This was the first week that I went into the office in Heidelberg. I learned two new German words in the process: 1.)
Stau (traffic jam) and 2.)
Baustellen (roadwork). Apparently, they are ALWAYS doing construction on the Autobahn A5. I guess that's one way to keep the people working! Still, it's a shorter commute than I had in the US, so there's that. The next big project: obtain a car..... Maybe I'll just pick up one of these from the neighborhood BMW dealer:
I'm sure we can squeeze Vader in the back seat.
We finally got a telephone. Interesting fact about Germans: they apparently don't do corded phones. We had hoped to find an
el-cheapo deluxe phone at the local electronics store (called Saturn) for under 10 bucks, but instead had to shell out more than 30 Euro for their "base model" cordless phone! WTF?! And, it only took us about a day to figure out how to make calls with it (the instructions are in German.....).
Adam learned how to use the Washing machine. Though the initial loads were done with fabric softener instead of detergent because we didn't know the word for detergent. Based on the picture on the bottle, it seems we grabbed fabric softener...... That has since been remedied. No dryer here, though, so it takes a bit longer to dry our clothes. But, at least Mother Earth is happier.....
While grocery shopping the other day, we came upon frozen escargot in the freezer section. The description on the box summed up our opinion...
gross:
I commuted to work with a friend this week. She lives in a different part of town than we do, so I had to journey over to her place in the AM. While en route, I discovered this unfortunately named company (and I ain't talking about Eufinetz):
Yesterday was quite an action packed day, by our standards. After sleeping late (which was VERY needed), we headed down to the Kleinmarkthalle. It's kind of like a very upscale farmer's market. They have all kinds of meats, veg, fruits, cheeses, plants, baked goods, etc. It was an interesting experience. However, I stepped on some lady's toe, and she got all cranky. Whatever! Don't wear open toed shoes in a crowded place!
Later, we met up with a friend to see
Harry Potter 7 Part 2 in English and 3D! It was very good, loved the use of 3D. And, we now know where the local theater is, and they show English movies a few times a week. I think our next mission is Planet of the Apes (
Planet der Affen) or Captain America.
After that, we journeyed down to
Apfelweinfest 2011:
Apfelwein is a local alcoholic drink. It is kind of like apple cider, but more sour than sweet. You can have it plain (glass on the left) or sauer gespritzt, which has seltzer mixed in (glass on the right). We both prefer the gespritzt version. Though, it is still an acquired taste. It takes me getting to the second glass before I decide I like it. And, we had some delicious rostbratwurst, chips, and fries (
pommes). Some local band was covering "famous" German pop songs, including the best of
Rammstein and
Falco's Rock Me, Amadeus;
Ah, the 80's. What a different time. Though, walking through the streets of Frankfurt (and from the excellent People Watching opportunity afforded us from the wonderfully central location of our table at the Fest), you'd sometimes think it's still 1985. They have some interesting fashion choices here:
The above is quite popular, as is this one:
Though not all of the guys with their collars up look like the douches pictured above. Another popular style is the following (clashing colors and patterns):
Though not quite 80's related, hair is also interesting here. While "the Bieber" is quite a popular hair style here, there is also plenty of this:
and
and
dude, use a little shampoo!
Then, after all of that excitement, we went to
Sommerwerft 2011, an annual Arts festival. I think I'll have nightmares for a while after this. I had expected the event to be entirely like an episode of
Sprockets, particularly the "He Loves Me, He Loves My Caribou" skit.
Instead, it was a bunch of freakish, monster babies
floating through the air, leaking stuff all of the stage and each other. Yikes. Thanks for that, Germany.
Adam also experienced his first foreign flu thing this week, but he survived (though he is really still getting over it). Fortunately, the experience made him learn how to use the local Apotheke (pharmacy). That will be useful should one of us come down with German Measles or something while we're here....
And, it's only Sunday morning! After such an exciting week, how can next week possibly top it?! Though we hear next weekend is
Museumsuferfest 2011 described on the event webpage as:
an event of very special magnificence. On this weekend, Frankfurt celebrates its museums with a unique festival combining art, culture, music and gastronomy from around the globe. With over three million visitors per year and a show programme replete with museum exhibitions and stage performances of every variety, the Museum Embankment Festival ranks amongst Europe’s largest cultural celebrations.
Will it be interesting? Definitely. Will we drink more than we should? Likely. Will I witness more German art that causes nightmares? Probably.
Until later....(unless the giant babies come and kill me in my sleep)....
