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Jun. 14, 2007 I have taken a hiatus for a while from writing because, with good writing must come research. So now I'm back and ready to vent. I recently returned from a trip to Germany, specifically the Bavarian region of the country. Since most people are uneducated about foreign entities, like I was before I was there, Bavaria is the southern part of the country including the Swiss Alps. A fantastically picturesque part of the country, it is also a great mixture of old and new. We stayed in a small farmhouse in Ramsau where there was no wi-fi and no lattes for miles... And it was lovely. But in the modern areas, Stuttgart, Munich and Frankfurt, it would appear more like modern America than those we picture with lederhosen or yodeling. Ironically, however, as much as they seemed Americanized, there was a something specifically non-American about the whole place. You see, in Germany, much like most of Europe, they respect their past and embrace a progressive nature that makes them one of the most powerful countries in the world. I must first say that, on this trip, I got killed by the horrible, horrible exchange rate. The Euro is equivalent to $1.35. That meant that anything I bought cost more than it should have. Not that it was all that expensive, just bothersome when not considering that I might, oh, want to have something left in the bank when I got home. Another feeling I got there was that they learned from their past, unlike us. They spend money on restoring old buildings, keeping their parks nice, and following the Kyoto protocols for carbon emissions, something our governance doesn't want. I also realized that there was just a general coolness to being there. They are aware that people want to drive bicycles, that kids should read and go to school, that health is important, even if they eat kraut and schnitzel. Germans are almost one percent literate. Can we say that? They also realize that art is important. Whether it be the sheer amount of sculpture or the state operas and theaters, they take their arts seriously. They don't relegate it to some token cause that makes the rich people happy. In Europe, art is for everyone. I saw more postings for plays and operas than I did for any other thing going on. But what really hit me was how they work toward becoming better people, not better individuals. They create bike paths along sidewalks for their cyclists, and there are a huge number of them. They have light rail and subways and distance rail and busses so you do not need a car. And, speaking of cars, I only saw three SUVs while I was there. One was a HUMMER H2, one a GMC pickup and one a Suburban. Most people drive diesel or high mile-per-gallon vehicles because fuel was ridiculously overpriced. We don't know how good we have it here, we really don't. The most important thing I learned from my travels was not to take my life for granted. I have a lot of things going for me and so does this country. However, we can't just assume that everything is all right and not do anything more to better the country we live in. Eventually it will be too late to do anything about our ways and our stubborn attitudes. Our selfishness will eventually be our downfall and we will be parceled out like so many countries before. It's too bad so many of our spoon-fed leaders didn't take more opportunities to backpack it in Europe or elsewhere. Maybe they were too busy seeing Europe from the Ritz or Sheraton, not a pension or hostel. That's too bad, really. Maybe they would have learned something about themselves like I did. Peace. ------------ About the author: Nicholas Olson is an aspiring playwright and former journalist. He spent parts of his high school, college and professional life as a journalist, serving as a military journalist from 2000-06. Mr. Olson is an avid writer and enjoys political opinion. His views are not that of any particular party or of the country he once served: They are his own. Email: nicholasjolson@yahoo.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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