Siegburg on Sunday:
Essen on Monday:
With that friends, I'm on the plane tomorrow.Seacrest out. (Memo to self: must get some new post-2003 US cultural lingo.)
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Number 8 Siegburg and Number 9 Essen
I'm annoyed with my inability to get photos nicely arranged with words in blogger. Therefore only photos.
Essen on Monday:
With that friends, I'm on the plane tomorrow.
Seacrest out. (Memo to self: must get some new post-2003 US cultural lingo.)
Essen on Monday:
With that friends, I'm on the plane tomorrow.Seacrest out. (Memo to self: must get some new post-2003 US cultural lingo.)
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Number 7: Dortmund
The weekend before this past weekend was both Hagen and Dortmund. Ok, ok I'm a little behind in the writing. Dortmund is a large German city with much to see. Unfortunately it was way to crowded and wet to really enjoy the Xmas market.
Upon exiting the train station you see a giant, like two stories tall Santa. Next to him is a Rhino statue dressed up like Santa. These Rhinos were all over the city with various costumes.
First the usual:
A bell started to clang and a light show started on the side of a shopping center. All conversation ceases as everyone watches the light up Santa in his sleigh scross across the building. It ends in an advert.
Then the rain starts to come and we scurry like rats under the nearest store awning. Oh the Xmas spirit!
Apparently this is the part of the light show where they release fake smoke, similar to what one would experience in a nightclub at 2 AM, rather than on an ultra crowded, Xmas market walkway.
So now we're damp rats sqaushed together and barely able to see each other due to the fake smoke.
Time to get the heck out of dodge.
A photo from inside the train station, and while waiting for the 5 min late train back in the direction Cologne.
After dark around 2 AM coming into Cologne.
Inside the Cologne main train station they are doing an exhibit showing Cologne at the end of the war. Since the train station was dead empty at this time, some photos.
Upon exiting the train station you see a giant, like two stories tall Santa. Next to him is a Rhino statue dressed up like Santa. These Rhinos were all over the city with various costumes.
First the usual:
A bell started to clang and a light show started on the side of a shopping center. All conversation ceases as everyone watches the light up Santa in his sleigh scross across the building. It ends in an advert.Then the rain starts to come and we scurry like rats under the nearest store awning. Oh the Xmas spirit!
Apparently this is the part of the light show where they release fake smoke, similar to what one would experience in a nightclub at 2 AM, rather than on an ultra crowded, Xmas market walkway.
So now we're damp rats sqaushed together and barely able to see each other due to the fake smoke.
Time to get the heck out of dodge.
A photo from inside the train station, and while waiting for the 5 min late train back in the direction Cologne.
After dark around 2 AM coming into Cologne.
Inside the Cologne main train station they are doing an exhibit showing Cologne at the end of the war. Since the train station was dead empty at this time, some photos.
Saturday, December 16, 2006
absolutely exhausted and bottle recycling
in an effort to avoid usual 'packing like a bat outta hell the night before i fly back to the US' experience, i've spent today running around getting things in order, well in advance of flying on thursday of next week. the bulk of the xmas gifts were actually purchased in lithuania this year in oct, so it was only some supplemental 'typical' german things that had to be purchased today, such as beer and chocolate.
today was also 'bottle return' day for me. here in deutschland, when you purchase soda, beer, or bottled fizzy water, you usually pay a deposit on that bottle, be it glass or plastic or sometimes aluminum. it encourages recycling since you just paid anywhere from 8 to 25 euro cents on the bottle/can. further, it's relatively convenient, because any place that sells you a bottle with a deposit or 'pfand' must also accept back that bottle and then return your deposit.
however, there are 'networks' of recycling, so one must pay attention. sometimes you'll buy something (like a can of red bull or a bottle of pepsi) from a petrol station and another from the supermarket. both come from germany and look the same and you were charged the same pfand (25 cents) on each, although the price for the item itself could be slightly different. there could be different markings on the back of the bottle signifying to which network it belongs and words telling you to return it for your pfand. however, if you try to return the supermarket's bottle back to the petrol station, they do not need to take it back, since they can tell that you did not purchase it there, since it often has a different symbol on the back. Thus you're forced to hold on to it, and to remember that it needs to go back to the supermarket instead.
fortunately, there is often a sign next to where you return bottles that clearly identifies which symbols on the back of the bottles that they will accept, and often that water than you bought two towns away is actually part of the same supermarket network, so even through they do not sell that type of water, they will accept back that water bottle from you as it has one of their 'accepted' network symbols.
This whole complicated system could explain why many Germans seem to have a routine of buying the same one crate of beer and the same one crate of water each Friday afternoon or Saturday morning. (A crate varies in quantity depending on bottle size, but is usually standard among a certain type of beverage, i.e. water.) Then, the next time that they go back, they bring back the crates with the empty bottles completing the one in/one out loop each week. Usually you buy your beverages at the supermarket here, but they will be in a separate entrance connected to the supermarket, so you go in the 'beverage only' part separately. Or you could go to a 'drink market' which is the closest thing to a Pennsylvania beer distributor that I've ever seen.
Since I buy for one, I tend not to buy a whole crate of anything, or I'll need to step over a crate of water, another crate of beer, etc. in my kitchen of limited storage space. Therefore, I buy only a few bottles at a time in the supermarket proper. The advantage of buying beverages in the supermarket is that if you are like me and you only buy a few bottles total, then you can just pick them up as you pick up your other food. It saves you from having to go into the separate beverage place. Whether you buy in the supermarket or in the 'connected beverage place' (i'm sure there's an official German word for it), it's the same price. Finally, the soda and water selection is better in the supermarket, and they also sell more of the smaller, single serving of things, like cans of coke. When you need a bigger selection of beer or anything coming in a crate, the connected place is better.
Over time then, I tend to accumulate bottles and cans since I'm not returning them each week. I have a large box in my closet that I put empty bottles into and then every three to six months I go through it and sort them out so that I can take them in groups back to where they belong. Some just go back in the box when I know where they need to go, but it's not a destination today. Here was today's lot:
- 10 Portuguese brown glass beer bottles. No pfand, but to the recycling pods for brown glass.
