Die Ordnung

One day I was on the S-Bahn on my way to class with a few people who I live with and was eating a banana for breakfast. Sadly, the top of my banana got squished brown, so I was only really willing to eat the bottom half. Being stuck with the top half of my banana awkwardly wrapped in its peels I didn't have time before the doors shut to throw it out. A friend told me to just drop it in between the door of the train and the platform when all of a sudden a German woman looks up and immediately says in clear English, "Don't do it!" Like a 6 year old child I responded with assurance I wasn't really planning on it, as she was telling me it would make the train slip on its tracks. Ok, lady. I sat down as the train was leaving and told my friend I'll probably just throw it out the window once we get to a grassy area. Well, that was just NOT okay with my new German friend, and she pulled her pastry out of the bag from the bakery and gave it to me to put my banana in. I literally could not wait more than 2 seconds after I got off at our stop to burst out laughing. What a great start to my day... 

The German "order" is something that I feel can be fairly notorious among other people in the world. Honestly, I have found nothing to disapprove such a stereotype. The Germans have an idea as to how things should be: don't cross the street unless the little Ampleman is green, don't be too loud on the subways and most definitely do NOT put paper in the waste basket for bottles, or the wrong kind of wrapper in the basket for the paper, if you're early, you're on time, if you're on time your late, demonstrating in the middle city is only acceptable if there are police officers accompanying you the whole time, etc. And most definitely do not even THINK about smiling at someone unless you actually know them. 

Germans are a funny people. They can seemingly be pretty hard to read, hard to approach, but are definitely easy to love, particularly the older generations. But, for them, it works. So, I just thought I'd share a little anecdote to feed all the hunger of what the Germans may be like... The Answer? Exactly like what you'd imagine.