Knokke
I say any town with three k’s in it’s name has got to be something special (just don’t throw any American History into this bit). Just like in German, you pronounce every letter, which gives you roughly: Ka-no-ka. Knokke is a posh town. In a nut shell, if you aren’t wearing a fur coat, mittens, or hat in the winter, you aren’t a regular visitor here. Serious.
We picked a pretty foggy day to visit Knokke in late December. With the wind and cold temperatures it was difficult to enjoy the normally beautiful scenery. I remember my feet were freezing that day and after 30 minutes of walking, I couldn’t move my toes. Misery.
Besides walking there are plenty of things to do in winter on the shore. In the off-season dogs are allowed to play on the beach. Kids pedal bicycles or four-wheelers on the sidewalk. There are also a few joggers and people fishing on the wave barriers. You could take in the architecture. I loved the thatched roof tops on the buildings. They look like orderly bird nests made of water reeds. The older thatched roofs are especially pretty because green moss grows on them. There is also plenty of art to be seen or money to blow at the casino. Still all these things can’t beat a hot coffee in a cozy, warm restaurant on the beach.
We stopped at a Brasserie called Andorra and ordered three cappuccinos. I secretly wanted to put my toes into the hot mixtures. But on all thoughts, that’s just gross. I noticed that people prefer to speak in French in this town, even though the way they speak French it sounds very obnoxious and harsh. I spoke in German to the waiter and some how that worked alright. We still had a little bit of hunger so we decided to each enjoy a small bowl of soup, or so we thought. Because Knokke is a so affluent, we mistakenly believed a 14 Euro fish soup would be a small appetizer. Instead we each received a deep, enamel crock pot with fresh fish, muscles, crab, shrimp and veggies. My bowl alone was enough to feed a small army. Lucky me, I love soup. It was simply delicious and filling. My toes were warm and toasty from the inside out.
In some ways Knokke remindes me of Harbor Island in Tampa. It is a cute town and a nice place to visit if you have ties there or an eager wallet wanting to be emptied. To see more photos, click here.
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no escaping the trouble with being foreign
New Axe-deo ads were introduced at the movie
theater Friday night. This should have happened Thursday night without the stinky deo.It’s been a busy time these past days. This is a ramble, recap post, detailing earlier moments during our long weekend, consisting of a trip to Regensburg and the blight of our favorite Indisches restaurant. We took our minds off of the crazy curry service brush, with a late-showing of the new “Pirates of the Caribbean” film. Johnny Depp was just what I needed although I could have done with a mute Elizabeth Swann. She’s pretty to look at but that’s about it.
This past Saturday, we welcomed Martin and Lydia for the first time to our home and had a grill party for their arrival. It also happened to be Lydia’s bday. They brought us a beautiful tree with purple flowers for our balcony. How sweet. Saturday also welcomed a rain spell that still wants to trump my immune system. I’ve been tired for three days straight. But I refuse to be sick so close to our trip to Rome. So here’s the rest of the beginning of the story. It’s a touch of rant..
Thursday, I made a surprise visit to Regensburg for the 4. Jubiläum des ersten Kusses. Although the romantic surprise was slightly thwarted by work and simply turned to an extra treat for us to see each other a day early. Boom chicka wahwah plop.
I had perfectly planned my trip to Regensburg, left on time, remember all my belongings etc. But I did tax me a bit. I woke up Friday morning beat, eyes itchy and reluctant to stay open and a headache. Dust? I noticed that there was pollen floating all around Regensburg. It could be I am not used to the plants in this part of Bavaria. Or some bug going around. I headed out to the city center after the Hausmeister stopped by, took one long, puzzled look at me and tried his best to utter his request in the clearest and slowest Hochdeutsch he could muster. Sweet, but really I need to practice my understanding of Bayerisch.
I made my way to the Burger King near the cathedral to set up my study area and try the new “Long and Strong” chicken club sandwich. Like I said in the previous post, I’m a weakling to xxl photos of tasty looking sandwiches. You may ask yourself, why not study in a library? Most libraries (if not all) in Germany require that you put your bags in a locker and carry your material in your hands. Considering my writing utensils, calculator, dictionaries, study material -I just don’t have that many hands. And forget sneaking in some water or a candy bar for quick, by-your-desk, brain fuel. It’s just more convenient to sit in a restaurant and absorb the grease and thermo. It’s a mystery to me why this Burger King am Dom rarely has any visitors. I think I got a clue with the improper use of the English language, phallically named chicken club. So disappointingly Ew. Oh well, I got a lot accomplished in BK’s deserted lard-mill.