- 1 Evian water bottle. oops, from France actually as the label contains no German, so no pfand. Into the 'gelb sack' or plastic recycling bag you go.
- 2 Polish beer bottles from a few months ago. From a small market in my tiny town. 13 cents each.
- 1 single can of Coke. No idea where it came from but it's in German. Back into the box.
- 1 small water bottle from a train station I occasionally go through when I switch trains going toward Duesseldorf. back into the box.
- 1 large (1 liter) glass water bottle from a Turkish pizza place one town over, back in the box.
- 3 large glass water bottles from the Kaufmarkt. 15 cents each, I think.
- 6 cans of Red Bull. They're a big hit at 25 cents each. I take along one to try at the automatic bottle return machine inside the supermarket.
- 2 plastic water bottles from the PennyMarkt. Into another bag to be taken back to the PMarkt.
- 1 plastic Pepsi bottle from the PMarkt, into that bag.
- 1 .3 Liter Sprite bottle that is of questionable origin. However, it has the pfand word on it, so it goes into in a 'questionable' bag to try at the Kaufmarkt.
- 2 glass beer bottles from Kaufmarkt.
- 6 glass beer bottles from a Belgian supermarket. They clock in at 15 cents each, so I take them down to my cellar storage area to be out of the way until I next make a Belgian trip.
- 2 plastic .5 Aquafina water bottles. Those are easy ones to return since they are sold in many places.
And on and on....
So as I was doing my final shopping/running around I was returning bottles along the way. There are two new machines at the PMarkt for bottle returns. You insert the plastic bottle into the mouth of one of the machines, it spins it inside to read the bar code and maybe weigh it, and then the mouth closes and it squashes the bottle and then the mouth opens again for another. It keeps a running tally on a little LCD screen next to the mouth, of bottles returned and the amount to be returned. Once you are out of bottles, there is a green button to press and it gives you a receipt to take to the cash register in order to get your money.
So all told, I think I made just under 4 euros total on my bottle returns today. Overall, I'm not sure it's really worth the monetary effort which is why if you are going to a picnic or on a train, people will often leave their 8 cent glass beer bottles behind as they can be heavy to carry around and there are regular 'bottle pickers' who will pick them up from where ever you leave them in a public place. If you are holding an empty, they'll even offer to take it for you and often to put it in their sack in an elaborate setup of bags rigged to a bicycle that shows that they spend 8 hours of a Sunday finding bottles for return.
However, it's one more thing sorted before going back to the US. And no, for those people in the US who are getting a bottle of German beer as a gift from me, I will not bring those bottles back for the pfand. ;-)
today was also 'bottle return' day for me. here in deutschland, when you purchase soda, beer, or bottled fizzy water, you usually pay a deposit on that bottle, be it glass or plastic or sometimes aluminum. it encourages recycling since you just paid anywhere from 8 to 25 euro cents on the bottle/can. further, it's relatively convenient, because any place that sells you a bottle with a deposit or 'pfand' must also accept back that bottle and then return your deposit.
however, there are 'networks' of recycling, so one must pay attention. sometimes you'll buy something (like a can of red bull or a bottle of pepsi) from a petrol station and another from the supermarket. both come from germany and look the same and you were charged the same pfand (25 cents) on each, although the price for the item itself could be slightly different. there could be different markings on the back of the bottle signifying to which network it belongs and words telling you to return it for your pfand. however, if you try to return the supermarket's bottle back to the petrol station, they do not need to take it back, since they can tell that you did not purchase it there, since it often has a different symbol on the back. Thus you're forced to hold on to it, and to remember that it needs to go back to the supermarket instead.
fortunately, there is often a sign next to where you return bottles that clearly identifies which symbols on the back of the bottles that they will accept, and often that water than you bought two towns away is actually part of the same supermarket network, so even through they do not sell that type of water, they will accept back that water bottle from you as it has one of their 'accepted' network symbols.
This whole complicated system could explain why many Germans seem to have a routine of buying the same one crate of beer and the same one crate of water each Friday afternoon or Saturday morning. (A crate varies in quantity depending on bottle size, but is usually standard among a certain type of beverage, i.e. water.) Then, the next time that they go back, they bring back the crates with the empty bottles completing the one in/one out loop each week. Usually you buy your beverages at the supermarket here, but they will be in a separate entrance connected to the supermarket, so you go in the 'beverage only' part separately. Or you could go to a 'drink market' which is the closest thing to a Pennsylvania beer distributor that I've ever seen.
Since I buy for one, I tend not to buy a whole crate of anything, or I'll need to step over a crate of water, another crate of beer, etc. in my kitchen of limited storage space. Therefore, I buy only a few bottles at a time in the supermarket proper. The advantage of buying beverages in the supermarket is that if you are like me and you only buy a few bottles total, then you can just pick them up as you pick up your other food. It saves you from having to go into the separate beverage place. Whether you buy in the supermarket or in the 'connected beverage place' (i'm sure there's an official German word for it), it's the same price. Finally, the soda and water selection is better in the supermarket, and they also sell more of the smaller, single serving of things, like cans of coke. When you need a bigger selection of beer or anything coming in a crate, the connected place is better.
Over time then, I tend to accumulate bottles and cans since I'm not returning them each week. I have a large box in my closet that I put empty bottles into and then every three to six months I go through it and sort them out so that I can take them in groups back to where they belong. Some just go back in the box when I know where they need to go, but it's not a destination today. Here was today's lot:
- 10 Portuguese brown glass beer bottles. No pfand, but to the recycling pods for brown glass.
- 1 Evian water bottle. oops, from France actually as the label contains no German, so no pfand. Into the 'gelb sack' or plastic recycling bag you go.
- 2 Polish beer bottles from a few months ago. From a small market in my tiny town. 13 cents each.
- 1 single can of Coke. No idea where it came from but it's in German. Back into the box.
- 1 small water bottle from a train station I occasionally go through when I switch trains going toward Duesseldorf. back into the box.
- 1 large (1 liter) glass water bottle from a Turkish pizza place one town over, back in the box.
- 3 large glass water bottles from the Kaufmarkt. 15 cents each, I think.
- 6 cans of Red Bull. They're a big hit at 25 cents each. I take along one to try at the automatic bottle return machine inside the supermarket.
