Eat, Sleep, Breathe, Travel

Asparagus-mania in Germany

Who likes asparagus? (I do.)

If you like asparagus, you should go to Germany during the next two months. That’s because Germany has just entered Spargelzeit, otherwise known as asparagus season.

This is the first I’ve ever heard of this, which kind of surprises me. (I like to think I’m in-the-know when it comes to food customs around the world, especially in Central Europe.) As it turns out, every year at this time, when asparagus is in season, Germany eats and celebrates all things asparagus (which they call the king of vegetables).

In Berlin it starts with a ceremonial tasting at Brandenburg Gate. From there the asparagus festivities reach epic levels. There is plenty of eating of course—asparagus sausage, asparagus soup, ham with asparagus embedded in it, asparagus ice cream. But it goes beyond food. There are asparagus festivals. There are heated debates about the best ways to cook asparagus. At least one town crowns an annual Asparagus Queen (with crowns of asparagus).

And yes, it does mean that toilets around Germany have a special smell this time of year.

Photo: Spree2010 via Flickr

Europe will be buzzing with Euro 2012

Going to Europe this June? If so, get ready to be caught up in Euro 2012 fever. The UEFA European Championship (Euro, for short) happens every four years, and it’s the biggest soccer event in Europe after the World Cup. Obviously soccer is huge in Europe, and the Euro championship pits 16 national teams against each other to compete for the ultimate honor. It’s a huge deal. People go nuts for it.

Euro 2012 kicks off on June 8 and lasts three weeks, with the Final played on July 1. The host countries are Poland and the Ukraine, but the whole continent will be buzzing. Lots of EF College Break trip destinations are competing (Greece, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Italy, Ireland, France, England), so get ready. It’s a blast watching games, seeing the locals going crazy, feeling the national pride, soaking in the festive atmosphere. And if you’re lucky enough to be in the country that wins the whole thing, well that’ll take the life-long memories to a whole new level.

I’ve experienced big international sporting events while abroad, and there’s nothing quite like it. I was living in Prague during the World Cup, watching tons of games at the beer gardens and pubs around the city. I will never forget being at a beer garden for the semi-final between Italy and Germany, when a table full of Italians sitting next to us went completely bonkers after Italy’s go-ahead goal late in the game. Weirdly, I also remember there was a big spider at the bottom of my beer. (It’s funny the things that stick with you.)

Photo: Radio Nederland Wereldomroep via Flickr (CC)

Berlin's newly re-opened Stasi Museum

Anyone going on a trip to Berlin this summer? There’s a museum that just re-opened that might be worth checking out. It’s the former headquarters of the East German secret police (known as the Stasi). It’s called the Stasi Museum.

Inside you see the rooms and offices of the Communist-era East German secret police. Everything looks just as it would have looked, with old phones and typewriters and surveillance equipment and such. It's all sort of creepy, but definitely interesting and atmospheric. The museum includes the office of Erich Mielke, who was the East German Minister of State Security and head of the secret police.

This article about the museum’s re-opening is kind of interesting too. It talks about how a lot of the old East German Communist-era merchandise has become sort of kitschy and trendy around Berlin. Tourists and others buy flags and hats and other memorabilia, which is somewhat unsettling to those who lived through those difficult times.

In any event, the new Stasi Museum is not trivializing anything. It’s the real deal. If you’re into this sort of thing, it could be a good bonus after the more famous Checkpoint Charlie Museum (which is included on the EF College Break trips that go to Berlin).

Photo: melomania-music notes via Flickr (CC)

Getting Grimm in Germany

Has anyone watched the new TV show Grimm on NBC? I haven’t. But I know that it’s inspired by the famous Grimms' fairy tales, and I love those. There was also that Brothers Grimm movie with Matt Damon a few years ago. I didn’t see that either.

Basically I just wanted an excuse today to write about the Brothers Grimm. If you’re taking a trip to Germany, you'll definitely feel the Brothers Grimm vibe as you travel the countryside, visit the castles, and drive through the Black Forest. Many of the famous folktales they're known for took place in the small towns and dark woods of this region. The actual Grimm brothers are buried in Berlin, where they lived the last part of their lives. You can see their graves at the St. Matthäus Kirchhof Cemetery.

