Germany as summer destination? Oh really!!! That was exactly my reaction when I first learned about the North or East Sea islands’ destination. And believe it or not though the weather is never a guarantee (meaning peak season 22 degrees and often rain showers,) everything is booked out six months ahead. Sylt is certainly one of these posh islands characterized by modest weather, beautiful nature, breathtaking landscape, ostentatious people and Côte d’Azur prices. It’s absolutely beautiful for hiking or being in touch with nature, but a two week summer vacation there will make me depressed for the rest of the year.
Therefore my husband and I consider often long weekends instead of long vacations in the northern Germany. It’s pretty amazing how everything is so well connected and very well accessed. There are about 3200 hiking and biking paths throughout forests that connect little towns in the northern area. But on that I’ll go more in depth another time.
Today we’re in Malente, a beautiful quite spot where five lakes connect and are surrounded by forestal area. The little town of Malente is mainly a spa and watering place, but not only. It’s also a place where the national football team trained for the word championship for decades (from 1970 to 1994, resulting in two world cup titles in 1974 and 1990, to be precise) or recently HSV (the bigger Hamburg club) gathered in emergency training as seriously risking of being downgraded to the second league. Looks like the magic spirit of Malente brought some much needed luck to the Hamburg team, as result DINO (dinosaur) remained in the first league.
Being blessed with breathtaking nature and first class infrastructure makes the local businesses in the area less assertive and inviting. They’re booked out so they can play by their own set of squared rules, something you forget when you come from a big and liberal city like Hamburg. Meaning the restaurants close at 9:30 pm and waiters get a mean satisfaction (Schadenfreude) ”punishing” you with an empty stomach for your three minutes of delay. You might wonder and think that first you’re the customer who’s always right and second it’s vacation time with long polar nights, so no need for being super punctual for dinner. Wrong. Germans in Malente seems to enjoy punctuality even while in vacation and they’re ready to throw a book at you.
Last night while enjoying a large ”Spagetti con Frutti di Mare” at Villa Kolonial and the reflective sunset in the background I couldn’t stop overhearing two conversations with late guests:
9:33 pm – Guest 1: Good evening! Could we still eat something?
Waitress: Sehr ungern! Die Küche sollte zu sein. (Not with pleasure, the kitchen should be closed)
9:34 pm – Guest 2: Could we order something?
Waitress: Well no, the kitchen is closed since 9:30 pm (implying the 4 minutes guest’s delay)
Guest 2: But we are quite hungry, may be a salad or something without too much effort.
Waitress: We have only cold drinks…
Welcome to Malente! Come to enjoy our modest summer, breathtaking scenery, but make sure to be punctual 😉
Albania Reloaded 