1) German as a language isn't nearly as harsh sounding as it's made out to be. I would argue Spanish teenagers make more of those gross glottal noises (think: the sound of a cat hacking up a hairball) when they speak slang than Germans do in normal conversation. In fact, if you're not paying attention, it almost sounds like English. Obviously, German and English are super closely related, but for me, German has always been the uncouth uncle who burps at the other end of the table. Turns out, I might have had him pegged wrong this whole time.
2) Because they are related, I could sometimes pick up on a few key words when people asked me questions and nod or shake my head in response. That was fun, until they'd keep talking to me and I'd finally have to ask "What?" and they looked at me confusedly.
3) You know how I just said that if you're not paying attention, German can start to sound like English? Well, it can... but the only words it sounds like are curse words! I swear I heard "dick" and "fuck" a million times today. The first makes sense, as I'm pretty sure "dich" means "you," but I can't explain the other one. Maybe "fuch" means "them" or something? Whatever the logical, linguistic explanation is, it doesn't make hearing those words so often and out of context completely hilarious.
4) Teenage German girls look like they are the molds for popular teenage American girls. I've never seen so many blonde hair, blue eyed girls in my life. But I don't mean model types, but cute, chubby cheeks types. Maybe it's just that I've lived in Spain too long (if you see a blonde, you KNOW they're foreign)... but seeing something other than dark brown hair/dark brown eyes was disorienting and exciting!
5) Brats, pretzels and strudel are German. Now, after typing that, that seems obvious, but I never would have thought about it had I never been here. These three things are everywhere here. At the airport. At the metro stations. At the Christmas Market. And, I mean, they make a kinda weird combo, too. But there they are, proudly proclaiming their Germanness.
6) The Berlin Wall was taken down the year after I was born. THAT is really weird to honk about, especially when you're standing in front of it. I found it interesting how they had poles or bricks or other markers to show where it had been. The one I saw cut through a busy street and a METRO STATION. I read that that station was shut down and the entrances were literally bricked shut because that station stopped on the wrong side of the wall. My whole life I considered Europe to be a classy, sophisticated continent with rich history that gave each country it's own depth. But when I see things like the Berlin Wall and hear stories about Franco from the mid-70s, suddenly Europe doesn't seem like the wise grandfather I always considered it to be.
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