Barefoot in Germany?

I'm going to be an exchange student this summer. I'll be somewhere in Baden-Württemberg. I don't know what city my partner lives in yet, but I'll know later this month. Anyways, I was wondering what to expect if I decide to venture out without shoes. Is this something that's generally accepted? I don't want a "Put some shoes on or get out!" confrontation, and I definitely can keep some sandals on if barefoot would make my host family think I've gone insane. :willy_nilly: Should I go barefoot and keep some sandals rolled up in a pocket when out and about in case I do end up needing them? What to do, what to do?

Also, while I'm there, I'll be attending a couple weeks of school and observing. I'm assuming that shoes will be required like in American schools, is this correct? Are sandals even allowed, or do I need to bring some closed toe shoes along? Is the latter something that I'll just have to ask my partner when I get her contact information?

Darn, that's a lot of questions. I just want to have a balance of avoiding trouble and not looking like an ass while going bare as much as I can. Can you tell that I worry a lot? Thanks in advance.

 

I heard that some older cities in Germany still use the street as a toilet throwout. If I were you I would were sandals in the city and take em off in parks and in the wilderness.

Your from a different country silly, anything you do thats normal they think is wierd. Dont worry about it, just were the sandals into their house and take them off at the door if you see shoes laying around.

Dont try and fit in too much, its germany! Your going out of the country! Have fun, we have our wierd things, they have theirs. If you look like an ass, just say "Thats how we do it In our country"

Also I have a question for you. I am looking at foreign colleges to go too. I heard Germany was free if you get your residence card. Is this true? If not, how much does college cost over there with your residence card?

 

I really doubt that. My stepfather was stationed in Germany in the 80's. He said they keep things really clean. Nicely cut lawns, not a bunch of trash on the side of the road, all that good stuff. At worst, I don't think the streets could be much dirtier than the ones here.

I accept that I am weird, but I really don't want to give others the impression that all Americans are as strange as me. It's kind of unfair. I also think a degree of fitting in is needed. If I were to get off the plane wearing an American flag t-shirt and shouting 'Murrica! Fuck yeah!" (which is a joke my friends do. We see something stereotypical? 'MURRICA!) I'd get looked at in a bad way and make a bad impression.

I have no clue at all about college in Germany, as I am a high school student. I hope you find out what you need to know, though!

 

I'm from Italy and i went to germany several times,i have to say it is a very clean country,i've never seen papers,or dirty in general,but i only visited berlin,munich,hamburg and some others;germany is considered one of the cleanest countries in europe with switzerland and sometimes u can meet barefoot people during summertime;however most teen people,how old are u?

 

I just realized that in my personal info my age says I'm 20. Is there any way to fix that?

I'm actually 17.

 

Look at Franco's site. He is a hardcore German barefooter http://www.barfusszone.de
Burkhard also has a MySpace page http://www.myspace.com/kackbemme

I've seen many images of barefoot German women on the net.

 

I lived in Germany for 3 years and never once saw a street that was used as a toilet (minus a few drunk assholes peeing on the side of buildings once in a while).

this is a good site to find barefoot stuff

http://www.barfusspark.info/en/park.htm

 

Wow, that barfusspark site is pretty cool. I like the pictures, especially this page. Of course, for each barefoot person there's probably a bunch of people with shoes of some sort, but it's still really cool. I also see that there's a lot of barefoot parks in Germany, including 2 in the state that I'll be in. That's really reassuring.

 

German streets are almost pristinely clean except for Berlin. You need to wear steel cap
boots in that sewer.

 

Well, one of the many barefoot-themed German web pages hasn't been mentioned here as yet: Hobby? Barfuss! - which includes resources on barefooting in general, pictures and a (german-speaking) web forum as well.

Oh, and yes, using the streets as an outdoor latrine is a thing of the past, really... a few centuries ago, people would empty their night pots by opening the window and dumping the content, regardless of anyone walking past down there or not.

