happy halloween

If you were a trick-or-treating on my street (which you wouldn't be doing, as that is not done in Germany), this would be what you see. Look closely and you will see the happy pumpkin lights in the window. Not the best of photos, but realistic as it is rather dark here in the country.

the great pumpkin!

Halloween is my favorite holiday and it always has been. In Europe, Halloween does not have the same following as in the US. In the German supermarket ads this year they detailed Halloween and how to celebrate it, and each year it has an increased influence. This year, I decided to bring Halloween back into my life. I coerced the dear boyfriend into attending a 'Herbsfest' with me that I saw advertised in the local paper, because I saw the beloved 'Kuerbis' in the background of the photo.

This is a general celebration of fall/autumn and includes lots of booths that sell crafts with a fall theme, food booths, sometimes a flea market type of atmosphere, and often there are one or two booths that sell pumpkins, gourds, and anything fall.

I had scoped out the first booth at the beginning, looking at all of the 'jack-be-littles' and other assorted gourds hoping that there would be a second booth but mentally steeling myself for the possibility that there would not be. I had mentally picked out a runt pumpkin, because those of your who are lucky enough to go to the pumpkin patch with me know that I will pick the saddest pumpkin available because no one loves it.

When we came back the sad runt pumpkin was gone and I was in confusion. There was not another pumpkin that jumped out to say 'take me home'. I circled and circled. Dear boyfriend set down the backpack and patiently waited. Finally I realized. Germans do not like big pumpkins since they do not do Halloween and the whole carving and the candle in the jack-o-lantern thing. Instead they choose little pumpkins and gourds and nicely arrange them in a basket next to their front door.

And that was why this pumpkin--the biggest by far of the group, maybe 15 pounds--was left alone, at a price barely more than those half his size. (OK, adjusting for the euro to dollar conversion, he cost me 10 dollars, a bit pricey for a similar item in the US.) However, the joy he has brought has been immense.

The teenaged clerk who put up with my incessant circling and and put up with bad German when I explained I wanted an 'American' Halloween pumpkin was amused when we bought him. Then, as dear boyfriend carried him through the market and back to the bus station the Germans stared with mouths agape. Ok that is nothing new.

Then, as we were walking past some tables where people were singing those happy German songs, a nice man spotted us and shouted 'Geil Kuerbis!' (Cool pumpkin!) Dear boyfriend very nicely accompanied me on the bus to carry Mr. Pumpkin back to my car, instead of us parting there so that he could take the train home from there as originally planned. Once on the bus Mr. Pumpkin garnered much admiration, especially from a man sitting across from us, a real working class gent. Boyfriend proceeded to explain how we had just bought him and that he was a good pumpkin. Germans tend not to be overly friendly in starting conversations, so this was a real surprise. Boyfriend then knocked on the pumpkin and said it was a good pumpkin. This fellow then asked if could do the same. Mr. Pumpkin-making friends around the world. Then we caused some admiring comments from some older ladies as we left the bus.

Upon bringing Mr. Pumpkin home, I put him on my balcony, on the ledge so that all could see him in his Halloween glory.

Lithuanian food photos

I have returned from Lithuania and Estonia. I still need to write up all of the notes of the family visit, but in the meantime, some photos. A while back Natalie requested food photos. Here you will see some typical Lithuania food--fried garlic bread (the photo with the brown squares that look a little like American brownies). They always use dark bread and the little white bits that you see on it are pieces of minced garlic. Once they make a batch of it, any that is not eaten will be served at room temperature the next day.

The other place is a Lithuanian vegetarian plate for me. At 6 o'clock on the plate is 'salad' which is a mixture of fresh minced cabbage, red bell pepper, some onions and perhaps some other veg which is marinated in a oil/vinegar like liquid. At 12 o'clock on the plate is roasted potatoes with cripsy fried onion bits. In the exact center of the plate is the highlight, mushrooms cooked with onions. These are special mushrooms, in Germany they are called 'pfefferlingen'. They are only available for perhaps 6 weeks in Germany before the season is over. They are a little more available in Lithuania, and in fact, I often see them here for about 6 weeks more, exported from Lithuania to Germany.

They are nothing like your 'regular' American button mushrooms. Instead they have almost a 'meaty' texture that requires some chewing. They range in color from yellow to deep orange or beige depending on the the exact variety and local differences. Here is a great photo from the German side of Wikipedia of this mushroom in full glory:
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bild:Cantharellus_cibarius_01.jpg

Hello from Lithuania

Having a great time despite the overcast and cold weather.

