I have often said that I found England hard to adjust to - mostly because the language was (for the most part) the same, and I kept expecting things to work the way they did in America. My theory was that it would be easier in a country where I didn't speak the language, because there would be no expectation. Well, yes and no. Yes in that I approach everything - be it finding the post office or taking out the garbage - with fresh eyes. No in that it is surprisingly hard to get things done when you don't know where to go or how to do it - and what's worse, you don't know how to ask for help.
Case in point. I had a bit of a shopping explosion in the Heathrow airport a few weeks ago and bought some shirts that ended up not fitting correctly. (This is what happens when one's flight gets inexplicably delayed and one has an extra hour to wander T5 on 4 hours sleep.) I was very pleased to find out that Heathrow allows mail returns of anything purchased in their duty-free shops for 60 days. I was less pleased that I would therefore have to figure out how to mail a package from Germany. I googled the post office, but it appeared to be located in a very far (not walkable) place, and I wasn't in the mood yesterday to go on another driving adventure. I had seen a lot of signs in the town that said "Packet Shop", which led me to believe that maybe one of the small stores was a UPS or FedEx outlet or similar. It took me two tries in two different stores before I met a very kindly German man who pointed me in the right direction. He had that bizarre, overly rounded vowely-accent which results from someone who is a native speaker of a non-romance language spending a lot of time in England. He also spoke really, really good English and was able to clue me in on the entire process, which was so helpful.
As an aside, I have always been passionate about literacy and education. These past few weeks have really underscored this, and I plan on donating heavily this year to a few foundations specializing in encouraging adult literacy. It is absolutely terrifying at times to be surrounded by information that you cannot digest. It's overwhelming, frustrating and discouraging. I know I can't imagine what it is like to be an adult who cannot read, but I'm getting just a small taste and it is not fun. Even more so - and this will shock a lot of people who know me - I'm feeling a bit more understanding towards recent immigrants to the United States. Call them legal, illegal, what have you - I'm not going there right now. But I'm getting a feel for why businesses offer Spanish. I never could have opened my bank account had there not been someone in the Deutsche Bank who spoke English. I would have had no idea what I was signing up for. I know I would not be able to find a proper place to live without the help of Julia, my trusty relocation consultant. And god forbid I would try to buy a car or other large purchase in German - pretty sure my interest rate would be 900% percent. As an American - even a well-traveled one - I am still guilty of assuming that someone will speak English. And this is largely true. I can't imagine showing up in a country and finding that no one really understands you, or speaks your language.
NOW, one could argue that I should have learned German before coming. And they are right. I really should have taken some rudimentary lessons during my weeks off work. And if I ever move to another country with a language I don't speak, I will. It would have helped immensely. And also, I do plan to learn the language while I'm here. The difference is that my company is paying for face to face intensive lessons from Berlitz to get me to fluency. I have long argued that people coming to the US should "learn English". I still agree, and I also think it may be easier than other languages since most of the world has some sort of English TV available. That being said, my stance is softening just a tiny bit as I imagine what my life would be like if I moved to Germany on my own, in hopes of making a life for myself and/or my family - and I had no help in learning the language. I'm an autodidact so I'd be all over the library and anything I could get my hands on - but I'm the exception, not the norm.
I'm not necessarily getting all soft in my old age - but what I am saying is that the world isn't nearly so black and white, and that I'm seeing how issues don't necessarily have a simple solution (i.e. "learn English"). It's far more complex - and not to get into politics, but IF the US is going to rely on labor from those from other countries, THEN there needs to be a reasonable path to citizenship (and not the 8+ years it normally takes), AND there needs to be some sort of support system for integration. It isn't fair to say "integrate" and leave people alone. And while I recognize that people from other countries - from Asia, or Russia or the Middle East - have come to the US and learned English despite it being a different alphabet and structure entirely, for every person you find in those households who speaks passable English, there are many more who are just getting by. Anyway, something to think about.
So, back to my post office adventure. I found a small store that also has a Deutsche Post and DHL service. I was able - with a bit of pantomiming and Google Translate - to purchase a small box, and then ship my belongings. I'm finding that Germany is no different than any other country. As long as you try to speak the language, people tend to be fairly willing to meet you halfway. I also think that these Germans know their language is a bit cray-cray, and they take pity on foreigners.
Of course, this doesn't stop me from lying awake some nights wondering what I would do if I were really in an emergency. I wonder if I called #110 (or is it #112 - I get fire and emergency confused) and just started yelling "Hilfe! Das murder, das murder!" if it would get the job done. I'd like to think so - but then again, if das murder was really happening, I'm pretty sure the murderer would not give me time to work through that kind of explanation.
So, beyond learning German, when I get to Frankfurt (which is where I've 99% decided I'm going to live), I'm going to sign up for self-defense classes. I may fancy myself a part-time ninja, but I'd like to go full-on Bruce Lee and be able to defend myself. Germany is a very safe country, and I don't anticipate anything happening - but the fact that I can't articulate myself very well makes me want to be sure I can speak the universally-understood language of a good old-fashioned ass-kicking ;)
And now it's off to the never-ending piles of laundry, and some catching up on my reading. This coming week is going to be crazy busy - tons of meetings, German lessons, house-hunting and a flight to the US - so I'm enjoying my downtime while I have it.
E-Fed out.
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