Parking and Holidays in Deutschland

THINGS I WON'T MISS: PARKING

While driving home last week, I noticed a gaggle of cars parked near the Heide (the local nature preserve), which is just off the road entering our village. It was not too late, just before 4pm, and since the rate of joblessness around here is supposedly pretty high I didn't think much about the large number of people gathered in one spot in the middle of a workday. What I did think about, however, were the amount of cars piled along the sides of the road.
The Heide does not have a large parking area; therefore, numerous vehicles were parked in the adjacent lot, on the sides of the road immediately outside of it, and on the sidewalks in the village. As a result, I had to repeatedly swerve to avoid cars parked throughout the neighborhood.

Some Background Info:  Almost immediately after arriving in the country, I realized that Germans are rather fond of parking in the road. Several months ago, Dan and I were sitting at a table in a German Burger King (which featured a relatively large, fully functional parking lot) when I observed the following scenario:

- Woman drives towards Burger King
- Woman disregards parking lot, parks on side of road
- Woman exits vehicle and walks in restaurant, orders coffee
- Cars swerve to avoid parked vehicle in road
- Woman sits and sips coffee
- Woman leaves and reenters vehicle
- Woman drives off
*Diagram below (not drawn to scale)

HOLIDAYS

I've been researching German medical facilities online, since the waiting list to get an appointment on-base is ridiculously long for non- military, retirees, or military spouses. I was close to making a decision when I suddenly decided to check the 'Office Holidays' tab on one site in particular:

German Holidays (Spring/Winter '09)

Easter: April 6 - 17, May 1
Ascension Day: May 21 - 22
Pentecost Monday: June 1
Corpus Christi: June 11 - 12
Summer: July 13 - 24
Fall: October 12 - 23
Christmas: December 21 - January 1

The following statement was, inevitably, present: "Please note - Dates may be subject to changes." Of course.

NEED SOME ENTERTAINMENT?

If you are in the mood to read/view something new, check out my Amazon-backed store, "Lynette's Media Outlet" (on the right, under "Check This Out"). It is stocked with books and movies recommended by me and, eventually, Dan, and will be updated semi-regularly ....maybe.

Plums, Cigars, and... A Horse

Last week Dan and I drove to Köln - the idea was to visit the (enormous) cathedral there, and then head a bit farther west to Aachen, and Charlemagne's final resting place in the Aachen Cathedral.  We didn't get to fully experience either of the sites, however, since we (well, mainly I) discovered that we (again:  I) are beginning to suffer from extreme "cathedral fatigue."
So the plans changed slightly, and we traveled to the small town of Sankt Goer, along the Rhein River, and then on to Bacharach, where we had lunch and climbed towards the Burg Stahleck (Stahleck Castle) before heading down again to catch our train back to Sankt Goer and our car (we didn't make it all the way to the castle, unfortunately).

PLUMS AND CIGARS

While in Köln we decided to sample some of the regional cuisine - the seasonal plum kuchen (plum cake), specifically.  It didn't appear too appetizing on display in the cafe, and the swarm of bees hovering over the slices weren't much of an incentive to "dig in," but we did.

Example of a Plum Kuchen

While I have become particularly fond of European pastries, I can safely say that the plum kuchen will not be topping my list of favorites anytime soon. 


Also, while still in Köln, Dan purchased and later smoked his first Cuban cigar:



He says it may also be his last, but I think the presence of the video camera may have negatively impacted his decision.

WHOA

Dan is constantly discussing and/or sampling food with his co-workers; a while ago, he came home and told me that he had spotted a bag of bread and what he assumed were regular sausages on the table during his lunch break.  After being assured that the food was of the communal variety, he helped himself and prepared a sandwich.  He noted that the meat was 'simply delicious,' and one of the best things he had ever tasted.
Later he was informed that the meat he had eaten hours earlier was formerly a thriving, galloping, and generally content horse.

PLANS 

Wine festival in Bad Dürkheim this weekend?  Perhaps.