- 2 plastic water bottles from the PennyMarkt. Into another bag to be taken back to the PMarkt.
- 1 plastic Pepsi bottle from the PMarkt, into that bag.
- 1 .3 Liter Sprite bottle that is of questionable origin. However, it has the pfand word on it, so it goes into in a 'questionable' bag to try at the Kaufmarkt.
- 2 glass beer bottles from Kaufmarkt.
- 6 glass beer bottles from a Belgian supermarket. They clock in at 15 cents each, so I take them down to my cellar storage area to be out of the way until I next make a Belgian trip.
- 2 plastic .5 Aquafina water bottles. Those are easy ones to return since they are sold in many places.
And on and on....
So as I was doing my final shopping/running around I was returning bottles along the way. There are two new machines at the PMarkt for bottle returns. You insert the plastic bottle into the mouth of one of the machines, it spins it inside to read the bar code and maybe weigh it, and then the mouth closes and it squashes the bottle and then the mouth opens again for another. It keeps a running tally on a little LCD screen next to the mouth, of bottles returned and the amount to be returned. Once you are out of bottles, there is a green button to press and it gives you a receipt to take to the cash register in order to get your money.
So all told, I think I made just under 4 euros total on my bottle returns today. Overall, I'm not sure it's really worth the monetary effort which is why if you are going to a picnic or on a train, people will often leave their 8 cent glass beer bottles behind as they can be heavy to carry around and there are regular 'bottle pickers' who will pick them up from where ever you leave them in a public place. If you are holding an empty, they'll even offer to take it for you and often to put it in their sack in an elaborate setup of bags rigged to a bicycle that shows that they spend 8 hours of a Sunday finding bottles for return.
However, it's one more thing sorted before going back to the US. And no, for those people in the US who are getting a bottle of German beer as a gift from me, I will not bring those bottles back for the pfand. ;-)
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Number 6: Hagen
In the search for more Christmas market magic, a new one was added this year to the visiting list: Hagen. Primarily Hagen was added because it was on the way to Dortmund and we had to switch trains there so we made a stop for their CM. It was an unknown since there wasn't much from them online about their market.First, I took the bus from the tiny town of B. where I live to the local train station. I had written down the ticket that I want, but the bus driver could not figure out how to make it happen from his machine so he told me to buy my ticket from wherever I was going to next.
After some minutes of clicking buttons on the machine at the Deutschebahn station, I was able to find it. Why didn't I go to the train office and buy from a person? They closed the info office at the station and turned it into a coffe shop. So to get a ticket from a person requires a 5 min walk over to the local public tranport office next to the main bus station which closed three minutes before I got there. Now, since I have a day ticket, let's get on the train.
Here is the view from inside the Hagen station. The station is from 1848. It is at the bottom of a region in Germany that was/is known for being industrial.
After walking 10 minutes from the station in the direction of the centrum, we found it. It is in the Volkspark.
Here is a monument that is at the entrance to the park on Karl Marx street.
Here is part of the afternoon performance line-up, a Gospel choir. They were very peppy and enthusiastic. The interesting part is that all of their songs were in English.
This is the first CM I have seen with live horses.
Here is the audience enjoying the gospel group.
A tree decked out in its very finest.
Yet another gluehwein stall that I skipped.
Ye Olde Ferris Wheel. I took the opportunity to see Hagen at dusk.
Not such a bad view, although it seemed mighty small from up there.
No, I did not notice the McDonald's at the time. They also had a Subway too.
Here it is after dark. The market started to get crowded then, so I took break for a baked potato.
Since there was still Dortmund to see, another monument shot before we go, this one in front of the train station. Next blog, the rest of the adventure in Dortmund.
Friday, December 08, 2006
Christmas market madness
or alternate title 'have ticket, will travel.' Germany offers something the Philly public transportation network does not, a 'SchönerTagTicket' NRW, or 'nice day ticket' for the NRW region. This ticket allows one to travel for the entire day on the entire regional public transport network such as the local trains and buses.
Therefore i must use it to its fullest capabilities. There will be some serious CM market visiting tomorrow. Back online on Sunday.
Therefore i must use it to its fullest capabilities. There will be some serious CM market visiting tomorrow. Back online on Sunday.
Thursday, December 07, 2006
In the spirit now...
Per Mausi's suggestion, I gave it a try:
Everyone knows the correct answer is the one I italicized. What? What do you mean people don't do that where you come from?? I've already commented upon the nicer side of religious freedom in the Philly area. In general, I find that people from the Philly area tend to be brutally honest (no wonder i can live in Deutschland so easily!) as well as bitterly sarcastic in humor, as evidenced by the following.
So all of this writing due to one goofy blog filler.
| You Are Vixen |
 Why You're Naughty: That fur pulling spat you got into with Dancer over Santa. Why You're Nice: Because even when you're nice, you're still delightfully naughty! |
Finally, what's your favorite part of Christmas?
Getting snowed in with a hottie
Buttered rum, winter martinis, schnapps
The mistletoe
The hijinks of holiday parties
-->Switching up nativity scenes for fun
Your cute little Christmas outfit
Eating Santa's milk and cookies... oops!
Being a "secret santa"
Waking up to presents
Getting snowed in with a hottie
Buttered rum, winter martinis, schnapps
The mistletoe
The hijinks of holiday parties
-->Switching up nativity scenes for fun
Your cute little Christmas outfit
Eating Santa's milk and cookies... oops!
Being a "secret santa"
Waking up to presents
Everyone knows the correct answer is the one I italicized. What? What do you mean people don't do that where you come from?? I've already commented upon the nicer side of religious freedom in the Philly area. In general, I find that people from the Philly area tend to be brutally honest (no wonder i can live in Deutschland so easily!) as well as bitterly sarcastic in humor, as evidenced by the following.
Each and every year the town puts up a traditional manger scene alongside a menorah in Memorial Park, and without fail, baby Jesus gets restless and disappears for a few days. Do I think the instigator is trying to make a negative statement about Christian religions? No, not really. I think it's a bored kid pulling a prank, and probably one from the Catholic school that I attended, no doubt. Usually baby Jesus would either reappear unharmed back in the manger, or perhaps elsewhere in town where he would be hanging out, also unharmed and all would be forgiven.
