Eva

Author: Eva

  • Watzmann and Wolpertinger: Cutest Bavarian Folklore

    Watzmann and Wolpertinger: Cutest Bavarian Folklore

    DISCLAIMER: Unlike my previous story about a certain Cucaracha who eats avocados and poops guacamole, these stories about Watzmann and Wolpertinger are real Bavarian folktales. I just retell them here because I think they are really nice and more people should know about them 🙂

    Each country or region has its own beautiful folktales, fairy tales, myths and fantastic creatures. One of my future ambitions is to read as many folktales (from varied countries) as I can.

    For the moment I would like to introduce you to a really-really cute and happy Bavarian duo: the Watzmann and the Wolpertinger.

    Watzmann

    Watzmann is the name of a real mountain located in the Bavarian Alps. But, in the Bavarian folklore, it is a very charismatic and funny mountain. Here it is a painting by Caspar David Friedrich of the Watzmann mountain between 1824 and 1825.

    Wolpertinger

    Wolpertinger, on the other hand, is a tiny animal, not real this time, a mixture between various forest animals. Usually, it either has the body of a duck or that of a rabbit, with feathers and different other funny characteristics. German artist Albrecht Dürer painted in 1502 a rabbit, the painting is named Young Hare and you’ve probably already heard of it – an exquisite painting. Someone, I don’t know who, recreated Dürer’s hare by adding some other animal features, thus depicting an adorable Wolpertinger. Here it is:

    I always wonder how did the Bavarians came up with such bizare fantastic little animal. I imagine that a grandpa huntsman came home, late, and his nephew was just about to go to sleep, so the kid asked the grandpa to tell him what he had seen in the forest. So the grandpa, as he tucked in the kid, told him he saw a wonderful rabbit, with big teeth and beautiful fur. The kid was delighted and impressed and the grandpa continued with saying it had big feathers and a majestic pair of horns. So the nephew felt asleep, fascinated, dreaming about this wonderful creature. – Well, at least, this is how I imagine it happened.

    There are many types of Wolpertinger, and in Germany there are even museum where you can see them. One of my favorite Wolpertinger is this one:

    It is not as beautiful as the first one, but it seems really funny and ready to lead your way through the forest.

    And, on top of this, in 2006 the german eurodance band K2 released this funny song, where the Watzmann sings and laughs, overseeing Wolpertinger and other creatures too, incuding… Johnny Depp!

    These are the lyrics in German. They sound kind of different in the song because they are sung in Bayerisch:

    heidi, enzian, ziegenpeter
    stoiber, huber, mutzeneder
    schweinsbratn und bier vom fass

    obatzda und leberkas
    radi, brezn, eiderdaus
    weißwurst, knödel, hofbräuhaus
    edelweiß und maier sepp
    hypobank und johnny depp

    drum gott mit dir du bayernland
    amigo stadl trachtengwand
    der watzmann lacht grad weil´s ihm gfreut
    ein prosit der gemütlichkeit

    was macht der watzmann in der nacht

    der watzmann singt der watzmann lacht
    was macht der watzmann in der nacht
    der watzmann singt der watzmann lacht
    was macht der watzmann in der nacht
    der watzmann singt der watzmann lacht
    was macht der watzmann in der nacht
    der watzmann singt und lacht

    schuhplattln und alphornblasn
    fc bayern, fussballrasen
    fesche dirndln, bauernspeck
    ozapft is ei do verreck
    gaudiburschn, jagertee
    wolpertinger, pulverschnee
    gerhard polt, karl valentin
    edmund will net nach berlin
    drum gott mit dir du bayernland
    amigo stadl trachtengwand
    der watzmann lacht grad weil´s ihm gfreut
    ein prosit der gemütlichkeit

    was macht der watzmann in der nacht
    der watzmann singt der watzmann lacht
    was macht der watzmann in der nacht
    der watzmann singt der watzmann lacht
    was macht der watzmann in der nacht
    der watzmann singt der watzmann lacht
    was macht der watzmann in der nacht
    der watzmann singt und lacht

     

    UPDATE:

    I came across this image. I think it is the girl wolpertinger :). Of course, it doesn’t belong to german folklore, but it is really sweet. I might be a wolpertinger… lol.

     

     

  • REVIEW: Junichiro Tanizaki – The Key (novel) – No Spoilers!

    REVIEW: Junichiro Tanizaki – The Key (novel) – No Spoilers!

