Friday, July 11, 2014

Culture Post #6: American Fast Food in Germany



     Well hello there, people, places, and things.  I know, I may or may not have mildly exaggerated about the influx in posts, but relax, you'll get them all in good time.  And now to the good stuff!
     Back home in the United States, fast food chains are an ubiquitous part of nearly every city and town, all across the country, to the point where the question isn't necessarily if a place has a fast food joint, but which it happens to have.  Through the magic of business expansion, this now applies with increasing frequency to Germany too.

Monday, July 7, 2014

Location Spotlight: Naumburg

     Welcome back!  This week's location spotlight is on Naumburg, in the German state of Sachsen-Anhalt.  Naumburg was properly founded in 1029, as a state of the Holy Roman Empire (its name loosely translating as "new city").  The city is notable for having two large sections, the former "people's city" and "church city," which encompass the areas which were predominantly citizens' housing and church controlled propertyies.
     Originally functioning as a trading city, it lost importance due to the city of Leipzig's rise in prominence, and due to the 30 Years' War.  During the time of the former GDR, Naumburg served as an                                                                                     important manufacturing center.



Sunday, July 6, 2014

Tips and Tricks: Volume 6 - Unit Conversions

Bid these goodbye!


     Well hello there ladies and gentlemen!  Today, I'm going to try to be useful with a collection of measurement conversions.  As we all (hopefully) know, Germany (, Europe, and basically the entire rest of the world) use the metric system, among other things, and its not always easy to tell what different units mean.  Hop on in!






Saturday, July 5, 2014

Cooking for People Unsure of What a Stove Does: Recipe 7 - Handmade Pasta!


I am not even going to try this anymore.

    After a long, unexplained, and unforgivable absence, I am back!  Be prepared for a storm of double posts as I play catch-up.  Anywho, here is a short recipe to tide you over until this week's post downpour!



Handmade Pasta:

Ingredients:
  • Flour
  • Eggs
  • Salt
  • Tomatoes (cherry)
  • Cheese (take your pick, but softer is better)
  • Pesto (again take your pick, but we went with green)
  • Bell pepper (1)
  • Arugula
  • Scallions (to taste)
  • Salt and pepper (to taste; try white pepper this time)
  • Cauliflower and broccoli (if you're feeling peckish)
  • Sunflower seeds (or similar; to taste)
  • Beet juice (optional; for color)
  • Oil