However, in 2004 NBC sent the cameras out, if you have broadband, check it out. http://www.nbc10.com/video/3997638/index.html Now we're all outraged and the baby does not reappear like usual. The the CatholicLeague picked up on the story and listed it in their 'anti-Catholic' report alongside incidents that appear to be quite negative such as people purposely destroying religious symbols such as setting fire to items in churches or leaving anti-semitic graffiti in a Temple.
What they fail to report on, however, is the past travel history of baby Jesus. They also fail to mention the year pranksters replaced the white baby with a black one and the conundrum that caused. There were whispered discussions on the topic instead of the loud complaints when he would be gone. What to say exactly? It was a perfectly acceptable manger baby, akin to the one previously there, just slightly different in appearance.
So all of this writing due to one goofy blog filler.
Monday, December 04, 2006
Number 5: Wermelskirchen Christmas Market
Here is the rest of the weekend story for J's Christmas Market Monday. Fortunately Schloss burg is already in so Wermelskirchen is just icing on the cake. Also, follow his link to see other markets: http://www.jbittner.com/germany/2006/12/christmas-market-monday-warriors.html 
We had a bus transfer in Wermelskirchen and time to eat dinner since the buses are not timed well. We went walking toward the center of town and spotted this, Ye Olde Sausage Stall. It was the signpost at the end of the street that signaled the beginning of the market.
We were not planning this one which made it even better. It was a tiny market, six food stands, a Unicef stand, two stalls with Xmas ornaments, and one that sold socks and crystal thingys that need to be dusted often. There were posters in the market also, it was a special shopping Saturday, the stores were open until 18.00 instead of the usual 14.00 or 16.00. Whoo hoo!
In addition to the stands, there was also a large tree, and a stage featuring live music, which was Xmas favorites, modern and traditional, in German and English. My after dark photos aren't so great, but you get the general idea.
I had some holiday Reibkuchen as that was the only vegetarian options. The old standby, baked potatoes, were nowhere to be found.
However, this market had the very cleanest public toilet I have ever seen in my entire life. One porta potty marked for ladies and the other for gentlemen. The ladies one was clean smelling, two full rolls of toilet paper, a tea light for light, and a full container of waterless hand cleaner. The whole thing, from top to bottom was immaculately clean. Two thumbs up!
While enjoying the Reibkuchen at a shared table, a man had left his pipe set sitting on the table. When he came to pick it up, he gave each of the four people around the table a little gift, a Gutschein (the little paper in the center of the table).
It was good for a free Gluehwein. We weren't positive about where we could use it exactly since there were two stalls selling the stuff, so we asked the older couple who also received two from him. The kindly explained how it worked exactly. Then, as they went to leave, they somehow had an extra coupon, so they gave it to us to split. How kind.
Shortly after that the market was wrapping up at at was to close at 20.00. We walked back toward the bus stop and who do we see? The Knight who we took with us on our 5 person ticket earlier in the evening. Except that now he was in street clothes instead and he said hello. I'm sure he had an interesting story to tell the friend he was with, as to why he was greeting the foreigners. I love small town Germany!
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Number 4: Schloss burg Christmas Market
We're now in prime Christmas market (CM) season so no time to waste. If you want to see more Christmas markets captured by bloggers, hop on over here: http://www.jbittner.com/germany/2006/12/4-december-2006-is-christmas-market.html
This is published in response to J's post above making it Christmas Market Monday, so more photos than I would usually do. If you don't want to listen to my whiney rants, then scroll directly to the bottom of this post for the Christmas market photos.
4. Schloss burg
Or Sb as I shall now refer to it is a castle that is located perhaps 25 min away from me, by car. It is between Cologne and D'dorf. If you're interested in German castle history, see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schloss_Burg
However, we're all about the markets today. I coerced D. into coming along for the adventure, because what is schlepping on various buses to a castle tucked away yet overrun by tourists, if not an adventure? Here is the main castle site: http://www.schlossburg.de/
It's referred to as an 'Adventsbasar' instead of a 'Weihnachtsmarkt' and supposed to be more of a medieval market so I left the reindeer antlers at home.
I had researched the bus options. It's a little difficult to get to the castle because it is in Solingen, not near anything else except hotels and restaurants that exist for castle visitors. So the buses that are going there will go there and turn around and come back. It's not en route to anywhere else, so buses are somewhat limited. Why all of this bus talk? Because I spent at least an hour on Saturday morning researching how to get there by public transport, on top of the ridiculous amount of data I already have stored in my head about the local public transport here.
Why is it so difficult you ask? Because you require either a degree in transportation logistics or law to figure out the bus rules and tariffs sometimes. I am in the VRS network which includes Cologne. Schloss burg is in Solingen which marks the beginning of the VRR network which includes D'dorf, Dortmund, etc. Because Solingen is a border town to VRS, if you are coming from nearby in VRS, you can get a ticket that will get you all of the way there without having to do multiple tickets for multiple buses. So bottom line, the best deal was to get a region 3 group day ticket which covers up to 5 people, even if we were only two.
Since I had done all of the bus ticket/schedule research, D. was in charge of getting the ticket from the driver. It was a little complex, he understood what we wanted, but it seems not to be a common request so he had to keep trying to work his ticket machine to get it to produce what we wanted. 'You go to Cologne?' 'no, Solingen--Schloss burg' 'Ah, ok. Have fun.'
We were on the first bus which took us out of the tiny town of B. where I live. We then hopped a second bus which put us in Wermelskirchen where we needed to wait for the third bus to the Castle. Because these are two different transport networks, the routes are not timed and the castle route is limited, so we had 40 minutes to kill in the middle of no where while we waited. I amused myself by taking a photo of the most decrepit bus stop in German, but that will be a different post. Anyway, we finally made it. Here is the photo of walking up to the castle:
This market is only for one weekend, so there were plenty of visitors. However, the castle grounds are quite spacious, so it did not feel crowded at all.
We walked around a little to see the grounds while it was still light out. There was a huge line to get inside the castle, so we left the inside part for a different trip.
