Dropping the H-Bomb June 13, 2011

Yesterday the Mr. and I decided to take a little day trip to Nürnberg, or “Nuremberg” as it is better-known to English-speakers.  I mentioned before that I visited Nuremberg the first time when I was 18, but I don’t think I’ve ever shared the details of that trip on this blog. Hmmm…sounds like another entry I need to work on soon!

Anyway, we decided to head to Nuremberg yesterday as I really wanted to see a film. I guess we’re fairly lucky that the cinema here in Würzburg offers an English-language film on every Monday night, but the problem is that often we either aren’t interested in the film that’s playing (Hangover II last week), OR they don’t offer an OV (original version) film on holidays. We had a long weekend here in Germany with today being holiday. (What holiday, you ask? Why, Pentecost, of course! It’s a religious holiday, but many Germans today don’t even know what it is or why it’s celebrated anymore. Now it’s just a day off.)  We realized that if we wanted to see a movie this weekend, we’d have to head out of town. Nuremberg has a big multi-screen cineplex in its city center, and offered three different OV films yesterday: The Hangover II (Here, too? Really?), Pirates of the Caribbean III (maybe…I do love me some Johnny Depp), and X-Men: First Class. Having read X-Men comic books throughout high school and college, I was most excited about seeing this one. So we decided to make a day of it. We’d first see something else I’ve been interested in checking out for quite some time and then catch the film.

Albrecht Dürer, Self-Portrait at 28

So what was first on our Nuremberg agenda? We toured the famous painter Albrecht Dürer’s home. Albrecht Dürer lived from 1471 to 1528, and is “conventionally regarded as the greatest artist of the Northern Renaissance” according to Wikipedia. I remember studying Dürer’s self-portrait in a college art history class and finding the level of detail and realism absolutely stunning. Part of the exhibit inside the house showed that self-portrait blown up, and I was still blown away by the detail and precision, even at a size way beyond the dimensions of the small, original painting. The way he painted his curls, for example, they shine and reflect light exactly the way real hair does. Beautiful. The house itself was very interesting. You’re given an audio guide in whichever language you prefer, and his wife, Agnes Dürer, guides you around.

Nuremberg's Imperial Castle

After the tour, the Mr. and I walked around the old center of Nuremberg a bit more, and then had dinner. I found myself really impressed with the area immediately surrounding Dürer’s house, which I’m fairly sure I had never been to before. While Nuremberg’s market square is a bit ugly after it was rebuilt quickly after the war, the medieval portions of the city that survived are really beautiful and interesting. Nuremberg has definitely grown on me!

After the film (which we both really enjoyed), we went to catch our train back to Würzburg at 11.35pm.  It was clear that with it being a long holiday weekend, many people were making the most of it in a celebratory (i.e. drunken) manner. Shortly after we took our seats, a group of teenage boys stumbled into our carriage in the seats directly opposite us, one of them almost sitting on my backpack that was on the seat across from me. He apologized, but it took me about 2 seconds to decide that I really didn’t want to sit across from him and his drunken friends on a long train ride when most of the train was empty. I quickly suggested that we could move so they could all sit together (aren’t I polite and thoughtful?) We then settled into our new spots,  next to a young couple, and I joked that if the train got crowded for some reason, I at least wanted to be next to sober people.

Well, we couldn’t believe what happened next.

At our next stop, the first out of Nuremberg, a flood – and I mean a FLOOD – of mostly 20-something guys and girls wearing lederhosen and oompfa loompfa big busty dresses PILED into our train. It was unreal. Suddenly, we didn’t have just a couple of people sitting across from us, we had four: a girl in a oompfa loompfa dress (it probably has an actually name, but I have no idea what it might be and whatever it is I’m pretty sure I’ll still like my name better) sitting on some random guy’s lap, and two girls in the seat next to them with one sitting on the other’s lap. The aisles filled up with beers, shouting, laughter and LOTS of lederhosen. If ever there were a time I wish my camera had had a little battery power left, last night was it.

