Sauna

Let's talk about what the Germans refer to as "sauna".

Going to a sauna is pretty common in Germany. I've met several people who make plans to be at "sauna" for 3-4 hours once a week. They take this sauna business seriously!

My intro to the sauna in Germany:
I was invited by a lady from church (after visiting the church one time) who is in her mid 50's to go to sauna with her on a Friday evening. I thought to myself, "I'm not really keen on sitting in an extremely humid room and sweating for an hour or so, but I want to get to know some people and get out of the house, so I should go with her and try it." I told her I'd go. I at first didn't understand why she was so excited and told me I was the first "westerner" that had agreed to go to sauna with her. I laughed and told her I had used the sauna at my university in the states a few times, and didn't love it, but it wasn't foreign to me either.

Fast forward to a few nights later. I was invited by the same lady to dinner with two of her friends. After meeting them, one friend of hers was astonished that I had agreed to go to the sauna. She giggled and said she'd never met someone from the U.S. who would jump right in to "European sauna" experience. At this point I'd figured out that I must have missed something, so I asked why. She then explained that going to a sauna in most of Germany is usually something most people from the U.S. don't feel comfortable with, as you must be totally naked (you sit on a small towel) and they are MIXED saunas. And by mixed I am certainly meaning that men and women sit in the same sauna.

After learning this, I turned to the lady who had invited me, verified this information with her and took in her response of "Yes, it's no big deal here. I thought you knew. Everyone keeps their eyes up and it's very normal." I then turned down the sauna trip offer. I explained that when I sat in the sauna in the states, it was after swimming and while still wearing a swim suit with several friends. And it was in the women's locker room, so it was only ladies in there.

Now, if you know me, you know I actually have been going to the sauna for the past two months or so and have been loving it! The sauna I go to is in my gym here, which is a women's only gym. So no men around! :)

Here's a typical sauna schedule, as I have both read about and been instructed in by employees of the gym:

*You take a warm-hot shower first complete with a scrub or soaping of your body. You want your pores and skin to be free of anything that is a barrier, such as perfume, makeup, lotion, dirt from the day, etc.

*After showering, you sit in the sauna of your choice for no longer than 30 minutes. There are three separate saunas at my gym, one is the infrared sauna and is the least humid and hot, and the other two are hotter and more humid.

The saunas at my gym look very similar to this one, including the wooden "pillows" women can move around to lay down on. (P.S. Lesson I just learned the hard way: don't google "sauna" unless you want to see nudity. Then again, this was on google.de. Yikes!)

*You go into the sauna naked as the day you were born. You do not wear a bathing suit or wrap yourself in a towel. You sit on a towel when in the sauna to absorb your sweat.

*After your time in the sauna is complete, you take a cool-cold shower to wash the sweat off and "shock" your body. Most women don't soap off, but just rinse off. They believe (and I've read articles that both support and contradict this, so I'm not sure) that the warm shower followed by the hot and humid sauna (where toxins and things are sweat out and purged from your body) and finished with a cold or cool shower will strengthen your immune system.  The lady who invited me said since she started going to the sauna about a year ago, she has yet to be sick, and usually is sick several times a year because she works with children.

*There is a shower right next to the sauna with a huge wooden bucket hanging in the middle where you can stand and be drenched with icy cold water! I have not and do not intend to ever do this! Hahaha!

*There is a place at my gym where the women go outside to a small courtyard to sit in the cold and fresh air after showering off. Most saunas also have a lounging area, where you sit and relax (they strongly recommend this!) for 20 minutes or so after your cold shower. At my gym, there are about 10 brown wicker lounge chairs with blankets, lamps above each one you can click on to read, several small brown wicker tables with chairs, and two green couches. On the tables are pitchers of water so that you can refill your water bottle and hydrate. All very peaceful, serene and cozy. Plus the OUTSIDE AREA that naked women go to. Haha! It's totally secluded, as the gym is on the third floor of the building and the outside courtyard is surrounded by other parts of the building without windows. But still....

*Drink lots of water afterward. You lose a lot of water and hydration when you are sweating in the sauna, which needs to be replenished very soon after.

