Election promises - #839

Bionade would have voted for you.

Makes a change from politicians (of all colours) who woo you with visions of milk and honey and then act asd if you don't exist.

Until the next round of elections, of course...

Stocking up - #838

 

The discount supermarkets in Germany have a huge market share - somewhere over 50%.

You might then think that it's all "pile it high and sell it cheap" stuff.

Exactly the opposite, actually.

Aldi's Veuve Monsigny champagne (€11.99 at the moment, normally around €14) consistently gets good marks in blind tastings over here and given that Germany consumes 25% of the world's champagne, they might know a thing or two about the subject.

Cheers. (Burp...)

Reinhilde -#837

Reinhilde Roth (on the right, with her sister Christine) runs the eponymous farm shop in the village.

She started out with a tiny corner of her parents' farmhouse, selling only produce from their farm and the farm that she and her husband run in the next village.

These days, she's so well established and has such a comprehensive range that the local supermarket struggles to compete with her.

She runs the place with a band of willing helpers, including (but not limited to) Christine, the Korn family (uncle and aunt), Heidi (who's a dead ringer for Annie Lennox of the Eurythmics) and various unwilling helpers - offspring, mostly -  who get press-ganged on occasion.

Apart from famous brother Werner, a radio and TV journalist who magically disappears to environmental conferences in farflung places when it's his turn...

Subway to the power of 3 - #836

In the classic "I say tomato, you say tomato" tradition, we have

1. A subway. Or an underpass

2. A subway. Or a tube. Or a suburban metro railway.

3. A Subway. Capital S. Same everywhere.

A young woman applied for an apartment via Mrs jb's rental administration company and put down "Sandwich Artist" as her occupation.

Guess where she worked....?

This has NOTHING AT ALL to do with Sandwich Mechanic, about which Kate and Mrs jb know more that they're willing to share

Location: Mainz-South Roman Theatre station

So. Farewell then -#835

In Memoriam
Tin Shed On Wheels

So. Farewell then
Tin Shed On Wheels

For a while 

At least

Until the Rands

Run out

And Mme M-D

And M. Schwarz

return

to wash the dishes

E.J. Thribb (17½)

Caffea Moguntia returns to the market (hopefully) on 19 January, fresh from their vacation in Capetown.

So unless I get the Kitchenaid Espresso machine working satisfactorily by then, we're seriously stuffed in the coffee department

Surprise, surprise - #834

 

The new subdivision at the top of the hill isn't going quite as smoothly as folk had hoped.

Great rush to be placed on the waiting list, followed by quite a few second thoughts and a gaping hole in the council's budget, having fronted up the costs of development and utilities etc.

They're now opening up the sale of sections to all and sundry in an attempt to get things back on an even keel.

I happen to know why they're not selling.

It's that bloody Castel Vintaro.

Now be honest - would YOU want to have this view from your front door?

Maybe they can find some ex-convicts who suffer from agoraphobia and are just dying for that "exercise yard experience"....

And here we are - #833

All the candles on the Advent wreath* lit

Merry Christmas

*A beam rescued from a medieval half-timbered house, actually

Oh, how festive - #832

At least they don't smell of cinnamon...

When iris eyes are smiling #831

 

What with all this snow (Frankfurt airport closed down completely yesterday and THAT doesn't happen very often), I need something to keep me going until Spring.

Especially seeing as we're past the Winter Solstice

De-Christo-ed - #830

I though you have to wait until Christmas Day to unwrap your pressies, but it appears to be different around here.

The Johanniskirche, looking brand-spanking new, despite being extremely chronologically gifted.

Consecrated in 910 (which makes it the oldest church in Mainz) and was in fact the cathedral church of the Archbishopric of Mainz until the Dom (just across the road) was completed in 975.

For the next 800 years, it went through the usual "add a bit, knock a bit down" phase to match the architectural style and financial resources of the day until the French turned up in 1792 and decided that it would make an excellent warehouse.

