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When first going to the US, I was surprised to hear some questions people asked me.
Apparently, the people I met weren't the only ones who had some interesting ideas on what is done or not done in Germany.
Most important things first, yes, there are roads in Germany where you can go as fast as you can. However, on most of them you can't. There are speed limits on all roads except some Autobahnen, or at least some parts of Autobahnen.
There also is more than one Autobahn in Germany.
"Ausfahrt" is not the name of a very huge town, but the German word for "exit". You see it a lot on the Autobahn signs.
There are places in Germany where it is acceptable to run around naked. The town centre of Nuremberg is not one of them, dear American tourist, even if it is hot. It is acceptable to sunbathe naked in some public parks. There are special beaches assigned for people who prefer to go naked. We do not commonly wear anything in a sauna. But we do dress when we go into town.
Also, to counteract other common misconceptions: we do have running water, we have done quite a bit of rebuilding since 1945, most of us look neither like Hitler nor like his imagined race of Aryans, we tend to speak German among ourselves, and our country, while smaller than the United States, is not in fact minuscule.
Apparently, the people I met weren't the only ones who had some interesting ideas on what is done or not done in Germany.
Most important things first, yes, there are roads in Germany where you can go as fast as you can. However, on most of them you can't. There are speed limits on all roads except some Autobahnen, or at least some parts of Autobahnen.
There also is more than one Autobahn in Germany.
"Ausfahrt" is not the name of a very huge town, but the German word for "exit". You see it a lot on the Autobahn signs.
There are places in Germany where it is acceptable to run around naked. The town centre of Nuremberg is not one of them, dear American tourist, even if it is hot. It is acceptable to sunbathe naked in some public parks. There are special beaches assigned for people who prefer to go naked. We do not commonly wear anything in a sauna. But we do dress when we go into town.
Also, to counteract other common misconceptions: we do have running water, we have done quite a bit of rebuilding since 1945, most of us look neither like Hitler nor like his imagined race of Aryans, we tend to speak German among ourselves, and our country, while smaller than the United States, is not in fact minuscule.
