft beer and smaller breweries in the US, while our local breweries die out.

[@uwegroote7456]

The thing with the harsh dialect is, in every american TV-Show or Movie they speak german like a Klingon. :)

[@dutchgamer842]

In Germany mostly it's dubbed into German.

[@RainOfChaos91]

Exactly 😂

[@Lukeddd]

Best example: you can speak Schmetterling very soft and have not so Schmetter it ;) Also you can speak Butterfly very hard.

[@lefloeck]

​@@Lukedddvery good examples in my humble opinion.

[@Alex2007MUC]

The American TV/Movie-world want to keep up "appearances". In this world ... a German who is actually capable to speak English well... doesn't exist. This "harsh dialect" makes the American Movie/TV-makers feel better.

[@eliane_ysabel]

I am German and I once met an American girl in Costa Rica. She asked me where I am from and I answered I am from the Black Forest. She then started a discussion with me accusing me of lying as the black forest would be a secluded area where you could not "be from". Mind she has never been even in Europe. Some people are so goofy 🤣

[@lethfuil]

One American INSISTED it was "AustraALIa" and not "Austria", when I said where I was from. xD An interesting amount of US Americans wouldn't find the world on a map of the world. But they absolutely know everything about everywhere, much better than people from everywhere else.

[@BaerbelBorn]

@@lethfuil 🤣🤣🤣

[@BaerbelBorn]

@@lethfuil so true, and it explains a lot.

[@kretRL]

​@@lethfuil Americans and Geography aren't friend ngl

[@leobe2104]

So weird how there are actually people out there who think they havr the authority to just correct people on things like where the other person is from, especially if they don't know much about it themselves

[@ZachSeineVideos]

No, no, we definitively curse Uppsala - they know what they did.

[@4Astaroth]

We just decided not to talk about that incident.

[@andyt8216]

Obviously not the same linguistic language, but seems a coincidence with the French “oop la / opla”

[@ropeburn6684]

​@@andyt8216It isn't the same "linguistic language" the same way my water isn't as wet as yours.😂

[@MichaelBurggraf-gm8vl]

Ups + hoppla = Uppsala uppsala (deutsch) = uppsele (schwäbisch/swabian) = hoppala (österreichisch/austrian) We certainly need a dictionary German - Austrian / Austrian - German.

[@andyt8216]

My point is French is a Romance language. Most of the replies to me have no bearing on this.

[@KaiaKooking]

What I love about German attitude towards fashion is that you can go all in of you feel like it but there’s no obligation to do so. You can go almost anywhere in anything and that includes your boring outdoor clothes that you just like because they’re so damn comfy. If I want to put in effort I do but no one looks at me weird when I don’t.

[@jennyh4025]

Well a couple of things are (fortunately) still frowned upon in public in Germany: PJs and sweats (the ones most people wear at home when they don’t expect to see anyone and just want to be comfortable).

[@lefloeck]

​@@jennyh4025well. Yeah. And for good reason. PJ outside of your house? Why would you wanna do that?

[@jennyh4025]

@@lefloeck don’t ask me. I feel bad wearing my comfy-sweat pants going to the washing machine downstairs when I might encounter neighbors.🤷‍♀️

[@shadowfox009x]

It's so fun when you watch people at the cash register. I once had a woman dressed to nines including those red soled Louboutins in front of me at the Lidl cash register. I was dressed in jeans, t-shirt, and sneakers and behind me was someone in his paint-spalttered work-clothes and boots. And that was in rural Germany.

[@SamWinchester000]

To be honest, I've pretty much never worn a Jogginghose at home in my life, not due to snobbery but because I absolutely just don't feel it and don't know why I should take of my street clothes as soon as I enter the house. I wear my jeans or other pants and buisness shirt because I like wearing them and feel orderly doing that and that the day is associated with wearing this day clothing. So, I find it very comfortable to wear them throughout the day, no need to ease my legs etc. with other cotton. This would feel like going to sleep for me. For me, outdoor/buisness cloth is associated with starting the day and easy clothes are associated with going to sleep. The day does not really start before taking off the sleep cloth, taking a shower and wearing my everyday outdoor cloth for me, even on the weekend. It's like a psychological signal that now the "work" (Not meaning real work but at Home stuff) can start, and wearing a Jogginghose or something like that in the day would make me feel like a vampire and automatically give me the feeling of going to bed. Oh, and I also do not really like t-shirts, rarely wear one. I guess, Lagerfeld would be proud. 😝

[@GGysar]

I am German, from and in Germany, I have had Americans online tell me, that Christmas pickles are a very common German tradition and when I told them that it really isn't they told me, that I just don't know German culture and that his family is "really" German and kept the traditions, while mine obviously just forgot everything, sooo, yeah, it was a weird conversation. Oh, and it is of course "die Nutella".

[@KaiHenningsen]

Yeah, those pickles are an American invention and seem to come up on practically every German-American channel.

[@stephanieheiler2327]

der/die/das Nutella ... Als Germanist kann ich sagen, dass es einen Grundsatz gibt, der sagt, wenn man ein vergleichbares Wort einsetzen kann, dann auch der Artikel dieses Wortes benutzt werden kann. Ich kann also sagen "die Nutella", denn es gibt "die Schokocreme", "der Nutella" entsprechend für "der Brotaufstrich". Da Nutella kein Wort aus der deutschen Sprache ist und diesen Fällen meistens das Neutrum, also das, verwendet wird, sind wir bei "das Nutella". Alle drei Varianten sind möglich. Welcher Artikel verwendet wird, wird vom Alter des Sprechers und seiner regionalen Herkunft bestimmt. Einer Studie zufolge bevorzugen allerdings 64% den Artikel "das".

[@IZaubermausI]

@GGysar - sorry - but Americans are very bigheaded… 🙄 Don‘t know who taught them they know everything better… 🤦🏼‍♀️

[@derwolf7810]

@@stephanieheiler2327 Ist das nicht eher eine Art Faustregel statt eines Grundsatzes? Ansonsten wäre dem Grundsatz zufolge aus der Ähnlichkeit zu dem Wort 'Nutella' dann auch 'der/die/das Schokocreme', 'der/die/das Brotaustrich' richtig, aber auch 'das Aufsatz'/'der Essay', 'die kleine Boot'/'das Nussschale', 'die Abschnitt'/'der Passage', ..., was ich alles als falsch ansehen würde .

[@stephanieheiler2327]

@@derwolf7810 Ich verstehe den Gedankengang ☺️ Aber das Genus der deutschen Wörter ist inhärent, also dem Wort innewohnend. Der Artikel zeigt den Genus nur an, da man es am Wort selbst nicht mehr erkennen kann. Deswegen fühlen sich manche Dinge automatisch falsch an.

[@Acampestre]

Another myth that exists (even worldwide), is that the evil person with the harsh pronunciation you mentioned is a German. In fact he missed being a German by about 500 metres and is Austrian instead.

[@user-vk1pz7ry1l]

Well, but he had the German citizenship and also fought for Germany in WWII. So it's kinda negligible that he was born in Braunau

[@Hans_Holt]

In that time, an austrian was like a prussian or bavarian. Just one type of german. That we devide between germans and austrians is a thing coming from post ww2.

[@denniskrenz2080]

​@@Hans_Holtnot really, different Emperors. 😉 Alone the fact that Hitler had to cheat for getting German citizenship is pretty revealing.

[@Eysenbeiss]

@@Hans_Holt Bullshit. Österreicher brauchten zur Zeit von Preußen sogar eine Genehmigung, um das Staatsgebiet zu betreten, geschweige davon was nötig war, wenn sie sich dort niederlassen wollten.