A dog with a job!

Often in Germany foreigners get stuck seeing only the bad parts of Germany since sometimes there are so many of them and they are so in your face. I purposely do not write about many of the negatives here, because I am a guest in this country and if I do not like the Germans I can always go home. However, ever so occasionally, I see something in Germany that absolutely causes delight for the rest of my day, so here was today's...

Often in Germany the mail is delivered on by a postal worker on foot or in my case, by a postal worker with a yellow bicycle and a flat box on the front that holds all of the deliveries. At the company where I work there is a minivan that comes since it is in an industrial complex and other companies also get loads of mail. Around the time I arrive each day at 0830-ish the lady is there, unloading around three of those cartons onto a small handtruck and carting them into the building.

One day I noticed Mr. Dog. His job is to sit up straight in the backseat of the postal minivan on a blanket and to watch the front door of the office until Postal Lady comes back. People are walking in and out and past the minivan, but Mr. Dog is undeterred and strict in his task. He barely blinks.

Today I did not leave my house until 0840 and walked to work. (Yes, I live a charmed life, I have given up early mornings and driving commutes.) I was quite close to the office and I see a lady and a dog not on a leash. He's rambling along and the lady is walking on ahead. I tend to be a little cautious about stepping between a dog and an owner, so I stepped into the street to walk along the recycle bins in order to pass the lady streetside. At that point I see the postal sign in the window of the minivan and realize, it's the Postal Lady and Mr. Dog. Of course I cannot contain my pre-coffee excitement and I stop dead in my tracks and actually say aloud 'it's the post dog!' loud enough for the lady to hear.

She is almost next to me and I feel a little silly so I then translate 'it's the post dog!' into German which probably sounds just as silly. However, I think she caught the bad accent and excused the silliness because she answered me 'yes it is.' I proceeded to tell her (in bad German) how I see Mr. Dog at the office each day, and in the meantime Mr. Dog came over so that I could pet him.

To her credit she put up with the bad German and we chatted for a few minutes. She explained that Mr. Dog is allowed to come with in Germany when she delivers mail and it's very nice, because it means that she is not alone when she's delivering mail and also, he can be protective if needed. Each morning they do their deliveries in the industrial complex and then they stop where I met him so that he can have a potty break in the trees. He was a gift dog from her friends who were leaving Germany to go to Greece and could not take him with for a variety of reasons, such as his large size.

She told me that he does the straight ahead staring thing everywhere when he is waiting. Her husband had brought him to the airport one time to pick her up and the plane was late. He was not interested in the planes circling in the sky or anyone in the airport. Instead he stared for two hours at the door watching for her to come through, not making the connection that she was still in the air and not immediately behind the door.

I told her that is was very nice that she could bring him as that is not so common in America. She said yes, and that she had seen a show once about a fire brigade in America that had a 'fire dog' but he was more of a mascot than a working dog. I compare this scenario to the US where one would never see a non-service dog in connection with the US postal service, and if one did, there would probably be some fear that his dog hair would get on a letter and cause an allergic reaction and someone to sue or something.

Sometimes, Germany in its ways can be quaint.

Oct 3 - Another German holiday

Oct 3 is German Unification Day. It's the day that Germans celebrate the recombining of East and West Germany. What do you do on that day? It's like a Sunday, all of the shops are closed, and it's not a religious holiday, so there is no church service. So what does the average German in the Cologne/Duesseldorf area do? Judging by the traffic today, we all went shopping in Holland. I took yesterday off also, so I had a four day weekend.

In other news I have scheduled the rest of my holiday for the year. Next week I go back to Lithuania and visit my cousins. From there I fly to Tallinn, Estonia, an elusive one on my travel list. All told I have a week off to the Baltics.

Then, next month Nov 1 is a holiday and then I spend a few days in Iceland once more. I am very excited to see how cold Iceland is in November and the general atmosphere there and if it is very touristed.

Off to Ikea

It's Saturday morning and am still in need of a few things for the new flat. Am crossing the border into Belgium to go to Ikea. Why drive 1.5 hours when there is one in Germany 50 min away? Because Germans seems genetically programs to have no spacial reasoning. Which, in effect, means if there is snough space for two people to pass by you, the German will bump into you. When you are in lines--assuming there is some strict structure that forces a line, because Germans tend not to do lines and will just step in front of you--if you are actually in a line you will usually feel hot breath on your neck--it's a German waiting. Then you will feel an elbow in your back or a foot against your heel. Most of the time it is unintentional, they just lack the ability to not touch you when you are in between them and where they are going.

