Who knows anything about Germany
In this short story, the Japanese question vividly shows the keen economic tentacles of our east neighbor, while the German question seems to tell us that this nation is a bit stiff and pedantic. Of course, our problem in China-it's obviously that others are sarcastic. As we all know, Chinese food is good. Can there be a Chinese restaurant at the ends of the earth in this small globe? It's a German question. It's so hard that people can't answer it at once.
a story is asking for directions. It is said that one of our compatriots came to a city in Germany and asked a German for directions: "Excuse me, sir, how can I get to the street?" How long will it take? " The Germans stared and said nothing. China people left angrily. Just a few steps later, the German caught up with him and said kindly, "Wait a minute, sir. You want to go to so-and-so street. Go straight ahead and turn right at the first intersection. It takes 8 minutes according to your walking speed. " . China people don't understand and ask, "Why didn't you tell me just now?" "Because you asked me how long I would walk, I didn't see you walk. I don't know the speed of your walk, so I can't tell you." .
The story is that the Germans never say such things as "probably ……". Although it is a trivial matter to ask for directions, they still have to make accurate calculations and refuse to be careless at all. We also have a deep understanding of this in Germany. No matter how big or small things are, the Germans are always serious, and they do what they have to do. There is no flexible work style that we in China say that we should stress principles on major issues and flexible work style on minor issues. How can we China people in Germany not understand this? Needless to say, let's talk about the German kitchen. In the German kitchen, besides the necessary daily necessities, there are several things that are absolutely indispensable. One is that there must be a clock, and cooking must be strictly in accordance with books for more than one minute and less than one second, so it is absolutely indispensable. Secondly, there must be a thermometer, which is also required in books. Third, there must be a scale to weigh things, whether it is a fashionable electronic scale or an ancient balance, every family should have at least one. Before cooking, all kinds of raw materials, such as rice, flour, sugar and salt, or those creams, juices, powders and preparations specially used by Germans, even ordinary water, should be measured with a measuring instrument and calculated, and then the fire is put on the pot, step by step without leaving the prescribed procedures. Always use a thermometer when cooking, and always look at the accurate clock, all of which should be refined to the point. This kind of German food cooked according to scientific experiments is also unique in the world. Whether it's delicious or not is second. Anyway, the Germans stuck to their rigid principles.
I remember a book I read when I was in college, and there was a short story of "One Finney", which also had something to do with German temperament. Now I might as well tell it. What it says is that when people ask a Frenchman what he would do with a fanny if he had one, the answer is that he would buy a bunch of roses for his lover with the money. For the same question, the British answer is to buy a book, the Italian answer is to buy a piece of pizza, and the German answer is to take it to the bank and save it. This story was written by Britain to prove the characteristics of the four major national customs in Europe. In the eyes of the British, the French are romantic, the Italians are greedy, and they love academics themselves, while the Germans are too frugal. The proof of this story is the best legend about Europeans. The first is the best thing. Europeans themselves say that the best thing is to live in England, eat Italian food, work in France and marry a German wife. The worst relative evils are eating English food, living in an Italian house, marrying a French wife and working in Germany. The British have a long history of development and the social welfare policy has been implemented for a long time, so not only the rich live well, but also the poor live not too badly. The disadvantage is that the cold weather has hindered the development of eating and drinking in this country. The French are lax and not nervous at work. But people are too romantic, especially women are too romantic, and the stability of marrying a wife from here is the worst. Italian Kyle Poirot got good meals from China, but the city was lousy and the housing was generally poor. Germans are born serious, and it is more reliable to marry a wife here; However, in addition to dealing with the relationship between the general boss and employees, working under the German people should also suffer from their serious work. No matter how big or small things are, they must do things according to their regulations, and they must never be sloppy, and their working hours should be observed in the slightest. So working in Germany is probably the hardest thing in Europe. Germany is a world-recognized power in the automobile industry. Germans love cars and make cars, and they can't live without cars. The automobile industry plays a vital role in their national economy. As early as the beginning of this century, German famous automobile companies such as Daimler Benz and porsche emerged. Even in 1938, even Hitler's Nazi rulers showed their enthusiasm for cars. They raised funds from the whole society and claimed to produce cheap "Volkswagen" cars for ordinary people in the Volkswagen Company in Wolfsburg.
