4 Things You Should NEVER Say In Germany! 🇩🇪
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- Опубліковано 9 лип 2024
- After moving to Germany and living in Germany, we learned there are some things that Germans don't really like hearing people say... In this follow up video to the first video we did on things Germans hate hearing Americans say, I talk about 4 other cultural differences between Germany and the US that you should be aware of in case you are ever speaking with a German! 😊
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❤️Aubrey was a Speech-Language Pathologist and Donnie was a graphic designer, but we both had a dream to #travel the world and experience cultures. After three years of being married and dreaming about if something like this great adventure would be possible, we decided to quit the rat race and take on the world. We sold everything we had, quit our jobs, and took off! After 9 months of aimless and nonstop travel, we now get to fulfill our dreams of #LivingAbroad as #expats as we move to #Germany!
00:00 - Intro
1:08 - Thing 1
3:45 - Thing 2
6:22 - Thing 3
8:38 - Thing 4
11:13 - Bloopers
Yes, it was a joke…😂
I literally did a facepalm, but I wasn't sure at that moment why. You guys don't strike me as dumb 🤔🤣, but that is a pretty cringey joke. 🤣🤣🤣
Na ob das wirklich stimmt? 🙃 ok, i just belive
perfectly executed with the music cue. chefs kiss.
Best part of the videooouuuu. 👍
Donnie, you made a mistake🤣 Mozart & Sound of music not kangaroos! To be honest, i laughed out loud.. great joke
I (German, 41) don't mind people using terms like "grammar nazi" or whatever. What upsets me is when people joke about everyone being a (real) nazi, make tactless remarks at memorial sites or even do the nazi salute (which is actually forbidden in Germany, you might and should get in trouble for doing so) "for fun".
It's the lack of education and respect and the tone deafness for me. the whole "well, it's not a problem for me so I can do whatever I want" attitude is so annoying.
Mexicanphobe.
I´m usually answer such comments with a: "Hey NO jokes about KZ. My Gramps died in one!" And after 3-4 seconds of awkard silence i´ll add "Fell drunk from a watchtower."
The confused time after gives me ample time to explain the real deal.
I agree. WW2 is not an easy topic and sure not for quick jokes. - If someone is really interested and takes time for getting into depth with the topic, its absolutely OK to talk about it. It is not an easy conversation, my generation (I am 58) grew up with traumatised family, men with visible amputationen in the street, destroyed/missing/patches building and the idea, that we should not "talk about it too much, because it is over". We did not even learn about "it" in school, because it was too fresh and teachers did not like to talk about it. What I know about WW2 I learned later.
I have friends in Bremen who have a neighbor they call a "Leaf Nazi" who blows his leaves off his property so often it encroaches on the well being of his neighbors. I now live in Germany and have this exact neighbor, 3 meters from my home. He has a gasoline powered leaf blower on his back that he uses at every occasion several times per week, excluding only deep Winter. Since it's not the easy steady motor blow of a lawn mower, but rather a RIAH-rah-RIAH-rah_RIAH-ray for hours, it makes me come in, shut all the windows, and I even have to turn on the news full blast. I live in a tiny village with corn fields all around me. And this awful dude.
"...or even doing the Nazi salute (which is actually forbidden in Germany, you might and should get in trouble for doing so) 'for fun'."
Oooohh! That last part, when some Kraut (and you were born in '41, eh?) says "it is forbidden!!" ...Or... "It's not funny!", ...it just makes me, a good, old fashion arrogant American, so much to want to fly to Germany, get out on the roads and die stadtplatzen and start GOOSE STEPPING, John Cleese-style, with my right arm extended, my left forefinger under my nose, speaking Hitlerish German-sounding gibberish (to set my English-speaking friends a-titter), maybe while wearing a British-type bowler hat on my head (because John Cleese also did the 'Ministry of Silly Walks' skit with such a hat), and of course lederhosen, ....occasionally stopping by snack stands to order "an egg-mayo, a prawn Goebbels, a Colditz salad..."
Okay, forget about the bowler hat; how about while wearing a red baseball cap, emblazoned with the words: "Make die Amerikanische Besatzungzone Great Again!" (MdABzWG)...
...You know, just to stick it good to those rule-bound, unsmiling, 'Verboten, verboten, verboten!', ANNOYING Krauts with the good o'le Anglo-American "It's not a problem with me! I can do whatever I want!" attitude.
Some german comedian once said "YOu are not only allowed to make Jokes about Hitler, one is obligated to!"
The point is, making jokes about fscists and hitler is one thing, and generally ok, as long as those are the "butt of the joke", but it is categorically not ok, to make light of the horrors of the holocause or the victims of the war.
A real sitaution that has happend to me once, was, in a Hostel in germany, then we, a group of germans, were asked by foreign toursits, "have you gassed any jews lately?" and I think is is BLATANTLY OBVIOUS that this is NOT OK! For many MANY reasons!
I know that Mel Brooks said this in context of the producers. That looking at all the pomp and extravaganca of how the Nazis produced their very very memeable content, one only has to make fun of the absurdity and take away their power. Taking all this serious empowers them.
One reason it is so horrible that we try to talk reasonably with the AdD.
But I am pretty sure, there are enough great German Comedians and Cabaret Artists that had the same relevation.
Heinz Erhard comes immediatly to mind, so does Erich Kaestner.
I also think there is a unwritten law that enables every German to do a decent Hitler imitation ..
The WWII problem is, Americans like small talk, and if they think on "what common knowledge do I have with a German", they start this topic. It's too serious for small talk.