    This review does not contain any spoilers.

    It took me a few hours to read this short novel. I hated it. Not only the story, but the whole book, its style and technique. I didn’t like how it is written, I didn’t like the mixture between the 2 journals. I think it is poorly written. There are no metaphors, no poetics, no style. The characters are very poorly developed. The writer focuses too much on stereotypes.

    Also, as the story flows, it becomes more and more sick and psychotic, but this doesn’t make it more interesting. I don’t recommend this book and I honestly don’t understand how it came to be published. It is a disaster. It looks as if it was written by a 10 y.o. kid.

    I also don’t think that the writer really understands female orgasm.

    I am sick and tired of thousands of books written by male authors about the female sexuality where they pretend to be “mind opening” and “daring” and “against taboos” but they are just as clueless as a dead stone rock in the middle of the desert. Also, they usually end up by offering fantastic multiple orgasm to these women, satisfying in fact only their own clueless ego which was, anyway, never able to please a woman.

  • REVIEW: Alverde Body Butter Klostergarten from DM

    REVIEW: Alverde Body Butter Klostergarten from DM

    I bought this Alverde body butter from DM in Berlin for about 3 EUR. The main reason I bought it was that it is kind of natural and I also loved the packaging. I liked the idea of “Klostergarten”, which means “Monastery garden”.

    When I bought this body butter I was reading a book by Japanese author Soseki and I thought it was funny how the colors matched between the book and the cream’s packaging. Anyhow, here are my thoughts about it:

    Pros

    • It really is hydrating, so it does what it should do. If you have dry skin, it is a good cream.
    • It has only 200ml. I usually hate large products because I prefer to buy small and different products and alternate in using them.
    • On the label it says that the scent is interesting and it really reminds me of a peaceful place.
    • Although it is not BIO, it is pretty natural.

    Cons

    • After 10 hours of sleep, I could still feel some cream in my skin when I woke up. My skin didn’t completely absorb the cream. I think this is strange, considering that I didn’t put on a lot of cream.
    • Also, the smell is interesting, but I don’t think everyone will like it.

    Neutral

    When I wake up, in the morning, the skin isn’t scented anymore. I also use, in parallel, another body cream, from Sabon, and its scent lasts at least 12 hours on my skin. I personally prefer a lasting scent, but I don’t know how healthy this is. Maybe it is better not to last that much. Maybe it’s just a matter of prefferance.

    It gives a little tingling sensation. This sensation creates a warm feeling, so I think this is ABSOLUTELY PERFECT for winter. Those with cold feet could really benefit from applying this cream. I did this, before going to sleep, and I had warm feet all night. But I don’t think it would be nice to apply this cream during summer times, when it’s already hot outside. Also, there might be some people who don’t like this kind of tingling sensation, so this body cream might not be suitable for them.

    Will I repurchase?

    I don’t think so. It is a good body cream/ butter, but I am sure there are other creams, equally good, and I would like to try them also. Maybe my next body cream will be also a cream from Alverde.

     

  • Comparison between Sonnentor BIO and Twinings ginger tea

    Comparison between Sonnentor BIO and Twinings ginger tea

    I drink tea daily and a lot of it is Twinings. I don’t think this is the best tea in the world, but I know that most of their mixes will be on my taste, so I just buy their tea from convenience.

    Everyone knows the benefits of fresh ginger and also ginger tea. People use to drink ginger tea when they have a cold, but I like to drink it all the time.

    First time I tried to make ginger tea by grating some fresh ginger and infusing it in hot water.

    Unfortunately, for me this was undrinkable. It was just way too intense and too spicy. I tried adding tons of honey and lemon juice, but nothing helped. I just couldn’t drink it.

    After this experience, I bought Twinings Lemon and Ginger Tea and my best friend bought also the Sonnentor BIO Ginger Tea just because this one was organic and the one from Twinings was not.

    What I liked about both of them

    • They are drinkable, not like the homemade tea I couldn’t bring myself to drink. They are not very spicy, nor intense, so there is no unpleasant feeling when you drink them.
    • They don’t contain caffeine, so you can drink them whenever you want, even before going to bed.
    • They seem to make me feel better. They are surely healthy.