Also on the castle grounds is the Seilbahn: http://www.seilbahn-burg.de/ which is basically like a ski chair lift that you can take from the castle hill down to the next town. I started referring to it as the 'seat bahn', but it was pretty cool:
This is published in response to J's post above making it Christmas Market Monday, so more photos than I would usually do. If you don't want to listen to my whiney rants, then scroll directly to the bottom of this post for the Christmas market photos.
4. Schloss burg
Or Sb as I shall now refer to it is a castle that is located perhaps 25 min away from me, by car. It is between Cologne and D'dorf. If you're interested in German castle history, see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schloss_Burg
However, we're all about the markets today. I coerced D. into coming along for the adventure, because what is schlepping on various buses to a castle tucked away yet overrun by tourists, if not an adventure? Here is the main castle site: http://www.schlossburg.de/
It's referred to as an 'Adventsbasar' instead of a 'Weihnachtsmarkt' and supposed to be more of a medieval market so I left the reindeer antlers at home.
I had researched the bus options. It's a little difficult to get to the castle because it is in Solingen, not near anything else except hotels and restaurants that exist for castle visitors. So the buses that are going there will go there and turn around and come back. It's not en route to anywhere else, so buses are somewhat limited. Why all of this bus talk? Because I spent at least an hour on Saturday morning researching how to get there by public transport, on top of the ridiculous amount of data I already have stored in my head about the local public transport here.
Why is it so difficult you ask? Because you require either a degree in transportation logistics or law to figure out the bus rules and tariffs sometimes. I am in the VRS network which includes Cologne. Schloss burg is in Solingen which marks the beginning of the VRR network which includes D'dorf, Dortmund, etc. Because Solingen is a border town to VRS, if you are coming from nearby in VRS, you can get a ticket that will get you all of the way there without having to do multiple tickets for multiple buses. So bottom line, the best deal was to get a region 3 group day ticket which covers up to 5 people, even if we were only two.
Since I had done all of the bus ticket/schedule research, D. was in charge of getting the ticket from the driver. It was a little complex, he understood what we wanted, but it seems not to be a common request so he had to keep trying to work his ticket machine to get it to produce what we wanted. 'You go to Cologne?' 'no, Solingen--Schloss burg' 'Ah, ok. Have fun.'
We were on the first bus which took us out of the tiny town of B. where I live. We then hopped a second bus which put us in Wermelskirchen where we needed to wait for the third bus to the Castle. Because these are two different transport networks, the routes are not timed and the castle route is limited, so we had 40 minutes to kill in the middle of no where while we waited. I amused myself by taking a photo of the most decrepit bus stop in German, but that will be a different post. Anyway, we finally made it. Here is the photo of walking up to the castle:
This market is only for one weekend, so there were plenty of visitors. However, the castle grounds are quite spacious, so it did not feel crowded at all.
We walked around a little to see the grounds while it was still light out. There was a huge line to get inside the castle, so we left the inside part for a different trip.
Also on the castle grounds is the Seilbahn: http://www.seilbahn-burg.de/ which is basically like a ski chair lift that you can take from the castle hill down to the next town. I started referring to it as the 'seat bahn', but it was pretty cool:
So we hopped off at the bottom and took a brief look around, but it seemed to be just newer residential housing so we got back on the Seilbahn to go back up to the castle grounds. The castle grounds have an old-time merry-making feel:
Then, we walked some more among the stands before stopping for an Obstwein, which is a mixture of hot wine with a fruity flair.
As we were enjoying the evening we saw many people, especially people with their dogs. At one point there was a group with nine Westies between them, some sort of Westie owner club gathering perhaps.
Finally, since the castle is usually closed by 5 PM, the last bus out was 17.51 so we left in order to catch that one. Also waiting for the bus was one of the character actors who was wandering around the castle grounds, a silver clad knight. Since the knight was going to pay for his bus ticket, we invited him instead to travel on ours, since it was a group ticket for up to five. He asked us where we were from and then showed us the sword that he had been carrying all day. No Disney there, it was the real deal, solid metal and heavy as a cast iron skillet. When we got off at Wermelskirchen we walked through town to find a place to eat before we took the next bus back. However, in the meantime, we stumbled into another market. More about that one in the next blog.
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
The third time is a charm
Christmas Market (CM) number three was last night in Cologne, specificially the market at Rudopfplatz. Why not on Sunday you ask? Because it was yet another holiday here, Totensonntag, or 'Sunday of the Dead,' translated literally. As my work colleagues explained, it is a day you are supposed to consider everything that you have done wrong. Not sure what that has to do with the dead. If anything it should be called 'Sorry Sunday' or 'Think about your sins Sunday'. Don't do anything about the wrongs, just think about them.
But anyway, in my apartment building, apparently thinking was a quick thing and the rest of the day was devoted to laundry. I ran into at least half of the apartment building in the laundry room in the cellar.
Sundays are prime CM visiting time since almost everything else is closed. However, one cannot be in a merry CM mood and simultaneously penitent, therefore the bulk of the Xmas markets are closed. However, a limited few recognize that you can get your thinking out of the way early with proper planning, so they open at 18.00 on that Sunday. If you are optimizing your CM experience and visiting as many as possible, you may be tempted to visit one of these open markets on that day. However, dear reader, it is not recommended for the faint of heart.
Last year I made the trek out to Aachen on this day. At the time it made perfect sense. Aachen is an hour away by train near the Belgian border, so it's a haul. Further, all the other markets are closed, so what a great opportunity to visit this one that is by itself and not near others that I also need to visit. Unfortunately, the rest of Nordrhein-Westfalen felt the same and made the same trip. Without a doubt, this was the most crowded CM I visited last year and it wore down some of my Xmas spirit. Therefore, I skipped Sunday this year and put the energy into Tuesday instead.
Planning your own holiday visit? As this is my fourth year experiencing the magic, here is the wisdom I pass unto you.
All over the market is a lot of yellow lighting, so it contributes to the soft, quiet mood. Around the perimeter, where there are fences, they've lined them with live pine trees to give it even more of a non-city, tucked away feel. Finally, on top of many of the huts are plastic in figures in motion, a little kitschy, like a plastic Kmart who is lovingly packed up in bubble wrap and brought out each Xmas for tradition's sake. They seem to relate to fairy tales and it appeared that people were walking around just to look at them rather than what the stalls were selling. I was enjoying a Glühwein standing near one that was three elves that were carpenters. One elf was sawing a piece of wood, one waving a latern. At the elves' feet was an old sleeping elf. Repeatedly, as people walked by I would hear in both German and English 'what is what one?' 'I'm not sure.' I was sans camera, but I may make a special trip back to capture this one for your guesses.
