Sonntag, 13. Juli 2008

ONLY IN DE

ONLY IN GERMANY (Or maybe also in other parts of the world too, what do I know, I've only been to Germany) Please bear in mind that this is my FIRST TIME so everything is just so amazing for me, from the cobblestones to the "leafless" trees. The most common question Karsten's friends ask me is, "So, how do you find Germany?" and my reply is always, that it is so different from where I come from that there is just no point for comparison, everything is picture-worthy. But once in a while, there are moments where I just could not help but "Philippinize" the moment and check mentally if it would work in the Philippine setting.

So, only in DE...

1. Do you pack your own grocery!





I remember the first time I was in line in Lidl, some grocery store that opens at 8am and closes at 8pm, from Mondays to Satrdays (I was so shocked when Karsten trusted me enough to get a few thing there on my own) and the lady at the counter rang up my purchases and waited for like 5 seconds until it hit me that, "Good Lord, I have to pack these myself!" And of course, being me, I didn't bring that bag that Karsten usually has with him when he goes grocery shopping. So, good thing for Danie's stroller, I just shoved everything under the stroller and walked away as fast as I can! Anyway, that bag that Karsten brings with him is this raggedy looking cloth bag that looks like it has lived a million lives. And apparently, he is not the only one who does that, so does everybody with some semblance of sanity. It's all about caring for Mother Earth and the whole environment :-) Really, it is about that!

On the topic of the environment, (it's just too bad that I didn't take a picture of this) one of the first things Karsten showed me when we got to his flat were his trash cans! Yes, sigh, it is true. "Dennise, come here, I want to show you something in the kitchen." But nothing lewd like that, he actually showed me the fact that he has 2 cans for the trash. One was for general waste disposal and another was for plastics, paper, containers of purchases, boxes (milk boxes, juices, etc) and the like. So fun! When I got back here in the Philippines, I tried to tell my family to do the same and it worked for like 10 hours! My household's reasoning, "Where will we throw away the plastics? It will still go with all the other trash, we're just wasting space in an already small kitchen!"

2. Do you fill up your car! (and something else on transportation and honesty)






Not that I have a car but it's just that here in the Philippines, you go to a gas station and 2 or 3 attendants would greet you: one would fill up the car, one would get your money and give you the receipt (sometimes they are just the same person) and one would clean your windshield (this is usually someone else).

Yes, I was informed about the whole do-it-yourself theme in DE but it's still different when the driver (in this case my boyfriend) gets out of the car, goes to the machine thingie and jams the hose thingie into the 'hole-in-the-car-where-the-gas-goes-into' and then walks to the counter to pay for it.

And I guess the biggest part of all this astonishment is the honesty of the people there! The system just expects people to really walk up to the counter and pay! I mean, I know that that would simply NOT work in the Philippines! So yeah, I am more amazed at how honest everyone is. Another example on honesty is the tram rides. One can purchase tickets on ticket machines found in tram stops and the options are endless, I think. One can buy a single ride ticket, or a ticket with a 24 hour validity. Once a person has this slip of paper, he then inserts it in a slot in the tram and that sort of acts as timer, to keep track of the validity of the ticket. Anyway, my point is, it's not everyday that someone checks if all the passengers have a ticket but still, everybody buys a ticket! I mean, if a ticket checker comes and a passenger has no ticket, he can just go to the driver and buy from him and alles gut, that's what would happen in the Philippines!

3. Do you find "beaches" on top of parking lots!







To start with, unlike here in the Philippines, you just cannot park anywhere in Germany. There are buildings that are meant solely as parking lots with the most sophisticated technology available! I mean, seriously, you drive into those parking garages where you push a button at the entrance gate and get a parking ticket (some paper card with a magnet stripe on it). Before you leave you put that card into a machine, pay the amount due, and you then have 15 minutes or so to leave the building through the exit gate.

And well, since Germany is quite far from the ocean, one can only commend them Germans for trying to recreate a "beachy" ambiance all year long! It has the works: lounge chairs, beach umbrellas, beach bar, even palm trees and sand! So even in winter, with the sun shining but with temperature just 2 or 3 degrees above zero, people congregate in their warm clothes and close their eyes and be transported to the beach.. on top of these parking lots!

4. Do you throw your own trash in fastfood chains





Danie and I in Burger King


I think the top 3 food chains in the Philippines are Jollibee, McDonald's, and KFC. At least, these are the ones that come to MY mind when talking about fast foods. Anyway, here, you line up at the counter, buy your order, take it with you to your table, and then not be bothered to stand up and return the tray somewhere but instead put it on an empty table and then get down to eating the food. When you're done, you just leave everything, as in everything on the table, from the left over food, to the cups, paper napkins, plastic utensils, and even trash from your bag! In Germany, the tray that you used to bring your food to your table is the same tray that you put in all your trash and take it to a decked rack where everyone else put their trash too. And I'm just thinking of the street kids here in the Philippines who go over the waste bins of these fast foods hoping for a left over chicken or some 6 pieces of fries or some left over coke totally diluted because the ice cube already melted and whatnot. And I say to myself, "Man, if only the Philippines did it this way,those kids would love these decked racks, it's like they can just choose what they want to eat from the practically arranged left over food!" It's true! I remember particularly the homeless people who "reside" along Fuente in Cebu living on the scraps of left over they can scourge from the many food chains that encircle that area... :-(

5. Do you see "dead" trees








And then they turn into these...







Ok, I know they're not dead but still! It was so amazing to be there are and SEE the season change, from winter to spring. We arrived there in February and the trees where looking dead. We left on April 26 and the trees and flowers were in full bloom. It was like a romance in Nature, really, really awesome!

6. Do you wear jackets in sunshine

At the Schlossgarten (castle garden)


At the zoo

On a boat ride along Berlin

The beautiful city of Tuebingen (cobblestones, sunshine and jackets)


I use to view Timm Friebe's photoblog because his pictures are amazing and always, I wonder to myself, "For the love of God, why are there people wearing jackets in board sunshine?!" I could never understand their idea of COLD since from my point of view, here in the Philippines, when there is the slightest trace of sunshine, IT JUST IS GOING TO BE VERY HOT. I mean, sometimes, when it rains, it's still hot! So I never really knew until I got there and experienced walking in the snow while the sun was so "gayly" OUT THERE!

7. Are the cars transported on a car transportation





I bet that does not make sense. Risking looking like a fool and a total ignoramus, I took pictures of these "car for cars". Thomas, Karsten's housemate, asked me after I exclaimed, "I have got to get some pics of those! They don't exist in the Philippines!" "So how do you deliver the brand new cars?" And my reply, "I'm no expert but I think the car dealers drive the brand new cars to the car shop! I could be wrong about that but I'm absolutely certain that we don't have car cars there!"

So there you go... I think there are more scenarios I can "Philippinize" but I'm in a bit of a rush so I will just add more later... :-)

PS Im pretty sure Tony and Gail will tell me these are not exclusively in Germany but well, when I see it somewhere else, I'll make an erratum post ;-)

Also, yes, I love that pink jacket!

2nd Post from the Other Blog

JUST SOME PICTURES
After that pretty lengthy first entry, we all deserve a break. So here are some pictures of those first few days in Germany:

12 hours of waiting at the Doha Airport

Doha Airport

First time in the car seat

In Post Galerie

Outside Starbucks where Danie's shoe fell off

1&1 DE




On our way to meet Claudia!