German Stereotypes

I've never been to Germany before, an honestly have never taken a particular interest in it in the media or history besides learning about the holocaust. That being said there were still certain stereotypes that came with how I pictured Germany- some positive, but also some negative. For one, I always imagined Germans to be somewhat intimidating, possibly a stereotype that came into existence from studying Nazis and the holocaust. I imagined the adults to be strict, stern, and look down on teenagers- especially Americans. As for German teenagers I expected them to be a bit rebellious, as the one German boy I knew was the epitome of teenage rebellion. As far as appearance of the overall cities I expected them to be very pristine and clean, with not much garbage or homeless on the streets. I expected gothic looking churches and houses, with many fairy-tale looking cottages. I'm sure when we actually arrive in Germany nearly all of these stereotypes will be dis-proven, but as of now, these are the first images that come to mind when I think of Germany.