Public Nudity

[pippin]

"When it comes to taking your clothes off, Germans are an uninhibited bunch, beaten perhaps only by the Swedes. . .people have been taking their clothes off in public in Germany for a long time,as part of a distinct and respectable post-enlightenment intellectual tradition. " The Nazis banned the FKK (The Free Body Culture)
" . . .bu after the war more and more Germans started taking their clothes off again, especially in communist East Germany, where stripping off became a popular leisure activity, of which even Marx might have approved. As one FKK veteran recently put it: "We are all equal when naked." :eyes:

These days the picture is mixed with nude sunbathing acceptable in parks and gardens, and spontaneous games of naked volleyball on Germany's Baltic beaches a regular occurrence. "

http://www.guardian.co.uk/germany/article/0,2763,1041407,00.html

Could never happen here in the U.S.

[gristy]

1. Wow!

Now that is an interesting article. And even MORE interesting pics! I'm a bit surprised at how graphic those photos are!

[ForrestGump]

5. I didn't see any pics!

:-(

Stop teasing! :P

[FlashHarry]

2. I've experienced German public nudity first-hand!

And, it was kind of scary... I was visiting a girlfriend in Heidelberg years ago and we stayed at the Holiday Inn there. It had a beautiful Roman-style indoor pool, so we decided to go swimming. After a few minutes of having the pool to ourselves, the sauna doors opened and six totally naked Germans burst out and jumped in with us. Now, I was raised in Europe. I've been to topless beaches and thought nothing of it--but the sight of six large Germans hurling themselves at us was a bit of a shock! (Let's just say they didn't look like Heidi Klum or Michael Schumacher...)

Yep, the Germans are sure uninhibited. Remember, this is a country where porn/sex-shop pioneeress Beata Uhse was considered a national treasure...

On edit: And let's not forget, Ms. Uhse was a former Luftwaffe pilot!

[trof]

11. Me too. My "Badekappe" story:

So there I was, at the Munich Hilton, for two months temporary assignment for TWA. We're flying a 727 shuttle for TWA passengers between Munich, Frankfort, and Stuttgart.

I learn that the hotel (indoor) pool is "bathing suit optional". I am feeling brave and adventurous and maybe a bit exhibitionistic and I figure "when in Rome...". So, one morning I go down to the locker room, shed my clothes, grab a towel, and walk out to the pool. There is a plaque on the wall (in German) that appears to be pool rules. So far my German is pretty limited, "Ein bier, bitte". Well, I won't run or spit on the floor or bring any glass containers, etc. I know pool rules. I have the entire place to myself. I dive in and start some laps. Feels good skinny dipping.

A few minutes later an attendant comes out and starts to gesticulate and yell at me. I swim over to the side.
"I'm sorry, I don't speak much German."
"Ah...sorry sir. It is forbidden to swim without a badekappe...a swimming cap, to keep the hair from clogging the drains."
"Oh. Sorry. Where can I get one?"
"We have them here. I will bring you one. It is 7 marks. I can put it on your hotel bill."
"Fine. Thank you."

What he brought me was a thin, white latex skullcap. Kind of like a condom for your head. It is, by far, the dumbest looking thing I have ever had on my head. I can still put it on, look in the mirror, and crack myself up for several minutes. What really got me, though, was the fact that even back then I had a LOT more hair on the rest of my body than I did on my head. I guess that didn't count.
???:wtf:???

[FlashHarry]

13. LOL!!!

How... German of them!

[Castilleja]

23. We went to a spa in Germany also

a large one, with my husband's uncle, who helpfully tipped us off to the fact that you should make sure to place your feet on your towel, but that sitting nude on benches, etc. was fine. We had a nice time, outdoor heated pool, sauna's everywhere.

[DS1]

3. At some point in my life, I will live in Germany

I'm taking German in college this semester, and taking to it like a fish to water, finally a foreign language that's somewhat logical, instead of that bullshit Spanish that high schools ram down our throats!

Es Geht mir famalos!

[FauxNewsBlues]

4. Now, I am no prude

But, is the world really crying out for more naked Germans? Helga, keep your skirt on!

[never cry wolf]

6. There is a park in downtown Copenhagen

where the working women go in the summer at lunch to work on their tan, topless.

[wtmusic]

7. Saw two women butt-naked

suntanning in a park in the middle of Munich. Also a little girl who had to go pee was pulled by her momma from a vegetable market to a bush, where she just let it rip. Americans were the only ones paying any attention.

