Kultur 11

I thought the article Backward Southerners, Frigid Northerners: Germany’s Real Divide was very interesting because it definitely made me think of America. I knew Germany had slight differences in dialect and even culture, but I never thought it was that different. I think American southerners have that stereotype as well...

I also thought it was interesting that "East Germans" have nostalgia for life in the DDR. Both Breaking Down the Wall in the Head and Ostalgie talked about this East/West division. In the Ostalgie article I thought it was funny that you can buy souvenirs from the former DDR. I can buy souvenirs from the American good old days at a shop at most malls. Those stores are for people with nostalgia or interest in the 1940s-70s and even later. And about the fact that 57% of "Easterners" felt more free in the DDR was pretty startling because I definitely never thought of it like that, I just think "communist". But what an interviewer said made sense. There is more poverty in "East" Germany now and many people do not have as good jobs or even opportunities than before. Like he said, people are unable to travel (due to money) like in the past.