7 Things We Could Learn From Germany

So, last November (2014) I toured across Germany with a touring theater called Wilde Shamrock with two guys, Vinny and Ricky. We traveled to schools and venues across the land performing plays and music gigs. The audiences would improve their English, learn about Ireland and most of the time, their laughter assured us they were entertained! Throughout the 4 weeks we traveled thousands of miles and stayed in tens of towns. On the way, I got to meet some amazing people and learn so much about Germany, having never been before despite studying the language in school. There are a few things that stuck out about their way of life that I wanted to take home with me, here are some of them!

1. Take Your Shoes Off 
This is a rule almost every home I went into in Germany abides by. Quite hilariously, no one warned me about it! So the first house I stayed in, I was tromping all over the place in my ankle boots, introducing myself to everyone and wondering why the hosts kept looking at my feet. "We don't wear shoes indoors here," Vinny whispered to me. So I tip toed out to the hall and left them with the rows of shoes I somehow missed when I came in the door. 

It was hard to get used to, and some houses were fine with it so every house I entered, I had a ritual of checking to see if there were shoes by the door or were they on the feet of the people who lived there. If the rule didn't exist, I opted to keep my shoes on as my socks were cheap and not very cosy to walk around in plus I never thought of bringing slippers with me on my travels! And I really dislike walking around barefoot. On days where I was wearing fluffy socks though, it was the best thing ever! And there are so many pros to taking your shoes of at home;

• You instantly feel more relaxed and at home, even if it's not your home!
• Your shoes get less wear and I'm sure the time spent out of them adds up and they'll last longer?!
• Wearing shoes all day, is bad for your feet. They need to air! So let them breathe and they'll be less smelly too.
• You can put your feet on the furniture without being yelled at.
• Let's face it, the carpets and floors will be a whole lot cleaner, won't they? 

So buy yourself some comfy socks or a pair of slippers and take your shoes off at the door.

2. How to Drive
For a country that usually has no speed limit on the motorway, you'd think there'd be collisions and pile ups everywhere! But no, out of the 5 other countries I have experience in the passenger's seat of a car in, Germany is by far the safest country to drive in. One of the reasons behind this is not any lucky ninny can get behind the wheel with a full license. First you need to complete 14 theoretical driving lessons, then do 12 mandatory on the road lessons split between driving on country roads, on the Autobahn and in the dark. Plus you also have to do a first aid course before you can even think of getting your hands on a full license. How crazily smart is that? Yes it sounds like a pain in the hole regarding money and time but at the end of the day, they're more prepared for the unexpected. I'd sooner trust someone who studied at a German driving school when driving through Cavan at avoiding unexpected sheep on the road than I would someone with an Irish license. No offence, but seriously! The way drivers in Germany treat cyclists is another one to take note of and learn from. See the next point!

Genius I tell ya!

(They also have these super genius digital signs every few hundred meters or so on the autobahn which warn drivers of accidents up ahead or roadworks and display a speed limit drivers must adhere to, to cope with such conditions. Then the signs let you know when the speed limit no longer applies and you can go back to driving as fast as you like!)


3. How to Treat Cyclists on the Road
There are cyclists everywhere in Germany and they're treated like the road users they are. They have designated cycles lanes almost everywhere and no one walks or stands in a cycle lane or, as I almost learned the hard way had I not been pulled back, you'll be run over! If you're cycling in Ireland, and in particular, Dublin, you need to constantly expect people to walk out in front of you because...well, they most likely will! In Germany, it's the pedestrians that need to look out for the cyclists because if you're standing in the cycle lane, they'll most likely just cycle you over. And having a broken arm from a cyclist running you over is a whole lot less 'cool' than being hit by a Jaguar.

If there's a meme of it, it must be true.

If Ireland had the same respect for cyclists on the road as they do for cars, the roads will be a whole lot safer. Then it will even appeal to people more as it wouldn't as risky. More cyclists = less car users = less CO2 emissions = a healthier planet. Plus more money in pocket, plus exercise and fine looking legs! Win win!




