I have noticed, whilst I've been working out here in Munich, that the Germans really do appear to be a lot nicer and thoughtful towards each other than the English ever appear to be.
I was travelling on the tram the other day, it was hot and sunny for once, and the sun was streaming in through the window - when I embarked on the tram, it was all but empty, and not being a particular sun worshiper - I chose a seat away from the sun. As the journey continued, more people got on , and eventually, people were sitting on the side where the sun burned to a frazzle, anything sitting on that side of the tram.
An elderly lady with a walking stick got on and sat next to me, another lady, (not quite so elderly) also embarked, and sat in the dreaded sun drenched seat - after a few minutes, the lady who was sitting next to me, nudged a young lady behind us, who promptly gave up her seat for the lady sitting next to me - the one sat on the hot seat then got up and sat next to me! Now I've never seen anything like that before, I would imagine, if that had happened on the underground in England, someone somewhere, would have either been laughed at, shouted at, or flattened - or, more likely, left to cook on the hot seat.
Now, apart from the country being HUGELY cleaner than England - yes, there are occasional blips where you can see rubbish, and I totally abhor dog owners who refuse to pick up after their dogs, but, intermittent belligerence accepting, in the main, Germany appears to be cleaner.
I was wandering around Munich the other day - no small city I hasten to add, and really, there was NO rubbish, I mean, literally no rubbish - I didn't feel dirty wandering around, there were no nasty urine smells coming from doorways, no glass on the ground, no plastic bags, polystyrene cups from coffee shops, nothing! Zilch!
I don't know if that is the reason for all of the kindness shown, but perhaps respect for one's surroundings goes a long way to helping people feel better about themselves, their surroundings and their fellow citizens. Whatever it was, it was a joy to see, and it's not an isolated incident - I have witnessed several occurrences of kindness and thoughtfulness in the six weeks that I've been here.
I don't know why the English can be so aggressive towards each other, not everyone is, I admit that, and throughout my travels I have been told many MANY times that the English are lovely, warm and welcoming to foreigners - perhaps that's what it is - you have to be foreign to be given love in England.
I was travelling on the tram the other day, it was hot and sunny for once, and the sun was streaming in through the window - when I embarked on the tram, it was all but empty, and not being a particular sun worshiper - I chose a seat away from the sun. As the journey continued, more people got on , and eventually, people were sitting on the side where the sun burned to a frazzle, anything sitting on that side of the tram.
An elderly lady with a walking stick got on and sat next to me, another lady, (not quite so elderly) also embarked, and sat in the dreaded sun drenched seat - after a few minutes, the lady who was sitting next to me, nudged a young lady behind us, who promptly gave up her seat for the lady sitting next to me - the one sat on the hot seat then got up and sat next to me! Now I've never seen anything like that before, I would imagine, if that had happened on the underground in England, someone somewhere, would have either been laughed at, shouted at, or flattened - or, more likely, left to cook on the hot seat.
Now, apart from the country being HUGELY cleaner than England - yes, there are occasional blips where you can see rubbish, and I totally abhor dog owners who refuse to pick up after their dogs, but, intermittent belligerence accepting, in the main, Germany appears to be cleaner.
I was wandering around Munich the other day - no small city I hasten to add, and really, there was NO rubbish, I mean, literally no rubbish - I didn't feel dirty wandering around, there were no nasty urine smells coming from doorways, no glass on the ground, no plastic bags, polystyrene cups from coffee shops, nothing! Zilch!
I don't know if that is the reason for all of the kindness shown, but perhaps respect for one's surroundings goes a long way to helping people feel better about themselves, their surroundings and their fellow citizens. Whatever it was, it was a joy to see, and it's not an isolated incident - I have witnessed several occurrences of kindness and thoughtfulness in the six weeks that I've been here.
I don't know why the English can be so aggressive towards each other, not everyone is, I admit that, and throughout my travels I have been told many MANY times that the English are lovely, warm and welcoming to foreigners - perhaps that's what it is - you have to be foreign to be given love in England.
