culture shock, part 118

The Hotel Platzl here in Munich has a top floor sauna/gymnasium for the use of guests... it has a steam room, sauna, cold plunge, foot washes, tanning booth, showers, lockers and exercise equipment in various rooms (the latter bombarded with German MTV-like videos). It is lovely, done in tile and in a Turkish style. No street shoes are allowed inside.

So, this morning after breakfast I went up for a workout...

... wondered where the men's and women's lockers were, and bathroom, and wondered if I'd wandered into the wrong side. Er. There's only one locker area, and users often exercise in the nude, going from equipment to shower to sauna in nothing or just a bathrobe. Men and women share the same facilities.

Given the social norms at home in California, this wasn't particularly alarming, except that I didn't know these other people... I kept on my T-shirt and shorts (chuckle).

asking for suggestions for tomorrow

I'm going to Amsterdam tomorrow (Friday), arriving mid-afternoon, and will be on my own until at least late tomorrow night or Saturday morning. I hadn't brought any of my guidebooks, as I'd assumed that I'd be with a former resident. Does anyone have suggestions? I could try to make it to one of the museums before closing, then wander around the central canals for awhile... ?

Passing, um, notes in Munich...

Yes, there really are women here, not working in hotels or restaurants, who wear dirndl-dresses. Simply as nice normal clothes. I've seen a few older guys in lederhosen, but velvet vests seem much more common. I have two or three sweeties that I think would look good in a dirndl... hmm. Must look up women's sizing charts.

Bretzes put home-grown soft pretzels to shame, but I'm still not ready to eat them for breakfast. Even with Nutella... OTOH, Germany takes "continental" breakfasts seriously, unlike US hotel versions where "continental" equals "substandard" breakfast. Lots of protein, here... cheeses and yogurts and cold cuts and sausages and 15 kinds of breads and spreads, including the bretzes ;).

Including croissants. I keep forgetting how much better these are over here, compared to the chewy bland ones I'm used to at home. These are actually worth eating.

Men's suits: Lighter colors, beige or grey, with wide lapels and wider ties (or no tie at all).

Give me *anything* with kirsch, I'm crazy for cherries...

I now have favorite beers, after consuming more this week than in the rest of 2005 combined... even with the two days of hospital down time. And my doctors told me to drink a lot after I was released. Really. They told me specifically to drink lots of beer, as a diuretic and UT anaesthetic. Only in Germany, I guess, would my urologist prescribe me to drink 2 liters of weissbier. Anyway... my favorite is Paulaner weissbier... lovely clove and banana, not overwhelming, but tickling, smooth and luscious. Next favorites: Ayinger dunkles (nutty, malty, no backkick aftertaste) and Spaten helles (deceptively smooth and refreshing, until I try to stand up).

"Prosit, am prooosit.... " and counting to four in German. Although I can't down more than 25cl before I start to gag...

Yes, that was me last night in front of my boss and JPL management, up singing songs that I didn't understand and dancing with strangers... (grin).

Cured meats... this will be my all-time 5-weeks-of-nitrites tour... between the jamon in Spain and the wurst and loaves and cuts here.