Things I’m not Used to Seeing

DeA big part of the fun of traveling for me is seeing the cultural differences in norms, in the differences in the mundane aspects of life. Here are a few brief examples:

Signs informing you when the next train, bus or tram will arrive. I really do believe that if this was installed in ALL the stations of New York, and not just Hipster “L” line, the stress levels of New Yorkers would decrease by at least 40%. People here complain and get annoyed when they see that the train is coming in 7 minutes, and not 1, 2 or 3 minutes, which is usually the case. But at least they KNOW when the train is coming and can chill. Especially when it’s 90 plus degrees plus humidity.

Taxi cars that are either Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagons or BMWs. They are EVERYWHERE and it’s a trip each time I see it! I guess it makes sense that the cars will be cheaper to buy if bought in the country of origin, but still for me, coming from a place where those cars are given a certain social status, it’s a trip to see that this type of social marker just does not apply in the same way here. Because really, not just taxi drivers drive these cars, but whenever you see a car pass, it seems like damn near everyone drives these models as well too.

TaxiBenz

Small portions. Yup, that is a loaf of bread in my hand that you see. And that is what you will find in most grocery stores here. I think part of the reason why this is the case is because people here still for the most part buy fresh bread from bakeries. There is not a huge demand for more mass-produced bread here, and judging from the taste of the fresh breads I’ve had here so far, I don’t think that is changing any time soon. Fresh bread just tastes better!

Miniloaf

Another view of commercialized encouragement of national pride for the 2010 World Cup:

M&Ms: German Flag Color Style

Abandoned boats along the river that turn into public art.  I have to double-check if this is the right boat (because yes, it’s not the only boat that looks like this along the Spree River), but one of these boats used to be the site of where a Berlin-based theater company staged their productions:

Public Art

Decompressing after work by the river. I saw so many people like this man who were in wok clothes, bicycling to the river, and sitting by themselves or with friends waiting there. A cool thing to do in the summer time. I wish there were more locations like this by the Hudson River that were easily accessible. Like the Hudson River, the Spree River is NOT  a place to swim in.

Chillin by the River

Line drying my freshly washed clothes. The last time I did this was in Ghana. I’ve been to a few Berlin apartments now of people ages 24-50, and everyone has a washing machine in their house, and then dry their clothes like this. Saves energy and I think just practically saves space and money. I’m sure that for really wealthy people here, they have dryers, but from what I’ve seen so far, most Berliners here just work this into their lives easily.

There is more to post, but wanted to show a few images so far in this 1st week here.