[populistmom]

8. The Swedish

My maternal grandmother is 100% Swedish and the Swedes are just very relaxed about nudity and the body. It's not like you were naked publically, but there was never anything "dirty" about nudity either.
My mom had a nursing mother painting in our house and my dad had another nude painting. Everyone's privacy was respected, but it was just never a big deal either. Issues were hidden and questions answered. That's how I raise my own children as well.
My only public nudity was occasionally having to discreetly breastfed a hungry baby.

[dutchdemocrat]

9. Here in Holland

We take our clothes off all the time. Parks. Beach - whereever. No big deal. Sauna's and health clubs? It's the norm.

[trof]

17. Zaandvoort!

Did I spell it right?
Had a 3 day layover in Amsterdam one August and took the train out. Walked down to the nude end of the beach, trying not to gawk. I am SO American. Mostly guys, anyway.

The sexiest thing I saw was a "reverse" striptease. A lovely, totally nude young woman, getting dressed for the trip home right outside the bar we were in. Hard to explain that.

[Kellanved]

10. the "tradition" part is outdated

Today most nude swimmers (etc.) just do so without a message - to the anger of the traditionalists.

War of the Naked:
http://www.expatica.com/germanymain.asp?pad=197,212,&item_id=33368

[supernova]

12. God how I miss Europe!

:loveya:

There's a certain personal freedom there esp with the public nudity, that we lack. I wish we could learn from it. Sheesh, we're so uptight.

I think everybody should have a nude day at the park!

[ForrestGump]

15. Good idea! Let's get together and have one! A DU nude-in.

You go first, though... :D

[LWolf]

14. Maybe not in public

but not all americans are body shy, prudish, etc. I think it has a lot to do with the american obsession with perfect bodies, with perfect defined as "rare and impossible for most. And the rest of you normal people keep it covered."

I have friends...a 25 year-married couple, who are nudists. At home. Not in public. The wife invites all of her female friends over for food, swimming, gossiping, drinking, playing pool, or whatever else we feel like doing, once a month. We get anywhere from 15 or so to 30 or 40 of us showing up any given month. We swim and hot tub all night, bathing suits optional. Most of us don't bother with them. Of course, it's women only, except for the husband. He doesn't leave home for us; he circulates, chats, plays pool, sits in the hot tub...and nobody thinks twice.

[ForrestGump]

16. YES!

Oh, sorry - thought this was a poll.

[Blue_Chill]

18. We must address this problem immediately!

Without "spontaneous games of naked volleyball" our society is doomed!

lol sorry couldn't resist. Especially since I go clubbing often and see spontaneous nudity almost every time I go out and hit the town.

[rainydaywoman]

19. One of the great things about living in the woods!

I absolutely love getting naked and playing in the rain. I can do it here because I only have one neighbor and he's at work all the time and he would have to use binocular to see. I wouldn't care if he did see, but being a repuke he might call the pigs.

I wish we could loosen up some here in the U.S., but it seems we are just getting tighter. sigh

[Boudica]

20. When I was in Germany...

My husband and I were in Germany we went to the "swimbads" which had coed naked sauna rooms and hot tubs and it was no big deal. In the swimming pools everyone wore suits. The nudity was no big deal. We agreed that a facility like that where kids were in the building would not exist for long in the states.

I never saw children in the sauna or hot tub area, but they were in the swimming pools.

To fast forward to today, at work the "massage guy" comes once a week. Some of my female co-workers to be touched like that means sex to them. They can not seperate a theraputic back rub from a sensual one. None of male co-workers will get a massage at work.

I would not dream of telling most people about going to a naked sauna because of the reaction most Americans would have. This is the first time I every told anyone about this part of my time in Germany.

[trof]

21. Well, now yer busted.

Pretty soon it'll be all over the Lounge and then it's just a short step to GENERAL DISCUSSION!
"psssst...did you hear Boudica went to some nude nazi orgy thing in Germany? She must be a Dean supporter. They're like that ya know. Buncha preverts."
You poor thing.
;-)
Welcome to DU.

[SPICYHOT]

22. Good to know more about europ.

I have been accepted in Aarhus University for the next year!so it seems that i'm gonna have a lot of fun there!!!! :evilgrin:

[Castilleja]

24. My husband has been fishing nude lately

and surfing nude. His latest thing is weed-eating nude, I am not sure about the wisdom of that one! I have been going out to the beach with him, to a spot that is blocked to cars and apparently an unofficial nude beach ( we see a few others there). It is really enjoyable to be in the ocean with nothing on, I would recommend it. But, don't forget sunscreen!

[zekeson]

25. Some time ago I dated a girl who had just returned from a year in Sweden

she couldn't keep her clothes on. Bummer. :evilgrin: Was really pissed at how prudish the US citizenry was. Her year abroad really opened her eyes.