Shopping/Das Einkaufen

          A blog by a woman must include a post about shopping. If you actually believe that, I need you to accept that you're slightly sexist. And now that I've made you feel guilty, here's a post about the differences of shopping in the US and Germany.
          First of all, size is everything. In America, everything is huge and each store is far away enough from each other experts suggest you should pack a light lunch when preparing to shope. In Germany, and most of Europe, everything looks condensed and shrunken together, but in a cozy and cute sort of way. I kind of love it. Back home, the closest store to my house is 15 minutes away by car, and 45 minutes when walking in blistering heat and under the sun. In contrast, my grandparent's home in Germany is a five-minute walk to the nearest grocery store. Edeka, is an adorable store. For everyone in Germany, it's a well-sized store. For me, I feel like I'm walking into a miniaturized version of and American grocery store. Even the products are tiny but they taste 10x better than the stuff in America. The produce actually smells like fruit and vegetables and look even brighter. When you go to the meat section of Edeka, there are about fifty different types of sausage and dozens of lunch meat assortments. Near the end of the store, right before the checkout line, there are delicious varieties of chocolates. Literally every thing you get tastes amazing. I love it. Then right at the checkout line are your essentials, like more chocolate, razors, chapsticks, condoms and lube, and an automatic box that releases your choice of cigarettes.

Things I've got from DM and other places.

       Another store that I am obsessed with is DM. It's a drugstore, like CVS or Walgreens but again, about 10x better. First of all, it's so clean and white and pure looking, it's like a pretty hospital, without the depression.  The products in the store are amazing. I love them so much. Once again, everything looks miniaturized, more like a travel sizes than full-sized products. The makeup is beautiful. I have found one of the best mascaras I have ever used in DM. It's from a makeup brand called Catrice and it's called Glam Doll Waterproof mascara and it's only about 5 euros. 5 euros for a mascara that's amazing, actually waterproof, and makes my eyelashes look amazing and almost like fake eyelashes. A lot of makeup products from certain brands, like Catrice, P2, and Essence, are made of good quality and in the $5-10 range. To summarize, everything is pretty amazing in this store. I love it.
          I've also gone clothes shopping. I have to say, I've been a bit disappointed with that world. It's not that the clothes aren't good or that there's not a huge selection. But I hardly ever find things that I actually like. There are the usual stores like H&M and Zara and other stores and department stores like Karstadt, There are a lot of clothing choices but I hardly ever find something to wear, and most of the times the clothes aren't that great or affordable.
          Overall, for things like food and toiletries, I think Germany is the best place to get these things, and everything is super cute and affordable. When it comes to clothes, I don't think it's really worth it worth it to fly over to Europe. But it's definitely worth the trip if you want good food. And if you're not someone who wants good food, I don't even know how to begin talking to you.