[@GilbMLRS]

​@@user-vk1pz7ry1lFought? :-D What did he fight in WW2, gastritis?

[@Why-D]

As a gardener, there is no bad weather, just bad clothing!

[@IZaubermausI]

As a (grand)mother I always say the same 😂

[@rubenus007]

Im no gardener but i still confirm

[@That.Weird_Emma]

And "we are not out of sugar"😂

[@depressedutchman]

As a Dutch student who rides their bike... I 100% agree

[@Buerstenpinsel_yt]

Du sprichst mir aus der Seele!

[@elrohirshouldercheaptrick9452]

Btw, the house thing, it really depends how old the town, city or village is. There's a lot of variation even within the same towns

[@cantinadudes]

It also depends on wether the british and americans liked it or didnt like it during ww2. My town is pretty old (around a thousand years old) but we got almost no houses like that because of the war where they just burned everything down for fun (my town isnt that near to any big city they just passed through, met a few HJ boys, decided to burn the town and then continue driving towards the east). If ww2 didnt happen, then yea outside of big cities mosf houses would look like this.

[@R4v3n_666]

A very good example is Bremen we have the Schnoor from the 14th century, Dom 11th century (at least the foundation) and the City Hall was built in the 13th century. Right next to those we have new soulless corporate buildings. It's a mixture of how old the place is, how bad were the ww I and II and how many buildings were built till then.

[@Mimi_toast]

Or If you live in a Village it also depends because mostly in Villages there are old Houses

[@dieSchreckschraube]

@@R4v3n_666 Same story for Hannover. Some lovely surviving old buildings and some modern eyesores mixed in.

[@Kivas_Fajo]

The difference between a 5 % American and a 5 % German beer is. You filter yours, we do not-in most cases. There is something called Stammwürze in a beer and the higher the amount, the stronger the effect of the beer. So filter that out, you get Pißwasser with 5 %, do not do that and you have a beer, that will eff you up quickly. Also...you use maize to make beer, which is not a beer ingredient to begin with.

[@JonaxII]

Nur weil das hinterwälder Reinheitsgebot von Anno schießmichtot noch nicht wusste, dass man Bier auch aus so unbekannten Pflänzchen wie Reis und Mais brauen kann, heißt das nicht, dass das dann kein bier ist. Aber du hast Recht, die komischen amerikanischen Biere haben zu wenig Stammwürze. Bier muss wie das Flüssigbrot schmecken, was es ist!

[@Kivas_Fajo]

@@JonaxII Wenn man Bier aus Reis und Mais brauen kann, wieso haben dann die Chinesen und Azteken oder Maya keines gebraut? Darauf kommen kann man auch mit nem Maisbrot, dass nass rumlag und gärte...oder mit Reiskuchen. Reisschnaps haben sie Ja, aber zum Bier Erfinden hat's dann doch wohl ned ganz gereicht, wa? Hinterwäldler sind die, die seit Tausenden Jahren den gleichen Mist machen wie wir und trotzdem noch nie drauf kamen wie man ein Bier braut. Gerade im Fall der Chinesen mit 7000 Jahren verbriefter Geschichte...echt peinlich.

[@Atlessa]

I'm preeeeetty sure alcohol content of beverages is measured in percent (%). The one you used (which my phone can't even reproduce) is used for blood alcohol concentration.

[@Kivas_Fajo]

@@Atlessa You are, sorry for the pun, 100 % correct. Aaaaand I corrected my mistake, thanks to your insight. It is called Promille with the two 00, which obviously means by the thousand, not as with %, by the hundred.

[@TomRuhrpott]

Wir hatten uns doch 1516 darauf geeinigt das wir es nicht Pisswasser sondern Kölsch nennen! 🙄🙄🙄

[@hwbartels-ss2lg]

Great observations! Two remarks: Houses - you showed small towns and villages In cities, most people live in big appartement buildings Transport It is really a shame that our railway system was allowed to decay like that. They are investing more now, but we will never reach Swiss standards

[@charliesmith4072]

In the U.S. we have tried to upgrade our railroads for more than fifty years. Unfortunately whenever it comes up it becomes a political issue and in the U.S. our system makes it very easy to kill good ideas.

[@graydonwilson5550]

@charliesmith4072 In general, there's only one railroad track, and it is used by both freight trains and passenger trains. Freight trains by law have a priority over passenger trains. If a freight train is coming, the passenger train has to pull off to a siding to wait for the freight train to pass. This sometimes means sitting on the side track, going nowhere, for as much as four hours.

[@aoilpe]

@@graydonwilson5550 This statement is not correct ; Amtrak has a nationwide priority over freight -BUT - as freight trains are getting longer and longer the sidings are too short for them now. This is done on purpose ! Railway companies are not required to invest in longer sidings - so the short passenger train has to wait…

[@graydonwilson5550]

@@aoilpe Interesting. A very practical application that I hadn't understood. Thanks.

[@jimpanse1638]

Yup it is COMPLETELY unreliable for commuting now. I need to get an ebike or a motorcycle. If i just ride my bike over a direct bikepath (trasse) (essen - duisburg) i can arrive at uni in 45minutes reliably... but if i take the train i dont know if its delayed/runs at all/or just stops mid track so you cant get out and are trapped in delay... this can take up to two hours in bad cases... so: Riding bike 1:30 commuting time every time (okay not when you are getting pulled out by an overzealous cop for riding on the wrong bikepath as one of them is just a disaster in duisburg) Riding public transport: 2:30 h to 4 hours 😂😂🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

[@MausTheGerman]

I live in Koblenz (Germany) opposite the Rhine river boat cruise stop were hundreds of international tourist groups arrive every week - right in front of my door step. I mostly can identify American tourist groups immediately. One example is the way older generation people (70+) are dressed, like grandmas with Baseball caps 🧢 or grandpas with Sketcher sport shoes and / or oversized shirts. European people in that age category are usually dressed way more conservative. I say usually - not always 😉 Additionally the loudness they produce is directly recognizable (uuuhhhhh, wooow, amazing….) 😅

[@anunearthlychild8569]

And the elderly women in Germany rarely walk around with purple, pink or other colorfully tinted hair. I'm sure it will be different in a few years when my generation gets older. 😂

[@olgahein4384]

@@anunearthlychild8569 Oh yeah, you can bet on that. My hair is considered brunette, though technically i'm blonde (dark blonde, but still). I have 2 white hairs by now and they are literally as white as snow. And as soon as i can dye my hair neon pink without destroying it first through bleach, i sure as hell will. And a month later, it will be mist-blue. And then purple with cyan stripes.

[@thepineapple8434]

Exactely. I could hear an american group having a conversation 500 Meters away :D Also, young women always have "like" or "literally" in each sentence.

[@g.f.w.6402]

Das mag daran liegen, weil die Alten in Deutschland sonst ausgelacht werden würden. getreu dem Motto: "Guck mal wie der/die Alte rumläuft mit Teenagerklamotten!".

[@knownuser0815]

Damals hatte sich unsere eigentlich grauhaarige Lehrerin die Haare lila gefärbt, und schon hatte sie einen neuen Spitznamen: Milka-Kuh😅

[@garrusvakarian6462]

I live in a gingerbread house in a gingerbread street, we have flower pods at our windows and my dad wears sandals with socks 🇩🇪❤

[@MausTheGerman]

I‘ve been to Frankenmuth / Michigan 6 weeks ago, which claims to be a (very) German town. I had a Bratwurst and it didn’t taste like a Bratwurst and the fact that it was served in a Hot Dog bun killed me 😅 Everything there was full of Christmas shops which I also found quite funny, especially when I saw that nearly all the Christmas stuff was LED blinking plastic stuff 😅 Even the architecture, were they tried to make the town looking a little bit of „German“ with it’s fake timbered houses and the standard American concrete sidewalks was kind of hilarious to me. When I went into one of fake timbered house grocery stores and asked for German bread in the bakery department they looked at me as if I would come from planet Mars. If that is what Americans combine with Germany - Halleluja 😅 sorry if that sounds rude, but it was a little shocking to me.

