Going to Germany was an amazing experience. It goes without saying that Europe is much different from north America but I’ll have to say it anyways. It was much different. The first thing I noticed was that everyone smokes. When walking downtown, one can always find someone with a cigarette.
The people are much thinner. During the six weeks in Germany I saw one person who was too fat to walk and needed a scooter. Also, in Germany if you go anywhere for food, you’ll find a large selection of beers, most of which are quite good. However, there were things in Germany that are worse. In America, drinks are cheap and have free refills. In Germany, you get one small drink, and it’s usually expensive. In Germany, you have to pay to use the bathroom unless you buy something. Also, they don’t have root beer.
One of the main highlights of the trip was going to the island Rugen where there are large cliffs and a grove of beech trees. It was a beautiful hiking spot and gave us a chance to go swimming. Another highlight was all the cathedrals that we visited. In nearly every town, no matter the size, there was a cathedral. My two favorites were the Duomo in Milan and the Cologne cathedral. The Cologne cathedral was definitely grander in terms of size; however, it was covered in soot and a little broken down unfortunately. The Milan cathedral was huge but still didn’t match up to the Cologne cathedral. It was much prettier though. It hadn’t really been damaged in the war so much less money was needed to repair it.
I had a great time on the trip and learned a great deal about Germany.