Our Eastern European October… part four

On Saturday, October 3, I hoped we could go back to Karlovy Vary and visit an area called Diana. It’s a park that offers trails, a mini zoo, a butterfly house, a restaurant, and a lookout tower, among other things. I wanted to go there for most of those things, but I especially wanted to see their peacock, Frosty, in the mini zoo. Frosty is so named because he’s white.

I had seen pictures of Frosty and was enchanted by his unusual look. Frosty is not your typical Indian peafowl. Aside from the peacock, the mini zoo also has a petting zoo, which includes goats, mini pigs, and ponies! I know I’m 54 years old, but I turn into a little kid when there’s a petting zoo.

After breakfast at the hotel restaurant, I realized that I had forgotten to bring a jacket or sweater with me. The weather had been warm when we left Germany, but I worried about cooler temperatures, especially on the later segments of our trip. So we decided to visit Karlovy Vary’s Globus.

I’ve written about the Globus chain before. It’s an enormous “hypermarket” that is so big it puts Walmart to shame. I actually hate visiting the one in Wiesbaden, because it’s so huge and overwhelming. I almost always leave there feeling exhausted. But, on this particular Saturday, Globus was a successful stop. We managed to find some Il Santo flavored mineral water, sold by Chodovar, that I fell in love with in 2009, but can never find outside of that region in the Czech Republic. We also found a bottle of ten year old Ararat brandy, Chodovar beer, and a birthday present for Bill’s grandson.

I did NOT find a suitable jacket at Globus, but I did find one next door at the Decathalon Store, which is a chain that specializes in exercise and outdoor wear. I got the sense that they didn’t see too many Americans at the Decathalon Store, as the cashier, a teenaged girl who spoke English, beamed at us when we thanked her.

After we went to the Globus, we made our way to the city… and promptly found that parking was practically impossible to find. The weather was beautiful, with sunny skies and pleasant temperatures. Consequently, there wasn’t a parking spot for love or money in the city. Then I realized that the lack of parking also meant the city would be positively teeming with people, and that would be quite annoying for both Bill and me. So, although I was sorry to miss seeing Frosty, we decided to go elsewhere.

We set off toward a smaller spa town called Mariánské Lázně, which we remembered from our 2009 visit to Chodovar. We thought maybe we might have better luck finding parking there, and could walk around the town. On the way there, I took lots of photos. The drive was on an enchanting two lane road through forests and mountains. I even saw a deer grazing in a woodsy meadow on the side of the road.

*A sign for a trout farm. We have these in Germany, too. They’re kind of sad, but they do offer fresh fish!*

Alas, it was the same story in Mariánské Lázně. It seemed like everybody was out and about… not that I could blame them. October 3rd was a really nice day for sightseeing in the Czech Republic. I did manage to take a few photos from the car… I think this town is one I’d like to see more of. Maybe if we come back to this region, we’ll stay in Mariánské Lázně, instead of Karlovy Vary.

So we kept going through Mariánské Lázně, and started looking for a place to have lunch, mainly because Bill really needed to pee. At one point, we thought we might have found a spot, but it, too, was lacking parking. Bill ended up having to pull over on the side of the road to pee. But at least the scenery was beautiful. Look at these views!

After awhile, we found ourselves on a familiar road… It was the one that led to Chodova Plana, which is where Chodovar is. There are two restaurants at Chodovar, so we decided to see if we could have lunch there. At first, it looked like we might be out of luck again, but then Bill drove around to where Chodovar’s cool cave restaurant, Ve Skále, is. Much to our delight, he managed to score a parking spot! Soon, we were walking through the “cave” entrance to the dining room, still familiar after 17.5 years!

*In February 2009, we stayed at this hotel! It was nice then… and probably still is, today.*

Below are some photos from Ve Skále… which really saved the day, and filled us up for the rest of the evening! I had duck, with delicious Czech style potato dumplings and red kraut. Bill had trout again…

Ve Skále was a great place to stop. It’s a unique restaurant with good food, huge portions, and excellent beers and other beverages. If you speak German, and happen to run into a staff member who can’t speak English, you’ll be in luck. Our waiter spoke English very well and was super cute, too.

When I used the restroom, I realized by their familiar pleasant aroma, the staff had stocked the soap dispensers with the brewery’s own cosmetics. I remembered buying them on our previous visit, and was delighted to stop at the gift shop on the way out and get more. We also got a six pack of 1.5 liter bottles of Il Santo Hoppy, which is a non-alcoholic drink the brewery now makes.

I’m pretty impressed with how much the “Beer Wellness Land” has grown since 2009. They now have a pool, whirlpool, Kneipp therapy, and a couple of specialized saunas. Unfortunately, Chodovar’s Web site still really sucks. But they DO have some great products– from drinks to shampoo! I wish it were easier to get their products from Germany. So far, I’ve only found them offered priced in euros on a site that sells truck parts! Make no mistake, though… they smell great, even if they are made of beer!

After we ate at Chodovar, we headed back to our hotel on the outskirts of Karlovy Vary. Since we were no longer exploring, it didn’t take long at all. I still got a few more fall photos…

We decided to have a couple of beers for dinner, instead of food… Then, we headed back to our room for our last night in the Tower Room. In the morning, we’d be rising early to make our way to Stary Smokovec, Slovakia…

*Chateau Cilheny’s salon. There’s a piano in there, and one rather “ballsy” young woman we ran into at breakfast with her friends, was playing it.*

Unfortunately, I have brought back a souvenir from our trip. Bill and I are both sick with nasty colds (or some other icky virus). So, for today, I’m going to stop here, and maybe tomorrow, if I’m not dead, I’ll write about our all day travel to Slovakia’s gorgeous High Tatra Mountains. See you then…

booze tourism, Czechia, Eastern Europe

Our Eastern European October… part three

After my rather dramatic and explosive first night in Karlovy Vary, I was ready for some breakfast. So after I did my morning hygiene routine, I made my way down that pesky spiral staircase and got dressed. We left our bags in the sitting room, because hauling them up that spiral staircase would have been a real pain in the ass. I wonder how in the world they got the furniture in the bedroom. I’m sure it’s easily explained somehow…

We went back down to the restaurant… the scene of the pickle crime that had me barfing hours earlier. They laid out a very nice buffet, with plenty of choices. Bill and I fueled up, and then headed out to the city for a few hours. The only thing on our agenda was visiting the Home of Becherovka, a museum dedicated to Becherovka herbal liqueur, which is made in Karlovy Vary.