[@klarasee806]

The fact that the culture of immigrants develops differently over a long period of time than the culture of their country of origin is completely normal and a worldwide phenomenon. This probably has less to do with the wrong American idea of ​​us than with the fact that German immigrants tried to preserve part of their culture over generations, but some of it was lost or developed independently.

[@MausTheGerman]

@@klarasee806 agreed!

[@agn855]

@@klarasee806- Well, besides the fact that the huge minority of Americans of German heritage had to get rid of their German identity in WWI (and whatever was left with WWII), so the remnants of that "identity" are mainly artificial.

[@martinkasper197]

Even Germantown PA doesn't look German...🤓🤔😂😂

[@Midnight.Creepypastas]

@@klarasee806It’s not about cultures developing differently. It’s about people claiming to be like us when they clearly aren’t.

[@philippbobkaufmann4004]

As a Swiss guy in his fourties who has never had to buy a car: The public transport thing is real in urban parts of Switzerland (and some big cities in Germany). In the countryside, there'll often be only a few buses a day. My parents live in the mountains, and the absolutely need their car.

[@Tokru86]

That's true for basically everywhere. Even the countries which have the best reputation for public transport. If you live rural, you need a car. There is no difference between Europe and the US. The difference is just that in the US you'll need the car in the big cities, too. In Europe for the most part you don't.

[@MaticTheProto]

@@Tokru86the difference is the us public transport is a joke because these bend over for the car

[@liaspooked4980]

Yeah. I live in Berlin and have no need for a car, even if the public transport isnt always reliable or great. When the trains fail for some reason, it's annoying, but you can deal with it simply by the sheer amount of connection options and different types of public transport - busses, subway, different types of trains, etc. Besides, it's cool how the public transport is almost always working in some capacity, no matter what time in the night or which day it is. I have my issues with the public transport, but I ve never felt the need to get a car, cause it seems like a hassle to have one in a city like Berlin. But I have definitely heard from friends that come from smaller, rural towns (Dörfer) that a car is a must, and I can understand that. Germany as a whole is still very different than when you compare the public transport situation in other countries. I originally come from a huge metropolis that is outside of Europe and 4 times the size of Berlin, but it's a city with a much larger focus on cars than public transport, and that is one of the worse aspects about it. Now that I get the priviledge of living in a very walkable city, I enjoy it immensely, although I am aware that other European cities do it much better than Berlin.

[@steffent.6477]

Nie sieht man Reetdachhäuser :( Man findet sie an der gesammten Küste.

[@dieSchreckschraube]

Irgendwie denken Amis bei Deutschland immer nur an den Süden und Berlin, der Rest des Landes existiert für die irgendwie nicht.

[@HJPhilippi]

I love the sense of humor you bring to this "Germany vs. US" topic! I know there are a lot of stereotypes being fostered on both sides of the ocean, and it's people like you who shed some light to understand each other better. That's important and great!

[@DieselsVideos]

More "general german" for upsala is just "uups" with a long u. Depending on how long the u is it can mean "i made a small mistake" or "ok, we die now"

[@weissblau]

oder viel aelter -, much older Hoppla, oder Hoppala. I worked as a nanny in USA once, every child ended up using it and still do as adults.

[@devil_with_snowflakes]

When I went to Canada (for a Highschool year) 16 years ago, close to the US Boarder, peope were shocked to hear that I've never attended an Oktoberfest or that I have never worn a Dirndl. So many people think that every German attends the Oktoberfest (and wears the typical Clothing). One of my school friends back in Germany married and invited their host parents from America. They were disappointed to see that she married in a plain white dress as they thought Dirndl and Lederhose is the way to go seeing Influencers from the south wearing it. I'm living in the Northern part and this stuff is simply not popular. Younger people might attend a local oktoberfest gathering bit it's more like any other party they would attend.

[@Custer0706]

I like your 1954 vintage jersey. On a side note, a lot of the characterless looking inner cities and towns in Germany are by courtesy of the 8th US Air Force.

[@misottovoce]

Exactly. Nachkriegs Nachbau. Or to be more fair...'are by courtesy of WW2'.

[@wolfganghager8321]

Don't forget the Lancasters and the infamous (Desden) Bomber Harris - who has a statue unveiled by the then Quenn Mother.

[@amainzergoesplaces568]

Interesting, largely accurate observations - as always. Why architecture is often rather austere in Germany would be worth a whole video of its own. As every so often in Germany the consequences of WW2 play a huge role.

[@noobschrauber4293]

Those were mainly very true observations :D I want to add two things of my own. The train system really can be troubling, however on average it is actually doing "Okay" looking at statistics in comparison to the landmass its covering. Furthermore I would suggest to differ between real trains from DB for example and those in cities or connecting close cities (Tram, S-Bahn, U-Bahn (Subway)), because those are very reliable most of the time. The point about the homes is true, naturally you cannot have beautiful and colorful houses everywhere :D There are various building styles across the country but also it depends on the age of the houses. Most beautiful looking homes are very old and have been restored or renewed over the years. Also WWII matters a lot, because many german cities got bombed to a degree that nearly all buildings were destroyed. After that, it was more practical to build in the way they did. Some old houses or landmarks got rebuilt and some were lucky enough to not get destroyed, but in general that is one of the main reasons, that some areas may look more gray or plain. Your videos are very accurate though and the quality is increasing every time :D

[@Zelo_1]

Wow! The mountain you showed at the beginning of the video is the Watzmann and i can actually see it from my window! So cool that my hometown is featured😊

[@manub.3847]

Public transport: as long as you have enough options in your area, everything is good, but as soon as there is a route closure in one area and the weekend timetable applies to the other area, your local public transport app can actually recommend taking the bike if you have to leave at a certain time. (Yes, since the weekend timetable for the bus lines showed a 40-minute waiting time and the S-Bahn wasn't working, our local public transport provider recommended going by bike ;) =25 minutes for this specific route)

[@RainbowYak]

Fun fact: Hitler didn't scream his speeches because he was constantly angry and aggressive. The problem was that, especially during the 1920s when he began his political career, decent loudspeakers simply didn't yet exist. If you wanted to talk to a large crowd, you basically had no other choice but to scream at the top of your lungs. In fact, during the 1928 election campaign, Hitler held so many rallies that he completely lost the ability to speak for a few days. When he visited his doctor, the doctor urged him to quit the campaign because there was a big risk of Hitler's vocal chords being irreparably damaged or destroyed. Hitler was very shook when he heard this. He didn't quit his campaign but he hired a professional opera singer who gave him regular speaking lessons for several years to come. This is also a big reason why his pronunciation sounds "aggressive". In professional German stage acting or singing, you use techniques such as rolling the 'r'. Many sounds are overpronounced specifically because you don't have a microphone and you need to make sure that viewers 30-40m away from you can still hear everything you say. I used to be a stage actor and this is exactly how we talked. Most people in our time are not familiar with this technique anymore because they only watch TV. However, TV acting is VERY different from stage acting. Leonardo diCaprio gets to mumble and swallow half of his sounds because the camera is right in his face. If you're on a large stage, you can't do that. This also means, however, that stage-speaking is to some degree unnatural. If I talked like that in everyday life, people would stare at me. And guess what: Hitler didn't talk like this in his everyday life, either. A few years ago, a recording was recovered which was made of Hitler without his knowledge or consent. In the recording, he's talking to the Finnish Prime Minister in a private setting. You can actually listen to it on KZbin. You will find that Hitler doesn't sound angry or aggressive at all. He sounds just like any regular dude. If you're still not convinced, listen to a German poem on KZbin. You will notice that it doesn't sound aggressive at all.

