Germany vs. Italy

No, not a soccer match, but just general observations as today I'm in Kassel, Germany. No pix at the moment to share as I'm currently without my laptop, and thus without the means to make the pictures web friendly in size. I´ll update the visuals at the end of the week when I reach my parents' house.

Adam, the groom from last week's wedding, says that Italy is one step above a third world country. The bureaucracy is maze-like and frustrating beyond the patience of any non Italian soul. He has had to jump through several loops of bizarre catch-22 like processes on a regular basis to maintain his student visa - the sort of thing like you need Document A in order to get Document B, but the A folks want the B document first.

Germany on the other hand, seems like it runs on rails. I would be tempted to use the analogy of a Swiss watch, but after dealing with Swiss Air twice in the last couple of weeks over cancelled flights and lost luggage, I will give them a rating of 2 out of 5 stars... one for not crashing the planes, and one for giving out Swiss chocolate instead of peanuts and pretzels.

Italian trains run close to on time, but finding them can be an adventure. The board says platform 3, but 5 minutes before arrival, a rapid announcement says now platform 7, and it isn't always repeated in English, so you are at the mercy of other travellers to let you in on the game. Platform 7 is a fair hike away, and you arrive there with all of that luggage that you shouldn't have brought in the first place, huffing and puffing. In Germany, they are so sure of the platform number that they publish it in their train schedules. And don't be late either.

German bread is better than Italian bread. Pastries too. Beer too, and they have more than 2 varieties! Italians win on wine and gelato, hands down.

Language wise, German has been a challenge, and not just because I didn't study it. There is very little English evident in the words, and so guessing is tough. And with all the 'umpfs' and 'ichts' in the language, it comes off less poetic than the emotional Italian. They also don't use their hands as much as the Italians - who does!?

The folks in Italy seem happier. Perhaps it's because I've been in touristy spots where their job is sell their country. Kassel merits barely a page in a Germany guidebook, as their only claim to fame outside of the requisite castle is the art show I'm here to see (documenta 12) and a Museum of Death (!). Yes, I will pop by there today... it just seems too different to pass up!