[sarasmom]

Personal hygiene is less than what is considered normal in the USA, so the window thing may be considered mandatory.

OTOH,when I lived in Germany 20 years ago mol, the average villagers were meticulous about cleanliness for their homes and property.They swept the sidewalks and even the streets in front of their homes, and locals even raked their surrounding "forests".

I haven't been back since then, and that was long before the wall came down.I see a taste of things to come in this country, but since I live in a "right to work" state,Florida, possibly we will have less problems overall than "liberal" union states.

But I still refuse to buy anything from Germany untill they prove their status as a true ally.I miss the beer.....

[riri]

One morning, after coming home from a walk, I saw my neighbor (we lived in a dopplehaus) scrubbing the front steps with a brush and bleach water. The stuff I would see them cleaning and doing was so bizzare, especially taking into consideration, the fact that they don't keep there bodies and clothing so clean. Odd.

Pepsionice, you really summed it up perfectly. I didn't live there for nearly so long but I caught on quickly that the mentality was very different. As I could not work and there is not really much to do, I spent alot of time walking and observing.