Germany.

Originally divided by hundreds of borders

Borders both political and religious.

Until the German unification in 1871, there was no real Germany. It was a rather loose confederation of hundreds of small states. You had to pay toll dozens of times when you wanted to go by road from what today is one end of Germany to the other.

In 1618-1648, Germany was the battlefield of the Thirty Years' War - a war of religions, as half the smaller or bigger German states was protestant, and the other half catholic. More than 30% of Germany's population died in these 30 years. Remember that about Christianity when you today look at Syria. I sincerely hope the Muslim world can avoid such long-term, large-scale, atrocious sectarian conflict.

Atrocities during the Thirty Years' War.

Proud part of Europe

The Schengen Area comprises 26 European countries that abolished border controls. If you drive from Germany to e.g. France, you might notice some road sign telling you when you cross the border - other than that, you will see nothing.

Even the former border checkpoint facilities/buildings are gone mostly. Combined with the common currency of the Euro zone, this gives a feeling of freedom to us that is now normal for young people, but would be unimaginable a couple of generations ago.

That's part of the reason why many Germans feel so strongly positively about Europe and the EU, despite the various problems.

You get to see a nice border sign, but that's about it.

Politics

Germany didn't invent Green politics - but here, the Green movement got mainstream popularity for the first time. A green politician, Joschka Fischer, was vice chancellor and minister for foreign affairs from 1998 to 2005.

Similar, the Pirate Party movement has its roots in Sweden, yet got larger success for the first time in Germany, conquering a dozen seats in Berlin's state parliament.

Drink with 16, Drive with 18

I guess it's not a rule that is unique to Germany, but it's often surprising to people from the US. You can legally buy and drink beer with 16, but not get your (car) driving license before 18.

One of the effects is that nearly every German experienced the loss of motoric control caused by alcohol many times before learning how to drive a car. Thus, the majority knows of the dangers, contributing to the low death rate by car accidents in Germany.

There is danger in beer. But also so much joy.

Cars

Indeed, Germans are more obsessed about their cars than many other countries. If you classify cars by size/price, Germans have a much higher share of large cars (e.g. Mercedes C+, BMW 3+, Audi A4+) than other European countries.

Also, you will see Germans care much more about their cars not being scratched or bumped into than in, say, France or Italy - where people are generally relaxed about even small accidents.

German cars always sold well internationally - e.g. the pretty beetle.

Streets

Many people think of the Autobahn when they think of Germany. While it is true that on many of these highways, there is no speed limit, there is still a recommended maximum speed of 130 km/h. It's not illegal to go (far) beyond it, yet in case of an accident, it might get you a partial responsibility to have gone faster.

And, there is a movement -rooted in fuel efficiency- to introduce a general speed limit. Hotly debated topic, and often parties clearly state whether they are for or against it in a general election.

Come on, Iceland. Are you serious?

Street Food

The most popular street food in Germany is the Döner Kebab, of Turkish origin. Especially in Berlin, you find a booth at every corner. 2nd comes the Currywurst (a grilled sausage with ketchup and curry powder).

Nowadays, the Döner usually comes with red and white cabbage - even Turkish food can be Germanized a bit.

Food

The -percievedly very Germany- Currywurst lets us think about a key ingredient: tomatoes. Which isn't native to Germany and got popular only in the last 60 years.

As you can imagine, before the immigrants came to Germany with their recipes and ingredients, Germany was a pretty dull place food-wise.

Immigration

Brings us to the cultural effects of immigration. A vast majority of Germans would agree that the culture (food-wise most prominently) that the immigrants from Italy, Turkey, Greece etc. brought, made Germany a far, far more liveable and likable country.

Football

By far the most popular sport in Germany. Basketball, Handball and Ice Hockey come after football - but even combined, they might enjoy just 10% of football's popularity.

The German football association has more than 6 million members - in a country of about 80 million.

German Football also profited heavily from immigration. Just look at Arsenal's new star - Mesut Özil, or at Real Madrid player Sami Khedira. Or at our two strikers of Polish heritage - Lukas Podolski and Miroslav Klose.

Special about German football is that the cliubs are not allowed to sell 50% or more to investors. This keeps them in the hands of the clubs, who are ultimately controlled by the supporters.

One of the effects of this are ticket prices: you can get a full season ticket at Bayern Munich for less than €150. At Arsenal, the cheapest season ticket does sell for more than €1,000. And even at a smaller Premier League club in England, tickets will be more expensive compared to the German Champions League winner.

Image source for all images: Wikipedia.