The exile returns

I'm back from Germany, where I spent a very pleasant weekend with some good friends in Erfurt and in Frankfurt. The weather was bracingly cold, the food and drink were excellent (and cheap!), and the people as courteous and helpful as ever. Some other brief impressions:

Late on Friday night I went into a bar in Erfurt and ordered a beer. The barmaid brought it and asked me if I needed an Aschenbecher. An ashtray? In a bar? Oh yes. All around me people were smoking. I declined the offer, and sipped my beer thoughtfully as I watched the drinking, chattering smokers. The smell was not at all unpleasant. Everyone was in a good mood. No one had to go outside into the freezing cold if he wanted a smoke. I'm a tolerant non-smoker and I've always thought the smoking ban here in Ireland was a silly idea concocted by over-zealous self-appointed guardians of public health. An enjoyable beer in this perfectly cosy pub made me even more certain of that.

When I left my hotel in Erfurt early on Saturday morning, there was ice everywhere. The few people on the street were inching their way along gingerly, many of them slipping. I slipped and fell twice on the short walk to my friends' place. But en route I saw the council vans chugging along scattering gravel to make the ground less slippery. It wasn't yet 9:00 on a Saturday. That's what you call German efficiency.

There was a regional election in Hessen yesterday. Posters were all over Frankfurt. The Commmunists had issue-related slogans on theirs ("One school for all!" "Abolish the Casino!" [do they mean the banks?] The Christian Democtats and the Liberals, by contrast, had vague platitudes on their posters ("A sure bet!"). The Christian Democrats and Liberals won.

Traditional High Mass yesterday in Frankfurt. The most formal ceremony I've ever seen. Everything was done at half the normal speed, and with more bowing, hand-kissing and incense than I ever dreamed was allowed! I got sprayed no less than three times during the Asperges. This being Germany, there was also plenty of hymn-singing, although not during the Introit, as is often done there. The Mass is held in St Leonard's church at 6pm. It's in a central spot, near Frankfurt Cathedral, and well worth a visit if you're ever in the city.