And there are simply too many Americans coming up with this idea.
This really is like an American would be asked about slavery 5 times a year by random tourists. They would feel annoyed by time to make statements.
good comparison…
Ignoring the subject WW2, who doesn't like smalltalk?
@@dutchgamer842 me
@@dutchgamer842 Germans
@@dutchgamer842 i real life don't want to talk to a stranger standing in front of me in line at the checkout. i just wait my turn and do my own thing.
The Austria/Australia joke is hilarious lol Well, jokes about nazis highly depend on context. It can be funny but there is a fine line. And yes, discussions about WW2 get annoying when Americans pretend, there was never anything wrong in their country. A genuine discussion about how people experienced this time is something completely else. Favourite number is 7
It was Donald Trump, who could not distinguish between Austria and Australia. I must admit, Putin was right about ONE THING: How to negotiate with someone like that?
Trump was not the first to make this mistake. The joke existed way before he was elected. But it makes a difference whether such a faux-pas comes from a random person on the street or from the president of one of the world's most powerful countries.
@@janpracht6662 Trump also said that Belgium is a beautiful city.😮🤔🤣
True there is a fine line and it can get nervewrecking when foreigners start about WWII as if that is the only thing they know about Germany. We have more history, good and bad- than just these 6 very dark brown years (actually the brown era began earlier in fairness). I once sat in a cab here in Ireland going home after food shoppin. Talked with the driver and he asked me, where I was from again, I said I was German and he stupidly replied "Oh, so you are a relative of H****r?". I answered that if he said that again I would slap him. It was just stupid and inappropriate (first that said person was not actually German and not every German is related to any German person in the media). Had he said "Oh, so you're related to Angela Merkel?" It would've been halfway funny, though a lame joke, but his reply was just simply offending and crossing boundaries of taste and inappropriate behaviour towards a customer. I can really take a joke on myself, but that was a clear no-go! Could've asked him "Oh you're Irish, so you're on the IRA, doing all the things they do?" to bring him back into perspective and to show him how plain dumb his comment was.
@@janpracht6662 Turns out Putin didnt even want to negotiate.
During my time in the german army, when the Sergeant came for inspection into the barrack rooms during the winter months and ordered to open the windows, to get some fresh air, some of the older recruits were annoyed and replied:
_"Schon viele Kameraden sind erfroren, aber noch keiner ist erstunken."_
(Many comrades froze to death but no one ever stinked to death.)
That's a classic actually which I also tell my mum every now and then when she demands that I should open the window more often, especially in winter times. Unfortunately we have neighbors that are happly using coal heatings around the whole year, so more often than I'd like there is no fresh air but actually air you want to keep out under all circumstances.
yeah, my Grandma loved that one as well.
Dear Donnie, I absolutely agree - it's all about the approach.
The example from the podcast doesn't appear to me like a joke about Nazis. Since the word Nazi can be used as an expletive word she was just kidding him.
But it happens that US Americans take a wrong and very thoughtless way of joking about WWII or the Nazi time. Like if you are telling a person not to walk on the bike lane, and the answer is a "Hitlergruß" in combination with "Jawoll!"
Or like trivializing things that happened during the war by making jokes about it. And yes, that is what really happens and what drives us Germans really nuts! I guess you have already realized, that we are still ashamed for what Germany did in the past and we are taking the topic very, very seriously. At a certain point and under certain circumstances we kinda 'love' talking about the war, because we believe in "being aware of the mistakes and crimes in the past, we can avoid repeating them", and so it is very important to talk about it in order to never forget it. Talking in order to prevent things of happening again is sort of a credo.
We are not able to "laugh away" the entire topic. So if someone tries to trivialize it by making silly jokes, or showing that they are not taking it seriously, we will get very upset. Especially since at the moment we are observing the "right winged stuff" getting stronger and the Nazi networks growing again.
I hope this comment was helpful, have a nice weekend! Regards to Aubrey and Jr.!
Ziemlich dämlich, sich dafür zu schämen, was "damals passiert ist". Erstens war keiner von uns beteiligt, zweitens wissen wir schlicht weg nicht, was wirklich passiert ist, und ob andere sich (vor allem die, die am lautesten schreien "schämt Euch") nicht viel mehr schämen müssten. Ich denke es ist Zeit zu hinterfragen, was aktuell passiert, z.B. in Palästina, und ob der sorgsam geschürte Schuldkomplex möglicherweise damit in Verbindung steht?
Regarding WW II, I agree with Donnie that if you approach the subject sentitively, most of us Germans won't mind talking about it or even discuss critical aspects. This is more true the younger people are. There are two things to keep in mind though from my perspective:
1) Don't make a random Nazi joke. If anything, let the German make one first :), then you can sort of gauge their sense of humour about it.
2) If you enter into a serious discussion, be fully prepared to have to answer for, I mean, answer questions about the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Or the bombing of Dresden
"hey, how are you?" - "Well, my hernia has been acting up lately and also I have the sniffels and my back hurts... what about you?" - "..." ;)
When I was in high school in Germany, it was absolutely standard practice to open all windows during intermission, even if it was minus ten degrees outside. And I kind of enjoyed it, because it really gets stuffy in an overheated room with thirty people breathing their CO2 into atmosphere. I still air rooms regularly. When the weather is fine, the question is not how much or how long I open my bathroom window, but rather, whether I ever shut it at all.
In our class there was always a group of girls who would say: I'd rather suffocate than freeze! And then they would shut the windows...
