Upon first arriving in München, I had difficulties compromising the experiences and values I gained in Chile with what I was observing and experiencing as a foreigner here. My time in Latin America drastically changed my ideas of what is normal or intelligent behavior, especially as a foreigner in a large city. I quickly began to notice how loud Americans are as compared to Chileans - not just in volume (though you can hear an American a block away by the volume of her voice), but in behavior as well. We tend to stand out - we wear flashy clothing, have comparatively fluorescent skin (some of us more than others), lighter hair, are often taller, and take up more space when we walk. Additionally, Northern americans will normally take out a camera or cell phone or wallet in public with no strong reservations. In Chile, private conversations were more private - you couldn't here chileans talking loudly from the other end of the micro, as they tend to speak in quieter voices. Additionally, all Chileans took for granted that you do not flaunt expensive possessions in public. Take out a wallet,camera, or cell phone, for that matter OWN one without securing it to your person, is simply asking for it to be stolen.
Germany is similar to North American in these aspects, if not more so... At one point, I was thoroughly convinced that Munich no more than 12 actual Germans, given the sheer amount of backpacks, bikes, and cameras I saw. Not to mention the lighter hair, pale skin and loud voices. Except that most of the voices tend to be speaking in German....Clever tourists, trying to blend in, I thought. No way germans would be comfortable with that level of volume or with taking money out in public. Or were they? That was a revelation in itself....
It's interesting how rapidly "european" habits come back - carrying a wallet loose in my bag, being comfortable with money, taking a camera out in public, speaking in louder tones.... I miss a lot of Chilean culture, though - bartering, the natural beauty of the city, the language, dancing... I miss my families. I miss the ocean terribly. I miss giving kisses as greetings, I miss the everyday interactions I grew accustomed to there - verbal and non-verbal. And I'm sad to feel that all fading away; I feel as if allowing myself to become accustomed to German culture would be a betrayal of my time in Chile, an acceptance of that fading memory.
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