4.  Be an Honest Customer

Cafés leave these blankets for
people to use and no one
steals them either!

I noticed when in a pub, café or restaurant in Germany that for every drink I ordered, the waiter/waitress made a small mark on the coaster under my glass. When paying the bill, they would come over and count the marks on each person's coaster and charge them for that amount of drinks. Yes, in bigger pubs and restaurants, they'd have it all in the till already and it simply made it easier for knowing who owed what for drinks, but in smaller pubs they did it too. No one swapped coasters with anyone else or tore theirs up. You could easily get up and leave without paying and not get caught, but this was unheard of. Then I thought, could you do this in Ireland and not have people take advantage of it? Honestly, I don't know. Most of the time we use the coasters for 'magic' tricks or tear them up because we're extremely fidgety people. But I'd like to think if places did start doing something like this, we'd have some respect and pay for the 10 drinks we ordered instead of 3. When it comes to supporting businesses in this day and age, we gotta be good! (However I do believe the banks here don't count, so don't be afraid to take their pens...)

5. Allowing Dogs Inside

The door of a hairdressers. Dogs allowed!

As an avid animal lover, one of the first things I noticed in Germany was the friendy, accepting attitude towards dogs. I was sitting in a café in a town called Amberg, having flown into Germany the night before, and I saw someone walk by the window with two gorgeous big dogs. As usual I cooed and cawed until they past. The next thing, in walks the owner behind me and walks by me sitting at the table with the two magnificent dogs!! I loved it. It's just so cool. Over the next four weeks, from Munich to Bramerhaven, there were dogs chilling in cafés, pubs and buildings all over the place. I never saw any strays, they were all accompanied by someone who had them on a lead or sitting at their feet, so it wasn't a case of dogs wandering around restaurants begging at tables. It just added a whole sense of homeliness. I hate walking by places and seeing dogs tied up outside, it breaks my heart even though most of the time they're probably fine. Germany just felt like a happier place for dogs with their lack of 'No dogs except guide dogs allowed' signs.

I don't need to vouch for why we should let people take their dogs into cafés and whatnot in Ireland. Everyone loves dogs plus they'll be more likely to be taken places and for walks with their owners. So come on Ireland! Raise your puppy not to be extremely hyper and maybe I can bring my dog, my Buddy, somewhere for lunch! Imagine how nice that would be!!! I vote for dogs. A vote for dogs is a vote for us. That is all.

6. Reliable Public Transport
Vinny told me of a time he was waiting at a train station somewhere near the border of Germany, close to Switzerland and Austria. An announcement rang out over the intercom in German and everyone started huffing and complaining. It announced the same thing in a few different languages and more and more people showed their aggrivation. Thinking, 'Uh-oh, did the train break down? Is there gonna be an hour delay?' Eventually, the annoucement was made in English saying the train was going to be delayed by two minutes. Two minutes.

TWO MINUTES!!

That goes to show you how efficient and reliable the public transport is in Germany and I experienced it myself when taking buses and trains.

In Ireland, the bus stop you're waiting at will tell you your bus is due in 10 minutes, then when it gets to 1 minute it will disappear off the system only to flash back up 5 minutes later saying the same bus is due in another 6 minutes and the bus will eventually arrive about 15 minutes later. Sadly, this is no joke. Public transport is a nuiscance. So Dublin Bus, Bus Eireann and Iarnroad Eireann, get your ass/transport in gear!

7. Be Nice to our Planet, Be Environmentally Sustainable
Our first roadtrip in the daytime was from Erlangern to Amberg, the day after flying into Frankfurt. Seeing the landscape of a new country is always exciting for me, I suppose it's because I haven't been to that many! So I was looking out the window, examining all the things that make the country different to Ireland; we were driving on the right side of the road  (as opposed to left, not wrong!), there was no Irish on the signposts, only German, and there were wind turbines everywhere. Everywhere. The more we drove, the more we'd see. Then I saw fields of solar panels everywhere. After doing my research, I realized Germany is one of the leading countries in Europe when it comes to environmental sustainability, and we need to follow suit. An investment in renewable energy will save us money in the long run and reduce our use of fossil fuels which is currently around 90%. We need more turbines and we need more solar panels.