    The differences

    • Twinings has a hint of lemon which makes it tastier than Sonnentor.
    • Twinings tea has a nicer color, whereas Sonnentor looks cloudy and is more pale.
    • Twinings has a more intense aroma, I definitely like it better.
    • Sonnentor is organic, but Twinings isn’t BIO and, although it is not clearly stipulated, I believe it has some artificial flavorings.

    The conclusion

    So, which one of these 2 ginger teas will I continue to buy?

    Normally, I should go for Sonnentor, since it is organic. But Twinings tastes and looks better and since I am not drinking tons of ginger tea, I will continue to buy Twinings. If I will be sick and have to drink a lot of ginger tea, I don’t think I would drink neither of these 2 teas. I will try to make my own ginger tea from real ginger, but this next time I will put less ginger. Until then, I am healthy enough to drink Twinings 🙂 .

     

  • Be true to yourself – What does it really mean?

    Be true to yourself – What does it really mean?

    There are many “inspirational” quotes, but I think that most of them only sound nice, when, in reality, they are meaningless. Take, for instance, “believe in yourself”. It sounds good, it looks fancy, but, in fact, it is very abstract and impractical. Maybe it is a good quote for those who really have some psychological problems, but for the average person I don’t see the point of it.

    Be true to yourself

    I believe a good quote is “be true to yourself”. I am not sure about its origin, but it may be derived from “to thine own self be true”, a phrase in a monologue delivered by the character Polonius in Act I Scene III of Hamlet by William Shakespeare.

    Its meaning could be explained in multiple steps.

    Know thyself

    First of all you must “Know thyself”. I think this is the mother of all inspirational quotes. This aphorism was inscribed in the pronaos of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi where the Oracle was. All Greeks read it and knew it and Plato used it in his writings. This is a simple, yet perfect phrase. You must know yourself if you’re ever going to do something with your life. You must know:

    • who you are
    • what you want
    • what you can do and what you cannot, what are your strengths and what are your weak points
    • what you can do to improve yourself and your life

    There are many people who are delusional about their selves. They think either too much or too little about themselves. So this “Know thyself” quote is perfect to start with.

    Once you know yourself, you must stay true to it. There are 2 sides about it:

    • You shouldn’t pretend to be someone who you’re not. There are people who want success no matter what. There are people who would have loved to steal J.K. Rowling drafts and say it was them who wrote the Harry Potter series. There are also people who deceive in small portions, but do it regularly. They are not true to themselves. (Did you notice how all “arty” people wear a scarf around their necks? They try so hard to look like some “artists”. But then I think about Freddy Mercury who was a True artist… he was so simple, so modest, there was no “posing”, no pretending. And if you don’t have Freddy Mercury’s talent, then just don’t try to pretend you have it!)

    • You shouldn’t do things that you don’t want to do (mostly). A person who lives his life doing stuff he hates is a very unhappy person. Of course that sometimes we have to do what we don’t like, this is called compromise, we do it because it helps us gain something better, but when life consists only in events we hate, then there is a problem. You’re not true to yourself anymore.

    Being true to yourself is a good way of living. We could discuss much more about it, but I just wanted to state what I thought it was the most important about the meaning of this quote. I hope it is more clear now.

    Hugs and kisses!

    Be true to yourselves, no matter what!

  • REVIEW: Sabon Delicate Jasmine Body Gel Polisher

    REVIEW: Sabon Delicate Jasmine Body Gel Polisher

    I’ve received the Sabon Delicate Jasmine Body Gel Polisher as a gift from a good friend. It is basically an exfoliating shower gel and it costs approximately $19.00. I believe paying 19 dollars for a shower gel is A LOT and the gel should do wonders at this price.

    I’ve taken this photo when I had already used a third of the bottle, but now, at the moment of writing the article, the bottle is empty.

    It was an excellent product, it smelled nice (literally “delicate”) and left the skin soft and moderately hydrated.

    What I liked most about it was the scrub and the consistency of the gel. The scrub contains hard grains, divided in very small pieces, that really “polish” your body in a very enjoyable way.

    Although I did like the Sabon Delicate Jasmine Body Gel Polisher, I wouldn’t repurchase it. It is too expensive for not being more “bio”…

  • Is Central Park, New York, Really THAT Big?

    Is Central Park, New York, Really THAT Big?

    Central Park New York has become, over the years, some kind of supporting actor in a lot of movies. There is always a kiss that happenes in Central Park, or someone is going to die there, or two people are supposed to meet there, or somebody rents an appartment near Central Park. Everyone jogs in Central Park and everyone takes a romantic walk in this park. In movies, everythings seems to gravitate around Central Park.