@@TheMissileHappy "Es sind schon viele erfroren, aber es ist noch niemand erstunken"😁
WW2 is not at all a forbidden topic. I would even say we like to talk about it. But not, if the first thing you say is "let's talk about nazis". If it comes up in conversation then we gladly talk about it
But it's always more like "They, the Nazis", not so much about "Our forfathers".
Younger Germans have more like an outside view on the topic. They talk about it like about the french revolution.
The most annoying thing I have witnessed & experienced multiple Americans saying with a straight face and very severe tone is: "I forgive you." - to a person born in the 90s
Once had a friend come to my house and ask (upon seeing a picture of my grandfather in his German military uniform from the 1940s)…”hey, who’s the Nazi?” There were thousands who served because they had little choice…and didn’t follow the ideology…
Funny that you showed the flag and country of Austrailia when you were talking about the Wiener Schnitzel. When I did a semester abroad in Austria, many of my American friends asked me how I liked Austrailia.
I, an American, somehow made it well into my adult life without realizing that others didn’t view “how are you?” as a sincere question. 😅 This may be because I was the child of an immigrant. Re: nazi jokes, as an American who’s traveled and done business in Germany and Austria, I am completely mortified by Americans going over there and making nazi jokes, and think those that do deserve whatever negative consequence they get. I do think also that culturally Americans tend much more to make jokes about *everything* even really dark moments in history. Not making a value judgement on it, but read the room, fellow Americans. Don’t go to another country thinking you’re edgy and hilarious and everyone shares your sense of humor.
No! Americans do not make more jokes than Europeans. In contrary they are overly sensitive about some topics and beep out every explicite word and ban any funny statement on most serious topics. They constantly invent new words to mask unpleasant facts or give new names to things that they believe to have negatively connotated names. Never ever would they make a joke about mass shootings for example. Americans are hypocrites: overly sensitive with their own feelings but constantly hurting others with dumb uneducated statements.
German here. 👋🏻 I think it’s fair to talk about pretty much any topic as long as you come across as genuine and actually know what you’re talking about. Not trying to ruffle any feathers but many Americans don’t seem to know very much about history in general, much less so German history. They tend to overestimate their part in WW II as well. Yes, they did build that bomb and nuked 2 cities in Japan but what brought Hitler down wasn’t D-Day. It was Russia/USSR throwing everything they had at Germany after suffering terrible losses themselves. And even that wasn’t because they loved freedom and democracy so much. It’s okay to not know things. Just don’t pretend that you do. 😜
The "Grammatik Nazi" sounds like an import of the "grammar nazi" and I have never heard it in germany before.
It certainly is, but the term is also highly descriptive of the attitude of these people that deserve to be called as such.
8
Yes, sensitive discussions should be handled respectfully. I see that whenever I, an atheist, discuss Christianity with my local student church in Greifswald.
And it is perfectly normal to know the basics, but not all the details.
I'm Syrian-German, but couldn't tell you the entire history of the Syrian Civil War and the migrant crisis off the top of my head.
Fun Fact: The brief period when Egypt and Syria had been united into one republic is still referenced by the two green stars on the Syrian national flag 🇸🇾
Once a German friend told me that we Italians are "food Nazis", I corrected him... we're "food fascists". He did not find it funny... 😢
I wouldn t say that Italians are food Nazis, but I would have laughed at your response.
This is why many people say, that Germans have no humor, they just don't get it. Italian and Austrian, such as me, say things with a twinkle of the eyes, that is something you very rarely find in Germany.
@@herb6677 sure, you can deduct from one case to all 82 million Germans. Such nonsense. I am German and I would have laughed about it.
@@herb6677bullshit
Ich denke „42“ ist eine gute Antwort auf deine Frage … eigentlich auf alle Fragen 🚀
German here. About the thing "asking germans about WWII". No problem at all talking about it, but as soon I get the feeling someone trying to gloryfy this era (even just a tiny bit), the conversation is done. Same if i get the feeling, that the other person makes no difference between germans at that time and germans now. In this case I would think I talk to a uninformed and stupid person. Sad thing is, that many americans still call todays germans nazis, while america is by far more racist today. I think, thats what makes me angry. If an american (also ppl from other countrys) try to call me nazi, he'll never hear from me again besides my laughing while i turn around and walk away.
About the chitchat thing... Ya, it's true. Can't talk for other germans, but at least I don't like it. To me there is no point asking someone how he is, when i'm not interested in the answer. There are so many things to talk about. No need to pretend I'm interested in someone. To me american chitchat is just trying to be nice at all cost and it's also not honest.
Without having checked all the other comments to see whether someone has already pointed this out:
Stoßlüften means opening as many windows as possible for a short time (short time being the key component).
Querlüften however means opening at least two windows that are on opposite sides of the building so the difference in air pressure or temperature on either side will get air flowing quer (=across) through the room(s) from one window to the other. (Which means opening two windows in the same room on the same side of the room does not count as Querlüften but can be regarded as Stoßlüften for just this particular room.)
I think the topic WWII is not a problem as long as you don't link it to todays people. An American visiting or living in Germany almost definitely did not fight against the Nazis and most people you meet on the street in Germany weren't alive back than so they are not to blame for what the Nazis did.
I myself live in Eastern Germany and the town I live in was heavily bombed by UK and USA but neither I nor anybody I know was victim of this. I don't feel any ill will just sympathy with the victims of the war. Sadly every year I have to deal with actual modern Nazis using this as their reason to spew their propaganda. So Nazis in the sense of actual Nazis still leave a sour taste.
