Candy German Subscriptions: January

I'm a little late to the party reviewing the January box from Candy German...but let's put it down to a desire to share diverse content with y'all, rather than constantly blogging about confectionary (which, believe me, I'd be more than happy to do!)

I will go into limited detail about the value of this month's box, but I'd sooner not repeat myself, so for a more detailed idea of my impressions of Candy German's boxes, please see my review for the December box. In this post I'll compare January's box to my initial impressions.

As before, I'd also recommend reading Candy German's own blog, which is always informative.

Let's get to it!

Duplo White

photo from candygerman.com

Anyone who's taken my recommendation to watch German Soap Alles Was Zählt on RTL will have come across the advert for "die wahrscheinlich längste Praline der Welt" ("probably the longest praline in the world") - this is a famous German brand that's well advertised.

I'm not sure why the length of the praline should be so boast-worthy - these are still only about 15cm long.  They are, however, delicious!  

Traditionally (and these are a very traditional German candy made by Ferrero), they are milk chocolate, but this white chocolate variation is just as good - if not better for being that little bit different.  The combination of the white chocolate with the hazelnut cream works surprisingly well, with the wafer adding a bit of bite, as per the traditional recipe.  The white chocolate is not overly sweet - as white chocolate often can be.  Instead it's relatively light and very creamy.

Hanuta Hazelnuss-Schnitte

photo from candygerman.com

Hanuta are a small, pocket-sized snack:  chocolate-hazelnut cream contained within two wafers (Haselnuss-Schnitte = hazelnut slice). 

The cream contains tiny pieces of roasted hazelnut, but doesn't suffer from being hard on the teeth as a result - still smooth, with the slight crisp of the wafer being the only dental workout here.  The filling is also sufficiently rich that you won't (necessarily) need more than one to satisfy your sweet tooth

These are another firm favourite in German households, so another product that you'll certainly see advertised if you ever watch a German TV station. ("für dich gebacken" = "baked for you")

They are a popular choice with parents - they're small, so won't ruin the appetite of a young'un in need of a sugar fix, and the wafer is a great way of reducing messy smears on the fingers.

That said, my 30-year old flatmate was also a big fan and always had these in the house!

Gletscher Eis  

photo from candygerman.com

These are...distinctly odd!

Let's start with the name:

der Gletscher = glacier

das Eis = ice

So we have a very...cool theme here.  This, combined with the packaging, would probably make an English person expect something along the lines of a Foxes Glacier mint.

The reality is actually more along the lines of a menthol sweet, but even that doesn't quite hit the mark, as there's also a fruity flavour.  The best UK comparison I can think to make for taste and texture is to imagine a pear drop (the kind that are not sugar-coated) with a slight menthol kick.

Not at all unpleasant (and a must-try), but these are possibly not going to be to everyone's taste!

Keks Geknusper (Schokolade)

photo from candygerman.com

der Keks = biscuit/cracker

knusprig = crunchy

die Schokolade = chocolate

Not to much to say about these, as it's mostly contained within the name!

They're crunchy chocolate biscuits, but taste more like brownies - they're extremely chocolatey - and manage somehow not to be dry!

Grün-Ohr Bärchen

photo from candygerman.com

grün = green

das Ohr = ear

der Bär = bear

das Bärchen = little bear

Little gummy bears with green ears!

These are actually relatively widely available.  I've recently seen Katje products popping up in my local Tesco store.

They're fruity, and vegetarian to boot (something that I believe the green ear is designed to signify).

On the downside, these fall rather more on the chewy side of fruit gummies, so I found that they got stuck in my teeth a lot, and tired of eating them quicker than I might a Haribo, for example.

That said, it's great to have products on the market that are more accessible to vegetarians.  And the Katje green-ear mark really does bring that to the fore - a step in the right direction but not a firm favourite for me!

Milka Nussini

photo from candygerman.com

Milka can't really go wrong for me, and I'm glad that the Milka brank is increasingly making a name for itself in the UK.  I prefer it, for example, to the other popular "creamy" chocolate brand - Galaxy.

