Grocery Shopping in Germany 101: Lesson 1 -- Shopping Bags

I've been meaning for a while to blog about what it's like to go food shopping in Germany, but it was such a daunting task, I kept putting it off.  This is the part of my life here in Germany that has taken the most effort over the last two years and I had so much to say.  I finally realized that if I broke all the information down into smaller pieces, it seemed like a less intimidating undertaking.

Our first lesson will be all about shopping bags.  This would have been a much more interesting lesson if I were writing it five years ago.  What an American notices right away in a German grocery store is that people bring their own reusuable shopping bags or baskets -- pretty much unheard of in the U.S. until the past few years.  The U.S. is starting to imitate Europe in this respect, but I still thought shopping bags deserved a mention.

In preparation for our stay here in Germany, my good friend Valerie gave me a canvas tote bag.  She had lived in Germany for three years and knew I would need a shopping bag.  And what could be better or more appropriate than a bag featuring quotes from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice?

You see, here in German grocery stores, and I imagine in most European grocery stores, you pay for those little plastic shopping bags at the register.  As a result, most people use some kind of reusuable shopping bag or basket.  At most other stores, such as clothing stores, department stores, book stores, etc., you get bags for free with your purchase. 

At first I was peeved by all this.  After all, I was a wasteful American consumer and every food shopping trip ended with me stashing away 12-15 little wasteful plastic bags.  But I reused every one of those little wasteful plastic bags, often as little trash can liners.  I have since learned that I can line a little trash can here with a plastic bag and as long as that bag doesn't get yucky, I can keep that same bag in the trashcan for a few months.  Back home, we were just throwing away  plastic bags every week on trash day -- and times 4 or 5 little trashcans, well, that adds up.  It is needlessly wasteful.

For the first month or so here, I was being very German and walking to one of the local grocery stores every day with my 2 or 3 canvas tote bags and buying a day's worth of food, which was just what I could manage to carry.  But think about it -- food for a day for 6 people.  That means, milk, jogurt, snacks for lunch boxes, food for dinner, etc. every day.  Then a loaf of bread, a box of cereal, a package of cheese, juice boxes, etc. every other day.  It was a chore.  Plus I would freak out if someone ate or drank a little something extra.  "Don't eat those pretzels!  They're for the kids' lunches tomorrow!"  "Only half a glass of milk at dinner for everyone! We're running low and we need milk for cereal in the morning!"  "I can't believe you all ate that little package of cookies!  Now what am I supposed to give you for snack in your lunch boxes tomorrow?"

I just wasn't willing to go through all this every day for 3 years.  Most Germans go food shopping every day or every other day, but most German families do not have four kids.  There were 3 grocery stores within a five-minute walk from home, but none were what we would think of as a big American supermarket where you can find everything.  You just couldn't guarantee that you would find what you needed on any given day.  There have been times I have walked into one of the stores near us and there has been no eggs or no chicken or no milk. I then would walk to the other two stores, and would be very lucky indeed if I found eggs, chicken or milk there.

I asked around and found out about Real, Germany's answer to SuperWalmart.  After my initial visit, I figured I could do a weekly shopping trip there, but I would need more shopping bags.  What to do?

I did what you see many other people doing:  reusing plastic shopping bags from other stores.  Just imagine that you go shopping at your local Publix or Kroger and at the register, you whip out a big J.C. Penney bag, a Target bag, a Barnes and Noble bag, a Gap bag...etc.  That was what I did for 1-1/2 years.  The bags were unwieldy, and ripped over time, but I managed.

During our trip to France last spring, our friend Sally showed me her store brand shopping bags and I vowed to get some of my own.  They are large, sturdy bags that made carrying enough groceries to feed a family of 6 for a week into the house that much easier.  Grocery stores, drugstores and other stores here sell their own brand of sturdy shopping bags for about $1.50 a bag.  What a bargain!  I like this bag from Real because it features a German computer keyboard with accents and that funny B, which stands for "ss".

I picked up the elephant bag in a grocery store in London and the Parc Astérix bag at, of all places, Parc Astérix, a French amusement park.

Yesterday at Real, in the section of the store where independent merchants can set up shop for a week (purses/wallets, wooden toys, clothing, etc.), a woman had a large display of different types of shopping baskets.

You see more people carrying baskets around a store than the store brand of shopping bags.  These collapsible baskets are popular and stylish. And remember, people usually buy just enough food for one or two days, so such a basket is all you need.  No need to even get a shopping cart as you make your way around the store.

