Lügen (Lies)

There are some lies that people told me about Germany while I was still in the States. These lies have really confused me or caused me pain (by which I mean, inconvenience) in some way. I would like to share them with you all.

1. Germans always look nice and do not wear jeans. This is not true. Although I would say that German students (the main group of people I deal with) are on average more fashion-conscious than at least Smith College students, they definitely wear jeans. Pretty much all the time, in fact. This Germans wear business casual and not jeans lie caused me to waste room in my suitcase with business casual type clothes that I've never or hardly worn.

2. German keys turn the other way in locks. People told me this and I was worried. They were all like, "Be sure you know, you have to turn the key the other way." So at first I was careful to turn the key the other way. But the keys turn the same way as they do in American locks and I was really confused. I think my lock in Marburg was also somehow sticky, so I would turn in the wrong way, and then the right way, and then the wrong way, and not really remember what I finally did to make it open. But after a few days, I got used to things being the way they should be with respect to locks.

3. You always have to weigh your produce in German grocery stores. Sometimes you do, but mostly not, I would say. This made me terrified of buying produce for my first few weeks in Germany. Or, I would creep around the produce section trying to see what the Germans did. And then I'd get scared and run away.

Okay, those are all the lies I can think of for now. Shame on you people who tell these lies.

Now lie Number 4: Told to me by certain member of the Shea lab who shall remain anonymous, but who is now in grad school at UC Irvine. Europeans don't wear nail polish. Not even on toenails, she said. So I didn't bring my nail polish to paint my toenails in summer. But people DO wear nail polish, so I now I'm probably going to have to buy more.