Here's my personal sauna routine:
*Work out
*Take a warm shower
*Sit in the infrared sauna (I still can't handle the other ones; they make me feel as though I cannot breathe) for about 20 minutes. The infrared sauna is more of a dry heat, which I don't mind as much.
*Take a lukewarm shower
*Sit down and towel off, apply lotion, drink some water, and chill for a few
*Get dressed and go home

I do not meander outside naked. Nor do I sit around naked. Haha! The second I come out of the sauna and shower off, my towel stays wrapped around me until I get dressed. That's just my personal preference. Yes, most of the women stay naked the duration of their time in the locker room, shower area and sauna area, which are all connected in the back. And they are very cool and normal acting. No one is ogling anyone else or being judgmental. In all honesty, it's a very relaxed "all naked" setting, if you can believe that. And more than that, it's totally normal here.

Why I like the sauna:
*I first started sitting in the sauna after my chiropractor here recommended it for my chronic neck/shoulder/back problems. The heat would be good for loosening up my tight muscles and also in the long run should help with my chronic inflammation.
*After trying the infrared one I found myself extremely relaxed. I look forward to sauna time now!
*It does feel therapeutic to sweat and feel as though you are sweating toxins and other bad stuff out.

There you have it! My personal sauna experiences here in Germany. Feel free to share any sauna experiences you have had or ask questions about it!

Here are some links if you want to read up about the benefits of using a sauna!
* http://www.pureinsideout.com/benefits-of-sauna.html
* http://www.wikihow.com/Take-a-Sauna
* http://www.greatsaunas.com/info/10Tips-ultimate-sauna-bath.cfm

Schnee!

Today we experienced our first snowfall in Germany! (Now to clear this up, it DID snow the day that the goose and I boarded a plane at Frankfurt headed to Charlotte, but we were up in the air and out of the country by the time it started!) We woke up and were greeted with big, fluffy, wet flakes falling to the ground and a dusting of accumulation. The goose was super excited! (What 4 year old boy wouldn't be; especially one who's been asking SINCE WE MOVED IN AUGUST when we'd get snow?) The thick snowfall continued all morning and for most of the day. We currently have about 2 inches of accumulated snow on the ground.

 This was earlier this morning, more snow accumulated throughout the day.

 Oh what fun it is!

SCHNEE! Oh how we love a first SCHNEE! It's so white and peaceful and magical! We ventured out to play in the snow after lunch time today. It was perfect snow for snowballs- wet and great packing! You'll be surprised to hear about how the German folk respond to snow here; the answer is: the same as most U.S. peeps! There were adults and children alike walking around and throwing snowballs at each other, people stepping carefully and treading lightly to avoid slippery spots in their shoes, cars getting brushed off, children sitting down and rolling in the snow, and dogs who desperately wanted to return to the warm and dry confines of their home after they finished with their business outside. It was refreshingly normal and human! How we all love and appreciate a beautiful snow. (Until it hinders our plans and day that is!)

The forecast calls for possibly more snow tonight. We shall see! The temperatures are supposed to be pretty cold for the next few days; not reaching above freezing at all. By the time it's warm enough to melt, that pristine schnee will probably be so brown and hideous from all the walking, dirt, cars, pollution, etc, that we'll be more than happy to see it melt away. But until then we will enjoy it!

Frohe Weihnachten Part Eins (1)

Frohe Weihnachten- Merry Christmas!

This marks our first Christmas spent in Germany. Oh Christmas tree, Christmas music, Christmas lights, food, desserts, surprises, decorations, presents, sounds, smells, and more...how I love thee! Christmas has always been my favorite holiday and absolute favorite time of year. One of the first things I said when I found out in May of this year that we'd be moving to Germany was, "We'll be there for Christmas?" Well, yeah, duh me...but that was where my mind went! My favorite holiday and time of year spent apart from family and friends and traditions and familiarity?

My face and initial reaction might have looked something like this...

