4th of July with the expats

I can't remember the last time I observed the 4th of July, but who can resist a BBQ by the river with friends?



The banks of the Isar River are extremely popular in the summer, especially in the area near the Tierpark. There were multiple groups of Americans out celebrating their independence here yesterday, and finding our way to the right gathering wasn't so easy to do. But completely worth it, since I'm sure our group had the most fun.



The spread:


The beer fridge (Em got a better photo of the bar, before the sun went down):


The view:

Isn't every day Beer Day in Munich?

I have fallen down on the job, dear readers. There was an important event here in Munich yesterday, and I failed to attend it. From what I hear it was magical. OK, it was free beer. Helles, dunkles, and weißbier, free-flowing and plentiful from the beer fountain, at least for a couple hours in the late morning. Apparently this Tag des Bieres (Beer Day) happens every April 23rd, in celebration of the Reinheitsgebote from 1516 (German beer purity laws, apparently the most important laws ever passed in the history of this country). I have marked my calendar for next year.

I did, however, get a chance to celebrate Beer Day by ordering from Park Cafe's special Beer Day Menu of beer cocktails. I had a weißbier mojito. It wasn't as bad of an idea as Em's Goaß (kirschwasser, beer, and cola) or the terrifyingly-blue Isarwasser (blue curacao, apple juice, and weißbier) that was being consumed at the next table. But you probably won't see me splashing weißbier into my mojito again any time soon, on Beer Day or any other day.

Saying goodbye to the holidays… finally

It seems like it has been Christmas forever here in Munich, what with the markets starting in late November and all. Yesterday finally marked the end of the season with Three Kings Day (also known as the 12th day of Christmas, not that I noticed any particular increase in drumming), which is a holiday here in Bavaria. And a perfect excuse to get together with friends for a little food and drink. And this weather is perfect for keeping excessive amounts of beer and wine cold, as illustrated in the fancy gutter fridge above (Need a new beer? Open any window!).

The only thing I know about celebrating Three Kings Day is that it involves cake (and not frankincense, as one might be led to believe by certain stories). Different regions of the world have their own versions of a king cake, but what they all seem to have in common is the hidden choking hazard awaiting the “winner”. This year we celebrated with the French kind of king cake, and it was unusually delicious: flaky pastry with an almond filling… and a turtle. Whoever got the turtle in her piece had to sing a song in French* and then was rewarded with a lovely paper crown.

So, no more holidays for a long while. What now? Guess it's time to start skiing.


* Yes, the chorus of 'Lady Marmalade' totally counts.

Where did my New Year's go?

I lost it somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, in one of those unimportant time zones where nobody lives.

As consolation prize, we happened to catch the test release of confetti at Times Square a few days ago.



Speaking of Times Square, you couldn't pay me to spend New Year's there, but it was a nice place to play around with our new grown-up (ie, SLR) camera. Hooray for wide angle!



Here's wishing you a fabulous 2009 in which all your wildest dreams come true.

Munich's Christmas Markets: romantic Haidhausen

Alrighty then, back to the Christmas market tour. Next up is the Romantischer Markt am Weißenburger Platz in Haidhausen. It's a cute little market with a couple of surprises. They definitely win for the best Feuerzangenbowle presentation: not only does the drink come with a burning sugar cube, but also a little shot of rum to pour over it and stoke the flame. Then you shove the flaming sugar into the drink and stir. Makes for one deliciously potent drink.



If feuerzangenbowle isn't your style, there are plenty of other drinks available, from traditional glühwein to heisse caipi (a hot caipirinha). And since this is Paulaner's neighborhood, they've got a special stand at the market selling specially-brewed Christmator. Good name for a beer, no?

Regensburg has markets of Christmas, too

And now for something completely different...



Yesterday some friends and I took a Bayern Ticket up to Regensburg to hang out with Sarah, Christina, Tammy, and An and force them to show us around their Christmas markets. It worked.

The offerings at the Regensburg Christmas markets were, shockingly, pretty similar to what you find at Munich's Christmas markets, with a couple of exceptions. For example, there was an insanely fast merry-go-round. And Santa foosball. And dates in bacon coats. I'm betting these are popular Christmas presents for men - what guy wouldn't be thrilled to have his date dressed in nothing but a coat made out of bacon? Well, not a vegetarian guy. Or a kosher guy... damn, so much for my brilliant universal Christmas gift idea. I don't think the coats came in adult sizes, anyway (see Em's blog for a photo of the elusive bacon coats).

