Bremen - Market Day

The Findorff market is held every Saturday.  It is just a couple of blocks away from where I am staying.  That information is always a nice surprise because it is no secret I don't care for long walks to begin with.  Now after almost a month of walking and walking during this vacation, I REALLY don't like long walks.

My friend, Glynis, has a daughter who lives in Bremen with her husband and their little boy.  Through Glynis, we made plans to meet at the market at 8 am on Saturday.  It was a nice visit.  I got to meet Glyn's little grandson.  I've noticed that it is staying darker longer in the mornings.  When I got to the market, there were lights on in the stalls.  It really was quite pretty.

I've been to a weekly market in every place I've visited on this trip.  While they all sell pretty much the same wares, I still feel excitement when I go.  I always wish I lived there so that I could buy the bread, flowers, etc. to take home for the week.  I watched B., Glyn's daughter, walk through the market knowing exactly where the stall was that she needed something from.  Her husband went in another direction and got something else.  The Findorff market is a weekly occurance for them.  How lucky!

As always, the display of flowers and vegetables is a photographer's dream.  If I had a Loonie for every picture I have taken of either of those two things, someone else would be typing this blog.

Chrysanthemums (Mums) were 5 Euro.  That's $6.75 CAD!  I tell you, we get robbed by the amount we pay for this in Canada.

There are so many flower stalls throughout the market.  They are all busy.  It's because flowers are affordable here so everyone buys them.

I say goodbye to B and her family and head to Netto.  I now shop like a German.  I buy fresh Brotchen in the morning.  With that bought, I head back to my room for breakfast.  Etha, my housemate, sees me and joins me in the kitchen.  It was nice to have someone to talk to while I sat and ate breakfast.  Etha is an interesting person.  Born in Bremen, moved to the US 36 years ago and is here dissolving her mother's estate.  Crazy German laws prevent her from keeping the house she grew up in.  It's a long story.  She heads back to New Mexico on Monday.

I am now quite good at figuring out how to take the bus to wherever I want to go in the city.  I'm good because I have Google maps and can now use it.  I bought a 4 day Bremen city card.  The main reason is that it can be used on all local busses, trams and trains.  I save money paying for it than buying individual day tickets.  It also gives you discounts into various museums, etc.

I have to head back to the Schnoor district.  For some time, there has been a picture I see posted on a FB page for Germany.  It has been my goal to take a picture of the spot too.  I was so pleased yesterday when I was there and took the picture.  When I got back to my room, something made me decide to compare my picture to the one online.  I found that picture and brought up my picture.  It was not a match!!!  I had taken numerous pictures of the wrong building!!!  The picture I took is across from the bench I hate. The wrong building:

Well, I can't leave Bremen not getting that picture so I went back to Schnoor today.  This time I'm armed with the address of the tea house.  Yay, me!  I take the bus to Schnoor, get out Google maps, punch in the address and it takes me to Wustestatte 1.  Something isn't right because I'm walking down a narrow alley the one where I had to hunch my shoulders.  I keep going, the alley widens and there is the tea house BUT not the looking like I expected.  What the heck??  Well, I take a picture of it anyway.

 

I decide to go see what the building looks like from what I think is the back of it.  I learn I was already at the back of it and now I'm at the front door and there is exactly what I came to take a picture of.  New lesson - if possible walk around a building.  You never know what you will find.

My pictures are close enough to what I saw online.  It was all about the image showing the narrow street beside it.  I always remind myself that some pictures are taken by professional photographers who have ladders with them to get the perfect angle to shoot the picture.  I am happy to have found the tea room.  I know me.  If I hadn't found the tea house, it would have bugged me forever.

I like how towns/cities find another use for different structures that have outlived their original use.  For instance, in London, UK, the red telephone boots were converted into a space for ATMs.  In Schnoor, an old telephone booth was converted into an atrium.

