Was sagst du? 樣樣都德

Autumn has only made a fleeting appearance, before the temperature started tumbling to almost zero a couple of weeks ago and the sun began its hibernation. The end of summer (daylight saving) time last Saturday must be heralding the advent of an early winter. So when I met my friend who's arrived from Hong Kong not so long ago on Saturday, I reminded him to wind back the clock by one hour before going to bed. He was obviously curious about how this time changing scheme works, and he asked whether things like bus time tables would be affected, such that a bus scheduled for 3.30 would depart at 2.30 instead. Of course that wouldn't happen, as I explained to him that time tables would still follow the original published times. Little things like this are all part of the learning curve when settling into a new place. I still remember how I demonstrated to him unlocking the shopping trolley with a one-euro coin and got him to practise a couple of times, when I took him to the superm...

Finally the weather has stopped being temperamental in October, and is giving us as many fine days as we ask for. The increasing chilliness in the morning air, however, is a reminder that beautiful autumn days like these don't necessarily last long! The weather was still rather warm for the first few days of the month. On 1st October, my colleagues and I took an early finish at work and went for the Oktoberfest. While it was not as jam-packed and crazy as the opening day , it was still not easy to find a table. We sat outside during the day time and switched indoors in the beer tent after dark. The atmosphere inside was simply infectious. We all entered a state of exhilaration in no time, as we saw a sea of people standing on the benches, dancing and chanting to the music of the band. It finally dawned on me how people could spend a whole day at the Oktoberfest. Beer, it seems, is the best form ecstasy for many people in Western societies! The cooler weather in the following weeken...