[@anna-elisabethbender3123]

Thank you very much for pointing this out. Yes, he was speaking "stage German". I hope that many people read your post!

[@einreaktionskanal]

"Fun Facts" with Hitler is a bit of a hard played ball 😂

[@McGhinch]

Alcohol in beer: Regular German beer usually has between 4.7 to 5.3 percent of alcohol. The ones you showed are from multi-brand corporations. They are predominantely what I call "me too corporations" --> the others have success with it, let's do the same. You will have more diversity when you look into local brands. And, as you said, we have stonger beers. We also have "Dünnbier" (thin beer) with a lot less alcohol and a growing market share of non-alcoholic beer with meanwhile a reasonable taste.

[@PeaceOutWorld]

I'm American, living in Germany for nearly 9 years. As for transportation, that's utterly subjective. We lived in Mainz for 6 years and 3 of those years had no car, nor did we need one. Mainz is amazingly connected, within and without the city. My roller bag was my "car trunk." I hauled unimaginable amounts of things in it, including potting soil. I was really proud of how much we could do without a car. Larger items could be transported for a fee. Now we bought a house in a small village south of Darmstadt. We have one bus that comes through, once an hour but not during the night. There are old abandoned train tracks from when it used to come through (and an old abandoned train station). We very much would love if they would restore public trains here. In the meantime, it's been ever since transit management was privatized that it's gone down the shitter. (To qualify that comment, the system is still state owned but private contracts manage it). Construction causes insane delays, you can't depend on it. It's really sad to see this. Actually, things slid downhill ever since covid. Now there aren't enough workers to do the repairs, construction, or even work for the train system. Plus there were serious supply shortages and price spikes during and after covid. So your having been here only 4 years (5 years now since this video), you never really saw the difference we saw.

[@sarbeyinwonderland]

Loved your reaction to the houses when you first came here. I always have the same reaction even though I'm German myself. I live in the northwest, close to the Dutch border, and nearly all houses here are red brick, so when I travel to other other parts of the country, I always marvel at all the plastered houses, especially if they're colourful :D

[@alexamurawski4524]

I love our red brick Houses

[@sarbeyinwonderland]

@@alexamurawski4524 Me too, but I'm so used to them that it's always a surprise when I realise that the rest of the country doesn't live in red brick 😅

[@lauramarschmallow2922]

I live in the Ruhrgebiet, which was practically bombed flat during WWII and the oldest houses in my city were build around 1900, so whenever I visit a city/village with houses that are older I really feel like in a fairy tale. xD

[@leDespicable]

What I don't get about some Northern German towns is that there's quite a few that thought it'd be a good idea to pave their pedestrian areas with red brick, so all the walls of buildings and the floor are the same colour. Don't know why some thought that would look good

[@dutchgamer842]

Isn't the redbrick just the outer wall? So redbrick then insulation then concrete which is finished with drywall (not drywall as wall itself, but finish for the concrete)

[@missvi1619]

Hitler was not german but austrian…….

[@Andre.felipe84]

Austrians are ethnic germans.

[@SatyreIkon]

US education.

[@willjankuvic9387]

@@SatyreIkon "US" is ok ! - but "education", concerning anything located outside of the US , no way.

[@sharonsteedly1950]

Oh! I miss Germany!!! The people, the food, the villages!

[@Vylika]

Me too!

[@weissblau]

Were you there as a tourist, student, or occupier?

[@klarasee806]

Geraniums and other flowers in front of almost every window is a regional thing. I grew up in Hessian, where it‘s very common, and I know it from other regions as well, but here in the north of Germany, it‘s rare.

[@missharry5727]

That photo of the house with all the flowers looked more like the Berner Oberland in Switzerland - I holidayed near Interlaken in this summer.

[@dieSchreckschraube]

To americans, the German north is largely non-existent. It's sad, but then again I'm glad we're not swarmed with american tourists here.

[@weissblau]

@@dieSchreckschraube I am from Bavaria and I envy you. Ich liebe die Heide, so still und leise, und die alten Haeuser sind wunderschoen. Es gibt noch abgelegene, stille und schlichte Doerfer in Bayern, besonders im Bayrischen Wald, aber die gefallen den Amis nicht. Ich habe noch meine schlichten, zartfarbigen Dirndl ziehe sie hier in USA nur selten an, da es immer Kontroversen gibt. Be glad you are in the North, the occupier all but destroyed us.

[@nikitatarsov5172]

The article for Nutella depends. As Nutella has no own 'gernder', it is neutral a.k.a. das Nutella, because it is 'das' (undefined object). As an item, you can refer to it as the Nutella-Aufstrich(everything you spread of bread= Aufstrich. Maybe a bit like creme), and as that, it would be 'der' Aufstrich, so 'der' Nutella (Aufstrich). You can refer to it as the Nutella-glas, whit glas also having the neutral article 'das'. But you can go wild and refer to it as 'die' Nutella-Creme (yeah we also have that) - which is a bit wild, as the german word for creme also refers to lotions and such and isen't exactly correct for food, but wiedly adopted from internation products - like with cheese cream etc. Creme in german is female, so 'die' would be correct. If you want, you can also simplify it as chocklate, which also would be female. So in some way everything can be correct, and there might only be a "order of correctness" by the order of more logically definitions of what that brown sludge actually is. In the weird realm of GER, you might find different articles more logical in different cultural or social bubbles. Still we're a patchwork of tribes and immigration, shaping a wonderfull fabric of colorfull disagrement^^

[@svetlanashorse]

The vintage football (soccer) shirt looks amazing on you!

[@nairbvel]

Having lived in Europe back in the 1980s, I recognized a couple of the places you had pics of for housing examples... and they're so noticeable *because* they're not the modern standard housing. :-) Your "vroom vroom" segment brought back memories of a late-night tram ride during which the tram driver, a *much* older gentleman, was coughing & hacking so much that we were afraid he'd keel over dead before we got to the end of the line... where we had parked our car, because the only public transportation that reached our house was a once-per-hour bus that only ran during daylight hours. (BTW, I traveled around France, Germany, and the Benelux by train a *lot* and wish we had a system like that here in the US.) As far as fashion goes, we lived just outside Brussels in the 1980s and I would often go downtown and divert myself by picking out the American tourists... with the knowledge that there was about a 15% chance that I had mistakenly picked out German tourists. (On the other hand, if I ignored clothing, the American tourists were far too easy to pick out by their behavior & loudness.)

[@AnymMusic]

7:45 not to mention with this, the style of house also HEAVILY depends on location. Like homes closer to the Dutch border are almost indistinguishable from actual Dutch homes, whereas the stereotypical German home is much more a style you'd see towards the Bavarian region like Würzburg

[@SafezoneExpert]

Der Nutella Brotaufstrich. Die Nutella Haselnusscreme. Das Glas Nutella. Meist gebraucht: Mein Nutella 😄

[@jisatsu25]

Es heißt die Nutella, alles andere hört sich scheisse an.