But I digress. When my colleague and I went to the Cologne Ikea a few weeks ago it was a very painful event for me, getting bumped into at least 50 times, you'd think I was in a New York or Tokyo subway, except that in New York they would be more polite and apologize or at least acknowledge that they just clipped you in their big hurry. Here in Germany it is your fault for existing in the aisle.

Two months ago on a whim I went to the closest Belgium Ikea, which is about 20 minute past the border. As it is Ikea, it is basically the same stuff in the same store with the same layout and the equivalent huge number of shoppers. I spent three hours there and no one bumped into me. Ate in the fine Ikea cafeteria and no one stepped on me. A woman even thanked me (in French) for moving my chair in when she was trying to get past. Was pleasantly surprised and it made for a nice shopping experience. Therefore I'm going back for more.

Iceland: Part 1

Iceland is so beautiful that even someone who does not take good photos will get good photos. Let's start. I left from Frankfurt Hahn airport, which is around 2 hours from Cologne. I left from Hahn because Iceland Express leaves from there with a cheap, direct flight. Hahn was formerly a US miliary base that is up in the hills well outside of Frankfurt. Currently it caters to the cheap airline and those willing to trek up there to get the dirt cheap tickets.







This is from the coast of Vestmannaeyjar island. It is a little island that is close of the big island of Iceland. To get there, you can take a bus from Reykjavik which takes 55 minutes, and then you get on the ferry which takes around 2 hours 15 min. Many people were on the ferry. A traveler from Norway and I chatted the whole time. He told me that the Islandic language is similar to and ancient form of Norwegian, so when they spoke a certain way, he could understand bits and pieces.




The island itself has many mountains. In general Icelanders are very friendly and open. You are welcome to traipse all over their island. Everywhere that I went, people were very curious where I came from, and why I came to visit. It's a bit of a strange phenomenon, they speak American English due to the TV, movies and music, but they don't get to use it much with an American necessarily so whenever they answer you it is often two seconds later than you would expect, sort of like you are on a long distance phone call to the other side of the world.

Germany differences, part 1: healthcare

Many of you ask about the differences in Germany. One of the biggest ones is probably the healthcare here. Contrary to popular American belief, Germany does not have that ubiquitous universal, national insurance that we're always hearing about in the US (but the UK does).

As a US expat I had my US paycheck and insurance. I only went once to the doctor in Germany because it involved submitting expense forms for reimbursement and having gone once to the dentist in the UK, the insurance company would not convert the pounds to dollars. As pounds are worth more than dollars, by paying me only in dollars instead of the charged pounds converted to dollars, they saved some money. Since it was only 10 dollars in the end I could not be bothered to spend that amount in postage writing them letters to fight it, but let it be known that a certain dental insurance company that uses Snoopy in its advertisements does not treat expat dental reimbursements properly.

Fast forward to Germany. Upon becoming a German J employee, I had to take a German insurance. In Gemany there are two types of insurance: public or private. Around 90% of Germans have public insurance and the remaining 10% have private.

Public insurance is an option for all Germans. There are a variety of companies that offer it, many were formed to offer insurance to a certain company or employee union, so they exist with that background but now they are open to everyone. It depends on the company or the plan year, but they charge around 11-14% of your pay to insure you, depending on how last year went. These percentages are adjusted each year, and employees can switch each year as they wish.

Private insurance is only offered to employees who make a certain amount of money. Private insurance offers a higher level of coverage and more enhanced options to choose from. Private also gives you some leeway to create your own plan. You may choose a deductible from 200 to 1200 euro; the higher the deductible, the lower your monthly cost.

Each German must choose an insurance carrier, and then they tell the payroll department. If you choose not to pick a carrier, a standard public one will be chosen for you. Then, whether you are public or private, the company pays 50% of your health insurance premium, the only difference being that the company pays the public insurance directly, vs. for private insurance the company requires proof/cost of coverage and then pays you the 50% so that you pay 100% of the premium each month.

