differences I've noticed

-people bring their dogs everywhere. the zoo, inside karstadt (like sears), into the grocery store.
-the "z" and "y" key are reversed on keyboards
-food is really salty here.
-if something can be deep fried, it probably is. (ie. my salmon skin suhi last night was)
-there *are* vegetables, but not many leafy greens, and the salads usually have corn in them.
-apples aren't crunchy, and they're expensive; fruits in general look a bit different, but I guess that's because of the different laws regarding GMOs
-people don't j-walk
-drunk kids are still well behaved, helping the eldery up train station stairs, or helping old men in wheelchairs.
-an ice cream on a sugar cone is 90cents. A nestle ice cream bar is 2 euros.
-there's no low fat yoghurt everything is 3% or more
-german men have pot bellies yet many have rugged, chiseled faces. I don't understand how.
-very protein rich diet.
-currywurst looks disgusting
-I'm starting to get used to bratwurst
-most bakeries sell cakes
-there's three types of water. very bubbly, which is manly, then medium bubbles, which men with digestive problems switch to, then no bubbles which is "a woman's drink". So, I am a sissy. Mind you, its gotten to the point that I now enjoy San Pellegrino because its not as harsh as some other waters I've "accidentally" purchased.
-Every drink you order comes in a branded glass, with a measurement line indicated. They also seem like to the centi-litre measurement. (2cl for drinks)
-mailboxes are yellow and hard to find (imho)
-ALL windows open in two ways, like a door, or tilted towards the inside.
-toilets have push button flushes, usually a square the size of your palm (or bigger, kleenex box size in my hotel) around chest level.
-Most of society is more environmentally friendly. Most escalators have a motion sensor so they move in either direction, and you wave your hand to start it if it isn't moving. Train doors do not open if it isn't necessary, once again you have to push a button, or a lever to get in/out. (I can't imagine how difficult this would be if this were the case in Montreal.) Everyone turns off their lights and a/c when they leave, most will even turn off powerbars etc. My hotel room is never cold.
-Most drinks are sold in glass bottles
-Most retailers will not give you plastic bags
-Most retailers don't give receipts (really, REALLY annoying since I have to expense everything)
-Most taxi drivers are Turkish
-I don't think many people use the dryer at the laundromat
-many people ride bicycles, while smoking, talking on the cell phone etc.
-some people bring bicycles into their office, I even saw a guy ride a bicycle straight out of a cellphone store yesterday.
-for some reason, the bike lots usually hold up the front wheel up in the air
-blah blah

delayed weekend wrapup

I don't remember what I was doing on Thursday but I'm guessing I was probably stuck in meetings as usual after german work hours. Friday I literally ran out of the office at 5 and rented a bicycle from the train station. I could not figure out for the life of me whether I was supposed to be on the sidewalk (there are bike lanes on the sidewalk) or the street (sometimes the lanes disappear). I quickly made it out of the city into some rural fields (on a bike path) and it was really beautiful to be out of the city so quickly and be surrounded by fields and chirping birds and big windmills. Then, I got a flat. I was about 10km away from the town, half of which was on this random bike path. I rode the flat tire back to the city, grabbed a subway/tram/train and took it back. So much for renting bikes. I had mediocre sushi for dinner. It was like Isobune with little boats floating around the counter offering sushi but the fish tasted like frozen paper and every maki roll had green onion sprinkled all over which was a bit strange.

Saturday I slept in, got a haircut and went to a "medieval" museum. It wasn't too interesting. After repeated attempts at calling a ticketline, I decided to grab the train to Oberhausen and try to buy a ticket in person for the BlueManGroup. It was great that I did, because I got a ticket near the front for only 19 euros, less than half the price. The show was a lot of fun, mostly muscial but very interactive. The Metronom Theatre is next door to a massive shopping centre, almost exactly the same as ours. I ate an Irish pub nearby, but they didn't speak much English. Go figure. When I got back to the Oberhausen Hauptbahnhof, things got interesting. There were young, trendy kids everywhere. It was impossible to walk without stepping on beer bottle caps, and everyone was red in the face, loud, smoking and drunk. There were students creating shelters with egg cartons, toilet paper and one with air furniture. And of course, I get onto the platform for the train back to Dortmund and its packed. Everyone is smoking and drinking, and of course, only a three car train arrives. We all jammed in, and some kids jumped onto the luggage railing and there was chanting ("Finale!" or "Supa Deutschland" as well as other melodies.) for my long one hour ride back to town on the S-bahn. Even though they were intimidating, they left me alone, and were generally well behaved with the elderly in the car etc. It was very strange.

Sunday morning I woke up late again, and didn't do anything particularly productive. I ended up spending my afternoon at the Gelsenkirchen Zoo, about an hour away by slow-train. When I got to the station, I found out I would be riding a Bombardier train. Long story short, it had the most uncomfortable seats I've sat in on any train in Germany, and I got a little motion sickness because it shook so much. Oh well. The zoo was huge. They divide the animals into regions "Africa", "Alaska" etc. and like the Dormund zoo, most animals were easily viewable and most had ample room to roam which was really nice to see. It is almost like a theme park as well, with all sorts of cabins and huts for children to play in. Very well thought out, and its too bad the Asia section is still under construction. Sunday night was the big game, Germany vs. Spain for the Euro2008 final. I walked around and settled on watching the game in front of an outdoor pub where people were gathered. Most were unhappy at losing, but within a few minutes, people were out honking their horns anyway.

Monday night I had slightly better sushi for dinner, and racked up a nice 40 euro bill. I think the people working there were korean. Either way, like the other place they didn't understand my Japanese and the sashimi was well, ... I won't be ordering it again.