This is a bar that I've not seen in the UK so far - hopefully that will change!  The hazelnut cream and waffle work perfectly covered in Milka chocolate!  There's a bit of crunch, but not too much.  This bar will be gone faster than you'll expect, and you'll wish there was more!

One of my friends came round for a tasting session with this box, and particularly loved this bar.  She's all sold on German confectionery now (odd that Germany isn't especially known for it's sweets), and is eyeing up travel deals to go over and search for more!

Schoko-Reis wölkchenleicht

photo from candygerman.com

der Reis = rice

die Wolke = cloud

das Wölkchen = little cloud

leicht = light

Well, this name isn't translating eloquently!

The sense of it would be that this chocolate puffed rice snack is "light as a little cloud"...which pretty much says it all really!  It's chocolatey, but light!

Yogurette Wintertraum - Bratapfel & Zimt

photo from candygerman.com

der Winter = winter

der Traum = dream

braten = to bake

der Apfel = apple

der Bratapfel = baked apple

der Zimt = cinnamon

These are a seasonal special: a yoghurt cream of acutely sweet apple and a hint of cinnamon, all encased in milk chocolate.  Unbelievably easy to eat.  The box disappears fast!!

....so a short summary?  I loved the box, once again, and - as mentioned - did indoctrinate a friend into the ways of German confectionery.

I did marginally prefer the December box, though.  I found there were a lot hazelnut/praline items in the January box - not a very big criticism as I LOVE praline, but a bit more variety might have been nice.  

One could say the same of variety for December's box, with lots of winter-spiced items on offer there, but with the Christmas theme that just felt so appropriate.  That said, at least the Duplo were white chocolate, meaning that the praline wasn't always paired with the same flavours!

Without having actually done the maths, I would also tentatively venture that this box potentially represents less value for money.  I'm basing this mainly on the fact that at least one of the items is actually becoming more readily available in the UK at this stage.

I'm still very much recommending though! :)

UK Travel: Bewdley - Clementine's Coffee

High Street | Facebook Page

photo from Clementines' facebook page

Clementine's Coffee was our first stop off on a recent trip to Bewdley, after checking in to our hotel.  Having had an early start we were in need of caffeine and calories, and Clementine's certainly looked after us!

photo from Clementines' facebook page

Inside the decor is simple and homely, with a "home-made" aesthetic - upcycled non-uniform items and natural wood finished tables garnished with old-fashioned fabrics and modest floral centre-pieces.  It's a café that feels cared for, and loved through and through.

photo from Clementines' facebook page

The feeling of a place well-kept transfers also to the service.  Clementine's clearly value their customers - polite manner can be expected, and the food is delicious and artfully presented: the salad that accompanied my perfectly-cooked jacket potato is possibly the most colourful that I have ever seen!

photo from Clementines' facebook page

BACK TO INDEX

A Few Words on Cultural Misunderstandings

This week Lionel Messi came under criticism for a seemingly generous gesture made during an interview on an Egyptian television station:  He offered his match boots to the presenter to be sold off at auction for charity.

photo from BBC article

Full story on BBC's website

The problem:  in Egypt and other Arab countries the feet are seen as low and dirty, as they are closest to the ground.  As a consequence, deliberately showing the soles of ones shoes to a person is considered incredibly rude.  There are also insults that incorporate vocabulary for shoes, and shoes have been thrown at political figures as a sign of disrespect (for example, George Bush).

But is Messi's ignorance of the Arabic culture so grave here?

Should an increasingly globally aware society instead understand the lack of malice in the gesture, and accept it for what was intended, as the TV host appeared to do - something for which she has been heavily criticised.

photo from BBC article

With the public involvement of politicians, could it be the case that this incident is actually being blown out of proportion for political gain?

These are difficult questions to answer, and I am far from qualified to do so!  I would love to hear your thoughts though, especially if you are of arabic origin.

Either way, it is food for thought.  Does a global media teach us to be more accepting of other cultures?  Or is it a tool to spread mistrust of that which we do not understand across the world, thus digging deeper the cultural rifts that are already present?

I suspect that there are excellent arguments for both sides.