Why would someone choose one or the other?
If you have public insurance and you have a non-working spouse or dependent children, they are automatically covered for free under your premiums. If you have private insurance they are an additional cost.
It is easy to go from public to private--public plans must take everyone regardless of health status or pre-existing conditions. Private plans require a questionnaire before taking you and can require a physical exam if there are any doubts.
It is sometimes difficult to get in to see a doctor. However, doctors get more money from private insurance and often faster payments. Therefore, you will get an appointment faster with private insurance.
Public insurance works similarly to the US health networks that a doctor's office submits an expense to the insurance company and then bill you later for the part not covered. Private insurance requires you to submit the doctor's bill to insurance and receive payment and then to pay the doctor.
With private insurance you can request an appointment with any doctor that you like, whenever you want; public insurance requires following some procedures of who you see exactly.
Private insurance caters to the young and healthy who do not use it much. If you go an entire year without submitting any expenses, you have the ability to claim back some of the premium costs, including that which the company paid for you.

So, particularly in light of that last point, I chose the private option. Then a month ago I was playing volleyball and did something to my finger similar to what I had done previously to a different one. My colleagues did not like the black and blue color so insisted that I go to a doctor.

They were able to find me an Orthopedic/Sports Medicine specialist in this tiny town who could see me in one week. I get the feeling that they are not used to non-Germans, but they were nice enough. The office was actually an old converted house that used every square inch. There were two chairs next to a stairway that was the 'waiting area' for the x-ray room upstairs.

So for being there an hour and seeing the assistant and then the doctor, having my finger x-rayed in two positions, the doctor to look at it once more with the digital x-rays online, and then the assistant to bandage it--do you want to guess how much that cost? Having had something similar in the US the last time this happened to a different finger, I can tell you it ran a few hundred dollars, of which insurance would have covered a good chunk, if not for the deductible.

Oops, left out the final part. I was expecting to have to pay upon leaving, like in the US. They looked at me like I was crazy when I asked in bad German about the bill. You'll get the bill by mail when we write the bills. Are you kidding me? I was seen by a doctor with x-rays and all, and because I told you I have private insurance and I gave you a name, street address and birthdate, you trust that I will receive and pay the bill. Quite a change from the US doctor offices that have a big sign saying something like 'payment expected on day of office visit'.

So when I finally got the bill this week, I had slight trepidation. However, that was all for naught, as this is Germany and seeing the doctor is relatively cheap. The whole thing came up to 60 euros. A mere pittance to what I would have been chared for the same exact thing in the US. So now I need to pay and hold it to see if I go any more to the doctor. I have the ability to save bills for up to one year before submitting. Then I can see if I go again, or if it is better to pay out of pocket if I only go once and go for the 'non-use' refund instead.

Long weekend

Summer is over in Germany, so I'm going to where summer is still in full swing--Bilbao, Spain. The plane leaves Duesseldorf at 0750 Friday morning so only a quick note before I go. Back late Sunday night.

found

since the camera cord has been found and while 181 pics download, here is today's cultural adventure. over the weekend my work colleague brought her super IT boyfriend to set up my wireless because i was having some difficulties with it and choosing the right setup options in german.

the topic always comes up--heather's less than stellar german skills. because i did not study german in a university setting like i studied spanish, my german is completely off the cuff and random. i pick up a good chunk of it from the sarcastic 45 year old work colleague in front on me, so i have german words to describe 'trash talk' or a word for 'he who talks too much' but i lack some basics like toothpaste since that one doesn't come up in the office.

as super IT boyfriend was fixing my pc it gave him a bit of a challenge and he was less than amused with the four firewalls i have installed. i explained that i install and uninstall with reckless abandon.

this morning he told her to pass along a new german word to me. she says the word 'basteln' in german but i do not know it. she says, moment, i ask leo. leo is a famous online dictionary that many of the germans use; it is quite extensive in its definitions, and there is even a speaking option to hear the word.
http://dict.leo.org/pages.ende/about_en.html?lang=en

in the meantime i ask my other colleague the meaning without telling her the scenario. she explains...it's like when small children spend an entire afternoon making christmas ornaments, or doing craft things, that is the verb you would use. hmm. colleague number one is back now.

"leo says it is 'to tinker'. "
"a-ha, now i get it, i tinkered with the computer."
" yes, he says you tinkered."
"well, yes perhaps."
"tinkered to death."

searching

i have not been home much since i moved into the new place and not everything is yet unpacked, including the camera cord to move the digital pics from the camera to the pc. further, the internet box does not work in the new place, it seems to have been damaged during the move so i had to order a new one and it is currently en route so i have no internet access at home.

therefore, the posts have been rather lean recently.

last weekend i took a cheap last minute flight with lufthansa to bratislava. bratislavia is in slovakia, and has been separated from the czech republic since 1993. It has been in the EU since 2004 but it still not on the Euro.

