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Hey there, fellow travelers. Mark here with Wolters World. Today we’re in Munich and today we have for you the DON’Ts of traveling to Germany. There are so many things you should do like visit Munich here, going to Berlin or the Harz Mountains. There are so many great things to do here but there’s a few cultural DON’Ts you should know. So when you come here you can have a better time. And the first DON’T I have for you is: Don’t assume Germans are these cold, unfriendly, uncaring people that we’ve kind of been taught by stereotypes throughout the years. Germans are actually really wonderful people. They’re helpful, they’re kind, they’re honest, extremely honest, and the thing is to see that you need to ask them for your help. Ask them for some guidance and they’ll be glad to help you. And that’s the thing, as some people think "Oh, German service isn’t very nice". Well the thing is, German service is very professional. And if you ask them for help I guarantee they will know the entire background of every meal you have and everything in the shoe store all kinds of stuff. They’ll be able to help you. But don’t think that they’re these cold-hearted people because Germans really care super nice and if you make a German friend I guarantee they will be with you until the end, they make the best friends ever. So the first thing is: "Don’t think they’re bad people". Now my second DON’T for you is: Don’t cross against the light, you know, don’t jaywalk. Germans really really really really really like their rules and they really really really really really don’t like people breaking them. And that will mean tourists as well. And one of the biggest things is: Crossing when the light is red. They don’t like that. I lived multiple years in Germany. Three years in Germany and there has been quite a few times where a grandma, an Oma, stops me and says: "Hey. Bei Rot musst du stehen, bei Grün darfst du gehen". which means: by red you stay, by green you’re allowed to go. That’s one of the things, Germans do like those rules but the biggest one that a tourist doesn’t want to do is don’t jaywalk. Also, you can get a fine for that, so you know heads-up on that one. Now, our third tip for you has to do with the Pfand, the deposit. Don’t just throw away your bottles like your big bottles or cans and don’t just leave your Christmas market mugs and stuff like that out because you have to put a deposit on a lot of these things. For example, if you are at the Christmas markets and you get those cute mugs that everyone loves to get. Look, usually you’re going to be paying between €3 and €5 for the deposit on those mugs and if you walk off with it: Great you have a cool souvenir. But the thing is, do you really want eight of the exact same mug, for example, we were here in Munich and we got Glühwein and Kinderpunsch, the children’s version of it. And there was eight of us. So that was 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40 euros of a deposit. And I’m like: "Whoa." And I got to use the €100-note that I’ve never got to use before, just on the deposit and make sure you’re turning those things in. Don’t just throw it away because it actually does add up after a while. So, save those. Now my fourth tip for you is: If you’re invited to go to a German’s house because, you know what, if they like you they probably will invite you they are really nice like that but if you’re going to go to their house don’t forget to bring either flowers or wine or candy. Okay, that’s kind of typical thing you bring over there. Also, don’t wear your shoes inside. When you come in take your shoes off. Sometimes they even have house slippers for you when you get there for their guest but it’s kind of rude to have your shoes on inside the house. Just know that. So, make sure you do bring something to their house if you get to be, you know, if you get really like really invited their house it is really cool. Now the fifth DON’T I have for you is specifically for tourists that I’ve seen a lot lately what I’ve been traveling through Germany. Especially Berlin. People being using the Jewish Memorial in Berlin, you know, the stone blocks and stuff, kind of like a parkour course or this is the place to make the coolest selfies in Berlin and people are climbing on them, jumping across them, doing silly pictures, duckface. It’s a Jewish… It’s a memorial to dead Jewish people. What the hell… what is wrong with you? This is not something you do. You don’t do that. Also the concentration camps where I’ve seen more and more people doing their duckface selfies. "Look. This is where they burned everybody." I’m like: "Are you kidding me?" So, please have respect for people when you go to the concentration camps and memorials and things like that. Because the Germans show respect for the horrible things that happened and we as tourists need to do a better job as well. So, don’t be a tool when you’re visiting some of these concentration camps and memorials, alright? Now, my sixth DON’T