Please keep the recommendations coming of any special CMs I should visit...
But anyway, in my apartment building, apparently thinking was a quick thing and the rest of the day was devoted to laundry. I ran into at least half of the apartment building in the laundry room in the cellar.
Sundays are prime CM visiting time since almost everything else is closed. However, one cannot be in a merry CM mood and simultaneously penitent, therefore the bulk of the Xmas markets are closed. However, a limited few recognize that you can get your thinking out of the way early with proper planning, so they open at 18.00 on that Sunday. If you are optimizing your CM experience and visiting as many as possible, you may be tempted to visit one of these open markets on that day. However, dear reader, it is not recommended for the faint of heart.
Last year I made the trek out to Aachen on this day. At the time it made perfect sense. Aachen is an hour away by train near the Belgian border, so it's a haul. Further, all the other markets are closed, so what a great opportunity to visit this one that is by itself and not near others that I also need to visit. Unfortunately, the rest of Nordrhein-Westfalen felt the same and made the same trip. Without a doubt, this was the most crowded CM I visited last year and it wore down some of my Xmas spirit. Therefore, I skipped Sunday this year and put the energy into Tuesday instead.
Planning your own holiday visit? As this is my fourth year experiencing the magic, here is the wisdom I pass unto you.
--Plan where you want to go. My favorite site to easily see all at a glance in English: http://www.germany-christmas-market.org.uk/cities&dates1.htm
--Plan for off-peak times, in particular if you go with children, older people or those averse to German crowds (such as yours truly who still struggles to understand why Germans have no spacial reasoning, or in other words, why must every German bump into me en route between point A and B?)
--The best off-peak time for larger markets tend to be non-weekends, or near opening/closing hours on the weekends.
--Consider the tiny markets as those are often full of Xmas spirit. If you know some locals, they can often direct you to small unadvertised neighborhood markets that you would otherwise miss. One of my favorites remains the undiscovered Koeln Deutz market with around 9 stalls. It's a 15 minute walk over the bridge from the Alt Stadt, but since it is not advertised it's more of a local thing. They have fine Glühwein, a special hut for the Xmas storyteller with announced story time, and the market is decorated to the nines with children's artwork.
So back to Cologne Rudolphplatz on Tuesday night. It's a small market with around 60 stands, including two for Glühwein. The market is next to an old castle-like wall which gives it an easy, non-city feel even though you are directly in the city. There is a giant Santa statue that is two or three stories tall and in his hand is a live pine tree, the size that you would decorate in your home.All over the market is a lot of yellow lighting, so it contributes to the soft, quiet mood. Around the perimeter, where there are fences, they've lined them with live pine trees to give it even more of a non-city, tucked away feel. Finally, on top of many of the huts are plastic in figures in motion, a little kitschy, like a plastic Kmart who is lovingly packed up in bubble wrap and brought out each Xmas for tradition's sake. They seem to relate to fairy tales and it appeared that people were walking around just to look at them rather than what the stalls were selling. I was enjoying a Glühwein standing near one that was three elves that were carpenters. One elf was sawing a piece of wood, one waving a latern. At the elves' feet was an old sleeping elf. Repeatedly, as people walked by I would hear in both German and English 'what is what one?' 'I'm not sure.' I was sans camera, but I may make a special trip back to capture this one for your guesses.
Please keep the recommendations coming of any special CMs I should visit...
Monday, November 27, 2006
the magical season begins
now that T'giving has passed, it's time for my favorite time of year in Germany--queue the dancing elves--Weihnachtsmarkt--or the Christmas markets. Christmas in Germany is great. Well, unless you are a member of another religion and get no representation here, in which case, try Philly at Christmas as per my previous post. However, religion aside, I've never been a big fan of Christmas in the US, because of the intense commercialization and stress of the holiday. I came to Germany with no expectations for the season and was pleasantly and completely surprised.
The Christmas markets, (or CM) as I shall now use for the sake of typing, can be found in German cities large and small. They first ones start four weekends before Christmas, so the first ones near me were on Thanksgiving. Now that's a Thanksgiving treat.
Why are CM so great? First, because they are outside, so no crowded stuffy mall with cheap jewelry, perfume and sweaters brought out for the holidays. Instead, you browse among little sheds that have a window/counter and are decked out with decorations, lights, etc. like a little house. While a small town may have only one market, so perhaps 30 little houses selling food, ornaments, basically anything Xmas, a larger town such as Cologne or Duesseldorf will have multiple markets scattered throughout the city, some of them tiny intimate gatherings of eight huts.
So on Thursday I visited the old standby of Duesseldorf. D'dorf is nice because the markets are spread throughout the city so the crowds are dispersed also. D'dorf has a skating rink in the park which is also interesting to see.
My favorite part of the CM is the chance to drink Glühwein while watching the passersby. I'm not a big fan of the warm wine, so I often switch to hot cocoa. Instead of running around in a spending frenzy, many people are just hanging out with friends and family enjoying the atmosphere and a warm drink. To make this even better, many of the stands serve the drinks in a decorative mug, which you make choose to keep if you would like, they usually cost around 3 euros. They change in design each year and include the name of the neighborhood as well as the date. Scrooge that I am, for some reason they appeal to me so each year I drag my office colleagues out on the quest to find the best one. They are sooooo pleased.
Here is this year's from D'dorf's Altstadt or old town and the first office night at the CM. He is shaped like a snowman, as opposed to others that are shaped like normal mugs, or others like a boot. The writing is tough to read in the photo as he is perched festively among the Xmas lights on my window sill, but it references '2006' on his scarf and 'Die Altstadt' is across the front.
On Saturday I went to the small town of Opladen for their festive get-together. They are pretty tiny so they do not have their own special mugs, only generic ones. However, they still have the atmosphere, even if it was so warm that I needed only a sweatshirt and then it started to rain.