You are probably curious as to what Christmas and the season are like in Germany. I can't speak with confidence as to what it's like in all cities of Germany, as traditions vary from area to area, but want to share some of the things we've experienced here in southern Rhine-Main area. You may be surprised to learn that many of the traditions, words, and images we use at Christmas-time in the United States are actually variations of German traditions. (Remember that the United States is a pretty "young" country.)

*Advent is BIG here- the Advent season, calendar, wreath, etc are all a big deal here. For most families, the Christmas season officially starts on the first day of the Advent Calendar. The "Adventskalendar" was started in Germany as a way to get families and children involved in activities leading up to Christmas day, and was used both religiously and secularly. Many good folks in the U.S. use an Advent Calendar type of item (even if they don't know it!) during the month of December as well. Just think about it- as a child, did you ever had a Santa face on the wall to which you glued a cotton ball each day of the month until Santa's beard was "full" on Christmas Eve? Or your parents hung a cloth Christmas calendar on the wall and you moved a candy cane or some other item from pocket to pocket each day? Mmmhmmm. Those are variations of the Adventskalendar. Children's chocolate Adventskalendars are very common here- each day of the month, the children find the cardboard flap with the correct date on it, push the flap back and find a piece of chocolate to eat and a picture to look at. In previous times, small wooden items and toys would be included in a wooden Adventskalendar.

 Christmas Market in Michelstadt, Germany, that Kurt attended with some colleagues. 

*Christmas Markets- One thing most people who know a lick about Germany have heard about are the famous "Weihnachtsmarkte", Christmas markets. Most towns and cities have them, though they vary in size. They start a few days after Thanksgiving and typically run until two days before Christmas. (This does vary of course.) The Christmas Markets are breathtakingly beautiful! They capture almost everything people love about Christmas in one big event! Music, trees, lights, families, nativity scenes, delicious smells and food and drink, gifts to buy and more, are everywhere. Wooden shops carry handmade items such as beeswax candles, wool scarves, gloves, hats, jellies and honey, lotions, jewelry, and more. Food stands are everywhere and serve up everything from Gluhwein (more on that later!) and bratwurst to Nutella crepes.

*Santa Claus, "Weihnachtsmann"(Christmas man) traditionally comes on the eve of December 5th. Children set out their boots or shoes and awaken on the 6th to find toys and treats in them if they've been good or rods and rocks if they've been naughty. That is Santa's big day and appearance, and he isn't given an enormous limelight as in the U.S. After the 6th, Weihnachtsmann fades into the background.

*Traditionally "Das Christkind" (baby Jesus) brings gifts on December 24th, Christmas Eve, which is more celebrated than the 25th. Children are sent to their rooms while the parents bring out presents from Christkind for them to come out and receive. Keep in mind that it is now more common for Santa Claus to come on Christmas Eve in certain areas of Germany- this just depends on the region you are in and the background and religious views and traditions of the family.

*Der Tannenbaum, the Christmas Tree, has German origins as well! (Dating to the early 1400's in Germany; the tradition was thought to be brought to the U.S. in the 18th century by German immigrants!) You will find cut Christmas trees at many Christmas Markets and stores. Artificial trees are almost unheard of here. Many families decorate the trees on either the first day of Advent or on Christmas Eve. Live candles are lit on the tree, wooden ornaments and crafted glass figures are hung, and a nativity scene is placed around the base.

Stay tuned for Frohe Weihnachten Part Zwei (2)!

I'm no Martha

A little bit of back story: We are staying at our pastor and his wife's apartment while they are visiting their family in the States. They were gracious enough to offer us full use of their place, as it's much larger than our apartment and has two bedrooms! :) (Ours has 1.)

We're enjoying the extra space tremendously!

Anyway, I found this craft packet on the table that Carol left for me, as she didn't have time to do it before leaving for their trip. The pink post-it reads: "Sheena, if you can figure this out, please do it."

I got kind of excited about this. Gave me a fun little project to work on today while the goose was in school for a few hours and I was baking some cookies for Thanksgiving dinner later this afternoon.