This gorgeous view from the car was constant

    Among all these sightings, forest after forest thrived across the landscape too. I learned that one third of Germany consists of forests and over the past five decades, they've added one million hectares of forest back to the land. How does this compare to Ireland? Well, a 2012 article stated our land is less than 10% forestry, the second lowest in Europe and planting has slowed down with no signs of speeding up. Long ago, Ireland would have been primarily covered in forest. Yes, some may blame English rule for cutting them down to build their ships and it's like we're half waiting for the UK to give us some compensation money to replant them or something. Regardless, I don't think we're going to get pity money from any country any time soon in this climate. What's clear is our lack of forest is because of human activities. And we need to fix it. Why? 

• We'll reduce our Carbon Dioxide emissions and if we hit the EU's target, we'll escape hefty fines.
• The environment in general will benefit, primarily animal life. 
• Tourism will benefit. Research shows Ireland's landscape is one of the main attractions for tourists. Using personal experience and talking to tourists, many thought there'd be more forests than there is. More forests = more tourists.
• More tourists = money into the economy. Especially into more rural areas that need it. 
• Employment: If the government gets a loan or takes something out of their hefty salaries and pensions, they could put it to employing people to plant trees and perhaps maintaining forests, spreading awareness and educating people. A large but worthy investment when we escape EU carbon emission fines.

So. Forests. We need them. End of.

And may I remind you of the previous point addressing the number of cyclists there are?! Germany is amazing when it comes to taking care of the environment and Ireland looks ridiculous in comparison. For a country that is great for recycling, we really suck when it comes to everything else.

Jayziz, I could do with a cup of tea now! These are just a few things I think Ireland could learn from Germany, and maybe other countries could take heed too. Of course, Germany is not perfect and there's a few thing I'd like to teach them. Like, why can't you sell proper crisps?? There isn't anything even closely resembling a Tayto crisp or a Hunky Dory. And ye could do with learning how to make a good cup of tea! (Ostfriesland is excluded from this, their tea is pretty amazing.) Making cycle lanes a bit more obvious will also help reduce the number of poor unsuspecting travelers like me getting runover by a bicycle. Having the lanes just a shade darker than the rest of the path can be a tad unclear! Just saying...

Anyway, I'll be going back to Germany in April to learn more about their ways and maybe teach them how to make a good cup tea.


Until next time, I'll sign off with a picture of me and a giant nutcracker that actually works. Thanks for reading and Happy Travels!

Grá, 

Ceara (:

6 Reasons To Be A Tourist in Your Own Country

(I wrote this post's title on my phone and auto correct suggested 6 Reasons to be a 'tortoise' in our own country. I know what my next post is going to be about anyway...)

Recently a friend of mine from Switzerland that I met while volunteering in South Africa came over to visit our Emerald Isle for the first time. I offered her the choice of staying with me and allowing me to guide her through the best of Dublin and the country side. However instead of guiding, I ended up holding that map with her and exploring places in my own country that I've never seen before. 

  Ireland is a very small country. The culture doesn't change with the landscape. You barely have to go 100 meters and you meet someone you know and haven't seen in years. For these reasons, I'd never think to really put on tourist mode as I feel I'm not going to see anything new and those landmarks we have I'll eventually get around to road-tripping to one day. I get used to the place I'm in and never think to look around with new eyes. I think everyone reading this can say you've had someone visit you at some point and you had to turn on tourist mode. You instantly become more active as you're going out, eating and drinking in nice places and bringing them to the historical, pretty or famous places you know of. You do this instead of going to the same pub or club or sitting in watching hours of movies you never heard of on Netflix. When tourist mode is on, several wonderful things can occur. Here are some of them;

1. You Notice More
Places and scenery that are mundane to you suddenly show signs of beauty. As an example, my friend Janina, stopped to take pictures of a pub in Dublin that had beautiful hanging flower baskets outside them. This was a pub I passed often and yet never stopped to admire these well looked after flowers that added so much life to the street otherwise consisting of concrete. I often take pictures of the strangest things when abroad like huge doors, fancy gates and markets. If you look around your home locality with tourist mode on, you'll see these strange things pop out at you.