    Once, although I don’t remember where, I heard the line that Central Park constitutes New York’s lung, filtrating all the pollution and refreshing the air. So, having this considered, I may wonder: How big is, in fact, Central Park?

    The first thing I did was measure Central Park on Google Maps. These measurements didn’t impress me. It seems to be pretty big, but not enormous.

    Its perimeter is about 10 km (6.2 miles) and it takes you 2 hours to walk around it. 2 hours is not much.
    Tiergarten in Berlin is roughly the same dimension. I bet tons of other parks in other citites are at least big and beautiful as Central Park is.

    So, yeah, Central Park is not really THAT big.

  • A beautiful love song and poem for Valentine’s Day

    A beautiful love song and poem for Valentine’s Day

    Valentine’s day is the day when we celebrate this passionate and crazy love that we have for the significant other. The Ancient Greeks identified multiple types of love. Among these, the consuming, heart burning type of love was called Eros. This is what we’re celebrating today!

    Antonio Canova, Eros and Psyché, 1793

    For Valentine’s Day I thought I should share with you one of the nicest love songs / poem I know. There are, of course, many beautiful love songs, but one of the best is Amour by Rammstein. The song “Amour” is the last song on the album Reise, Reise (2004). The song is powerful and Till’s voice is amazing, but the lyrics are la pièce de résistance.

    The lyrics are passionate, but not pathetic,  sour, but not sad, they are not vulgar, they are surprising and inventive… Amour (French word for “love”) is compared with a wild animal, hungry, dangerous, fierce. It’s an enchanted creature and the lovers are its prey.

    Love is a wild animal

    …

    It sucks tightly on your lips
    and digs tunnels through your ribs

    The lyrics are composed by Till Lindemann, the lead singer of Rammstein. I think you must first understand the lyrics and only after then listen the song. I have English friends that don’t understand German and they weren’t impressed by this song, but after I showed the meaning of the text, they absolutely loved it.

    It devours me – head and hair
    and chokes me again after many years

    Let’s read it! (The translation is made by ©2004 Jeremy Williams, but I did some changes where I felt it was needed. I underlined the verses I liked most, although it was hard for me not to underline the whole poem.)

    Die Liebe ist ein wildes Tier
    Sie atmet dich, sie sucht nach dir
    Nistet auf gebrochenen Herzen
    Geht auf Jagd bei Kuss und Kerzen
    Saugt sich fest an deinen Lippen
    Gräbt sich Gänge durch die Rippen
    Lässt sich fallen weich wie Schnee
    Erst wird es heiß dann kalt am Ende tut es wehAmour Amour
    Alle wollen nur dich zähmen
    Amour Amour am Ende
    gefangen zwischen deinen ZähnenDie Liebe ist ein wildes Tier
    Sie beißt und kratzt und tritt nach mir
    Hält mich mit tausend Armen fest
    Zerrt mich in ihr Liebesnest
    Frißt mich auf mit Haut und Haar
    und würgt mich wieder aus nach Tag und Jahr
    Läßt sich fallen weich wie Schnee
    Erst wird es heiß dann kalt am Ende tut es wehAmour Amour
    Alle wollen nur dich zähmen
    Amour Amour am Ende
    gefangen zwischen deinen ZähnenDie Liebe ist ein wildes Tier
    In die Falle gehst du ihr
    In die Augen starrt sie dir
    Verzaubert wenn ihr Blick dich trifft    Bitte bitte gib mir Gift    		 Love is a wild animal
    It picks up your smell, it’s looking for you
    It nests upon broken hearts
    and goes hunting when there are kisses and candles
    It sucks tightly on your lips
    and digs tunnels through your ribs
    It drops softly like snow
    First it gets hot then cold in the end it hurtsAmour Amour
    Everyone just wants to tame you
    Amour Amour in the end
    caught between your teethLove is a wild animal
    It bites and scratches and kicks towards me
    It holds me tightly with a thousand arms
    and drags me into its love nest
    It devours me – head and hair
    and chokes me again after many years
    It drops softly like snow
    First it gets hot then cold in the end it hurtsAmour Amour
    Everyone just wants to tame you
    Amour Amour in the end
    caught between your teethLove is a wild animal
    You fall into its trap
    It stares into your eyes
    Spellbound when its gaze hits you    Please please give me poison

    Here is the song. Unfortunately it doesn’t have an official video. I bet it would have been great!

