Fantasy vs. Reality

Disclaimer:  I couldn't find a better word than "fantasy" when searching my noggin for the past 10 seconds, but this really isn't about "fantasy" at all.  It's really about what I envision - good or bad.

Take, for instance, Germany.  As I am clicking through Rosetta Stone lessons, reading German phrase books and various travel books, I envision Germany and our post as a little village with old women wearing black tights and head scarves shuffling through town and walking among tall cottage-like buildings spaced right next to one another to buy bread.  I'm picturing narrow cobblestone streets.  And horses.  And, occasionally, men strolling through with their travelling cloaks.

I'm picturing a very old world, rustic style Germany.

That's when I freak out and wonder if I'll be able to have my make-up shipped out there.  (as it turns out, Ulta is one such place that ships to APO addresses!  More free plugs for Ulta!)

However.

I have seen other pictures (proof, even) of a much more modern country.  (um?  obviously?)  Yes, the streets are narrow (so I hear - which is why we've opted to sell John's humungo American truck), and hey, they may even be paved with cobblestones, but there are still plenty of modern conveniences to be had.  The post, for example, will have many things we need at the Commissary and PX.  For some reason, I was picturing this bubble of modern times (the post) in an old world setting.

I have no idea where my expectations come from.  Maybe I'm reading too much Harry Potter.


(I found all of these pictures on a google image search.)