Sun 1 Jun 2003
Life is Going to Change
Posted by Sandi Atherton under Daily Life, germany
1 Comment
One of the hardest things about living in Germany is dealing with opening hours. They are pretty much nonexistent. If I had a penny for every time I wanted to go shopping after hours, either for essential items or for fun, I think I would be rich. All those times that I wanted ice cream and discovered it was one minute after 8 pm, or realized we needed milk or eggs would have put quite a few pennies in the bank.
On Saturdays, it is amazing how 4 in the afternoon can creep up so fast. There is still so much time left in the day to think about what fun you could be having in the stores. But the number of times I wished I could go shopping on a Sunday…well, that would break the bank wide open!
It seems things here in Germany are about to change. Because of German work rules, certain types of businesses are only allowed to be open at certain times. Only in the last few years have the opening hours been extended to 8PM on weeknights… before that, everything closed at 6PM! A months ago, we heard that the German government was considering extending the Saturday hours until 8PM… and it looks like they have!
Yesterday, we received a flyer for a large store that houses goods and groceries, stating that they were now open until 8pm on Saturdays. I am sure if you had realized what you were listening for, you would have heard our screams of joy all the way across the ocean.
Ken and I decided that we were going to help these stores make money during this time so they are encouraged to keep these hours for the long hall and not just as a summer plan. We packed the kids up in the car and talked about going to find a small pool to put on the deck for them to play in. Rissa was very excited and was putting in her request for a slide and a fountain on it. When we pulled in the parking lot only to find it empty. Seems the new hours do not start until NEXT WEEK!! If you knew what you were listening for, you would have heard the screams of pain from the kids when they realized they were not getting a pool that day!
We’ll try again next Saturday…
