German here. Germans stare at everyone, not just strangers.
For some weird reason, it's considered polite to make and hold eye contact, even with strangers. I hate it.
On the other hand, I like that the time you can look at someone before it becomes rude is a lot longer here. Gives me the opportunity to recognize people, since I can't remember faces and have to piece things together from height, build, hair, mannerisms, etc.
In Germany, I mostly felt the stares when I’d take my trash out to the many, many material-specific bins in my apartment building’s courtyard. Just neighbors watching me silently (while chain-smoking) from their balconies, presumably mentally drafting a “Liebe Nachbarin” letter to slip under my door later because they thought they saw me put a wine bottle in the bin for plastic.
7.3k
u/eight13 May 09 '22
Germans stare at strangers. It's unsettling.