Thinking of Baden-Württemberg, Freiburg is a city where it's likely to spot other barefooters in spring and summer. Some members of the Hobby? Barfuss! forum reported about that. And yes, you might get "The Look"® from mainstream people for walking barefoot. But, in general, people who are interested in the reasons for your barefooting - and some might ask - will quickly agree on the health benefits of it.

So, I hope you will enjoy your barfuß time in Deutschland, while you're there... or, from my perspective, here.
:daisy:

Wiggling bare toes,

~*Ganesha*~

 

Wow, this is crazy. I grew up in Indianapolis and lived in Germany for nearly 10 years. I was 99% barefoot there for the last 5 years (had to wear shoes inside the building at work, which I put on and took off just outside the door). This was after my German doctor daughter in-law recommended it for lower back and hip pain that completely vanished by being always barefoot.

Unlike Americans, almost all Germans--especially doctors--believe going barefoot is more healthful than wearing shoes. Although some people referred to me as “merkwürdig” (curious or strange), no one but the Americans in the family disapproved of my being always barefoot. (Unfortunately, they were very vocal.)

As a German, Ganesha is right-on about everything. You can trust his advice. What is more, I never had trouble in businesses except for a couple times in all those years. Apparently, the law in Germany does not allow businesses to eject people for just any reason whatsoever, as American law does. All I did was to politely say that I was not willing to put on shoes (both times I actually did not have any with me), and the person complaining went away, never to return.

I lived and worked in Berlin. Except for discarded cigarette butts (be prepared to be around a LOT more smokers in Germany), that city is no dirtier than any other place in that country--which is to say that it is noticeably cleaner than any other city/country in the West. Cleaner than Indianapolis for the Super Bowl. Whereas broken glass is no problem in the US, you will find it around the Kneipen (bars), because smashing empty beer bottles seems to be a habit among German men. On Herrentag (Men's Day, which is the same as the Ascension day holiday in the spring) there is glass everywhere in the city, but is swept completely clean within a day or so. Same with Silvester (New Year’s Eve), when breaking wine or champagne glasses after a toast, is considered good luck. People actually carry around boxes of new glasses for that event. Me, I never made any accommodation for those times, although I do recommend that all serious barefooters carry around a pair of those surgical tweezers with the needle points. I find it amazing how quickly skin on the sole grows around any kind of splinter, making it harder to remove if one waits--even for an hour.

Younger people everywhere can get away with non-standard behavior, more than can older folks. At 17, I don’t think being barefoot anywhere in a school setting will harm your prospects. Business is a different matter, and depends on the setting. My experience is that the larger the company, the more rigid its rules will be, and shoe rules WILL be one of them--even if it is unwritten, as it was in my case. But overall, problems for barefooters in Germany are truly rare. Enjoy your time there. I’ll be surprised if you want to come back.

 

Hi Ratte,

You already got a nice german name ;-) And rats do go barefoot all the time anyway …

Probably you will get no problems, as long as you don’t want to visit some high class restaurants or clubs with some stupid dress codes. I also heard of some museums and fun parks denying barefoot access, so maybe carrying just a pair of flipflops or so in your bag would be a good idea just for the ‘ermergency case’. In generally, Germany is quite barefoot friendly, though not so many people do practice.

Of course you should consider your host family’s attitudes. But i guess you will check out this within some instants and then act adequate. Or maybe if you like to be more sure, just ask in an email before. Like ‘hey, I do like to go barefoot in summer, would this be ok for you?’

Public schools usually don’t have any dress code. Sandals would never be a problem I guess. I think half of the school girls of your age I meet every day on my way to my work do wear only flipflops in summer.

Problably in the most schools going on bare paws would also be no problem, if you only dare to try. Except some certain landscapes it’s not very common though, but not forbidden by law or somezthing. Maybe there will be some teachers having problems with, so in case you need to discuss it. And maybe some schools have own house rules requiring footwear (but even then, you can try out keep your feet free, and if you are lucky, no one will care about).

There’s no need to worry. Just try out and see how it works. Probably you will be pleasantly surprised.

Take care!

 

Wow, thanks for the advice, everyone. It's nice to hear what people who have been there/live there have to say. The culture difference for something as simple as not wearing shoes is kind of crazy. I'm sure I'm going to have plenty of fun. Now I don't have to worry about silly things and can worry about more important things - like how confused I'm going to be when I try to speak in German.