The brothers were Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, born in the 1780s in the town of Hanau, near Frankfurt. They were linguists originally, but in 1812 they published a collection of their favorite folk stories called Children's and Household Tales (today known as Grimms' Fairy Tales). We’re talking about all those childhood classics, including Rapunzel, Rumpelstiltskin, Hansel and Gretel and Cinderella.

The brothers didn’t write the stories, they just traveled the countryside collecting old folk tales and published them in one volume. Less forgiving people might say they stole them. Maybe so, but I’m glad they did.

Photo: San Diego Shooter via Flickr (CC)

Final ruling: no nude hiking in the Swiss Alps

Well, it’s official: if you’re planning to go hiking in the Swiss Alps, be sure to put some pants on. The country’s highest court has ruled to allow a ban on nude hiking.

I’ve actually written about this before in the blog. In recent years, more and more people in Switzerland have taken up the hobby of hiking without any clothes on, and the controversy has been growing.

A lot of it has centered around the legal case of one particular nudist hiker. He was fined about $100 after walking past a family on a picnic in the very conservative region of Appenzell. The man appealed, it went through months of legal action, and last week Switzerland’s highest court said the fine was valid. The court decided that hiking in the nude violated the country’s indecency laws.

Personally, I’m on the fence on this one. I generally like the idea of letting people do what they want. On the other hand, I can understand how the sight of a nudist hiker could ruin a family picnic.

By the way, if you’re taking a trip to Europe and you really feel the need to hike in the nude, you could try Germany. Not only is naked hiking legal in Germany, they’ve even created special trails for it.

Photo: redswept via Flickr (CC)

Remembering Prague’s Velvet Revolution

November 17 is an official holiday in the Czech Republic. It’s the anniversary of the 1989 Velvet Revolution, which brought an end to Communism in the country.

I got to experience a couple of November 17ths when I lived in Prague. It’s not a huge celebratory day or anything, no big parties or events or parades, but it’s a chance to look back on that historic day (and all that’s come since). For a quick history lesson on how it all went down 22 years ago, here’s a good summary.

These days, traveling through Central and Eastern Europe you can still learn what life was like under Communism. Prague and Berlin are great examples, especially for those visiting these cities on EF College Break trips.

In Prague, you can hang out in Wenceslas Square, which today is a huge central area of shops, bars and restaurants. This was where hundreds of thousands of protesters gathered back in 1989, packing the square and forcing the Communist regime to step down. Today you can go check out the Museum of Communism at one end of the square, which does a great job painting a picture of life here during the Communist era.

In Berlin, you can visit Checkpoint Charlie, which was an infamous crossing point between East and West Berlin during the Cold War. Now there’s a museum here, where you can learn the history and see how people tried to escape to the West.

You should also check out the East Side Gallery, which is the longest surviving section of the Berlin Wall, about three quarters of a mile. It’s been turned into a long stretch of murals, all celebrating freedom. It’s very cool. I highly recommend it.

Photo: Diego's sideburns via Flickr (CC)

Yvonne, the elusive Bavarian cow

I’ve been seeing this story for a couple weeks now, and it continues to amuse me. There’s a cow on the loose in the Bavarian region of Germany, and she’s become a national media sensation.

I like this story, because it’s the story of a brave and renegade cow. It started a few months ago when this cow, named Yvonne, ran away from her farm in Bavaria. (Bavaria is a large region of Germany, with Munich as its capital; it’s what you think of as quintessential Germany, home of lederhosen and dirndls and all that). A few days after her initial escape, Yvonne jumped out in front of a police car, nearly causing an accident. At that point the local authorities declared that she was a public danger, and police were given the green light to find her and shoot her in the name of public safety.

Not surprisingly, this upset a lot of animal activists. So they began their own massive rescue mission for the elusive cow. Then the German media picked up on it, and the whole country got all wrapped up in the drama. A Facebook page was created to protest the shoot-to-kill order, quickly gained thousands of members, and eventually the order was dropped. The cease-fire still hasn’t stopped the animal rights groups from going all out to find Yvonne though—they’re now going so far as to use helicopters equipped with thermal cameras. But Yvonne continues to run free.

