Travelling near the Dutch-German border this morning…

… I was pleased to see this expression of civic pride from the village whose name we all know so well….

Yes… that really is the name of the village, not a comment on the weather, or a rude word in Latin….

Beautifying the German countryside

I do like the way that some of our local farmers fill in any spare scraps of land with flowers or odd rows of beans and courgettes. It makes a much prettier view than just one solid single crop. I imagine it also attracts more bees and butterflies.

A few flowers and vegetables growing alongside the maize

It’s that time of the year again…

… Yes, late Summer. When the Christmas stuff starts appearing in the German supermarkets.

Seasonal fare, unseasonally early…

They’ve still got all the Oktoberfest produce in too.

Weisswurst in Lederhosen? What?

I only popped in for a carton of milk!

German beauty branding fail!

I was in the German town of Brüggen this morning when I spotted a couple of hair and beauty salons.

Their names definitely did not tempt me to go in….

Hairstyling for the brave… or the bald?

Beauty free …. hang on, that means ugly, right?

 

German women – we know your secret!

With the Oktoberfest coming up, strange and unfamiliar products have been appearing in almost every aisle of the supermarkets up here in Northrhine Westphalia. Everything from Weisswurst to Lederhosen to funny little handbags with Edelweiss embroidered on them.

But yesterday I spotted a new line in the ladies’ underwear section. The Dirndl Bra.

This is clearly the secret weapon used by German women to turn their otherwise normal looking bust into that impressive ship’s prow which juts out of every Dirndl-blouse.  Not so much a push-up bra as a piece of lace-edged scaffolding.  Even the size of the box is scary!

The secret weapon for creating that Dirndl prow

German ladies… we know your secret!