[@Lady_Cryalot]

Eigentlich heißt es nur Nutella, ohne Artikel, weil es der Markenname ist.

[@zuckerzwerg123]

@@Lady_Cryalot Ja. Und zB bei mir "das Nutella" als Kuzform für "das Nutella-Glas".

[@darkredvan]

Bei uns nur: Nutella, nicht der, nicht die, höchstens das (Nutella Glas). Oder einfach: Das da. Oder auch: Gib mal rüber.

[@einwitzigenname585]

​@@darkredvangenau. "Gib mal Nutella rüber", wie in "Reich mir bitte Salat". Ansonsten "das Glas Nutella steht im Schrank"

[@vemo916]

I am from Frankfurt. You don’t need a car. Actually trying to park anywhere is a hassle. It’s cheaper and more convenient to use public transportation. Also it’s a bonus to walk everywhere.

[@lucientruth]

Hello 🙂 regarding german sounding harsh: J. W. von Goethe, Friedrich Schiller or Theodor Fontane ! They have shown how soft and melodious the german language can sound ;-)

[@sirstamfordraffles6557]

Die haben aber auch gezeigt wie schwülstig, veraltet, und grausig Deutsch (vor allem das Deutsch aus ihrer Zeit) klingen kann. 😅

[@weissblau]

German I have been accused of not really being German .

[@lucientruth]

@@weissblau and why does it matter whether you are German or not really German??

[@weissblau]

@@lucientruth Since being German is my identity it mattes,, especially when some ignoramus who doesn't even speak German, judges my speech to be not German. arrogant stupidity is something I can't stand.

[@lucientruth]

@@weissblau ...the definition of german or not german differs to who is giving the definition ;-) I see myself as german, because i'm born and raised in Germany and i'm living here in Hannover. AND just because my unknown father is not from Germany, are there quite an amount of germans doupting me of being german. - here is a saying in Germany about the doupts someone is a REAL German😂 it says: "nur weil dein Urgroßvater einen Deutschen Schäferhund hatte, bist du nicht gleich Deutscher" - which means: Just because your great-grandfather had a German Shepherd doesn't mean you're German...🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 This saying comes from the time when German returnees whose families emigrated to Russia in the 18th century and now returned to Germany in the 1970s after 9 generations. Do you speak german? This is part of my definition of whether someone is German. If someone doesn't speak fluent German, it's hard to think that person is German. But people in America, for example, see it very differently, just like in Africa or Asia. It's defined differently everywhere. For example, I don't call myself a Nigerian, even though my father and stepfather were Nigerian (born and raised there and spoke the local language) - but I haven't been to Nigeria yet and unfortunately don't speak any of the local languages ​​- so I don`t consider myself a Nigerian. What about you?

[@Pilsvergiftung]

In Germany, the bicycle is increasingly becoming an everyday means of transport, especially in the cities, and is often combined with buses and trains. That's true about practical clothing that's appropriate for the weather, especially since the seasons are significantly more different than in California, for example. In addition, of course, many things are so close to the apartment that you can get there on foot or by bike in just a few minutes.

[@cubixxvpro]

The more I watch videos about America vs other country’s the more I feel like they are actually disconnected from the world and instead live in their own one

[@weissblau]

They are - I am a real Bavarian here in the USA and they know what they know; sometimes they try to tell me that I don't know German, meaning Bavarian things. I just give them the ""Bavarian salutation" (den bayrischen Grusz) to make me feel better and it keeps the peace since they don't understand it.

[@CARambolagen]

I live in Detmold which has 75.000 inhabitants and I live happily without a car, just with a bike and public transport. There are many towns like that in Germany!

[@HalfEye79]

I know the use of "Upsala", too. But you can also just say "Ups". (I'm from the South of Lower Saxony.) You can say: The more people live in an area, the better the connection of public transport is. Best it is in big cities. Normally, I use no article with Nutella. But when I do, I use "das Nutella".

[@reinhard8053]

But even in big cities there are often directions and parts which are better connected. If you need a connection which doesn't fit that it gets bad. Either you need to switch bus/train several times or the bus goes a long way with lots of stops. In my city going to my work needed about an hour with several trains/busses. Now we have new lines and it may take between 35-55min(1 to 2 stops). Car: 10min, Bike: 20min. Guess what I'm not using.

[@HalfEye79]

​@@reinhard8053 Yes, a collegue of mine told me that, if he would use public transportation to work he has to hope the second bus is late. Else he don't get it and his commute is at least 30 min. But when he gets to work before the traffic lights are on, it just takes a few minutes by car.

[@sydgo227]

I‘d say „ups“ is even more common than „uppsala“, but of course we know it (Rhineland Palatine here). And - sorry to say - it‘s „die Nutella“, of course! 😃

[@philip.morris]

Watching Germans complaining about the beer quality in the hotel was quite funny. The language is universal,gut bier und faul bier.

[@ChrisCooper312]

One of my favourite German "cute" words is "Fledermaus" for Bat. I mean "Fledermausmann" hardly sounds like they would put terror into Gotham's criminals. One big issue though is that English is a Germanic language, but also takes a lot from French and Latin. Due to the influence of the Norman Conquest, the Catholic Church, and Renaissance art and culture, French and Latin tended to be used for higher purposes, the arts and sciences, whereas old English was used more for everyday things and by the common people. Over time as the languages integrated into modern English, the softer French and Latin words have been used for softer things, wheras the harsher Germanic words have been used for harsher things. There is a reason we eat a nice juicy bit of Beef or Pork (both from French origins) not dirty, smelly, rolling in filth Cow or Pig (from Germanic origins). We even deliberately choose our words to sound harsh, for example a lot of swear words. Take "Merde" or "Putain" which to our ears sound much more pleasant than the English equivalents. Other languages don't have the same distinction between harsh and soft words.

[@missharry5727]

Compare the old English "flittermouse."

[@Salzui]

it all depends on how you pronounce it. German can be spoken softly with some nearly unnoticable r's when they are not a main part of the word. Or you can speak with a different "meldoy" of sorts and stress the consonants and it will sound a lot harsher.

[@sawanna508]

@@Salzui Some German diaclects also have this nice roling R-sound almost like the italian language.

[@JulieT..]

Will be moving to Germany sometime next year. Nice to hear a fellow Okie lives in Germany. I'm looking forward to living in Germany.❤ 🇩🇪

[@PassportTwo]

Enjoy your time over here! 😊

[@UberDragon]

Yeah just wearing comfortable and practical or durable clothes is definitely a higher priority to me than whether the colors go nicely with each other. I'm usually just wearing my black jeans and one of a few different color hoodies. That's usually good enough for me.

[@lynxak47alice]

As someone who spent all my free time growing up in Rheinland-Pfalz, no-one in England would ever believed me when I would talk about being surrounded by vineyards. Now my friends are delighted when I bring back some delicious local wine. 😂 Nein danke, I'm allergic to tree nuts, which sucks extra hard as a German.

[@mostlyclear6071]

So, Die Nutella? :D? Yes, I'll see myself out

[@thetj8243]

I think the beer comparison (and the joke) comes from the impression that many Americans enjoy their "light" beer (with ~4% abv) and compare it to Oktoberfest beer that is not just served in 1l mugs but also has over 6% abv

[@Freundinnen100]

About the houses: The building style is called "Fachwerkhaus". This is a building style you only find in parts of Germany (mostly southern Germany as far as I know, I wasnt that often in northern Germany as Swabian Girl). This are relicts from earlier times and many city centers kept them an renovated them. But newer houses didnt look like this and especially big cities doesnt look anymore like this. If you aber want to visit Germany and want to see this kind of houses especially: Tübingen, Speyer and Rothenburg ob der Tauber are my personal Fachwerkhäuser-Hottips.

