From: fg@spcklr.mpifr-bonn.mpg.de (Frank Grieger)
Subject: Re: shopping hours
Organization: Max-Planck-Institut f"ur Radioastronomie
Date: Fri, 21 Aug 1992 12:49:52 GMT

In <1992Aug20.173129.14783@CSD-NewsHost.Stanford.EDU> spg@Xenon.Stanford.EDU (Stephen P. Guthrie) writes:

>In article <1992Aug20.140732.17353@sinix.UUCP> tim@sinix.UUCP (Tim Bissell) writes:
>>
>>Shopping in Germany sucks bigtime.  Don't ask me about Banks, the Post
>>Office, the Telephone Dictatorship...
>>

>What about Banks, the Post Office, the Telephone Dictatorship...

>I'm moving to Germany in ~3 weeks and I wouldn't mind a few tips.

Worry, dont be happy!

Shopping in Germany is an adventure! Make shure you have enough 
provisions to survive the weekend! Every shop is closed from
satturday 14:30 to monday morning. On sundays you'll see legons
of thursty and hungry people stream into the McDonalds restaurants
because they kept theire american traditions and stay open all the
days. All the other people who don't like hamburgers and coke have
to fight for goods in the ram packed stores on saturday mornings.
You usually get up early so that you don't have to stand in the line
for hours. Take the bus to go down town because going by car on a
saturday morning is stupid. Since we have a lot of stupid people in
Germany a lot of cars will be there. If you arrive in the city
you'll be supprised. On Saturday morning even the smallest German 
town looks like New York city. Everybody living in the area is 
dowm town together with you. You'll never be able to imagine that
only a few hours later the streets will be empty. Who is in the
city together with you? First those who go for provisions.
Secound: The poor people who have to work and aren't engaged with 
someone who can do the shopping for them. From monday to friday it's
impossible for them to buy something. The shops open one hour after
they started working and they close one hour before theire worke is
done. If you could just look at me! I'm dressed in rags. Not that I
couldn't afford some new closes. I just don't find the time to go 
shopping. And third those poeple who just go down town for fun.
If you ask what kind of funny fun it is to go shopping when every
body else does, you just have to imagine that those few hours on
saturday are the only ones on the weekend. Later it's all over.
That's it for the weekend. Zip. Now you are down town. You want to
buy something. You need money. Forget it! The banks are closed.
They are even worse than the shops. They recieve your money by
pay check. They want to keep it. So, they are closed all the time.
Or lets say at least all the time you could go there. From time to
time you'll find some foreign citizens, who had the fate to arrive 
in Germany on a weekend, staring frightend at all the people and asking 
the crowds (or Krauts?): "Exchange?" I allready have a good collection
of foreign currencies at home. I should put it in the bank some time ...
Now, back to the point. You think: "No problem. I have a credit card!"
Ha, Ha! Just try it! If you're lucky and find a shop that accepts it,
you'll also find some body who'll mess it up. "Oh, I'm sorry it's 
the first time I'm doing this." While the salesclerk is bending your
credit card in the machine you allready think about going to McDonalds
in stead. But, forget it. McDonalds accept's no credit cards! You're
now at a point you would rob a bank. But all of them are closed.
Maybe you could cash a check. The post office! The good old Bundes-
post. The headquaters are open on saturdays and even on sundays!
But, they are in a different part of the town. Enter the bus, go to
the post office just to reallize how many other people had the same
idea? No! The shops would be closed when you return. In the mean time
your feet are hurting and you are thirsty and hungry. Go back home 
and order a pizza! "Sorry Sir. It will take two hours to deliver it."
Why in the hell two hours? "It's saturday!" Forget it. In two hours
you'll be dead. Maybe the hails army will hand out some food today.
But aren't they closed over weekends?
Somehow you'll manage to buy enough food to survive the next couple 
of days. You'll go back home with all the other people and you'll need
the rest of the weekend to recover!

Have a good time in Germany! Greetings,
					Frank.
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fg@specklec.mpifr-bonn.mpg.de               Frank Grieger, Bonn, Germany