Most people's parents and many younger people's grandparents weren't even alive back then. The group of 80+ Germans is about 7% of the popuöation. And that's the bare minimum for living during that time. One would need to be 100+ years old to fully have seen through the history of their rulership in a way they could process (even then such a person would be, 10 years old). Witnesses from that time are becoming rarer and dying out.
Dresden?
The Austria/Australia joke got me. 🤣
😂😂
@@PassportTwo trying to drive engagement of Austrian audience. Nice try!
There is no inappropriate way that *I* have been asked about WWII.
I have also never been asked anything about it (by someone from another culture) at all.
Here's what annoys me: Germany being reduced to 12 years of its 2k year history in the media.
Hearing the same tired jokes in comedy, it's always Hitler this, Nazis that.
There's more to us than that. Same goes for the traditional Bavarian stereotypes that get attributed to all of us.
I also don't feel like grammar nazi is a joke, it's just an expression. At least in my 31 years on this planet, saying grammar nazi has never been inappropriate. That said, it's an anglicism. And a recent one at that.
Either that or I just never heard it before my late teens/early twenties, for some reason.
And yeah, 100% agree on your view concerning it depending on the context.
As a bavarian i find the identification of germany with bavaria absolutely hilarious. "That said, it's an anglicism." You are probably correct on that.
Hope you enjoyed this video! 😃 If so, you might want to check out these others we’ve done:
German Police vs American Police Culture Shocks! 🇩🇪 - ua-cam.com/video/JSIZTaeHXvc/v-deo.html
The Alarming Differences Between American vs German Christianity - ua-cam.com/video/bpoH3XZXpfk/v-deo.html
How talking with a German is TOTALLY Different than talking to an American - ua-cam.com/video/pEtTk5wzL-w/v-deo.html
5 Shocking Differences Between American and German Coffee Culture - ua-cam.com/video/nz8aT_4Xrhc/v-deo.html
The proper frase to add if you ask someone to close the window in a situation as you described it, is: Erfroren sind schon viele, erstunken ist noch keiner! (Many have died of cold, but noone ever of stench!)
I order "Canberra Schnitzel" most often! I like the slightly sour taste of the small red berries very much! 😉😋🤥
🤣
I´m german and I open my windows in round about April/May depending on temperature and closing them only when I´m out of my home, high outside temperature or when it is around November and then wintertime. Other then these exceptions my windows are always open. In the winter time I open them multiple times a day.
I am not German but because I lived in Germany I do the same😂,drives my wife mad😂
Exactly the same goes for me being Austrian. I guess that the majority of Austrians and Germans do it that way.
Did you actually put the australian flag and map there, instead of the austrian? Was that a mistake or supposed to be a joke?
Certainly a joke
The most German comment at all 😅
As a German, 53 years old, I would never ever call anyone a x-nazi (like "grammar nazi"), not even jokingly. I strongly dislike this term, and I think it appears here every now and then because it was learned from forums or social media. Calling someone a Nazi is very likely understood as an insult, in fact, and this x-nazi saying is somewhat like working around this insult in a humorous way.
28.
Talking about WW2 is fine imho like you said it depends on the approach.
About airing out my appartment. I mostly do it after getting up and before going to bed. In the morning i let out the moisture that might´ve build up during the night and i like having some fresh air when going to bed. Sometimes i also air out when i come home from work or just feel like it. In Spring or Summer when it´s warm i sometimes open the windows for the whole day to let some warmth in.
In the Summer I have my windows open nearly all the Time just closing the bilinds as needed or if I leave for more than a few hours. In spring and autumn it depends on the weather but if it's nice I only shut it during the night. In winter is less frequent but I would say about one or two hours every 2-3 days.
From your videos I've learned that "politics" is a topic Americans try to avoid in conversations. I would feel comfortable to discuss about fascism with Americans when they are comfortable to discuss topics like George Floyd, Black Lives Matters, Proud Boys and the fascist tendencies in the GOP. If they think that the latter aren't topics for a good conversation, they should skip the topic "German history from 1900-1950". In that case, we need to develop more trust.
Yep, Americans are a mixed bag about that. I'm one of the ones who is under no illusions that we don't have serious problems and when I'm abroad encourage people who seem to want to have a conversation to tell me their honest opinions, but there are many who can "dish it out but not take it" over here. I actually really respect Germany's handling of their history though all the Dokucenters, etc.
while we would have to skip the topic of american history from 1492 until today.
We just don't like that the Nazi and WW2 topic is the first thing a lot of people mention when it comes to Germany. Even jokes. We can definitely joke about things and also talk about it in a serious way. But we don't want to be reduced to that. It's like saying slavery and guns are the only thing we know about America. It gets tiring and takes the seriousness away from what we've learnt from history. There's so much more to our history.
In school, we open the windows for a few minutes about every period, because we are so many people in one room. Every classroom also has a CO2 indicator because of covid and if it goes up we open the windows. But I think my class does it more often than others, because when we enter other rooms we immediately open the windows there because the air is so bad. At home I only open the windows one or two times a day, but especially in spring and summer we leave the backdoor to the garden open, so we don't need to "lüften" as regularly
As a german, at least for me, it highly depends on how well I know the person. If a random american I meet on a night out starts making nazi jokes or asks stuff about ww2, I'd find that incredibly rude and obnoxious; never happened to me though.
If I know the person/they are a friend of mine I don't mind.
Airing out rooms depends on the kind of rooms and time of year/weather.
I open my bathroom window for a couple of minutes after I took a shower or bath because of humidity.
My bedroom and living room are being aired out at least once a day in winter (usually in the morning) for like 20 mins. In spring and early autumn I might keep windows open all day when the temperature outside is just almost the same as that I prefer it inside, just for the enjoyment of the fresh air.
