I think the most common German stereotype is that Germans love to drink beer, to be dressed up in “Lederhosen” or “Dirndl” (the general Octoberfest look). Most people only know Octoberfest and think that that is how Germans are dressed the whole year, but that’s not true.
It is true that at Octoberfest most people are wearing “Dirndl” and “Lederhosen” because it is the traditional clothing, but that’s not how we look the whole year. The people in the north of Germany (where I am from) don't usually have this type of traditional clothing, because it’s not really popular there. This is mostly a tradition from the south and the majority of the people who live down there do have this type of clothing. Furthermore, this clothing is not only for Octoberfest, it is also for other important celebrations happening throughout the year.
Another stereotype is that Germans love to eat potatoes, and I must admit that that is true. All the people that I know eat potatoes with nearly everything. In fact, a lot of our traditional dishes include potatoes.
Another thing that many people think about Germans is that we are always on time and never late. That is mostly true; most people are on time and only a few are late. We also get pretty nervous when a bus or a train is late, even if the train is always a little late. When the bus is only 2 minutes late, we get nervous about missing something important like a meeting. Being on time is a stereotype for Germans but it is definitely true; we love being on time and being late can make us anxious. Most Germans are like this but, as I said there are exceptions.
-Fiona Schmitz-Germany