Once the photos are transferred, I'll post some pics and some further details.

On the move

So I moved from Cologne to B. to an unfurished apartment and then took off for Iceland for 14 days. I've been back in the 95F heat of Germany and have spent the past week catching up on work stuff and trying to unpack.

This weekend I head up to Sylt for some cooler weather and seaside.

I haven't unpacked the cord to transfer the Iceland photos yet, so more when I come back next week...

Holiday planning continued

Too many hours of research later and almost everything is sorted. The tent is packed and the itinerary is somewhat set. On July 1 I will be on a plane to Iceland, to relax and wander the coastline for 13 days. Yes, Iceland. Specifically, I will be camping at small towns and out of the way places near lava fields, geysers, and at one point on a small island that is accessable via ferry. (There is also a small airfield and a five minute flight, but potentially a person needs to run out and clear the field of sheep before the turbo prop lands, so instead the ferry of 2.25 hours will be just fine.)

For an American who does not get much vacation usually, to have to plan a two week vacation, and then to still have to figure out what to do with another 20 vacation days, it's been a learning experience.

At the same time, with the local contract I decided to move closer to the office as I'm tired of the drive in. I found a very bright place with a balcony close enough to the office to ride Mr. Dutch Bike in whenever I want. The move started tonight and will be completed gradually over the next week.

Photos and such after I come back from Iceland and unpack fully. In the meantime, here is where I will spend my first few days:
http://www.iww.is/landshlutare.asp?lysing=swt&hluti=swt&menu=sw
Or check out the main tourism site: http://www.icelandtouristboard.com/

holidays

Many of you like to point out the proliferation of holidays in Europe. It's not that there are so many of them, it's just that they are all squashed together on the calendar. For example, where I work in Germany, these are the holidays this year:

Jan 1 - New Year's
Apr 14 and 17 - Easter
May 1 - May day
May 25, June 5, June 15 - Ascension, Whit Monday, Corpus Christi
Oct 3 - Re-unification of Germany
Nov 1 - All Saint's day
Dec 25 and 26 - Christmas
Dec 31 - New Year's Eve

So as you can see, it's an absolute holiday drought after this week, Thursday.

However, World Cup is currently going on in Germany, so the entire country is in play mode from June 9 to July 9. There are people from all over the world visiting Germany wearing their country gear, in particular flags worn around the shoulders or the waist.

Wearing my US flag I was walking home on Sunday and over the bridge when an old man on a bicycle, at least 80 years old, slowed down, pointed at me and yelled something. In the office the next day my colleagues said that he is still angry about losing the war. I am not sure they were joking, actually.

61, 57, 64, 68, 55, 64, 57, 63, 61, 63

That was the high temps of the past 10 days. Want to know the lows?
52, 50, 54, 52, 45, 41, 48, 46, 57, 50. Yes, that's in F, not C.

It's a bit disappointing to consider that this is summer so far. In particular, Thursday was a Germany public holiday, but it rained cold all day long. Then, the past week was the Weindorf, when the little wineries from along the Mosel river to the South come to Cologne and set up little huts where they bring all of their wines and you can sample your choice of a variety from each one, for around 2 Euros/.1 Liter, so a small glass. The rain must have put a bit of a damper on their business this year, in particular for these small businesses.

However, next week Monday is another Germany holiday, so I'm off on a three day weekend on Sat to Berlin. Also, the apartment is strewn with travel books as I plan my 30 days of vacation. I am planning one heck of a trip in July--more details when it's solidified, but for those of you who want to ponder--the outbound is booked; I am traveling by plane around 3.5 hours to someplace that has a two hour time difference. Keep thinking and stay tuned...

A short walk around Koeln Deutz

Many of you have asked what it's like to live it Cologne and what makes it different from the US. On Thursdays I leave work early to make sure that I make it home in time to have dinner before going to German class in town, so I took a few photos on the way since the weather was perfect today.

This is the front of the apartment building where I live. The two right windows in the bottom row are mine. I have lived here for just over one year, but I have visions of moving back to the country and closer to the office as the commute is too tempermental. On a good day it takes me 35 minutes to the office. On the worst day it took me four hours. Generally it takes me 45 minutes each way.