In summer I keep windows opened for as long as it's not getting too hot outside. So mostly during the morning hours and they get opened again, after the sun went down in the evening when the air freshes up a bit.
A nice word in this context is "Frischluftfanatiker" 😉
When it comes to WWII and the history around it, I feel it is important to talk about it, but that has to be done with respect and sensitivity.
Even though I personally don't find most jokes about related topics funny, I don't mind people making jokes about it as long as the "joke" isn't used as a cover up for dubious statements. I think humor is a important way for humans to deal with problems and history in general.
Intent matters a lot when talking about that era and people also shouldn't pretend that they know things for certain if they didn't the experience it first hand.
Lüften: Well one has to take into consideration that the American way of HAVC in contrast to European heatings.
While the HAVC do air exchange - and also exchange with the outside, the European way is to heat just one room inside. NOT ANY air exchange goes along with it. So exchange has to be done by operating the windows.
In Germany, we‘re really open our “Fenster” (window). But some fresh is always good, if it isn’t raining or snowing.
RQotW: 9
We open the windows when it starts to smell stale, so maybe every other day/ every third day, in different rooms.
I've heard soooooo many tourists here ask if Austrian was a special language as in "do you speak Austrian? or "how do you say that in Austrian?" can be valid when it comes to foods.
When in the USA, and I'd say I live in Austria, sometimes they would confuse Austria with Australia (and a few times we would get mail re-routed to us from down-under) and a few times the address would be Vienna, Germany. ! Sometimes some Ameicans would confuse Vienna with Venice.
Those who know a bit more of history would ask how did an Austrian get to be German chancellor. (
as soon as the temperature reaches certain levels I open windows... usually from april to october one or all windows are open when I am at home
I have my window almost 24/7 open.. the only time I close it, is when it's winter and I have my radiator on.
Opening windows depends on the season. In Winter at least 10 minutes a day. Rest of the year nearly all the time, when I am at home and temperature is not too low or to high (between 17 an 25 degrees celsius).
On Lueften. It is the mixture of no air condition and the way most german homes are build.
American homes outside of brownstones and skyscrapers are mostly constructed with lots of wood and drywall which can still breathe pretty well and the airflow is controlled by the AC. ( breathing meaning the exchange of air, moisture and temperature between the inside and outside )
German homes are build from stone blocks or concrete are insulated with styrofoam on the outside with a layers of plaster on top of the inside and outside wall. The windows itself are insulated for temperature and noise as well. With no AC to move the air automatically. There is nearly no exchange of air, moisture and temperature between the inside and the outside. Mostly to reduce the cost of heating in winter
So it is pretty important to air out the house / appartment to reduce humidity because else everything would be covered in mould pretty fast. This is also the reason "lueften" is required in your lease, so your landlord is able to put some of the cost on you when you cause the growth of mould in your appartment.
The second reason is, since there is nearly no exchange of outside air, when the windows are closed CO2 builds up in the room, it is important to refresh the O2 level of your rooms.
( best example is a meeting room, when you notice everybody gets tired after a while, faster the more people are in the room. )
You may notice this best in the winter when your windows get foggy or even wet on the inside.
Older Houses like Fachwerk did have less of a problem with this. But in olden times the open windows were used to air out bedding and of course to talk to your neighbours while doing chores inside :)
I immediately opened all the windows at Thing 2. Thanks for the reminder.
We are a young German family, and a fixed part of our morning routine is to "air out" the rooms. If I forget to open the windows for 5 or 10 minutes, my wife gets angry 😅
Another topic is the Nazi issue. Personally, I enjoy talking with people from other countries about cultural differences. If you want to discuss German history with me, that's okay, but I believe that most people in Germany try to be serious about things that should never happen again. Yes, we are not the generation that committed those horrible acts, but our generation has the mission of "We must not forget what happened." This means that we never forget what our grandparents did. On the other hand, we can also discuss things like you mentioned in the video. If we say "Grammar Nazi," it's the same as making jokes about your mom. It's not meant to be taken seriously.
when 'lüften' is fixed in the contract, do not rent it, it is highly likely that there is a serious mould problem, which has nothing to do with airi g out. Mostly there are structural problems and they do want to blame the tennants. Ask specific questions if there had been problems with tennants before, if denied ask your neighbours, check if the side boards are fixed on the wall/floor. If that is the case, do not rent it
You seem to be struggling with the "ü" at some times, like in "lüften". As a tip, you should approach the "ü" from the "i", not from the "u". Say "liften" with your lips rounded and protruded while saying the i.
One thing that used to be common was Americans assuming Wienerschnitzel meant sausages/hot dogs.
That seems to have come from an American fast food chain called (Der) Wienerschnitzel which specializes in hot dogs for some reason.
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It's okay if an American seriously asks me something about the Nazi era. Neither WWII nor Nazis are taboo subjects, "Don't mention the war" is an inaccurate cliché. As a small talk topic without serious interest, it annoys me.
On the subject of "Australia and Austria": A friend of mine who was living in Vienna at the time bought something online from a mail order company in England. The announced shipment did not come, apparently it was lost. Then, almost a month after the order was placed, the package from the mail order company still arrived, in a rather battered condition. Someone in England had mistakenly written "Australia" instead of "Austria" on the address. The package had first gone to Australia, and since there is no city named "Wien" (Vienna) there, the package went back to finally be delivered correctly.
