Münich
So... back from weekend visit to sister in Münich. Sister may complain about the city, but I liked it. The architecture was classical and beautiful, the people friendly (those I met), and I had every opportunity to practice my German a bit, which was nice.
High point of visit must have been Saturday after noon, when we walked down Veterinärstrasse... and passed the veterinary bookstore. Aaargh! It was closed. Still, I stood meeping and whimpering and pointing and longing and jumping up and down outside those windows for quite some time. Have to go back there some day... it looked like a goldmine. Germans have always been good with books, especially text books. They're thorough, they're detailed, they're organized, to-the-point, and do not waste half of each chapter advertising how wonderful the other half is, or whining about som moral hindside that every child of three could figure out for itself.
I.e., they're not like many American textbooks. I don't mind Americans, and Americans do sometimes make very nice text books. But 4 times out of 5, their textbooks make me want to grit my teeth and pull my hair in frustration... "just bloody get to the point!!!"
Also, an unavoidable addition was made to my Steiff collection... I've been a collector of Stieff's stuffed animals since I was a child, and I add one for each visit to Germany... or every other, since they're expensive. This time, it was a crocodile. That means I now own a dolphin, a dog, two horses, two rabbits, a crocodile, a lamb, a bear, a tiny dragon on a key ring... and I'm sure I've forgotten one or two.
In other news, am not fond of Oslo right now. Comparing prices in München - and München in general - to Oslo has made Oslo come out at the bottom of a dung pile. I am not fond of this place right now, where I can't enter a supermarket without feeling robbed.
Most expensive city in the world. I second that!
High point of visit must have been Saturday after noon, when we walked down Veterinärstrasse... and passed the veterinary bookstore. Aaargh! It was closed. Still, I stood meeping and whimpering and pointing and longing and jumping up and down outside those windows for quite some time. Have to go back there some day... it looked like a goldmine. Germans have always been good with books, especially text books. They're thorough, they're detailed, they're organized, to-the-point, and do not waste half of each chapter advertising how wonderful the other half is, or whining about som moral hindside that every child of three could figure out for itself.
I.e., they're not like many American textbooks. I don't mind Americans, and Americans do sometimes make very nice text books. But 4 times out of 5, their textbooks make me want to grit my teeth and pull my hair in frustration... "just bloody get to the point!!!"
Also, an unavoidable addition was made to my Steiff collection... I've been a collector of Stieff's stuffed animals since I was a child, and I add one for each visit to Germany... or every other, since they're expensive. This time, it was a crocodile. That means I now own a dolphin, a dog, two horses, two rabbits, a crocodile, a lamb, a bear, a tiny dragon on a key ring... and I'm sure I've forgotten one or two.
In other news, am not fond of Oslo right now. Comparing prices in München - and München in general - to Oslo has made Oslo come out at the bottom of a dung pile. I am not fond of this place right now, where I can't enter a supermarket without feeling robbed.
Most expensive city in the world. I second that!