Alex and I left Regensburg with Sebastien relatively early for Munich. Since we were having company over the next day, I didn’t feel like cooking Friday night. Soon as we arrived at home, I suggested we go for Indian food at Baldeplatz. There were little signs in the beginning that this evening would not end without a hitch: waiting for 10 minutes for a waiter to see us, the appetizers tasting not-so homemade, the impossibility of getting the three server’s attention and our meals though tasty, just not as spectacular as before. Maybe they lost their cook, the head guy was on vacation, who knows.
Everything was slightly off kilter. When it came time to pay, they took our credit card but said that it may take some time because they had problems with Telecom. After a few minutes the servers gave up and demanded cash from us. Between the both of us we didn’t have enough to pay for the meal. Alex then suggested that they should be able to use a manual card swiper in the event of a electronic failure. Our server said that the didn’t have one. This is when things got prickly.
The server apologized said that they had been having problems with Telecom all day, that they didn’t have a manual swiper, blah blah. Alex asked if they’d write out a bill and we’d come back to pay after we both picked up cash from our bank. The waiter said we had to leave something behind. Yeah right. Alex then reminded them that we were not obligated to pay then. They have signs on their front door stating they accept credit cards, EC cards. We didn’t receive a warning before we ordered. This is was just plain bad business.
I stayed while Alex made the 600 m trek to the bank. At this point I was okay, a little annoyed but still enjoying my pleasantly full belly. The server came back apologized again and said he’d bring out some schnapps. I shouldn’t have refused. But I didn’t want anything else to eat or drink. Nothing else would fit. But the poor, embarrassed server took that as a challenge that I was doubly dissatisfied and kept pestering me, what did I want!!
He finally offered a Mango Lassi and I gave in and said fine. Anything to relieve his suffering. He came back with a double serving in a beautiful copper cup. I had two sips of the good necker, but I had already eaten too much, discomfort was setting in so I let it sit there. When Alex returned, he rightfully asked for all the change back. The server blew his top, ‘we tried everything we could, we offered you (me) Mango Lassi..’ which he then looked at the copper cup and with an accusatory tone, ‘you didn’t even try it!!’
Then it felt like I was sent back in time. The days when I had to sit at the dinner table when I was mentally and digestively done with the plates before me and mother and father fighting with me to finish my food. I detest being put in this position so I reacted with a child-like response, ‘Yes, I did!’ That was it. I was done with this place, this crap from an over excited, disorganized idiot. More words come to mind but what’s the point. The evening was damned. It was just time to take a breath and start over.
Some Favorite Restaurants in Munich
As with every major city, it is always a daunting task to choose a good restaurant when there is one at almost every other street number. Unfortunately, Munich hosts a number of restaurants that will simply put a terrible taste in your mouth or burn a hole in your wallet. We found our favorites by trial and error and also through recommendations. This is the first post in a series listing my favorite restaurants we often visit in Munich. Every Munich tourist book already offers you all the great places where to get great Bavarian food. But if you want something a little different, then here are two places:
Adventurous Cuisine
Zimmes & Zores
Warngauerstr. 17, Giesing, Phone: 089 5506 4970 Website
I’ll start off with the disadvantage: It’s not so near Marienplatz or an U-bahn stop but if you get off at the Silberhornstr. tram stop, you’ll be there by foot in 10 minutes.
Nothing but praise: This restaurant is number ‘Uno’ in my book. Every time we have eaten here, the food has been superb and service was friendly and attentive, and prices reasonable. The restaurant is cosy, definitely NOT fancy, has a non-smoking room, displays a bit of artsy playfulness, but otherwise it’s clear the focus is on the food. [Update: Since February 2008, all open-to-public restaurants are required to be smoke free. Z&Z also add a little red deco. The place is packed on Friday nights. ] The menu is presented on a clipboard on a single sheet of paper because the dishes change every day as may the restaurant’s chef. The highlight for me is that they offer half portions of most all dishes for a reduced price if you aren’t hungry for a major feast.