2. Meeting People & Other Travelers 
By visiting attractions and going on tours you'll meet people from all over the world. These travelers come from all walks of life and have some amazing stories to tell. They can also give you tips they've learned on the way and if you get on well there may be a contact in a future city/place you travel to or even better, a couch! 

3. You Can Help
Like I said, doing touristy things leads you to other tourists. You'll often witness a bus driver or tour guide getting asked for directions or help and often it's 20 questions from 20 groups at once. If you are familiar with the area you might be able to answer some of their questions which would in turn help them and the bus driver. That's your good deed done for the day and you never know, you could get a job out of it!

4. Knowledge
Everyone knows traveling abroad teaches you so much about the country you're in from its history to the language. A lot of people will say they also learn about themselves. It is no different in your own country. You may know some of the stories behind where you go but guides will teach you more. You'll see things you never noticed before, be brought to places you never thought to go and perhaps learn from the travelers you're in company with. There's no better time to put that French you learned in school to the test either!

5. Save Money

I know as much as the next person what it's like to have no money but want nothing more than to escape and see new things. Go on holiday at home and you won't need to pay for flights. If your visiting local areas you won't need accommodation. No travel insurance is needed, your loyalty cards will still work, there's no charge for withdrawing money from the ATM, no need to change currency, if you have a local student card you'll get discounts almost everywhere, you'll know where's expensive to eat so you won't get ripped off, and all those discount vouchers you have but always forget about can be used once they're valid! Oh! And you won't arrive home to find a phone bill closing in on a four digit cost because of roaming charges. Now how many of the above things would still apply if you were abroad? Close to none or none at all. I know it's no Ibiza, but if you can't afford a foreign holiday, just take a few days off and be a tourist at home.

6. You'll live. 

Me feeling the wind after climbing a cliff.

There's living i.e. eating, breathing, excreting. And then there's living i.e. savouring, appreciating, loving, seeing, smelling, listening, tasting, learning. I don't know about you but I can nearly always tell a tourist from a local by the way they walk. Locals walk fast and bustle through the streets in a constant rush, they rarely look up/around and can often look sad/angry/upset/bored. Tourists have a slower pace. They stroll around, not a bother on them! You can see them looking up at the buildings and sites that they pass. They take pictures and see things we don't. They don't stick to a rigid routine. We should make the time to slow down and look around like we do when we're in a new place.

If we lived with tourist mode on in our home country, imagine how much happier we could be? Imagine taking the relaxed, appreciative approach to life and how better you could feel? Just taking things easy, not letting the stress of work get to you. I think it's something we should remember to do more often. 

Eh...

I'm not saying you should pretend you don't know where you are or get a map, put on an accent, ask every second person for directions, walk around with a fanny pack, your camera around your neck, your phone in a pouch around your neck or buy Irish souvenirs for your Irish friends/family. I'm simply suggesting you turn on tourist mode at home so you can meet new people, learn and appreciate your surroundings. Break away from your usual routine and don't give time to any stressful calls or e-mails from work etc.

Apologies if this post is cheesy but after my recent 4 day tourist mode in Ireland, I know I'll definitely continue living with tourist mode on.

Until next time, grá,

Ceara (:

Day 1 in Salou: Soft Sand, Warm Water, Less Delph.

Marshmallow Clouds

Having left Dublin via RyanAir at 7:45 and left the murky, grey morning behind us, we flew across a glorious display of clouds which resembled a field of marshmallows having be flattened out perfectly. The the rocky hills of Spain broke through and all I could see was terracotta. The excitement was at a breaking point. I could have been in Miami when I stepped off the plane the place felt that exotic to me despite the short 2 hour flight.