I sat down at the dining room table, played a "Parenthood" episode on Netflix, made a cup of Kaffee, and ripped this sucker open. The instructions are in Deutsch, so I grabbed an individual sheet of paper and started following along based on the pictures. It took me a few minutes to finish the one sheet. I was really proud of myself once I finished it, as it was a little tricky. (For me at least.) I had restarted it a couple of times, after not getting some of the folds as precise as they needed to be.

 I then glance down to the next set of directions and see that it says to repeat the process I just completed 30 more times. WHAT?!

 This was the easy part. The hard part is the other 80% of the instructional guide.

Naive Sheena thought that each little piece of paper made a fun star thing I could hang up. Then I see that once you complete all 30 of the difficult little suckers, there is a complicated process of unfolding them in different places and connecting them and refolding and...YEAH. NO. Does it reflect poorly on me to tell you I decided not to complete the project?

 My proud face turned to this when I decided I was giving up. Haha!

Fast Food

Fast food. We don't even think about how many fast food options we have in the U.S. It's something we are used to, something we've grown up surrounded by, the "norm". Even if you're from a really small town, chances are you have a McDonald's, a Hardee's, and maybe even a Subway. Fast food joints are on every corner. In the mall. Inside gas stations. Attached to super centers. They are EVERYWHERE. Traveling on the interstate, many people decide on which exit to stop at based on the food choices listed on the interstate signs for that exit. Just a Hardee's? Yuck...keep on driving, the gas light hasn't come on yet! Ooooo...a Chick-Fil-A, Subway and Taco Bell all within 0.3 miles of the exit ramp? Score!

From my experience so far, there are not nearly as many fast food places in Germany. Well, to rephrase that, there are a lot less varied fast food joints. In bigger shopping areas, you will typically see a McDonald's and sometimes a Pizza Hut, but that's about it as far as familiar fast food restaurants come. Bratwurst carts, bakeries, Döner Kebab joints and Italian eateries are the most common and convenient food places you'll find in most German cities; their version of "fast food".

*Bratwurst carts/stands: Chances are, when you think of German food, sausages, bratwursts and sauerkraut come to mind. :) Am I right? Bratwurst stands are pretty amazing here. For about 2-3 Euros, you get a Brochen (bread roll) with a fresh off the grill Bratwurst or Paprikawurst (spicy pepper sausage). There are other varieties as well, but I haven't strayed from the original or spicy goodness to try them yet.

*Bäckerei- Bakeries are EVERYWHERE here. I am not exaggerating when I say I have my choice of 5 bakeries within a 5 minute walk from our apartment. The people from Deutschland LOVE their pastries and bread! Walk to the bus stop, by the shops, or through the park and you will see a large percentage of people with a pastry or bread item in their hand. Business attired folk on their way to work will often have a coffee in one hand and a warm pastry in the other.

*Döner Kebab- These joints are everywhere. A Turkish specialty, the sandwiches and wraps are SUPER popular here and it's considered the most common "fast food" in this region. Most of these places also make pizza and fries, but the pizza is never very good. The döner sandwiches are made with pita bread, which is typically baked in-house, and warmed on a grill to give it a char-coaled look. Then meat is hand-sliced off of a spit of real lamb, veal or beef. None of that fake meat laden with preservatives! Once the meat has been put inside the pita, onions, lettuce, tomato and shredded red cabbage will be added if you respond "Ja" (yes) to "Mit alles?" (with everything). You can ask for chili flakes "Mit chili bitte" to give it more of a kick. The final step is a house-made dill joghurt sauce. (Pictures below)

 The döner place right next to the bus/tram station closest to our apartment. Busy during lunch hour on a week day.

My own personal döner sandwich. This one was a little too saucy for my taste, but good nonetheless.       

Up close and personal.

Toilette funnies

Just in case you were thinking about doing this....

This is for real and it absolutely cracks me up every time I look at it. I took this picture in a "Damen Toilette" (ladies' restroom) at the University. Because clearly the only happy person is a person who is NOT jumping and frolicking on the toilet seat. ;)

Pharmacy Shmarmacy

Imagine: It's 8:00 pm on a week night. You're battling a killer headache. You've fought the good fight, but it's time to call in reinforcements. You trudge to the medicine cabinet in your fuzzy socks and rummage around for your trusty bottle of ibuprofen. There it is- sweet relief within your grasp! *GASP* The bottle is empty. Crud muffins. What is your next move?