Got "Schnappatmung" for a second when you brought up the Austalian flag. Good one! I guess you need to do something similar on "Inder vs. Indianer" at some point. As for the WW2 stories and jokes: You nailed it when you gave your perspective. It is when people bring up the topic in casual conversation lacking even a basic understanding of historical events when Germans feel offended, not the topic per se.
I really appreciate when Americans ask about my perspective on topics, even sensible ones, and tell me their perspective as well. It’s not an issue if they don’t have much in depth knowledge, as we all don’t know everything and because they already showed interest by asking. The only thing I encountered with a few Americans I haven’t with people from anywhere else as much, is judging without knowing. That really infuriates me. But, as always, these are only a few people and don’t represent the populous as a whole.
I don't mind the Wiener Schnitzel thing much, i mean, plenty of americans think french fries are from france and do not get that hamburgers originated in Hamburg, germany. The world war 2 thing is not really about world war 2, it is about that dreadful us-american ignorance. They have some tiny tidbits of information and think they are the worlds leading expert on the topic. Seriously, I met qie a few us-aemricans who thought we germans should be thankful to them personally becasuse they (probably also personally) freed us from the nazi regime. I usually only say "They weren't called nazis here" and that confuses them long enough for me to skedaddle.
Edit: Also, we germans aren't alone in this. Just watch how some us-americans tell english people how the us single-handedly won world war 2 and see how the brits react. I enjoy that quite abit, actually
"Grammatik-Nazi" is a direct re-translation of the English "grammar nazi", and would probably offend a fair share of native speakers unaware of the origin. Same is true with "soup nazi" (of Seinfeld fame), or really "Nazi" anything. Avoid the term altogether, unless you're a native speaker knowing what they’re doing.
More than half of the year I have my office window completely open all day. I really need fresh air. It was a really weird feeling, when I visited Chicago and the Hotel didn't have a window I could open. It felt like being stuck without the ability to breathe.
What i really think is annoying with Americans is, as soon as it is mentioned someone is form Germany (or any other part of Europe) saying things like 'hey, I'm 1 8th german too' or something like 'one of my great grand parents that died about 80 years ago was from Germany, so I'm part german too'
that is some completly unrelated information that adds nothing to any conversation.
I mean what should i respond to that? What does that information change?
Can i speak German to that person now? probably not.
Favourite number: 3.
I don't mind most of those things but yes to your last bit, I absolutely agree with your approach - respectful discussions are great! Only offensive and stupid opinions are painful. Jokes are difficult but can be okay, it highly depends on what you joke about and how.
I'm honestly a bit shocked at the callousness a few commentators are displaying (calling a bus driver a Nazi because they drove off? Really?!), so I guess the attitudes might have been changing lately among the younger generations (I am of course only making assumptions about them, and we know what happens when you assume). I don't particularly like grammar Nazi and similar terms but have accepted that thanks to social media, those have spread everywhere.
(For the record, my parents were born shortly after the war, and I'm in my early 40's.)
29
Talking about Nazis and the war is ok, as long as you avoid these taboos:
- Assuming that all Germans are still Nazis (and talk like the bad guys in American WW2 movies)
- agreeing with Nazi ideology.
About "Lüften":
When opening a window in a room with other people, it is polite to check if others are ok with it, especially those near the window. The usual compromise is: "Tell me when it gets too cold for you", or: "Feel free to close it again when it gets too cold".
As a 3 year trained chef with a degree I can say:
A “Viennese style” schnitzel (Schnitzel (nach) Wiener Art) is a breaded schnitzel made from pork (usually from the topside / Oberschale) or from turkey or chicken breast. So white meat.
An original "Wiener Schnitzel" is made from veal (also topside/Oberschale) and is not red but rather pink.
So if a restaurant owner offers "Wiener Schnitzel" on the menu, then it *MUST* also be veal, as it is significantly more expensive. I learned all of this in cooking school in the 80s. Greetings from Northern Germany ♥️
I open my windows about 3 times a day, right before breakfast, lunch and dinner. I close them right after having my meals.
In summertime, all my Windows are constantly open whenerver I am home. I offen leave the door open too. In winter only my Bedroom window is constantly open.
You missed a big one: "Good for you"/"Schön für dich"
We just don't want to have mold in the "Bude" (apartment) 😋
"Stoßlüften Junge!" 😅😅
I don't get the fuzz or confusion about Wiener Schnitzel. Wiener schnitzel is often prepared and eaten in Germany and has been like that for a long time - therefore it is part of German cuisine whether it originated in Austria, Australia or Italy. Nobody would question that pasta and a tomato sause are big part of Italian cuisine, though noodles were invented in China and tomatoes originated in the Americas.
"Wiener" or "Viennese syle" just describes a certain style of preparing and presenting this food.
You can also have a "Hamburger Schnitzel" topped with an egg sunny sid up and this of course allso outside of Hamburg.
German cuisine also includes "Königsberger Klopse", although the city is nowadays called Kaliningrad and part of Russia.
- or "Ungarischer Gulasch" which is not even close to that what Hungarians call goulash. German cuisine might also include "Rheinischer Sauerbraten" and even eaten outside of the Rhineland. "Berliner (Pfannkuchen)" kann be found in nearly every German bakery and not just in Berlin and Leber Berliner Art is just a style of frying liver and serving with onions, apples and mashed potatoes and this also far from Berlin.
