Eek, the horror!

I was near the Riem Arcadien the other day, and saw some men constructing a big box. I was puzzled, because it seemed awfully early to be setting up for a Christkindlmarkt. But there they were, cutting and nailing plywood, and painting it a bright, cheery red.



About a week later, I walked past the same spot, and I felt a bit horrified. Because this is what I saw. Well, mystery solved at least, right?





No! That wasn't the end of the horror. Because inside the mall there was, believe it or not, a second one. I'm still shuddering.

We got a new oven and cooktop!

We've lived in Munich for 2 1/2 years now. And we always felt like the oven didn't bake things very well. Rob finally figured out why. The top element wasn't working. No wonder things never got browned, and no wonder I felt like we were drying things rather than baking them. So he called the landlord, who came and looked at it. About two weeks later, an oven guy came and took some measurements. About two weeks after that, the oven guy came back with a new oven and cooktop. When the oven guy called to make the installation appointment, he spoke no English, and so I muddled thru with the German I know. Fortunately we understood each other enough. The next night I made cornbread and it was tasty!