I couldn't pass up buying a traditional basket at the lovely display and asked myself if I would think to use it in the U.S.  I very well could get some funny looks in the Kroger, but people look so charming walking down the street and around stores with these lovely baskets.

An Afternoon of Sledding

This part of Germany doesn't usually see snow sticking around this long. We needed to take advantage of it! We drove to a popular sledding spot in the next town and gave the plastic sleds lying around our basement a try.

Becca on a little sled shaped like a shovel.

The long walk back up the hill

Cold, snowy or rainy weather does not stop Germans from biking or taking little babies for a walk.

David didn't get very far.

There was a lot of non-sledding activity on the road (people out for a stroll insisted on walking right down the center of the road where kids were trying to sled), so we gave the woods lining the street a try.

A typical wooden German sled. And getting a ride was the cutest puppy we've ever seen.

The plastic shovel sled doubled as anchoring devices for climbing back up the slippery slopes. As fun as these little things were, we were wishing we had cool German wooden sleds. You can't find such a sled anywhere right now -- not even on-line. We aren't the only people taking advantage of the snow.

Becca taking a break

James wiping out

Everyone was ready to head home for some hot chocolate.

A kicksled, more commonly seen in Scandanavia. Load your child (or your groceries) in the front and you stand on one of the runners in the back with one foot and kick the sled forward with the other. It's similar to using a scooter.

Drying off the wet snowy clothes in the hope that we might be able to used them all again before winter ends

Fun in the Snow

The path that runs from our street, past our backyard, past the playground and tennis courts and then ends in another part of Liederbach, where the post office is. There is no excuse for me to drive to the post office.

View of our backyard from the path

James looking at the top of our front door

David looking down at James from Micaela's bedroom window. Why is he holding that brush?

The snow didn't come down in one big sheet from above the front door entryway as we had hoped.

Getting ready to play outside. Becca gets lots of practice putting on her snow pants, boots, hat, mittens and scarf at school every day.

In the backyard

One of our frozen fish barrels. You can't tell, but the water was still flowing from the little fountain under the ice.

It's great being the youngest child in the family.

Taking a Rockband break. Bex does fairly well, with Micaela handling the bass drum for her.

Keeping warm on cold, snowy days

Last week, all of Germany was holding its breath, waiting for a weather system to move in to the area that could have left tens of centimeters of snow in its wake. Thursday night at 10:30, we were surprised to receive a phone call from a school mom telling us that school was canceled for the following day, as bad weather was anticipated. And what happened the next day? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. The kids didn't complain, but they will when they need to make up that needless snow day in the future.

What happened the following day -- i.e. today? Plenty! It started with strong wind and then the snow came. And it kept on coming. Here's a view of our neighbor's yard, with its wood storage shed, formerly a horse stable.

One of David's favorite items in our German home is the housewarming stove in our dining room/kitchen. We only have one eating area, no kitchenette and then separate formal dining room like you see in most American homes. I do not miss having two eating areas. One less room/table to keep clean. And our kitchen/dining room is separated from the family room by our foyer and another room. I love this set up and now view open floor plans as overrated -- especially when you have four kids.

In our old house in Atlanta, which had the open floor plan, noise traveled easily all through the house, but the bigger issue was that I felt like I couldn't get away from the kids. I would spend a lot of time in the kitchen preparing meals and then cleaning up afterward, and the kids were always nearby in the family room or playroom that was right off the kitchen, making noise of one kind or another. Or else watching some loud movie or TV show. To say that I sometimes had sensory overload is an understatement. And once you have four kids, you don't feel the need to be around them all the time. Shocking, I know.

I first realized all this when we bought our pop-up camper.  During one of our camping trips, I was inside listening to our wind-up radio as I washed dishes while David and the kids were running around/biking/building a fire outside.  At one point, David popped his head inside the door and said, "Sorry you have to be all cooped up in here doing dishes."  "Don't be," I replied, "I'm really enjoying the solitude."

Here, after dinner, I shoo everyone out of the kitchen and can listen to the radio or my ipod as I clean up. It makes that task less of an annoyance. Then I can sit at the table and get some work or reading done in relative peace and quiet.

Back to the warming stove. It's a wood burning one and heats up the room nicely. Emilie demonstrates a quick way to warm up chilly hands.

The whole side of the stove warms up and there are seats to rest on. These metal circles get extra hot -- too hot to lean on, really.

I won't be surprised if we end up with some kind of house warming stove once we move home -- even if we end up in Atlanta where it isn't freezing cold the entire winter, as it feels like it will be here.