I don't mind having a serious conversation about nazi times if there is a geniune interest ... the same with taking an humorous approch in movies and such. But if nazis references are just randomly thrown into a conversation ...or in a context: everything German equals nazi ... that doesn't work well.
if the weather is right, my windows are always open... and "stoßlüften" is multiple times daily for several minutes, even in winter with -20C°
I‘m going to bed now. Like every evening I first open the bedroom window for some minutes as I do in the morning. After cooking I open the kitchen window, several times a day the window in the bathroom and in other rooms occasionally. At least once a week I open all windows at once and in summer I do this each morning to bring cool air in. I love „real“ fresh air and I hate „canned“ air from air conditioners, that’s how I see it.
Remember Monty Python / Fawlty Towers: "never mention the war" 😂 (the sketch is available here, hilarious)
A Wiener Schnitzel isn´t from Italy that is just one of the uncountable spreaded internet myths.
First of all the coating is essential different in 2 ways ..
1. no cheese is in the bread coating but which the Italian Piccata Milanese which is claimed for being the source has
2. the coating is loose around the meat and wavy (when it is done properly as it should) which is the result of a different frying technique while the coating of a Piccata Milanese is totally flat and directly sticking on the meat.
Another thing is that to bread coat with bread crumbs a piece of meat is actually a way older tradition in Vienna than the Wiener Schnitzel itself is old.
There are Viennese documents which are from the 15th century about feasting where bread coating meat (and I say "meat" because it was all kinds of meat including different parts and different cuts and even innings like liver or heart) is already mentioned in detail
hi, in winter if someone don't like airout, germans say: "Erfroren sind schon viele, erstunken noch keiner!"This was a saying in germany in the 80s and 90s. I didn't heard that since then.
About Lüften: American homes usually have forced air heating. So the houses already get treated air supplied through the ducting system. In Germany, in buildings with central AC, people don't open the windows either (unless there's a bad smell or too many people are in one room for the AC to deal with).
Man kann schon über WW2 reden. Das Problem ist nur, das die US Amerikaner im speziellen absolut keine Ahnung haben über das Thema, dass man erst einmal Aufklärung machen muss, und das von Grund auf, dass es Stunden dauern würde die Ursprungsfrage zu beantworten. Dazu kommt auch noch die Überzeugung die USA hätten uns gerettet und geben einem das Gefühl wir müssen dankbar sein. Also vermeide ich schon im Ansatz mit Ihnen darüber zu reden.
I open my window every morning and leave it open until I freeze or sweat
i never met a american in germany who was inappropiate with WW2 topic. When it comes to this topic it always was out of genuine curiousity.
But i have encountered numerous americans in the states who greeted me with the nazi salute and the famous nazi phrase.. I was also asked if hitler is still alive. Maybe they were just trying to be friendly and do smalltalk but didnt know this topic is way to sensitive for a smalltalk ?
Last week was the first time ever I wrote that thing about Americans and slavery, I made clear that that is absolutely not excusing or minimizing the German doings between 1933 and 1945. But that American who wrote so full of hate for all Germans (and meant the now living generations) made me do it.
If 78 years after the fact is still reason to hate the postwar generations - then that person had to take a good hard look into their mirror - as segregation in the US lasted way longer.
From English Wikipedia, from the article about School segregation in the United States:
Segregation in schools has a long history in the United States and American schools are more racially segregated now than in the late 1960s, when segregation laws were finally dismantled
So that person who came over as so much holier than Germans ... did not post an answer.
Apart from that one time I try my best to NOT set the Holocaust into relation to anything - the Holocaust was unique, monstrous and I deeply condemn it! While slavery led to a lot of deaths because ppl had the "wrong" skin colour, never before did humans kill people on such an industrial scale just because of their religion. 6 Million dead Jews should never be forgotten. And it should never happen again.
Favourite number 9.
My favorite number is 42.
I have no problem talking about WWII, but only know stories from my (grand)parents.
I don't feel any national guilt, but a slight obligation to fight against any recurrence, but I would do that anyway, regardless of being German.
And certainly you aren't doing a great job in that.
rational approach!
Usually I opened my windows in May and closed them in late October.
jokes like "Grammar Nazi" are fine, what I hate is a type of joke many Americans seem to like, the kind, that is just "You are German, so you must be a Nazi." or "All Germans are Nazis.". Those seem to be particularly common on the internet. More than once, the first reaction to me saying I am German was the American, although French people do that too, saying "Heil Hitler!" or something equally bad, things, that are actually illegal in Germany.
42 (Hitchiker of the galaxy reference ;) )
I actually air the kitchen-living room twice a day in all weathers, the bedroom once a day and in summer the balcony door in the kitchen-living room (where my desk is) stays open almost permanently when the humidity outside is low.
I work in an open-plan office, the colleagues in the company had just changed premises and the air conditioning had not yet been reprogrammed (the room was empty before) when I started working there, so it was very warm and stuffy in the first few days. On my first afternoon I had a tilting window right near my desk (in an office of about 110 square metres!), my colleagues around me were very grateful for it and then a colleague from the very back corner of the office complained to the boss that there was a draught and that she was freezing - it was 22 degrees Celsius outside. The colleague has been terribly nice to me since then, but I still resent her behaviour. 😂
Reasons to open the windows and "air" the room:
- Removing humidity and preventing mold. If mold gets in a home, its really, really difficult to remove. This is the nightmare of owners.
- Fresh air and light kill the bed mites. Open your bed sheets, expose them to light and air, and you won't be bother by bed mites. At all.
- Safety. Back in time when you heated your house with a fire (wood, coal, gas), you want to renew the air, with oxygen. In a closed room where you slept, or where the wood/coal fire slowly died, the oxygen might be depleted. Stay safe and replace the CO2 of the night, or the unlikely CO, with O2 of the outside.