The proportion of German families owning cars is among the highest in the world, and most German families own cars. In fact, Germans can own one or several cars depending on their income and needs. Generally, low-income families usually buy an extra Volkswagen, Opel or other cheap cars made in other countries such as Fiat, Renault and Mazda. Middle-class families, such as company employees, university teachers, doctors, government civil servants and small business owners, often own two cars. They buy cars in a wide range with different grades, but generally speaking, they often buy a mercedes benz c or E car, a BMW 3-Series or 5-Series car, an Audi 8 or 9 car and other mid-range cars, as well as imported cars of the same grade such as Saab9, Volvo85-96, Toyota Land Cruiser, Mazda RX-7 sports car, etc., and the price is at. Such families generally use two kinds of cars according to their needs. For example, when traveling, going to work for a long distance, visiting relatives and friends and attending parties, they drive a good car, while they usually drive a bad car when going to work for a short distance, sending their children and shopping.
wealthy families in Germany, such as industrial and commercial entrepreneurs, sports stars, singers, famous doctors, barristers, professors and senior government officials, have diversified views on car use because of their personal hobbies and accomplishments. Some people pursue luxury, high-end and fashionable cars because of ostentation and extravagance, while many people don't care about these, and they all drive mid-range cars themselves. Generally speaking, the high-end car owners owned by this class are Mercedes-Benz S-type luxury cars, SL-type luxury cars, convertible cars, BMW 7-series luxury cars, 8-series sports cars, porsche sports cars and imported Jaguar luxury cars, Ferrari sports cars, Mitsubishi premium sports cars, etc. The prices of these cars are between 8, and 2, marks. Rolls royce brand cars and extra-large luxury cars made in the United States are also available, but pragmatic and confident Germans think it is neither necessary nor appreciated, so these cars are not common in the streets.
In fact, in developed countries such as Germany and Western Europe, high-end cars are not the most valuable things. Compared with the expensive land price and housing, even rolls royce cars and Mercedes-Benz SL6 cars are dwarfed. Take Munich as an example. The simplest one-bedroom apartment costs 2, marks. The price of a three-bedroom apartment is more than 5, marks, and the price of a small independent house with a garden is more than several million marks. Therefore, in Germany, it is sometimes difficult to judge the identity and status of the owner by the grade of the car. A young car chaser with a lower income may rent a humble apartment, but he drives the latest convertible BMW85 sports car worth about 18, marks by installment.
Germany, as a big automobile producer and one of the richest countries in the world, has a high car renewal rate. A car that has been in use for five or six years or seven or eight years will be eliminated in the used car market. Some people who pursue fashion and wealth often change to a new car every year or two. Therefore, Germany's used car market is also very developed. There are several editions of used car sales advertisements in large and small newspapers, with many brands and prices. A car with an original price of 4 thousand marks will be discounted by nearly half when it has been driven for five years or 1 thousand kilometers. A car over ten years old can only sell for two or three thousand marks. Many college students (including foreign students) can buy an old car like this and drive it after working for a month. Interestingly, some Germans put advertisements in newspapers to give away old cars that they want to get rid of but can't sell much money. Of course, to drive such cars, it is also necessary to spend money on repairs.
In addition, foreigners and foreigners can rent a car after paying a certain amount of deposit. The charging standard is calculated by day, week and month. The longer the time, the cheaper it is. Take one day as an example, renting a small cheap car costs about 6 Domagk. Rent a mid-range car and pay about 1 Domagk; Renting a high-end car costs more than 1 to hundreds of marks.
Before I went to Germany, a friend who came back from Germany once said that taxis in Germany were all Mercedes-Benz cars. At that time, I thought it was a joke. After I arrived in Germany, I found that my friend's words were somewhat exaggerated, but they were generally not bad. More than 8% of the beige taxis running all over the street are Mercedes-Benz cars, and the rest of the taxis are also mid-range cars, such as Audi and Volkswagen. It is difficult for shabby and narrow cars to stand in the taxi queue. According to German friends, taxi drivers have average income and are hard-working, so most people who are engaged in this profession have no other better way out. Incredibly, some doctors of philosophy can't find suitable jobs for the time being and live in the taxi industry for the time being.