On our way into the city, we encountered the first of many horse drawn carriages. Interestingly enough, it was in the news yesterday that Mayor Zohran Mamdani of New York City has now brokered a deal to end carriage rides in New York. This measure, which has been discussed for years, has come about due to the death of a teen who was riding in a carriage in Central Park when the horse spooked and had an accident.

I have my own opinions about the carriages, but then, I am someone who literally grew up with horses. It’s important for them to have jobs. Most people can’t afford to keep horses as pets. On the other hand, there have been instances of abuse in the carriage industry. The horses we saw in Karlovy Vary appeared to be healthy and well cared for… but I am certainly no expert on this issue as it is in Eastern Europe. Bill and I did not take any carriage rides, but I did enjoy seeing and smelling the horses. I really miss having them in my life, but keeping them is expensive and requires a lot of hard work! They are wonderful company, though.

We found a paid parking lot on the immediate outskirts of the city center. I noticed some cops standing by. One of them had a cute little dog on a leash. I’ve never seen a police dog like this one…

*I’m not sure what job this pooch does…*

As we headed into the city, I instantly recognized the Teplá River, the warm river that flows through the center of Karlovy Vary. Teplá means warm in Czech, and the river is fed by the many hot springs in the city. I took some photos of the colorful buildings we encountered as we walked into the familiar environs. After almost 18 years, it was still pretty recognizable, even though we didn’t spend that much time there in 2009.

*A Mix Markt! This is a chain that specializes in products from the former Soviet Union. We have them in Germany, too.*

As we headed closer to the main square, I caught sight of a vendor who was making chimney cakes. I took a few photos for Bill’s daughter, who lives in Utah and loves them. Someday, Bill and I will have to try one. There were other things on sale, too… only I didn’t see any art.

*Except for the mushrooms, this grill smelled and looked great!*

Soon, we encountered the first of the mineral water springs, where one can taste the thermal waters. I remembered the gazebos from our first visit, which is also incidentally, where we found my favorite painting in my collection, back in 2009. I took a video of our first tastes of the water, after we bought spa cups. The spa cups are easy to find. They are sold in kiosks around the many springs.

Yes, that is a toilet. I have a very irreverent sense of humor.

Naturally, I took some photos, too… It was very helpful that the locals provided instructions on how to best “enjoy” the water. If you listen to my video, you will hear me say that it reminded of Gloucester in 1980. I grew up in Gloucester, Virginia, and in those days, the local water was pretty terrible tasting. It was full of sulfur. They have since put in a water system there, so the water is now better. My parents, fortunately, had a well, so our water wasn’t as gross in the early days of our time living there.

Karlovy Vary really is a very pretty city…

We had an appointment to visit the Becherovka Museum at 1:00, so we had to make our way to the other side of town. On the way there, I took a few more pictures, including one of a woman’s art. I wish we’d had the chance to go back and take a closer look at what she had. It turned out hers was the only art collection with paintings that we saw during our entire trip! Everybody had mass produced prints, instead of original artwork.

*I remember when beer spas were a novelty. Now it seems like they’re all over the place!*

It was raining on the way to the museum. We got there a little bit early, so we took the opportunity to use the bathroom. Then, we took our guided tour… Bill got us “exclusive tickets”, which meant we each got personalized bottles of Becherovka to take home with us.

The guide who did our tour spoke excellent English, and we enjoyed learning the history of this very special Czech drink. The museum is very interesting and well put together. I thought the exhibits were fun and engaging. And it was fun to try the different flavors of products made by Becherovka. We came home with several different bottles after our visit.

After we visited the museum, Bill and I had lunch at a local place… It wasn’t all that “special”, but it did give us a chance to people watch and enjoy some heavy local cuisine. Bill got to have some garlic soup, too, which is a local specialty in Czechia. I need to learn how to make it, because I think it would be good for when I’m sick. Sadly, I think I’m getting sick now. 😢

Once we finished our leisurely late lunch, we decided to head back to the hotel. As we walked out of the city, we passed a political rally, and stopped by the Mix Markt for some wine and a bottle of Ukrainian vodka from a producer we like.

On the way back to the hotel, we passed a body of water. I noticed a lot of people were going down to walk near it. There was also a picturesque looking hotel… but it wasn’t quite as cute as the one we stayed in…

*Our room was in the tower… the top three levels of windows.*

Since we had a late lunch, we decided to skip dinner. We enjoyed some Georgian wine in the room, along with a few snacks from the hotel’s vending machine. You have to use a credit card to use the machine. That is so weird to me, as someone who grew up in the 70s and 80s!

So ends our first full day on vacation. In the next part, I’ll write about our quick change of plans, and a visit to a Czech Globus!

German lifestyle, Hessen

2025 Wiesbaden Christmas Market photo dump!

Yesterday afternoon, it was cloudy and damp, and the skies were kind of dark. I wasn’t really in the mood to venture out, but changed my mind when I realized that it had been ages since I last left our neighborhood. I had considered going to the Globus, but realized how huge and overwhelming that place is, even when it’s not days before Christmas. I thought about going to AAFES to pick up some skin cream, but Bill also mentioned going to the commissary to buy groceries, which I really didn’t feel like doing.