 

Keine Zorgen. Die meiste Leute in Deutschland können Englisch sprechen.

 

Ach, echt? Wär ich nie drauf gekommen... Scherz beiseite, die junge Generation auf jeden Fall.

Translation: oh, really? Who'd have thunk! All kidding aside, the young generation at any rate.

-> has knowledge of English, that is. And, Ratte, since you are going to be the exchange student on a German high school, as it sounds, you will be on display as our friend from the US of A. Your classmates will most likely think you being cool alreday, just for daring to come to Germany. And if you appear as anything but the cliché US citizen, presenting your own style instead of following mainstream, or - in short - enter the class barefoot from day one on (weather and temperature conditions being in your comfort zone, that is), your classmates are most likely to think that being totally cool. OK, considering your cute nickname, I rather think that you're more inclined towards punk types...

You know, like in this drawing (and I bet, she's a barefooter, too... "saving the planet" and the peace sign on her vest speak a barefoot language):



Rats are typically punk, as far as I've come to know.
And they're persistent... I had a few of them chewing through the wall of my wooden trailer, when I used to live in an alternative trailer commune known in German as "Bauwagenplatz". Also a good place to meet barefooters as well as totally non-mainstream people.

This was my little orange house on the prairie, back when I was a homeowner of a different sort:



(More pictures from that place here)

And if not all classmates do, stick to the ones who will. And there will be at least one person admiring you for it. That could then be your first barefooting friend in Germany. Stick to him/her and spend barefoot time together. For that friend will most likely want to be barefoot just like the cool girl from the US of A.

atriot:

Es wackelt mit seinen nackten Zehen,

der ~*Ganesha*~

 

When I was in Berlin in the early 1980s, many young Germans went barefoot in the summer (and also in the smaller town of Munster, where I spent a month). I don't know whether things have changed since then or not.

 

That is a really nice drawing. The rat makes me think of my ratties. when my hair was longer, they'd always try to grab onto it and make a nest with it. I'm not quite punk, but I am a little different. My ears are stretched to a 2 gauge and I have my tongue pierced. I used to have colorful hair, but not anymore. I was thinking of putting some color in again, but I'm not sure.

It's interesting to hear that my classmates will think I'm "cool" for being from America, since I've heard about some of the negative stereotypes of us. One of my friend's brothers was in the same exchange program last year and said he was welcomed very warmly, but he's really charismatic. Me? Not so much.

Darn rats! I've got to get my rats to go yell at them for messing up your old house!

Of course I'd want to stick with the classmates who are supportive. Who wants to hang out with a party pooper? I'll make sure to make some cool friends while I'm there. With the internet and all, keeping touch afterwards won't be too much of a problem. Isn't technology amazing? :2thumbsup:

 

Oh, yeah, I was being Captain Obvious, when writing that, wasn't I?
Of course, we want to hang out with the people who like us. but I was emphasizing that, since you might get a good chance of adding real-life and living barefooters to the network you've begun establishing by posting here...

Indeed, technology is amazing. Even though I am a very hippie person, very much wanting to be as close to Nature as possible, preferring to touch Her skin with bare feet - gently, lovingly - I also cherish the possibility of communication via a network that originally was designed to be a functional communicative device in case of a nuclear war. Sweet irony, isn't it? Hey, DARPA, take a look... the barefoot hippies have taken over!
:smilielol5:

Wiggling bare toes, wishing you all the best when barefooting Germany,

~*Ganesha*~

 

I got what you were trying to say and all, I just felt like being a bit of a smarty pants. It's what I do. :sunny: It will be cool to meet new people. I'm so excited!

Yes, we have taken over. *evil laugh* Well, not quite, but you know what I mean.
Thanks for the good wishes. I hope you don't have any problems in your barefooting. "The Look" will probably always happen, and winter can be a pain in the butt, but one can dream.

Also, happy belated birthday! arty:

 

Stimmt, aber dein Deutsch ist ganz schlecht!