Black Saturdays

At this year's Thanksgiving Dinner at the Greiffenegg-Schlössle, US Consul General James W. Herman eloquently calmed German angst concerning the new administration taking power in January 2017. He praised the idea of Thanksgiving as giving thanks for all the good things you have received during the past year. Mr. Herman encouraged the German people to adopt the celebration of this fest.

Consul General James W. Herman at the Greiffenegg-Schlössle

Pardon? Didn't he know that we have been celebrating the Erntedankfest (harvest festival) on the first Sunday in October from time immemorial, although admittedly mostly in rural areas and without much publicity?

The fact is that over the past years, the German people, or instead department stores and vendors, have adopted American occasions for business, i.e., Valentine's Day, Halloween, and most recently, Black Friday. 

In particular, this year, Red Baron saw the shops full of creepy articles they could never sell for Halloween, showing that the rooting of this custom is not very deep in my country. I also noticed that Black Friday sales are picking up pace in Germany.

Misunderstood Black Friday: for a whole week

We do not need Black Friday in Freiburg because we have black Saturdays throughout the year. Going downtown on a Saturday means you'd better polish up your French and Alemannic dialect for any communication. In particular, the Swiss invade the department stores at Kaiser-Joseph-Straße and Freiburg's restaurants. Black Saturdays are bright Saturdays for Freiburg's merchants. Now at Advent time, the Swiss assault has increased and - thanks to Trump ante portas - is nourished by a Swiss franc getting stronger to the euro every day.

Around Bertoldsbrunnen this morning.

I must admit that I profited from the Black Friday sales on the Internet by completing my private weather station with a wind gauge, paying 25% off. My actual gain was less, with the US dollar getting stronger than the euro daily. Thank you, Mr. Trump.

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