Since I couldn’t take a picture, take this image below and instead imagine it on a crowded, tight train carriage and you start to get an idea of what it was suddenly like:

Got the image from here: http://www.thelocal.de/society/20110607-35507.html

Yup, it was pretty much like this. They didn’t have glass mugs, but many of them had stone beer steins. At one point, a drunken man in lederhosen standing next to my seat stumbled into me. He apologized and when I said no problem, he could immediately tell I wasn’t German and then starting asking me questions. He offered me some of his fresh, unopened beer, and told me he needed to show me how hospitable Germans can be even though they are often drunk and annoying. He popped it open, I took a swig, and everyone cheered. I asked him why everyone was wearing the traditional outfits as it’s something I’m genuinely interested in knowing. I’ve seen the dresses, for example, sold in normal clothing stores the last few weeks so I’m sort of wondering why, really. Is there a special event going on? Where did you all go to this evening? He then slurred out that it was “for Hitler. We meet for Hitler.” And then this gem: “Germans only care about Hitler and beer.” Really, I swear to you I’m not making this stuff up.  “Ohhh…” I responded. I mean, how do I respond to that??! Let me tell you something: if Germans ever want to make a non-German feel awkward during polite conversation, all they have to do is drop the H-bomb and bam! *instant* discomfort. Anyway, about five minutes later in the conversation he tells me “He was only joking earlier, of course,” and I tell him “I thought so. I hoped so.”  He then gets all serious on me: “Really?” he asks. “Why? Why did you hope I was joking?” Umm, can anyone say awwwwk-waaaard?  Thankfully, he loses interest in our conversation. Later, he literally falls onto my lap, but luckily that and the H-bomb were the worst parts of the journey. Oh, and the spilled beer on the bottom of my shoes. That sort of sucked, too. But at least no one hurled on them, so I count that as a plus.

Just another day in Germany.

Not a Second Time! February 13, 2011

Not the exact salad my MIL made, but you get the idea....

Last weekend the Mr. and I took the train and headed to the small town where he grew up. We went on Sunday afternoon to a gathering at his parents’ house that was in celebration of both of their birthdays. It was a really lovely afternoon not only because we got the visit much of the family, but also because there was a lot of really, really ridiculously good food. Given how things turn out for some people, I think I pretty much hit the in-law jackpot. Not only do I really like all of my family-in-law (is that a real term?), they also cook amazing food.  Amazingly good vegetarian food, that is, AND they’re German. Yep – I totally just used “vegetarian” and “German” in the same sentence.

I’m not actually a full-blown vegetarian, but during my adolescence I began to start veering away from meat and towards veg. More and more, a lot of the meaty dishes my mom had prepared my entire childhood began losing their appeal. My guess is that it was a combination of my palate becoming more fully developed (i.e. I had acquired a taste for and actual enjoyment of more and more veg) and the realization of where meat came from. I sometimes toy with the idea of becoming a full-on vegetarian, but for now I’m more comfortable being a semi-vegetarian. What this means for me personally is that a lot of my meals are vegetarian and I usually don’t prepare any meat at home. If I buy meat, I try to only buy organic and humanely raised animal products. My conscience still isn’t 100% clear, but at least I figure I’m doing some good by eating less meat than many other people do, and therefore hopefully making less of an environmental impact as a result. And buying “happier” meat is undoubtedly a step in a better direction.

Anyway, when I first began to get to know the Mr., the thought crossed my mind at some point that I would probably meet his parents. His German parents. His German parents who most likely consume huge quantities of meat, meat and more meat and would you like some meat to go with that meat? Yeah, okay, I’m being a little overdramatic, but let me explain.

Let's see, which is more appealing? This, or the salad shown above? Hmmm...

See, I was slightly scarred by a trip I took to Germany way back when I was 18 years old. It was a wonderful trip, and during a short segment of it I actually got to stay with a German family in the town of Herzogenaurach. They were very nice, and I had a lovely time, but I had to consume so much food during my stay with them (90% of which was meat), that I left feeling disgustingly bloated, somewhat ill and in need of something green and fresh. Stat. The worst moment was in Nürnberg where my host mother and I had gone for an afternoon of sightseeing. This was towards the end of my stay with the family, and I was so full at this point that I think I literally had begun to waddle. I turned my back for one second – ONE SECOND – and she had bought me a huge bratwurst. My stomach turned looking at that thing and I finally got a couple bites down, but it was sheer determination that kept them down. It was not pretty. So when I met the Mr. and realized we’d go to meet his family at some point, I began having flashbacks and considered converting 100% to vegetarianism at that very moment.