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXwha3NvM6w

    For those of you who aren’t very romantic, there is always the song “Pussy” – suitable for Valentine’s Day too (search it on Vimeo because on Youtube you won’t find it 🙂 ).

    P.S.1. I was not sure (and I’m still not) how to write in English the idea of a song whose lyrics make a beautiful poem, so I googled various types of formulations and I got this funny result: Song poetry. Funny, this is not about sung poetry, but about Classical Chinese poetry of the Song dynasty of China.

    P.S.2. Even though this Rammstein’s song might be a little dark, the same “Amour” that devours the lovers can also bring them fresh and bright and happy moments, like this one. And butterflies in stomach, of course. Here is a cute little scene from the movie Clueless, one of the best kiss scenes there is – in my opinion 🙂 .

    Hope you liked this post and I wish you a great Valentine’s Day! ❤❤❤

  • REVIEW: Mixed feelings about Ferrero ValParaiso Chocolate

    REVIEW: Mixed feelings about Ferrero ValParaiso Chocolate

    This week I tried 3 different types of Ferrero ValParaiso Chocolate. I usually like Ferrero products and I kind of expected these ones to be tasty. I was happy to find these little packages because I’ve seen the big ones before but I didn’t want to buy them since I didn’t know which flavor to choose and if I would like them.

    What I liked

    The good thing about these chocolates is that the chocolate itself is good quality. Also, I like the fact that the filling is 99% fruit. Another good thing is that they are not extremely sweet.

    What I didn’t like

    What I didn’t like was that there was too much filling and no wafer or something similar, like a buffer between the chocolate and the fruit. I don’t know why, but I thought it would be crispy, but since there was no “buffer”, it wasn’t crispy at all. The whole experience of eating it was not so spectacular.

    Favorite flavor

    In fact, the flavors are pretty similar. I can’t really say which one is my favorite. As you can read on the package, each one of them has an “Apfelbasis”, which means most of the filling consists in apple. So there it is, the apple taste in all of the packages, with slightly different aromas.

    Will I repurchase?

    Maybe the Mango one, in the Summer, because its taste is more fresh than the others and it reminds me of a relaxing cocktail on the beach…

  • My current favorite YouTubers

    My current favorite YouTubers

    So, here is the list of people on YouTube that I follow. I find their videos both relaxing and entertaining (chewing gum for the brain).

    I will list them in a descending order, but all of them are my favorite…  Hope you like it!

    1. Tammy Hembrow

    Source: https://www.instagram.com/tammyhembrow/

    Tammy is 22 y.o., has 2 children, lives in Australia and likes fitness. She smiles a lot and I mostly like her vlogs. She makes the best vlogs I’ve seen on YouTube. They have a great vibe. Here is Tammy’s YouTube Channel.

    2. Emilee Hembrow

    Source: https://www.instagram.com/emileehembrow/

    Emilee Hembrow is Tammy’s older sister. She has just created her YouTube channel, but I already like it! She plays it cool and it is relaxing to watch her. This is Emilee’s YouTube Channel.

    3. Carli Bybel

    Source: https://www.instagram.com/carlibel

    Carli is one of the most successful beauty gurus on YouTube. I’ve been watching her for some years and I always enjoyed her videos, although I usually get bored at some point and just surf through the rest of the video. There is something nice about her, but I don’t especially like her style. Anyhow, here is Carli’s YouTube Channel.

    There is a funny thing about Carli. Sometimes she acts a little bit strange, but then I remember the South Park episode “It’s a Jersey Thing” and well, Carli is from Jersey! Funny! (I really don’t want to sound mean. I like her 🙂 )

    4. Coco Lili

    Source: https://www.instagram.com/cocolilii/

    Coco is a french girl, but her english is impressively good. If you watch her old videos, you can clearly see her English improvement throughout the years. I admire her because of this. This is Coco’s YouTube Channel.

    5. Kelly Margot

    Source: https://www.instagram.com/kellmargot/

    Kelly is the youngest of them all. She is only 14 y.o. She has nice vlogs and seems to be a nice person. I especially like her OOTW videos. Here is Kelly’s YouTube Channel.

    Well, that’s it for now. My top five YouTubers. I wish they would post more often… 🙂 Hope you like it!