Despite the dreary weather (which later turned into delightful snow), Regensburg managed to look cute in its Christmassy decorations, although the town seems to suffer from the same multiple-Santa-Claus problem that Japan has (see the Santas climbing the building in the photo above). The hot, alcoholic beverages hit the spot (although sadly no one was in the mood to try the one called heisse Liebe).



OK, enough of these distractions. Back to my Munich Christmas market crusade!

Munich's Christmas Markets: Neuhauser Weihnachtsmarkt

Not wanting to miss a single one of Munich's Christmas markets, the other day we made the trek out to Rotkreuzplatz for the Neuhauser Weihnachtsmarkt.

We couldn't believe who was running the Schmuck stand:


Highlights of this little market included yummy crepes, live music (an accordion and guitar duo), and extra-cinnamony glühwein.

Munich's Christmas Markets: Residenz

Christmas markets everywhere! They are all starting to blur together in my memory, to be honest. Must be all those hot alcoholic beverages (like the Heisse Oma - a potent eggnog-like thing - that Em made me drink last night).

The market in the courtyard of the Residenz has a fairytale-like theme going on, complete with singing moose head and scary St. Nick (I'm wondering if the Chinesischer Turm St. Nick used this guy as a model). Not that I can think of a fairy tale that involves a moose head belting out German versions of American Christmas carols, but surely there is one. Right?

The most disturbing part (don't pretend these things aren't disturbing) was this little fairy's repetitive hand gesture. And no, I'm not immature. You are.

Munich's Christmas Markets: the gayest market of them all

This weekend the long-awaited Pink Christmas market finally opened for business. It wasn't exactly the best Christmas-market weather out, what with all the cold and rain and wind, but we managed to squeeze in a quickie glühwein there. How can you not love a city with a gay Christmas market?


I'm telling you, the tree was asking for it.

Pink Christmas is a tiny little market, with just a handful of stands, but it is quite close to the somewhat larger and more traditional Sendlinger Tor market. No Christmas market tour of Munich is complete without a visit to both.

Munich's Christmas Markets: Tollwood

Tollwood is more than just a Christmas market. It's a winter festival! At least that's what the marketing materials call it. The winter Tollwood (there's also a summer Tollwood) takes place at the Theresienwiese, and it's definitely the largest of the markets Munich has to offer this time of year. And probably the wackiest.

In addition to the hot spiced alcohol, carnival food, and kitsch stands typical of a Christmas market, Tollwood has several tents full of fun. There's a food tent, which offers up delicacies from around the world. Another tent is chock full of stands selling everything from seed jewelry to business hammocks. Still another tent has lots of untalkative white people wearing stylish clothes. One of the good things about all these tents, in addition to the entertainment they provide, is that they are also warm. During a long afternoon of Christmas marketing, it's nice to be able to go inside to warm up every once in a while.

We also found some lovely feuerzangebowle* at Tollwood, served in cups which involved little shelves for flaming sugar cubes (here spokesmodeled by Heza and AK). How can you not love that?



This guy has a fabulous sales pitch for his finger puppets. I highly recommend checking him out.



I never quite figured out what this sign means. Hunting season open on gay deer?



*a hot drink much like glühwein. To make feuerzangenbowle correctly, one soaks sugar in rum, lights it on fire, and lets it melt into the wine.

Munich's Christmas Markets: Rindermarkt

I'm beginning to wonder if it really is going to be possible to visit all of Munich's Christmas markets. I mean, there's only so much hot spiced booze one can drink, oder? At any rate, I definitely want to make it back to the small market at Rindermarkt again. Technically it's called the Kripperlmarkt am Rindermarkt, which means it specializes in nativity scene bits, but that's not why I liked it so much. In fact, I hardly noticed that part.

The main appeal is the feuerzangebowle, which is served up in adorable clay cups. For Christmas market purposes, feuerzangenbowle is a lot like glühwein, except less sweet. Yum. What's also lovely about this little patch of markt is the giant weihnachtspyramide (literally "Christmas pyramid", one of those thingies that spin around when you light candles under its sideways windmill).