Here is the Bioladen (health food store) next to my apartment. When I had only been living in Cologne around a week or two, a package came that required a signature. The Bioladen accepted it and I was able to pick it up during store hours, which is a whole lot easier than trying to be home for DHL. Their hours are 9-13 and 14-18.30 Monday to Friday and 9-14 on Saturdays. If you look closely in the center of the photo, you will see a little boy. It is a very common occurance for parents to leave their children outside the tiny store, partially perhaps due to all of the low shelves, and partially because it is a very safe area. They keep plently of chalk available for the little people for while they wait, so if you look closely you can see some of their artwork.

This it a rather lackluster photo of the local shopping street. It goes for 6 blocks and includes two small supermarkets, an opthamologist, a bicycle shop, a few bakeries, a bank, three bookstores (each with a specific niche), some restaruants, and a variety of other stores.

In the photo you'll notice a blue P sign, those signify the local parking restrictions. In this area, parking is free from 9 at night to 9 in the morning. The rest of time you are required to have a local parking sticker, or to go to one of the little ticket machines to purchase a ticket for a specified period of time, usually up to two hours.

On the other side of the yellow building is the Teeladen or tea store. They sell a variety of loose leaf teas in an old shop with wooden floors. I had gone in and noticed a photo of a cat next to the cash register and a tip jar, so I had to ask. The woman went to fetch a second photo and explained patiently in slow German that they 'employ' a cat to keep the shop mouse free. As the customers appreciate the cat, they sometimes leave change in the jar to contribute to his well-being. The best part of the story-he does not work Saturdays, he gets the full weekend off each week!

One final one, a view of the river and one of the bridges:

The river is the Rhein and it cuts through the center of Cologne. I have to walk to the other side of the river to get to the Berlitz office for class. In the background of this photo is one of my favorite bridges in Cologne. At night they light it up so it is quite beautiful. Then very late at night, sometime after 2 they turn off the lights. In small towns around here they turn off stoplights late at night, and I mean actually turn off, not turn to blinking red, in order to save electricity.

On the right you'll see some large pod-like containers, those are recycle bins. The are plentiful and located around where people live or work. Then you take your paper, glass, plastics, and packing material (such as plastic wrap, styrofoam, aluminum cans, aluminum foil), and you separate the different items into the different pods. I've been told by some cynical Germans that they don't actually recycle what you sort, or that they dump it all together to process and that the purpose of the separating pods is to make you feel good about contributing to saving the environment.

So that's all for today's quick stops on the way to class. I hope you enjoyed it!

Koopzondag

Koopzondag is the Dutch word for Sunday shopping. Here you see the Tref supermarket, it is in Venlo, a Dutch city just over the German border. Shops in continental Western Europe tend not to be open on Sundays, so a shopping Sunday is a big thing, all five hours of it.

Into the car we hopped for the hour long drive there. Further, this is a gigantic supermarket by EU standards, so lots of choices. I tend to find many vegetarian items in Holland that I cannot find in Germany, so I'll go about once every six weeks after work or on a Saturday.

Shopping Sunday does not happend too often, the next one in Venlo is Sept 17, so mark your calendars now!

The May day tree in front of my house

May day is a holiday through most of Europe. This tree is across the street from my apartment, taken from the direction of my apartment, towards the other side of the street.

My work colleague explained that one does not usually see such things in the city, they are more of a country thing in Germany. She explained something about how if a boy likes a girl, he puts th colored streamers on the tree so she will know. She is then supposed to do something so that he knows that she knows.

Notice the bicycles in the photo, this is very common in Cologne.

Katowice, Poland

May 1 is a holiday in Germany, so thus a three day weekend this year. We took a cheap flight on Central Wings (an affiliate of German Wings based out of Poland) and off we went from Cologne to Katowice. It is the closest major airport to Oswiecim, otherwise known by its WW2 German name of Auschwitz. We went to both Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau. That whole part of the trip remains surreal.

While there, we stayed in the town of Tychy. It is a small-ish industrial town in an industrial region of Poland. Located smack dab in the center is the Tyskie brewery. It is one of the most popular beers in Poland. They also produce Pilsner Urquell there, with a special brewmaster arriving once per week from the Czech Republic to oversee production.

I ate a lot of Polish food while there. Contrary to popular understanding, there is quite a lot of Polish vegetarian food, it's just a matter of knowing what to look for. My absolute favorite is mushroom pierogis, followed closely by Polish pickles.

Poland still remains an inexpensive country to visit although prices seem to have risen from when I first visited. Katowice has a grand mall, large by US standards, and open on Sundays until 21.00, something that Germany does not have. It has higher end brands like Hugo Boss and a gigantic Tesco selling everything imaginable with 20+ checkout lines.

Overall Katowice is a winner for a long weekend.