Visiting Germania

Germania is the old Latin name for what is not Germany and Austria: the German speaking areas if you wish. Historically (at least in recent, centuries long history) they'vebeen very different. One of the things that's interesting about visiting the various parts is that they are, indeed, so different.

For example, Catholic and beer drinking Bavaria is very different from the Lutheran and Protestant north: it's still afault line that ruins through German politics to this day. There's also the effect that you can still see of the difference between West Germany and the depredations of the Communist East. Nowhere is better to see this than Berlin itself, and if you're going to go there then this page of hotels in Berlin actually shows the difference. It's vastly cheaper to stay in hte old East than it is on the Ossi side.

My own recommendation is that anyone who wants to understand the difference between socialism and capitalism visit the place.

Now elsewhere in Germania there is Vienna: the list of hotels in Vienna doesn't show that same difference. There you go for the apotheosis of the bourgeois lifestyle. Cream cakes and kaffeeklatcht: and if you're really lucky, for the New Year's Eve performance of Die Fleidermaus (in English, The Magic Flute).

If it happens that you already speak German, then the same information is available on hotels in Berlin and hotels in Vienna in that language.

Camcorders

What with this new house and the ever increasing menageries I'm looking into the possibilities of camcorders. You know, it would be nice to be able to post video of the new work, of the surrounding countryside, so that friends and relatives could see where we are now.

Plus, of course, I want to be able to take part in cat blogging.

So what I need to find is information on how to actually use one: that's simple enough, I'll simply read the instruction manual of whichever I buy. Which leads to another problem: which one should I buy?

Fortunately, there's a sitehere with more than anyone actually needs to know on the differnt makes and types of camcorders on the market. Excuse me while I go and check it out?

Spanish Hotels

Thinking about one of those budget mini-breaks? With the cost of air travel going through the floor, well, why not? The thing is though, when you get there you can end up paying a fortune for a place to rest your weary head for the night.

Which is why if you're say, going to Barcelona to look at the Gaudi archtiecture park (there's one house built of what look like human bones for example) up by the Olympic Park, or simply rambling on Las Ramblas (the closer you get to the port itself the cheaper and filthier it gets) you'll want to take a look at this site on spain hotels.

Or if the big city isn't your thing, if beaches and sand are, why not try Benidorm? There's the Axqualandia water park or peacock island if simply soaking up the rays palls: but yes, you'll want to consult spain hotels for they really don't like it if you try sleeping on the beach.

Or perhaps Alicante? The Castillo di Santa Barbara, the Guardalest Monastery....stunning sights and being, as it is, in hte south, almost guaranteed sunshine as well. But yes, you've guessed it, you'll want to use spain hotels before you go, so that you know you've got a reasonably priced place to lay your head before you get there.

Mailboxes!

As part of our continuing campaign here to sort out this new (to us) house we've been buying all sorts of things, from a new roof to bathroom suites. The pace has rather slowed down at the moment (accumulating the money to go for the next big part of the construction project) and so we're looking at those smaller bits and pieces.

Like mailboxes. Our current mailbox is in fact a homemade steel box from the last owners. It has a broken lock (not all that useful) and isn't in fact weather tight. So I've been looking around and I've found MailBoxixchange.

A huge number of different designs, all at great prices. They also have an affiliate program (here) and I wonder, if enough of you readers also need mailboxes, would I be able to get a free one?

Hmm, even if not enough of you do need one, it's still a great site to look for a mailbox.

Bwahahahahaha

OK, this isn't all that great for the kids who went through the experience but the laughter comes from, well, just what were these people thinking?

A convicted pedophile sentenced to do community service in a German kindergarten will return to court next week to face charges of abusing two children there, a regional prosecutor's office said Thursday.

It's the usual sort of bureacratic cock up, but really, sending a pedophile, in fact forcing him, to work in a kindergarden?

30 Reasons

This is what the intertubes were invented for! Thi is what we all want to see.

Drunken girls deshabille.....although it might be better of fewer of them were actually throwing up at the time.

A Facebook group called 30 reasons girls should call it a night.

Yup, simply pictures of girls who should indeed have stopped that drinking and gone home earlier.