The third post from our weeklong visit with my mother-in-law Nina in southwestern Germany:
German word of the day: entshuldigung!
I could smell Germany all day. It’s like fireplace smoke and snow 24/7. I could also eat Movenpick yogurt and pretzel bread all day.
Four German cities later and I have yet to see a piece of litter. You could eat off the streets they’re so clean. The environmental sensibility here is humbling; you have to BUY a plastic bag at the store or else walk out clutching your grocery items in hand. (The locals bring their own bags or baskets.)
Pearls of wisdom gained on the streets of Koln (aka Cologne):
1) Don’t buy German pop music without recommendations.
2) Eat as much bread as possible.
3) In a similar vein, don’t be afraid to look like a tourist if there’s an amusing picture to be taken.
4) German Music TV rules. So far I’ve seen Bobby Brown’s “Rock Wit’cha,” Samantha Fox’s “Touch My Body,” and best of all Cameo’s “Word Up,” which features LeVar Burton as a detective with a vendetta against dancing. If you’re keeping score at home: LeVar Burton loves reading, hates dancing. Write it down.
6) Speaking of reading, Harry Potter looks different in Germany.
After Koln, we journeyed to Bonn where I risked death to snap the German Picture of the Day:
Renate welcomes me to the birthplace of Beethoven and a van nearly runs me over in the process. But I stand strong; I take the photo. And it’s blurry.
More pics:
