The extreme order to rubbish!

The extreme order to rubbish! Germans are renowned worldwide for order, cleanliness and punctuality. What most people don't realize is that this fame also extends to how they deal with their garbage. Dealing with rubbish is a maze for a foreigner like myself and there are few clues to help you sort your way through.

First, there are three different trash containers that everyone has to have. Bio or compost, recyclables, and plain garbage. Each requires its own separate bags which are purchased just for that use. Recyclables go in the yellow, garbage in the green and bio in the bio. Pity the person who uses an improper bag! Nothing causes such powerful feelings of disdain among people here as does disorganized and improperly packaged trash!

Then, each one of the three has its own pick up dates. The compost is once a week, and the other two happen maybe once every two months. There is also old paper pick up which is once every three months or so, and special recycling bins for cans and glass in designated spots throughout the city.

The complications truly arise when you are faced with such items as tea bags or old toothbrushes. In which container do they go! The yellow, the green or the bio? Many a peal of laughter can be heard emitting from kitchens throughout the country as people attempt to sort out their garbage!