So, although the Wiesbaden Christmas Market pretty much looks the same every year, we decided we’d go there and get some photos… We did that, and also visited BrewDog for a late afternoon lunch. Below are some photos from our outing. The sandwiches we had at BrewDog were good, but I see that I didn’t even take photos of them, which is a rare thing for me!

I wore a heavy coat, which I didn’t need to do. I thought it was colder than it was, because there was a stiff breeze at our house in Breckenheim. But, as you can see in the photos above, there were people who wore short sleeves and shorts. One guy, which I got a photo of, even took off his shirt. I noticed him making a hasty exit as a group of stern looking Polizei got close.

I’m glad we went to the Christmas market. It was very pretty, especially when it got dark outside at around 4:30PM. I saw a lot of nice looking things– some of which were very cute and creative– and I might have been interested in buying some of them, but it’s hard for me to shop when there are hordes of people around. I guess the grandchildren will get an Epiphany box, instead of a Christmas box. But Bill already sent a box of stuff we picked up on our latest travels, so they’ll have something to unwrap on Christmas day.

We might end up going to AAFES today… Lord, give me strength. I would like to go to Globus, too, but it’s Sunday… Maybe next weekend, when it’s sale time. The market was crowded yesterday, but I’ve seen it worse. At least we didn’t have to hunt too long for a parking spot.

Hessen, holidays

Bird baths, bug eaters, and lots of beer…

It’s Labor Day weekend. In previous years, that meant going away for a short break. This year, we stayed home, because tomorrow, Bill has to fly to Lausanne, Switzerland for an overnight. He’s going to meet with one of the analysts at the C.G. Jung Institute as he progresses through the admissions process. Then, next Sunday, we will both be flying to Budapest, Hungary for several nights. Bill will be working, and I’ll be tagging along, looking for interesting photo ops.

We did a few things this weekend, though. On Friday night, we went to the wine stand. We talked to our American neighbors, a married lesbian couple with two children. One of the wives is a reservist in the military, though not posted here. The other is applying for German citizenship for herself and their children. The reservist is pursuing a doctorate in social work, so she was interested in hearing about Bill’s journey at the Jung Institute. She’s setting up a private practice for Americans and other English speakers here.

It stormed, so we sat under the tents and waited for it to pass. I couldn’t help but remember that in 2017, the awning from hell collapsed, and our former landlady accused me of negligence, because later that day, there was a storm. She claimed I was negligent for using the awning in a storm, which I hadn’t done… but obviously, it’s not uncommon for Germans to use awnings and tents when it storms. Yesterday was the anniversary of that sad event, which led to a lawsuit.

Saturday morning, I got up and went into the backyard to clean up dog poop and check the water bowls. I noticed one of the bowls was dirty. It wasn’t the first time. Then I saw a feather floating in the bowl and assumed that a bird has been using it as a bird bath. It occurred to me that maybe we should have a bird bath for the backyard. That would be a good excuse to get out of the house, anyway.

So we went to the hardware store– the one with the cool slide for kids. We searched the whole store, but they didn’t have any bird baths for sale. We also tried the Globus, which is a HUGE hypermarket. No luck there, either, although we did leave with a booze haul, Belgian beers, some groceries, and some really tasty snacks called Fonzies, which are like Parmesan flavored Cheetos. I’d say they’re superior.

Then last night, as I was sitting in the backyard, listening to music and drinking beer, I saw what appeared to be a female blackbird eating bugs. I assume she’s the one who keeps dirtying the dog’s water bowl. I put two out there, and they really only use the one on the right. The bird uses the one on the left. I am still looking for a bird bath, but maybe I shouldn’t bother. It’s going to be winter soon enough. I got some pictures of her. Looks like she was eating the bugs on Bill’s tomato and pepper plants. They say blackbirds don’t eat aphids, though… Maybe that’s not a female blackbird, after all.

As I was taking photos, the song “Maneater” by Hall & Oates came on. I changed the lyrics to “Bug eater.”

And then this morning, after being repeatedly pawed by Charlie, Bill got up and made breakfast. The biscuits turned out perfectly. So did the grits. I’m so blessed to be married to a man who knows his way around comfort food. He has really perfected making perfect biscuits. It’s not as easy as it seems!

I’m not sure what we’ll do today. Bill just asked if I want to go out. There is a wine fest going on in Mainz that we could attend. Do I want to go? I don’t know… The Mais Labyrinth is also going on, and we passed it on the way home from the store, but after we went to Globus, we were too tired to consider visiting. I always feel drained after going to Globus. It’s a HUGE store. But it was cool to watch the ladies making the melon displays as we passed. They take melons and turn them into people or animals or other decorations. Quite an impressive skill!

Anyway, that’s about all I have to write about for now. If we end up going out, I’ll update.

Hessen, rants, supermarkets

Going to the Globus is exhausting!

I don’t have a lot to report about this week. I mostly stayed home and wrapped Christmas presents, or otherwise tended to business as usual. I also made more videos than usual, although maybe that’s a lost cause. Every once in awhile, I make a video that resonates, which then attracts haters. The rest of the time, people don’t care about my videos… but they still get more hits than my blogs do!

We did go out to the Globus yesterday. I have written about Globus before, so I’m not going to get into the specifics of what it is. Suffice to say, it’s a huge store– like Walmart on steroids– that has everything from toys to household goods to groceries. I don’t think I’ve ever explored the whole thing. I find going there utterly exhausting. However, they do have a nice booze section, and sometimes it’s a good place to go if we need something unusual.

