German Secrets

Ken Taylor ist Archäologe und bekannt für seine Arbeiten über antike Bauwerke, himmlische Ereignisse und deren mythologischen Hintergrund.

1;List of Contents;62;Introduction;93;Achtung!;114;Angst;125;Beate Uhse;126;Beer;147;Bosses;158;BreakfastRolls;169;Bureaucracy;1710;Cars;1711;Cheers!;1912;Christmas Markets;2013;Clubs;2114;Der - Die - Das;2215;Dinner for One;2416;Directness;2517;Dogs;2518;Doktor;2619;Du and Sie;2720;Facial Hair;2821;Family;2922;Food;3023;Football;3224;Funny English;3325;Geography;3526;Goethe;3727;Handshaking;3728;Health;3829;History;3930;Humour;4131;Hunting;4232;Instant German;4433;Inventions;4934;Italy;5035;Mittelstand;5136;Mobile Phones;5137;Money;5238;Music;5339;Names;5340;Nudity;5441;Oktoberfest;5442;Ostalgie;5643;Perfection;5644;Punctuality;5745;Religion;5746;Rubbish;5847;Rules;5948;Sauerkraut;5949;Schiller;6050;Skiing;6151;SmallTalk;6152;Stammtisch;6253;Television;6254;Tipping;6355;Toilet Attendants;6456;Toilets;6557;Tourism;6558;Trains;6659;Wagner;6760;Wine;6961;Work and Pleasure;6962;World War II;7063;Xmas;7164;Zeitgeist;7265;Birkenstocks, Beer and Bratwurst;7666;Time is of the essence;7667;Teutonic perfection and efficiency;7768;All work and no play;7869;Brutally honest;7870;Germany's past;7971;The arrogant German;7972;Humourless in Berlin;7973;Prussian bureaucracy;8074;Sprechen Sie Englisch?;8075;Business,Romance,andNationality;8176;Business Advice;8177;Pragmatic love;8278;Vive la France!;8379;Rule Britannia!;8480;La Dolce Vita!;8481;Statistics;8582;The Authors;8783;Acknowledgements;88

Achtung ! (p. 10)Thanks to Hollywood films, comic strips, and the Rock Band U2, the German word "Achtung !" is now firmly embedded in the English language. And what a useful, life-saving word it can be. So much more concise and precise than its English cousins "Watch out !", "Be careful !" or "Pay heed, kind Sir !" If a light-flashing Porsche is bearing down on you at 240 kph, you don't want to mess around with unnecessary syllables. Of course, we do use the word "attention" but never in the context of giving a warning or caution.The following wordplay joke, originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4, has even been known to raise a smile in Germany. Tell it carefully: A German farmer walks across a field, slips over in the mud, and falls face down into a cow pat. Rising to his feet, the only thing he can say is "Ach ! Dung !"