First let me make one thing clear, Hapag-Lloyd Express Airways (HLX) are wonderful; they fly from proper airports such as Stuttgart to Manchester. As people who have flown with Ryanair to Frankfurt (Hahn) and found themselves not in Frankfurt, but practically in France will know, the fact that it’s Manchester International and not Manchester (Penrith) is important. They also recently allowed me to pick up a ticket to fly just before Christmas from Stuttgart to Manchester for €9,99 including tax. Okay, the legroom for someone like me who is 6’2” or so isn’t great. In fact the legroom for someone who is 5’8” isn’t so great, but I can’t bring myself to criticise an airline that has the German version of Pot Noodles (2.8MB, quicktime) as in-flight snacks. Every week they send out e-mails with their latest “Hot Winter Offers” and such nonsense. This one particularly amused me:
Now, I have a black and white striped shirt in my wardrobe (a nice cotton one from TOFFS in early 1950’s style as opposed to the “official” scratchy polyester thing - and Freddy Shepherd didn’t get any money from me for it, I hope) and an unhealthy obsession with Michael Owen’s groin. Perhaps this is why I know that Newcastle in February might not be the ideal location to escape greyness and gloom.
On the other hand, this is the same marketing department that this time last year came up with the winning idea of trying to get people living in Hamburg to fly to Edinburgh because “it has a German-style Christmas market”.
German Word For Today: “Das Nachtleben” - Being beaten up and/or stabbed in a drunken brawl.
Song playing as this was published: Sarah McLachlan- “Fear”
“marketing department that this time last year came up with the winning idea of trying to get people living in Hamburg to fly to Edinburgh because it has a German-style Christmas market.”
no shit?! hahahahaha
I’ve not got a screenshot, but the text ran “Zur Weihnachtszeit putzt sich die schottische Stadt einmal mehr heraus: Geschmückte Fußgängerzonen, beleuchtete Eingangsportale, musikalische Klänge und der Geruch nach Zimt und Glühwein. Im Herzen der Stadt findet alljährlich von Ende November bis Mitte Dezember auf der Princess Street der “German Christmas Market” statt.” - although where “Princess” Street is, I have no idea….
Well, at least the German Christmas Market bit is true. I’ve been there and even had a Gluehwein. But then you can get that in most British cities now…
Don’t worry, AF. Germans will happily travel anywhere. Occasionally I volunteer and fly PBSCs (transplant material) to the US. While I usually try to get flights to pleasant places in CA or NC, I am always surprised how many German university students cannot wait to fly to cities like Columbus, OH (plain boring), Detroit, MI (take a tour of the boarded-up crack houses) or New Haven, CT (only slightly more dangerous than the Sunni triangle).
I once watched the original “Get Carter” on a BA flight. A superb flick that features Maurice Micklewhite (aka Michael Caine) as a tough as nails criminal in Newcastle. It made a strong impression on me and I can only hope that the city’s looks have changed since then.
Safe travels,
JCS
Aha! Another NC devotee. It IS a nice place. And I am missing thanksgiving. I used to go to Dunn for thanksgiving and eat cornbread dressing and shoot beer cans. Sigh.
Yes, NC rocks. I am preparing the full Thanksgiving feast and plan on shooting several innocent beer cans…although the Chapel Hill, NC police department might not be too happy with me for that.
Obviously none of the members of the infamous marketing department have left Germany for the wonderful, bright, dry, salubrious Newcastle winter:-)
But then again, what do you expect for €48?
jeeez, aren’t we a demanding lot?
And…where is the mail? BTW, I heard from Antipo Deesée re: your picnic in Paris. How wonderfully odd?
OH YES!!! I also see that you have found my new (even madder) abode on the web…:-))
Kisses, N
“Is February too grey and gloomy for you? Then how about a short trip to Newcastle?”
Have they got to kidding or what. I would love to see the faces of the Germans arriving in the Nort East expecting clement weather!
I wonder is there such thing as a German/Geordie phrase book?
Armin, Haddock: Okay, so they’re trying to sell the colourful nightlife. Last time I went out in Newcastle on a Saturday in February, it was minus seven and I’d got my Gore-Tex/Fleece combo on and felt decidedly over-dressed next to the girls wandering around wearing nothing but a wonderbra and a see-through blouse. And the vomit/blood that covered the streets at closing time was colourful, I suppose.
JCS, 820, EasyJetsetter: What is with this obsession with North Carolina? It surely can’t be right?
820: Well they’ve tarted Newcastle up a bit since Get Carter (excellent film), although it’s still got er, rough patches…
Nina: And that’s an “ab” €48 per person for a double room. So a minimum of €96 per night to stop in a Holiday Inn. In Newcastle. In February.
And the picnic was wonderful (and odd). As for degrees of seperation, I reckon we could get to Kevin Bacon within three more steps…
AF: I was referring to Edinburgh, not Newcastle
And they really have a German Christmas Market there (or at least used to have one). “Princess Street” just has one s too many, that’s obviously Princes Street (or to be precise, Princes Street Gardens, because that’s where the market is/was).
There’s also one in Glasgow now (down at St Enoch), which I’ll probably visit in a week. Although that’s not the main reason I’m travelling all the way up there.
Armin: Sorry for lumping you together with the reply to Haddock (although there’s no shame in that).
I’d kind of guessed they meant Princes Street (I didn’t know it was in the Gardens - the only “German Christmas Market” I’ve been to in the UK was in Buxton). I’d recently heard that there’d be one at the St.Enoch Centre and although I might visit Glasgow before Christmas, the idea of a Glühwein at St. Enoch’s wouldn’t, in itself, really be justification enough for the journey.
I’ve always be dubious of your claims to be travelling in an aircraft with Hapag Lloyd. Are you sure it isn’t really a sea container?
Mark: Well the “flight” time is three and a half days and there are no window seats, but it is only seven quid….
What is up with you people? i’m from newcastle and it kicks the shit out of any other place in the uk for a night out- and yes i have been everywhere for that matter. nowhere else can boast such friendly people and whats this crack about not going because of get carter. its a film for fucks sakes! all films dress things up- tip - dont stare at people and you’ll be fine… nowhere has so many bars in close proximity of each other