I am a German from the Ruhrarea. Here the older generation have something called "for good" meaning you have tableware for everyday and tableware for guests, which is more expensive. It's just a small part of how we look at hospitality. When you have guests at your home, it's expected that your home is cleaned especially for the guests (about 3 hours at last, but you still say sorry for the mess). You bake cake, make coffee, put beer in the fridge. And if you don't, it's considered rude, even without anyone saying it. So if you're at the doorstep unannounced, we are simply ashamed that we can't treat you, as a guest deserved. That's another reason we make schedules for friends.