A Word on German Food.

"He who eats alone, chokes alone." - Arabic proverb
"I don't like broccoli. And I haven't since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. I am the President of the United States, and I'm not going to eat any more broccoli." - George W. Bush (though he probably said "ain't", per our last discussion)
"One can not think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well." - Virginia Woolf

This is a post about a topic near to my heart - just a bit under and to the right. And it's a topic about which the germans are delightfully concerned. I said a word on german food, and I meant it:

Fat.

In the morning I eat bread with butter and cheese spread copiously atop, with a little salami or wurst on the side or to accompany the (also-butter-smeared) second slice of bread. I drink whole milk, and for breakfast-dessert I eat some sweet yoghurt covered in fruit. There is some fruit and veg that goes with the meal, but that's not the important thing.

Today for lunch I ate a thing called Schweineschäufele, which is a pig's shoulder. And the more I think about it, the more certain I am that I ate the entire shoulder of a very large pig. I have no training in gastronomie or the correct chemistry of food (though I do have a book called "What Einstein Told his Cook), but they say that fat holds or transports the flavor of foods. If that is the case, and there is some sort of linear relation between the fat content and flavor content, I ate the most flavorful food in the world today. I'm not kidding when I say some bites must have been at least 95% flavor, if you know what I mean.

And I absolutely loved it. So good.

The most keen among you must be surely saying: "But wait! Wasn't my dearly beloved, sorely missed, wonderful friend and secret lover (for women) Ryan already in Germany!? Shouldn't he already know what german food tastes like!? Oh, I'm so confused! And because I think of him so often anyway, this will only add to the sleepless nights and worry!" Not to worry, dear reader. The problem is location.

I wouldn't go so far as to say that in northern Germany one eats only cabbage, rice and orange juice, but it's much nearer the truth there as it is here in the south. One still eats meat there, but not in the portions I've experienced in the last two days alone. It turns out that there are even Schweineschäufele clubs here in Bavaria (the state I'm in), which should say something about the food. Not to worry, the clubs are relatively small because others eat smaller portions. Or because the clubs aren't necessarily the wisest life-choice for longevity. I haven't decided.

This evening I ate a very small portion of olive salad (with fresh cheese, like cream cheese, and sundried tomatoes and roasted red peppers) and then fruit salad and a single slice of whole-wheat bread, so I should live to see another german morning. Tomorrow we're beginning our journey to Berlin, which will take us through Bad Harzburg -- my pilgrimage site -- for a night. I now have internet on my phone again so it'll be much easier for me to post updates. Until then, dear reader - bon appétit, und lasst es euch schmecken!