Mixed Reports for Germany in Bloggers' Take on World Cup
June 28, 2006
Nick from Arizona in the US thinks that Germany has been a lot like he had imagined it would be.
"People like their beer, as they usually have one with every meal. I don't blame them, as it is good and really cheap," he writes. "People all live in apartments or flats" and "public transportation is excellent," his blog says.
The author of "My Left Boot" from Australia is also positively surprised at the easygoing atmosphere in the World Cup host country.
"Even Germany's motto for the World Cup, "A time to make friends" is being heeded everywhere I go. Far from begrudging the crush of fans and tourists swamping train stations, airports, subways and shops, everyone is open, welcoming and friendly -- a complete contrast to the stereotype of the German people and its culture," "My Left Boot" writes in his blog entitled "Pilgrimage to Germany."
"Germany is a wonderful, modern nation which is putting on an amazing well organized tournament and showing off everything that is fantastic about this country."
Unifying power, discreet police presence
For Corrigan, an American living in Heidelberg, the World Cup has had a positive impact on the Germans. "What has been really neat to me about the World Cup this year is the unifying power it has with the Germans. There are German flags everywhere in our town and in Heidelberg. People are really excited," he writes in his blog, adding that watching Germans celebrate has been an eye-opener.
"My real point is that I have learned a lot by watching Germany celebrate. We Americans are so isolated by our attitudes of independence, consumerism, and autonomy. We are more likely to fear our neighbor than have dinner with them, and that is really sad," Corrigan writes.
"Manic Hispanic" from Chicago is pleasantly surprised by the southern German city of Munich.
"I was expecting much less from the capital of Bavaria but this city really wowed me," Manic Hispanic says in his blog. "The fan fest which was held in the old Olympic Park was great as well. Germany really deserves to be applauded for how well they organized the World Cup, especially in Munich and Nuremberg. The trains were clean and efficient, the Fan Fests were great and even when fans were dancing on tables, climbing light posts and going completely nuts to celebrate their team, the police never once stepped in to 'calm things down' and simply let everyone enjoy themselves."
Manic Hispanic is equally swept away by Berlin, which he calls "dirty gritty, unapologetically urban, and real."
Claudia Schiffer and has-been soccer stars
But not everyone is as taken with Germany. Amir and Raju from England were stunned at their shoddy surroundings when they traveled to Leipzig, in former communist eastern Germany.
"Our journey on a tram to our hostel gave Amir and me very poor first impressions. We saw derelict worn down buildings, broken windows, some boarded up, some not. The paintwork was falling off, but most of it was covered in copious amounts of graffiti. Some kid even tried throwing something on the tram we were on," the two write in their blog titled "Amir and Raju do the World Cup." The two also bemoaned the state of the hostel in Leipzig and the lack of entertainment in the neighborhood.
"Although located next a set of newly built flats in an estate, the hostel is an old 60s/70s style block of flats. No bar or any other social spot, no shop, just a couple of overpriced vending machines," they wrote.
"JD" from Wellington in New Zealand was crushed by the drab World Cup opening ceremony in Munich. "I was particularly disappointed with Germany’s rather poor effort in staging some sort of opening event. I have been to graduations with more culture, drama, music, pomp and ceremony than what was pathetically displayed by the Germans," JD wrote in his blog "Nova Zeal."
"The notion of the ceremony is to welcome the world, highlight the host nation’s culture and display what the host nation has to offer. It is an opportunity to sell your country to the world – what did Germany sell?? They sold lederhosen, Claudia Schiffer, and past football heroes," JD said.
"What is worse is the ceremony looked incredibly disorganized and messy. Isn’t this a country trying to transform its economy and inject a new spirit into their country?"