Still on the list--the usual standbys of Cologne, Dortmund, Essen and Aachen. New this year: Schlossburg is this coming weekend since it is only one weekend and I used to live near it. Also I've head great things about the Medieval one at Siegburg so am trying to get to that one.
Any to recommend that are within one hour by train of Cologne or D'dorf? Am open to any and all recommendations.
Friday, November 24, 2006
the magic of december (or november moving on)
One of the things I love about Germany...(I bet you never thought I would start a sentence like that)...is the lack of Thanksgiving. Each year, I generally forget about T'giving while I am here. No ridiculous commericals with turkeys holding 'sale!' signs, no massive crowds at the supermarket with T'giving dinner items on sale, no displays filled with candlestick holders in the shape of pilgrims, none of it! My only indication that the holiday was upon us is that my work email is quiet with our US office getting two days off and my German colleagues proudly wished me a happy T'giving.
No, it has nothing to do with being a vegetarian that I loathe the holiday. Back in my younger days when I was a meat eater I could not stand turkey, hated it. Ate it once per year on this blessed holiday, and under duress. Eventually my mother switched to the 'T'giving ham' since she always overcooked the turkey anyway so it tasted awful to my parents during the five days of turkey leftovers extravaganza. Further, I am not so fond of shopping, so now I had to sit through a day where food was the highlight (Thurs) to a day when shopping is the highlight (Fri). Black Friday in the US is like a three day holiday weekend in Germany in the final hour before the Aldi closes. Then multiply that feeling by one hundred.
I consider this holiday to be a speed bump on the way to the 'real' December holidays of Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. You are thinking, 'Heather, you cannot celebrate all three!' Of course you can, dear friend, if you are in the Philadelphia area. It was not until I left Philly that I realized 1. other cities don't have such holiday openness or equality, except maybe NYC and 2. those other cities are severely missing out on this one.
If you ever come to the Philly area in December and you are downtown near the Liberty Bell, you'll see a large life-sized Nativity scene, often with people and live animals instead of the usual plastic Kmart figures. Towering next to it on the same grassy patch is the giant Menorah with candles that light up the night with the number lit up depending on which night it is. All around the city you will see the same thing, Nativity scenes beside Menorahs. Top it all off with references around the city to Kwanzaa. Then, serve it up with periodic public displays by agnostics that eschew all religious holiday references. This same rich and multi-faceted conglomeration and mixture of cultures and beliefs is repeated and played out throughout the city in small neighborhoods.
Other cities may have bits and pieces of the above, but they never have it all brought together on the same ground with an equal right and expectation to be there so it always seems one-sided and lacking. When I lived in DC, Atlanta or San Francisco I had parts of the above, but not all of it so something always seemed missing and Deutschland is no different in this regard.
And this is one of the very few things that I truly miss about Philly.
No, it has nothing to do with being a vegetarian that I loathe the holiday. Back in my younger days when I was a meat eater I could not stand turkey, hated it. Ate it once per year on this blessed holiday, and under duress. Eventually my mother switched to the 'T'giving ham' since she always overcooked the turkey anyway so it tasted awful to my parents during the five days of turkey leftovers extravaganza. Further, I am not so fond of shopping, so now I had to sit through a day where food was the highlight (Thurs) to a day when shopping is the highlight (Fri). Black Friday in the US is like a three day holiday weekend in Germany in the final hour before the Aldi closes. Then multiply that feeling by one hundred.
I consider this holiday to be a speed bump on the way to the 'real' December holidays of Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. You are thinking, 'Heather, you cannot celebrate all three!' Of course you can, dear friend, if you are in the Philadelphia area. It was not until I left Philly that I realized 1. other cities don't have such holiday openness or equality, except maybe NYC and 2. those other cities are severely missing out on this one.
If you ever come to the Philly area in December and you are downtown near the Liberty Bell, you'll see a large life-sized Nativity scene, often with people and live animals instead of the usual plastic Kmart figures. Towering next to it on the same grassy patch is the giant Menorah with candles that light up the night with the number lit up depending on which night it is. All around the city you will see the same thing, Nativity scenes beside Menorahs. Top it all off with references around the city to Kwanzaa. Then, serve it up with periodic public displays by agnostics that eschew all religious holiday references. This same rich and multi-faceted conglomeration and mixture of cultures and beliefs is repeated and played out throughout the city in small neighborhoods.
Other cities may have bits and pieces of the above, but they never have it all brought together on the same ground with an equal right and expectation to be there so it always seems one-sided and lacking. When I lived in DC, Atlanta or San Francisco I had parts of the above, but not all of it so something always seemed missing and Deutschland is no different in this regard.
And this is one of the very few things that I truly miss about Philly.
Monday, November 20, 2006
Monday night and reflections on the weekend
Monday night is Polish class and doing homework for Wednesday morning German class. Often I do homework over the weekend as well as the requisite Saturday shopping, but this weekend I instead met some very interesting people at the 'Second Whiney Expat Bloggers in Germany Meet-up' for all of Saturday.
To explain for those of you in the US, it was a chance for non-German bloggers to meet up in person while visiting a city in Germany.
I was expecting a lot of whining as well as good humor based on the writings of those in attendance (as well as the title of the event), but somehow the whining seemed to be underrepresented. However the wicked sharp wit and overall niceness was definitely there as I was impressed by all in attendence. Eventually I'll pretty up the blog and add their links as my endorsement cannot even begin to describe or do justice to their many eloquent, relevant and sometimes absurd, yet truthful writings about life as an expat in Germany.
To explain for those of you in the US, it was a chance for non-German bloggers to meet up in person while visiting a city in Germany.
I was expecting a lot of whining as well as good humor based on the writings of those in attendance (as well as the title of the event), but somehow the whining seemed to be underrepresented. However the wicked sharp wit and overall niceness was definitely there as I was impressed by all in attendence. Eventually I'll pretty up the blog and add their links as my endorsement cannot even begin to describe or do justice to their many eloquent, relevant and sometimes absurd, yet truthful writings about life as an expat in Germany.
Sunday, November 12, 2006
writing...
have been putting together all of my notes from my Lithuania trip for the family. am up to 11 pages single spaced. if you want a copy, tell me.