for you is: Don’t wait. Whether it’s a line or you’re ordering food, you don’t wait in Germany. Germans are go, go, go. We are very efficient, we want to get things done. So you’re going to be on time for things, alright. Very punctual is important but for a tourist when you go to restaurants, what you need to do is, when they give you the menu looking at right away so you can order right away. Because it’s not like in the U.S. where they come back every two minutes to see is anything out, do you need anything now. They come when they come. So, you get that chance make sure you do place your order, get your drinks and your food and things like that and when you want to get your bill you ask for the bill. They’ll come right away with their big wallet, okay, and you pay them right there and when you pay them you’ll say… Let’s say it’s a €27 bill you’ll say 30. You just say the total amount you want to pay and they’ll put that down for you. So they give you the change back from that. But don’t wait like once they seat you, give you the menu, it’s time to order when they come and ask. Because when you wait, you might wait a long time. Now my seventh DON’T for you is: Don’t experiment on the Autobahn. I know Autobahn sounds really cool, driving without speed limits. Well, I’ve driven on the Autobahn before. There’s a reason why go on public transport. It can be really scary because we’re going about a 100 mph, about 160 kph, and we’re going… we’re in the right lane because there’s BMWs and Mecedes going very fast. And they seem to go by like "wow". And it’s kind of dangerous when you’re out there, especially if you don’t know what you’re doing. So please, if you’re not comfortable with these fast speeds make sure you don’t experiment on the Autobahn. Stick with the public transport, it will take you everywhere here which is so awesome about Germany. Now, my eighth DON’T for you is: Don’t expect to shop on Sundays. Most of Germany is closed on Sundays except for museums and restaurants. So if you want to your shopping kind of stuff, if you’re here for a long weekend, do it on Friday or Saturday because on Sunday a lot of stuff is closed. Now, the things that usually tend to be open on Sundays, things that are attached the train station, so there’s a mall attach the train station that will probably open also in December. They’ll have the Sunday hours, a lot of places but just don’t… basically on Sunday everything is basically closed. Also on Mondays a lot of museums are closed. So if you are going to do a long weekend weekend including that Monday, make sure you check and see say: "Hey, let’s do our tourism stuff on Saturday and Sunday and doing shopping on Monday. My ninth DON’T for you is: Don’t forget to have cash. Germans, yes they have credit cards but they prefer cash. Yes. Have your euros ready. There’s ATMs all over the place you can use but you really want to have cash with you because they don’t accept credit cards everywhere. A lot of places they do and a lot of times you have a chip card, you know, for your credit cards and stuff like that. For everything to work but just know that cash is king here in Germany. So don’t forget to keep some with you just so you have it. And my tenth DON’T for you is: Realize that you don’t just see half-timbered houses here. Germany is not just a stereotype of half-timbered houses and beer halls. There’s so much more to Germany. Whether you’re going to Berlin where they have the Potsdamer Platz and all this new stuff there. When you’re here in Munich where the tech stuff is booming or Hamburg which is a rebuild city. You have all these cool modern cities here in Germany and it’s not just half-timbered houses and the thing is: You can see the half-timbered houses. Quedlinburg, Wernigerode, Goslar and the Harz Mountains. My heart falls in love with that place. Here in Bavaria, go to Regensburg, Bamberg or Oberammergau. You can get that old Germany but also a very modern Germany as well. So make sure you explore both sides. Don’t just try to think it’s going to be half-timbered houses but experiment all the wonders of Germany. Anyway, I hope this helps you out of a better time when you are here in Germany. If you have other DON’Ts about German culture, please put in the comments section below. So we can have more help for awesome travelers. It looks like things are picking up here in Munich in the morning, so I’m going to take off and I’ll say "Auf Wiedersehen" or until we see each other again. Here at Wolters World. Bye from Munich. If you want to see more videos like this, DON’T-videos, 10 things that shock you about different places. Check us out on our website: woltersworld.com Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube. We really appreciate a like or subscriptions and if you subscribed our YouTube channel you’ll get new travel videos like this twice a week from all over the world. So I say again, "Auf Wiedersehen", or until we see each other again, from Munich. Tschüss. Bye.
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