[@sini234]

As a person from the north-east I can tell you this is not true. I need to assume about the the north-west, thought I believe the same holds true for them. The old fisherman houses in my small village could be called Fachwerkhäuser, and if you google „Bäderarchitektur“ you‘ll even see that your traditional „Fachwerkhäuser“ aren’t the only cute old-style buildings in germany ;) (even though some of them might even categorize as Fachwerk, never spent any time felling all of them up :)) And if that doesn’t convince you, at least accept Thuringia as having some of the most beautiful Fachwerkhäuser, since one topped with slate roof tiles must be one of the most idyllic views of my life. I hope I do not come off as rude, just wanted to add my knowledge on the topic of historical architecture:)

[@Freundinnen100]

@@sini234 Thanks for clarification! The only northern or western cities in Germany I visit, didnt had Fachwerkhäuser, so I assumed that. But its nice to know, that I am wrong and everybody I Germany can enjoy this beautiful style of buildings 🤣 But I also love inner cities with this bride, colorful houses, as mentioned in this video.

[@TheSylfaein]

@@sini234Ja, auch im Nordwesten haben wir Fachwerkhäuser. Ein Beispiel vor Ort wäre das 'Hus Blomendal'. Würde aber behaupten, dass die Backstein+Holzbalken-Variante häufiger ist als die "Nur Holz"-Variante mit weißen Wänden. - Siehe dazu Niedersächsisches Fachwerk/Hallenhaus, die sich häufig bei Bauernhöfen finden.

[@cumuluscloud3854]

There are different half-timbered house styles in different regions of Germany. Wernigerode and Quedlinburg, for example, are two beautiful examples in Saxony-Anhalt.

[@elena3941]

I’m from NRW (Rhineland) and there’s a lot of them here :)

[@michaelschuckart2217]

Nutella: Forget about "der". Choose between "die" (my choice) and "das".

[@EsterHorbach-it9tb]

Or leave it at just "Nutella".😅

[@xamidi]

It is only a brand name. It has no article.

[@sydgo227]

Diiiiiie!!!! 😄😄 „Das“ feels like a crime… 🤣

[@gregorgiebel1377]

People pay significantly different amounts of attention to how fashionable their clothes are, depending on the city. My new hometown is a pretty wealthy student city with many art/music/social/health related studycourses and people here dress just way better than people in the last 2 cities I lived in. I think wealthy, young, female, arts/music/acting are factors that contribute to better fashion.

[@heinrich6294]

good fashion is not bad but at the end of the day I don't care that much lol

[@swiggles4342]

You think? 😂

[@Ray25689]

Fashion is insanely overrated, and it's insanely cringe when people link it to other things in life as if it would reflect how smart you are

[@evas.7121]

For lie 3, It heavily depends on where you live. In my area, for example, there a BUNCH of houses like the ones you see in pictures, but I do live in more of a rural area.

[@eikl.3892]

German Guy here, your facts are so true and funny at the same time! :D Keep going with these videos !!

[@christophstahl8169]

On many beerfests the beer has about 6% alcohol and comes in big glasses, so it is easy to get very drunk. Nutella is italian and the word uses the female diminutive -ella so that implies a female article. Ferrero however doesn't specify any genus, so whatever is used the most is the correct way. That is either "das" or "die" at the moment.

[@ChRW123]

Look closely at the jar. nutella is not spelled with a capital "N". Hence nutella is not a noun and it therefore has no article.

[@Zeylo89]

What its supposed to then?​@@ChRW123

[@Nallumi-o3q]

Die Nutella! I know this and as a German, i‘m rly happy to finally find someone talking about germany!

[@TheItalianoAssassino]

Incredibly ironic, how you could have picked any austrian painter clip, but you chose one where he says "we want peace, but we reject oppression" 😂😂😂

[@barbaraives4962]

I'm enjoying your videos, as a former expat Oklahoman myself, though my time in Germany was in the 1970s. The town I lived in, Celle, still is full of elaborate and ornate half-timbered Renaissance houses, many still painted with the original owners' names and construction date as oart of the decoration. It was not a large town but was well served with a bus network and frequent trains to Hannover and elsewhere. It was a wonderful and educational three years, and I wish every young American could have such an experience.

[@RainerLP]

I think the joke about the beer is manly due to light beer. In the region where I am, we do not have light beer at all. Edit: Correction: Not anymore. I remember that 20 years ago there was a beer that was called 2.8 (zwo-acht) but it was discontinued because noone bought it.

[@analholes77]

My father bought it. Many brands had a light version with around 2,5 percent in the late 90s early 2000s. When they discontinued because not many liked it, he mixed his beer with water when he had to drive or wanted to daydrink. After a couple of years he just decided to just drink only one or none bottles of proper beer instead of watered down beer.

[@lauramarschmallow2922]

I dunno, our local Kaufland carries the extremely budget-friendly 5,0 and 2,5, I think it was a radler. it's been a while since I drank it

[@dearseall]

Beer: In the USA "light beer" is a thing, while in Germany it is simply unknown. So I guess most people compare "Bud light" and similar to "regular" beer.

[@MattBlue]

That's not true. There are german light beers, like e.g. Jever Light or Warsteiner Extra. There are many more, and typically their alcohol content is reduced by 30 to 40%, i.e. 2.5 to 4%.

[@trillionbones89]

Isn't bud light just alcohol free beer?

[@ElkeSiegburg]

That was fun , very well done👍. As far as clothing in Germany is concerned, a big change has taken place since the 1960s, when people generally dressed more formally. Today Germany is a European melting pot (and I like that a lot) . People dress according to the occasion or their well-beeing. BUT NEVER in pyjamas or jogging trousers (these old worn out😅). Nutella on its own is "das" / Nutella as cream is "die" . Greetings from Cologne 🤗

[@desperadox7565]

It's always "die Nutella".

[@msbluejayway]

The one artist that helped me appreciate the German language more, is Herbert Grönemeyer. Especially songs like Halt Mich and Der Weg.

[@thedarknightnicht]

Comment on the houses: A lof of houses did look like these "fairytale" examples that you showed. It is called "Fachwerkhaus" which describes the wooden struts you can see. Unfortunately basically every city center of any moderatly large city was bombed to dust during WW2 and in the resulting rebuilding in the 50s and 60s some massive idiots decided that conrete blocks should be the new design of city centers. I heavily recommend visiting cities that have been spared bombing during WW2 and still feature beautifuly so called "old cities" in their city center. One example is Konstance at Lake Constance which has been spared bombing since they left on their lights at night to seem like a swiss city. Usually german cities turned off all lights at night to make it harder for bomber to carpet bomb the civilian centers during WW2 but Konstanz knew that swiss cities leave their lights on (since they were not involved in the war) and thus if they leave their lights on american and british pilots will think its a swiss city and therefore not bomb it.

[@chrispepinot]

Clever❤

[@MarcLeonbacher-lb2oe]

Weren't there some bombings of Swiss cities during the Second World War?

[@artisans8521]

Lateral thinking....great.

