The Two Sides of Germany

 I often have two sides of viewing things in Germany, and they conflict.

I get hyped-up and enthusiastic about riding the German rail system.  Things work, generally as advertised.  Schedules are easily understood....you can plan a four-leg trip and not run into too many issues.

But at the same time, I get fairly negative over the built-in problems.  Over a vast amount of the network.....renovation is continually taking place and such-and-such route that you took last year for a two-hour trip....now takes three hours.  The air-conditioned car?  Well....it marginally works at beyond 30C (86F), and you won't last more than 30 minutes when the temp reaches 34C....meaning you have to avoid afternoon rides in mid-summer.  

I get hyped-up and enthusiastic about the autobahn system because it's planned well, and easily understood for entry/exit situations.

But at the same time, I get fairly negative about continual and constant renovation work.  In mid-summer periods, it's almost impossible to travel northward on a Saturday because of the massive traffic.  The bulk of the autobahn rest-stop bathrooms?  I'd avoid them.

I get hyped-up and enthusiastic about German police....because they generally know their skillsets, their purpose in life and provide safety/stability.  

But at the same time, I can draw you various no-go areas of most major German cities where the safety level is unacceptable, or the drug-traffic is openly condoned by the city council.

I could probably make this a 500-page essay, but the jest of this is that you have to stand back and observe the whole landscape.  There are a thousand reasons why spending two weeks or a month on holiday in Germany makes sense.  There are also a thousand reasons to not oversell the situation and think of the whole country as one massive Disneyland.