So that was that for 30 odd years, until it was reinstated as a church and promptly gifted (probably surplus to requirements, if the truth were known) to the Protestant congregation.

Who did the same "add a bit, knock a bit down" thing as the Catholics had been doing, culminating in a complete makeover in Art Nouveau style in 1906.

Just in time to be completely burned out in the air raid of 1942.

Survived the wrecker's ball and was reconstructed (given the post war fiscal constraints) in a late Carolingian style.

Maybe not quite so chronologically gifted, after all....

Potato pancake time - #830

 

Yummy!

I refuse to partake of the cheap Glühwein and sundry overpriced/sub-standard dross of the Christmas Market, but the potato pancakes are a dream.

The Goldies and post-Goldies all appear to have moved on to a well-earned (and well financed) retirement.

The new people appear to be from Poland/Slovakia/Czech Republic/wherever but from over that way and it makes you realise how simple and effective their business model is.

One person who takes your money and only needs command of the language up to "10"

One person who only needs to understand the responses of "Ja" and "Nein" to the standard question "Mit oder ohne?" - "With or without?", the noun (being "applesauce" superfluous in this context

Three slaves making the stuff and working frantically to keep up with the demand.

Now, why didn't I think of that....?

Big day for Little Eva - #829

Image removed at the request of the parents

Why is it that "The Locomotion" always springs to mind when I think of Eva, Mrs jb's great-niece?

Big day yesterday with 4 generations gathering for the christening in the church in Elsig.

Not that she noticed, of course.

Slept all the way through it.

Not a murmur, even when she got doused 3 times...

Note: The mural paintings date back to the 14th century and were discovered under multiple coats of paint in the 1950s and restored with vary degrees of skill (Hammer, chisel, oil-based paint....?). 

Later restorations were performed with somewhat less brute force

Flaunting flautist flair - #828

Or "Fähigkeit"

Two flossies tra-la-la-ing and another playing a mean flute, adding an attractive note to the enduring ugliness of the Brand shopping centre

Dagobert -#827

Put a German to a word association test with "Dagobert" and they'll be back in a flash with "Duck"

Pronounced "Dook"

Do the same with an American and "Donald" ....you get the idea.

"Dagobert" appears to be the translation of "Donald"

The road-naming in Mainz obviously wasn't sponsored by Disney.

Could have been named after one of the 7/8thC Franconian kings

Could have been named after Dagobert, the nom de guerre of a Berlin extortionist with an amazing criminal energy who achieved folk-hero status of (almost) Robin Hood proportions. (If only he hadn't kept setting off IEDs in department stores

No, probably Luc Siméon Auguste Dagobert, an 18thC French general.


The building used to house the old Lampenfabrik,

How appropriate, then, that the name comes from from Gaulish dago "good" and Old Franconian berath "bright".

'Oh, no...." #826

...I'm just sooooo unphotogenic"  said Julia, one of Doc Höffler's deputy torturesses assistants.

"Well", I said "if that's the only blemish, I wouldn't really worry about it"

I sensed the tinge of a blush.

(And I don't think she is, FWIW...)

Stumbling over things - #825

Drifting along Gt Marlborough Street in London the other week, minding my own business and (unsuccessfully) trying to prevent Mrs jb from frittering away our last cents in expensive shops, I discovered this outpost of Schott Music of Mainz fame.

Interesting history, too.

To my shame, I didn't pop in for a look.

(I was on the verge of perishing from dehydration and there happened to be a pub on the other side of the road  ...)

Traditional -#824

 

How about that, then?

A cast-iron manpersonhole cover AND cobblestones!

Just how much "quaint" do you want?

(Told you they put the city crest everywhere)

Honoured, indeed -#823

Mainz appears to have been discovered by Yoko Ono and Jeff Koons, although they appear to have run out of space and had to truncate Jeff's name in the name of the shop in the Augustinerstrasse..

But all very interesting anyway and I'm still trying to work out why it's selling clothes and not pieces of art....

(Actually Ono Koon, a rather exclusive clothing brand)

Christo was here -#822

Well, maybe a failed apprentice, then.