[@Beliar275]

I'm kinda surprised that German is considered rough / hard sounding - specifically on the word 'Schmetterling' if the english word BUTTERFLY does basically follow the same principle - except many english speakers seem to have forgotten, what a 'T' sounds like ^^ I have to add that I had an Englishman as a neighbor who lived in my small home village for roughly 10 years. He always wanted to own a traditional farm house surrounding a yard. And he told me all offers he got in England were way over his price range. So over contacts to a real estate agent from Germany he got the opportunity and bought the house just accross our house. His first wife was a teacher and had some knowledge in German - but for most of the time I became their translator. We had long talks about life and his experiences. Now after turning 81 he finally got official visa for his second wife and her 2 daughters and they live in the outskirts of Greater London. I kinda miss him

[@McGhinch]

Brick houses/plastered houses: That really depends on the area. I grew up in Stuttgart, back then -- a long time ago -- brick houses showed a lack of finances of the owner. Houses were build with bricks and then plastered. It was just to make them look beautiful and to show you have the money for that. When I went to North-Germany, the houses were often covered with what they call "Riemchen" (Clinker brick slips) to have them appear to be made of bricks...a head-scratching experience

[@manub.3847]

"Riemchen-Klinker" was used more in the 1960s/1970s because it was cheaper and real clinker stone was difficult to obtain. When our friends built their semi-detached house in the 1990s, the desired clinker brick was pre-ordered for over six months. Clinker also helps as a “seal”, since real clinker brick houses can often be backed with "sealant material" in order to a) preserve the façade, b) maintain the required values for reducing energy consumption.

[@LythaWausW]

Those fake bricks are a trip! I guess I should have known they would have a name. Some of the loveliest regional housing styles, IMO, is Niedersachsen's red brick and black Fachwerk buildings. They express such pride, in my eyes. And beauty and practicality. I'm lucky enough to live in the land of Schiefer houses with white trim, bright green shutters and doors. Gorgeous!

[@Lea-im3wr]

From the place I lived at I can confirm: The houses you showed, the "ginger bread" houses, needing a car, not needing a car, DB/ Gemany trains being wonky af I can not confirm: bright flowers infont of every window

[@elkevera]

I can pick out an American just by the way you walk 😁I always tell my hubby: You push yourself through the world.. He is like a tank!

[@sirstamfordraffles6557]

Also, the volume level of when Americans talk is waaay different (way higher). That is how you can recognise them most of the time.

[@NeurosenkavalierEmilSinclair]

8:00 - you decribed the reality about houses/typical very accurate. But there are some more typical differences compared to the US. One being basements (Keller), which are pretty much the standard in german houses, while in most parts of the US they aren't that common. I personally never saw a family (privatly owned) house without basement tbh. I've heard it's because in the areas in the US where land is relatively cheap, it is way more efficiant to just build another room on ground level, than the expensive construction of a basement. Another thing is the building material - houses build from wood or modern light materials are extremely rare here. While houses made of bricks/stone are very durable and have some advantages regarding heat (ACs are not a thing here and electricity is expensive), they often are very unflexible when you want to change things and expensive to build.

[@PassportTwo]

A note about the basements: You are correct about this difference but also like you said, it depends on where you are talking about in the U.S. There are large parts of the U.S. where nearly all homes have a basement. A big part of the lack of basements is due to soil type and water table. These factors drive up the cost, feasibility, and whether it’s worth it to build one. Thus, your theory could be true about costs, but that’s just due to these environmental reasons why it isn’t common in the parts of the U.S.

[@daveking3494]

In Germany, wearing a baseball cap is a dead giveaway that you are Turkish. 😂😂😂

[@Noxpolaris]

Only if you also wear a little hooker bag and wrap yourself in a cloud of perfume

[@borisniclas-tolle5076]

Nice discussion of the public transport situation. In fact, the railway system today is only roughly a third of what it once was (early 20th century). Many rails were bombed in WWII and/or simply neglected afterwards, because Germany went total car. Today it makes a huge difference if you live in a densely populated town or the countryside. Btw, is there Carsharing in the US? I'm living in a smallish town and for me, using a shared car only when I need it has proven a very efficient way to avoid buying one.

[@darkredvan]

Generally speaking about clothing: widely used are jeans, in all varieties but dirty ones (ok if you are just repairing your car, bike, whatever). I prefer to wear button down shirts, but that is just personal preference. Hats (Stetsons) would stick out, as would Sports wear (if not doing sports), sneakers are definitely „in“. Advice for women: please avoid wearing leggings in public, it’s a no go. Wearing High Heels in the wrong places might attract the wrong kind of men.

[@arnolsi]

High heels are a problem with the cobblestone pavement. I live in a city with as lot of them and 5 cm is the highest i can wear.

[@oldfrittenfett1276]

Sports wear makes you look eastern european.

[@paulinafirestone7868]

13:01 oh, there's the complaint about our lacking train punctuality. ive been waiting for it since the moment you mentioned public transport! And 'das Nutella'. I think 'die' is also accepted by the Duden, but 'das' just sounds better imo (funnily enough, our 'nutella' is no longer the brand nutella but we still call it that for convenience) Thank you for this video!

[@saphichan9582]

I'm going to give you the most German answer possible :"Nutella ist ein im Markenregister eingetragener Fantasiename der sich einer genauen männlichen, weiblichen oder sächlichen Zuordnung entzieht." So everything is correct! (but also it's obviously Die Nutella)

[@chrispepinot]

😂👍

[@auntclechris]

8:42 Omg, it's Ramstein. I literally work just a three minute walk from where you are driving there.

[@thomasblohm3073]

Public transport: as long as you are close to very frequented routes or cities as well, it might be well available. But as soon as you are in more rural regions, having a driving license is a must (and it's sometimes even more important as a passport)

[@Illuminat-ve5ue]

9:45 You only dont need to drive a car that often when you live in a big city. Even then you still have to use it occasionally

[@McGhinch]

Uppsala: Some areas say "ups!", some areas have "hoppla!" that sometime is extended to "hoppala!". Maybe, I am not a linguist, they got mixed by somebody who wanted to appear funny and accidentally became a trendsetter. (that could have happened more or less simultaneously in several places.)

[@weissblau]

I am a linguist and the original is "Hoppla". Oops is "Denglish", ugh.

[@jj_senpai]

10:46 & 12:55 "Der Fußbus fährt immer!" (The foot-bus drives at all times) Basically meaning you can always rely on your feet to get somewhere. It's a somewhat popular saying in the army.

[@christopherx7428]

As for the strong beer stereotype, could it be that Americans have confused German and Belgian beer? The latter may be very strong indeed.

[@polarblade1159]

As a german I have to say, the best beer comes from Belgium. It is a lot stronger (7 to 12% usually) and also often has some sweet flavors in it (my favs are Kasteel Donker and Gulden Draak)

[@LythaWausW]

I would never have guessed that Budweiser has more alcohol than Warsteiner. Thanks for that research. That college warning about the beer reminds me of what baby boomers told their kids, "The pot we smoked had way less THC in it than today." *lol*

[@lightsideofsin8969]

Regarding making your house a fun colour, that can be straight up banned. I grew up in a tiny village in the woods in BaWü and someone built a new house there. He made it bright yellow (almost neon) and he was forced to paint it a more dull colour because it didn't fit with the aesthetic of the rest of the village. I think that's dumb. If you buy or build a house and own it, you should get to make it look however you want. It does make sense that it didn't fit with the rest of the village because most of the houses are a lot older. The house I grew up in is almost 300 years old.

[@hazelnusseis]

About the first rumor: You know, the angry man that got rejected by an art school wasn’t even German and how he speaks is even sketchy to me as a native speaker. But I’m also aware that we chose him as the leader and didn’t do anything so he would stop what he did and as we say in Germany: Mitgehangen, mitgefangen.

[@Noxpolaris]

He had to speak like this in public because microphone and amplification technology was still very primitive. The only audio document of Hitler speaking normally is the Mannerheim tapes, which can be found on KZbin.

