German Grocery Store Shuffle

Successfully checking out at a German grocery store is a complicated dance.  When I was young, it was my job (along with my other sisters) to bag up the groceries at the end of the conveyor belt while my mom dealt with the payment of it all.  We loved it.

In the US, there is a long conveyor belt before the cashier, and a long conveyor belt after the cashier.  The first belt gives you space to load up groceries while you wait so that you don't slow things down.  And the second belt gives you plenty of space to organize and pack up your groceries before bringing them home.


I am not currently in the US so I had to copy this from online.  I might have gotten the directionality of it all wrong, but the point made in my commentary is still the same.

 

I miss this space.  Look how happy it makes the people bagging.

In Germany, there is a short conveyor belt before the cashier, and a stubby counter after the cashier.  The first belt hardly gives you enough space to artfully balance all of your items on top of the others, which is a skill in and of itself.  And the nub of a counter gives you no space whatsoever to do anything with your groceries besides struggle, crush, and drop items.  If you do not pack up quickly enough, you will suffer the wrath of every customer behind you, as well as the cashier.

On your mark, get set, go!  Slow and steady DOES NOT win this race.  It will just get you pushed by an old lady who moves faster than you.

After a year, we have learned many coping mechanisms, such as cramming everything quickly back in the cart and then pushing the cart off to the side to pack up the groceries for transport.  Even though we know how to deal with it now, we still hate it and it will bother me until the day we return to the US.