Du bist Deutschland

"Du bist Deutschland" is a campaign that was started here in Germany a few years ago to encourage the public to be more kid friendly.  While it's actually a very nice commercial (and almost two minutes long!), my first impression was that I found it rather comical that someone from an outside source had to encourage Germans to have more babies.  One line in the commercial states (roughly translated) "that its never the wrong time to have you (kids), but only the right time"--a bit direct, no?

Since I don't have any myself, I can't really contribute to the argument, but I have heard people say that Germany isn't family-friendly.  So if anybody has experience going either way, would be interesting to hear.  Do you find Germany family-friendly?  (Here's the link to the video, I will try to upload it here directly sometime soon.)

Du bist Deutschland

Below is the rough English translation of the text...

"You drive us crazy.

You cry the whole night through.

You wet the bed.

First you get teeth, then you get the chickenpox.

You hate kindergarten, then school and then at 15, you hate us.

Rather, you drive us crazy… with Happiness

Your ‘purchase’ is free

Then after you get expensive

You need time and space

You cost us new shoes, that bigger TV and that vacation at the ocean

You are no luxury

You are priceless

There are many good reasons not to have kids

And the best reason to have kids? You.

You can’t speak and yet you explain to us the whole world.

You can’t walk, but you help us get going.

You learn so much every day and teach us still more.

You show us that there is never the wrong but only the right moment to have you.

You have mother and father and yet you still need the whole country to grow up happy.

You are not alone as our most precious ‘project/work’.

You make out of two people, one family.

Out of a small apartment you make an adventurous playground

And from spaghetti with sauce a feast.

We need more of your kind because without you the present is no fun

And the future already past.

You. Are. Germany."

Out of the mouths of (German) Babes

Just spent a week doing English camps with German children.  On trivia night, I got a kick reading their answers to some of the questions.

Q:  Name five US States.

-Colorado, Tennesie, Chikago, Texas, Florida
 -Canada, California, USA, Greenland
 -San Francisco, Florida, New York, Hollywood, Washington
 -Colorado, Florida, Los Angeles,  Washington DC, Texas

Q:  What does PBJ stand for? (Hint: Its a sandwich.)

-Potato, Beat, Cheese
-Pute (thats German for Turkey) Bread, Joghurt
-Tomato, Salate, Cheese
-Pepper, Bacon, Ham

Q:  What is the name of Barack Obama's Wife?

-Kate Middleton
-Joanna
-Kathy Obama

Q:  Name a US coin.

-demi
-nikolas

Photo: Bavarian Children in Lederhosen.  (*photo credits and property of Rolf Hicker)

"Wait 'till the green light says go..."

David is often blocking my attempts to cross the street when the light is red.  Its not German.  Its not proper.  Its not the right way to do it.  Despite the fact that Germans aren't always the rule-abiding citizens that people often make them out to be.  They aren't always punctual (see post below) and they don't always do what's right.  (They are human after all.) Yet, it is fair to say that its not an odd sight to see a handful of Germans standing on a street corner, without a car in sight, waiting for the light to change--one minute, two minutes--just standing and waiting.

As a German-in-Training, my stance on this issue fluctuates.  Depending on my mood, I either wait ("so as to be a good example for kids" as David explains) or cross, depending on how many times Deutsche Bahn has tried my patience during my commute.  Sometimes I just can't be bothered to stand there for two or three minutes, and then again at the next crossing light for two or three minutes (because it seems that the lights are not coordinated to go off at the same time--often you cross half way, and then wait in the middle to cross the other half of the street--but I digress).

Yesterday, I had two different encounters with angry Germans, within less than 24 hours of each other because I was not following the "wait until the light is green" rule.  The first a child, no more than 7 or 8 years old, who sounded like I had just stolen his Kinder Surprise egg and whined a loud "NEEEeeiiiiN!!!!" when I stepped into the street to cross. Later an old man, with eyebrows raised and a smug, self-righteous voice turned to me and said (this was at another crossing) "Wir müssen ein bisschein warten, oder?"  (We must wait a little, or?) After his beady eyes penetrated my head, his eybrows came down and he turned to a friend and continued to talk.

In theory, both the young and the old man were in the right--but I just cannot imagine someone scolding me in NJ or NY for crossing the street when the light is red. I tried to recall in my 22 years living in the US something like that happening, but I couldn't think of a single instance.