Germany: the Eurozone's MVP?
The other day Jose and I were shopping for a new blender at a pretty large chain store. After we wandered the aisle clueless since there were probably 50 to chose from, we decided to ask an employee for a recommendation. She immediately gave us a run-down on several until honing in on one in particular. She finished her little speech by saying that it was German-made. Jose's eyes lit up. Here in Spain, German = quality. That was the blender we ended up buying even though it cost more than other options. Later that weekend we saw another advertisment for kitchen designs which also claimed to be of German making and therefore would last longer and be better overall than something perhaps domestically made.
As an American, when I think of Germany, images of blonde, goose-stepping, beer-chugging, harsh-sounding giants come to mind (speaking only in terms of stereotypes obviously). While living in Chile in a city with a large German population, I viewed Germans much in the same way except I was able to see first hand the way they adapted to a new environment, maintained their culture and became successful in a short period of time. The Germans owned the big companies where I was living. They were entrepreneurs who ran the beer (see photo below of Kunstmann beer column) and chocolate factories. You could always pick them out in crowds because they stood way taller than Chileans.
Since living in Spain and traveling throughout Europe I have also seen how efficient Germans are when compared with other countries such as Italy. Though my grandmother claims that the best thing that Mussolini did for Italy was making the trains run on time, I can vouch for the fact that this is no longer the case. Riding a train in Italy can be a stressful experience to say the least. Germany and neighboring countries like Austria are much more strict when it comes to time and scheduling. I can also imagine that there is nothing even close to the idea of "Spanish time" in Germany which here in Spain means never getting anywhere exactly on time. Everything is usually fashionably late. People are more laidback. They have a go-with-the-flow mentality which can be nice at times but can cause problems for someone like me who likes to be punctual and in control. Try standing in a line sometime. It can be quite the experience.
Germans just seem to know how to get things done. They are hardworking. They are not suffering from the same economic problems as Spain (and several other Mediterranean countries) right now. In fact a lot of people are moving to Germany to look for jobs as they did generations ago (like Jose's grandparents and people their age). I can imagine it has to be frustrating for the Germans at this point with the Eurozone crisis. Why can't other countries get it together? Why should they have to shoulder the burden of bailing out others? Are all the issues right now based on strictly cultural differences and values between countries and their peoples? Are national temperments able to affect the economy? I honestly don't know.
What I do know is that the blender we bought better work as promised. I want it to not only blend but crush, chop, puree, slice, basically cook a whole meal for me and then clean itself. Alas, I think this will not be the case but a girl can hope right? I'll let you know how it goes.
As an American, when I think of Germany, images of blonde, goose-stepping, beer-chugging, harsh-sounding giants come to mind (speaking only in terms of stereotypes obviously). While living in Chile in a city with a large German population, I viewed Germans much in the same way except I was able to see first hand the way they adapted to a new environment, maintained their culture and became successful in a short period of time. The Germans owned the big companies where I was living. They were entrepreneurs who ran the beer (see photo below of Kunstmann beer column) and chocolate factories. You could always pick them out in crowds because they stood way taller than Chileans.
Since living in Spain and traveling throughout Europe I have also seen how efficient Germans are when compared with other countries such as Italy. Though my grandmother claims that the best thing that Mussolini did for Italy was making the trains run on time, I can vouch for the fact that this is no longer the case. Riding a train in Italy can be a stressful experience to say the least. Germany and neighboring countries like Austria are much more strict when it comes to time and scheduling. I can also imagine that there is nothing even close to the idea of "Spanish time" in Germany which here in Spain means never getting anywhere exactly on time. Everything is usually fashionably late. People are more laidback. They have a go-with-the-flow mentality which can be nice at times but can cause problems for someone like me who likes to be punctual and in control. Try standing in a line sometime. It can be quite the experience.
Germans just seem to know how to get things done. They are hardworking. They are not suffering from the same economic problems as Spain (and several other Mediterranean countries) right now. In fact a lot of people are moving to Germany to look for jobs as they did generations ago (like Jose's grandparents and people their age). I can imagine it has to be frustrating for the Germans at this point with the Eurozone crisis. Why can't other countries get it together? Why should they have to shoulder the burden of bailing out others? Are all the issues right now based on strictly cultural differences and values between countries and their peoples? Are national temperments able to affect the economy? I honestly don't know.
What I do know is that the blender we bought better work as promised. I want it to not only blend but crush, chop, puree, slice, basically cook a whole meal for me and then clean itself. Alas, I think this will not be the case but a girl can hope right? I'll let you know how it goes.
This German blender of yours sounds like a Ninja! Please think of me when you use it to turn ice into snow in seconds. ;)
ReplyDeleteMiss you, Dana