Bill and I killed what was left of our vodka the other night (it was about two or three shots). I don’t drink that much hard liquor anymore, because it really seems to upset my stomach. Lately, I have mostly been sticking to hefeweizens. But we do keep some of it around for the odd occasions when we have cocktails. So we went to Globus and ended up buying some toys for Bill’s grandchildren, candles in case we break out the fancy china on Christmas, some liquor and wine, and a chicken for last night’s dinner.

I’m not even sure how long we were in the Globus, but by the time we had crossed the store from the toy section to the meat section, I really felt tired, numb, and apathetic. There was a time in my life when I liked going to huge stores, but now they cause sensory overload and fatigue. It was bad enough yesterday that I worried about collapsing in the store! I’d hate to have to work there! I guess this is just one more thing about getting older.

I remember when my mom, an Air Force wife, was about my age, or a little younger, she didn’t like going to the large commissaries at Fort Eustis or Langley Air Force Base. About once a month, she’d make a trip to the Naval Weapons Station in Yorktown, Virginia, which had a smaller commissary that had pretty much all we needed. Back then, I never understood why she preferred the smaller store, which was closer to our house, too. Now that I’m 52, I understand it perfectly.

Of course, the commissary at the Naval Weapons Station closed many years ago, so my mom eventually did have to start going to Fort Eustis when she wanted to stock up and get somewhat less expensive military commissary prices. Now, she lives on Fort Monroe, which is no longer an Army post, and shops at a regular grocery store. Fort Monroe used to have a commissary and other military stores.

When we were at Globus yesterday, I was thinking about how I’d rather be at our neighborhood Rewe, which is much smaller, but has pretty much everything we need and isn’t quite as tiring to navigate. I mean, it takes energy just to walk the length of the Globus. When we got home last night, I needed to rest for about an hour! Below are a few photos from our trip… Yes, we did a booze run. Globus is better for booze shopping than Rewe is.

And below are a few goofy dog photos of Noyzi and Charlie… They were wanting a walk.

I’m not sure what we’ll do today, if anything. This is the time of year we tend to hibernate. It does look like we have better weather, though. I suppose we could decide to go out somewhere, although Bill says he wants to go on post today and order heating oil and get something for dinner. I think I’ll stay home and read.

Hessen

We tried out a new Georgian restaurant near us… Kinto!

After yet another boring Saturday spent holed up in our house, Bill said he wanted us to go out to a restaurant. I agreed that we needed to go somewhere, simply so I could write something for this blog! Originally, he suggested that we go out to lunch on Saturday, but I just didn’t feel like it. So then he said, “Here’s a new Georgian restaurant over near the Globus. It gets good reviews.”

The Globus is very close to where we live– not even a fifteen minute drive. And we like Georgian food, especially when it’s coupled with wine. Bill noticed that the restaurant got good ratings, not just on OpenTable, but also on Google. So, he decided to make reservations for 6:30 PM last night.

The restaurant’s listing on OpenTable mentioned that the suggested dress code is business casual. Now that we’ve been to Kinto, I would say emphatically that this is a casual place. No need to break out your glad rags to eat there. According to the restaurant’s official Web site, it was founded by young David Shalikashvili, who is just 18 years old! Or, so I assume… Bill says the restaurant hasn’t been open for long, and it’s located in a rather industrial area. Kinto is also the first and only authentic Georgian restaurant in Wiesbaden.

It was already dark when we arrived at Kinto last night. The clocks just changed in Germany this past weekend. Bill found a parking spot on the street, as the restaurant doesn’t have its own lot. When we approached, a woman immediately greeted us and welcomed us to the dining room, which is separated from where the food comes out.

I was kind of intrigued by the dining room, which reminded me a bit of a large industrial shed, but with glass panes around it. The panes let in light, but don’t allow for easy viewing of the grilling area, which I could just make out from where I was sitting. It was not a chilly night, so I left my wrap in the car. In retrospect, I should have brought it with me, because although there were flame heaters in the dining room, it was just slightly chilly in there.

We sat down and waited several minutes before a server approached. She spoke German, but seemed slightly uncomfortable with the language. I got the sense that she probably comes from Georgia or perhaps Ukraine. I’m not criticizing her language skills, by the way. Her German is much better than mine is! I’m just saying that the staff seems very authentic! There was a man who was also serving, and we definitely got the impression that he isn’t German. Ditto to the clientele, as the people sitting next to us spoke Russian, and I think a young family on the other side of the restaurant might have been speaking Georgian. I think it’s great! I love that a greater variety of cuisine is becoming more available in Wiesbaden!

The menu at Kinto offers some familiar cuisine from Georgia, to include khinkali, khachapuri, and kebab, and other dishes made with pork, chicken, veal, and lamb. They also have soup and salads, and plenty of lovely Georgian wines.

Bill seemed to upset the apple cart when he asked for a bottle of Mukuzani, a delightful red wine from Georgia. I got the sense that maybe they don’t get a lot of people ordering bottles of wine at the restaurant. The server said that the wine wasn’t in the database. She left us for a moment to ask for assistance, and finally came out with the wine a bottle of sparkling water we ordered.

For dinner, Bill ordered the Georgischer Kebab, which was ground lamb served with lavash, tomato, onion, pepper, and a side of fries. Actually, when Bill asked about the sides, he assumed he would get fries, and the server said it would be rice. But then the dish came with fries. It wasn’t a problem, but it did seem like maybe she wasn’t quite sure of what we’d be getting.

I ordered the Mtsvadi, which was basically grilled pieces of pork on a strip of lavash, with the same vegetables and fries. Both dishes came with housemade Georgian sauce– tomato sauce with cilantro, onions, and peppers.