And as a little gimmick, the weihnachtspyramide place sells currywurst that is sooooooo spicy... that one must be at least 18 years old to purchase it. As if Germans somehow magically produced tolerance for spice when reaching this age. Pbbbbth.


* Yes, I realize how silly the concept of "triangular square" sounds. Tell English to get a better word for Platz.

Munich's Christmas Markets: Schwabing

Next stop on our tour of Munich's Christmas markets: the Schwabinger Weihnachtsmarkt. As we all know, Schwabing is Munich's tragically hip neighborhood, and naturally they throw a Christmas market that lives up to the reputation. The lights and other decorations were whimsical and creative. The food on offer was more diverse than that at the Chinesischer Turm; while reiberdatschi still made an appearance, so did falafel and Eritrean food. In addition to glühwein, we found a hot, alcoholic coconut punch to try out (verdict: way too sweet for me!). The mugs had these crazy eyeballs on them. Santa's eyeballs, perhaps.



Arts and crafts are featured at the stall selling things you can't eat or drink, most of it produced by locals. There's even a Kunst Zelt (an 'art tent'), although after taking a spin through its contents I'm going to have to say that they are using the word 'Kunst' rather loosely. Still, the space heaters were nice. In the middle of the markt was another tent featuring a live band playing old Christmas favorites such as Tainted Love and something by Robbie Williams.

Munich's Christmas Markets: Chinesischer Turm

The Christmas markets (Weihnachtsmärkte) are in full swing, and I have taken on the responsibility of visiting all of the ones in Munich. In the name of scientific research of course. I know, it's a big challenge, but I think I'm up for it.

First up, the market at Chinesischer Turm, everyone's favorite biergarten in the middle of the Englischer Garten. It seemed like a strange place for a Christmas market, in the middle of a giant park. I mean, parks and sub-zero temperatures don't exactly go together in everyone's mind. Or do they? The markt was hopping when we visited Sunday afternoon, with long lines for some of the food and beverage stands. I enjoyed a mug of Heisser Weisser, hot mulled white wine, which was less sweet than red Glühwein. There was also a hot, alcoholic beverage on offer called Engelstrunk that we didn't get a chance to try. I guess that means we need to go back. The Pfand (deposit) for the mugs was cheap at 2 euros, probably because the mugs themselves are nothing special.

Em and I also went for the Reiberdatschi - potato pancakes served with apple sauce, crème fraîche, or lox and crème fraîche. Good for when you need something heavy and greasy in your stomach to soak up some of that Glühwein.

Although it bills itself as "romantic", the Chinesischer Turm Christmas market struck me more as "kid-friendly". There were specific activities on offer for kids, a model train, and a scruffy-looking St. Nikolaus wandering around (who incidentally took the same bus home as us. Who knew St. Nick used public transport?). The booths were schilling the typical Christmas market crafts. All in all, a respectable Christmas market experience. Open daily through 23 December.

Expat Thanksgiving rock'n'roll!

Over the years, I've been to every type of expat Thanksgiving imaginable. The potluck with other expats. The 'American' restaurant. The Italian-restaurant-tries-to-make-turkey. The expat housewife extravaganza. The potluck-with-mostly-Europeans-who-bring-shit-like-cole-slaw. But never did I expect to see the day where I'd spend Thanksgiving at the Hard Rock Cafe.

The venue was chosen because of its promises of 1) Thanksgiving-like food and 2) American football shown live on eleventy-billion screens. Personally I would have rather watched the Macy's parade. I hear there was a Smurf balloon... But I digress.

I skipped the dinner part (I had an art class, and restaurants tend to have no idea what to do with a vegetarian for Thanksgiving), but the reviews of the meal ranged from "at least the turkey wasn't dry" to "the cornbread had less texture than the pumpkin pie". Ah, the pumpkin pie, the one part of the meal I actually did sample. This pumpkin pie was amazing... in all the wrong ways. While it managed to look somewhat like pumpkin pie, at least from the top, it had the texture of rice pudding and the flavor of key lime pie. I don't believe it contained any pumpkin at all. How gloriously fucked up is that?



How was your Thanksgiving?

Here it comes!

Little wooden huts are being constructed all over the city. All over the country, really. The huts are being filled with Christmas kitsch of every kind. They will open for business at the end of the week. I can't wait!

