Munich’s Christmas Markets: Tollwood

Tollwood is more than just a Christmas market. It’s a winter festival! At least that’s what the marketing materials call it. The winter Tollwood (there’s also a summer Tollwood) takes place at the Theresienwiese, and it’s definitely the largest of the markets Munich has to offer this time of year. And probably the wackiest. In … Read more

Slumming through the world of German reality TV

Germany loves reality television, especially when it has to do with houses or food. I can’t bring myself to watch most of it (except for when it has to do with singing – those shows are pure awesome), but recently Headbang got us interested in a show called Mein Restaurant. The premise is simple – five couples each get to open a restaurant in their hometown (Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Hamburg, and Leipzig) based on a concept they have developed. Once the restaurants are up and running, they get eliminated one by one, until only the winner restaurant is left. Upon each elimination, the losing couple has 15 minutes to clear out and close down… forever (imagine that said by a spooky voiceover guy).

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Munich’s Christmas Markets: Schwabing

Next stop on our tour of Munich’s Christmas markets: the Schwabinger Weihnachtsmarkt. As we all know, Schwabing is Munich’s tragically hip neighborhood, and naturally they throw a Christmas market that lives up to the reputation. The lights and other decorations were whimsical and creative. The food on offer was more diverse than that at the … Read more

Expat Thanksgiving rock’n’roll!

Over the years, I’ve been to every type of expat Thanksgiving imaginable. The potluck with other expats. The ‘American’ restaurant. The Italian-restaurant-tries-to-make-turkey. The expat housewife extravaganza. The potluck-with-mostly-Europeans-who-bring-shit-like-cole-slaw. But never did I expect to see the day where I’d spend Thanksgiving at the Hard Rock Cafe. The venue was chosen because of its promises of … Read more

Here it comes!

Little wooden huts are being constructed all over the city. All over the country, really. The huts are being filled with Christmas kitsch of every kind. They will open for business at the end of the week. I can’t wait! The snow and cold weather this week have more than put me in the mood … Read more

Oh la la! Beaujolais Nouveau!

Last night we went to a Beaujolais Nouveau party. Beaujolais Nouveau, of course, is a crappy French wine with a brilliant marketing strategy. What to do? Our wine is so crappy zat no one wants to buy it. We cannot possibly compete with ze other fine French wines. I’ve got it! Let’s use a little … Read more

Late night art in Munich

So I’m back in Munich. Oktoberfest may be long over, but there’s still stuff going on in this lovely city. There’s always something going on, I tell you. Yesterday evening it was the Lange Nacht der Münchner Museen (Long Night of Munich Museums), which, as its name implies, is a evening where many of Munich’s … Read more