#31: Things I still love about Germany
In a speech earlier this month, Friedrich Merz said: “Even the strongest society cannot withstand constant doom and gloom 24/7 without eventually falling apart.”
I’ll give the chancellor that, Germany is prone to “doom and gloom” talk. Merz’s own mediocre track record aside, he’s right: Maybe the negative vibes are not always helpful if you’re trying to update the country and get it on a new course.
I think a lot about the things that aren’t going so well in Germany. The rise of the AfD, bureaucracy, the housing shortage, the crack crisis, and on and on.
But as I write this the sun is shining and I need a break from falling down one rabbit hole of German decline after another.
In fact, I still love a lot about this country:
Nature
When I was 14, one of my German uncles took me for an overnight hike through the low Taunus mountains near Frankfurt. We slept under the stars. He showed me how to catch a trout in a brook simply by tickling its belly. At some point, at the top of a small peak, we were looking out over the smoggy factories of greater Frankfurt. I remember my uncle saying: “Just imagine if you were a deer looking out at this and feeling this was getting closer and closer.” That romantic view of nature as something you need to respect, emphathize with and protect still resonates with me. It’s a perspective that is remained ingrained in German culture until today.
For a densely populated, highly industrialised country, Germany has done a good job protecting its natural resources wherever it can. It was in fact rapid industrialisation and the pollution and alienation that came with it that gave birth to typical German, nature-inspired movements from Steinerism and all its offshoots (from Demeter organic farming to Waldorf schools), FKK (nudism), the anti-nuclear Green movement and the obsession with recycling.
Germany’s natural landscapes are more diverse you than might think. I began this newsletter with a hike up the country’s highest mountain, the Zugspitze in the dramatic Bavarian Alps in the South. In the far North you have the sandy beaches on serene islands like Amrum and Hiddensee. The interior is graced by 12,000 natural lakes, many of them with great swimming and boating. The Rhine, Danube and Elbe snake their way through through valleys lined with vineyards, castles, palaces, breweries and monastries. Let’s not forget the forests of lore, from the Black Forest to the Odenwald. Outside of the cities, there is so much to discover.
Healthcare
One day, a few years ago, I started seeing strange flashes. Black “floaters” drifted through my field of vision. After three or four days, I went to see an ophthalmologist. She told me to head directly to a hospital with an eye clinic. It was so urgent, I shouldn’t even stop by home to fetch my toothbrush. My retina had detached and any further deterioration could cause blindness in my left eye. Within hours of arriving at Charité, surgeons were re-attaching the retina with a laser. It felt like a miracle. I felt so grateful.
It’s expensive, inefficient, and sometimes quite impersonal, nervewracking and alienating but German healthcare has stepped up to the plate when it counted. At least in my life and in the lives of people close to me who have battled life-threatening cancer, strokes, you name it. At its best, the vast web of GPs, specialists, hospitals and Krankenkassen delivers some incredible service at virtually zero additional cost to the patient.
The normal Krankenkassen allow you to visit doctors of your choice. Basic dental care is covered.
Thanks to the Krankenkasse, my partner could spend several nights in hospital free of charge after the birth of our son. Not the case in many other countries. What’s more, for a small fee, I was allowed to sleep a couple of nights with her and our newborn. It felt like a luxury and helped me feel closer to them both in those magical but challenging first days of life.
I recently was reminded of the upsides of German healthcare by a slew of awe-struck young Americans posting videos on the virtues of the system compared to the what they were used to stateside.
Yes, there are huge challenges and the system needs to be streamlined and made more cost-effective. Bureaucracy, exploding costs and staff shortages are only going to get worse as medicine gets more complex and the population ages. But Germany still ranks above average within the OECD.
A country for kids
Germany gets a bad rap as an anti-child kind of place. While it’s true that some restaurants (usually serving German food) aren’t too pleased when you show up with rowdy todlers, by and large, this is a great place to raise a family.
With Elterngeld, Kindergeld and low-cost daycare, the state does a lot to help working parents. Yes, more men need to take parental leave but the statistics are going in the right direction.
A vast number of Kitas (daycare centres) are run by private initiatives of every stripe. Whether they’re Montessori or Waldorf or multilingual or outside in a forest, there’s a Kita for every kid. And they’re usually as affordable as state-run facilities.
Healthcare for kids it also impressive. Paediatricians really take their time during the childhood U-checkups (U1-U9). At least in my experience as a father of three.
Playgrounds in Germany are awesome: they're everywhere, they're huge, challenging, imaginative, and not boring.
And for weekends and holidays, there are parks, zoos, urban farms, pools, libraries and kid-friendly museums and a thousand other things to do.
Even eating out is getting better, also thanks to the huge number of restaurants run by immigrants. When it doubt, we hit the nearest Greek, and even our rowdy rug rats get treated like royalty.
You could do worse than raise your kids here.
Thanks for reading!
Maurice
What else happened this week?
Why is Poland booming and Eastern Germany falling behind?
Interview with Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil
US attacks German streaming law
Voeller urges players to avoid political statements at World Cup
💰 Money-Saving Tip of the Week from Smart Living in Germany
Haircuts in big cities have gotten expensive – €60-65 for a women’s cut in Berlin isn’t unusual anymore. One way to bring that down is to check your local offers on Groupon before booking. Discounted vouchers often run 40-60% below regular prices, and there’s frequently an extra coupon on top at checkout.
A few things help make this work. Read reviews carefully on both Groupon and Google Maps, and if a place looks promising, call or message before buying the voucher to check availability. It’s also better to stick to lower-risk treatments (haircuts, simple facials, and massages) and skip anything invasive or medical-adjacent. For more tips on getting more value out of everyday spending in Germany, subscribe to the Smart Living in Germany newsletter.
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Friends:
This sounds like a ridiculous thing to be a positive selling point, but I appreciate that if I need one screw from the hardware store, I can usually go and buy exactly one screw and they don’t make me buy a whole box. 😆
When it’s bad in Berlin, it’s really bad. But when it’s good, I’d rather be in Berlin than Manchester or London.
A nice reminder, Maurice, that Germany does more right things than wrong.