Friday, November 10, 2006
St. Martin's Day - Nov 11
Tonight was the celebration of St. Martin here in the tiny German town I'm in. It's similar to the American Halloween. Children carry self-decorated lanterns on a stick and go from door to door singing about St. Martin. In exchange they receive candy or treats.
I've heard various stories in connection to it having seen a bit last year and then researching it. I've heard it's the 11th at 11 AM (tomorrow) and it is the kick-off of carnival. Although it seems similar to American Halloween, in that each community can celebrate closest to the date as they best see fit. Also, it's a celebration of the end of the collection of the harvest. It's connected to St. Martin who gave his coat to a beggar and it reminds the children of humility--that's the version the six children and two adults gave me tonight when I asked.
I had heard them singing in the building, but it seemed that only one or two people were home to open doors for them. Fortunately I had a box of candy on standby so I opened the door and they came to my door to sing and then to explain the tradition after I asked. It was probably the only time they received such a question tonight, but they were very kind and easer to try to explain in simple terms.
It's probably better than last year when I was baffled as to why Kristallnacht (Nov 9-10) would receive such a commemoration when I first saw one of the children groups wandering the streets and I was too afraid to ask the question lest I offend my German colleagues and I spent the days after looking online for "November 9 + lantern + Germany + children + singing."
I've heard various stories in connection to it having seen a bit last year and then researching it. I've heard it's the 11th at 11 AM (tomorrow) and it is the kick-off of carnival. Although it seems similar to American Halloween, in that each community can celebrate closest to the date as they best see fit. Also, it's a celebration of the end of the collection of the harvest. It's connected to St. Martin who gave his coat to a beggar and it reminds the children of humility--that's the version the six children and two adults gave me tonight when I asked.
I had heard them singing in the building, but it seemed that only one or two people were home to open doors for them. Fortunately I had a box of candy on standby so I opened the door and they came to my door to sing and then to explain the tradition after I asked. It was probably the only time they received such a question tonight, but they were very kind and easer to try to explain in simple terms.
It's probably better than last year when I was baffled as to why Kristallnacht (Nov 9-10) would receive such a commemoration when I first saw one of the children groups wandering the streets and I was too afraid to ask the question lest I offend my German colleagues and I spent the days after looking online for "November 9 + lantern + Germany + children + singing."
Monday, November 06, 2006
Iceland (again!)
Since Iceland prices and tourist volume drop greatly in the colder weather, I decided to go back. I was there from Thurs until today. It was very rainy. A fish could have survived for days on the sidewalk it was so wet.
However, it was a nice visit. I went back to the Blue Lagoon. http://www.bluelagoon.com/ It's lovely to step outside in the air temp that was just below freezing to go the 15 steps into the very warm water.
I also went to the Reykjavik Museum of Photography which was showing an interesting exhibit of photos of Poland under communist times: http://www.ljosmyndasafnreykjavikur.is/english/index.htm
Finally, I went to the Reykjavik Art Museum. I went primarily because they were opening a show of young American artists as a part of an Iceland/American program. There was an interesting talk, in English, by the Icelandic and American artists involved. Here is the main museum link:
http://www.listasafnreykjavikur.is/index.en.shtml
The weather was very bad on Sunday so many trips were either cancelled or diverted through Glasgow, so unfortunately, some people arrived in many hours late. Since I was not leaving until Monday, I was ok. On Sunday I went to Keflavik, to stay at a guesthouse near the airport since my plane left early on Monday. I wandered downtown to eat at Pizza 67, the best pizza chain in Iceland. They are the home of the 'Sgt Pepper', which is mushrooms, onions, pepperoni (i skip that), fresh chili peppers, and black pepper (of the salt and pepper variety).
I also went to the local cinema to see a movie. Movies in Iceland are usually kept in the original English, but subtitled in Icelandic. It is a small cinema with two screens and very few movie watchers on a Sunday. I went to see that new Borat movie. Along with me in the theater were around 10 gentlemen from the New York area. They were on a flight back to the US that was delayed six hours so they came to the movies. Around halfway through there is an intermission when they turn off the film for five minutes. At that time they called the airport and found out they were delayed until the next day. It was a great movie to see with other people from the US as I'm sure if I would have seen it here in Germany the Germans would have given it a different spin, although overall it was not a great movie. Then after it was over I left the theater and stepped into a hail storm. Magnificent Iceland!
However, it was a nice visit. I went back to the Blue Lagoon. http://www.bluelagoon.com/ It's lovely to step outside in the air temp that was just below freezing to go the 15 steps into the very warm water.
I also went to the Reykjavik Museum of Photography which was showing an interesting exhibit of photos of Poland under communist times: http://www.ljosmyndasafnreykjavikur.is/english/index.htm
Finally, I went to the Reykjavik Art Museum. I went primarily because they were opening a show of young American artists as a part of an Iceland/American program. There was an interesting talk, in English, by the Icelandic and American artists involved. Here is the main museum link:
http://www.listasafnreykjavikur.is/index.en.shtml
The weather was very bad on Sunday so many trips were either cancelled or diverted through Glasgow, so unfortunately, some people arrived in many hours late. Since I was not leaving until Monday, I was ok. On Sunday I went to Keflavik, to stay at a guesthouse near the airport since my plane left early on Monday. I wandered downtown to eat at Pizza 67, the best pizza chain in Iceland. They are the home of the 'Sgt Pepper', which is mushrooms, onions, pepperoni (i skip that), fresh chili peppers, and black pepper (of the salt and pepper variety).
I also went to the local cinema to see a movie. Movies in Iceland are usually kept in the original English, but subtitled in Icelandic. It is a small cinema with two screens and very few movie watchers on a Sunday. I went to see that new Borat movie. Along with me in the theater were around 10 gentlemen from the New York area. They were on a flight back to the US that was delayed six hours so they came to the movies. Around halfway through there is an intermission when they turn off the film for five minutes. At that time they called the airport and found out they were delayed until the next day. It was a great movie to see with other people from the US as I'm sure if I would have seen it here in Germany the Germans would have given it a different spin, although overall it was not a great movie. Then after it was over I left the theater and stepped into a hail storm. Magnificent Iceland!
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