The menu was in German, but had an English description, as well. We didn’t try to speak English with the staff, but I almost think maybe that would have been easier than German. I don’t speak Russian, but I do speak some Armenian. Armenia is south of Georgia, but from what I can tell, it’s not a similar language… except some of the words for the food were the same. For instance, the word “badrijan” was on the menu. In Armenian, that means eggplant. It was the same on the menu. The word “lobi” was also used– beans– which is the same in Armenian.

We enjoyed some bread and some of the Georgian sauce while we waited for our food. It came out quickly. The food was very good, and a nice change of pace! I noticed the couple next to us had what looked like pork ribs, which they ate with much gusto. They even used their fingers to eat it, rather than the usual knife and fork. I’m teasing about this. Germans seem less inclined to eat things with their hands than Americans do! But the couple next to us were not from Germany… If I had to guess, I’d say they were Russian or Ukrainian.

Below are some photos from our visit:

We inquired about dessert. Although it was listed on their menu, there wasn’t any dessert available. So, they brought out a small plate of French macarons for us… and didn’t charge for it. The bill came to about 66 euros. Bill gave them 80 euros and told them to keep the change. Yes, it’s a big tip for Germany… but he wanted to keep it simple!

In spite of the few hiccups last night, we really enjoyed dining at Kinto. I think we’ll be back soon. Bravo to David Shalikashvili for bringing new flavors to the suburbs of Wiesbaden! It’s very impressive that he’s opened his own restaurant at such a young age! In America, he wouldn’t even be old enough to drink the wine he’s selling! I wish him the best of luck, and I hope we can help him succeed with our repeat business. If you’re in the Wiesbaden area, I highly recommend checking out Kinto!

Hessen

Our wine barrel bar gets accessorized…

A couple of years ago, Bill and I decided to buy a wine barrel bar from a craftsman from Alsace, France. The craftsman, name of Bijan, is married to a German woman and has run a studio about ten minutes’ drive from our home in Breckenheim. He’s a member of my Facebook wine group, because besides making furniture, he also has a long history of selling wine, particularly at AAFES (our military store). When we bought our wine barrel bar, we noticed that someone else had ordered stools to go with it. Bijan told us he’d be happy to make us stools, too. We just had to let him know when we wanted them.

Within the past couple of years, Bijan had an accident that caused a significant injury, so he’s decided not to make furniture or sell wine anymore. Instead, he makes jewelry. We bought Bill’s daughter a couple of bracelets from him, back in September 2023. Bill has run into Bijan a few times at AAFES, and at some point last fall, he mentioned that he’d love to order stools for the wine barrel bar. Bijan said he’d be happy to make them for us. Yesterday, Bijan let us know the stools were ready. Today, we went to his studio to pick them up.

*They look beautiful, but I’m kind of afraid to sit on them! Also, they’re a little tall.* *Like the bar, they are made from a wine barrel.*

I was surprised when we got there, because Bijan’s studio has been turned into a LP/CD shop. Bijan said he was renting out his retail space to a German guy who sells music. I am a big fan of music, as most of my friends know. I could see myself spending time shopping for rare CDs at that place sometime, even though it seems like kind of a strange place to have such a business. Bijan’s studio is just outside a charming little village, which doesn’t really seem ideal for a music store. But what do I know?

Anyway, Bijan had the stools ready, and they looked beautiful. We chatted with him and his American friend, who helps him with his business. It’s too bad he won’t be making more furniture, but we’re glad to have a few of his handcrafted pieces for our home.

Bijan gifted us a bottle of French dessert wine from 2011. When Bill’s mom comes to visit us next weekend, I’m sure we’ll give it a try. The stools cost 280 euros– actually, he said they were 290, but he charged us 280. Bill gave him cash and offered a VAT form (which lets us avoid paying local taxes, since we’re Americans). Bijan already had a VAT form. So, once we paid and loaded up the stools, we headed to Globus, our “gargantuan” superstore. I wanted to check out the liquor section to see if they had any fun liqueurs. For the record, I didn’t find any… but we did get some wines. Then we picked up a few food items for the weekend.

I actually kind of hate Globus, because it’s so huge that I find being there exhausting. It’s usually pretty crowded on Saturdays, too, as everybody prepares for Sunday, when most places are closed. However, it had been a long time since my last visit, so it wasn’t a bad thing to be reminded as to why I’d rather stay home when Bill goes shopping on the German economy. I usually go to the neighborhood Rewe when I need something and Bill isn’t home. I can walk to the Rewe, although I usually don’t. Globus is absolutely enormous! It makes the Real in our previous town, Jettingen, look positively petite!

I got some photos from my outing, which will probably be the only one I get this weekend. Bill has to go to Bavaria again next week. I hate that, too… but at least it will give me a chance to teetotal.

Every time I go to Globus, I’m shocked by how humongous the store is. It’s so big that it’s overwhelming. You either leave with too much food, or get too overwhelmed to find what you need. Give me an Edeka or Rewe any day!

anecdotes, Health

Princess knotty gets a boost…

This post is probably going to contain a lot of crankiness, profanity, perimenopausal TMI… proceed at your own risk.

The day I’ve been waiting for has finally arrived. I just got my Moderna booster shot, seven months after my second shot last June. I lived to tell the tale, too… at least so far, anyway.

Bill made me an appointment over a month ago. I would have tried to have gotten in sooner, but the rules were that we had to have been at least six months past our last shot. All of the earlier time slots were full. Bill got his boost on December 1, 2021, and it knocked him on his ass. We’ll see how I react. When I had the first two shots, I didn’t react much at all. Just had a sore arm and a blotch. This time, I don’t yet have a blotch, but the area where I got the shot is a little itchy. The lady went higher on my left shoulder this time.