Lonely Planet App

Most of you travelling enthusiasts will already be familiar with the name Lonely Planet.  For those of you that aren't, they are a force to be reckoned with in the world of travel journalism and, like any successful company in this day and age, they have an app.  As far as I'm aware this is available to download for apple and android devices.

The opening interface for the app is gorgeous.  It lists the cities with guides available alphabetically and with full colour photos, as the image to the left shows.  Any guides that you have already downloaded feature at the top of this page, and downloading is just two clicks away.  Nice and simple!

Selecting a guide to view opens a "discover" interface that shows a variety of options that will appeal to all kinds of tourists and can be explored in more detail at a touch.  These include a map loaded with location widgets, for the casual adventurer, a list of basic categories below for those looking for something specific (a restaurant, attractions, etc.), and a section labelled "interests" which I view as a list of itineraries tailored to tourists with particular hobbies or holiday goals (e.g. romantic attractions, museums or highlights).

Let's start from the top of the page, with the map.  As you can see to the right, the map's location widgets are coloured differently and show symbols relating to 6 fundamental categories, which feature below.  This is simple, but intuitive, allowing the user to examine in more detail only those places that relate to what they need.  If you need a restaurant, no need to tap through bars, shops and attractions until you find one!

Selecting the map will give you the option to download it to work offline, which is great.  Unfortunately, though, the map does seem a little sparse.  For the purpose of reviewing this app I picked somewhere that I have explored recently and fairly thoroughly - Seattle.  When there we stayed in Lower Queen Anne, a district rich in restaurants and bars.  This area doesn't have a great deal to show for it in the app.  Indeed, there are whole streets with no places of interest marked where I know that there were cafés, pubs, book-shops and more.

Unfortunately, this observation that there are, in my opinion, noteworthy locations that have been omitted is not exclusive to the map.  The symbols featuring underneath the map on the "discover" page link to the same locations, just categorised.  Trawling through I did perceive some bars and restaurants that I would recommend to anyone which were just not there - one of these being an excellent German Bier-Halle themed bar that I've seen rivalled nowhere else outside of Germany.  Surely, this should feature?

On the plus side, the functionality of the app is competent here.  The various category lists can be re-ordered according to preference:  recommended, nearby, price range, or sub-category.  Ideal if you're looking locally, working to a budget or have a hankering for a particular cuisine!

The "interests" recommendations (seen above and the the left) also left me a bit disappointed.  These are not the same for each guide and are supposedly tailored to the specialities of each location.  And yet when I think of Seattle I think gastronomy, coffee, breweries/distilleries, sport - none of which are represented in these recommendations.  Even the existing lists seem incomplete, with the EMP museum featuring in the "highlights" list, but nowhere to be found within "museums".

Overall, there are some holes in the content for this app.  I'm hoping that the content is being regularly updated and that certain venues just haven't been sufficiently tested to feature yet.  I do have to remind myself, though, that Lonely Planet is not the same as Trip Advisor, in that's it is not made up of user reviews, rather recommendations for tourists by professional journalists.  Some of the places I enjoyed just might not be noteworthy enough to feature.

I wouldn't replace my physical travel guide with this app just yet, but it is free to download, and could prove a useful companion whilst out and about.

Spanish Music

Today once more we're delving into the world of foreign language music, and as Spanish is a widely spoken language across the globe, you can expect some diversity in the tracks below.

Some Trending Sounds:

Hasta El Amanecer - Nicky Jam

This American born artist of Puerto-Rican descent just wants a lady to stay with him until dawn (Hasta el Amanecer).  You know... rumba, liquor, pleasure...that stuff.  All perfectly innocent I'm sure!

(Jenga is a form of pleasure, right?!!)

Por Fin Te Encontré - Cali Y El Dandee feat. Juan Magan

"I finally found you" - this one's actually pretty soppy.  There's a LOT of te amo and te quiero's in the chorus' (I love you's).  Where's Annie Lennox when you need her?

These Columbians are really quite morbid and suffocating in their ecstasy at their lady being "finally single".  There's a lot of imagery alluding to death, dying and heaven in this one.  Romantic!

