Baden Baden ohne Betten (Bedless in Baden Baden)

So far, every single logistical aspect of our trip has gone perfectly smoothly, which is due entirely to our wonderful local hosts. So, we kind of took it for granted that even though we didn't have specific information about where we were staying in Baden Baden for the Southern German Orthopaedic Congress, things would just get sorted once we arived. Keep in mind that this is a very large convention (sort of like the German version of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting) in a very small city, and hotel space is at a premium. Turns out, we didn't actually have hotel reservations, so we just hung out in the convention center drinking coffee and goofing off, while our two knights in shining armor, Dr. K from Berlin, and Dr. S-B (Hi Klaus!) from Cologne, found us the last three hotel rooms in Baden Baden, not to mention a dinner invitation. Vielen Dank fuer Ihre Hilfe!

No Rodents Involved

Ina can tell you that I love a good tour of a Rathaus (Town Hall). When she and I were in Scandinavia, I insisted we visit every one we came across. Basel has a beautiful one right on the market square. Unfortunately, guided tours are given only three times a week. I'm going to have to come back.

And Speaking of Irresistable...

How could you not want to taste a baked good called a Schoggiweggli?

(By the way, "schoggi " is the Swiss German word for "chocolate ". I'm not exactly sure what a "weggli " is).

Remember These?

Dr. Scholl's exercise sandals! These were the height of cool when I was in the 7th grade. Basel has an entire store devoted to them, and I was weak in the face of it. I came thisclose to buying a pair before regaining control of my senses.

Morgen am Markt (Morning in the Market Place)

We had a free morning in Basel today before heading to Baden Baden. I strolled down the hill from our hotel to the marketplace, and spent a while wandering through the local farmer's market. There were beautiful flowers, fresh mushrooms (check out the morels in the upper left hand corner of the picture!), and tons of great looking vegetables, including our old friend Spargel.

Bookmark 7

Buying In: The Secret Dialogue Between What We Buy and Who We Are by Rob Walker (who used to write the "Consumed" column for the New York Times), was a good companion piece to PopCo and Snoop, because it covered a lot of the same territory about our relationship as a society to the vast array of consumer goods and choices that we have in the 21st century. It was interesting, and Walker is a very good journalist, but I'm not sure it gave me a significantly greater insight into my own consumer habits. Still, the chapters on Red Bull and American Apparel were very entertaining.

Be Your Own Bartender

Last night we had dinner at a traditional Swiss fondue restaurant. We all got giant pretzels to dip in the authentic melted cheese, but the other interesting feature of the restaurant was the serve-yourself beer tap in the center of the table. There's a little flowmeter that keeps track of your consumption. I'm actually surprised this concept hasn't caught on in the US. Maybe the Homey Inn in Omaha could install table taps for its world-famous "champagne on tap" (available in dry and sweet!).

Anyone Know What This Is?

Those of you who went to Horace Mann...it's a strigil, an instrument used to scrape the remains of the sand and oil that the Romans used instead of soap off the body. "Strigil" was the second of the daily vocabulary words we were taught by the beloved Mr. Glidden...it came right between "zarf" (an ornamental coffee cup holder) and "duniwassal" (a Scottish gentleman of second rank").

When In Rome...

Yesterday, we visited Liestal, a city outside of Basel, and spent a very busy day. It started in the OR, where we watched a total ankle replacement, and included 2 scientific sessions. But an unusual aspect was a side trip to the small village of Augst, which is the site of the very extensive ruins of a Roman colony, Augusta Raurica. The museum and ruins are truly inpressive, and we had a great guided tour. There are still performances given in the remains of the amphitheater, but I particularly loved the lone paw print of a cat on the tile of a bath.

Strawberry Tart, Ready For It's Close-Up...

I realized that you couldn't really get a good view of the strawberry tart I had the other day, and since the strawberries are in season here, and it was so good, I had to have another one. Here it is, up close and personal.

Good Advice

The Swiss are nothing if not practical.