I should have realized we’d be early for the vaccine appointment, since I am married to “Johnny on the Spot”. He’s always early. I often am, too, but not like Bill is. Bill got home from work at 11:30am. I figured that was kind of generous lead time for my appointment, which I thought was at 1:30. But, he was telling me we needed to go way sooner than that. So then I thought maybe the appointment was at 1:00pm.

We arrived at the vaccination center at about 12:30 or so– too early. But again, I thought I had the time wrong. I was suddenly really glad I had decided to wear my down parka instead of my trusty wool “coatigan”. The vaccination center is on a windy hilltop and I’ve never not been cold there, even in the warm months. I also wore my favorite blue sweater, which was made in Scotland and purchased at a Scottish shop in Rothenburg ob der Tauber a few years ago. I was going to wear a different sweater, but then I realized it was too bulky to get my sleeve up high enough. It turned out that changing sweaters was a good idea, since the nurse injected so high up on my shoulder.

It was cloudy and chilly today, but at least there wasn’t any rain, which we had all day yesterday. I was feeling a little icky, not because of a respiratory illness, but because after a four month hiatus, my ovaries woke up and I got my period, complete with cramps. Naturally, that made me a little grouchy, along with the chilly wind that blew across the hill where the depressing abandoned strip mall on post has been turned into a vaccination center. We all wore masks and filled out a government form, then stood around waiting for the show to get on the road.

As I was thinking about the appointment, I wondered why I didn’t just drive myself. I do have a car. I’m out of practice, though, and it’s been ages since I last drove my car. Besides, Bill likes to take care of me… hence today’s facetious post title. In retrospect, maybe I should have handled this chore myself.

So there I was, cold and crabby, thinking that I had a 1:00pm appointment, since we were there so early. Bill had made the appointment for me, so I didn’t know for sure. A guy finally came out to explain how the process would work. I turned to Bill and said, “What time was my appointment?”

He grinned and said, “1:30.”

Then I said, probably louder than I meant to, “WHY did you bring me here so early?”

He started to explain, and a kind looking lady, also with her husband turned to tell me, “If you have an appointment, you’ll be seen for sure.”

I said, “Yes, I heard him….” then I noticed the look in her eye (I couldn’t see the rest of her expression), and said reassuringly, “I’m just bitching at him…”

She and her husband laughed. I wondered what made her feel the need to intervene. Did I really sound that irritable? I probably did… Suddenly, I felt a little ashamed and embarrassed. The couple laughed and said, “She’s just being a wife.”

“I don’t want to stand in the cold.” I added, realizing that my social skills have eroded further than I realized. The lady and her husband agreed and that little intervention passed.

Then another lady asked me if I was in line. I told her to go ahead and Bill, apparently thinking I was talking to him, said “What?”

“I wasn’t talking to you.” I snapped. Yeah… cranky, chilled, and crampy… that makes me decidedly crotchety. The lady flashed me a look of surprise. I probably seemed really bitchy and entitled.

“Why don’t you go wait in the car.” Bill suggested. “I’ll wait for the announcement.”

“That’s a good idea.” I agreed. My toes were chilled, as were my hands. My lower back ached. My abdomen twitched with Aunt Flow’s tardy arrival. Yeah… I was definitely not fit for human company.

Bill unlocked the Volvo for me. I sat there and watched more people show up… it was a little slice of Americana, with all sorts of people in all sorts of clothes showing up for their shots. It always amazes me to see how people dress on military installations.

Finally, at about 1:25pm, I noticed Bill heading toward me. I got out of the car and got back in line. Two chatty ladies, obviously friends, were talking about how much of a pain it is to deal with traveling and having kids, especially during the COVID era. The taller one, who appeared to be a bit more experienced, was telling the other one about the wonders of Germany’s train system.

“You can book your own car… and drink!” the taller lady said. “And the kids can have their own spaces.”

Between them, they had five kids, not all of whom could be vaccinated. As they were describing what a pain it is to travel during the COVID era with kids, I realized I am glad that dealing with kids and vaccines isn’t one of my problems.

“I hate driving here.” the younger one said in a charming southern accent.

Me too… I thought to myself.

Finally, it was my turn to enter the building, where the familiar stations were laid out just as I remembered them. It was nice to be out of the cold. Another friendly lady complimented me on my pink and blue tweed tartan purse, which I bought on the Isle of Harris in Scotland. Harris Tweed– don’tcha know? And it matched my outfit, too. She asked it it was my family tartan. It’s not… although it kind of looks like the County Donegal tartan, which is bogus, since Ireland doesn’t really have tartans. That would be a gimmick. But Bill’s kilt is the County Donegal tartan, since that’s where the Crossens are from.

I put the wrong number as my ID number. They did away with using Social Security numbers for security reasons. So now I never know which one to use– mine or Bill’s… or my Social Security number, which I know by heart.

An elderly Black man with two canes was in front of me. I was touched by how attentive the staff was to him. The female half of the couple next to me knew the guy. I got the sense that he was someone well known on the Wiesbaden installations.

The shot stung this time. I was right to wear my sweater with looser arms, as the nurse wanted access to the “meatier” part of my arm. Um… it’s all meaty! The platinum blonde woman who administered the shot said, “You’re a bleeder!” as she slapped a Band-Aid on my shoulder.

In more ways than one… I thought to myself as another wave of menstrual cramps hit me.

After I got my paperwork and rested for ten minutes… which was probably shorter than that, Bill spirited me back to the car. He handed me Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and said, “For your trouble. Why don’t we just go home, instead of messing with getting COV-Pass certificates from the Apotheke?”

“Nah, let’s just get it over with, since I now have to go in there with you.” I said. Apparently, the rules changed since last summer, and I had to bring my passport and sign paperwork. That wasn’t true last summer.