[@MightyGodMaster]

I really appreciate your perception about us. You give me hope to our society. In general I think we are "distant" to foreigners, but still we try to be humble. I didn't watch a lot of your content, but did you make some bad experiences (Nazis, or also migrant violence, yes that seriously exists) Best from the Mighty

[@pfalzgraf7527]

Great summary! (says a German) I hope your US viewers who are going to come here will take most of it in! Especially the fashion thing: yes, wear what you want to wear. There's no German dress code. In my Southt-Western neck of the German woods, it's mostly die Nutella, sometimes das, never der. I kind of have the feeling that Nutella is (even just grammatically speaking) gender-less.

[@Piggelgesicht]

When I grew up in Bavaria it was still common for butter being referred to as "der". And my ancient great aunt also put Nutella in that bracket - she was the only one, though. But then we weren't allowed Nutella at anyone else's so it kind of stuck with me.

[@KaiHenningsen]

Actually, I'd say there is a German dress code. Don't leave the house in your pajamas. That one is strictly a no. I hear Americans do that all the time.

[@Custer0706]

Agree with the “das” (in my neck of the woods) or “die” (have heard that in some parts of the country) Nutella theory. Never (!) “der”.

[@wizarrdofooze]

thw white glasses are giving super star!! looks very nice

[@uliwitness]

No Bavarian beers in your list 😈 They're usually around 5% as well, though. Regarding houses, you showed lots of small town houses. In the city centers, we have taller buildings, and lots of concrete, glass and steel. One thing you rarely see are skyscrapers though. There are a few cities in Germany known for having those, but generally, German houses are somewhere between 2 and 5 floors. Bungalows or taller buildings being more outliers. Also that buildings that are the size of an entire block are much rarer than in big US city centers, as are buildings that are completely freestanding. Germany has much more small groups of buildings.

[@OpheliaPumpernickel]

I love how you pronounced Schmetterling!

[@martinbruhn5274]

Uppsala is not a regional thing. We in Baden-Württemberg say it too and it's the same in other parts of Germany as well.

[@jaysigma]

Als Schwabe reicht ein einfaches: Ha nô!

[@fairphoneuser9009]

We use it in Vienna as well. So it's not even just a German thing... 😁

[@quatschgans]

Even If I know Uppsala, I don't use it... it's more Hoppala 😂

[@fairphoneuser9009]

@@quatschgans Those are two different words, even though they sound similar.

[@dnocturn84]

It's not used at all where I live. I knew it and heard it before, but nobody ever uses it. Have to visit other parts of the country or have to have some phone calls to ever encounter it. So that makes it regional.

[@wacholder5690]

Houses: Keep in mind that the lot of the houses in villages and smaller city centers are partially several hundred years old and had been remodelled a few times since new. Look in the suburbs for newer houses. They differ much from what you see from inside a car rolling through little townships.

[@MyriamSchweingruber]

The timber frame houses do exist, but it is a very regional thing (mainly the South) and many have been covered up over the years. I live in a timber frame house, but you don't see it outside but for the shape of it (upper levels overlapping the lower ones). It still is a nightmare if you want to fix something on the walls as you don't know what is in the walls. If you are lucky there is wood, if you are unlucky it is empty or it has big river pebbles and you ruin your drill. German trains are currently in a dire state, several decades of zero investments and a very efficient and ruthless car lobby take their toll, so the punctuality overall has dropped to barely 60%, if your train actually runs. Proper investment into a train system can give great results, you mentioned Switzerland which is a very good example. As for fashion: Germany is the very last country with a fashion sense, even from a practicality POV it is dreadful. The colors are old-fashioned, the style is old-fashioned, every town has the same shops selling the same stuff, the most boring place to be for anything fashionable. Nutella totally depends where you are: here in the South (BaWü and Bavaria) it is Der Nutella, in Switzerland we tend to say Das Nutella

[@olafgogmo5426]

Half-timbered houses are not specifically Southern German. You won't find them at all in southern Bavaria. But there are many in Lower Saxony (Stade, Celle, Goslar, Hann. Münden), Saxony-Anhalt (Quedlinburg, Wernigerode, Halberstadt), Thuringia (Mühlhausen, Schmalkalden, Ummerstadt), Northrhine-Westphalia (Freudenberg, Bergisch Neukirchen, Rheda-Wiedenbrück, Monschau), Rhineland-Palatinate (Reiferscheid, Bernkastel-Kues, Bacharach; Meisenheim) and of course Hesse (Fritzlar, Rotenburg/Fulda, Alsfeld, Seligenstadt, Miltenberg).

[@sirstamfordraffles6557]

@@olafgogmo5426 I am from Southern Bavaria, and I can assure you that you are incorrect. I have seen many a village with half-timbered houses, and even the small town (/very small city) I live in, has half-timbered houses in its city-centre. I have been to the North twice so far (that one time in Berlin doesn’t really count), and I can tell you that I have not seen much of that sort of architecture there; so it seems like it is more prevalent in the South of the country, rather than the North.

[@olafgogmo5426]

@@sirstamfordraffles6557 I thought of Upper and Lower Bavaria. In Swabia and Franconia of course you find half timbered houses. In the very North you mainly find brick. But the Southeast of Lower Saxonony, Northern Hesse and the Harz region has the most elaborated half timbered architecture in Germany.

[@auroraborrealis4852]

It is very sweet of you to wear a football T-shirt of the DFB. I believe American Football is more popular in the US - logically - and while I'm not much of a football fan it still warmed my heart. So thank you.

[@daveking3494]

I’m from the Midwest but I lived in Germany, almost 50 years. When comparing German to American beer, the issue is not the alcohol, it is just the amount of artificial flavours and sugar and other crap that Americans allow in their beer. My German girlfriend almost puked when we went to Los Angeles, and she drank a sip of Löwenbräu, thinking it was German beer. Sie sagte, da ist Zucker drin!

[@PlanetBerlin1991]

In big cities, such as Berlin, one really don't need a car. Public transportation works 24/7

[@HG_Budde]

Fun fact: Hitler was Austrian born and raised, when he first came to Germany he was already 25 years old.

[@Andre.felipe84]

Austrians are ethnic germans.

[@MaticTheProto]

7:38 they used to look like that (or not depending on the region) until some American and British bombers made them look more like a pile of rocks

[@ChocoBetty]

Nutella is just Nutella. I think I've rarely used an article to go with it. "Kannst du mir mal das Nutella reichen?" - so I guess in my opinion it's "das". But in the end I just don't want Ferrero to change the recipe... 😂

[@LeutnantJoker]

It's "Die Nutella" and always has been. I have no idea where people here get that it's "das" from. I have never heard that in my life and I've lived in 4 different states and Austria and work for Swiss people. I have never heard ANYONE ever say "Das Nutella"

[@sydgo227]

@@LeutnantJoker Unfortunately I‘ve heard „das“ many times… yuck, freaks! 🤣

[@BellaKreutz]

Do u live in Trier? I just recognized the "Hauptmarkt" ;-). Your videos are great!

[@PassportTwo]

No, but we do go there often 😊 Thanks so much! Glad you enjoy them 😃

[@jovi1078]

That Hiter Clip was the most perfect example because he was actually talking about "achieving peace" in that tone! Also it is DAS Nutella!

[@str.77]

It obviously is DIE Nutella and Htler was actually lying in that clip. It was "We want peace BUT..."

[@friday-007-k]

First of all: no, its DIE Nutella, Second: and he speaks in an austrian accent so he doesn't even sound like Hochdeutsch