However, my fears were quickly laid to rest when I discovered that not only is the Mr.’s younger sister a vegetarian, but BOTH of his parents are, too. Although his family ate meat growing up, some years back his parents just decided they’d had enough and became vegetarians. His older sister and her family are a bit like us; they also eat vegetarian food quite often but do eat meat (we just celebrated Christmas with them, and they had prepared an awesome vegetarian meal. AWESOME, I tell you.) And the birthday get-together I mentioned above? His mother had made mouth-watering bulgur, lentil and pasta salads, as well as polenta and a few other dishes. And THREE types of cake, of course. (Well, they have to tick the “stereotypically German” box in some way, right?) I’m going to stop writing now before you all start to hate me….

Old Brown Shoe December 7, 2010

One of the most enjoyable things I find about living abroad is discovering all the new traditions and holidays of the host culture. Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been able to experience a number of Christmas season “firsts” here in Germany. On Sunday 28th November, the Mr. and I traveled to his Aunt and Uncle’s house for their annual First Advent party. According to Wikipedia, Advent “is a season observed in many Western Christian churches, a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas.” Many people here purchase an Advent wreath, and they light a candle on each Sunday of Advent leading up to Christmas until all four candles are eventually lit. I’m not sure if the idea of doing something on the First Advent is simply a family tradition or is more generally something many Germans do, but the Mr.’s family get together for brunch and spend the afternoon visiting.

Then this past weekend, the Mr. and I travelled to Nuremberg to experience what is considered one of the best Christmas markets in Germany. We felt a little disappointed that the setting of the market wasn’t a bit more impressive. Nuremberg, like many German cities, was bombed heavily during WWII. Most of the buildings that were put up during the reconstruction period were simple concrete structures that sadly don’t have much character, so the square in Nuremberg where the main market takes place is disappointingly surrounded by such buildings. Nevertheless, we did enjoy other aspects of the market. Firstly, there was a fantastic horse-drawn carriage that made a couple of appearances while we were walking around. We also enjoyed visiting smaller “breakout” markets that were located near but apart from the main one. The first we saw was a world market where all the cities around the world that Nuremberg is partnered with as a “sister city” each had a stand. A few of those cities included Venice, Verona, Atlanta, Glasgow, etc., so it was interesting seeing all the wares each for sale. I found the Glasgow and Atlanta stands particularly interesting, but sadly no Cheetos or Twiglets on offer. We also visited the Children’s market which had a fantastic double carousel and other rides for kids. Above each of the rides were wooden figures on the signs that moved – pretty cool for young and old kids alike. After walking around the market for a couple of hours, we couldn’t feel our toes anymore (it was about 19 degrees fahrenheit) so we headed to the cinema to see the latest Harry Potter film in English. Big, happy sigh. It was a great day out, and I’m glad I got the opportunity to visit Nuremberg again (I was briefly there when I was 18). Apart from the convenience of having lots of English-language films showing on a regular-basis, the shopping seems to be fairly good. I discovered they had a Lush store, squealed with joy, and went on a mini shopping spree. Yes, I think there will be many more visits to Nuremberg in the future.

My boot

The Mr.'s boots

And finally yesterday I had another German Christmas “first,” goodies in my boot from Nikolaus. According to The Local, Nikolaus “was a Greek Christian bishop known for miracles and giving gifts secretly, and is now the patron saint of little children, sailors, merchants and students.” Germans remember his death on 6 December by having children put out a boot the night before to be filled with treats in the morning if they’ve been good. The Mr. and I debated whether we should celebrate Nikolaus or instead put up stockings on Christmas Eve to be filled for Christmas morning (as is the American tradition). We toyed with the idea of doing both (double the treats – hurrah!) but then remembered we won’t actually be here for Christmas morning (d’oh!)  I wasn’t entirely sure what I was doing, so I bought the Mr. enough treats to fill TWO of his boots. But it was probably still less than what I would have bought to fill a stocking. Oh, and Nikolaus really did visit us – we had a chocolate Santa sitting on our bookcase outside our flat door in the morning =)