In my one month here, I have had two occasions when I got to witness the so called German rudeness.
I was at the Rathaus (Raat - as in the Hindi night, haus – house), the local registration office where each visitor to the country must go and register to get a local identity for administrative purposes. I had trouble in filling up a form which had instructions in most EU languages including English. I left a few columns empty to check before I filled in my answers. AT the counter, this burly, huge woman began in Deutsche I had not filled those columns. When I said “Deutsche Nien” she pointed out that everything was in English too. She went on blasting me off in Deutsche till the time I filled everything to the best of my knowledge. And bang – she began talking in properly, clipped English!
Do I take that as rudeness? I think she wanted to make it a point that if everything is in a language I understand, I should be smart enough to get it all! Must be one of those hard-to-please people who expect efficiency from people around them!
My bank has been issuing me ATM cards and PINs. I try them and each time the machines just eat up my card. I was exasperated at the constant runs to the bank and had had it. This woman at the counter begins explaining me that I have been using the wrong PIN and I keep telling her that I have always used the correct PIN. After help from another colleague who could talk in English, and after several sighs from me, she was able to tell me that the PINs I have been trying were of previous cards that were delivered with new cards! But this explanation came at the expense of bearing several dirty looks, flailing hands and “you are not listening to me”s from the lady at the counter.
I reckon the Germans are just an emotional people who let their anger and dissatisfaction show very easily. I guess they would also show their happiness and congeniality with equal fervor but may be they just don’t get chance enough to display the good part.
Hence, I still haven’t made up my mind if they are rude or not. I would wait and watch before I label them.
Showing posts with label life style. Show all posts
Showing posts with label life style. Show all posts
Monday, October 6, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
The village fest!
The last weekend of September and this little village parties hard. Its time for Frauenaurach's own Oktoberfest.
The town centre, right next to the church has changed suddenly - has several stalls selling traditional artefacts like schokapfel (apples layered with chocolate syrup), candy, nougats and a thousand other tidbits; a children's car crash zone (I dont remember what that is called) and the quintessential beer tent.
Been to the tent for two consecutive nights. The entire town and visitors gather inside and do beer. They also sing and dance to the beats of the lone live band set up within. You have to be here to feel the festive spirit. Its so infectious that my headache didnt seem to matter at all. Smiling faces, swaying hands, jiggying bodies and happy people everywhere. Blond teenagers just banging their heads to plain rock-n-roll and their mamas doing the twist, with the papas cheering them on and joining with a mug full of bier (as beer is spelt in Deutsche), young men flirting with women and at times getting very touchy-feely with ach other! The songs have been all English with the occasional Spanish La Bamba and German. So I have enjoyed it to the bits.
The similarities with what we would do at a big family gathering and what people did here were not lost on me. Only that though they were drunk, they were more responsible and the very commonplace brawls that always happen at any such do in India, were completely missing.
Having witnessed this trailor of a fest I am so keen on visiting Munich this coming weekend to witness the real big thing.
The town centre, right next to the church has changed suddenly - has several stalls selling traditional artefacts like schokapfel (apples layered with chocolate syrup), candy, nougats and a thousand other tidbits; a children's car crash zone (I dont remember what that is called) and the quintessential beer tent.
Been to the tent for two consecutive nights. The entire town and visitors gather inside and do beer. They also sing and dance to the beats of the lone live band set up within. You have to be here to feel the festive spirit. Its so infectious that my headache didnt seem to matter at all. Smiling faces, swaying hands, jiggying bodies and happy people everywhere. Blond teenagers just banging their heads to plain rock-n-roll and their mamas doing the twist, with the papas cheering them on and joining with a mug full of bier (as beer is spelt in Deutsche), young men flirting with women and at times getting very touchy-feely with ach other! The songs have been all English with the occasional Spanish La Bamba and German. So I have enjoyed it to the bits.
The similarities with what we would do at a big family gathering and what people did here were not lost on me. Only that though they were drunk, they were more responsible and the very commonplace brawls that always happen at any such do in India, were completely missing.
Having witnessed this trailor of a fest I am so keen on visiting Munich this coming weekend to witness the real big thing.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Some semblance of Life
It was a very boring and lazy Saturday and I was moaning arriving here. Then at 5 PM I took the bus to the town, and saw some life.
The walk down the Neur Markt (New Market) was refreshing. Finally I saw people getting about. The pizzerias and the imbises (singular Imbiss, much like the darshinis back in Bangalore) were doing brisk business.
Something that struck me was the labels that the seemingly average people were flaunting – Gucci, Chanel and Esprit being the favored ones. I consider those people average because there were so many of them and because something tells me that the uber-rich wouldn’t be seen in Erlangen’s Neur Markt any how.
As it got colder and darker, I liked it more. Winter always has this effect on me. I love to walk around in the cold for a bit knowing fully well that when I get really cold I can rush to the cozy warmth of one of the many stores nearby. People were still out there – chatting, guffawing, smoking, kissing, and holding hands.
Life!
Thank God!
The walk down the Neur Markt (New Market) was refreshing. Finally I saw people getting about. The pizzerias and the imbises (singular Imbiss, much like the darshinis back in Bangalore) were doing brisk business.
Something that struck me was the labels that the seemingly average people were flaunting – Gucci, Chanel and Esprit being the favored ones. I consider those people average because there were so many of them and because something tells me that the uber-rich wouldn’t be seen in Erlangen’s Neur Markt any how.
As it got colder and darker, I liked it more. Winter always has this effect on me. I love to walk around in the cold for a bit knowing fully well that when I get really cold I can rush to the cozy warmth of one of the many stores nearby. People were still out there – chatting, guffawing, smoking, kissing, and holding hands.
Life!
Thank God!
Sunday, September 14, 2008
English Teacher
It was intresting to watch him try and weave sentences in English. He struggled with the very universal problem of translating-from-native-langauge-into-alien-language. And hence he spoke with long gaps. His reason for learning English is career advancement and he is doing the usual language-school routine. Can't find people to communicate with in English and hence can't progress in his pursuit. Hence got talking to me off the net and we met.
So, after our coffee, my patient hearing, his constant trials of forming legible sentences, and a customary promise to meet again for more practice, we said good byes.
Very typical person. Back in India I would equate this with someone who is lower middle class and is starting off his career. By 36, as he is, most of them pretty much know what they are doing and just do it, or stop caring about things like career advancement. And even if they do, they seldom learn new langauges. And they do not drive Audis. He, incidentally, does.
The whole episode tells me
- how much I love correcting people's english! I can be SO patient. If I could have been half as much with my work and relations, I would have done wonders.
- people in the west seem to be much more hard working than back home. Hard working and focussed. I am not talking about ambitiuos techies, but the usual run-of-the-mill middle class, middle aged people. May be I not correct in making this judgement but it seems thus so far.
So, after our coffee, my patient hearing, his constant trials of forming legible sentences, and a customary promise to meet again for more practice, we said good byes.
Very typical person. Back in India I would equate this with someone who is lower middle class and is starting off his career. By 36, as he is, most of them pretty much know what they are doing and just do it, or stop caring about things like career advancement. And even if they do, they seldom learn new langauges. And they do not drive Audis. He, incidentally, does.
The whole episode tells me
- how much I love correcting people's english! I can be SO patient. If I could have been half as much with my work and relations, I would have done wonders.
- people in the west seem to be much more hard working than back home. Hard working and focussed. I am not talking about ambitiuos techies, but the usual run-of-the-mill middle class, middle aged people. May be I not correct in making this judgement but it seems thus so far.
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