I think it’s fun when countries get wrapped up in a bizarre media-driven drama, especially about a cow. There’s even a current hit single on the radio by a local band called Gnadenkapelle. They sing: “Why don’t you leave Yvonne alone, she’s only a runaway cow … You wild cow, don’t let them take your freedom.”

I couldn’t agree more.

Photo: zachflanders via Flickr (CC)

The beginning of the end for cheek-kissing in Germany?

One of the more interesting (and often amusing) things about traveling is trying to navigate the local etiquette and customs. Specifically, it’s always a little awkward to know how to greet someone. Shake hands? Hug? Kiss on the cheek? Kisses on both cheeks? Smile and nod? High-five?

It turns out that in Germany, some people want to crack down on the custom of kissing on the cheeks at work. In certain other countries around Europe, it’s pretty customary to give a kiss or two on the cheek(s) when greeting someone. That custom has picked up in Germany over the years too. But now a well-known German etiquette group is pushing for an end to the practice.

The group did a survey and found that most Germans don’t like the kissing in the workplace.  It makes them uncomfortable. They say that the practice should be stopped, so people won't feel so uncomfortable. They even go on to say that if you do like being kissed, you should put a little sign up on your desk stating your openness to it. Weird.

So that's the workplace. As for greeting etiquette while traveling, when I meet a local resident I always just let that person take the lead. If they go in for the kiss on the cheek, I go for the kiss on the cheek. If they go hug, I hug. Generally, I don’t worry about it too much. Most people understand that visitors in a strange place may not be familiar with the customary greeting procedure. You’d have to do something pretty outrageous to really offend someone.

Photo: European Parliament via Flickr (CC)

Thoughts after a big win in Germany

You probably either saw or heard about the historically exciting U.S. Women’s World Cup victory yesterday against Brazil. Unfortunately I didn’t see it, but I did see the historically exciting highlights on Sportscenter. Amazing game.

Like all major international sporting events, this World Cup has me thinking about the host country. In this case, it’s Germany. This makes these games especially close to my heart, because when I was living in Prague in 2006, the men’s World Cup took place in Germany as well. I have a lot of great memories watching those games in the bars and beer gardens of Prague.

As for Germany, I have been to three of the Women’s Cup host cities: Berlin, Dresden and Frankfurt.

Berlin, I'm a big fan. It’s a very cool city. There's a lot to do, a lot of cool art and music and clubs. I liked the attitude there too, the people. And Berlin has many significant and poignant historical sights to visit, after its very up-and-down 20th century.

Dresden is very cool too. I’ve never spent more than a few hours there, but I enjoyed walking around. Sadly, Dresden is often associated with the WWII bombing raids that pretty much destroyed the city. But today it's in great shape. It's a nice place to wander around and look at aesthetically-pleasing buildings. And it has a river. I love a city river.

Finally, Frankfurt. I spent one night there many years ago, before flying out from the airport the next morning. I’ll always remember Frankfurt, because it was in the hotel that one night that I stubbed my big toe very badly. Ever since, that toenail has continued to come in all rough and damaged. It's not the ideal souvenir, but at least it’s a memory. I think of Frankfurt every time I look at my toenail.

Photo: afeistenauer via Flickr (CC)

World’s best beard crowned in Norway

One of my favorite things about traveling is that it makes you feel like the world is one big community. International competitions do the same thing. Last week I blogged about the Cannes Film Festival, last summer I blogged about the World Cup, and today I blog about the World Beard and Moustache Championship.

The event took place in Norway over the weekend and included 160 competitors from many different countries. There were 14 competition categories, ranging from natural goatee to sideburns freestyle. The ultimate goal is the prize for overall best facial hair. This year a German man named Elmar Weisser won the honor. He had a beard in the shape of a moose (see below).

This was the third time Elmar has won the Championship. I thought his moose beard was amazing enough, but I actually prefer his previous two winning beards because they’re travel-related. The first was a beard in the shape of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, and the second was in the shape of London’s Tower Bridge. This guy has awesome beards.

Though no other facial hair at the competition seemed to approach the level of Elmar’s, there were definitely plenty of noteworthy beards, mustaches and goatees sported. The World Beard and Moustache Championship occurs once every two years. One can’t help but wonder what Elmar will come up with in 2013.

Photo: world-news-post.blogspot.com