We went to the Globus, where a friendly pharmacist quickly and efficiently got us new QR codes for our COVID apps. A lot of places no longer accept paper certificates as proof of vaccination, since they can be faked somewhat easily. It’s getting to the point at which you have to have a phone, just so you can eat at a restaurant. That was my first visit to Globus since March 2020.

When we got home, Arran and Noyzi were delighted. And they showed Bill in a delightful way.

I’m just glad to be boosted. We’ll see how long it lasts. Maybe next time, I won’t be so cranky, chilly, or crampy. All in all, it wasn’t so bad today. At least the process was basically efficient, and the staff was friendly. Friendlier than I was, earlier today, anyway. My arm is starting to hurt more now, so I think I’m going to go sit on my can. We’ll see how I feel tomorrow, but since Aunt Flow is here, I have a feeling that either way, I’ll still be feelin’ kinda bitchy.

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The waiting is the hardest part…

Today’s featured photo was taken at our neighborhood Rewe, which appears to be very gay friendly… The Rewe could use an Apoteke.

A week from now, barring any disasters, Bill will be home from his latest TDY. For some reason, this one has been harder for me than the previous ones have been. I think it’s a combination of the many months we’ve been locked down, bored, and the many weeks he’s had to travel on business. This time, he’s half vaccinated. At the end of the month, he’ll get his second injection. I’ll get mine on June 9th. Then, maybe we can start doing some normal stuff again. As Tom Petty used to sing, “the waiting is the hardest part”…

One of many great singers from my youth who have died since I’ve lived in Germany. I always seem to be in Europe when icons die. I was even in Europe when Princess Diana was killed, back in 1997. It seems to be my destiny to spend time here.

I had a bit of unexpected drama last night. On Friday, we got some new toys for the dogs. Arran had recently destroyed a little blue gorilla that he loved. It was a Kong toy, so it had lasted awhile, though not as long as some of the others we’ve had. I try to cycle the really damaged toys out, even if they are much beloved. I don’t want the boys chewing on toys that are raggedy because they can end up swallowing things they shouldn’t. That seems to be especially true in Noyzi’s case. A few months ago, he swallowed part of an old toy that had been three pieces. Arran had long ago shredded the other parts of the monkey– the toy part had come from– but there was still a leg with squeakers in it. Arran would play with it.

At the time that happened, Bill was at home. He took Noyzi to our vet; they gave him a shot to make him vomit; and he puked up the part of the toy he’d swallowed. It was an old toy, though, so I have been careful to get rid of the ones that get too torn up. Friday, I gave the boys four brand new Kong toys. Kong toys are known for being very tough. But the raccoon toy I got the other day was not as sturdy as the other rope toys I’ve been giving them.

Last night, I came downstairs at about 6:00pm to find that Noyzi had “skinned” the toy raccoon, leaving the head and tail, and the rope innards. I was glad he hadn’t destroyed the head, since that was where the squeaker was. But he had apparently swallowed the “fur”. Fortunately, this particular toy, by design, didn’t have a lot of polyester batting in it.

Immediately, I started thinking I’d need to get him to the emergency vet– Tierklinik Hofheim, specifically, since our vet wasn’t open. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get him into Bill’s Volvo. He’s too big and cumbersome for me to get him into the car by myself. I don’t think he’s too heavy… he’s about 63 pounds, and I can lift that. But he’s long and tall and not very cooperative. After a few minutes of trying to wrestle with him, I gave up.

Then I went looking for hydrogen peroxide, which can be used as an emetic in dogs. I thought we had some on hand, but it turned out we didn’t have any. And Germany, unlike the United States, doesn’t dispense things like hydrogen peroxide at the grocery store. You have to get it at the Apotheke. It also costs a lot more there than it does at US stores. So I went looking to see if any nearby drug stores were open. The one at the nearby Globus was open, but when I tried to get there, I got turned around and wound up in a strange neighborhood. I’m not used to driving Bill’s car… I would have driven mine, but it’s in the garage, and the Volvo was in the driveway. Then, when I got back, I couldn’t get the car parked in the driveway again. I know I should have been able. The Volvo has cameras and park assist, and of course, GPS… I can’t get used to using those things. I don’t trust them.

So I worried all night, although Noyzi was pretty much normal. I came down in the middle of the night to check on him, and he greeted me sweetly each time. I obsessively read a bunch of articles on the signs of a blockage, and finally got ahold of Bill, who said if I needed help with Noyzi, someone from the office could come over. This morning, I found Noyzi lying on his back with his legs in the air. When he saw me, he rolled onto his side and wagged his tail. I kept hoping he’d poop… because again, “the waiting is the hardest part.” A good poop is a good start on the way to recovery from something like this.

I just took the boys for a short walk. It was a short walk because it’s raining. Just afterwards, I let Noyzi in the backyard. For some reason, he doesn’t like to go potty when he’s taking a walk. Arran is just the opposite. Anyway, after a few minutes, he came out, took a whiz, then took a fairly normal looking poop with bits of toy in it. I suspect there might be more bits in his next constitutional, but at this point, I’m not too worried about him needing emergency vet care. He seems to feel better, too, even though he wasn’t that distressed in the first place.

I guess I’ve learned a few things from this experience. The first thing is that we need to train Noyzi to get in the car by himself. If it had been Arran (or the late Zane), it wouldn’t have been a problem getting the dog loaded. Both Zane and Arran fit in the Mini, too. But Noyzi needs the Volvo and has to ride in the cargo area. He needs to learn to get in by himself, because I’m not getting any younger or stronger.

Next– I need to buy some hydrogen peroxide to keep around for these kinds of emergencies. Noyzi has proven that he likes to eat toys. All of the new ones are out of reach, for now.