      We got a public bus from the airport to Salou where we were to stay in Belvedere hotel. The bus driver was the nicest man ever! Not only did he not make me feel bad for not being able to speak a word of Spanish, but when it came to our stop he stood up and called back to us that this was where we were to get off! Lovely chap. Don't know if I'd often see Bus Eireann do the same in Ireland, would you?

     The only set back thus far was my trusty flip flops (or 'thongs' as I've heard Australians call them) which turned out to be not so trusty. I hobbled into our hotel room with blisters on my feet and threw the flip flops to one side where they shall remain for the rest of the trip. I'll stick to sandals, thanks!

     The room consisted of two double beds side by side, TV, en-suite with bath and a balcony. A balcony! I find balconies in hot countries amazing. I feel they genuinely serve a purpose other than being a good place to creep on the good-looking locals or have a smoke. Here you can also get some much appreciated vitamin D! The suitcases were unpacked and the airport clothes were discarded, time for beach wear!

     Our first mission was to get food. We were all starving with the hunger. As we strolled by restaurants taking in the menu prices and clearly looking like tourists, we were bombarded with menu distributing staff. Their job is to get business by enticing people into their restaurant which all have the most amazing deals in town. 

Mine?

I've seen such staff in Temple Bar in Dublin and on the streets of Rome but here, as there were many diners side by side, it felt like they were everywhere. It was like walking through a flock of seagulls from Finding Nemo all squawking "MINE MINE MINE". They see you coming and then dash for menus while never taking their eyes off you and then pace across the path until you're within their designated area. We politely declined many of these 'seagulls' if the menu was too expensive or the place was empty, and then finally settled on a decent looking place. 

     I thought it was only fitting to start the trip with a Spanish omelette which was delicious! Considering Salou is on the coast, there's a lot of sea food to choose from in every restaurant and very little vegetarian options other than salads or chips. But if you like your meat or your sea food, it will probably take you 20 minutes to choose from all the option you have!

Look at all the people!

     After food it was straight to the beach which was AMAZING. This was my first ever 

beach I've been to abroad and I loved it. The blue sky called for it to be a busy day but we still found space to throw down a towel. After I got over the shock of the amount of people there were, the next thing to blow my mind was how soft the sand is. In Ireland, there's always a section of the beach you need to tip-toe through with a lot of 'Hoo-Hah-Ow' noises as it consists of thousands of broken shells and sharp seaweed. Here, the sand is so fine! Then there was the water. Oh my goodness. I jumped some waves of the Balearic sea with my nephew and the water was warm. Warm I tell you! For someone who has only ever swam in the seas surrounding Ireland, you can understand how it exciting I found it to finally be able to say I swam in a sea that wasn't Baltic cold. Beautiful experience.

     There was an intercom system along the beach which occasionally had a man announce things over it. Naturally, these announcements were in Spanish so we couldn't understand a word he said, so we did nothing. He could have been saying there was a shark in the water for all I know but I didn't notice anyone leaving the water as such so we stayed! Although if the Spanish are anything like the Irish they'd say 'Ha! Shark. That's gas.' and keep swimming.

     We spent the rest of the day at the beach, then waddled home having gained an extra stone in weight in sand and salt water. We passed by one more restaurant promoter for Chicago Bar & Grill who's reason for us eating there was they only have 208 plates so we need to go in. I felt sorry for the chap considering his lack of plates and close to empty restaurant but we already had our dinner sorted! After an all-you-can-eat buffet for dinner (which is included in our stay, as well as breakfast), we returned to our room. Myself, my sister and my nephew are staying together and we were all asleep by 10.30pm (9.30pm Irish time).

     Tomorrow, we travel to Port Aventura, the gate to adventure. I feel like a child on Christmas eve!

Hasta luego, 

Ceara

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Vaccination Advice

For the travelers out there who like to go somewhere a little bit different than the 'usual' holiday destination, chances are you'll need to be vaccinated to prevent contraction of any unwanted diseases or infections. [Well I certainly hope they're unwanted. Why would you want cholera?]