- Smell, hygiene. Have you ever entered a room where people are sleeping/slept? Oh my, you want fresh air in there.
Is the reason maybe that we open windows and us citizens dont, that our houses have thicker walls and stuff. That we have to "Lüft" to don't get molded walls?
I open up the Winddow daily 1-2hours , i love fresh air in the room.
Hey, Aubrey, Donnie and Baby, all the best to the three of you! My first comment: *that "bread"* never makes *that" sound - it's much too squishy for it! ;)
Es soll immer noch Amerikaner geben, die fragen ob hitler noch lebt
Hm, dann wäre er 134.
Mit dem, was über seinen Gesundheitszustand bekannt ist, wäre er schon in den 1960er Jahren gestorben, wenn er nicht Selbstmord begangen hätte.
Mit Sicherheit hätten seine Leute bestimmt nicht im Radio verkündigt, er wäre im Kampf gefallen.
In our home there are always a couple of windows open. At least the one in the master bedroom and the one in the kitchen and not to forget the one in the bathroom. Nothing more disgusting then coming into a bathroom, kitchen or bedroom with stale air. These windows are open the whole year, except when there's the danger of rain coming in or a a strong wind blowing. Only if it gets really cold (let's say below 20°F for a week) the bedroom window might be closed while sleeping (but then I'll wake up the next morning with a headache). IMHO, you better can sleep under an additional comforter then with a closed window.
BTW, I'll have to say your German (heard in part 4) is pretty good
Aerate the house: at the very least twice a day, right after the shower for 1 hour at least, after cooking, dinner, many people or during the summer, all day long and the windows all tilted open during night. This is because we love fresh air and we inhibit mold growth in the bathroom or window -corners
One thing I noticed while interacting with english speakers is how weird I find the Question "Do you drink?" as in "do you drink alcohol in general?" - The question to me as a german sounds either like "Are you an alcoholic" or "do you like to stay hydrated" or "are you drinking at the moment" . If you want to ask a german if they drink alcohol in general don't ask "Trinkst du?" , rather ask "Trinkst du Alkohol?"
Well, jokes about WW2 and the Nazis have always been a touchy subject in Germany, but in other countries as well. Can you make fun of something so terrible? Even Chaplin's film "The Great Dictator" was criticized for that already. However most people love it.
I think its human nature to ridicule things that actually terrify, perhaps a psychologigal protective reaction to a overwhelming threat, I dont know.
Another example is the British comedy series "Allo, Allo" from the 80s, that tells the story of a French bistro owner during the German occupation. And its absolutely hilarious, one of the best comedies ever. Just because it takes nothing serious, not the Nazis, but also not the Brits and the French. Showing the reality of that time would just range between boring and horrific, and nobody would want to see that.
Favorite Number: squareroot(2) or aproximately 1.412136
(Nobody said that it has to be a natural, whole or even rational number)
Try jägerschnitzel...mushroom sauce with onions and herbs...easy, alot umami flavour. Side dish bratkartoffel....both is simple classic und shows more then just bratwurst....goes great with beer
I try to open the windows once a day, but sometimes I forget. I do it mostly to let old air out and fresh air in. It's actually more about letting CO2 rich air out and O2 rich air in.
In summer we mostly open windows only in the early morning because of the heat.
I open in winter all windows once a day, in summertime all day long
The problem about Nazi remarks is how often they actually come up in like the first five minutes of the conversation when I talk to non german people. It's kinda like going "Nice to meet you! You are american? So did your grandparents own slaves?"
9:20 In my upbringing the word Nazi was never used otherwise as to refer to people during the era or politically inclined people today. To use that term as a non-political attribut to describe a nit-picker is in my view a pure American thing. And since the influence by social media has brought a lot of Americanisms people these days, especially younger ones, will use that term in the German language too. A form of corruption in my view. Because we have the term "radikal" (extrem/ hell-bent) instead. Which is also a foreign word stemming from Latin.
So in my world I would never use Nazi to describe a person other than referring to his political inclination.
Houses are built much more tight in Germany than in America. This is very good energy saving wise, but requires Lüften every now and then. especially in wintertime.
Wiener Schnitzel is originally made with calf-meat and the breading should be really fluffy. It's actually quite rare to get and it's almost double the price of a usual Schnitzel done with pork or chicken, that you can find at every "Pommesbude". Wiener Schnitzel or Schnitzel Wiener Art, are without sauce, but with a slice of lemon. All the other Schnitzels are named for the sauce that goes with it. "Jäger" is done with mushrooms and cream. "Zigeuner" is made from gypsies... eh, no, it's called "Balkan" or "Paprika" or something and has some spicy sauce on it.
In my area Paprikaschnitzel seems to have vanished completely from the menus. I loved it, because it went even better with the pommes as normal Wiener Schnitzel.
Funny that you point to Wiener Schnitzel with the name as a hint, because the other food usually associated with that word - Wiener Würstchen - is *not* from Vienna. It's a variant of the Frankfurter, invented close to Frankfurt, and named after the butcher. Who may or may not have had ancestors from Vienna.
Other way round. He came from Germany (fränkische Schweiz), learned in Frankfurt and then came to Vienna:
de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Georg_Lahner
I've heard that some German classrooms nowadays have CO2 meters to determine when fresh air is needed. Not a bad idea, if you ask me, because I sat around in many a sticky classroom and thought, couldn't anyone let some fresh air in? These devices cost around 50 euros and serve two purposes: You avoid students sitting in an unhealthy atmosphere, and you save on heating costs by opening the windows just when it's needed. Don't trust your feelings, trust the technology!