The snow and cold weather this week have more than put me in the mood for strolling through a Weihnachtsmarkt, drinking Glühwein and munching on hot roasted chestnuts. If there is one thing the Germans do right, it's Christmas. If you only make it to Germany once in your life, do it during December. I mean, assuming you don't mind the cold...

It's time to play Name That Obscure German Holiday

Anyone have a guess at what today is? That's right: Fronleichnam*! It just sounds fun, doesn't it? You know you've plumbed the depths of obscurity when even the Italians haven't heard of your Catholic excuse for a day off of work. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. I think all countries could benefit from the addition of more obscure holidays, especially when those holidays mean days off of work.

These holidays keep sneaking up on us when we least expect them. Time to enter all the German holidays into my Outlook calendar so we can start making the most of our time off.

*That's Corpus Christi in English. I didn't bother to read the whole Wikipedia article, but it sounds like yet another day dedicated to the Catholic obsession with dead bodies. Now get celebrating!

Big fat Tuesday in Munich

The city center in Munich gets a little crazy for the last three days of carnival. The locals don costumes and down lots of booze in one big street party (and at lots of littler parties). It’s fun to see an entire city party together.

The costumes people were wearing were much more... themed than the ones I remember from carnivals in Halle. There the idea was merely to dress weirdly, not necessarily as something or someone. Put on a pink feather boa, wrap some aluminum foil around your arms, and stick a pipe cleaner out of your ponytail and you were good to go.

Popular costumes that we saw this year included Mexicans, Chinese, and anything involving black face. The Mexicans wore blankets and sombreros (and probably would have been kicked right off a Zurich tram). Naturally the Chinese wore clothing with random Chinese characters all over the place – as all Chinese people tend to wear. The black face costumes were the most bizarre – while some donned afro wigs or tribal hunting gear, other folks seemed to be wearing completely normal clothing, but just with black face paint. And then there was a herd of Smurfs.

I sent Scott out alone to watch the famed dance of the market ladies on Tuesday morning. I skipped it because 1) someone had to wait for our Ikea delivery to come and 2) I'm not a big fan of crowds. Instead I ventured out later in the day, when the crowd had spread out a bit (and gotten significantly drunker). The amount of broken glass all over the ground was unnerving, at least to us - it didn't seem to be bothering the revelers prancing through it on all sides of us. We, on the other hand, were plotting out each step as if walking through a snake pit. I'm taking this as proof that we were much too sober for the situation at hand. Next year we’ll know to drink ahead.

Christmas in New York

Hi there. This week I'm in New York City, one of my favorite places to spend Christmas. I'm a couple trips behind on my blogging, but here are a few New York Christmas photos to keep you entertained until I have a chance to catch up.



Merry Christmas, if you're into that kind of thing. More photos at my Flickr.

Christopher Street Day in Zurich

On Saturday I rolled my jetlagged behind out of bed and headed out to the Christopher Street Day (CSD) celebrations that were taking place in downtown Zurich. CSD is the local version of a Gay Pride parade, and gets its name from the NYC street where a major police raid took place in 1969.


Despite the gray skies and drizzle, a good-sized crowd had turned out for the afternoon speeches at Helvetiaplatz. One of the featured speakers was the mayor of Berlin, Klaus Wowereit, a famously 'out' German politician.

After the speeches, it was time for the parade, which wound its way through downtown. It was pretty small-scale compared to other parades we've been to in Zurich (and other Gay Pride parades I've been to in other cities), with just a few small floats blaring all forms of dance music. In between the floats marched various local groups.


My favorite by far was this group from a gay sports club, dancing up a choreographed storm to various disco standards:


Kudos to UBS for a big group of paraders (and an even bigger bunch of balloons).


I was surprised to see how many religious groups were participating in the festivities. Having just gotten back from the US, where Christian groups are vocally and aggressively trying to take away gay rights (or better yet, trying to convert homosexuals with programs that 'pray the gay away'), I just didn't expect it. Maybe it was the jetlag, but I got a little teary-eyed thinking about how happy I was to be in the middle of this celebration that was focusing on acceptance rather than hate.

Not that it's all sunshine and roses for gays in Switzerland. Although civil unions have been legally recognized here since the beginning of the year, the protest signs being carried by many of the parade participants made it clear that discrimination still persists.