Next– I need to stop being such a luddite. I have yet to embrace GPS technology because I find the voice prompts distracting and annoying. But the GPS could have gotten me to Globus last night. And the park assist could have gotten the Volvo into the driveway. I have been able to park in the driveway before, by the way, but I was not in the right frame of mind for it last night.

I need to drive more, too… I just don’t enjoy driving if I have nowhere specific to be. Hopefully, with the availability of the vaccines, that won’t be so much of a problem for too much longer.

I was feeling pretty frustrated, though. I’ve been in Germany for years and I know how most things work here. But I’m still getting to know this area where we live, mainly due to the COVID-19 nightmare. I don’t know a lot of people up here, so being here alone is pretty stressful. I have fewer people to call in case of emergency. And I’m really tired of Bill’s constant business trips. The good news is, he thinks they’ll be done after this one… at least for the time being. I hope he’s right.

*He’s perfectly happy. This was what he looked like last night, as I was fretting.*

Anyway, I think Noyzi is going to be just fine. I guess I need to watch him more closely when there are toys around. At least until he learns that toys are for playing with, not eating. Sometimes, though, I do miss how things are in the United States… not that I’m hankering to move yet. I just want Bill to come home and fix me a martini and tell me it’s all gonna be okay. Just a few more days to go.

Edited to add: Two more dumps littered with toy debris have appeared… and they were both perfect. After each one, Noyzi seemed even happier and more energetic.

German products, Germany, Hessen, restaurant reviews, shopping

So much for social distancing…

Bill and I decided to visit our local Globus today. For those who don’t know, Globus is an enormous store– a hypermarket to end all hypermarkets. We didn’t have them near Stuttgart, but they’re elsewhere in Germany and we have one a few miles from our house. I used to think the Real, which was once German Walmart, was huge. Globus puts the Real to shame… or, at least it puts the one we had in Jettingen to shame.

I don’t like going to huge stores, so this was only my second or third time at our Globus. We went there to restock our liquor supply and pick up a few other things. Also, I wanted to see how crazy things were after people were advised to “social distance” because of the Coronavirus. Here are some photos from our trip…

We ended up having an impromptu gin tasting in the liquor section. A guy was hawking Upstairs Gin, which comes from Heidelberg. They had a few varieties. We tried two, and bought bottles of each. The guy spoke excellent English and was taking care of us and a German couple, who said they could speak English… to which Bill told them in German that we speak a little German, too. It occurred to me that this would never happen in the United States. A lot of states don’t allow liquor to be sold in grocery stores and/or require it to be sold in a government controlled store. It depends on where you are. In South Carolina, Georgia, and Texas, we had liquor stores. In Virginia and North Carolina, we had “ABC” stores run by the state government. Or, of course, we could shop on military installations or online. But there we were, tasting gin at a huge store that sells everything but toilet paper… at least when there’s a virus running amok. Gin is all the rage in Germany these days. They’ve got some good ones.

After we went to Globus, we decided to have lunch. It had been some time since our last visit to Spirit of New Orleans, our local Cajun restaurant run by an Army veteran named John and his wife. We’ve been there a few times, since it’s located very close to where we live. Last time we were there to eat in, John was having kind of a bad day. But he was in a good mood today. I had barbecued ribs and Bill had fried shrimp. It was all delicious, even if I did need a good flossing afterwards…

*We got stuck behind this annoying vehicle on the way there.*

Today’s visit to Spirit of New Orleans was fortuitous, because as we were finishing up, another American came in. His name is Ernie and he works in the area. It turned out he and Bill both took advantage of the National Defense University’s cybersecurity program and graduated during the same year. So we were chatting, having a great time. Ernie says he’ll be moving back to the States soon, but not as soon as he planned, because the government has frozen everyone for the next 60 days. Coronavirus has put a hitch in a lot of plans… and is making finding toilet paper quite a project.

It was great to see John again, and have some Cajun food. The ribs were spicy and wet, and really hit the spot. The fried shrimp were also good. And John even brought out what he called moonshine, which he gave to me in a glass he says his mother in law made for him. Whether it was shine or Schnapps, it lit me up! Between the liquor tasting at the grocery store and the house shot at lunchtime, I’ve definitely enjoyed a midday repast I never could in the United States. Total bill for us was about 55 euros… not bad, considering that we also took wings to go.

After lunch, we went to the Lidl, because Bill wants to make a Guinness Cake and needed some cream cheese. Globus is humongous, but they were out of plain cream cheese. All they had was flavored. Luckily, Lidl had what we needed. We got our cream cheese and some Gruyere… but I couldn’t help but notice that like the Globus, the pickings were slim. Check out these photos!

*If you like vegan burgers, you’re in luck… otherwise, forget making burgers.*

After we got our cheese, we went to the drink market to turn in our empty beer crate and pick up some more… as well as some Guinness for the cake.

This was the first time I’d been out of the neighborhood in awhile, so today was kind of fun. I’m hoping that when the weather turns permanently nice, we’ll start doing the fun stuff we did two years ago, before we had to move and things got weird in Wiesbaden. That is, of course, if neither Bill nor I get deathly sick from Coronavirus…

I don’t understand the toilet paper hoarding. I think Rewe still had some on Friday, but the two markets we went to today were completely out. I don’t understand why toilet paper is so important now. People have lost their damned minds.

Bill will probably do some teleworking next week. That suits me fine. I’ve missed him, so having him at home will be great.

I suspect that if this toilet paper shortage continues, people won’t have to be encouraged to “social distance”. The smell will keep people apart. Maybe it’s time to buy a Bum Gun.

The Traveling Overeducated Housewife

…the wanderings and ramblings of a boring housewife…

Tag Archives: Globus