Suggestion: Great place for a first time date or with friends who like to tease their culinary palette. Open: 10-24 o’clock Monday-Friday
French Cuisine
La Bouille
Neureuther Str. 15, Schwabing, Phone: 089 39 99 36 Website
Disadvantage: Get off the U-bahn at Josephsplz, then prepare to get lost. That has been our experience 75% of the time. Bring a street map just in case.
Embrace French Snottiness: Yeah yeah, there are better French restaurants in Munich, but you’ll pay way more. At least that’s been our experience so far. Some may also argue that La Bouille is also a tad on the salty side, and on one visit I would concur, but maybe I had a cold. But I think it’s a great place to start when you are first getting to know French dinning style. Everytime I’ve left the restaurant, I was happy and not overly blotted that I ate too much. I love that I’m enjoying a dish, which simply couldn’t be made at home. The menu is consistent and diverse with fish, poultry, and red meat meals. Open: 12-14:30 o’clock Monday-Friday, 19-24 o’clock Monday-Sunday
A Saturday in Köln
Even though I live in a fairly large metropolis, Cologne is definitely more hectic than Munich. The pedestrian areas are packed with tourist and locals, in some areas brushing up next to one another is not uncommon. Locals warn to strap your purses and backpacks toward the front to deter pickpocketing. Nevertheless I am mesmerized by this city for it’s food, beer, and history and I want to return.
Iserlohn (okay, technically, according to Oma, the family lives in Letmathe. Don’t ask. Something about annexation and small town pride) is about 45 minutes away from Cologne, which makes for a perfect day trip. Even from the outskirts the city on the Rhine imbues a fun-natured spirit. Adjacent to the Rhine is a zoo, where a skyway gondola takes you over the river and give you a spectacular view of the city. Another adventure to keep in the back of our heads when the weather’s good for our next visit.
We parked under the main train station, which also led to Germany’s largest church, the Kölner Dom. The building is incredible and could fit about 4000 sitting people. I can now understand why Cologne is the place to be for a Catholic during Carnival. My knee stability is not what it used to be so we didn’t climb a 509-step spiral staircase to see the view from about 98 meters above the ground. But what a view it would have been.
Alex and I agreed to take a tour of Cologne’s ancient history during our day trip. I some how imagined that Cologne’s first centuries would be buried under decades of rock and stone, but most of it’s Roman past is right at basement level. Evidence of early Roman settlements dates back as far as 700 BC. We visited the ruins of a Roman palace, the Praetorium. It was rediscovered in 1953, when the city decided to replace destroyed buildings with a new Rathaus (townhouse). See pictures below.
Our next mission was to find food. There are sweets and a Schnellimbiss on every corner but we really wanted something that would give us a taste of the NRW culinary region, which is supposedly different than Bavarian cuisine. In my opinion, it’s all very similar. And you can get the same dish in both regions but each has it’s specialties and they aren’t sharing their secret with one another. Sometimes the only difference is the name each region gives the dish. But in a nut shell, order Sauerbraten somewhere near Cologne and order Schweinhaxen in Munich if you want the best flavor.
We had been searching for the restaurant Rolf recommended without much success. But we did find a stand selling Berliners. In Bavaria, they are called Krapfen, which is basically a jelly doughnut. So far a Köln Berliner beats a Munich Krapfen hands down. We wandered a bit more then consulted the Köln Guide (worth the 50 cents, pick one up at the Information Office in front of the Cathedral), finally we found Brauhaus Sion.
KölschkranzWe immediately ordered two Kölsch. [A tip: Don't make the mistake of ordering a Pils, you won't get served.] I like Kölsch cause it’s less bitter and the glasses are Heza-sized. The waiters don’t carry the glasses on a normal tray, but arrange the glasses in a circle around a metal wreath with a handle in the center. Alex was so gitty as he read through the menu, saying “ooh” about one dish but later stating his mom cooks it better. So we settled on “Decke Bunne mit durchwachsenem Speck” and “Eifeler Bauernmettwurst mit Grünkohl”. Apparently, the dishes are spelled with some dialect in mind, but basically means Lima beans with thick bacon streaked with layers of fat (also served with peeled boiled potatoes) and Country cured sausage with green cabbage. I don’t want to know the combined fat content of both meals. The green cabbage was cooked with potatoes and bacon grease. Incredibly rich = incredibly tasty and afterward it was decided we didn’t need to eat for another week. My only regret: I wished I had enough room to eat another “thick bean”.