In the narrow alley where I hunched my shoulders was an old man wearing a black hat, cape and carrying a stick with a small basked attached to it.  A child was misbehaving.  The parents had no luck getting the kid to stop.  The old man stopped to talk to the child.  I have no idea what was said but that kid's demeanour changed.  Might be because the kid was scared!  haha  I tried to find out what the caped man was about.  Had no luck.

On one of the streets was a wonderful store that sold everything Christmas.  The store was called Weihnachts Traeume (Christmas Dreams).  I couldn't resist going into.  I love lights for all seasons.  I had to get a little fix of Christmas too.  I also hoped to find something completely German themed to take home to my granddaughter.  I succeeded doing that without taking out a personal loan!

My first visit to Schnoor on Friday was very pleasant.  It wasn't too busy.  Today, Saturday, it was a nightmare!  All of the narrow streets and alleys were packed with people.  It was like walking in a crowd when you leave a concert.  Another lesson - if at all possible, visits sights on week days.  Your experience will be so much more pleasant.

Time to head out of Dodge to go back to my room.  I cut through the town square and realize Roland now has a sign hung around his neck.  It says Ischa Freimaak (Ischa free market).  Members of the Chimney Sweep Guild hang up a big heart on the statue of Roland as a sign that the market is officially opened.  It is a tradition that is done every year.

I went to where I catch the bus and realize several blocks passed the town square is a shopping area.  Shopping???  I cannot tell a lie, I had to go look at shops.  Most were the big city shops.  Kinda disappointing.  No mom and pop shops with local goods like European table cloths, children's toys, etc.  It's all stores like *whispering* C&A, H&M, Saturn, Peek & Cloppenburg, etc.  I didn't buy anything.  God forbid I add more weight to my suitcase.

Tonight is date night with Etha.  She's going back to the fair for the first time since she was a teenager.  It'll be fun to hear her stories.  I'm going back for the third time.

As planned, we meet at exactly 7 pm.  In our earlier conversations, I learned Etha is all about being on time.  Uh no surprise there!  As soon as she walks onto the fairgrounds, her phone comes out.  She starts taking videos of the rides.  We walk a bit more.  She stops to take another video.  She is my perfect date!  Together we took a lot of pictures and videos.  She tells me how as a teenager she used to hang out at the bumper cars.  When we came to them, I said "Etha, I have to take your picture at the bumper cars.".  She took her hair out of her ponytail (she said she always wore her hair loose as a teenager) and walked up onto the platform by the cars.  I shot several pictures.  She just glowed.

We explored the parts of the fair I hadn't seen.  After just over two hours, we both had had enough.  I looked up (Remember my advice about looking up?) and saw a sign for a Bavarian dessert called Kaiserschmarrn.  You can look it up to learn about it.  I think I squealed and said "I completely forgot about having this.  I have to get it.".  Imagine the state I'd be in when I got home and realized I forgot to have another authentic German dish!!!!  It would not be pretty!  Etha is German so she ordered it speaking in German that way I got it exactly the way I like it.  The portion was pretty big so I felt like I HAD to offer some to Etha.  Under my breath I was saying "Please say no.  Please say no.".  Thank you, Uncle Gus!  She did!  I enjoyed the dessert immensely but didn't finish it.  If I'd been alone, I would have stuffed it down but me and my big mouth had earlier said "This is huge.  I'll never be able to finish it!".  I'll never learn!  I threw away part of my beloved Kaiserschmarrn. 

It is now time to walk back to where we are staying.  We had a great evening.  Etha was wonderful company.  Going to a fair with someone is better than going alone.

Before we said good night, I asked Etha if she would let me take a picture of her.  I told her how I've taken a picture of everyone who was nice to me during my entire visit.  She was game!  She said "Don't run away.  I want a picture of us too!".  Out came her phone and a picture was taken.  This was the one on my phone.  Ladies and gentleman, I give you Etha!

Steps today = 23,593