The Johanniskirche nicely gift-wrapped for Christmas

Bambi - #821

Now, either Disney's opening a new theme park in Mainz or this group of elegantly attired folk mingling with the wildlife in P&C, a clothing store, has something to do with the Bambi media prize thingy.

Probably the latter.

Kate Winslett won this year.

Which is better than last year.

Britney Spears.

Do me a favour....

Instruments of torture - #820

At Doc Höffler's

Don't think he used any of them, actually.

Felt more like a Black and Decker hammer drill...

Oh, how picturesque...#819

Won't have to go to the market anymore, if I've got this worked out correctly.

The City of Mainz has provided me with a way to visit the market without leaving home.

I think it's very good.

Apart from the fact that you can't buy anything.

And Caffea Moguntia doesn't have a Ford Transit.

And they point the other way.

But don't the rows of vans look picturesque.

Just so.....European...!

Advent, advent....#818

...ein Kerzlein brennt.

2, actually, seeing that now we're into the 2 week of the traditional Christmas season.

All being supervised by the enormously talented Beate Thiesmeyer's well-travelled (as in NZ and back) Santa

Winter? - #817

OK, meteorologically it's still autumn, but when the sun shines on the market, it certainly doesn't feel like it...

Village at full moon - #816

Plus some tasteful Christmas decorations and the local version of Jack the Ripper. lurking in the shadows.

And just to prove how metropolitan we are - a traffic light!

His and hers - #815

The Burgundy market gives the folks from the twinned city of Dijon to come over for the day and flog their goodies.

Including wine.

No brown paper bags or alcohol-free zones.

Around here, you look your addiction straight in the eye.

Mine's the red wine (you get a bigger glass...)

Things are looking up - #814

The view from the Theatre underground carpark to the old and new theatres.

Echt bio - #813

We're nothing if not Politically Correct around here.

(Did I hear some muted coughing in the background...?)

Did you see it on the milk at Aldi the other day on the "Waiting" post? That might get me to heaven, even.

Bio (German for "organic" - nicked from "biologique" from the folks across the border, probably) is a real craze around here.

Used to be that it meant "overpriced and scroungy-looking"

These days it tends just to mean "overpriced"....

Not too good - #812

© Caitlin Houghton

Odile Landragin is a frequent topic of these pages,

She's an absolutely charming person with a lovely family  and her garden is exquisite.

Her 8 year old granddaughter contracted the H1N1 virus and died last week.

Words fail me.

Tears don't....

Local heroes - #811

Roland Rother runs a car repair workshop in Lörzweiler.

Someone recommended him for an arcane airconditioning problem with one of the Saabs a couple of years ago. He spent AT LEAST 2 hours trying to track down the cause (even Saab were stumped...) and then didn't want paying "because I didn't fix it and anyway I've learnt something about Saabs..."

Ever since then he's had all of our business.
Yesterday was a classic example of why.

He's fixing the fan for the airconditioning and I mention that we might need a new bulb for one of the headlights.

Turns out that it's a fault in the (probably outrageously expensive) light switch - "Saab" is the acronym for "sh*t, another astronomical bill" - but....."I can couple the fuses for the left and right lamps and then put another fuse between them for safety and then we don't need a new light switch"

"Cool" doesn't begin to describe it...

Postscript

It just got better.

The aircon fan problem's been traced down to a control module.

€125 at Saab.

A customer turns up in the workshop who's been driving Saabs since he was 19.

"Why don't you pull the module out of my old 9.3 and see if it works?" he says.

It does.

€20

Monthly Theme Day - Waiting - #810

Some people claim not to shop at Aldi.

A bit downmarket, they say.

(In England, middle class wimmin with higher aspirations have even been seen using Sainsbury and Waitrose carrier bags to throw the Joneses off the scent. But that's the Poms for you.)

All I can say is that their milk's OK, the French cheese is pretty good and their duck breasts are as good as any I've had outside France.

As is their champagne, which won a blind-tasting a while back.

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