Before August 28th of this year, my response to this dilemma would have been a little bit of frustration and inconvenience, as at this time in the evening, I'm probably makeup-free and in my pjs, having just gotten the goose to bed and starting my relax time. But I would have grabbed my keys and purse, maybe swapped my pjs pants for some jeans, and headed down the road to the closest Walgreen. (Which was in fact, about 2 minutes from my townhouse in the States.) So as frustrating as it would be to be out of something I needed at that moment it would be easy to go grab it from the local pharmacy and be back home within just a few minutes.

Fast forward to October 2014. This scenario happens, but this time I'm living in Germany. My muscles in my shoulder and neck are super stiff, sore and painful. Stretch it out- check. Massage it- check. Heat lamp- check. But gosh darn it, I need an ibuprofen. The pharmacies here are called "Apothekes". We don't have CVS, Walgreen, Rite-Aid, etc. Most Apothekes close around 6:00 or 7:00 pm at the latest. On week nights. On Saturdays. And they are CLOSED on Sunday. There is a rotating schedule you can find in the paper or online, listing the one Apotheke that will be open 24 hours each day. (Only one.) So there is a way to get your precious ibuprofen. Yay! But wait, the one that's open past 6:00 pm today is a 20 minute bus ride and 10 minute walk from there. What used to be a 15 minute maximum round trip is now closer to an hour.


Here is my experience with the Apotheke stores in Deutschland so far. What is nice, what is frustrating, what it's like getting meds from there.

*Apothekes are recognized by the large block letter "A" as shown in the photo below.

*Apothekes are clean, well lit and well stocked

*They resemble a high end store much more than a pharmacy we are used to being in in the States. They have mirrored walls, pricey spa type products and herbal products over the counter.

*Most medicines, including aspirin, Tylenol, first aid ointment, etc that we would typically buy over the counter, are behind the counter here. So that's a bit frustrating. Given my limited Deutsch, it's hard for me to describe what I need sometimes. Plus a lot of the medicines are totally different brands and names here.

*The pharmacists at the Apotheke stores are quite nosy. Haha! Well, I suppose it's their job, but they will ask you what your symptoms are or why you need the medicine you ask for. In some situations, this could be quite helpful and lovely, but when there are four other customers behind you in line, it's frustrating and a bit "on the spot". When you are used to being able to grab your stuff, check out and pay with no questions, this takes some getting used to. (I DO see the benefit in this, as Germany is trying to prevent overdoses and even over-the-counter product over-usage. So for this reason, you are typically unable to purchase more than one package of medicine at a time.)

*You get much less medicine in a package here. I have not found bottles of medicine yet, they are all packaged in cardboard boxes with blister packs inside.

(I did find that most vitamins are easily purchased over the counter and in larger quantities at the "dm" store, which is kind of like a Walgreen with the type of things you can buy there, minus the pharmacy section. They only have vitamins, no medicines.)

*Not knowing how many brands are available or what a good price for certain items is here, I'm not always sure I'm getting the best deal. I have learned just this week that you can ask for "the cheapest please", "Das Billigste bitte", so I will try that the next time.

*Dosages for liquid medications are given by weight and not age here. Which I think is brilliant, as it's much safer and more effective to be taking the amount of medicine your body actually needs. I mean, for example, some 4 year old children weigh 40 lbs and some weigh 30 lbs. And others a lot more or less than those numbers listed.

The whole Apotheke concept was difficult for me at first, but just because it was sooooo different. For 31 years, I was used to finding pharmacies and over-the-counter products on every corner in almost every grocery or super center store. And being able to purchase my vitamins, medicines and such with no questions asked. (Well, besides good ole Sudafed of course! Thanks meth!)

 After getting used to the way medicines and vitamins are purchased here, I find myself quite liking the safety precautions taken with drugs, as even over-the-counter drugs (and vitamins) are dangerous when taken incorrectly, too often, or if you have an allergy to them.