Thursday, January 12, 2012

Schlittschuhfahren!

Our little outdoor rink
The holiday season has ended here in Germany (and still no snow in BS), which means no more Weihnachtsmarkts. Though before the end of Mariko's vacation from work we wanted to go ice-skating, as the outdoor rink here was almost ready to close down. So we check the times and price and headed into Downtown BS!


Incidentally the German word for ice-skating is (points to the title) Schlittschuhfahren. Which translates into:

Schlitten: a sled or toboggan
+
Shuh: shoe
+
Fahren:to drive or ride
=
Ice Skating!!

So we strap on our ice-skates, get our hand stamped for 2 hrs of skating and then head out onto the ice..... and that is point where Mariko and I realized that it has been over 10 yrs since either of us have ice-skated (18 years for me and 12 years for Mariko)!!! But we got out there and slipped and slid our way around the rink a few times. I was slowly getting used to the skates and moving on the
The Penguin
ice, going was no problem... stopping required the wall for me however. Mariko though, well she needed to stay a little close to the wall for the majority of the time. There was even on point where a group of younger kids asked Mariko if she wanted to use the penguin. The penguin was plastic and the size of a small child, on its feet were small skis... it was for small children to use around the ring so they wouldn't fall. I thought that it was very nice of the girls to ask Mariko if she wanted to use it... and she declined (it would have been fun to get pictures of her with it).

Mariko before her epic fall
By the end of our 2 hrs we were both getting a little sore in the feet and Mariko sore in the butt and legs (sadly she fell 3 times... once right in front of all the spectators). As we were turning in our skates and leaving she said "I now know why my parents were always reluctant to take us ice-skating.... its not as much fun when you are an adult and you fall." So I promised her that I would take our kids if they want to go... and she can sit and watch us while drinking Hot Chocolate.

Mariko was a little sore after all the ice-skating so we headed over to Pizza Hut (real German right?) and rested a bit. Seeing as we were already out and about, both Mariko and I thought that we should do some shopping! Mariko had eyed some boots that we saw prior so went back to the store and had her try them on. Apparently while ice-skating Mariko bruised the muscle that helps you stand on one foot... because trying on the boots were very difficult for her.

Afterwords we headed to the store New Yorker... its a hip kinda place full of jibe and funk! Ok maybe not all that, but much cooler clothes than I usually shop for. Thinking about that actually I have not bought any clothes for myself that did not come from my place of employment for nearly 10 years (G.H Bass, Geoffrey Beene and Van Heusen). We had some fun, and surprisingly enough we came out of the store with a full outfit for me!! And everything was on Angebot (German word for sales)!! Germany certainly has a ton of Angebot offers for those with a low budget, even some fancy clothes, you just have to know when and where to look!

2 comments:

  1. Hey, I wanted to see a picture of those boots XD

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