![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Brandenburg Gate.
Oct. 23rd, 2013 11:18 amSo, you've seen the Brandenburg Gate and decided it was a lot smaller than you expected, so apart from its symbolic value when it was closed due to the city being split in half, it's irrelevant which means that you can safely ignore it on subsequent visits?
Yes, that's what I thought.
City marketing made me see the light. (Pun intended.)
( Like this: )
Yes, that's what I thought.
City marketing made me see the light. (Pun intended.)
( Like this: )
School shopping.
Sep. 3rd, 2013 07:10 pmSo there I was at the local branch of an international chain selling office supplies because I wanted to buy something I'd seen in their advertising. Yes, I know but the item I was after was a ring binder so ugly that I needed to get it - it is for a special purpose.
Of course the store was swarming with people - school starts here tomorrow or the day after (if it's your first day at school) and there were these confused groups of parents with lists in hand looking for their children and for the various items that they will need for their first day of school. ( Blue is for boys... )
Of course the store was swarming with people - school starts here tomorrow or the day after (if it's your first day at school) and there were these confused groups of parents with lists in hand looking for their children and for the various items that they will need for their first day of school. ( Blue is for boys... )
Yesterday the Brits, today the Americans:
Jul. 5th, 2013 05:00 pmYesterday I showed you how German supermarkets sell "British" food, today I can bring you The american way of lecker:
( The big picture )
( The big picture )
Just for fun,
here is how Aldi Sued do their "Very British" week:
They registered the trademark for "Taste of British Isles"®. They invented a little logo with a coat of arms that features a rose, a dragon, a thistle and a clover which looks like it is printed on a postage stamp with the words "Taste of British Isles" on it. Yes, obviously that is their way of getting away with selling products from the Republic of Ireland, too. Still, I could see why actual British and Irish people might not be very happy about this.
So, what do they sell to the good people of Germany wanting a taste of the British Isles?
Fish & Chips, Baked Beans and Irish meat (lamb and beef) feature on the first two pages.
The next page shows you Traditional Chips wth the flavours Sweet Chili and Salt & Vinegar - guess what, they mean crisps, but as we call them Chips in German they opted for the American term and bottled Buck's Fizz which is described as a spritziger Cocktail.
Then it's time for sweets:
You get three different kinds from the Toffee-Sortiment: Peppermint Crémes, Chocolate & Toffee and Chocolate Caramels; Winegums, Scottish Shortbread Fingers and ice cream that is modelled on after-dinner mints.
Then you get Gallantry Irish Whiskey and on the next page English Tea in German-style teabags in three varieties: English Breakfast Tea, Five O'Clock Tea and Black Tea Clotted Cream - apparently that is black tea with cream flavour. *Shudders*
That same page also has Brotaufstrich: Bramble Jelly, Fruity Orange, Lemon, Old English Orange and Blackcurrant Preserve.
Everything in italics is a direct quotation from the leaflet. The website already has next week's specials, so you can't see bigger pictures there.
here is how Aldi Sued do their "Very British" week:
They registered the trademark for "Taste of British Isles"®. They invented a little logo with a coat of arms that features a rose, a dragon, a thistle and a clover which looks like it is printed on a postage stamp with the words "Taste of British Isles" on it. Yes, obviously that is their way of getting away with selling products from the Republic of Ireland, too. Still, I could see why actual British and Irish people might not be very happy about this.
So, what do they sell to the good people of Germany wanting a taste of the British Isles?
Fish & Chips, Baked Beans and Irish meat (lamb and beef) feature on the first two pages.
The next page shows you Traditional Chips wth the flavours Sweet Chili and Salt & Vinegar - guess what, they mean crisps, but as we call them Chips in German they opted for the American term and bottled Buck's Fizz which is described as a spritziger Cocktail.
Then it's time for sweets:
You get three different kinds from the Toffee-Sortiment: Peppermint Crémes, Chocolate & Toffee and Chocolate Caramels; Winegums, Scottish Shortbread Fingers and ice cream that is modelled on after-dinner mints.
Then you get Gallantry Irish Whiskey and on the next page English Tea in German-style teabags in three varieties: English Breakfast Tea, Five O'Clock Tea and Black Tea Clotted Cream - apparently that is black tea with cream flavour. *Shudders*
That same page also has Brotaufstrich: Bramble Jelly, Fruity Orange, Lemon, Old English Orange and Blackcurrant Preserve.
Everything in italics is a direct quotation from the leaflet. The website already has next week's specials, so you can't see bigger pictures there.
Word of the Day:
Apr. 17th, 2013 09:37 pmI'm not the most fashion-conscious person around, so I wasn't aware of the word pussy-bow blouse which came up in today's news because Samantha Cameron wore a hideous specimen in honour of Margaret Thatcher at her funeral.
Link of interest as to the feminist history of the item in question - and the allegation that the pussy in the name is not actually a cat.
German name Schluppenbluse is very boring in comparison - Schluppe is a regional variant of Schleife, which is - you may have guessed - our word for bow.
Link of interest as to the feminist history of the item in question - and the allegation that the pussy in the name is not actually a cat.
German name Schluppenbluse is very boring in comparison - Schluppe is a regional variant of Schleife, which is - you may have guessed - our word for bow.
Beware the picspam!
Apr. 12th, 2013 08:50 pmSo, we - true to form - booked a last-minute holiday on Gründonnerstag, Green Thursday, the day before Good Friday, to leave for Mallorca very early on Easter Sunday returning one week later late on Sunday night. Those were the only flights available and while they made travelling a little less convenient it gave us an extra 12 hours of actual holiday time.
