experiencing what we already felt

here are two examples of people coming to germany only to have their previous knowledge confirmed:

a) a friend of mine is very liberal politically, and leans towards a more socialized form of healthcare in the usa (among other things). he has had longstanding back problems and recently had to have surgery. as he described it to me, his experience was incredibly positive - he was able to have surgery the same day he went in and the doctors were incredibly helpful and accomodating.

b) another friend of mine is is politically conservative who feels particularly strongly against the inefficiency of the federal government (among other things). this friend has hired a (private) realtor to help him find an apartment, but this realtor was, until the last few days, generally very slow and inefficient. even though she doesn't work for a government agency, i would guess my friend saw her unwillingness to work quickly as part of a greater socialized and generally slower culture.

it's just funny how these people both came abroad, and without any subconscious guidance (nobody chooses their hospital experience, and the realtor was picked with no previous knowledge), have had their own personal beliefs affirmed.

i wonder how what i'm experiencing (turkish immigrants that speak beautiful german, berliners that are never able to give directions in their own neighborhood, and strangers that seem frosty but melt at a soft spoken entschuldigung) is building or breaking down/reinforcing what i already knew.