Vaccinations can be a hectic, scary or daunting process for a lot of people be it their first time getting them, being terrified of needles, worrying of the cost and time limit they have to get them or just being faced with the reality that these diseases exist where you're going.

First of all, relax. You're already preparing yourself and doing the research by reading this post so I have 100% faith that you'll be fine.

1. Know where you're going. 

It is very important to know where you'll be travelling so you can let whoever is administrating your vaccines know and they can make sure you get everything you need. Whether you'll be staying in one city, travelling through a few cities in various countries or making your way across a whole continent but unsure of exactly where you'll be, let the consultant/doctor know everything. And if you're unsure if you'll be visiting a certain place you'll need a vaccine for, just get it. It'll be one less thing to worry about on your travels and if you do decide to go there, it'll save you getting any counterfeit medication and risking your health if you deal with any unsanitary clinics or needles. Better to be safe than sorry!

2. Worried about the cost? Don't be.

• Unlike flights and hotel/hostel prices, vaccination prices will not fluctuate. Therefore you can check out what will be needed months in advance and know exactly what you need to put aside for it. Search the web for your local travel clinic and they should have all the prices up on their website.
• I know some people believe it's better to pay for the medication yourself and get your own doctor to administer the vaccines. I would advise against this. Nothing personal against your GP or anything but you're much better off going to someone who specializes in travel vaccines. And if you need to get vaccinated against rabies then there's absolutely no question about it, go to a travel clinic! The reason for this is you need 3 shots for rabies over a couple of weeks. One bottle is made up of 3 shots but as soon as it's opened, it expires quickly so if you were to get your rabies vaccine in your ordinary GP office, chances are no one else will be getting a rabies shot so it would cost upwards of €100 as you'd be paying for 3 bottles. In a travel clinic, other people will be availing of the same bottle so you'll save a lot of money!  
• Student discounts are often available and discounts for senior citizens and the unemployed also exist. You won't know unless you ask!
• If you're in Ireland I'd recommend The Travel Health Clinic on Dawson Street in Dublin. They're far cheaper than The Tropical Medical Bureau and were lovely to deal with. I felt fully prepared for Africa having received their guidance and had a number to call 24/7 if any emergency arose. They also accept any form of student cards, not just travel cards and they gave me a lollipop after every visit! 

3. Pain

It's not that bad. Really! It's like a slight pinch every time and there can be a slight 'panging' pain afterwards but it's fine. I will say however, not to poke at where the shot went in or lean on it and try avoid sleeping on it if you can, just to avoid any possible discomfort! I learned that the hard way which you can read in this blog post of my old blog. . . Obviously if you're the kind of person with the attitude of a soccer player that will bend their finger the wrong way then never shut up about it and demand some kind of prize for dealing with such atrocious 'pain' then my advice for you is; shut up and deal with it! 

4.  Needles

Needles? What needles? I never saw a needle when I got my vaccines done. Ask them not to show you and they won't. Dr. Weidenhammer in the clinic I went to distracted me without me even realizing by asking me questions while injecting me. It was over before I knew it! In my experience, there were no needles, just the slight pinch of  a magical fairy doctor that resulted in my body being magically protected from awful things! And did I mention? You might get a lollipop! If you don't like needles, you won't see needles.

5. Time

Some vaccinations require a few shots over a period of weeks. If you're worried that you won't have enough time to get them all before your trip away don't panic. Just ring up whichever travel clinic you'll be going to, let them know you'll be flying out soon and might need repeat shots. They should be able to squeeze you in if it is going to be a tight fit to get them all in. Staff at travel clinics are there to help you, they won't want you going away unprepared either so just relax! And in future, give yourself at least 6 weeks before your flight to make an appointment for a consultation. It's hard enough trying to remember where your passport is and whether or not you packed your pajamas the night before your flight without thinking about your possibilities of coming home with Hepatitis A as a souvenir instead of a key-ring. 

These are just some basic tips to help you through your vaccination experience. Your travel clinic will help you with anything else you need to know or you can fire a question my away and I'll promise to answer it. 

Thank you for reading and happy travels!

Grá,

Ceara

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