Mallorca is a place that is known for several things: partying, sangria and being Germany's 17th state. It also has the reputation of being stunningly beautiful if you actually make the effort and know where to look.
( Lots of text, only one photo! )
Mallorca is a place that is known for several things: partying, sangria and being Germany's 17th state. It also has the reputation of being stunningly beautiful if you actually make the effort and know where to look.
( Lots of text, only one photo! )
So, why Good Friday?
The online etymology dictionary says it's from good meaning holy in Middle English.
German wikipedia claims it's all Martin Luther's fault, but don't provide a source. I remain unconvinced especially as Germans call the day Karfreitag and not Guter Freitag, not even as an unoffical title.
I grew up Protestant, though I'm not an expert on all things Luther, but there is a tendency to attribute word usage to him, because his translation of the Bible was so groundbreaking and thus a first source for many expressions.
A quick internet search has given me the following quotation from Dr. Martin Luther̓s sämmtliche Werke: Homiletische und katechetische Schriften
"Wer den stillen Freitag und den Ostertag nicht hat, hat keinen guten Tag im Jahr"
a rough translation of which would be
Those who don't have the quiet Friday and the day of Easter, do not have a good day in the year.
This reminds me of the joke about what to do with 360 used condoms (the punchline involves the name of a famous tire manufacturer) but it is definitely not evidence for Martin Luther coming up with Guter Freitag. Quiet Friday maybe, but that hasn't caught on much either.
Google books gave me this which has pre-Luther quotations and also says that there was similar usage in the north of France from the 13th century onwards. Thank you, Christiane Wanzeck and your book "Zur Etymologie Lexikalisierter Farbwortverbindungen: Untersuchungen Anhand Der Farben Rot, Gelb, Grün und Blau". Apparently that whole week used to be called "Good" as was every single day.
So, definitely not Luther.
And with this not so fascinating fact I'll leave you and return to my marking pile!
The online etymology dictionary says it's from good meaning holy in Middle English.
German wikipedia claims it's all Martin Luther's fault, but don't provide a source. I remain unconvinced especially as Germans call the day Karfreitag and not Guter Freitag, not even as an unoffical title.
I grew up Protestant, though I'm not an expert on all things Luther, but there is a tendency to attribute word usage to him, because his translation of the Bible was so groundbreaking and thus a first source for many expressions.
A quick internet search has given me the following quotation from Dr. Martin Luther̓s sämmtliche Werke: Homiletische und katechetische Schriften
"Wer den stillen Freitag und den Ostertag nicht hat, hat keinen guten Tag im Jahr"
a rough translation of which would be
Those who don't have the quiet Friday and the day of Easter, do not have a good day in the year.
This reminds me of the joke about what to do with 360 used condoms (the punchline involves the name of a famous tire manufacturer) but it is definitely not evidence for Martin Luther coming up with Guter Freitag. Quiet Friday maybe, but that hasn't caught on much either.
Google books gave me this which has pre-Luther quotations and also says that there was similar usage in the north of France from the 13th century onwards. Thank you, Christiane Wanzeck and your book "Zur Etymologie Lexikalisierter Farbwortverbindungen: Untersuchungen Anhand Der Farben Rot, Gelb, Grün und Blau". Apparently that whole week used to be called "Good" as was every single day.
So, definitely not Luther.
And with this not so fascinating fact I'll leave you and return to my marking pile!
Poncy Porridge.
Jan. 28th, 2013 08:01 pmThe trendy food has made it to Germany - with the rather terrible name of N'oats - the apostrophe seems part of the brandname but isn't consistently used in the copy on the website of manufacturers/distributors mymuesli.com.
You can even buy it as N'oats2Go - oats with fruit flakes etc. in a pot noodle cup (just add milk/water). At the supermarket it was a 40g cup for €1,90 or online you can buy 12 cups for €19,90.
Mind boggles.
Very expensive oats. Well, ORGANIC oats, but I guess this is for the people who don't remember their grandparents eating Haferbrei in the mornings or who got to eat Haferschleim when they were ill?
I actually quite like porridge and I guess the to go variety is very convenient for office lunch. I also like the idea of adding some nice and tasty extra ingredients.
But the marketing is just amazing. They've got "recipes" on the website, too - telling you how to add water and milk.
You can even buy it as N'oats2Go - oats with fruit flakes etc. in a pot noodle cup (just add milk/water). At the supermarket it was a 40g cup for €1,90 or online you can buy 12 cups for €19,90.
Mind boggles.
Very expensive oats. Well, ORGANIC oats, but I guess this is for the people who don't remember their grandparents eating Haferbrei in the mornings or who got to eat Haferschleim when they were ill?
I actually quite like porridge and I guess the to go variety is very convenient for office lunch. I also like the idea of adding some nice and tasty extra ingredients.
But the marketing is just amazing. They've got "recipes" on the website, too - telling you how to add water and milk.
Books and outdated language.
Jan. 27th, 2013 07:11 pmWhen it comes to - for want of a better word - social justice issues it seems like Germany always lags a couple of years behind the US and the UK. In the past couple of years I've seen German bloggers complain about children's books with language that is now considered derogatory but was widely accepted when the books were first published, like Neger, i.e. negro, but the discussion has only now become mainstream with a publisher going through several beloved classics and - with the approval of the writer's descendants - changing some of those words to more acceptable terms.
( Rambling )
( Rambling )