...And Speaking of Spargel (Asparagus)

It is Spargel season in this part of the world. The season runs from April 1 to June 1, and in that timeframe, asparagus is everywhere. We've seen it on virtually every menu: hot, cold, raw, cooked, as an appetizer, as a main course, in pasta, as soup....pretty much anything you can think of except spargel ice cream. RT is a vegetarian, and since asparagus is often the only fresh vegetable on offer, and since virtually every vegetarian menu option he is offered includes it, he has eaten asparagus at literally every single meal except breakfasts. It's delicious, and I love it, but I think RT is getting a little tired of it. Maybe I should buy him this bowl as a memento of the trip.

All About Keys (Schluesseln)

I'm intrigued by the keys here in Switzerland...I've never seen anything like them in the US. They're Swiss, so I'm sure they're very secure, plus they're fun, with their little polka-dot punch patterns. For all I know, they might even come with a hidden corkscrew. And speaking of keys, we had a delicious dinner at the Restaurant Schluessel-Zunft, in a building owned by the Key Guild since the 1400s. I had asparagus ravioli, roasted pike with cous cous, and coconut ice cream for dessert.

Tree Mystery, Solved.

I've finally found out what these trees are called: platanus, or in English, plane trees. They're also known as sycamores. Who knew?

Where's Waldo?

In Switzerland, apparently.

I Know It Looks Like We're Goofing Off...

But we were actually just eating lunch at the very nice cafeteria at the Basel University Hospital after a morning in the OR. Check out the little strawberry tart I had for dessert. After that, we went to the Children's Hospital, where I observed clinic run by a well known pediatric orthopaedist, Dr. Hefti.

More About the Teufelhof...

It's another art hotel! Every room features the work of a different artist. Mine has a photo essay installation about a trip to India. I especially like the part where they're looking for a tiger and finally find one.

Would You Believe The Street Name is Leonhardsgraben (Leonard's Grave)?

Our hotel in Basel is covered in lilac vines that are in full bloom. So even though it's named the Teufelhof (Devil Court), the scent is heavenly.

Bookmark 6

PopCo, by Scarlett Thomas, is many things all at once: a coming of age story, a workplace satire, a compendium of facts about homeopathy, a treatise on mathematics and cryptography, a diatribe against consumer culture, a pirate story, and a literary mystery. Some of these elements are more successful than others, and the whole thing ended with more of a whimper than a bang. Still, I'm curious to read the book Thomas wrote after this one, The End of Mr Y, which someone recommended to me, but which is not available on Kindle.

My Continuing Obsession

Billboards for this shoe company are all over Germany, and this particular pair caught my eye. But I haven't seen any stores where they're for sale, which might actually be fortunate, given the current alarming state and weight of my suitcase.

The Third Man Has Arrived!

The second American fellow, SS, finally joined us yesterday. Due to an unfortunate series of events, including the Icelandic volcano, he was unable to participate until now, but RT and I are excited that he's finally here. Here he is with us after just having arrived in Heidelberg after a flight to Berlin from Minneapolis, followed by a 5 hour train ride. He looks a little shellshocked/jetlagged but he's ready to go for the last two legs of our journey, Basel and Baden Baden.

Yellow Is My Favorite Color...

So here are some yellow things that made me happy today.
1. These cute OR clogs.
2. This sculpture outside the hospital.
3. This bowl of chicken rice soup with the tiniest cubes of vegetables ever…that’s a teaspoon in the picture.
4. My sunny, cheerful room at the Kulturbrauerei Hotel.

The Monkey of Heidelberg

There is a statue of a monkey on the old bridge in Heidelberg (the Brueckeaffen, or literally, "bridge ape"). He carries a mirror, to remind us that we are not so different from him. I’ve always thought Elvira kind of looks like a monkey, and I think this statue looks like a cat. Especially since there are two tiny mice statues next to it.

Even the Bag is Cute

Heidelberg is the Gummi Bear capital of Germany, and thus, the world. I bought two new flavors: Honey Bears and Sour Grapefruit with a sugar coating.

Our Local Hosts Are Famous!

They are the stars of “Knochen-Docs” ("Bone-Docs") a reality TV show filmed at the Heidelberg Orthopaedic Clinic over six months and now shown in prime time on the most popular TV network in Germany.