Bajo El Agua - Manuel Medrano

I got nothin' witty to say about this one...Columbian artist...love song...

Sounds nice though!

From the vaults:

 Adentro - Calle 13

My kind of rap!  Puerto Rican Calle 13 go on a bit of a rant with Inside (Adentro).  They urge rappers to consider the impact of their messages and understand the reality of true hardship.  Respect.

Listen to my "in-progress" Spotify playlist HERE

For my "in-progress" YouTube playlist, click HERE

Please feel free to suggest new tracks to me

British Sign Language

I recently completed a beginners' British Sign Language (BSL) course online and it's given me the bug to continue with this fascinating language.  I thought it worthwhile to share my progress and learnings with you all.

The course in question was with British-Sign.  As I recall it cost around £20 and was a great initial insight into a language that I knew absolutely nothing about prior to commencing the course.

I did not know, for example, that BSL is not derivative of English at all, but has evolved in much the same way as a spoken language would, within the community that uses it.  In this way there are regional variations on sign language, much like with any spoken language.

This is demonstrated further, as BSL is unique to Britain, with other English-speaking countries (namely U.S.A and Australia) having their own organic sign languages.

There is a distinction, also, between the terms deaf and Deaf, the former (in a nutshell) being those who have become deaf later in life and identify to varying degrees with the Deaf community, many of whom will remain part of the hearing community and lip-read as well as being able to sign.  The latter are those who have always been Deaf and whose social interactions remain almost exclusively within the Deaf community.

To continue my learning I have begun with the Teach Yourself book and DVD series, which is wonderfully set out to explain the grammar and body language of BSL, visually demonstrating the signs brilliantly on page as well as through video.

The photo below shows the kind of diagram included in the book, with indicators used to denote features of body language - an important feature of BSL.  An example below is the crossing out of the word "you".  This is to indicate that the word does not need to be mouthed by the signer.

Below are a couple of short videos of me practising my new vocabulary, along with some notes on technique that I have picked up.  If you know BSL, and spot a mistake in my signing, please do feel free to comment, as I am learning and currently do not know any other signers for practise!

Hello, how are you?

Some technique tips:

- Remember to use facial expressions to communicate along with your signing:

- Questions can be shown by raising your eyebrows.

- Answers can be made clearer by nodding to show affirmation, or shaking your head to contradict.

- Resist the urge to translate from "pidgin" English.  The signs need to become "vocabulary" in their own right for signing to flow naturally.

- Mouthing words is usual, but is not always required.  Two such examples, are the words "me" and "you", as pointing is sufficient denotation for these.

- Pointing in BSL is not considered rude - you are simply communicating, there is no other stigma attached.

I'm well, thank you!

Language Nerd Swag: Personal Library Kit

Just what the overly-generous lender of books has always wanted:  a loan-shark style kit to guilt-trip their borrowers into returning their precious books, with a dash of Library nostalgia thrown in for good measure!

There are no lump-hammers or leg posts included here.  What you will get, though, is a date stamp, ink pad, pencil, 20 pockets and 20 checkout cards.  A "fun and gentle" reminder to your borrowers that they do need to give your shit back, and by a certain date no less!  Guaranteed to help you to keep friends for longer!

photo from foyles.co.uk

...and even if this won't actually force your borrowers to give that beloved literature back, it's a neat way to keep track of who you've lent to.  If you're anything like me you constantly forget.

The only downside I can see to this product is that, for me, books are art.  It's the reason I don't own a kindle, the reason I don't use book plates or metal book marks, the reason I don't lend books to "spine-benders" and the reason why I always threw a massive hissy-fit whenever I'd be asked in literature classes to annotate a text.  On these grounds I might be a bit too much of a purist, and not enough of a lover of the library aesthetic to be gluing pockets to the inside covers of my favourite books.

photo from foyles.co.uk

The Personal Library Kit can be purchased on the high street at Foyle's (£11.95) and Waterstones (also £11.95).  Amazon, of course, also sell at £10.99

ISBN: 9781601060723

Refills are available, but are pretty hard to come by, even online, for any reasonable price.  It'd probably cost you less to just buy an entirely new kit when you run out.